Newton 2100 screen - half is missing

[TonyJay]

I happened to see a listing on eBay for a Newton 2100 that came with a bunch of cards (including a 32 mb flash! ), original stylus and an original 9w power supply. And as well as a broken 2100 thrown in, all for a good price. Actually an amount that I would have paid just for the accessories. Happy with this. I have a couple of 2100's that could use these accessories. I do not have the eBay Newton yet, but the pictures show that half of the vertical screen is missing. Just throwing this out to the Newton gurus here and whether anyone knows the likely cause. Is this something likely to be worth repairing. No history on the device, so who knows if someone was tinkering and managed to damage the display cable. I have never taken a Newton apart, other than rebuilding the NiMH battery packs.

The second question I have is level of difficulty in replacing the ECL screens in these. I have found some blurry internal pictures of steps but no full video to that goes through the entire process. I am willing to try more simple repairs (but in another thread I am getting help with a Powerbook 145b that I screwed up, so I am not to be trusted with anything vintage LOL). I can replace caps, have done 'some' surface mount repairs under a microscope but do not want to ruin a working but 'dim screen' 2100. Maybe I can tear down the eBay one with the bad screen to get familiar?

 

[splorp]

The screen may not need to be replaced. This is more likely due to the display connector becoming unseated from the main board, or as you mentioned, the connector being damaged due to “tinkering”.

Frank Gründel has published a number of disassembly and repairs guides for various Newton models, which may help you decide whetheryou want to tackle this yourself.

Hardware projects for the Apple Newton MessagePad and eMate

Hardware and software for Apple Newton MessagePad and eMate, disassembly and battery pack refurbish instructions

www.pda-soft.de

 

[TonyJay]

The screen may not need to be replaced. This is more likely due to the display connector becoming unseated from the main board, or as you mentioned, the connector being damaged due to “tinkering”.

Frank Gründel has published a number of disassembly and repairs guides for various Newton models, which may help you decide whetheryou want to tackle this yourself.

Hardware projects for the Apple Newton MessagePad and eMate

Hardware and software for Apple Newton MessagePad and eMate, disassembly and battery pack refurbish instructions

www.pda-soft.de

That is very helpful. Will do some studying before any attempt. Thank you!

 

[splorp]

You’re welcome!

If it does turn out to be a damaged display, I have a few sources for replacement parts that I can share,

 

[TonyJay]

You’re welcome!

If it does turn out to be a damaged display, I have a few sources for replacement parts that I can share,

Thank you. I would love to repair this if I could so that would be very helpful when I have a chance to look at it. Does the Newton 2100 have a display that has separate digitizer and LCD or are they a single unit? I know the ECL panel is separate as I was originally interested (if I determined that I was technically up to it) replace the ECL panel in my current two 2100's. Their screens are original and are so dim it is a struggle to read - which makes playing with them frustrating. I ordered screens from an EU site (backlight4you) which are the original 'green' color but brighter, and with supposedly longer life. On that site, it is noted that original screens were rated for life of less than 1000 hours, maybe even half of that. Seems short imo. Anyway new ones are rated for thousands of hours but honestly, I need bright more than I need long life LOL. The broken eBay one I am getting was intended for me to get a 'learners permit' for opening and working with the 2100's I have. Any videos that you know of that show disassembly of these devices? I can find for the 130's but none for 2xxx's. Maybe that is telling me something LOL. That said, your link to Frank Gründel's site does seem quite detailed.

 

[splorp]

Does the Newton 2100 have a display that has separate digitizer and LCD or are they a single unit?

It’s a single unit, AFAIK.

Any videos that you know of that show disassembly of these devices?

Not to my knowledge.

However, I did find another MP2x00 disassembly walkthrough on the iFixIt site.

Apple Tablet Teardown

Apple definitely snuck away some interesting tidbits inside -- things they didn't want people to know prior to release. Initially we thought the...

www.ifixit.com

 

[TonyJay]

It’s a single unit, AFAIK.


Not to my knowledge.

However, I did find another MP2x00 disassembly walkthrough on the iFixIt site.

Apple Tablet Teardown

Apple definitely snuck away some interesting tidbits inside -- things they didn't want people to know prior to release. Initially we thought the...

www.ifixit.com

Those images are so much clearer! Thank you. The removal of the digitizer ribbon is clearly risky, as even touching the contacts could ruin the functionality. Will need to study this in detail before I try ECL replacement. The good news may be that I can get to display cable easily to see if it has been damaged, or reseat it and see if that will fix the missing 1/2 of the screen. Still has not arrived yet... mail from US to Canada is always a lot slower due to customs. Thanks again! So helpful.

Here is the pdf for ECL screen replacement provided by Backlight4you. The text is helpful but images are not very clear. iFixit images are so much better.

 

[splorp]

Here is the pdf for ECL screen replacement provided by Backlight4you.

Ooh … thanks for posting this.

 

[TonyJay]

Thank you. I would love to repair this if I could so that would be very helpful when I have a chance to look at it. Does the Newton 2100 have a display that has separate digitizer and LCD or are they a single unit? I know the ECL panel is separate as I was originally interested (if I determined that I was technically up to it) replace the ECL panel in my current two 2100's. Their screens are original and are so dim it is a struggle to read - which makes playing with them frustrating. I ordered screens from an EU site (backlight4you) which are the original 'green' color but brighter, and with supposedly longer life. On that site, it is noted that original screens were rated for life of less than 1000 hours, maybe even half of that. Seems short imo. Anyway new ones are rated for thousands of hours but honestly, I need bright more than I need long life LOL. The broken eBay one I am getting was intended for me to get a 'learners permit' for opening and working with the 2100's I have. Any videos that you know of that show disassembly of these devices? I can find for the 130's but none for 2xxx's. Maybe that is telling me something LOL. That said, your link to Frank Gründel's site does seem quite detailed.

You’re welcome!

If it does turn out to be a damaged display, I have a few sources for replacement parts that I can share,

So the eBay Newton 2100 arrived yesterday. Would boot but with half screen. Backlight works. I opened it and not much evidence of tinkering that I can see, although case looks like this was well used. The board was clean, no corrosion and did not see anything unusual under magnification. The display cable looked ok, no tears. Reseated the display cable which did change the behaviour, in that it now started in full screen and you can see the calibration points briefly, but than back to half screen (video) and the calibration points disappear. Before this, would only boot into half screen. However when I put back together, I now get a black line in the 'empty' side.

What do you think? Display cable and/or display itself? I did not do more than remove back panel. Is there a connection on the LED panel for the cable that could be loose or is it integrated into the display? Parts are not easy to come by for these or expensive, but is there a source for displays (affordable LOL) you know of ?

Thanks for any help.

 

[beachycove]

There’s more than one layer in the screen. I believe that I have some examples of the bottom layer here (NOS). I’ve probably got three or four of them. If it’s one of those you need, send me a note.

I didn’t see this auction, but have been keeping an eye out for a reasonably priced 2100 with a cracked screen but intact digitizer, as I’d like to have a try at rehabilitating one myself.