I just broke my Dell's screen. something heavy for a lap top fell in, and the screen just went form the normal view to a lot of colored lines ( I don't know how to explain it well) . . . is it possible to...
1) These Dell's usually come "stock" with newer Sata HD's, where your data is stored. As soon as they "free fall" the heads lock, which should save all your data from problems. The HD won't have been damaged, and it sounds like the only thing that is broken is the LCD- if there are lines all over or even on part of the screen, IT CAN NOT BE FIXED. Regardless of what you hear the LCD will need to be replaced- or use an external monitor. Essentially, the impact/drop/falling item on it broke the internal element OF the LCD itself. Good news it's an easy fix. You can do it yourself or bring it to a shop. Ebay sells common LCD's for this kind of laptop.
2) To get your data off, you'll need to remove the HD and have an external 2.5" SATA hard drive enclosure for it as well as a 2nd computer or access to one (to copy the data to). Turn the laptop upside down, and look for the HD (hard drive) cover -it might have a little icon that looks a bit like a 3d-soda can, very small, engraved into the cover or close to it. You'll need a small philips screwdriver. (If you need help finding it, go to dell's website and DL the manual for the 1420 and look up "replacing the hard drive). Once you have the cover open, lift on the tab there (I think it's black- lift straight up once you've unscrewed anything close to it). Once the HD is out, you can unscrew anything attached to it (and pull that little plastic-and metal comb thing off- that's the right-angle connector -don't loose it, they're really hard to find). Plug in the HD to your 2.5" external case, and plug it into your 2nd computer. Copy the files across from your documents and settings/user name, as well as anything else you might want (again, your HD is probably ok, and a new LCD will get you back in business).
To note: you probably WON'T need a whole new LID, just the SCREEN itself. You CAN take these apart easily, though you will need to remove the power-button cover. The steps to replace the LCD yourself should be a different post, but are quite simple, and there is only about... 15-17 screws and a few cables, and you'll only need a philips screwdriver, a small flat screwdriver and the new LCD. Any dell 14.1" wide-screen LCD will work by the way. I'd look on ebay.
good luck and post if you want to try replacing the LCD yourself.
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