One of the laptop computer problems that you can do something about however involves your hard drive. It is common knowledge that laptop hard drives tend to be more prone to failure than desktop hard drives, since they are subject to a lot more vibrations. Some laptops make hard drive replacement fairly easy and you won’t need to do much except to slide out the defective drive. Some laptop hard drives are a lot harder to get to however, and you will have to take it in for servicing.

Other forms of laptop computer problems that can be remedied fairly easily are those that have to do with defective or insufficient memory. If you are in need of more memory for your applications or your existing memory chip has failed, all you have to do is add more chips or replace the defective ones.

The good news is that laptop LCD screens seldom suffer from electronic issues. If your display does not seem to be working properly, the most common causes are defective inverters, backlights or video controllers. There may be instances however wherein, the screen incurs some damage or the certain pixels in the LCD start to die. In these instances, your best option is to go for LCD replacement.

If your screen seems to be in order but you can’t see an image clearly, you likely have a problem with the backlight or inverter. In almost all cases, these laptop computer problems will require you to bring your laptop in for servicing by a qualified technician.

The first thing you should look into is the video driver. The relationship between your video card, its software and the other components of your machine can be quite complex, and a seemingly inconsequential bug can cause a laptop black screen problem. Your best defense against such problems is to make sure that you have the latest drivers for your particular video card.

In some cases, the laptop black screen problem could be caused by an overheating video card. If you suspect that this is the cause, turn off the laptop for a few minutes before turning it back on again. If the laptop black screen problem persists, you may have a more serious cooling related issue that needs immediate attention.

Sometimes a laptop black screen problem can be caused by a defective LCD display. These devices can be quite sensitive and there is often no way to tell that they are faulty until they fail for good. In order to determine if your laptop black screen problem is a display related issue, try plugging an external monitor into your laptop and see if it works normally. If it does, the laptop black screen problem lies with your machine.

You will also want to check if the cable that runs between your LCD screen and the motherboard is seated properly and is otherwise free from defect. A surprising number of user complaints regarding a laptop black screen problem could have been resolved by simply reseating certain cables in their connectors properly or by replacing the cable. This is certainly a less inexpensive fix than ordering a replacement for your LCD screen! The lesson here is to exhaust all possibilities before pulling out your credit card. If you are lucky, the solution to your laptop black screen problem maybe a lot closer than you think.

But perhaps one of the most common Acer laptop problems is the dreaded “blackscreen.” In such cases, the problem is usually with the LCD display in which the backlight has burnt out. In order to repair these types of Acer laptop problems, the monitor will have to be opened up and the cold cathode tube replaced.

Before you attempt such a repair or take your laptop in to a qualified technician however, first make sure that you didn’t simply turn off the backlight by accident. You can do this by pressing the Fn button and F6 at the same time. This will toggle the display backlight on and off. You may also find it helpful to hold down the Fn button and press the left and right arrow keys, which will raise and lower the backlight brightness respectively.

One of the other fairly common Acer laptop problems has to do with the USB port failing. In such cases, the USB ports still do not work even after the proper drivers have been installed.

Some other Acer laptop problems involve Windows failing to detect the hard drive. There may be numerous reasons for this, but if the hard rive itself has failed, your only option would be to replace it. This problem is different from the fairly common “click of death”, in which case a brand new hard drive makes clicking noises, which is itself a sign that it isn’t running at the proper speed.

Still another common Acer laptop problem has to do with the DVD burner simply ceasing to work, being unable to burn new discs or to read discs that were previously written with the same drive. In these situations, you may have to replace the DVD burner.

The first obvious steps are to check the power connections. If everything is in order, the next step is to plug your laptop into an external monitor. If your laptop desktop shows up as normal on this external monitor, there is a good chance that the laptop display problems lie with your laptop display.

In most cases, the laptop display can be replaced with nothing more than a Phillips screwdriver. Of course the task may be a bit daunting if you have no experience with such repairs, but even inexperienced users can learn how to do this fairly easily.

Before you take on this task however, first make sure that there are no power related issues. Check to see if your battery isn’t dead, and that the AC adapter is plugged into the wall socket securely. You may also want to make sure that the monitor is set to the proper brightness level. You may be surprised at the number of “laptop display problems” that are caused by nothing more than the brightness control being turned all the way down!

If after checking out all the above possibilities, you may have to undertake a screen replacement. This will require a Phillips screwdriver, with which you will remove the screws located on the outside bezel of the laptop screen. After making sure that all the screws are removed, gently ease out the bezel and then remove the metal brackets that hold it in place underneath. Most laptops will have these brackets secured by two more screws, which will again have to be removed with a Phillips screwdriver.

At this point, you should be able to see the inverter. This will be located just below the display, with a cable connector right beside it. Disconnected this cable and lift out the display carefully, and plug the replacement display in the same way. Plug the inverter cable back in and screw everything back on. Finally put the bezel back in and you will hopefully have a fully functional laptop display!

• The connection between the video cable and the LCD is loose.
• The LCD screen is damaged.
• The motherboard is damaged–this is more likely if the graphics card is built into the motherboard.

In these types of laptop screen problems, the laptop may start up seemingly as normal, but the screen itself remains white all throughout boot-up. The first thing you will want to do in this case is to test your laptop with an external monitor. Connect the external monitor to the VGA port on your laptop and hit the switch that changes the video output from internal to external.

There are certain key combinations you will have to press in order to get the video to show up on your external monitor, with different laptop brands having different combinations. With some laptops, you may have to reboot the system in order for the video to appear on the external monitor.

In a few instances, these types of laptop screen problems may be caused simply by a poor connection between the video cable and the screen. Unfortunately, reestablishing this connection isn’t quite so simple, since the connector is typically located behind the LCD screen. To get to it, you will have to take apart the display panel, for which the service manual should come in handy.

The first thing to check out after you have opened up the display panel is to check the video cable. You may get lucky and find that simply reconnecting will fix your laptop screen problems. If that doesn’t work, the problem may be a more serious one with the LCD screen or the motherboard, in which case you would probably be better off taking your laptop to a qualified technician. Don’t be disheartened however; such parts can be replaced–although they may be expensive–but they will almost certainly get rid of your laptop screen problems.

A particularly distressing event is when you spill a large amount of liquid that has high sugar content. This can be particularly damaging to a laptop monitor and the other components of your laptop, since the sugar can form an electrically conductive coating. Some of the more common laptop monitor problems you may encounter in these instances are a dimmer or totally blacked out monitor. In some cases, the monitor may simply show a few blurry spots. Still other laptop monitor problems are typified by errors in operation.

What makes the problem harder to diagnose is that it is often apparent that there is nothing wrong with the LCD itself. There are no dead pixels and no other apparent sign of physical damage. Nevertheless, this is one of those laptop monitor problems that require quick attention.

In these cases, what usually happens is that the liquid has spilled onto the motherboard, the video card, or both. What you will need to do then is to disassemble it and clean it. If you have damaged the motherboard in some way however, and the video card is built into it, you will likely have to replace the entire motherboard, which can be an expensive proposition. If the video card is separate from the motherboard on the other hand, you may be able to get away with replacing just that. This is a more inexpensive and more feasible solution to your laptop monitor problems.

Another possibility is that the liquid has gotten into connector between the screen and the motherboard. While these types of laptop monitor problems are often possible to repair, they do require someone who is familiar with the disassembly of laptop covers and casings.

• If your laptop seems to start up as usual but the screen remains black, yet appears normal when you move it, the problem is likely the cable.
• If your laptop seems to start up normally but the screen stays very dark, with a slight color change and a faint image, the laptop screen problem is likely the result of a malfunctioning inverter or cable.
• If after you start up your laptop the screen remains dark with pink or reddish tints and then becomes dark after a while, the cause is probably a failing backlight.
• If your laptop screen flickers to life a few times but then becomes dark, and flickers again when moved or tapped lightly, this laptop screen problem is probably due to a damaged cable or LCD.
• If the laptop screen stays black or white with no image visible, yet an external monitor displays an image normally, the cause is probably a problem with the cable or LCD.
• If there are vertical or horizontal stripes present on your screen, which change when the screen is moved or tapped, the problem again probably lies with a failed cable or the LCD.

For diagnosing all of the above laptop screen problems, you may need to plug in an external monitor. To do this, you will have to press the “Fn” key along with one of the “F1? to “F10? keys in order for your laptop to “see” the external monitor.

Your laptop screen problem may also be the result of the “lid closed” switch being stuck, which means that the operating system may think that the lid is indeed closed. Simply try to push this switch a few times and see if that does the trick. In order to prevent this fairly common laptop screen problem, many newer laptops have magnetic switches that never get stuck.

Nevertheless, many a laptop monitor problem can be remedied, and you have a number of options to check out before you start to panic. Below are some of the steps to take in troubleshooting a laptop monitor problem.

If after turning on your laptop you don’t see any image on the monitor, try adjusting the brightness setting. This can either be done via the control panel or by the F key assigned to the monitor display.

Try plugging in an external monitor in order to determine if the laptop monitor problem is a hardware issue or not. If an image appears on the external monitor as normal, your laptop monitor is probably damaged and should be checked by a qualified technician.

In some cases, a software issue causes this laptop monitor problem. In order to find out if that is the case, simply restart your laptop and see if that solves the problem.

Try turning the power button on and off. If this causes your monitor to flicker, you may have a problem with the laptop’s switch. This could happen a lot more easily than you think, since the switch is typically located near a hinge where it could easily be damaged.

One other simply way to resolve your laptop monitor problem is simply by turning it off and removing the battery. Leave it powered down for a few minutes and then place the battery back inside and restart the laptop. In many case, this should be enough to solve your laptop monitor problem.

Finally, you may find it useful to know a few basic troubleshooting procedures for the occasional laptop monitor problem. This may save you a lot of time, effort and money.

• The laptop will start normally but the screen will remain black. If the laptop is moved, it will then turn on and work as normal. In this case, the cause of the laptop display problem is likely a failed cable.
• In cases wherein the laptop seems to start normally but then remains every dark with a slight color change and a faint image, the cause is likely a damaged inverter or a defective cable.
• In laptops wherein the display shows up dark with slight pink or red lines, the cause is probably a failed backlight.
• In cases wherein the screen flickers to life but then goes dark, and flickers again when it is moved or tapped, the cause is probably a failed cable or LCD.
• If your screen stays black, or conversely, turns white with no picture at all, check to see if it works with an external monitor. If it does, then the cause of your laptop display problem is either a failed cable or a defective LCD.
• If there are stripes visible on your laptop screen–which can either be vertical or horizontal–and they change when the screen is moved or tapped lightly, you likely have a failed cable or defective LCD.

In most of the above cases, you may learn a lot by plugging your laptop into an external monitor. For everything to show up normally, you may have to press a specific key combination–typically the “Fn” key along with one of the “F1? to “F10? keys–depending on the brand of your laptop.

Finally, check to see if your laptop display problem isn’t simply caused by the “lid closed” switch being stuck. Push it a few times to see if this causes any changes.