I don't know much about laptops but I would say it depends on if the laptop has any type of fuse/relay/circuit breaker to shut off the power before any real damage was done...if there is some sort of diagnostic to tell if the screen is fried or if it is worth just replacing the whole thing...you would have to talk to a service technician(geek squad) to see which way is cheaper whether to try and repair it or just get another one....stupid question- how do you know the laptop works fine if the screen is fried(not working)....you didn't happen to get a warranty agreement with it for just this type of accident -just asking...