Hard drive removal on a Vaio PCG 6J1M?

[joydivision]

Got one of these which needs a new driver, I can't work out how to get to the hard drive? Is it under the keyboard? I have tried to remove the bezel over the power buttons to remove the keyboard but it is getting stuck.

Does anybody have any links to a manual for this laptop?

 

[Martyn]

What's the model on the screen bezel? I'm pretty sure you take the bottom off completely. Remove the memory cover and cd drive then all the screws on the bottom with an arrow next to them. I replaced a drive on one the other day.

 

[joydivision]

Yep I've noticed where it is, its just next to the trackpad on the left hand side. Was it a fiddelly job? I am not every experienced in taking laptops apart. Is it just a case of removing the bottom cover or does the entire bottom part of the laptop need rebuilding to put everything back together again?

 

[Martyn]

No it's easy i think after you remove the screws you just ease something into the edge like a guitar plectrum and it will come away ok. One edge has a phono socket in it so you pull away from the edge opposite that.

 

[joydivision]

front bezel is VGN SZ1XP.

I think I do need a manual before I do this job because it is not that obvious which screws I remove. There dosn't seem to be many screws at all.

PS This is a smaller laptop, and there is no phono socket on it. One edge is already coming away as it has been stood on. It is an IDE drive too, so I am starting to wonder if its even worth repairing.

 

[Martyn]

Ok that is different to the one I did so you'd better get the manual.

 

[Kitten Kong]

Have a look here Ian. It may have the info you need.

http://www.insidemylaptop.com/how-take-apart-sony-vaio-vgn-sz-series-laptop/

 

[joydivision]

Just found some info on it, she told me it was two years old but her dad gave it her, just found it is a 2005 model. Given that an IDE drive is £45-50 just for a 120gb model it might not be worth fixing. Plus its all a bit out of shape due to the damage whch might make taking it apart harder.

If I find a manual I will give it ago, if it not its not worth it.

 

[TLE]

Try this... http://home.comcast.net/~nw_systems/vgnSZ.pdf

I got this from http://www.laptoprepair101.com/laptop/2008/01/07/service-manuals-for-sony-vaio-laptops-notebooks/

 

[joydivision]

Got access to it now, I removed the keyboard and front bezel, I've left them both ribbon cables both plugged in because it is something less to snap

Will take a few pictures of it, remove the drive, then buy the new one. I don't fancy being stuck with an IDE 2.5" drive because I rarely replace them these days. It is always SATA.

 

[joydivision]

The hard drive is all squashed and wedged in due to the impact (it was stood on) so I have warned my client it might not go back together again properly but there will be no charge if I can't fix it.

It eases the pressure some what

I hate working on laptops so much, but can't keep refusing to work at this lower level on them because I am loosing a lot of work.

 

[Kitten Kong]

The hard drive is all squashed and wedged in due to the impact (it was stood on) so I have warned my client it might not go back together again properly but there will be no charge if I can't fix it.

It eases the pressure some what

I hate working on laptops so much, but can't keep refusing to work at this lower level on them because I am loosing a lot of work.

Woah.. slow down Ian. This is not your fault. Ergo, you are not responsible for it, should it not go back together in one piece. You need to at least charge a diagnostic fee of some description, and the cost of the replacement drive.

You do not need to turn down the work on lower level repairs such as these. Christ mate, if your really that stuck, pass them over to me, and I will do them for you; and pay you commission. That way you get some money out of it and your client is happy, as they won't have to take it elsewhere.

The only things I personally do not do with laptop repairs, is dc jacks, and mobo level repairs. I send those off to a supplier of mine.

 

[DCGPX]

Have to agree. You need to charge at least a diag fee just to cover your time.

Laptops do get easier the more you do them, I hated them at first as well but now think nothing of getting into guts of one, even if its one I havent seen. I've done that many I can usually figure it out.

I'd suggest you do what I did and spend time collecting as many manuals as you can just for reference. Be worth their weight in gold in the beginning.

Other than that I'd take the work and gain experience, tell client you need an extra day for turn around simply say laptops take time due to complexity, then do it slowly. Clients with laptops generally are understanding of time/cost when it comes to their little box!

Take Nige up if your still not confident on any that seem too complex. That way you both win and clients still see you as the repair supplier.

 

[joydivision]

There is a bit of history with relatives of this client, not with me but with a friend who runs a B2B business and he has had a bit of a major falling out. So I need to be a little careful here. I am still doing a N&P job for him and even if I end up writing this laptop off I have learnt something

 

[joydivision]

Here are the pictures, you can see the hard drive is seated at an angle, that is not normal is it? I am worried it is sitting like that because the entire chassis is out of shape.

What do you think?

 

[DCGPX]

To be honest - Looking at your pics then I'd say its normal, the mounts look as if thats where it sits.

Is there anything to suggest it should lay flat as I cant see where it would?

I can see the distortion your on about, sure they just stood on it and not do a dance!!

 

[Kitten Kong]

Looking at pic no 1, top right hand corner, there looks, what appears to be a plastic clip. Does the palm rest clip into that, or is the drive supposed to go there.

Also have you powered up the laptop, to ensure that it does work, apart from the drive. The chassis looks well bent out of shape, and my thoughts are that there could also be detrimental damage to the motherboard.

 

[joydivision]

It works fine, just takes about 5 minutes to boot up. Everything functions ok but the drive is full of bad sectors, fails both SMART and Fujitu's own testing program.

I just put the slowness down to the drive being full of bad sectors, but the repair will cost the client more than £100 so I am wondering if it is worth it. It is dual core but only just.

I will try removing the drive and I can get an idea how bad it is then.

 

[Kitten Kong]

Do you have a spare ide drive you could try installing, rather than shelling out on a new one for the moment?. If not, I'm pretty sure I do, and would gladly lend it you whilst your going through the testing procedures.

The 5 mins boot up time, is that to the desktop, or waiting for the bar to cross along the screen?

 

[joydivision]

To the desktop even in safe mode, seems to be in decent tune as well. T2200 Dou, 1GB RAM, XP Pro.

I have a few IDE 2.5" knocking around but I have no idea how healthy they are but can test them.

Might be an idea to try another drive first like you say, as I rarely have use for IDE drives now.