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HOW TO CONVERT A LAPTOP LCD INTO AN EXTERNAL MONITOR.

By zerofootprint3 in Technology > Laptops 2.416.954 1.408 133 Featured

Published Dec. 1, 2012 Download Favorite

By zerofootprint3

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Hello there. This is my rst Instructable

A while back I was sitting around and wondering what to do with my dead laptop. I knew
the mother board was fried but everything else was still in working condition. As a result, I
decided to make an external monitor from my dead laptop and proceeded to do the
research to nd out if this was possible. Below is what I discovered. Unfortunately, there
was no way to use the motherboard's VGA connector. The VGA connector on a laptop is
used to connect to an external monitor. In any case the VGA connector is output only and
wouldn't work for an external screen. As a result, I found that I needed to buy a controller
board for the LCD screen, to make it work as an external monitor. This was the main cost
but was still less than half the cost of buying an external monitor.

The controller board cost me about $42 not including tax and shipping. However, there are
various types that cost less.

I also built a stand for the LCD panel but as you will see, I decided to go a different route.

The information below will illustrate the steps I took to convert my laptop LCD screen into
an external monitor.

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Step 1: Getting Started

Lets get started.

Materials needed::
Dead Laptop hopefully with a good and working LCD screen.
LCD controller board
Hobby electronics screwdriver
wire cutters optional
5 inch section of wood 2x3
two 3 inch sections of wood
self tapping wood screws
cordless drill
drill bit for drilling metal
Dremel and cutting disk optional

Note: if your LCD is damaged then don't proceed any further. This instructable will not x a
damaged LCD screen!

Disclaimer: Due note, I take no responsibility for your actions, implied or otherwise. I am not
telling you to do anything, This instructable is informational.

Step one. Unplug the dead laptop from any power source AND remove the battery!. The
laptop battery is located, usually, on the bottom and can be removed by sliding a release
lever. These are lithium ion batteries and can hold a few Amps. The risk of shock might be
minimal. However, there is no need to take the risk.

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Step 2: Removing the Screws

Step Two. To Remove the LCD screen from the laptop, you will need to remove the screws.
There are rubber pads on the front of the LCD screen to protect it when the laptop lid is
closed. Behind the rubber pads are the screws. Find and remove all the screws holding the
front plastic frame on the laptop lid. Keep track of the pads and screws as you will need
them to reassemble everything.

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Step 3: Removing the Frame

Step Three. Remove the plastic frame from the LCD screen. Here is where you need to be
careful. The screws are not the only thing holding the plastic frame on the LCD screen! The
plastic frame is snapped into place. Carefully pry loose the frame from the LCD screen. Pry
it loose gently. Try to keep it as close as possible to the LCD panel while you are prying it
loose because you may also nd that you need to slide it to the left or right to completely
remove it from the laptop. There is a small protrusion of the plastic frame where the hinge
is. Because of this protrusion you need to slide the frame, in this case, to the right, to detach
it from the laptop.

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Step 4: Remove the LCD

Step Four. Locate and remove the screws holding the LCD panel to the laptop. These are
located on the bottom. The screws are attached to a small metal hinge. this is the
component that is attached to the keyboard frame.

Next you will need to remove the LCD screen. Note that there is a cable attached. This is
the LVDS cable. It is best to take apart the rest of the laptop and unplug it from the
keyboard. However, the cable can be cut at the bottom. Take care not to cut the two wires
going into the inverter (that's the slim circuit board at the bottom.

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Step 5: Removing the Cables

Once the LCD panel is removed, you can remove the LVDS cable and unplug the inverter at
the bottom. Unplug the inverter from both ends. Do not cut it. The LVDS cable is taped to
the back of the LCD screen at the top. It is the at cable running up the back. Remove the
tape and slid the cable down. Since you need to buy an LCD controller board, you will no
longer need the LVDS cable the laptop came with or the inverter. At this point you should
just have an LCD screen with a pair of wires coming out of it.

Keep track of the plastic front frame and the plastic backing. You will need them to
resemble the LCD screen. On the other hand, you have different ngers, just kidding. On
the other hand, you can buy a picture frame and put the LCD screen in the picture frame.

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Step 6: The Cables

Here is a picture of the LVDS cable and the inverter detached from the LCD screen. Since
we will be buying an LCD control board these cables will not be needed again.

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Step 7: Buying the LCD Controller Board

Next, once you have removed the LCD panel. Flip it over and look for a model number on
the back. You will need this model number to order the correct LCD controller board. I went
to E-Bay and found one for $42.00. I bought the LCD controller board and then received an
email from the seller requesting the model number of the LCD screen and manufacturer.
This is because each controller board is ashed, (programed to run a speci c LCD) I gave
him my model number, LP171WX2 A4K1 and told him it was made by LG Phillips. Since
the board was coming from China, I received my order about 2 weeks later. Due note to
buy one with a power cord! The LCD controller board has the VGA input connection which
allows you to connect it to another computer and use it as a second monitor or as a back up
in the event the one on your working computer goes out.

I bought my LCD controller board DIY kit from e-qstore on Ebay. Here is a link:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/m.html?_from=&_nkw=&_armrs=1&_ssn=e-qstore&rt=nc.

Mention Instructables they might give you a discount.

The LCD controller board is real easy to connect. It comes with all the required cables,
except a VGA cable which you will need, in order to connect your LCD to another computer.
You can buy a VGA cable from Best Buy or a computer parts store.

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Step 8: The LCD Control Board

The LCD control Bard comes with all the cables except the VGA cable which you will have
to buy. Once you have received your kit, proceed to connect it to the LCD screen. Plug the
LVDS cable into the LCD panel where you removed the original from. The two wires at the
bottom of the LCD screen that were connected to the inverter need to be unplugged from
the old inverter and plugged into the new inverter below. Then, plug the power in. Make
sure that the LCD control board is not sitting on anything conductive, like metal or it will
short and fry. Next connect the VGA cable to the LCD control board and plug the other end
of the VGA cable to another computer. Make sure the computer is on before you plug in the
VGA cable. At this point you should have the same image that is on the computer you
plugged the VGA cable into, on the LCD panel.

To recap:
1. Plug the LVDS cable into the LCD panel.
2. Plug the LCD panel into the inverter. See picture.
3. Plug the transformer into the LCD control board.
4. Connect the VGA cable to the LCD control Board.
5. Connect the other end of the VGA cable to an operating computer.
6. Press the power button on the LCD control Board-it sits next to the LED.

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Step 9: Prepping for a Stand

Next, I attached a 4 inch section of two by four on the outside back of the laptop lid. I
needed this in order to attach my stand to the LCD screen. I used 5 screws and screwed
them in place from the inside. I did splice and extend the cables going from the LCD
controller to the inverter it came with just to have a little more room.

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Step 10: Attaching a Stand to the LCD Panel

Originally, I built a nice wooden stand for my LCD panel but was not satis ed with it. So, I
took a broken orescent desk lamp and dremeled off the section holding the orescent
tubes, leaving enough metal to screw on to the two by four on the laptop lid. Before
attaching the stand, I drilled four holes in the metal to make it easier to screw it on the two
by four. 

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Step 11: Attaching the LCD Control Board to the Back of the Laptop Lid.

Next you will need to attach the LCD controller to the laptop lid. To do this, screw in a few
sections of wood from the inside of the lid. Then on the outside of the lid attach the LCD
control board. Place the wood in an area where the control board can reach.

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Step 12: Putting It Back Together

Next you will need to nd all those screws you have been saving and reassemble the LCD
screen. I also added some surgical tubing to the top springs for added strength.

By the way a store bought swing arm half the size of this one, I found, cost around
$400.00. If you choose to use a swing arm like this one, go with the one that has a
magni er on it and dremel off the magni er leaving enough metal to attach to your LCD lid.
You need one of this caliber to hold the LCD screen. Swing arms with the light attached are
not strong enough.

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Step 13: The End.

Here is what it looks like on the stand. And Yes, I made the frame for the picture hanging on
the wall in the background.

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Step 14: Passing Thoughts

By the way, I did remove the web cam from the laptop lid, wired it to a USB cable, and
turned it into and external peripheral. I wired the two microphones that I found next to the
web cam and  turned them into external peripherals. I dremeled the batteries open and
wired them into a 3 million candle power ashlight made from spare parts I had. I have a
lithium ion battery charger, so it worked great.

I didn't like the rst stand I made. I included some pictures of it above.

Since I was asked about the web cam, I though Should add it to the instructable. There is a
nice instructable here at this site showing how to convert a web cam from an LCD screen:
http://rntmns.com/2011/02/rebirth-of-a-webcam/

But be careful the guy that did the mod, reversed the power cables.

The USB cable has 4 Wires.

Pin 1 on USB 1. Red- VCC +5V

Pin 2 on USB 2. White- Data+
Pin 3 on USB 3. Green- Data-
Pin 4 on USB 4. Black- Ground

Note, I sourced the web cam from the LCD screen which was a dead HP DV 9000 laptop,
working on Windows Vista, originally.

I'm not sure if the web cam wire colors change for different models. However, for the DV
9000 here is the color schematic.

1. Red wire from web cam goes to Pin 1 on USB, Red USB Wire.
2. Light Blue wire from web cam goes to Pin 2 on USB, White USB Wire
3. Black Wire from Web cam goes to pin 3 on USB, Green USB Wire
4. White or faded yellow looking wire goes to pin 4 on USB, Black USB Wire.

The web cam is now wired for plug and play. However, it only works on another computer
running Windows Vista. There are no drivers for windows 7, yet. Since I don't have
Windows XP, I don't know if it would work on it. Once you have wired it, open Skype on
Vista and click on change pro le pic. It will show two web cams in the drop down menu. If
your web cam starts getting hot then you have revered the power cables.

I have attached some images of the web cam, it's slightly longer than the shift key on the
laptop but about half as wide.

There you have it.

Mine works great on my Vista laptop. If you want to use it for checking plumbing pipes, I
suppose you can put a small prism on the web cam aperture so you can insert the web
cam in a pipe and view images directly ahead--this would be good for archaeology where
you need to investigate tight spaces. 

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Step 15: Last Pic

Last few pics.

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133 Comments

GeekyAdam 5 years ago Reply

I'm so glad I found this... I have a nearly identical HP laptop that you used and recently noticed that it
was overheating and too much work to fix up, but the big beautiful display works great and I was
sadly thinking I'd be better off selling it rather than dissecting the entire thing to fix its overheating
issue.
Now I have a new use for it!
Thanks!

2 replies F
X8 Re-design 5 years ago Reply

| Very nice instructable. This instructable is the answer to a question that comes up about once a week
in instructables questions and will get referred to often.

PADRAIGÓ1 3 months ago Reply

Ok so I have a 4k screen, is it possible to use the thundervolt connection to make this portable in
anyway instead of using power

Tomas Meyer 1 year ago Reply

Nicely done and very informative!! However unfortunately, by the time you add the cost of the LCD
Controller card, various parts and time you could have bought a new inexpensive monitor.

1 reply F
madhanxhat 10 months ago Reply

Hi , is LCD controller board common for all size LCD or different, I have 14" and 15.6 ".
Pls let me know.

DanielC227 2 years ago Reply

i have a Toshiba satellite m115 -s1061 model number is PSMB6U-00G005 it has a dead harddrive
but the motherboard is good and so is everything else will it work?

3 replies F
maxh4 1 year ago Reply

I have a lot of 15" laptops many of the same model, is it possible to use one adapter & power supply
etc to connect more than one screen to it.and also how about using the laptop body itself as a shell to
contain all the components???

2 replies F
KylerM 1 year ago Reply

I scavenged a Samsung LTM215HL01 screen. I have been unable to find an LCD controller that
explicitly mentions this model number of screen. Should I just look for a universal controller and
mention the model number to the seller to see if they support it before I buy it?

1 reply F
MatthewH283 1 year ago Reply

fantastic instructions solving my first problem! i'm looking to build a external monitor and keyboard for
my desk top in a laptop case so i can use it like a laptop in front of the TV. i'm going to connect it to a
powerful desk tom machine for video and photo editing ( significantly cheaper hardware needed for
the desk top over an equivalent laptop solution) . does any one know if you can re use the laptop
keyboard and track pad? i can't find anything on it. as a simple solution i will probably look to retro fit
a wireless keyboard / mouse pad into the laptop. but it would be cool if there were controllers
available to drive the keyboard build in. As a phase 2 i'm looking to use a wireless hdmi connector for
the monitor :-) Has anyone previously done this? Thanks

1 reply F
bbielecki 1 year ago Reply

Thx for your instructable. It gave me the idea the make a portable retro gaming console based on a
raspberry pi.
Do you think it could be possible to reuse the laptop battery to power the screen and the board and
make a portable selfpowered sccreen ?

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