Inverter Problem?
 

Wondering if any of you computer gurus out there might know if I have an inverter problem? The screen brightness on my old Acer laptop (about 5 years old, running XP) dims often, most of the time going back to 0%. The research I have done tells me that I may need a new inverter. I have no problem ordering the part online and installing it myself. Hubby and I recently replaced a laptop screen for our daughter so we know where the part is. Occasionally, the CPU speed will revert from "Max" to the lowest setting. Are the two issues tied together in any way? I appreciate in advance any help you can offer. We both have newer computers but Hubby wants to keep this one for traveling.

I'll take a stab at it, villages! :-)

Screen dimming: It could be what you're suspecting - the converter/inverter itself. Could also be the cord connection at the laptop, either internally or actually in the cord's connector itself. Wiggle the connection/cord a bit when the dimming problem happens to see if that causes any change. Another potential: If the dimming happens constantly, it could also have to do with screen reaching the end of its useful life. Also, does it happen only when the laptop is running when plugged into the wall or does it also occur when it's running only on battery power.....or both? That could help narrow things down a bit.

This might be a lead on what could be causing the speed change:
http://www.overclock.net/intel-cpus/...ed-change.html

Maybe that'll help a little......maybe not! :) Not an area of expertise for me - just offering some logical ideas and feedback from a little bit of research. Maybe someone with more specific knowledge will jump in as well.

Bill :)

Thanks, Bill, for your suggestions. I rarely ever use my laptop on battery so I can't say whether or not the screen dimming issue happens on battery or not! This has been an ongoing problem since about 4 or 5 months after I bought the laptop. Acer wanted me to send it back for repair but I didn't want to do that, so I have lived with this issue that comes and goes. I do think that it has gotten worse the older it gets. As for the CPU speed reverting back to just about nothing, I notice THAT problem when the computer slows down. I then check the Acer power settings only to find that the slider has gone all the way back from "Max" to the lowest setting. I'm wondering if the dimming screen triggers the CPU to slow down in some way or for some reason. I am fairly computer savvy until I get into something like this! I don't understand the relationships between some of these parts! The laptop has plenty of memory and hard drive space. Maybe it is just getting ready to croak, like us "frogs"!! Ribbit! I do think that you may have a valid point when you said that the screen may need replacing. I can handle that but would probably replace the inverter at the same time, just to see if that fixes it. An inverter will set me back about $20 where a screen will be $130, using MY labor! So, it makes sense to me to try replacing the inverter first. I will also check the cord the next time this happens, just to eliminate that as a cause. Thanks, again. Much appreciated.

No problem-o. It might be worth it to take it to a PC repair person/shop for their perspective before starting to replace things you haven't been able to truly prove are bad. I'd hate to see you spend money on this or that only to find out you've still got the problems!

Hope it works out o.k. for you.

Bill :)

Bill, I'm not sure the laptop is worth spending the big bucks on in a repair shop! In the 12 years that we have had computers we have only taken one to a shop and that was to have a laptop fan replaced. I would have done it myself had I felt confident that I could do it. An inverter is inexpensive and I can get one online. I will probably try that first and then maybe a whole new screen if the inverter doesn't fix it. We replaced the screen on our daughter's laptop a few months ago so that doesn't scare me at all.

I'll keep my fingers crossed for you! Let us all know how it turns out.

Bill :)

Could be caused by a short in your battery. Try taking the battery out of the laptop, plug it into electric and turn it on. Sometimes bad batteries cause strange problem.

Just a thought.

Hmmmmm! I would never have thought of that! I'll try it the next time I turn it on. Thanks for the suggestion.