Dell Inspiron screen/HDD problem

[y4rdb1rd]

Hello. I have a Dell Inspiron M5030 here that has a screen that keeps cutting out - as in it goes blank/black, but doesn't turn off, it still lights up, if you get me. At the same time the hdd cuts out/turns off aswell - at least from the LED indicator light it looks that way. I then have to restart the computer.

This has been happening randomly for about a week now. It'll all cut out anywhere from 3 mins to maybe a day+ of being turned on. It's completely random..

I've checked all wire connections, reseated the RAM and HDD, cleaned the laptop insides out. I've been monitoring the core and HDD temperatures all summer and there hasn't been any overheating problems. I scanned the HDD with a program (can't remember the name) which said it was all good, no faults.

Like I say the fault is completely random. The thing I may have noticed yesterday is that when I jiggle/move the laptop to place it, or put pressure on a certain spot of the laptop, it cuts out. I'm not 100% sure about that though..

Anyone got an idea of what's goin' on here? would appreciate some help.

Not sure if I've posted this in the right section.

 

[Akutalji]

Sounds like either a short somewhere, or a crack in the motherboard (even a microscopic one, just enough to cut current). You ruled out several other possibilities (overheating, HDD, RAM), so the motherboard is likely the culprit. Warranty that, if you can. If not, then Dell can fix it, for a price.

I wouldn't tear it down any further, all you'd do is void warranties and risk further damage to other components.