Chosen Solution
Hello, I recently connected my mid 2010 mbp to an Acer monitor (x243w) with an HDMI to mini display port. I use both the laptop and display as dual monitors. Things tend to work well some of the time, but randomly and sometimes 10 times over the course of a few hours of use, the MacBook and display will either go completely black or white. The laptop and monitor remain on and both appear to be operating normally except that there is no display. The only thing that seems to bring the screens back to functional use is restarting the laptop entirely. This does not happen without the external monitor connected. I have looked online quite a bit, and it appears that this is a common problem with this year and model. But, there does not seem to be a clear solution. Some say the logic board needs to be replaced; some say there is an issue with the graphics card; others say the LVDS cable (not sure what that is) is not connected properly to the logic board; others seem to say the computer needs to be baked in the oven… I have not been able to tell if any particular type of use causes the screens to go black. Does anyone know of the solution for this? I am game for trying something myself, but I don’t want to go inside the computer if I don’t even know what I am looking to fix. Thanks very much!
Update (07/07/2018) By the way, the TG image is with safari open (2 tabs), evernote, TG, and powerpoint. TEMP of system= 70 c/158 f I turned the fans up manually, and system dropped to 65 c/149 f in about 3 minutes.
Lets see if I can simplify this a bit… The logic board and the dedicated GPU chip are one in the same! The LVDS cable would only effect the internal display if it has a problem. So the question is what are you running for apps as you maybe causing your system to overheat. Given the systems age I would recommend doing a good dusting out as the logic board, fan’s & heat sink fins are likely loaded up with junk which effects the systems cooling. I would also clean & refresh the thermal paste. Here’s the IFIXIT guide to get to the heat sink MacBook Pro 13" Unibody Mid 2010 Heat Sink Replacement
In addition to Dan’s fine answer: You said you had issues with fans speeds. EXACTLY what did you do to resolve this? Also please examine the logic board around the crimped ends of your heat sink; you are looking for an oily type of residue stain. I’d sure like to see the results from TG Pro to see what is overheating: https://www.tunabellysoftware.com/tgpro/
