Yes, send it in for repair. It will help if you're ready to point the people at HP support to the photo here while you're making the arrangements.

Hi Bruce,

The issue is pertaining to the graphics card that is on board. Your problem is not with the VGA card failure it has to do with the video card. On the IQ770, the video out Card is a mini VGA and is not built into the motherboard however, It is not customer replaceable part. To repair issues with the on board video card you would have to replace the motherboard.

The Motherboard has a video card (graphics card) built into it and "on board" means that the video card is assembled onto the motherboard. The IQ770 has an option for video out (for a second monitor) and it's a mini VGA port. The video card produces the display to the monitor on the touchsmart. The mini VGA output would display to a third party monitor for secondary display.

Your problem is NOT with the mini VGA. Your issue with the horizontal lines has to do with the video card being non-functional. It's unfortunate that you are out of warranty because they would have replaced it for you with no cost. at this point you would have to take it to a computer shop to see if they can locate the correct motherboard for the IQ770 to replace it. How long have you had the computer for?

So if it's the video card being non-functional, replacing that should be enough. You mention that the motherboard needs replacing, though. I'm not sure I follow that.

Also, I believe the mini VGA port and the IQ770's own display are driven by the same graphics card, which is a non-on-board card, as you say. So if you replace the non-functional graphics card, both the IQ770's own display and the mini VGA port would be in good shape again.

Note that I'm not the owner of the faulting machine. I'm just trying to make sure we are as clear as possible to someone who reads all this. And although I developed parts of the IQ770 software, I don't remember all the nitty-gritty details of the hardware. There may be some details I'm not aware of.

I do know that the motherboard was especially custom made for the IQ770, so I doubt any regular computer shop would be able to get hold of a replacement. I'm pretty sure that would have to come from HP directly. Or the computer shop would have to get it from HP.

Right. It implies that a VGA card is integrated on the board. But it doesn't mean it was ever shipped from the HP factories with integrated graphics only. It just means that the board could operate without a discrete graphics card and not complain at POST. It also wouldn't perform as well in the "graphics department" as with the discrete card in place.

If you look at the motherboard photo, you'll see a large empty area in the lower left where the barcode sticker is. That's where the discrete graphics card would go.

There are two white connectors at the left edge of the motherboard, above the wide graphics card connector. If I remember correctly, one of those is for connecting the internal display to the discrete graphics card and the other is for connecting the internal display to the on-the-motherboard integrated graphics card. Obviously, messing around with those connections will void your warranty if it's not already run out.

I AM NEW TO THE FORUM. I ALSO HAVE A PROBLEM. I HAVE THE IQ 770 AND HAVE BEEN READING THE POSTS AND THEY MIGHT HELP ME.

MY PROBLEM IS THAT THE SCREEN HAS AN INTERMITTENT PROBLEM. MOST OF THE TIME THE APPEARANCE IS FINE HOWEVER, SOMETIMES THE SCREEN WILL FLICKER AND I WILL GET SMALL VERTICAL LINES (1/64")ACROSS THE DISPLAY AND THE SCREEN GETS DIM. AFTER A PERIOD OF TIME THE SCREEN RETURNS TO NORMAL.

HAVE RUN ALL HP DIAGNOSTICS AND NO PROBLEMS ARE ENCOUNTERED.

ANY SUGGESTIONS?

Thanks for the reply. I researched and downloaded information on how to disassemble the unit and where components are located. I will give it a look tonite.

Thanks again,
PGAPRO

Have you hit it really, REALLY hard yet???

1-1/2 years and pooft!, might not be a bad idea to look at an extended warranty if you still can, I'm sure the 770 shares a lot of the same tech with the 500 and 800's, hope this is not a common ailment. You must be sick over this, that computer just stopped feeling new, and now it's down for the count. I'd at least open her up and re-seat all the connectors related to video and monitor that I could reach short of removing the screen, and see if that does the trick. Often the laptops I repair that have a similar defect on the screen that turned out not to be the video signal out at all, but the lcd grid array, and the lcd was what needed replacement. It's easier to test on a pc with a VGA output, but you might be able to test the same way with the S-Video output if the 770 has one like the 500 and 800 series do. Try hooking up an lcd TV or an analog TV with S-video input to see if you get a picture that doesn't look like uncrossed plaid. It might just be the LCD panel electronics that have gone bad. Good luck with it.
Dave

Hi Again,
The fact that you have a friend's dead TS to use for check and test is testament to the fact that there are broken machines lying around in people's garages and basements with less than 2 years of use on them. This happens with all manufacturers, and what do you want them to say, "These machines are junk, you should start a class action lawsuit against our company, and make some lawyers rich"? Hah!
No manufacturer will admit that their machines are defective even if they have unusually high failure rates.
With the onset of heat, you begin to have troubles. Maybe check the thermal material under the video card heatsink if so equipped, and also check the cooling fan at the radiator end of the heatpipe to be sure it is not dying or dead. Arctic Silver will help cool the video chipset, but some of the nvidia mxm cards have memory in an L shaped pattern around the chipset that is at a lower installed height than the video chip, and have to use a special 1.5mm thick phase change heat removal pad between the cooling plate of the heatpipe pad and the memory DIMMs themselves on the card. It's obvious that heat is your problem, it's just not yet certain that it can be cooled better due to thermal breakdown of the cooling system, or a malfunction of the memory or chipset. The heatpipe and fan are the first place I'd go, and if you can leave the back cover off to watch the fan operate, do it. The fan could be running down as it heats up from running, slowing to the point that it no longer cools well enough to allow reliable operation. Good Luck, I hope you can save it.
Dave