Dell Studio 1537 laptop display went black

This exact same thing happened to me.  I just got off the support chat with Dell rep, but couldn't get much help since I couldn't see the screen to allow them to log-in to my system & find out the problem.   I think they are sending me a LCD kit replacement - whatever that means.

This is unbelievable. About 6 weeks ago I ordered my first laptop, a Studio 1535. I received it and could not get a display, totally black. You could see there was something there in the black, but like no back light. An I/T friend of mine said the back light was out and that I should have gotten an LED screen. I called dell, returned that one for a full refund (because by then the deal I had gotten had expired, blah, blah, blah...) and ordered a new one. Turned out to be a 1537...got it yesterday, set it up....can't get it work with my home internet service, but the best part....I took it to class tonight and what happened? The screen started going black....off and on. Like a loose wire or something??? I couldn't use it at class. I got it home, tried to see what was up and lit for a bit then back into snippets of black and then total black. I am DISgusted. After reading about all of these other people with similar problems.....sounds like I should return it and go with another company maybe.

I've waited so long to get a laptop, I just can't believe it. NOT happy with Dell.

You can have the system declared defective and return it for a full refund or exchange for a new machine.  You have 21 days from shipment to avail yourself of this option.

I'm already past the 21 days (but have only had my laptop since Christmas).  Dell did send me a new part - then I had a tech guy that contracts with Dell come a few days later to fix it.  He commented that Dell didn't send all the parts - only sent the screen, usually they send the connection wires too because they are attached with some sticky goo & it doesn't stick very good after they've been removed???   That makes me feel real good about the replacement of this part.   I hate the idea that you spend this much money for a laptop & less than three months later I have a repair person sitting at my dining room table with this laptop in a million pieces.  Now I'm supposed to have confidence that its still going to work right. 

Last night my Dell Studio 1537 laptop display went black.  I thought it shut down because the battery (I knew it was running low).  I was carrying it into another room to plug it in when it happened.  Once I plugged it in to the ac I went to restart it, but realized it was already on – just the screen was still black.  So I manually restarted it – but still, nothing.  It turned on and I could hear the sounds, but nothing on the display.  Then I thought maybe I had accidentally hit a display on/off button or something to brighten/dim it, so checked externally, but there isn’t anything for that.  I removed the battery and plugged it in to just the ac – same thing no light, so I replaced the battery and just turned it off for the night.   This morning I tried it again, this time I did see something.  I could see the dell logo come up during the startup, but the screen was still as dark as being off.  It must have just been the lighting in the room that allowed me to see the logo.  I really hope I don’t have to send this back in for repairs, I have only had it a month.    Has anyone had a similar problem and resolved it?  Or if you have any suggestions, I would greatly appreciate any/all help!!

My relationship with Dell is seriously shaky and yet, what's the option? I have a two year warranty but need a laptop for work. My desktop is old and the Dell is so much faster. Anybody got the 0414 Inverter cable message? Thanks in advance!

I have only had my laptop for only a week and it has shut down on me more then twice. The screen went blank and I thought that maybe it was hibernating but when I hit buttons to turn it back on it wouldn't go on. I had to restart my computer and got an error message saying that my computer was not shut down properly. I am in the process of contacting dell to see what they are going to do about this. This is a brand new system that I just received and I shouldn't be having this type of problems.

I will let you all know what happens.....WHEN I can actually get in touch with someone!

Aloha

I tried once to reply to you.  My response was yanked for "harassing, unlawful, or otherwise objectionable" language.  I really can't understand that one because none of that was true.  Unless, of course, they think that I was doing any of that to Dell.  Anyway, I am having the same problem with a friend's laptop.  We changed out the memory and the battery and all of a sudden the screen went totally black.

We've done nothing else to the machine.  I'll let you know if anything else changes or if Dell decides to yank even this minor response.  I'll try everything in the book to fix it short of replacing the LCD screen.

I just got off the phone with Dell and the guy made me go into safe mode and said to see if it shuts off on it's own. Isn't the whole purpose of buying a BRAND NEW system not to have to go into safe mode a week after you buy it?

If it happens they will have to fix something with the hardware!! I will update you all tomorrow when he gives me a call.

I think I have it fixed on my machine. This is what I did. I pulled open the bottom part of the screen (where it says DELL) on the front--under there was something that I could push on with my finger to get the screen back. Then I noticed a white ? mechanism, pushed it to the left and it clicked and the screen has been fine since.

 I finally got a ticket number from Dell yesterday but I really don't want to send the machine back. The power setttings are working fine, goes into sleep mode, screensaver, etc., as I have set them.

So, I guess I would not recommend this-my machine is still under warranty but on the other hand, if you it works, it beats paying for another monitor. I have the really nice Studio 1537 monitor and lighted keyboard and really love the machine (I built it online and it has all I want) but Dell support was the one reason I hesitated for a few days before purchasing. I did not want another "relationship" with Dell after my last Inspiron. On the other hand, it had the best price for what I wanted.

Hope this helps.

i have had my dell studio laptop for less than 24 hours and i already have this problem. I tried rebooting and everything and nothing works. i have to say my trust in Dell is not very high at this point. 

Since my screen went black, I've gone through two AC adapter cords because my battery wouldn't charge anymore. Then I had the whole motherboard replaced & a new battery put in.  So far seems to be working well for the time being.  I've only had mine since Christmas.  Good Luck!!

Good luck dealing with Dell-  same problem on a two year old 1537 and Dell is no help what so ever.  Bought 3 laptops in the past two years and one desktop from Dell.  Won't buy anything else from Dell.  I would send it back and request your money  back.  Buy a different brand.

Trick from nearly 20 years ago still working today

Turn off the laptop and remove the battery. NO POWER to any components is the objective. Open the bottom of the laptop by removing a few small screws, if you don't have the right size tools you can get a small driver set at plenty of different home repair or electronics stores for less than $20. You should be able to spot the Hard Drive 3"by 5" rectangle and the RAM 1" by 5" rectangle(s) and the round, shiny CMOS battery. If you have trouble identifying any of these parts just search each term in Google images and see if you can spot them now. i.e. search for Google CMOS Battery and voila!

try this first (easy to do)
Pop the CMOS battery out and wait a few seconds. Pop the CMOS battery back in and if you are very careful you can power the laptop and test it now before putting the bottom cover back on. Do not touch any components while it is powered - this is just a quick test. Likely your video has returned. Turn it off and remove power. Put the bottom cover back on and you are done. This is a trick I learned a long time ago and it erases incorrect BIOS information from your computer and restores the computer hardware settings to defaults. This procedure will not erase anything on your hard drive so your Windows install and all your data remain unharmed.

try this second (a bit trickier to do)
Poorly seated RAM is often linked to video problems and often if this is the case you may be getting error beeps at startup. Reason? Perhaps the RAM wasn't popped into place all the way when assembled and after shipping it started sliding out or when you knocked it against something it unseated etc Carefully release the sidebars and without touching any of the faces remove and then reseat the RAM. It should click into place easily if done delicately but purposely. I consider this process an art if you can do it without aggravation. WARNING Messing with RAM is a risk in that you can statically nuke your laptop, but I have being doing this for decades with limited precaution and have never hurt a single stick. I hear some people are walking electrical hazards and wreck their coffee makers with static. You be the judge on this one.

Good luck and let me know how it goes. <ADMIN NOTE:Email id removed per privacy policy>

Hello everyone!

To everyone who has this (screen going black) problem....look no further!

I just fixed my dell studio 1537 that had the exact same problem.

The problem is the LCD cable. The cable is short and its only a matter of time before it gets loosen or unattached all together. To fix the problem you have to take the whole screen apart. It sounds hard but it only took me 15 minutes. I posted a link below with detailed instructions and pictures for you to follow.

Unhook all the power from the lap top and take the battery out. Unscrew (7 screws) and take the back off, unhook all the cables (make notes on a piece of paper to remember what goes where if you need to and take your time). Take the keyboard off and unhook it. Once you get to the screen part and have all the plastics off you will be looking for a short brown cable located at the bottom of the screen. This is the cable that is loose or unhooked. Tighten the cable and work backwards in putting everything back together. Good job! you are done.

I hope this helped...GOOD LUCK!

Go to Display then Display Assembly and follow instructions.

<ADMIN NOTE: Broken link has been removed from this post by Dell>

I just joined this forum so I could confirm that the above fix for the black screen problem is verified by me and confirmed to work. The problem was the "short brown cable" as mentioned in the previous post. Lots to take apart but relatively easy overall. Everything went back together easily and my friend was so stoked to have his computer fixed in less than one hour. Thanks APATOR4225.