Experiencing technical difficulties
Posted on: July 25, 2008 - 10:17pm
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Experiencing technical difficulties
Okay my laptop is acting up.
The screen is all bright and blurry and everytime I move the laptop, it goes all fuzzy and locks up.
I pretty much know that something is physically lose in the laptop, and I am planning to take it to futureshop to get it fixed.
However, I don't want to get ripped off. So anybody have an idea which chip is loose that would cause the screen to be fuzzy and freeze if the laptop is moved? How much will this cost? How much should it cost?
I'm pretty computer illiterate.
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Don't take it to Future Shop.
They have competent technicians, but:
A) Are likely to simply defer you to the manufacturer unless you have their Product Service Plan
B) ...If they're slow on business, they might offer to take some money 'under the table' to fix your laptop, but only if you also buy the Product Service Plan.
C) The Product Service Plan thing I've been mentioning? It's them taking your money in exchange for absolutely nothing. They'll claim it's an additional 'service' to you (on top of the warranty) that will allow you to get your laptop fixed at Future Shop instead of dealing with the manufacturer. In reality, what happens is that when your shit breaks, you take it to them, they cook-up an excuse not to fix it, and your left with a broken product and a worthless PSP package.
Go to a locally owned computer store instead, or try a local college or university. The U of A in Edmonton was an excellent place to go and get any bugs squashed I couldn't squish myself, and they charged virtually nothing.
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One problem some PC-laptop toting friends of mine have had is the wire that connects the screen has become loose, the analogue to a monitor cord. If you can, you may want to hook that up to a monitor and jiggle it, see if you can recreate the same problem. If you can't recreate it, then we can probably eliminate that as a culprit.
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I'm going to phone them first and see what they are willing to do. I'm also going to look into finding other places.
A) t's an old laptop, so I doubt the manufactor will fix it so they shouldn't try to send it.
B) That's what I'm worried about. I don't want to pay more than I have to. It should be a simple solder, but knowing futureshop......
C) I won't do it if they offer the plan. I'll go somewhere else.
My University is relatively small and I don't think they even offer that kind of service. Even if they did, they can't fix their stuff.
There is a local place, but my brother says they rip people off more than future shop.
I think it's something in the laptop. I can open/close the screen without getting the effects.
Anyway futureshop was the first chain to come to mind, if there are any other main stream stores out there that fix stuff........
Also when I call around what should I say? That I have a loose connection?
I wouldn't go with a big name place and instead rely on something local. The college/university suggestion also has merit, as it's part of the curriculum of the computer sciences department to fix laptops. It's required for the students to get certification.
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There are probably no chips loose as most PCs have surface mount parts.
It is likely a loose interconnect cable between the Motherboard and either the screen or a sub board.
Older laptops sometimes have a seperate graphics card inside that plugs into the motherboard and they can come loose.
If you have a VGA output on the laptop connect it to an external monitor. If it does the same and is fuzzy it is a loose graphics card or it's failing. If the graphics card is part of the motherboard you are likely screwed and will have to send it to the factory.
It may cost more to fix then a new laptop or damn near as much.
Hope that helps.
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Definitely just a loose cable inside the laptop, one of the ones that goes from the screen to the video card/motherboard through the hinges. I've fixed that exact problem numerous times. Being loose it would cause fluctuations/shorts in the power flow which would cause the laptop to lock up. I would volunteer my services, but I fear the shipping costs may end up being more than just getting a local shop to do it. There may also be the chance that the part needs to be replaced as it's loose through wear/natural degredation.
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