How to Turn an Old Laptop Screen into a Stand-alone Monitor

With newer and better laptops available for sale, more and more people are now turning to new acquisitions over sticking with aging or broken ones. Newer computers come with the latest hardware upgrades and a wider variety of features to enhance productivity and performance. This attracts users who are looking for the best experience with computers. More people choose to buy a new one rather than engage laptop repair services. With this in mind, most people will have an older laptop lying around unused. You can be able to repurpose this computer and use some of the main parts to create functional accessories to add to your new computer. Below we will look at how to turn an old laptop screen into a stand-alone monitor.

To get this done you will have to be comfortable with opening up the old laptop and getting all the parts you need, this will definitely void any warranty you have. Another important consideration to keep in mind is that you need to be well versed on how to handle computer motherboards and circuit boards to avoid damaging them. Static electricity handling safety knowledge also plays an important role in this do-it-yourself project as well.

Now with all that said, let’s get working on that new extra LCD monitor from your old laptop screen.

The first thing you will need to do is remove the top cover of your old laptop so as to disassemble it and remove the screen. This requires a lot of care as touching anything you are not supposed to means you damage the entire system or some vital components. It might also result into cases of electrocution as well. Once the laptop cover has been removed, disconnect the screen from the rest of the computer carefully.

Get the model number from the laptop’s screen as you will need it when you go out shopping for the Controller Board and its power supply unit. Some people can be able to build their own controller board from scratch but if you can’t just buy from a computer supplies store or online.  

Connect the controller board to the old laptop monitor ensuring that the pins are connected in the correct format (Facing down). If you get this wrong you risk damaging the controller or the monitor or both so take your time and ensure everything is done correctly.

Connect your set up to the power supply unit, then to your other computer or any other device you wish to use it on. When you are done switch it on and test it out.