Junk Laptop to a Mini Monitor

A while back my grandmother gave me her old and slow Acer laptop that would otherwise been thrown in the lanfill. At the time, I didn't know how what parts to salvage and what parts to throw away so I ended up salvaging as much as I could. A few of the parts I kept were, the screen and the 2.5" hard drive.

Step 1: The Screen

I started disassembling the laptop by removing the screen assembly with the bezels first. Unfortunately I did not take photos of this however, it's not hard with the proper tools such as a few screwdrivers and a flat, prying tool such as a spudger.
Once I had just the screen I looked for the model number. Mine was B101AW03. I searched on ebay and aliexpress and found the correct interface. There are several different versions. I chose one with a HDMI input as I did not want to use (or buy) an adapter for my MacBook Pro.

Here is the eBay listing for the one I used.

Step 2: Designing the Case

I started designing the case in Fusion360. The case is just an extruded rectangle with holes for the wires and screwpoints in the side. After printing, I noticed that I needed to shave off a little bit of material. After that the screen friction fit in exceptionally well and I did not end up using the screws on the side to hold it in.

For the holder I actually used "stand for iPhone5 with otterbox case" found on thingiverse from the user brianyoung. I changed the dimensions and extruded or made it a little bit longer to have a solid base for the screen. I had actually printed this a week earlier and used it for my phone.

Step 3: Finish

To finish this project I hot-glued the interface and buttons to the side of the case.

That's it! This project was super easy and fun to make.`

Comments

[Lorddrake]

This is a real cool reuse of parts. Are you going to be using this as a second monitor for your current laptop or is this going to be incorporated into a larger project?

[Electronics Workshop]

Yes, this will be a second monitor for my computer. I've used it for a lot of things the main one being video editing. It's great to see what you're working on and the result on a bigger, second screen.

[ronanry]

The idea is already known, but i really like the way you made the 3D part :) (btw, you may even integrate the electronics parts in it !)

[Electronics Workshop]

Thanks! Yea 3D printing and electronics are my passion so this brought them together. Check back soon more more projects!

William

[Penolopy Bulnick]

It's great that you were able to salvage it and give it new life :)

[MKmeL]

Nice!