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Hardware repair guide suggestion/comment thread

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  • Hardware
  • Laptops
Last response: in Laptop Tech Support
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a b D Laptop
September 30, 2009 3:39:04 AM

This thread is here for anyone who reads the hardware repair sticky at the top of the forum - if you've a question, comment, or suggestion on a procedure or how the sticky can be improved, please put them right here!

The sticky is located here:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/53660-35-notebook-dis...

More about : hardware repair guide suggestion comment thread

September 30, 2009 3:58:44 AM

Nice work, hopefully it's very useful to many people. [:thegreatgrapeape:3]
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a b D Laptop
September 30, 2009 4:03:33 AM

Thanks again TGGA!
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October 1, 2009 12:05:10 PM

hi all!
thanks for the hardware repair guide.
i have a Toshiba Satellite P300-16E and the build in DVD drive Matshita DVD-RAM UJ 850S makes some problem. when i insert a dvd its played normally, but when the drive stands still and it should be started from a programm or application, then the drive will start and soon stop again, and start again, stop again and so on, like the DVD couldn't be read. the only solution is to open and close the drive, then the DVD will be read normally. i reinstalled the driver, but it didn't help, so i think it might be a hardware problem and i contacted the Toshiba service, as i still have warranty. they told me that i can only send the drive, and don't need to send the whole laptop. but now i don't know which screws i have to open to remove the DVD drive, does anyone know that particilar laptop?
thank you very much for your help.
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October 17, 2009 10:37:01 PM

need a little help >_< i have a Dell Latitude D600 that i want to give to my little bro.... only problem is the thing wont turn on. unless i apply pressure to the correct spot on the case (actually right a above the battery and yes the battery is firmly seated) and then dont jostle the case at all or it shuts off. any help would be grand... i wonder if a soderpoint has let go?
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a b D Laptop
October 18, 2009 12:54:11 AM

You guys should start your own separate threads for your issues - this is here for comments on the sticky. Once you do, I'll be happy to help you both. :hello: 
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October 18, 2009 12:19:57 PM

frozenlead said:
You guys should start your own separate threads for your issues - this is here for comments on the sticky. Once you do, I'll be happy to help you both. :hello: 

i did 2 weeks ago, still no reply....
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a b D Laptop
October 19, 2009 1:39:31 AM

I must have missed it - and this thread isn't being flagged as replied for some reason.
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November 25, 2009 5:00:13 PM

Sorry for posting this in the wrong thread originally, i didn't notice the bit asking for comments to be posted here (despite the bright red type - doh!)

The machine in the tut, the Satellite A100, looks identical to the Equium A100 and i was just wondering if they're basically the same inside too? Also, if it turns out they're totally different inside, does anyone know if the cpu in the equium A100 is removable?

I have an Equium A100 027 that belonged to my partner and i need to replace the cpu, or at least i think that's what it needs to get it working again.
The machine will no longer power up and before it died completely, it used to suddenly cut out with no warning while in use. This would happen whether it was running on mains power or from the battery.
The period of time it would take before the machine would cut out gradually became shorter and shorter - it went from lasting about an hour or two until eventually it wouldn't even stay on long enough to finish POST.

By the time i got my hands on it, the machine was basically a doorstop. I think the cpu had been running too hot, maybe the fan wasn't spinning fast enough or something, and its caused permanent damage to the cpu over time. Which is why i want to replace it if possible and save myself the expense of buying a new laptop.

Any advice or tips would be massively appreciated. I'm not confident when it comes to poking around inside laptops so i need all the help i can get!!
Thanks, B :) 
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November 25, 2009 6:02:23 PM

To go on where we left:
A little BB hit my LCD, and i cant use it anymore.
Insurance company said: Take out your harddisk, so you still have your files if we take your laptop permenantly.

So thats why i wanted to know how the harddisk looks like, or where its placed in my Toschiba Satellite A100-510, be4 i take out the wrong thing :) 
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December 2, 2009 4:29:09 PM

Bluetooth come up much in disassembly?
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a b D Laptop
December 9, 2009 1:41:41 AM

What do you mean, dwellman?

Usually the bluetooth module is another mini PCIe card just like the wifi card. Sometimes it's just add-on chip. Most of the time you can ignore it, as it comes off with the board.
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December 10, 2009 12:30:27 AM

I mean that, for instance the T4*p series has a modem / bt daughter card with an antenna running the left of the LCD. The antenna looks similar to wireless. Just something I'd point out because people can and will get confused.
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a b D Laptop
December 10, 2009 12:56:19 AM

Ah, yes. I will add that in momentarily. Thanks, dwellman.
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December 14, 2009 7:16:12 PM

Come to think of it, there really AREN'T that many laptops with internal bluetooth. . .

But now I'm curious to see what you come up with.
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December 21, 2009 8:35:31 AM

Hi, can someone please tell me how I replace the battery in a laptop. Cheers Tutshe
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December 21, 2009 2:03:25 PM

Which battery? The main or the CMOS?
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December 22, 2009 8:18:54 PM

dwellman said:
Which battery? The main or the CMOS?

The main battery dwellman, cheers.
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December 28, 2009 3:42:11 PM

dwellman said:
Which battery? The main or the CMOS?

I don't know which one so could you explain them both please. tutshe
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January 2, 2010 1:55:09 AM

The main battery is usually simple: press a tab or two and slide or pop it out from the chassis: this is what powers your notebook when you are not using AC power.. . .

the cmos battery could either be a CR2032 or CR2025 tucked inside the chassis. This is what helps keep the CMOS holding the system BIOS settings charged. Removing a panel or the keyboard at the very least, if not the entire top chassis is required to get to this one.
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January 6, 2010 9:16:03 PM

I'm impressed
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January 8, 2010 10:59:09 PM

ok.... I have an issue with my monitor. Its extremely dim. How do I find out if its a bulb, inverter or the LCD? Correct me if im wrong but doesnt the LCD house the bulbs? Please and help, education, and feed back is greatly desired.

EDIT: it was the inverter. The screen was blank yet the power was on. It helped to determine the cause by shineing a flash light into the screen. I could see it so it wasnt the bulb.

I installed it... now im a pro;)
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a b D Laptop
January 8, 2010 11:19:42 PM

The LCD does house the backlight, you're correct.

LCD assembly troubleshooting is difficult because the LCD and inverter go together. The only real way to determine if one is bad is to replace one or the other. On rare occasions you'll get symptoms that tell you which is bad. You can test the inverter with a multimeter also, but depending on how the inverter is wired, this isn't always reliable as a test. If you can get your hands on a spare backlight (known to be good), you should be able to plug it into your inverter - if it lights up, the inverter is good. If not, the inverter is bad.

What do you mean by extremely dim?
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February 5, 2010 12:56:50 PM

Hi all,

I have a Toshiba A015-S4094 with a SD/MemoryStick feature that has twisted connector pins. This is visible mounted on the front of the motherboard in the picture "The notebook comes apart like a clamshell". Is there a way either to disassemble the feature and straighten the pins or to replace it?

Thanks for any help here.
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April 20, 2010 3:06:02 PM

Hi frozenlead, thanks for the toshiba a100 disassembly guide. I own the exact same laptop. The problem is that there is no power comin in to the laptop from the adapter. So now am confused if its the adapter thats screwed or the laptop power jack? i checked the power supply cable n thts working. can u pls shed any light on this. thanks.

Rohit
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April 27, 2010 7:16:21 AM

frozenlead said:
The LCD does house the backlight, you're correct.

LCD assembly troubleshooting is difficult because the LCD and inverter go together. The only real way to determine if one is bad is to replace one or the other. On rare occasions you'll get symptoms that tell you which is bad. You can test the inverter with a multimeter also, but depending on how the inverter is wired, this isn't always reliable as a test. If you can get your hands on a spare backlight (known to be good), you should be able to plug it into your inverter - if it lights up, the inverter is good. If not, the inverter is bad.

What do you mean by extremely dim?



Hy guys!

I have the same problem with the monitor of my toshiba A100-788. When I turn on the laptop for some seconds works normally but then becomes black and everything is in shadow. i can see what's on the desktop only if i put a strong light in front of my monitor. before that the monitor worked if i restarted suddenly the laptop but now doesn't work anymore. i replaced already the inverter but i have the same problem. I am a bit desperate because I need the documents on my laptop.

please help!

Thanks!
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a b D Laptop
April 27, 2010 6:36:28 PM

You probably need a new backlight, which generally comes with the LCD panel.
If you just need your documents, you can always plug an external monitor in or take out your hard disk and plug it into another computer.
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May 20, 2010 12:26:46 AM

Hey guys,
I’ve created laptop underside / bottom pictures database. I’ve been using these pictures for years to identify similarities between laptop models. I wonder if anybody else needs them. Check it out: http://www.9manuals.com/pics-home.htm
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June 25, 2010 12:56:03 AM

Hi, I had purchased a sony VAIO, Model #VGNNW23G/B about 4 months ago. I accidently spilled the orange juice on the key board, tried to clean it as much, a.s.a.p I could, but it did not work. I have one year full warranty on it so I sent it to sony, but they are asking a ridiculous amount of money to fix it, $475. I could not afford it, so they sent it back. I plugged it one day and to my surprise, window 7 opened up and I was able to go online but for a short time, windows get ajmmed after a while. Key board has got sort of corrupted and it does not work properly. Any suggestions to fix it? How can I change the key board? How does the keyboard come off? Any help will be appreciated.
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August 25, 2010 11:39:11 AM

hi to all i have a problem with acer laptop aspire 3680 m/n ZRI do't power up
wehn i press the power button onlly few secend green light on and then of no start the laptop but charging is good ani body help me thanks.
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August 25, 2010 11:47:19 AM

hi all,
my lcd mov totly ded ani solution thanks
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a b D Laptop
September 1, 2010 12:26:15 AM

I don't know what you mean by mov, but if you mean the LCD died you can just replace it.
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September 1, 2010 3:57:05 PM

Plug the external video connector (VGA, DVI, SVideo, whatever) in and see what happens.

But if the HDD isn't spinning up, it's more than just a video issue, your mainboard could be fried, and if it's not sending out death knell beeps to let you know what's up, then it's going to need professional help or else the scrap heap.

Either way it's not going to be fixed remotely unless you get some deeper details and find someone who can communicate them in English.
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a b D Laptop
September 2, 2010 2:09:55 AM

This topic has been sticky in top of the forum by Buwish

Made it a sticky to allow for more access/less new threads about LCD issues.
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September 2, 2010 5:31:20 AM

Huh?

This thread has a specific role and is already accessible from the other sticky. :heink: 
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a b D Laptop
September 2, 2010 9:34:26 PM

Is it? Whoops...I didn't see it. My bad. :whistle:  I'll un-sticky it like goo-gone un-sticks a sticker from a window.
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a b D Laptop
September 2, 2010 9:34:55 PM

This topic has been desticky in top of the forum by Buwish
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March 5, 2011 8:39:40 AM

hi,
i have a satellite a100-003 which has a broken graphics card. (geforce go 7600).

they want about 400$ just to repair the card here in turkiye. i wonder if i can replace the card with a recent and more powerful one. i use it as a desktop so i can cut the case to open room incase the new card is compatible but just don't fits.

thanks :) 
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a b D Laptop
March 5, 2011 3:46:36 PM

Generally you can't replace notebook GPUs, and even if you can, upgraded cards are hard to come by. What's wrong with yours?
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March 6, 2011 10:33:48 AM

ok thanks.

images on screen are all mixed up. for example some of the toshiba boot logo is up right some of it is in the bottom and rest of it is eveywhere on the screen :) . and its like looking on a broken 90's arcade system. white, gray points everywhere also a lot of vibration and blinking. same thing happens when connecting an external monitor.

do you know a place where i can buy this card online then?

thank you again.
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a b D Laptop
March 6, 2011 5:42:37 PM

http://www.mxm-upgrade.com/
is the only place I know if, but it will only help you if your GPU is in an MXM slot.

You need to find out if your GPU is integrated into your motherboard (which it likely is). In that case, you'll have to replace the board.
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March 7, 2011 5:34:16 PM

I have an Toshiba Satellite A100. The fan was working almost all the time recently. I thought the fan or the heat sink were dirty. I vacuumed the slits on the fan and on the heat sink. The fan now doesn't start anymore.

My questions are:
what happens if I run the machine without the fan?
How do I replace the fan if necessary?
Where do I get a replacement fan for this machine?
Is it worthwhile fixing or should I get a new laptop?
The laptop is 4 years old I think.
They cost about 500$, same as 4 years ago.

Thanks
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March 7, 2011 5:54:09 PM

Hi again,

The laptop had been working for half an hour and the CPU was really getting hot.
I just put a vacuum cleaner on the heat sink outlet and kickstarted the fan.
Now it seems to work again! It goes on and off on its own. I hope that will last...
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a b D Laptop
March 10, 2011 6:44:06 PM

The fan should turn on and off during use. It doesn't need to cool the machine all the time.

Instead of using a vacuum, next time consider using an air compressor. Vacuums can make lots of static which can KO computer parts.
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May 9, 2011 10:30:09 PM

First of all, thanks heaps for the awesome guide! Proved to be very helpful, i.e. this time I didn't have to guess if I was doing the right thing, I was able to look it up and proceed with caution if some parts didn't come off that easily.

Here's my tiny problem: I am working on a laptop just like the one shown on the pics. I need to replace the CMOS battery. Found it, no problem. I just don't know how to make it come out of that "metal thingy" gripping it. It seems so fragile and carefully pulling it doesn't work for me. I noticed you can lift it upwards a bit (kinda like the RAM) but that's it.

Can you help? Thanks in advance, very much appreciated! :love: 
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July 2, 2011 1:44:25 AM

The repair sticky is totally awesome. wish I would've seen that the first time I tore apart a laptop lol. Now I'm pretty much a pro at tearing laptops apart because I fix em. Well at least try, most are unfixable once you have to tear em apart. I still have a few mishaps with cracks and breaks but laptops are made very poorly anyway.
But I have a question, on the number 4 pic it shows the vga harness cable. I need to know what wires are for what that was on a Sony Vaio PCG 9L1L LCD monitor. Not the whole harness, the white connector that connects to the motherboard. The pinout for that connector would be awesome.
Thank you and good job on this sticky.
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a b D Laptop
July 9, 2011 1:52:50 AM

Nocturnal Lunacy said:

But I have a question, on the number 4 pic it shows the vga harness cable. I need to know what wires are for what that was on a Sony Vaio PCG 9L1L LCD monitor. Not the whole harness, the white connector that connects to the motherboard. The pinout for that connector would be awesome.
Thank you and good job on this sticky.


That picture doesn't show any VGA cable. The white cable is for the touchpad. As for an individual pinout, I have no idea. They're all different. You'd have to talk to an engineer or someone high up to get access to that kind of data.
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August 21, 2011 1:24:41 AM

not sure if i am posting in the right section but i have an issue with my laptop
Toshiba p205d-s7806. water spills and the user kept it plugged and tried to boot it up a couple of times.. i am not sure what is dead now but after a week of keeping it to dry, it powers up when connected and i hear it boot but no screen, not even when connected to external screen... any advice???
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June 10, 2012 12:59:55 PM

Hello everyone,

I am brand new to this forum and to forums in general so please excuse any gaffes of etiquette etc. and correct any thing I may say or do that goes astray of the general do's and don'ts.

I have an HP dv7-3165dx that the integrated graphics went out on. The rest is fine. I would like to know if I can replace the motherboard with one where I can use a discrete graphics card or do I have to stick with a replacement of the exact kind. I am willing to buy a new laptop but am a strong believer in fixing it if it makes sense.....ie. financially.

Thanks,

Tim
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