# Solved: HP Pavilion g7 white screen



## DrDing (Dec 20, 2010)

Hi, 

Just last month the screen on my HP Pavilion g7 1075dx started going completely white. Sometimes the image would pop back, sometimes not. And, it didn't matter if I restarted, lightly tapped the back of the monitor, or let it cool down. It seemed to happen after the laptop was running for a while, maybe 5 minutes or more. 

Also, when I plug an external monitor up to it, it displays fine. 

Long story short, I ended up taking it to a local computer repair place thinking it was either a bad LCD screen, busted inverter, or a bad connection somewhere. 
The laptop has been in the shop for about three days now because it hasn't gone white until today (go figure right?). So the guy at the repair shop calls me and tells me it's the inverter. The only problem he says is that this particular model has a non-replaceable inverter built into the motherboard. In fact that the next model up has the replaceable one. He told me my only recourse was to replace the motherboard which was going to set me back around $400. He also said that basically it's only going to get worse from here on out. 

I'm not ordering anything just yet. I did happen to find a cheaper motherboard for my laptop on ebay, but I wanted to make sure I was doing the right thing before I purchased anything. 

Is this true about the built-in inverter? I read a few posts online saying that inverter replacement was pretty easy but I guess I just have a lousy model? 

The laptop by the way isn't under warranty anymore, I wish I could just send it off to HP to get it fixed. 

Thanks!

- Danielle


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## dai (Mar 7, 2003)

here is the manual

http://h10032.www1.hp.com/ctg/Manual/c02834058.pdf

no reference to a inverter just a led module on the m/b which looks replaceable


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## DrDing (Dec 20, 2010)

Humm I think you're right. After looking into a few other HP laptops there seems to be no inverter at all in my particular model. At least, not the easily replaceable kind. I would just replace the motherboard, but I'm worried that even if I found a brand new one, it's just going to breakdown like this one has. 

I'm guessing it's impossible to replace the motherboard and screen to ones (and by ones I mean different model numbers) that use an inverter huh?


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## dai (Mar 7, 2003)

i don't know enough about laptops to offer reliable advice

i would get a opinion from a couple of other service centers


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## DrDing (Dec 20, 2010)

Here's something interesting. I've noticed since I've gotten the laptop (it was a hand-me-down from my dad and again, passed warranty) it get's incredibly hot. And by that I mean if I my hand or arm would graze the VGA port after the laptop had been running for a while it would burn my skin. I know laptops can run hot and this is my first one so I thought, I guess that's normal for this brand/model. 

Then one evening I'm looking up motherboards on ebay to try and fix this laptop and the screen goes white, which at this point is to be expected, so I prepare to shut the laptop down for the evening. I let it sit for a while an noted the screen came back on as the internal fan inside the laptop quieted down. I started to put two and two together and had a theory worth testing. 

So for the past two days I've been running a tiny table fan under my laptop which I have resting a bamboo footrest (minus the footrest cushion, so just the open airy frame) for more air circulation. And, this might be just a coincidence, but I haven't had a white screen incident while just using the computer and not doing anything too taxing. Where as up until now if I'd been using it for 5 to 10 minutes and just using the browser the monitor would go white. 

I wanted to test this theory even more. When I play computer games on the laptop it runs super hot (which is usually where I get a arm singe if I'm not paying attention). I know laptops (a least the typical ones) aren't really made for gaming and I know I push this thing. What I tried was running a game that I usually get a white screen after maybe 5 to 15 minutes, and just angled the fan underneath my makeshift rig so that it was chilling the hottest areas of my laptop (coincidentally right by all the video and monitor stuff on the motherboard). I'd turn the fan on and off periodically when I felt the bottom of the laptop really getting warm. I found that the screen whited-out twice but came right back afterwards and I played for nearly two hours and I never had to switch to an external monitor. 

The next evening I kept the fan running constantly (on a low setting) and played and didn't white-out once. 

I realize the easiest fix is to just stop playing games on it, but the fact that the white-outs were happening just using an internet browser or running one program really rendered the laptop useless. It was getting so finicky that I had no idea where, when, or using what would cause it to go white. I mean sometimes it the monitor would go when the laptop was just idling. 

What's strange is I use my laptop on a hard surface like it's suggested but I guess the air flow underneath is not nearly enough? 

Again, it might be a crazy coincidence but for the past few days I've been white screen free using this method. I'm guessing I never let the laptop cool down enough when the problem happened, I realize now that after turning it off for the evening, the next morning the screen would be fine. Seems so obvious, I know. 

I'm thinking of investing in a laptop cooler for underneath. Any suggestions? Or do you think this could actually be the problem?


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## dai (Mar 7, 2003)

the laptop should not get that hot,that it could inflict a burn

it is obviously useless for gaming on,it may be clogged with dust in it's innards


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## DrDing (Dec 20, 2010)

You're right it's pretty useless for gaming but, it's what I got. It's pretty clean in there, I remember when I opened it up the first time when all this screen stuff started, and that was one of the first things I checked. Surprisingly, there wasn't nearly enough there to warrant the laptop getting so warm. I was imagining mountains of dust, it ended up just being a light coating.

Thanks for all the help dai, I appreciate it!


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## dai (Mar 7, 2003)

i have never used one so not much help on them

http://www.newegg.com/Laptop-Accessories/SubCategory/ID-319

http://news.cnet.com/8301-17938_105-9700201-1.html


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