Is this true?

[Dabombinable]

I'm looking through Wikipedia and I found out that apparently the CCFL backlights used in laptops can have their lifespan dramatically shortened by being run too dim. Is this true? Because if it is it would explain why the backlight in my Tecra M5 died-I had the screen at its lowest brightness most of the time. 

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Makes sense since the resistors would have to work harder.

[D2ultima]

Not sure if that works... generally those screens have a certain number of "hours" per panel, and some of the worse panels have a ridiculously short amount of hours on them.

 

Sometimes you get worse or better than average lifespans, but if yours died unnaturally fast and the consequent panels died unnaturally fast as well, it might validate that.

 

If you ever find out the panel model number used in your Tecra M5 you can look it up on www.panelook.com and see what its rated hours are.

 

For example, mine here is rated for 12k hours minimum. Scroll down a bit until you see Backlight System and you see the lamp life.

[Dabombinable]

Not sure if that works... generally those screens have a certain number of "hours" per panel, and some of the worse panels have a ridiculously short amount of hours on them.

 

Sometimes you get worse or better than average lifespans, but if yours died unnaturally fast and the consequent panels died unnaturally fast as well, it might validate that.

 

If you ever find out the panel model number used in your Tecra M5 you can look it up on www.panelook.com and see what its rated hours are.

 

For example, mine here is rated for 12k hours minimum. Scroll down a bit until you see Backlight System and you see the lamp life.

This is the panel my laptop uses and the lifespan isn't mentioned, but going by its original HDD its had just over 2000 hours use, and I know that's short as my LCD monitor from 2002 has been in daily use until the start of last year.

Edit: Looking at a newer model that's identical on paper, my laptop's screen did not last anywhere near as long as it should have. http://www.panelook.com/LTN141P4-L03_SAMSUNG_14.1_LCM_parameter_8416.html

[D2ultima]

Yeah I don't think 2000 hours is any kind of good lifespan. That's under 100 days of usage.

[Dabombinable]

Yeah I don't think 2000 hours is any kind of good lifespan. That's under 100 days of usage.

I just hope the replacement backlight lasts the correct amount of time, though I need to find out how to swap its connectors as its the right bulb but the connector doesn't fit the inverter. (I pulled it out of another laptop with the same panel-which was working until the top was almost snapped off when it fell off a desk, destroying the motherboard at the same time).

[D2ultima]

I just hope the replacement backlight lasts the correct amount of time, though I need to find out how to swap its connectors as its the right bulb but the connector doesn't fit the inverter. (I pulled it out of another laptop with the same panel-which was working until the top was almost snapped off when it fell off a desk, destroying the motherboard at the same time).

Well good luck with that! Feel free to test the dim thing and see. If that one fails right quick as well, then you know it to be true (especially if it's the same model).