Replacement Panel as External Display?

[nlynch77]

I want to buy the higher resolution panel for my Macbook Pro. However, leaving the old beautiful display to waste is a huge shame.

Google failed me in my searches.

What I need to know:
Is there any converter to connect my Macbook Pro to it's old display (ie. hdmi to display, VGA/DVI to display, ect)?

Power consumption??

Will brightness controls work?

Price?

 

[simsaladimbamba]

What MBP model do you have? I presume one those Unibody Aluminium ones in 15" and you want to replace the 1440 x 900 pixel panel with a 1680 x 1050 panel?

 

[Asuriyan]

It's possible, though it won't be pretty. You'll need to find a controller board with the right interface.

There's a guy on Ebay that sells a bunch of that kind of thing:

http://www.ebay.com/sch/njytouch/m.html

I don't know what interface the screen uses, but a bit of probing should tell that easily enough. Then it's just a matter of building an enclosure that makes it all look presentable.

It would undoubtedly be cheaper and easier to buy another monitor, but it sounds like a fun DIY project

 

[nlynch77]

Yeah I want to replace my standard-res with the high-res for my 15' MBP. I saw a few on iFixit for a reasonable price.

I just worry that Apple's odd connection method will limit my options for connection. I don't believe HDMI or VGA/DVI have native brightness support nor the ability to provide power, so i really don't know whether this is possible... maybe with an external power supply at least turning it on would be possible.