Broken LCD, or more?

[dozens]

My girlfriend came back from a ski trip and while unpacking finds her unibody Macbook Pro has suffered some form of impact and the 'lid' is bent back at one corner and the LCD is cracked. She has Applecare and called Apple and they sent a box but they explained they will not cover it if it has been damaged, which it has. I know how they charge a ton so I read up on fixing the LCD myself.

Question 1:
Apple does not manufacture the LCD it uses in it's systems themselves, they purchase them. I have found the same LCD and ordered it (for $80). Does replacing the LCD myself void the warranty and/or Applecare?

Question 2:
I'm concerned that the damage could be more serious as most of the time you see broken LCDs you see the black spot and spidercracks, but what is on the screen is still "correct", however what is being displayed on her screen looks digitally scrambled, lilke this:

Does this mean there is other damage? The videos I have watched of people replacing their LCD show that it is pretty much an all-in-one thing, so I can't help but feel that replacing the LCD unit will fix the whole problem, but what do I know? I can say that at first it was fine but as we have opened and shut the lid a few times it has gotten worse, which leads me to believe it is maybe pinching a wire or something maybe?

Question 3:
This is the case and how the panel is pulling away from the casing. Can you tell me if this will pull back together easily?

 

[AlphaDogg]

If the damage to the LCD did not already void the warranty, replacing it will.

 

[dozens]

Thank you for the concise answer, , but that's where I'm confused. You're saying the damage to the LCD voids the warranty of the whole computer? Further, how would Apple even know the LCD was replaced if a future issue arises?

 

[TheIguana]

Thank you for the concise answer, , but that's where I'm confused. You're saying the damage to the LCD voids the warranty of the whole computer? Further, how would Apple even know the LCD was replaced if a future issue arises?

In this instance yes. Given the extensive damage to the display casing even if the LCD was replaced the display casing damage would remain. If the display casing was replaced it would be a different matter.

Looking at the amount of bending and damage to the display assembly shown in your last picture the repair is probably going to require more than just the LCD panel. I suspect to repair this MBP you are going to need to replace the entire display assembly not just the LCD.

 

[dozens]

I suspected that. But how about this? What has happened is the outer aluminum has bent and pulled away from the "frame" between the LCD and the outer aluminum, which you can now see is simply glued together. So in my head it seems I could just fully separate them, bend it back and re-glue it?

Here's the options I see. Opinions? Advice?

1) If that is doable, then I spend the $80 for the LCD and I fix it. Then maybe Apple never knows it has been replaced.

2) I send it to Apple under Applecare, they say it's not covered, and it costs me roughly $1000, which means I'd be ahead to just sell it and get another most likely.

3) I find a non-Apple-authorized place to fix it good as new much cheaper than Apple would, and then Apple never knows it's been replaced.

4) I buy a full lid used and replace it fully.

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