Toshiba Satellite Problems

[mikex]

I hav a Toshiba Satellite A55 S1063 Serial Number: X5069702H BIOS v.1.40

Celeron M 1.5 G

240 mb ram

40 G HDD

This machine has a very dim screen. Even during boot.

I cannot get to safe mode because the keyboard does not respond either.

All the while it boots and for about 5-7 minutes after XP loads it constantly beeps. 1 beep about every second.

I can navigate in XP with the touchpad and a lot of strain on my eyes when holding the laptop at an angle to the light.

Any suggestions? I am leaning toward the LCD invertor board but that does not explain the keyboard. I did not open it up yet.

M

Same issue when on AC power or battery.

Edited April 11, 2007 by mikex

[bozodog]

Sometimes a bad battery will cause problems even when plugged in with the AC converter.

[shanenin]

The constant beeping could be caused by a faulty keyboard, I have had that problem in the past. If you can disconnect it and try a usb keyboard for a diagnostic method. If that works, you can look in to getting a new keyboard. It may just be a loose connection.

I think the most probable cause of the dim screen is the inverter. Short of trying a new one, I don't know of any way to test them. I put a multimeter on a good one once, but it did not show any voltage.

Good luck, I hate working on laptops, I usually pay my friend to help me take them apart if it is for a client (I am not good with delicate mechanics).

Edited April 12, 2007 by shanenin

[Falcon1986]

Before I was linked to a guide on disassembling my Toshiba Satellite 1800-S204 here, I had opened my laptop about 3 times.

If you're feeling up to it (please don't do it if your PC is still under warranty) you can go ahead and open it up to see if the keyboard cable (it's actually a circuit ribbon) is plugged into the socket properly. Furthermore, you can take a can of compressed air in there and see if blasting some of the dust out helps.

I, too, have noticed the dimming of my laptop monitor over the 5 years I have had it. There is even a red tint that I can faintly detect anytime the laptop starts from cold boot or comes out of a screensaver. This was a known problem with Toshiba laptops for a long time now, so much so that Toshiba had a recall for free LCD replacement back in 2005-06 if I remember correctly. I think this free replacement has ended already, though.

[Pete_C]

Does moving the display change the brightness?

I have seen this on several toshibas and concluded it is probably a design flaw either a poorly placed / loose backlight mirror or polarizer or a problem with the cable from the display adapter to LCD

[mikex]

Will open today to check the ribbon cable for the keyboard and LCD. Moving the LCD open or closed changes nothing. Even putting a little tension to twist the LCD changes nothing.

M

[kosimov]

It sounds more like it could be the backlight itself, rather than the inverter. The inverter tends to either work, or completely fail. It produces a fairly high AC voltage for the CCF fluorescent tube which is behind the display. That tube has a finite lifetime; you generally will see the screen brightness slowly go down over time, and eventually, it may fail completely. This is more or less like a fluorescent light tube you would find in an office building etc. Only this one has a "cold cathode", meaning it does not need to have a filament inside of it constantly being heated by electricity; it operates with "cold cathodes".

Of course, there is no rule with computers that can't be broken! But, given the cost of inverters vs. backlights, I'd try the backlight first. If you know of a repair shop or store which has a repair department, they may be able to test it for you. Or, you may find testing instructions on the internet. I did a google search and got so many hits I can't possibly look through them. I'll leave that to you!

good luck!

Larry Holmes