It won't display but but the screen is fine

Hi,

Can you get a display if you boot into BIOS? To access BIOS press F10 repeatedly when the laptop first starts.

If there is a display in BIOS, it may be a driver problem. What OS is installed in the laptop i.e. Win Vista, Win 7, Win 10? Try starting the laptop in safe mode and check if there is a display when booting into the OS. Check online to see how to boot into safe mode for the OS installed.

If there is no display in BIOS, restart the laptop and boot into the OS and then try shining a torch (flashlight) at an angle close to the laptop's screen and check if you can see any images at all. They will be very faint if they are there so trying this in a darkened room may help to see them.

If you can see images then there is a backlight problem with the display. Either a faulty display inverter board (supplies power for the screen's CCFL tube - supplier example only), a faulty CCFL tube or a problem on the motherboard power supply to the inverter board.

Here's the maintenance and service guide for the laptop which will help to gain access to the internal components of the laptop. It also has the HP part numbers. If you find a faulty part, search online using the part number only, to get results for suppliers that suit you best.

If you can't see any images try connecting an external monitor to the laptop's vga port and when the laptop has booted into the OS press the Fn key + the display toggle key (both together) and check if there is a display showing on it. (see image below)

(click on image to enlarge)

If there is a display on the external monitor then there may be a problem on the motherboard, the cable connecting the motherboard to the display or in the display.

If you can't see a display on the external monitor then there is a problem with the GPU or the motherboard.