Dell Inspiron 1000 Display Problem

I have a Dell Inspiron 1000 laptop that has a screen problem (after taking a dive off a friend's lap!)

Screen appears illuminated from the sides, but there is no inage displayed.
If I connect the video output to an external CRT, it boots and displays fine.

Would I be correct in assuming that fault is hardware related, somewhere between the MB video out connection, and the laptop display?

Are there any other checks I should make before trying to find a replacement display unit?

thanks,
John

 

Yes. That is a safe assumption. It could be the backlight has been damaged or possibly (hopefully?) just knocked loose by the impact. It wouldn't hurt to take both the display unit and the laptop apart to make sure all the PC to display connections are solid and not loose or damaged. If it's just the backlight, it's a fairly cheap fix (usually under $40).

hd2k