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Illustrated Laptop Repairs and Upgrades
One laptop failure that is usually worth repairing is the hard drive.
Laptop hard drives have
a higher failure rate than desktop hard drives, assumedly because they get
bounced around more while operating. Notebook computer hard drives come in
two flavors - the ones that are easy to get at, just a single screw or a
even a slide in component, and those that require you to crack the laptop
open. This Sony VAIO laptop
hard drive repair is one of the latter. One of the few upgrades you can
actually do on a notebook computer is the memory, and then only if the maximum
isn't already installed. Memory upgrades are usually pretty trivial, providing
you purchase the correct upgrade component. A 256 MB
Toshiba laptop memory
upgrade is illustrated. Notebook computer LCD screens rarely suffer from
electronic failures, a dim screen or failure to work at all is usually due
to the inverter, backlight or video controller. However, sometimes the screen
gets cracked, or the LCD develops so many bad pixels that it drives you nuts,
so I illustrated replacements for a number of different models, starting
here with a Powerbook LCD
replacement. When your laptop screen works, but is so dim that you can
only read it in a dark room after eating carrots all day, the problem is
likely the backlight or the inverter.
Replacing a Dell notebook
backlight provides a somewhat standard illustration, and I show how to
replace a Sony laptop
inverter for variety. All the screen related laptop repairs are highly
similar, in fact, the components are often made by a single manufacturer,
with Sharp being a leading supplier. Of course, you can always go
the homemade laptop route:-). I just
posted the first draft of a series of laptop troubleshooting flowcharts,
starting with laptop power problems, when the
laptop just won't turn on. Next came laptop screen
problems, battery charging,
laptop overheats, hard drive
failure and wireless internet connectivity.
PC Topics
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Laptop Topics
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PC troubleshooting and repair
Troubleshooting PC hardware can be quite a challenge for the unitiated, even
with the help of books, web resources, etc. Troubleshooting skills tend to
come with experience, and if you don't have any, it's tough to know where
to start. I'll cover some of the most basic things to check before delving
into the case, and then I'll refer you to the troubleshooting flowcharts
and illustrated repairs on my other website. More...
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Laptop Repair and Troubleshooting
In some ways, laptop repair and troubleshooting is easier than PC
troubleshooting. The reason is that laptops are so highly integrated that
many problems you can fix on a PC require replacing the mainboard of a laptop,
which is not cost effective on second hand models. Replacing the battery
is often a solution to power related problems (though costly), but repairing
the charging circuitry is beyond the average home user.
More...
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Should I Buy a Second Hand PC?
The short answer is it's worth the software installed on the hard drive,
even though transferring the ownership of the software may be legally
questionable. The value of the hardware itself is near zero, whatever the
previous owner paid for it, unless it's a recent model (less than two years
old) PC that was very high-end (more that $2500) when it was purchased. In
that case, it may be worth $250. More...
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Buying a Used Laptop
I wish I could tell you that you can save a ton of money buying a second
hand laptop, but you can't. You can only save a ton of money if somebody
gives you a hand-me-down laptop for free. The main reason is that used laptops
command a high price with uneducated shoppers, who keep the market inflated.
You can buy a brand new notebook from a name brand manufacturers like Toshiba,
Dell or HP for $500 most weeks, just by shopping for a closeout model with
rebates. More...
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How to upgrade PC hardware
Upgrading a PC is much easier than upgrading a laptop from the standpoint
of getting the case open. The parts are much cheaper, easier to install and
extremely compatible, unlike notebook parts which are usually brand and model
specific. Even Dell, HP and eMachines computers can be upgraded. The main
problem with upgrading a used PC is drawing the line between replacing a
couple parts and building a new one. More...
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How to upgrade an old laptop computer
There are a few upgrades you can make to a used laptop computer that will
really improve the value and your ability to run software and actually use
the thing. The good news is that as long as your laptop has USB 1.1 or better
connectivity, you can use pretty much the same peripherals as brand new
notebooks. The bad news is if your laptop doesn't have any USB ports it's
going to be a challenge doing anything new with it.
More...
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What can you do with a used PC?
The main limitation you face with running new software on a used PC is the
CPU technology. You can upgrade your way around memory or storage limitations
quite easily, and you may even be able to justify a new video card, but upgrading
the CPU technology requires a new motherboard, which is rarely ever cost
effective with a used PC. More...
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Extending Laptop Battery Life
Many new laptop users are disappointed to find that their battery life doesn't
even come near the rosy estimates of the manufacturer. That's especially
true with older notebooks, whether the batteries are also used or have been
sitting in the laptop on the shelf for a year. You can extend the life of
your laptop battery by managing the power settings, and it also results in
quieter operation.. More...
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A brief history: The Hand-Me-Down PC was originally written in 1995, and
large parts were posted online on my GNN website, then moved to the Dailey
International site. An expanded version of the book was sold to McGraw-Hill
and published by them in 1997. The book has since gone out of print and I've
recovered the rights to update this website. The value of second hand computers
has changed radically since I wrote the original book a decade ago. My intention
in this update is to ignore discussion of repairs and upgrades that simply
aren't cost effective, and to focus on the practical use and life extension
of older PC's. I've preserved the original book for sentimental value and
for folks who are still nursing along pre-Pentium era PCs. The core of the
original book was troubleshooting second hand computers, and I've since done
a complete book of troubleshooting flowcharts for hardware, with interactive
versions on my other website for
PC repair. I've also
done a whole series of illustrated pages for
replacing PC components
for either upgrades or repairs. These pages will be linked directly from
the text, as will the pages for
laptop repair. When
I first wrote this guide, the main mechanism for the spread of computer viruses
was the floppy disk, and the Internet was just catching on with the public.
Now it's normal to sell new PC's without floppy drives, and I can't imagine
anybody taking the time to write a virus to infect one. The original book
barely touched on the topic of second hand laptops, because they were so
expensive that nobody was going to give away used notebook computers until
they were basically useless. Now, there are millions of second hand laptops
on the market, though they are almost always overpriced in comparison to
simply finding a deal on a
new laptop. The basic approach of the New Hand-Me-Down PC will be to
treat used notebooks and desktop computers separately, but to cover the same
issues: what are they good for, what are they worth, can they be upgraded
and how to repair them.
The Old Hand-Me-Down PC
(originally posted in 1995, ten years ago!)
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