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Dell Inspiron 1525 Backlight Issues
Ok, here is the scoop. I just purchased this laptop used this past weekend from a friend of a friend. When I first viewed it, I was outside and the screen was hard to see but I figured it was due to the sunlight. After I got it home and tried adjusting the brightness I noticed a problem. Here is what it is doing.
When I have it set to the lowest setting, it is about 1/2 brightness I figure, which happens to be the brightest it will go at this time. As I go up each step it gets a little darker. Once I hit mid way up, the screen gets brighter again, but not quite as bright as the lowest setting. Then as I continue to bump it up to what is supposed to be the brightest level, it goes dim again. Another thing I noticed is that when I unhook the AC adapter from it and go to battery power, the screen gets a tiny bit brighter still. Normally it should be the other way around!
I have tried researching this for the past few days and all I can come up with is that someone possibly replaced the LCD in the unit (Seller claims it wasn't, but not sure I trust him). While the replacement LCD may be the right model, the inverter board is probably not. Is it true that the BIOS has a listing for compatible inverters, and that if you don't order everything by the Dell part number, the inverter may not be compatible? Does this sound like it could be what my problem is?
If I do need to get a new inverter that is compatible, how do I determine what model to order? I don't have the original LCD/inverter to get a Dell part number. I see them on eBay for $5+, so it's a cheap fix as long as I only have to buy one that is known to work with the 1525. I don't want to have to buy 5 or more to just get one that works.
Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks for reading.
EJN63, are you saying that the inverter can be purchased separately from the LCD? Do I just need to get the exact model that corresponds to mine then? I'm not very familiar with the newer laptops that need matching LCD / Inverters to work. Been a while since I have had to replace one. Thanks!
Well, I have had a bit of insomnia tonight, so I decided to play with this some more. I went ahead and dismantled the LCD and found out that it is a AU Optronics B154EW04 V.2. I'm doubting that this is the factory LCD, simply because there aren't any Dell part number stickers anywhere on the LCD or inverter. As for the inverter, I have no idea what model it is. The info I could pull off of it is (I can post a picture if necessary):
XS-60158 16011-87F-2003407-10564-01
M08-MPS
T731031.00 LF
E200003407-05I was unsuccessful in finding any of the numbers on it associated with any other inverters for sale.
So, on to the good stuff. I realized I had a few new Dell D610 LCD displays in my closet, so I pulled one out, hooked up my 1525 cable to it and fired it up. I was kind of surprised to see it boot up and work like it belonged there! Granted, it is only a 14" screen, so it was not an actual option for a replacement. While it was on, I tried adjusting the backlight. Nothing! It remained at full brightness the entire time.
Next I connected my 1525 inverter to the D610 LCD and it turned out and was only about 1/2 as bright, same as when the 1525 LCD is connected. The up and down brightness controls also did not work. But this at least clued me into the fact that the inverter is most likely my problem.
Next step, I put the D610 inverter on my 15.4" LCD to see what would happen. It booted at full brightness and again, no brightness controls were available.
Last thing to try was this. I had an older Toshiba 15.4" LCD lying around as well. I connected it up with both the D610 & 1525 inverter. Both worked just as they had before. The original 1/2 brightness, the D610, full brightness.
In the end I opted to leave in the Toshiba LCD because the 1525 one had some non-removable marks on it, and the inverter from the D610 LCD. I figured it is better to have it locked into full brightness than only 1/2.
Now onto my questions. At some point in the near future, I want to get this back to stock with a working backlight. Since I know my inverter is probably bad, how do I go about getting one that is matched up to my LCD display? Did this LCD even come in the 1525 models? Any further thoughts are appreciated!
Ok, final question! Hehe...
The panel is good, but the inverter is bad. How do I determine which inverter I need to order to replace it? Obviously just any Dell inverter won't work as seen by using one from the D610 screen. Does any of the info from the inverter that I posted match up with a specific Dell model number? Thanks again for all the assistance!
I have a similar problem. I dropped my laptop a while ago. I got a new inverter and a new screen. The laptop starts up without any bios but windows comes up. I can't use the dim switch on the keyboard or on windows. I also have a split screen syndrome. I have a whole screen on the left and 1/3 rd of one on the right and bottem, like I tiled it as a picture but I can see and use everything perfectly. I tried foolin around with the resolution, I got the latest firmware for the graphics and it still has this problem. The inverter is not the same as the original, BUT the original does the same exact thing when I switched it back. I'm inclined to think it is the inverter... yet the original one does the same thing so I can't tell if that's correct since I don't know if the original didn't get damaged.
ejn63
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Posted May 12th, 2010 07:00
The inverter is keyed to the screen - and yes, the screen must be one known to be supported by the 1525, or it won't work. Some of these have ambient light sensors and some don't - you cannot interchange the two screen types.