Inspiron Screen Pulse & Flash

Question

I have an older Inspiron 5737 laptop and the screen is now pulsing with colorful (blue and purple) vertical lines. They completely cover the screen in approximately 2 second intervals. It was an intermittent problem but now appears to be permanent. It happens immediately upon boot up even if I enter the BIOS screen. Nothing appears on the screen except blackness during bootup until the Windows 7 log in screen appears which doesn't seem right. I have hooked it up to an external monitor and that screen was fine. Is anyone familiar with this malady? I'm trying to determine if it's a hardware or driver issue.

Thanks!

ejn63 · Accepted Answer

If it shows up before Windows loads, it's a hardware problem. Run a screen diagnostic (hold D through powerup). Do the test screens show up OK?

If yes, check the cable that runs between the mainboard and display panel for damage. If it's intact, chances are the GPU is on its way out -- replace the mainboard.

If the cable is damaged, replace it and that should solve the problem.

ejn63 · Accepted Answer

If the same fault shows on the setup screen, during the diagnostics and under Windows -- replace the display panel (and you may want to replace the display wiring harness as well while you've got the system apart).

TommyLunchBucket · Answer

Thanks for responding....

When I run the startup screen diagnostic I see several screens flashing (blue gray red and green) but the pulsing is present and there are horizontal lines at the top and a textured background ... so I'm not entirely sure of what I'm looking at. After a 10 or 15 seconds the computer powers off.

TommyLunchBucket · Answer

Based on your suggestions I pushed the screen back and forth on its hinges a handful of times and the problem went away. So your diagnosis looks correct. I may just replace the harness to start since it's a cheap item. We'll see.

Regardless I really appreciate your help!

Inspiron

Inspiron Screen Pulse & Flash

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