Nightmare Laptops from Hell

[NviGate Systems]

ASUS K501U Series.

To replace keyboard you take it completely apart, main board and all as the main board mounts under the keyboard. The keyboard is held in place with two brackets and over 20 tiny plastic rivets. You must secure each point where the rivets were or it will floppy around when you type on it.

I used Artic Silver 2 Part Thermal Epoxy as it has a good thick consistency and the initial dry time till it's tacky is short. You do have to be careful about not putting too much on each joint and if some makes it to the keys wipe it off with alcohol before it fully cured.

Mine worked good, total touch time was about an hour in total.

 

[Larry Sabo]

I used Artic Silver 2 Part Thermal Epoxy

it would be interesting to see if Bondic works well for that, as it activates instantly when the provided UV light is shone on the dab you could put to replace the plastic rivets

 

[NviGate Systems]

I may buy some and try it next time I have a keyboard replacement. I see it on Amazon and Canadian Tire.

 

[Larry Sabo]

I see it on Amazon and Canadian Tire.

I bought some at Home Depot, but see that Lowes and Home Hardware sell it as well. It's perfect for tacking and holding parts in place, around which you intend to place epoxy.

 

[PcTestCard.com]

HP Pavilion DV
Pretty much the entire DV line has graphics overheating issues in my experience. Haven't seen any from the last 2 years models with that problem though.

Yes, this seems the issue to me as well.

 

[Aranarth]

Sony Vaio's in general are just weird. I used to work atpc renesaisance in Lansing and all the Sony's seemed alittle off. 10 years later I was providing support for software made in-house and it worked fine on all of the machines but one which was a vaio. It kept throwing a runtime error. The programmer was able to confirm that the RTC was loosing time and that was what was causing the error. We never did figure out why.

I have not found a Dell Inspiron I thought was well assembled and easily serviceable.

I must prefer business laptops and stay away fromanything intended for home users.

 

[Larry Sabo]

Here's another laptop to add to the collection: a MSI MS-1759.

The laptop in question came in with an intermittent video problem that came and went with tapping the screen or raising/lowering the lid. Installed new screen and thought it was fixed but customer came back with the original problem. Ordered a replacement video cable and went to install it, only to learn that one has to completely disassemble the laptop to undo the tape that secures the video cable to the case between the motherboard and the case. It will be a miracle if I can re-assemble this thing with all 50 or so screws back in their original location.

EDIT: Arghhh! I just checked the replacement cable and it's not compatible -- different connector type! Somebody shoot me, now!

 

[Porthos]

thought it was fixed but customer came back with the original problem. Ordered a replacement video cable and went to install it, only to learn that one has to completely disassemble the laptop to undo the tape that secures the video cable to the case between the motherboard and the case. It will be a miracle if I can re-assemble this thing with all 50 or so screws back in their original location.

And might not be able to charge any or much more since "your" fix did not do the job.

 

[Larry Sabo]

And might not be able to charge any or much more since "your" fix did not do the job.

Exactly. My reward is I get to keep the original screen, which was probably not defective. It gets worse, I just noticed that the hinge mounts are all broken now. What an unmitigated disaster!

 

[Porthos]

I just noticed that the hinge mounts are all broken now. What an unmitigated disaster!

I actually HATE hinge jobs especallywhen it becomes the female inserts for the screws. The darn plastic is usually broken and you either need a lid or a base.

 

[sapphirescales]

I actually HATE hinge jobs especallywhen it becomes the female inserts for the screws. The darn plastic is usually broken and you either need a lid or a base.

Remember the good old days when a hinge problem was actually a hinge problem?

The ironic thing is hinge quality is MUCH higher nowadays, yet they screw these reliable hinges into cheap a$$ Chinese plastic. I'd much rather have cheap hinges. I haven't replaced an actual hinge with a problem in a VERY long time. The last laptop I had with an actual hinge problem was one of those old silver and white Dell Insprion's that originally came with XP/Vista (this one):

Not counting MacBooks of course. Mac's are such sh*tty quality that pretty much EVERYTHING breaks on those.

 

[Porthos]

Remember the good old days when a hinge problem was actually a hinge problem?

Sure do.

 

[Diggs]

I actually HATE hinge jobs especallywhen it becomes the female inserts for the screws. The darn plastic is usually broken and you either need a lid or a base.

...and the last one I had bits of the plastic from around the female inserts worked its way into the cooling fan and froze it which is why I got the call for a bad fan, not the hinges. Fan was fine once the plastic chips were out but the case mounts for those hinges were a mess.

 

[River Valley Computer]

Depending on the age of the laptop and the customer we have actually drilled holes thru the base and put bolts on the hinges. Can be made to look relatively neat. This is last resort and appreciated by many customers. Yes - Saphirescales - the majority of our customers can afford to buy a $2000 laptop like your clients.

 

[Diggs]

we have actually drilled holes thru the base

Yep - Have done this also! An hour of my shop time is much cheaper than a new laptop - heh!

 

[Markverhyden]

Depending on the age of the laptop and the customer we have actually drilled holes thru the base and put bolts on the hinges. Can be made to look relatively neat. This is last resort and appreciated by many customers.

Yep. Done that several times. I use flat heads with a washer on the inside with a washer and nut on the outside. I'll use a Dremel or hacksaw to cut off the excess of the shaft. Can't torque the screws too much so after cutting the shaft I'll remove the nut, apply a touch of Loctite, then tighten it again. Finish it off with a spare rubber foot hollowed out to accommodate the protrusion. And a tip I learned from an old timer on a oil well drilling rig. Nail polish works very well and is much easier to find in sparsely populated areas.

 

[Larry Sabo]

J-B Weld does a good job. Hinge mounts of the laptop in question have been repaired and are stronger than the original, I believe (and fervently hope)!

 

[Kitten Kong]

Another one to add to the list.

Lenovo ideapad 330s.

Client rings me up for a quote on a screen repair.

I quoted my usual, £95.00 all in fitted whilst you wait.

Boy oh boy, I shouldn’t have bothered even taking he job on.

Firstly, there’s 4-6 different screens for this laptop. Screens are measured horizontally rather than the traditional diagonal.

Some are 14”, some 15, some 15.6... get the gist..

There are NO screws holding the screen in place, nor the bezel.

The screen is actually held in place with what seems industrial double sided sticky tape!.

It took me literally 25 mins to remove the screen from the casing. The screen smashed to bits, casing warped.

If you have a problem with the graphics harness, do yourself a favour and order a screen whilst your at it, as you will break the screen removing it from the casing. Better still, I wouldn’t take the job on again, if another one comes into the workshop, unless the client wants to spend mucho ££££.

Only one supplier in the UK has the right screen. Even when ordering from the model on the reverse of the screen, you will get different screens appearing.

 

[Philippe]

J-B Weld does a good job. Hinge mounts of the laptop in question have been repaired and are stronger than the original, I believe (and fervently hope)!

View attachment 10423

Looks a lot like plastic melted with acetone.
It's a good homemade glue for plastic ;-)

 

[mikeroq]

Lenovo ideapad 330s.
Client rings me up for a quote on a screen repair.
I quoted my usual, £95.00 all in fitted whilst you wait.
Boy oh boy, I shouldn’t have bothered even taking he job on.

That's why you don't quote a screen repair unless you've done that model or you look up what it takes. It could be anything from simple pop off bezel and swap out screen to sealed glass touchscreen where it's easier to replace the whole assembly.