Ordering an LCD screen for your laptop is a lot trickier than you might think. Manufacturers use more than one type of screen for the same model. This makes no sense and is annoying, but that’s the world of laptops for you.
We get lots of customers who order a screen, thinking they’re saving time and money, then bring it in for us to install. In over 75% of cases, we find they got the wrong screen and have to order one for them after all. The customer then has the hassle of shipping it back to the vendor, often having to pay postage and possibly even restocking fees.
In the end, they spent more money and delayed the repair process. Prices are not that different when you try this. The hassle is not worth the $20-$30 you might save. Think you’re smarter than the average bear, and that you know how to order the right screen? Think again!
Even we don’t order screens that way. We never search for the part by using the model number of the laptop. We remove the existing screen, then we find the exact part number of the LCD panel itself, which is on the back of the panel. Even then, we’re not fully satisfied. We do multiple searches on different vendor sites and look for a picture of the back of the panel to insure the connectors are in the right place.
So the words of advice are… don’t try this at home folks! We don’t mark parts up that much, so our prices are still comparable to what you would pay. Remember, laptop repair shops know where to look for the best deals better than the average person. Just bring your laptop to us and we’ll handle the hassle that comes with laptop parts ordering…. and believe me, laptops are a hassle to fix. Much more so than desktops.
About Steve Frantzis
Great service! Very nice guys fixed my computer very fast. Prices were fair...
This is the right way to order laptop screens. Checking the pictures may be a little extra, but going off the part number on the LCD itself is the only way to go, learned that the hard way along time ago. We also try to order from “no dead pixel” guaranteed vendors when possible, or at least a shop that will exchange an LCD with dead pixels, got burned by that one along time ago too. Had to eat shipping and restocking for a brand new screen with 3 glaring dead pixels in it!
Thanks for the comment. True, looking at pictures is usually not necessary, but if the descriptions are not clear and we feel a bit “iffy” about the part or the vendor, we’ll do it as an extra measure. For vendors we know and trust, we don’t check them.
Thanks for the comment. Good to hear from other techs out there.
Thanks for the comment. Glad to have you on board. I’m just starting out on blogging, so it’s good to get responses so soon.