No audio today, but just wanted to go over a few things about buying replacement laptop screens, particularly on Ebay.
I had ordered a screen for a customer on Ebay for a Dell Inspiron 2200. It arrived today and I attempted to install it. It turned out to be the wrong screen for the computer. The size of the actual screen was correct but the connectors were all wrong. I double checked on the auction details and the screen was in fact advertised to fit an Inspiron 2200. So in this case the seller messed up. But there are a lot of ways the buyer could mess up an order like this as well and wanted to discuss it a bit.
I buy on Ebay because there are a large amount of reputable sellers and I found you could get a screen cheaper there than most other places.
Most manufacturers use more than one brand of screen for identical laptops. You'll notice this if you take apart laptops as much as I do. So, for buying screens on Ebay, there are two ways to correctly do this:
The first is to do a search by: THE MODEL NUMBER OF THE COMPUTER followed by the word "screen". Notice I said the computer, NOT by the model number of the screen. In this way you will get in your search results ALL compatible screens and thereby have the best chance of finding the
best price because of the larger amount to choose from.
The second way is to do a glance on the back of the old screen you are replacing and GET THAT MODEL NUMBER and do a search for that exact screen, but you will see much less results and therefore might be stuck paying a higher price. BUT, the benefit of doing this is you are practically GUARANTEED that the screen will work with the computer you are putting it in.
Only buy from reputable sellers by checking their feedback ratings and try to stick with those 98% or higher.
Also take note if the item is brand new, refurbished, or used. Another thing to check is if the seller accepts returns. In buying screens I would almost ALWAYS go with a seller who accepts returns because of the delicate nature of laptop screens and if you can afford buying a brand new screen, do it.
All in all, I've had great success finding screens on Ebay for great rates. Hope this helps!
P.S. One seller I've bought from repeatedly for good prices and without a problem is Ebay ID "dvdsuper999".
