Laptop backlight dead, replace or buy a new one?
 

So my laptop that's about 5 years old has a dead backlight. it's an older "HP pavillion" that cost around $700 back in the day and my primary uses were for school and a bit of gaming. i was able to turn it on by closing and opening the screen for a bit but now it's straight dead. the screen is uber dim and my external mon works, so it's not a video card problem.

question now is, should i buy a new laptop or just fix this one? i'm just not sure the replacement cost of a backlight will be worth since i was thinking of buying a new laptop anyway.

RS techie gurus what would you do?

Ditch it. Get yourself a new, non-HP laptop.

new

what's the beef with HP? sorry i'm pretty bad with tech.
I'm thinking i'll go to NCIX since they seem to have a good rep here.

looking for a new laptop myself.. what is a good brand?

Any repair will cost >$100
and i just sold my gf dual core HP dv2000 laptop for $160... (perfect working condition..3-4 years old, barely used)

I am guessing your laptop is probably worth $50-$100 now...so no point in fixing it.

They have a reputation for horrible reliability. A lot of HP laptops have come across my workbench, and then straight into the dumpster. You're fortunate to have gotten 5 years of use out of it.

just do a search in this forum and you'll get quite a few threads about hp ;)

HP Business laptops aren't bad laptops. Their home use ones are basically at the bottom of the list for reliability though.

Top of the list includes Toshiba (which was surprising to me), Asus, Lenovo, Apple, Sony. Even Acer is rising the ranks - the used to be crap.

There are different surveys that come up with different results, but Asus and Toshiba are usually in the top 3. HP is always at the bottom.

clevo at top

I had the same problem with my Toshiba, however, it was within the first year and they replaced the backlight for me immediately. I went to their service station in Richmond (near Cambie high school) and they didn't even ask for a receipt, just name and information which was completed within a week from what I remember.

My vote goes to Toshiba. I've had it for a little over two years and I'm still happy with it today.

My first laptop was an HP which I quickly found out to be of pretty low quality. After opening and closing the screen enough times it eventually started to pivot freely back and forth when using it. Also with time the screen got dimmer and dimmer. My friend who currently has an HP is continuously experiencing overheating issues with it. No thanks, never buying an HP again.