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160 LCD same as 150??

MacJunky

Well-known member
It is not just worse, it is a different size altogether.

Aside from that though the 145 and 160 share the same LCD incase you have the hardware for a swap. I can't remember but the 140, 165, 170 and 180 *might* have compatible LCDs as well but don't quote me on that.

 

MacMan

Well-known member
I believe the 170's and 180's have active matrix screens whereas the others have passive-matrix. I don't know if this affects compatibility.

I can confirm that the 160 and 145 displays are interchangable, I have a "Frankenbook" 145b with 160 display somewhere that I built once.

 

MacJunky

Well-known member
Yea, I use my 145's LCD in my 160 because the 160's original failed on me and I needed the 160.

About the 170 and 180, that is why I said "might".

 

Quadraman

Well-known member
Unfortunately I now have 2 150's with bad LCDs, so I need to find at least one that will work. I saw someone selling the top half of a 160 cheap so I thought that might work.

 

tomlee59

Well-known member
The 150's LCD was unique. You'll need to replace it with another one from a 150. No other model had a 2-bit (yes, two bits) passive LCD.

What's wrong with yours? Cracked? If they're physically intact, they may be readily fixable. If you get a chance, post back with a description of the problem(s), and maybe someone here can suggest some fixes.

 

LCGuy

LC Doctor/Hot Rodder
I believe the 170's and 180's have active matrix screens whereas the others have passive-matrix. I don't know if this affects compatibility.
I can confirm that the 160 and 145 displays are interchangable, I have a "Frankenbook" 145b with 160 display somewhere that I built once.
i don't know about the others, but i can certainly confirm that as long as you have an inverter and display cable from a 170, a display from one wll just bolt onto a 140/145/145B. And vice versa.

 

Kallikak

Well-known member
But if you have a 170 with a broken screen and a working 140, it's much easier to just swap the 170 daughter card into the 140 than the 140 screen into the 170, and you get the same result.

 

LCGuy

LC Doctor/Hot Rodder
Indeed it is, and i did just that about 5 years ago. Got given a bunch of old PowerBooks, including a 145B with a torn display cable and a 170 with a smashed screen. Found a display cable off another 140, which got the display on the 145B going again, and then finished it up by putting the 170's daughtercard in it.

 

Quadraman

Well-known member
The 150's LCD was unique. You'll need to replace it with another one from a 150. No other model had a 2-bit (yes, two bits) passive LCD.
What's wrong with yours? Cracked? If they're physically intact, they may be readily fixable. If you get a chance, post back with a description of the problem(s), and maybe someone here can suggest some fixes.
No, they both have areas that are unusable. Yellow rectangles all over.

 

Patrickool93

Well-known member
Indeed it is, and i did just that about 5 years ago. Got given a bunch of old PowerBooks, including a 145B with a torn display cable and a 170 with a smashed screen. Found a display cable off another 140, which got the display on the 145B going again, and then finished it up by putting the 170's daughtercard in it.
.

I've torn display cables 3 times on PB1xx's and that's the reason I have a pile 2 feet high of PB parts next to my door. :p

 

MacMan

Well-known member
It's an all-too common problem, tearing PowerBook LCD ribbon cables. When my 165c's display went a bit mad, I tried to have a look at it and ended up ripping the cable where it bends at a right angle. It was the first time I had opened up a 100-series PowerBook so I wasn't entirely sure of the disassembaly procedure. Since then I have aquired two discs of Apple Service Manuals which I can consult before undertaking a repair.

Sadly I couldn't save the 165c, but it's parts live on as I used the hard drive and keyboard when I built a PowerBook 145b from scratch. Basically I got a load of broken PowerBook bits off eBay and constructed a working machine with 145b motherboard, 145b Floppy, 145b base, 165c's keyboard & HD and a 165 screen (not 160 as previously mentioned). The result is a very functional little machine!

 
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