Page 5 - Single-pixel Lines in Dell Inspiron Screen?

After dealing with several representatives at Dell, and reffering them to this forum thread I recieved an empty box in the mail yesterday and have been instructed to pack up my laptop and send it back for a screen replacement.... free of charge it seems.... I'm glad they did the right thing, as this is obviously a manufacturing mistake.... I just hope that I don't get another faulty screen and have to deal with this again in 15 months....

Good luck to everyone with this issue!

My 9300 made it almost 19 months before developing “the purple line of death” (your color may vary).

I wonder if the folks who have successfully convinced Dell to replace their display could post phone numbers and perhaps even names or extensions of whoever at Dell finally admitted to and resolved the issue.

I have been on the Dell carousel for several hours now, constantly being transferred to one department and arriving at another (or being disconnected after waiting on the transfer). The 13th person I talked to offered me a $100 bribe coupon to help make up for my experience so far (called “a concession for a bad cust exp” – ask for one at customer care). I didn’t take it because a new display costs $498 whether I change it myself or send it in, essentially the cost of an entire new laptop Dell has on sell now with similar size display. I’m now awaiting a “corporate callback” (but not holding my breath).

As a renegade physicist and retired microprocessor applications engineer I can recognize the signs of failure due to defective materials or manufacturing process. Dell needs to take responsibility for this issue and at least officially admit to having sold a bad batch of displays (in which case Dell should replace any that fail for free), perhaps even admit to defective design, which sometimes happens (in which case Dell should recall and replace the affected displays).

I’m sure Dell will lose a lot of business from folks like me if they don’t do the responsibility thing - I repair computers here in the WV outback and take care of the tech needs for several environmental groups, so my opinion influences purchase decisions for many more people than myself…

My 9200 Dell laptop did have the same problem (vertical line) Dell doesn't care. They say the display has to be replaced. imagine, for just one year usage and just passed its waranty this thing happen. I have told everyone about my dissapointment with Dell on the last GITEX - Dubai show.

My Inspiron 9300 17" was 16 months out of warranty when I came home one night to it sitting on my desk just as I had left it. Opened it up like always... and there it was.

The purple line of death... (although my first one was actually yellow). I was angry... doublechecked and verified my suspicion that my computer was four months out of warranty... but I figured it was an isolated incident and I was just screwed. Whatever. Its just a line... I can deal with it, right? A month went by. And then there were two. This one actually was purple. Both were relatively cose together on the far right of the screen. A monthish later, the real slumper came, though. Last night, I came home from work, once again, my laptop just the way it had been left... except for the addition of a lime green one. Right smack dab down the middle. So that no matter what I'm looking at, I have to see it. A unavoidable nuisance.

Perhaps if it weren't for the fact that another one will rear its ugly head at any time, it wouldn't be so bad. But I'm resigned to the fact that slowly but surely, these things will eat away my LCD that I paid so much for, and kill it like cancer.

A quick google, however, gave some hope and I found I am SO far from alone. Not only here, but also on Dell's own support forums, and on third party review websites (like eopinions) I have found extensive comlaints about this. There is no denying it is manufacturer error.

Dell denies it, but their very manner of handling my phone calls has proven that they are more than aware of the issue. When I first phoned technical support, I didn't even ahve to tell them whether or not I had connected an external monitor, etc. I mentioned that my 18 month old Inspiron 9300 17" had pixel wide vertical multicolored lines in the screen and was told right away that it was a faulty LCD that needed replacement. They of course wanted me to pay for it. I told them no. Thus began a nice big merry go round of phone calls. Managers didnt want to talk to me, I was told I would recieve call backs within hour time frames. I didn't, so I called them. Eventually I did manage to speak to someone who seemed to maybe want to help. Maybe. Of course he tried to say that it was not a known issue blah blah blah but by standing my ground and referring him to this thread, a google search, and his own support forums, he broke down quick. Never admitted that it was a Dell problem but quickly started to barter with me about how much a new LCD would cost. If it weren't a known issue, there is no way that he would have been SO quick to do that. Told him that wasn't good enough, that I deserved a new one free of charge, and that after the level of disregard the company had given my issue there was no way that I was giving them yet another dime of my hard earned money, especially not for something that was their fault. He claimed he did not have the bility to authorize such a replacement (not sure whether or not this was the truth) but that he would make sure that his higherups that did would give me a call tomorrow. I doubt I will hear from them. But I have his name and know what department he works in. He can expect to hear back from me. And, if I don't recieve this promised call, (yes, he actually promised me), I will release his name to the rest of you so that the rest of you can put any doubts he may have about this being an isolated issue to rest if you wish, and perhaps if we all work together we can make something happen for someone.

Could be a display connector problem?

The problem occurred after a 700 mile trip in the front seat of my Tahoe with the middle arm rest/seat back folded down on top of it and my 160 lb son occasionally trying to sleep on top of the arm rest.

Currently it is somewhat intermittent and flashes on/off after power-up. I tried flexing the case and display yet the line is on continuously at the moment.

Ship Date: Wednesday, March 30, 2005 - same issue with the vertical lines starting about 2 months ago. Well we'll see what happens now. They better be repairing/recalling these things for free or I foresee a class action lawsuit.

i've already been on the merry-go-round with dell and i've even taken this complaint to the better business bureau. i had one lady call me and she basically told me "pay for a new one," despite my insistence that the shelf life for a product like this is NOT 1 year. the bbb asked if i was satisfied with the response and i told them no. i then sent an email back to the original lady i spoke with, reiterating that customers shouldn't be treated like this and that if this wasn't resolved satisfactorily, i would never buy another dell. ever. the bbb promptly closed my case the next day.

how about an online petition? i'll come up with some draft verbiage so that it contains everything that needs to be said. in this way, we can attempt to gather up all of the suffering customers to put their name on it in one place that demands action. anyone with me?

lol, some first post, eh? i actually joined specifically because of this thread.

Inspiron 9300 laptop has developed a single vertical line.

This line is on all screen displays including bios.

I have reloaded driver for video card and reseated ribbon cable with no improvement.

I have attached another display and line is not present on the second display.


The line must be due to a defective lcd screen.

The only solution is apparently a new screen.

The laptop was purchased in April 18 2005.

The original configuration lists the screen as :

T4976
LIQUID CRYSTAL DISPLAY, WXGA+, STANDARD PANELS WORKING GROUP, 17, LENGTH/LONG



I do not want to pay Dell to tell me I have a defective screen. I will not have this repaired if it costs $400. I would get another brand of laptop. I have several brands of laptops and several lcd screens. The only other time I had this manufacturing defect the company replaced the product. Reputible companies stand behind their lcd screens for at least 3 years. I will not order another laptop from Dell if they do not correct problems due to manufacturing defects.

Who should I contact about this problem?

I would like to report this to Dell. This is apparently a defect that is affecting the Inspiron 9300 laptops manufactured in spring of 2005.

Dell should recall these laptops for replacement of the defective lcd screens.

I've got the same issue guys. I'm on hold with dell right now and have already been transfered twice.

Im with you all the way..

This is obviously a manufacturing defect, after a lot of *****footing around with me....Dell Canada repaired mine at no extra cost... and they did it in a hurry too.... It actually renewed my faith in Dell, I'm very pleased that they did the right thing and very promptly....and I'll continue to purchase Dells in the future.

When you call them, they will give you the runaround and tell you that this is the frist time they've had such a complaint...and get you to run certain tests..... but if you have a vertical line of dead pixels, then you def have a defected screen and the only option is replacement. Keep asking to speak to a higher level of employee until you get resolution.

If anyone here is refused a replacement screen by Dell, then start up a petition and you'll have no shortage of signatures!

I just hope I don't have to deal with all of this again 15mnths down the road when the new screen they gave me goes sour...

Dell refused to replace mine since it's out of warranty. I was transfered three times and the best they would do is $381 USD. One lady even looked at this thread and said "the problems are not all the same". Needless to say I WILL NOT be purchasing another dell in the future.

If anyone wants to start a petition i'm in all the way. Mine was shipped April 05 so I think they had a bad batch of screens around that time.

I'm putting together a website for this "issue". I just ordered the domain "dellverticalline.com". It should be up and running by tomorrow afternoon.

i'm with you guys, i own an inspiron 9300, i received one vertical yellow line one week ago and thought nothing of it, then yesterday i received a second vertical pink line. i plan on calling dell as soon as the above website is up for easier reference, thank you so much for doing that. i'm currently in the middle of my law school finals and can't ship this thing out until that is done because all my notes are on it. i really hope the whole thing doesnt just crap out on me for some reason within the next two weeks

I'm in the same boat as you. Finals are next week.

I'm putting the finishing touches on the website this morning and will have it up after lunch.