Laptop Problems

  • Thread starter Tom M
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Tom M

Tom M

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Well, I've never had a laptop before and picked one up dirt cheap a few weeks ago. There's one hitch, and that's a graphical issue in any resolution other than 1024x768.
When I go into lower resolutions the graphics look garbled as if something is corrupt. I've just started looking around the net for information, but figured I'd post here and another forum to see what other people might already be aware of.
The Laptop in question is an IBM thinkpad T21 2646 8AU (Australian no less.)
Here's a pic of the garbled graphics. It looks a fair bit worse in person, but you'll get the idea.
 

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you probably need to update the video drivers for the computer. Go to IBM's website and you should be able to find the driver. There may even be a tool on their site where you can findout exactly what you got. It will probably ask for a tag number or serial number or something enter it in and you should find what you need.
 
I should have also mentioned that I already updated all of the drivers and downloaded all of Windows' updates as well.
 
D'ohwhat is the age of the laptop? it only gets blurry with the resolution lower right?
 
I'm not sure how old it is, I bought it from someone who couldn't even get it to log into Windows for practically nothing.
I reinstalled Windows (that came with it) and came upon this problem.
And it's not so much blurry as it looks as though the Video card isn't properly stretching the graphics at lower resolution to the 1024x768 screen.
I know that I've heard of this before, I just can't recall who was having it and what their solution was...
 
You have a T21?

To tell you the truth, that doesn't look too bad, have you tried upping the screen refresh rate?

I usually have to fix laptops like these on a semi-regular basis. Have you tried hooking it up to a monitor, to see if it does this.

Oh I just read the rest of your post, we are told to set the resolution on these laptops to 1024 by 768 come to think of it even the newest T30's we get do this.

Wow, I don't think I really helped.
 
Originally posted by Race Idiot
Wow, I don't think I really helped.
Click to expand...

No, for someone who's in the industry, you're rubbish! ;)

Tom, the issue is that a laptop panel consists of discrete LEDs that display the picture, rather than on a CRT screen where it's electron beams drawing the picture on a screen. Therefore, each laptop (or any flat-panel actually) has a native resolution. On yours, that native resolution is 1024x768 because there are 1024 LED-sets in each row, and 768 rows. So, if you wish to use other graphic modes, the screen has to work out how to assign pixels to a different screen layout. It can do it, but as you've discovered, it looks rubbish.
 
:ouch:

Well uh, yeah just watch it you. :P

Then how come my flatscreen monitor attached to my desk pc can do any resolution without having that effect and the laptop can't?
 
Flatscreens can adjust their settings to optimise for a wider range of resolutions. In truth, I'm not sure how that works. However, you will notice a significant improvement in quality when you use your desk flatscreen in its native resolution.
 

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