Fitting a different laptop screen - Acer M5

tuner2000i

tuner2000i

tuner2000i

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Fitting a different laptop screen - Acer M5-581TG

hello guys!

I am a new member, it's nice to be part of OC community, especially since this seems to be the most appropriate place to post my 'story'.

It starts like this. I basically bought a laptop for spare parts, an Acer M5-581T(G) for which i paid almost nothing, 25 gbp. the guy said the screen is cracked and the battery is dead. After I checked the laptop, I noticed that only the screen needs replacement since the battery and everything else works fine. The laptop has an i5 cpu @ 1.7, 4gb ddr3, 128 gb SSD and an nvidia graphic card of 1gb... so I decided the laptop is worth saving.

I knew that 15.6 led screens are sometimes a problem, but i did not expect anything like this. after i opened the laptop, i found out that the display is a LUCOM - F2156WH6-A20AG1-A (or an LG LP156WH6-TJA2), which is impossible to find and very expensive. I searched all the internet back and forth, contacted manufactures and suppliers in china, but nothing. 90% of them don't have the screen anymore, and the few which do ask around 280$(no lid) - 350$ (lid included). No matter how you put it, we all know that is way too much for a 1366 x 768 led screen.

In the beginning i wanted to use the laptop as stationary over HDMI, but apparently I can't access bios or any other startup features, since they don't show up on the external monitor, even after unplugging the laptop screen.
I have changed laptop screens in the past, but I always found the exact part number.
The screen uses an eDP 30 pin connector plug. I could not find too much information online, but I read somewhere that another screen should work as long as the connector, resolution and backlight are the same.
I wanted to ask somebody if that would work, but instead i took a risk and ordered this screen from ebay. it did not arrive yet, since i live in denmark, so i don't know if the screen works or not.

The problem is that ofc, the screen does not really fit in the case. you can see a full comparison of the original and the new screen here.
They are both slim screens, so the new one will fit there, the problem is that the LP156WH6 screen has a totally different sliding fitting, which you can see here and an integrated webcam, which makes the screen height bigger with about 10mm.

Considering all this, I was thinking to modify the case a little and glue the new screen there. This will still leave a 5mm gap on top and bottom of the screen. That is not a problem, but it will look bad from outside, so I also ordered a 0.5mm plexiglass panel which i plan to put between the screen and the frame, while painting the gaps with black, alowing me to atach the webcam as well.

I am not sure if this thing will work, but i know it's a little crazy. Thats why i wrote here, to ask for your advice, and if it works to let other people know, since I am not the only one desperately searching for this screen.
My biggest concern until fitting the screen, is if the new one will work with this laptop. I have not tried fitting other screens then the original ones before, so i have no idea. Can somebody please confirm this?

Thanks!! and i will keep you guys informed and also post pictures when the screen comes in
 
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Honestly its a lottery when it comes to laptops and screens (and other parts) - sometimes manufacturers put their own propitiatory touches to standard parts for no apparent reason :| it "should" work but until you try for yourself hard to say for definite.

Oh and good luck, I love dabbling with stuff like that - can be an interesting learning experience and quite satisfying if you do end up with a success.
 
Hello. So here is some news. The screen (lp156wh3) just came in, so the first thing i did was to test it. The screen works ok, i can access the bios and startup options, but the backlight is not working. I will try to make some research and find out if there is a way to light up the backlight in another way

edit: i forgot to mention that the backlight from the old screen works, so this is definitely a compatibility issue, there is no problem regarding the backlight fuse on the motherboard or anything like this. this means i just need to figure out how to light up the backlight in some other way. I don't really need to be able to adjust it from the keyboard. if it stays at 100% all time it's the best

edit1:
after comparing the two displays datasheets, I noticed that there is actually a very big difference regarding the displays.
eventually according to the display board the original screen is a LP156WH6-TJA1 and the replacement is a LP156WHU-TPA1 <<< i have added a hyperlink to the full datasheets. It seems that the original screen uses a different type of backlighting which does not require a LED driver. After checking the pin configuration in the datasheets, i can see that all pins from PIN17 to PIN30 have a different configuration because of the two different types of backlight.
I am still trying to figure out how to externally send power to the led driver

edit2: finally managed to power up the led driver from external source, using the power input and the usb voltage. the voltage is a little over the normal parameters, but under the maximum supported by the display (according to the datasheet).
Sorry about the mess, here's a picture. More details will come up later
 
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I hope there is no problem for making a double post, since this one is more like a "tutorial"

The Procerdure

So I decided to write a short description of the steps i did for all people curious to know and for the ones who might be in the same situation as me.

Since the screen was outputting perfect image even from the beginning, I can personally declare this as an almost compatible screen. The only issue left was to power up the lcd backlight separately.

As it can be seen in the LP156WHU/LP156WH3 datasheet, there are 3 elements on the PCB which need to recieve signal/voltage in order to start the led backlight: VLED, LED_EN, PWM.

Before working with these, the first thing I did was to fit the new screen inside the laptop case. This screen is a little wider than the original one, so some cutting had to be made in order to make it go all the way down to the aluminium cover. In this case the cover will act as a heatsink for the screen as well.





The next step is to solder wires to the points on the screen PCB mentioned above.
  • VLED represents the power input for the backlight. Normally it should be 12V. According to the datasheet, the screen supports up to 21V, so just use the power coming from the adapter (19V). You can also use the battery voltage (11.4V, 12.5V when charging), but in case the battery is defective, the screen will not work until you change the battery. I advice you not to connect the screen directly to the power plug, because in this way the screen will always have power inside it. Find a power spot on the motherboard insted (this one will supply power only after the laptop is on).
  • LED_EN represents the signal sent to the LED Driver which tells if the backlight should be on or off. According to the datasheet it should be between 3V to 3.6V. This one can actually be higher, even up to 24V, it does not really matter since it works mostly as a true/false input. I used 5V to supply it, since it's much more easier to find on the motherboard. (most laptop screens use 5V).
  • PWM represents the intensity of the backlight. Unless you want to implement a variable voltage device so you can control the level of the backlight, just "set the brightness to 100%" by supplying 5V.
  • GND - ground must be connected as well with the one from the power source. In this case, just connect it to the motherboard ground.





19V power supply from the motherboard:



5V power supply from the motherboard:





I used separate wires for the motherboard and screen which i connected to each other without soldering. In this case, if any further repairs must be made to the LCD or motherboard, there is no need to unsold the wires.





This is how it looks all together.


I still did not receive the plexiglass panel, so this is the final step for now. I think the 0.5mm panel is too thick, i should have bought the 0.25mm.

* Final result (see below)
 
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excellent! glad to see it's almost complete. a good learning experience for you as well. you can bet people in similiar situations in the future will find this thread through google and start asking questions.
 
Thank you all for your support! The truth is that it's my first attempt to do something like this, and I would be more than happy if it will help anybody else.
It has been a good learning experience for me as well, and I now believe that for other laptops not as "special" as this one, the screens should be even more interchangeable (possibly with 100% compatibility) as long as they have the same characteristics and connectors. In my case, this was the best screen I could find. The laptop has been on for more than 20 hours now, without any problems.

Laptop and screen manufacturers don't release compatibility information to the public, that's why it is so hard to find identical or similar screens, since all the research and comparisons have to be made manually. I believe it's a matter of "making money" in the service/repair industry.

I should mention that I am an IT engineer, so basically being around computers and electronics is an everyday activity for me.

edit: I finished the laptop today. You can see the steps and the result in the pictures below. There was quite some work to be done at the lid, especially at cutting and modifying the frame. Making the plexiglass panel proved to be tricky as well. Everything went smooth until I had to glue the panel to the display. The paint cracked on top of the display, making the glue visible through the panel. In order to hide this I had to make a compromise and put some tape on top of the screen. In the end everything works well and I am actually happy of the result :D













 
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it was worth it, since the laptop is working and it can be used again. And i got all this the 'cheap' way (200 pounds cheaper). it did take quite some time and patience to make all this, more than making the research i can say( considering also the delivery for all the parts)
 
awesome job. Nice looking laptop to start with. I think you'd even make a profit if you decided to sell it. Fund towards the next refurb project now you've got the bug for it hehe
 
Hi,
I have exactly the same problem... Acer M5 LG Display LP156WH6-TJA2 that I can not find in the market.
"...ing to the display board the original screen is a LP156WH6-TJA1 and the replacement is a LP156WHU-TPA1 <<< i have added ..."
Would you recommend a different screen model as replacement?
I'm not familiar with this kind of repair but I believe the laptop still worths it...
Tks
 
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