Graphics card aka video board
A graphics card also known as a video card or VGA board is a laptop component responsible for creating images on a laptop screen.
In most low-mid range laptops the graphics card is integrated into the motherboard. In other words, it’s a part of the motherboard. If that’s the case, the graphics card is not removable or upgradeable. If the graphics card fails, you have to replace the whole motherboard.
A discrete graphics card can be found in high range models and high end gaming laptops. Discrete graphics cards can be removed and in some cases they are upgradeable.
Here’s another example of the discrete video card in a high end gaming laptop. As you see the video card can be separated from the motherboard.
GRAPHICS CARD RELATED PROBLEMS
You can use the following method for troubleshooting problems related to graphics cards.
Let’s say your display stopped working properly. The image is distorted or garbled. Is this problem related to the VGA board or LCD screen?
Connect your laptop to an external monitor and take a look at the external video output. If you see the same problem as on the internal LCD screen, most likely it’s related to the VGA board. If video on the external monitor works fine and the problem appears only on the internal LCD screen, most likely your problem is related to the LCD screen or LCD cable.
TYPICAL VIDEO CARD FAILURE
Below you can see a few pictures taken from a laptop with a faulty video card.
1. When you start the laptop, the initial screen with manufacturer’s logo is not displayed properly on both internal LCD screen and external monitors. You can see random characters, vertical lines running through the logo, random colors, etc…
2. Same problem appears when the laptop displays the boot menu. The screen is either not readable at all, or there are some random characters all over the image.
3. Finally, the laptop starts loading Windows, but the image on both screens is still garbled.
A problem like that is not related to the laptop screen or inverter board.
Again, if the video card is integrated into the motherboard and it fails, you’ll have to replace the motherboard.
Need spare parts for your laptop?
If you are looking for spare parts for your laptop you can find brand new and used parts here. Just search by the part name and laptop model.
January 2nd, 2009 at 4:59 pm
I have a problem with my display, it’s a Toshiba laptop.
When I turn on the laptop, first I see the Toshiba logo with some vertical lines running through the logo and then it goes to the boot menu (safe mode, VGA mode, etc…) and i see a lot of different characters on the screen. Same happens with external screen.
January 2nd, 2009 at 11:08 pm
Mark,
I’ve seen laptops failing like that before. I think you have a problem with the video card.
January 3rd, 2009 at 3:45 pm
i took it apart and cannot anything that looks like vga board. the screen cable plugs into a small connector on motherboard. it mens i have no vga board?
January 3rd, 2009 at 10:36 pm
samuil,
Apparently the VGA board is integrated into the main board as I mentioned in the post. Most laptops have integrated video cards.
January 4th, 2009 at 1:17 am
My laptop works fine except the display. There is a hair like vertical line running from the top to the bottom.
Can I get rid of the line?
January 5th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Response to Lola.
Question: There is a hair like vertical line running from the top to the bottom.
Can I get rid of the line?
Not likely. It’s a defect in the screen. Buy new screen or use as is.
January 6th, 2009 at 9:09 am
Lola,
No, you cannot. That’s a problem with the LCD screen. Either use the laptop as is with the line or be ready for replace the LCD screen.
January 12th, 2009 at 11:38 pm
I repair many laptops every week. Most laptops I repair do not have a discrete video card. I can say that most laptops have onboard video card. When onboard card goes south, just replace the main board.
January 15th, 2009 at 7:33 pm
[...] cable, display cable or screen cable. This cable transfers data signal from the motherboard and video card to the LCD screen. Also, most video cables supply high voltage DC power to the screen [...]
January 16th, 2009 at 10:01 pm
My laptop screen does not look like the examples above, but the screen colors are mostly gone and it is very bright. I can still read the black font, but that’s about it. Is this symptom also indicative of a video card problem?
Thanks.
January 16th, 2009 at 10:23 pm
Mo,
You cannot tell what is causing the problem without testing the external video output. That’s could be a bad video card or bad LCD screen.
You’ll have to connect an external monitor and check out the external video.
If it’s the same as on the laptop LCD, most likely it’s related to the video card.
If the external monitor works fine and this problem appears only on the laptop LCD screen, most likely it’s related to the laptop screen.
January 17th, 2009 at 2:20 pm
Thanks Repair Man,
I tested the external output and that looks ok. Does that mean that I have no other option other than using an external monitor? Is reformatting the computer useless?
Do you think using windex cleaner on the screen could have caused this?
Thanks again
Mo
January 18th, 2009 at 4:19 pm
Mo,
Apparently your problem is not related to the graphics card. I guess you have either bad LCD screen or bad video cable. Does it make any difference when you move the display panel? Does the video out gets any better if you move the screen?
You can replace the LCD screen /video cable.
Nope, it will not help. The laptop works fine with an external monitor, so it’s not a software related problem.
I guess it’s possible. I you spray to much windex it could get under the display bazel and damage the screen controller. But this is only a guess.
January 31st, 2009 at 11:53 pm
[...] video output on the LCD screen or external monitor is garbled. Most likely this is related to the VGA chip failure. 3. The laptop turns on without video on the screen and the power LED starts flashing. 4. [...]
February 10th, 2009 at 1:36 pm
HI i have a hp pavillion dv 9000 and when i start my pc, the screen turn on but no image, just black sreen. Whats the problem? How can i fix this?
Waiting for answer very very urgently.
Thanks
February 10th, 2009 at 2:55 pm
henrique,
I know that some HP Pavilion dv9000 laptops have a know problem with the video card/motherboard and HP fixes them at no charge even though if the laptop is not under warranty anymore. You’ll find more info about free HP repair for Pavilion dv2000, dv6000, dv9000 laptops here:
Free repair for some out-of-warranty HP Pavilion and Compaq Presario laptops
Try calling HP first. Maybe your laptop is covered by this service enhancement program.
February 19th, 2009 at 7:22 am
I have a question of curiosity. I have Dell XPS GEN 2 M170 with nvidia 6800 ultra. It seems that video memory has been damaged. Funny thing is (not so funny when it comes to pay) that when my graphic card failed I was not using laptop. It was just turned on but no programs running. When I opened the lid of my laptop I saw blue screen and when I restarted it I saw symptoms of video damage on my screen. Is there any point to buy a new card or repairing it? How can I prevent further damage if it happens without any reason – I mean Iwas not playing and pushing the card to its limits, so what is your opinion?
February 23rd, 2009 at 12:09 am
Hi,
I have Toshiba P100-188 with symtoms similair to your example 3 of failed graphics card.
The graphics card is seperate from the mother board L601B656 0605A2 part GF-GO7600-N-A2.
1) Is it possible to upgrade this card when I replace, or is it going to have to be like for like.
2) I have had a real problem find a supplier through google searches for this graphics card. I have sent emails to various companies in the UK to enquire on availability. Could you recommend anyone, as I am based in the UK.
Thanks for a very useful and informative site. Which is a life saver for many, I would imagine.
February 24th, 2009 at 7:53 pm
Shen,
Sometimes laptops fail like a light bulb. It works great all day long. You turn it off and next morning you cannot turn it on. It happens.
It depends on the price of the video card. Does it make sense to buy a new card? Isn’t it better to use that money for a brand new laptop?
You cannot prevent that. If it fails, it fails.
February 24th, 2009 at 8:16 pm
Charles,
Unfortunately I cannot help you laptop with this particular model. Apparently your Satellite P100-188 is not sold in the USA. I went through list of all P100 but cannot find your model.
All laptops sold in the USA come with either an integrated video card or discrete nVidia G71M/G71M-U (256MB/512MB) video card.
If you are not sure, I would go with like for like. If your laptop has a video card with 256MB VRAM, there is a chance that you can find the same card with 512MB VRAM. If you have 512MB I think it’s the maximum.
Do you have any other numbers on the video card? Something like A000039750?
March 5th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
I have a Brand New HP Pavilion dv7 Notebook PC, with Windows Vista Home Premium package. It’s a labtop of course, but I need a better Graphics Card. Please name a Graphics Card that would fit my Computer and how much it would cost. Need info ASAP!!! Thank You so much for your help you are the best.
March 5th, 2009 at 12:13 pm
Kurtis,
In most laptops you cannot upgrade the graphics card because it’s a part of the motherboard but I’m not sure about your laptop. Can you give me the full name of your laptop? dv7 what?
I’ll see if I can find the service manual with a list of parts. Maybe I can answer your question after I look in the manual.
March 5th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
HP Pavilion Dv7-1130us Entertainment – Turion X2 mobile processor 2 GHz – 17 ” – 4 GB Ram – 250 GB HDD from Hewlett-Packard in Notebooks
$850 to $1,038 fr
Microsoft Windows Vista Home Premium 64-bit Edition, 7.5 lbs, Lithium ion battery, 15.6 ” x 11.2 ” x 1.7 “
March 5th, 2009 at 1:06 pm
Kurtis,
Here’s the maintenance and service guide for your HP Pavilion Dv7-1130us notebook, follow this link. It’s a 5.75MB pdf file and will take some time to open up.
Take a look at the page 18, it has all a diagram of all major components in your notebook. There is no discrete video card mentioned. The video card is a part of the motherboard and unfortunately you cannot remove and replace it separately. You are stuck with what you have.
March 5th, 2009 at 1:19 pm
Look on page 104. Is there a way to hook a graphic card up to the motherboard
March 5th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Kurtis,
Nope, I do not see any connector for that.
March 5th, 2009 at 1:55 pm
Hi, do you know if the Toshiba Qosmio F10-GP1 notebook computer has an integrated video card? My symptoms are exactly as above. Further to that I can get into safe mode but not into windows – the screen is blank. At least in safe mode I can still see my screen even with the faint vertical lines in the background.
Thanks.
March 5th, 2009 at 2:30 pm
Lynn,
I’ve never fixed a Qosmio F10 laptop, I assume it’s not sold in the USA. I guess your Qosmio F10 should be similar to Qosmio F15 (USA model).
In a Qosmio F10/F15 laptop the video card is integrated into the motherboard.
If there is a problem with the video card, you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard. Do you want to do it yourself? Check out instructions posted at http://www.irisvista.com/tech/
As an example, use Qosmio F15 guide.
March 7th, 2009 at 12:11 am
Hello,
i have a laptop from toshiba m30x and i have a problem with my grafic card.
can i replace my grafic card with a new card?
March 7th, 2009 at 2:04 pm
Luca,
Nope, you cannot. In a Toshiba Satellite M30X and M35X the video graphics card is integrated into the motherboard. You cannot remove and replace it with a new one. If there is a problem with the card, you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard.
March 10th, 2009 at 2:48 am
Hello, the problem of my toshiba m30x is:
I was asked to update your video card drivers, then the images could be seen sometimes good and sometimes blurred, the gray, then the PC is lit and the monitor remained black, every time you view and occasionally stayed black, I have uninstalled the drivers, I rebooted, and the PC was seen with the basic settings, I have updated the drivers, insert the date of the ati catalist, given that my video card is an ati 9600/9700, and the next reboot the display was always black.
Only once has heard a beep and then another 2 faster, so I reported a problem to the video card, there is some way to prove whether it is actually the video card? can you control?
March 10th, 2009 at 12:55 pm
Hi,
I have a Toshiba Satellite M100-165 with Ati x1400 vga card. Is an upgrade possible? If yes I prefer Ati, which cards are compatible with it?
Thank you
March 10th, 2009 at 11:24 pm
Luca,
If you turn on the laptop and the screen stays black and absolutely blank (there is no image at all), the first thing to test would be memory. Try reseating the memory module and maybe replace it with a known good module.
On a Satellite M30X and M35X a bad memory module can produce a beep error – one long beep and three short.
You had, one long and two short. I guess it could be the video card but not sure 100%.
Anyway, in a Satellite M30X the video card is integrated into the motherboard. If the video card is bad you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard.
March 10th, 2009 at 11:30 pm
Shcn,
I don’t have access to the list of parts for that particular model. Sorry cannot help. Usually, Toshiba doesn’t give you a lot of upgrade options (like Dell does).
March 12th, 2009 at 3:51 pm
i have a alienware area-51 m15x 15,4 inch, iwanted to change the prossesor and the vga card could i know what type is compatible and how much and where could i buy it?
my laptop spec:
- Windows Vista® Home Premium 32 bit
- 256MB NVIDIA GeForce 8600M GT(now) wan to change to 512MB NVIDIA GeForce 9800M GT
- intel® Core™ 2 Duo T8100 2.1GHz (3MB Cache 800MHz FSB) want to change to
Intel® Core™ 2 Extreme X9000 2.8GHz (6MB Cache 800MHz FSB)
is it possiblle?
and i also wanted to change my sound card, how could i do it?
March 17th, 2009 at 8:03 am
Hi repairmen
my laptop ( forsa HEL-80. vga geforce 7600 go 256 mb) have those videocard symtomps
could you please give me an advice where to get a new one (better will be good)
March 17th, 2009 at 10:25 pm
BJ,
This laptop is not a well known brand. I really doubt that you can find a spare video card even on eBay. Did you try to contact Forsa? Maybe they can sell it to you?
March 31st, 2009 at 5:19 am
I have a CX2618 Gateway that would give me garbled video output every few months. Last night the thing went black – but with a light shining on it I can faintly see the desktop, etc. Would this signify a bad video card or a motherboard OR on this particular model is that integrated?
March 31st, 2009 at 5:20 am
I forgot to add, when hooked up to an external monitor it does the same thing – just blank.
March 31st, 2009 at 8:17 pm
Julie,
From your description it looks like your laptop has two different problems.
Problem 1.
That could be bad LCD screen, video card problem or defective video cable. I cannot tell without testing the laptop.
Problem 2.
That could be bad inverter board or failed backlight lamp. Most likely it’s related to the inverter because the backlight lamps fail rarely.
I don’t think that these two problems are related. You can try replacing the inverter board and hopefully get the backlight working again.
Did you try switching the video output from internal to external? On most laptops you can do it using the Fn (function key) and one of the F_ keys. Maybe Fn+F4.
Turn off the laptop, attach the external monitor, turn on the laptop. Press and hold down the Fn key and at the same time press on F4 (I hope it’s the right key) to switch to the external monitor. Can you get it work?
April 1st, 2009 at 2:35 am
I have a problem with a Video Card I bought last week. I’ve chenged my old Geforce Go 6800Ultra with a better Geforce Go 7900GTX 512MB. When the lappy boot up I see some vertical dotted lines and the same when loading XP, but when XP is loaded the lines disappear. If I try to install the driver my lappy completely blocks up and I must start windows in temporary mode and uninstall the driver.
My laptop is a Clevo D900T with a Motherboard version 5.5 and a Power Supply of 220Watt. Now I have installed again the 6800Ultra and everything is OK.
What is the problem? The Vga or an incompatibility of the MotherBoard with that card?
Thanks.
Rosario
April 1st, 2009 at 9:38 pm
Rosario,
Did you buy the Geforce Go 7900GTX 512MB from a reliable source? It sounds like your new video card has defective memory. It’s possible you bought a bad card.
April 9th, 2009 at 6:56 pm
Rosario,
I have a problem with a Video Card I bought last week. I’ve chenged my old Geforce Go 6800Ultra with a better Geforce Go 7900GTX 512MB. When the lappy boot up I see some vertical dotted lines and the same when loading XP, but when XP is loaded the lines disappear. If I try to install the driver my lappy completely blocks up and I must start windows in temporary mode and uninstall the driver.
My laptop is a Clevo D900T with a Motherboard version 5.5 and a Power Supply of 220Watt. Now I have installed again the 6800Ultra and everything is OK.
What is the problem? The Vga or an incompatibility of the MotherBoard with that card?
I suggest the motherboard chipset of your laptop, will not support a GeForce Go 7900GTX, (’Motherboard chipset’ is the Northbridge/Southbridge chipset) You may see a version that is one step up from your laptop, and it uses the Nvidia GeForce Go 7900GTX. It also has a motherboard chipset that will support it.
April 12th, 2009 at 12:16 pm
joecoolsvette (comment 43),
His video card started and he got video on the screen. It tells me that the video card is compatible with the motherboard. Otherwise it wouldn’t start at all.
I still think there is a problem with the video card. OR it’s not make good connection with the motherboard.
to Rosario (comment 41).
Just in case try reseating the video card.
April 15th, 2009 at 5:26 am
The screen on my Dell D500 randomly flickers. I hooked up an external monitor and the flickering didn’t happen on the monitor. I replaced the screen including LCD cable with one off of a laptop that didn’t flicker, but the flickering continues. The flickering looks as if the computer is switching between AC power and battery.I replaced the AC jack about a year ago. Any ideas on this one?
April 16th, 2009 at 12:58 pm
tbrandis,
Did you have a chance to test the AC adapter. Maybe there is a short inside the power cord and because of that it’s switching between AC power and battery?
Will it do the same if you run the laptop just on battery power without AC adapter plugged in?
April 17th, 2009 at 8:58 pm
Having an issue with my video card. Running an Everex Stepnote XT5300T with NVidia GeForce 8600M GS. About a month ago, I ran my AVG antivirus as a scan, and ever since, I have had an issue with the card. I have since tried reformating everything, and now my recovery disk that came with the laptop errors out (BSOD 0×8E). So, I’ve borrowed another disk to load the OS, and have everything but the graphic’s card to work. Right now, I’ve updated the driver for it, but every time I enable it, it gives me the following BSOD error: 0×050 (0xDC30B405, 0×01, 0×88D79400, 0×02). With the card disabled, I can run the laptop and OS, but the video functionality is severely limited. Any ideas?
April 21st, 2009 at 9:58 am
Travis,
Unfortunately you don’t have a lot of choices. If the video card is bad, it has to be replaced. There is not much you can do to fix it. Is it a discrete video card? You can try reconnecting it to the motherboard. It’s possible that the video card is not making good contact with the motherboard, maybe pin inside the connector got oxidized, and reconnecting the card will fix it.
April 22nd, 2009 at 7:29 am
The screen doesn’t flicker when the computer is running on battery power. So it appear to be the AC power. I’ve replaced the AC adapter recently.
April 24th, 2009 at 8:04 am
Is it ok to put thermal paste on the graphics card?
April 28th, 2009 at 12:45 pm
Geroge,
What do you mean by “on the graphics card”?
Usually thermal grease is applied on a chip before you install the heat sink on it.
May 8th, 2009 at 1:17 pm
Thanks for the good pictures.
I have a problem like on in the second example. Internal and external monitors have bad image.
The bad thing is that I have no discrete video card, it’s on the motherboard. I’ll try to find a replacement and if it’s too expensive I’ll buy a new laptop.
June 8th, 2009 at 12:25 pm
I have a toshiba qosmio f10 101 and my graphic card is broken. Can i replace it or fix it?
July 10th, 2009 at 7:44 am
NÖ VIDEÖ ÖUTPUT FRÖM LCD OR EXTERNAL MÖNItÖr
CÖmpaQ presario c700 ?????????????????????????????????????????
help please
July 10th, 2009 at 8:56 am
Omega,
The first thing to check is laptop memory, maybe it’s bad. Do you have two memory modules installed? Try removing them one by one. If the laptop start with one module but doesn’t start when the second one is installed, the second module is bad.
July 10th, 2009 at 2:42 pm
Repair Man you are the best. is BACK
ʞɔɐq sı ˙ʇsǝq ǝɥʇ ǝɹɐ noʎ uɐɯ ɹıɐdǝɹ
Thanks.
July 24th, 2009 at 9:25 am
I have no display from my HP Pavillion Laptop. I tried to connect it to a different monitor also…nothing. Can you please help me to identify the graphic card for replacement mine do not look like the one displayed. and there is so many parts to remove. Please help I can’t afford to replace, professional local service or mess it up.
July 24th, 2009 at 9:48 am
Repair Man, I should haved I have no display on my HP Pavilion dv6633us Enterainment Notebook PC.
It was possible for me to view my software previously from my dv6633us via connection to another display monitor.
July 25th, 2009 at 9:12 pm
JATJ65,
The first thing to check is laptop memory. If one of the RAM modules is bad the laptop will not start.
Try removing RAM modules one by one and teat the laptop with each module separately. Can you get video when only one of the RAM modules is installed? Try different RAM slots too.
July 30th, 2009 at 11:23 am
Can the graphics card be replaced on a Qosmio G35-AV650 (PQG31U-016007) or will I have to replace the mother board?
July 30th, 2009 at 11:33 am
bizzle,
In your Qosmio G53-AV650 the video card is integrated into the motherboard. The video card cannot be removed and replaced separately, so you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard. You can use these part numbers to locate a new motherboard: P000451730 or P000461660. The second part number is a newer one.
Are you having a problem with the video card? Call Toshiba! I believe they are replacing motherboards in Qosmio G35 notebooks because of the GPU failure (even if your laptop out of warranty). Call Toshiba first and find out. Let me know if it works for you.
July 30th, 2009 at 12:42 pm
Repair Man,
Thanks a million for the info. I’ve been fooling with this thing for a week now.
Will either of those part numbers work? My laptop was mfd in 2006.
yes, I think it is the video card. I can get light, but no image on an external monitor, but it turns the power button LED on the external monitor from amber to green. The screen on the laptop looks just about like the third pic in this post. Also, I had to disable the graphics card in device manager or I get an infinate error cycle (blue screen/restart/blue screen/…).
I called Toshiba and they recomended I update my BIOS version, so I’ll try that then call them back if that doesn’t work. The GPU repair program is only good for one year after your original warranty expires, and I’m beyond that, so I don’t know if they will help me or not. I’ll keep you posted.
July 30th, 2009 at 1:03 pm
bizzle,
Yes, either one will work.
Yes, keep trying. Even if one representative says no another one might say yes.
By the way, here are instructions for replacing the motherboard in a Qosmio G35 notebook.
July 30th, 2009 at 1:18 pm
bizzle,
Go with the second part number if you can. It’s possible that the first motherboard has the same GPU chip as you have right now and might fail after a while.
July 30th, 2009 at 6:05 pm
Repair Man,
I upgraded my BIOS to the latest version – still have the same problem. (as I expected)
I talked to two more tech support people and the last one recomended I call Customer Relations to see if I can get a waiver on the one year rule since I’m only three months out. CR is closed now, so I’ll try tomorrow. If that doesn’t work out, I’ll seek out a board and put it in myself.
I used the instructions on that link last winter to clean the dust out of my cooling fins on my heat sink, and again earlier this week while searching for the cause of my current problem. I had never had a laptop apart before and it went really smooth. Those are really good (detailed) instructions.
Thanks for all your help! I’ll let ya know how it turns out.
July 31st, 2009 at 6:27 am
Repair Man,
I just got off the phone with Customer Relations at Toshiba and they are going to replace my motherboard free of charge. That makes my day, since I priced that board at around $700!
I would have never called them if you had not suggested it and directed me to that bulletin. Thanks a bunch. You’re the SHIZZLE!
August 15th, 2009 at 6:31 am
hi,I always watch Tv from my laptop (Toshiba), via tv tuner, some of my friends tell me that, watching video for long time ,it will reduce the life time of the graphic card or damage it, is that true ?
Thanks for your help.
August 19th, 2009 at 8:50 pm
Mohamad,
I think your friend is right in some degree. When you load the video card, it runs hotter and the heat reduces life time of the components on the graphics card. But… Life is short.
Enjoy watching TV from the laptop while it’s still working.
August 20th, 2009 at 6:33 pm
Hello Repairman, I have a asus g1, and have run through your guide, my problem is, problem with the connection from lcd to mobo as there is no picture. I can boot windows into safe mode on an external monitor (tv via s-video) but when i try loading normal windows it wont let me get to the welcome screen , nor anything past that.
Any ideas other than to replace the mobo, as booting windows safe mode only works ive recovery reformatted 3 times just to be sure it isnt windows.
August 21st, 2009 at 9:07 am
I’m so glad you posted some pictures! That’s what mine is doing with the random characters and lines, blocks, etc. I swapped LCD and cable with a known good and it is still there so I guess the video card is bad. I have a HP dv9657cl laptop. Is that integrated with the mother board?
August 21st, 2009 at 9:23 am
Brian,
Sounds like a problem with the video card, probably bad video memory. According to the service manual for Pavilion dv9500/dv9600/dv9700 notebook PCs (page 19), the video card and video memory are integrated into the motherboard. I guess you’ll have to swap the motherboard now.
August 21st, 2009 at 9:48 am
Samus,
Sounds like a problem with the video card.
Here’s something you can try. If your laptop has shared video memory (part of the RAM is used for video purposes) it’s possible that you experiencing this problem because of faulty RAM. Not likely but possible.
Try replacing RAM module with a another known good module. If you have two RAM modules installed into the laptop try removing them one by one and test the laptop with each modules separately.
Also, access the BIOS setup menu and try loading default settings. Save the changes and restart the laptop.
August 23rd, 2009 at 12:19 pm
I swapped the motherboard and that is definately the problem. Now to find one cheap. Thanks again.
September 8th, 2009 at 7:58 pm
i have a toshiba satellite p25-s670.my video card is gone. I get lines on start up and it remains the same.please do suggest about the change of a graphics card.
September 8th, 2009 at 8:18 pm
Richard,
Unfortunately in a Satellite P25 laptop the video card is integrated into the motherboard and cannot be removed separately. If the video card is gone, you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard.
September 12th, 2009 at 7:50 am
Great info.
Is there any website that you are aware of that I could use to buy VGA board for my Toshiba P105-S9722 laptop?
It is a US laptop.
Thanks!
September 13th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
A.Hariri,
It looks like there are two different VGA boards used in a Satellite P105-S9722.
One VGA board has 256MB memory. It’s nVidia G71M (256MB VRAM). Toshiba part number: A000006510
Another one has 512MB memory. It’s nVidia G71M-U (512MB VRAM). Toshiba part number: A000006860 or A000039750.
I don’t know which one you need. But if you google the part number, you’ll find it. VGA boards are not cheap.
September 16th, 2009 at 6:15 pm
Where can I get the NVidia GeForce 8600M graphics card for a toshiba Qosmio F45 av425. is urgent.
September 22nd, 2009 at 11:27 am
Jaime Olivett,
The best way to find a replacement part is searching by the manufacturer’s part number. If you purchased your Qosmio F45 laptop in the United States, I can help you to find the VGA board part number. Give me the laptop model number: PQF43U-?????? and after that I’ll be able to search for parts in this laptop.
September 27th, 2009 at 11:24 am
Thanks for the information. The card I need on a Nvidia Geforce 8600 in the Toshiba Qosmio F45 AV-425 Model No. PQF46U-00K005. I very much appreciate the information you can give me to buy this card. is urgent. thanks
September 27th, 2009 at 11:47 am
Jaime Olivett,
Here’s the part number for your video card: V000110400
This is the only card listed for your Qosmio F45 (Model No. PQF46U-00K005).
Google the part number and find the seller.
September 28th, 2009 at 5:18 am
KEY BOAD NOT WORKING
October 1st, 2009 at 12:56 pm
GHJHVBNNBHG,
There is no simple answer. Could be one of the following:
1. Software issue. Back up all personal data and reinstall Windows from scratch.
2. Bad connection between keyboard cable and motherboard. Try reconnecting the cable.
3. Bad keyboard. Replace the keyboard.
4. Failed keyboard controller on the motherboard. Replace the motherboard.
October 6th, 2009 at 10:31 am
Hi Repair Man!
I have a Toshiba p105-S9337 laptop with a Nvidia GeForce Go 7900 GS 256mb video card in it… I am curious if I can upgrade to a better video card with 512mb video ram. I’ve been doing some reading and found that the nVidia G71M-U, with 512MB VRAM (Part# A000006860 or A000039750) is the only option for this, can you confirm that? I also am only able to find them at various parts dealers online at ridiculous prices (between $700-$1000 USD! I only payed $600 for this laptop!)… There is currently nothing wrong with my laptop, besides its inability to play modern PC games even at the lowest resolution and settings without poor FPS.
What would you suggest? Any way I can improve my gaming performance would be amazing. Thanks in advance!
October 10th, 2009 at 12:17 pm
Joel,
Could you provide the laptop mode number PSPAGU-??????
I will look up for VGA boards listed for this laptop.
VGA boards are not cheap.
October 16th, 2009 at 8:56 pm
Having the same problems as everyone with the HP Pavilion dv6000 not showing a picture. Is there a way to fix it without replacing the motherboard?
October 17th, 2009 at 6:36 pm
Hope,
If there is no video on the external or internal screens, most likely it’s ether memory or motherboard problem.
Try removing memory modules from each slot one by one. Test laptop with each memory installed separately, it’s very unlikely that both modules failed at the same time. If one of the memory modules is bad, the laptop will start when another one is installed.
If reconnecting, replacing memory doesn’t help, most likely your problem is related to the video chip failure. That means the whole motherboard has to be replaced.
There is a chance that HP will fix it at no charge, check out this post.
Free repair for some out-of-warranty HP Pavilion and Compaq Presario laptops
October 27th, 2009 at 11:18 pm
Hi Repair man,
I have a sony Vaio Sz433N with a Nvidia Gefore 7400 go graphics card in it (Vista 32bit OS). The laptop runs a dual card system with an Intel 945 family media accelerator which is controlled by a stamina/speed switch. The problem is the laptop appears to have lost all communication with the nvidia card and doesn’t detect it when new drivers are installed. I suspect the Nvidia Card has failed. The result is the laptop only detects the Intel card and gaming performance is reduced.
Is it possible to replace the card with a straight replacement /new card or, is this a problem you have heard of before and the card is recoverable.
Any advice is appreciated
October 29th, 2009 at 1:32 pm
Mark,
I’m not familiar with this Sony model at all.
If the Nvidia Geforce card is a discrete modules, you can replace it without replacing the whole motherboard.
You can try reconnecting the card, maybe it’s not making good contact with the motherboard (if it’s a discrete card).
Have you tried reinstalling Vista from scratch?
October 30th, 2009 at 9:38 pm
6 WAY SPLIT SCREEN
i have lenovo y510 7758 44Q
i m having problem with the display.
i m getting 6 way identical small screens on my LCD display
booting and everything is in that display only.
when connected to external monitor found single screen but fluctuating and distorted.
i have NVIDIA Geforce 8400M GS inbuilt graphics chipset with 128 MB memory.
after all your article it seems there is a failure in my graphics card so i needed to replace it.
so plz suggest me where to get the card and the approx. cost for the card.
thanks in advance…
November 3rd, 2009 at 8:44 am
sanjeet kumar,
It’s hard to tell what’s going on because this is not a common failure.
I think when you have multiple images on the same screen, it’s related to the LCD screen failure, otherwise you would have 6 way split screen on the external monitor too.
I think you have 6 way split screen because of the LCD screen failure.
This part of the description does sound like a problem with the video card, but it could be just a coincidence.
I wish you have another LCD screen for test. Without test equipment you’ll have to guess.
November 5th, 2009 at 1:15 pm
I have an HP 6715s: AMD Mobile Sempron 3600+, ATI X1250 video integrated, 2GB RAM, 8GB Disk.
It has a disk failure (disk recognized neither by BIOS nor by diagnostic programs on the UltimateBootCD, verified by swapping disks with another notebookand successfully booted Ubuntu Linux).
There seems to be other problems as well, however:
1. When I run memory and CPU diagnostics from the UltimateBootCD, the air coming from the vent gets hotter all the time and the fan gets louder. At some point the system simply switches off. These diagnostics run okay on the balcony at an ambient temperature of 10°C.
2. Some of the diagnostics on the UltimateBootCD switch the display into a different mode (I don’t know which). A garbled grid pattern and an appears on the screen (some pixel pattern repeated in each character cell). One can see that some text is being written to the screen, but this is not legible. The display is okay in the boot or DOS mode, however, and it was also okay in Ubuntu. I could not try all resolutions, however.
About three months ago the machine got quite hot when my wife and daughter were watching a movie on the bed – they probably restricted the airflow. I switched it off immediately as soon as I noticed this and let it cool of. After that it worked fine again.
Could be that all the above symptoms are related to this event?
Could it be the cause of the disk failure?
Could the CPU have been damaged, resulting in it getting hot sooner? Or perhaps the heat sink paste?
Could be the cause of the display problem? This only seems to affect a mode that’s not normally used on the computer. Can I expect this problem to spread?
Thanks
November 5th, 2009 at 1:38 pm
Fred,
Sounds like a problem with the motherboard.
Most likely the heat sink is clogged with dust and the laptop overheats. Clean the heat sink and cooling fan with compressed air and try running same tests again. Most likely the laptop will stay on after cleaning the cooling module.
Maybe it’s normal for that particular test? If the laptop works fine with Linux (in normal resolution), I assume the video card operates properly.
Although, the description sounds like a problem with the video card.
I don’t think so.
I doubt that your problem is related to the CPU. Check the heat sink a clean it. As I said before, most likely the heat sink is clogged with dust.
November 18th, 2009 at 1:41 pm
Hi Repair man.. I have a HP zv6000 laptop that boots to a dim dark screen. Can be read with a flashlight. However video is okay when connected to an external monitor. I changed the inverter, same problem. Changed the video cable, same result. Before getting a new lcd, I connected the lcd of another laptop of the same kind, same result. I also connected the lcd screen of the original laptop to the other laptop and it came on fine. (resulting in okay lcd and backlight).
Can just the video cable connection on the laptop to the lcd be bad, but work to an external monitor? Can this be fixed, or do I need a new motherboard?
Thanks.
November 18th, 2009 at 1:56 pm
Judy,
Sounds like the LCD screen on the faulty laptop is working fine. Apparently the problem is somewhere on the motherboard.
It’s possible. I’ve seen failures like that before.
Recently I was fixing a HP laptop with very similar problem. And I went through the same steps as you did. New inverter, cable, LCD didn’t fix it (luckily I had a loaner laptop).
Finally, I found that my faulty laptop had a stuck lid close switch. The lid close button was pushed into the connector and the laptop “thinked” the display is closed even when it was open. It took me a while to figure out what’s going on because the lid close switch was hidden under the right hinge.
In my case, the switch was located on a separate board. Instead of replacing the switch, I simply unplugged it from the motherboard and the screen started fine.
Check the lid close switch. If it’s a button, try tapping on it. If nothing helps, I guess you’ll have to replace the motherboard.
November 21st, 2009 at 4:48 am
hi, I’m interested to upgrade the VGA in a Qosmio PQG32E-02K02WGE. Is it possible to install a better VGA ?
Thanks
November 26th, 2009 at 1:36 pm
basepart,
What is the model number for your Qosmio laptop. Is it Qosmio G30/G35?
I believe this models come with integrated video card (when the video card is integrated into the motherboard). If that’s the case, you cannot upgrade the video card.
Check your laptop specifications. Find out if the video card is integrated.
December 1st, 2009 at 6:25 am
Thank you for the reply, it’s a Qosmio G30-126. The product’s web page shows the following info about the video card.
manufacturer : NVIDIA®
memory amount : 256 MB
memory type : DDR3 Video RAM
connected bus : 16x PCI Express
It says that it is connected to the 16x PCI Express bus. Does that mean that I can upgrade the video card ?
If yes, what are the available options from NVIDIA ?
Thanks again
December 1st, 2009 at 6:50 pm
Mr. Repair Man,
I have a viewsonic stand alone lcd. The monitor lights up but no picture at all. I suspect bad vga board (converts signal to lcd screen?).
I also have a few Planar monitors that were given to me. They do fine at first for several minutes then flash or go out. Invertor? I’ve found an ebay site with universals for a fair price. Is it worth my time?
Thanks for your time.
December 10th, 2009 at 11:21 am
I have taken my Sony Vaio PCG-V505DC2 laptop apart several times in order to solve its problem of being dead.
Can you answer my question below?
First I bought a new battery, battery does not charge.
Second I tested the AC/DC plug and found it OK out put 15V (OK I cut the cord part and ruined the end, but still works)
Third I cleaned and reassembled the heat sink and cleaned the fan.
Fourth I completly dissasembled and removed the MB so I could find out what the power plug was connected to. This happened to be the video card (A8068226A VIF-24). I am supposing that this may be the problem to the dead issue. Why, because 1) this is where the power connection goes to, 2) I was having some problems with delayed/skippy video from streaming TV shows, and 3) the dead problem occurred immediatley after I plugged my desktop monitor into the side port.
Do you think that replaceing the board (A8068226A VIF-24) might cause the computer to come alive again?
December 15th, 2009 at 1:20 pm
From Leonard to Leonard.
Dear Leonard,
You are preceicely correct with your assumption.
As you will discover the VAIO laptop will again live after replacement of your video card as I have done.
Now don’t take this to be the answer for all dead laptop problems, as it may be a case of trial and error. After searching Ebay for my part number as Mr. Repair man suggests, I was able to purchace a used video card and replace my faulty one. I must warn you again though, that doing this kind of repair yourself might leave you with a few extra screws after you have reassembled your laptop. Don’t worry though, it’ll work fine. Those screws are only there incase you lose one or two, or six!
January 5th, 2010 at 1:08 pm
Dear Mr Repair Man!
I have a HP Pavilion 6597es bought 2 years ago and month ago it broke down. I was playing a game when suddently the image froze and sound went into a loop. I turned it off and then on again. From that moment everything I see on the screen is white screen which then shifts into vertical random colored lines. Connecting to external monitor shows a black screen. So it’s the graphics card, right? I assumed so and HP customer service told me the same. They said that I need to have the whole motherboard replaced for like 400$ total… What do you think? Is there a way to repair the graphics card separately (btw it’s a Geforce 8400M GS)?
January 6th, 2010 at 12:02 pm
Hiya,
I’m fixing a friend’s computer, it’s a desktop, and the integrated video card has died. I’m banging my head against a wall trying to get the system to accept a PCI or AGP card, but it doesn’t seem to read them. I’m literally flying blind without SOME kind of video, and I have none. Is there any trick to get a bios to just switch to a new card without having to try a flying blind install?
January 6th, 2010 at 12:17 pm
Pete,
There is not much you can do if the desktop doesn’t recognize your external video cards automatically.
I’m afraid you’ll have to replace the whole motherboard.
January 19th, 2010 at 11:56 pm
Kir,
Sounds like the graphics card failure.
Unfortunately, they are correct. The video card is integrated into the motherboard and if it failed, the entire motherboard has to be replaced.
You can ship it to HP or… try replacing the motherboard yourself. Of course, if you have nothing to lose.
The disassembly guide posted here: http://www.insidemylaptop.com/disassemble-hp-pavilion-dv6500-dv6600-dv6700-dv6800-notebooks/
Could be helpful if you decide to try it yourself.
Find the motherboard part number and google it or search on eBay. In most cases the motherboard part number is located on a sticker in the memory compartment. Good luck!
January 20th, 2010 at 8:26 am
I replaced my card Ati X1400(doesn’t work) with new ATI HD3650 and it starts to show picture but after 2seconds computer shut down alone. I’m providing you pictures what was happened. I pressed F2 to go in bios and it started the process entering to bios and shut down was happened again. The second picture showing result after shut down! 5 seconds are disappearing pixels from right to left on my screen in turn off state. Is new ATI HD3650 has any problem or my BIOS need to be upgraded? Any suggestion?
http://www.sremus.org/vlada/HD3650/HD3650-1.jpg
http://www.sremus.org/vlada/HD3650/HD3650-2.jpg
January 22nd, 2010 at 8:37 am
Vlada,
It’s possible that you’ll have to update the laptop BIOS. Maybe the new card is not supported properly by the BIOS installed now.
This is just a guess.
I guess you had to disassemble the laptop for the video card replacement.
Maybe you disconnected the cooling fan and forgot to connect it back?
Did you transfer the heat sink from the old card to the new one? Maybe you forgot to apply thermal grease (if it’s required)?
It’s possible that your laptop shuts down because of overheating.
January 24th, 2010 at 10:50 pm
Hi,
I have a Toshiba Satellite A200 PSAFCA-01400J and have had serious video issues. A few months back my laptop would shutdown unexpectedly. Then it became more frequent. Now, when I turn on the laptop I get random white lines on the screen and thats it. If I connect it to an external monitor, I get an image and it boots up (if I disable the GPU from device manager) but I still get a distorted image (red lines). I took it overseas to get it checked and they reckon it was the GPU as well but I didn’t get time to fix it.
Now I think I may be able to fix it myself, but I need your advice. I was thinking of following this guide: http://www.irisvista.com/tech/laptops/toshiba-satellite-a205/laptop-disassembly-4.htm till the last step and replacing the thing that looks very much like the CPU, I’m guessing that is the GPU (it’s also attached to the heatsink). I am thinking of buying this part http://laptopparts.com.au/toshiba-satellite-a200-a205-nvidia-video-graphic-card-v000100500-p-6566.html which I think is the one I need.
Do you think I should do this (I don’t really have any experience with computer hardware but it doesn’t look too hard) or take it to a repair shop (which is very costly!)?
Thanks,
Rik.
January 26th, 2010 at 10:49 am
Hi repairman, I own a satellite X200-21x. It works nice but suddenly it wont start up. Black screen and sometimes two short beeps an a long beeb. Coult it be the graphic boards? (LS-344AP and LS-3449P). If so is there a way to be shure that this is it? Because the boards are not sheap at all (2×450 bucks. Is it possible to run the lap with only one card installed? Thanks a lot for your posts and your help.
January 27th, 2010 at 2:52 pm
Charles,
Yes, it’s possible that one of the graphics cards is bad. Also, could be bad RAM. Man, I hate to troubleshoot these X200/X205 laptops with SLi graphic cards! Too many things could go wrong.
First of all, try removing memory modules one by one and test the laptop with each module separately. If you still experiencing the same issue with only one module installed, most likely it’s not related to the memory failure. I really doubt that both memory modules failed at the same time. By the way, I believe that when you have only one module installed in Satellite X200/X205, you have to use the outer memory slot (further from the motherboard) or the laptop will not start.
If the laptop still beeps when you swap memory, most likely one of the graphics card is faulty. Which one? I don’t know.
I fixed a few Satellite X205 SLi notebooks with faulty video cards and in my case it always was the first card failure (which is located closer to the motherboard).
I don’t know. As I said, in my case it always was the first card failure, so removing the second card (mounted further from the motherboard) didn’t change anything.
If you have to guess, buy these cards one by one and I would suggest replacing the card#1 (mounted closer to the motherboard) first.
You’ll find laptop disassembly steps at http://www.irisvista.com/tech/
January 27th, 2010 at 3:09 pm
Rik,
Yep, sounds like the video card failure.
Some Satellite A200/A205 models come with integrated video cards. If that’s the case, you’ll have to replace the entire motherboard.
More expensive Satellite A200/A205 models might have a discrete video card. In this case you can replace just the video card.
I don’t know if your Toshiba Satellite A200 PSAFCA-01400J has a discrete video card. It’s not a US model and I cannot check the configuration.
You can open up the case and take a look inside to find out if you have a discrete card.
January 27th, 2010 at 3:37 pm
hi,
thanks for the advice. If it is a discrete video card, will I find it in the same place as in that step-by-step guide? I was told by someone that my laptop has a separate vga board, and also the repair place overseas told me they intended to replace the gpu only, I hope that means its a discrete video card I can replace. If it was that, then should I buy that part from http://laptopparts.com.au/toshiba-satellite-a200-a205-nvidia-video-graphic-card-v000100500-p-6566.html ?
Also, what precautions must I take when opening my laptop up? I dont have anti-static gloves.
January 27th, 2010 at 3:45 pm
Rik,
Yes, it should be in the same location.
Again, you’ll have to disassemble the laptop to find out if it’s a discrete video card. Or find laptop specifications, maybe this info is available in the user’s manual.
If you have a discrete video card installed into the laptop, I think you can safely buy the video card you mentioned.
I don’t have anti-static gloves either.
If you don’t have anti-static wrist strap, at lease touch grounded metal equipment before touching parts inside the laptop. It should discharge you.
January 28th, 2010 at 1:05 am
Ok cool, thanks!
January 28th, 2010 at 11:46 pm
THANKS A LOT! I will keep you informed.
February 21st, 2010 at 3:38 am
Hi repairman, it´s not so easy to get the X200-21X fixed. I bought now an identical model on ebay (working). I dissassembled this, and put the videocard from the bad x200 into the new one. Result: not booting. No beeps. Ok I tought, it´s the video board. I reassembled the new x200 and … holy sh..t, it was not booting too. What was wrong? I remembered your words, that memory could be a problem, so I put out the two memory banks and put in only one bank from the bad X200 and … tatata it was booting. So I have still no idea if the video board of the old X200 is bad or not. I will trie to find now a motherboard for the old machine, because I want to know whats wrong with this machine. I will you keep informed.Charles
March 2nd, 2010 at 9:54 pm
I have a Toshiba Qosmio F30. When it starts to boot up I get green blocks over the screen followed by white vertical dotted lines and then the screen goes totally black and I can go no further. I can boot it up in safe mode but I see faint red blocks all over the black screen too.
Can you please advise?
Many thanks.
March 2nd, 2010 at 10:00 pm
mimi,
Sounds like the video card failure. Just in case, test your laptop with video on the external monitor.
Connect the monitor to the VGA port on the laptop and turn on the laptop. The external monitor should be detected automatically. If it shows garbled image, this is the video card failure.
Not sure about Satellite F30 but it’s a knows failure with Satellite G30/G35 models.
Check out this post: Toshiba Qosmio G30/G35 video failure.
Try calling Toshiba. Explain what’s going on. Maybe you can get a free repair.
March 5th, 2010 at 11:03 pm
Hey there, I have a Toshiba Qosmio f45 av-425 and it shuts down after a few minutes when i start to play a game??? Not sure if its overheating or what?
March 6th, 2010 at 5:26 pm
I have benq joybook S41, my VGA is GeForce 8600m GS. Is my VGA card is integared with mainboard?
what the indicates / marks the VGA in laptop is integrated or Descrete ?
Thank’s