Linked by Howard Fosdick on Mon 31st Dec 2012 20:26 UTC
Last month, I explained
why I use generic desktops and laptops running open source software.
They're reliable
and inexpensive. But this presumes you can fix them. I believe that
even those with no
hardware training (like me), can identify and fix most hardware
problems. To prove it, here's a quick guide. Feel free to
add whatever I've missed.
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Member since:2006-02-15
Member since:2010-11-06
Member since:2011-06-14
I actually fixed one PS3 found from the trash and a laptop in a similar way. However as with freezing a hard drive it usually doesn't last for very long. Especially if the machine is running very hot. In some cases it may last for years but usually just few weeks before you need to repeat the treatment and eventually it loses it effect completely.
Member since:2011-01-28
WereCatf,
It might be an urban legend, but it sounds plausible to me. That is how they manufacture the boards in the first place. However I don't think I've ever come across any mainboards that were shoddy enough to have cold solder joints in the first place. If it were physical damage, it would be apparent on the laptop.
It's possible that the reassembly itself fixed the problem rather than the oven. Laptops often have poor connectors which might need to be cleaned and reconnected a few times at just the right angle. But in any case I applaud martijn's success.
Member since:2005-06-29
That sounds exactly like the urban legend that has been circulating around for atleast ten years now, and therefore I'm gonna call bullshit on that.
It sounds like urban legen, but does the trick often. My colleague has restored many video cards and motherboards this way (although some of these have lasted only few weeks afterwards).
Some causes:
1. tin whiskers, sometimes building up between (and shorting) contacts, will melt
2. heat may fix cold solder joints
3. heat may restore lost contacts in some chips (old NVidia 8400/8600 mobile GPU chips come into mind)
Member since:2006-01-26
That sounds exactly like the urban legend that has been circulating around for atleast ten years now, and therefore I'm gonna call bullshit on that.
Bullshit or not - I may try this on an old laptop board I have that seems to have a cold solder joint issue.
It only turns on and stays on when I push down the front left wrist rest - and I've taken it down to the bones and reassembled it with no luck. I've concluded there's a short somewhere on the mainboard that twisting the case ever so slightly "repairs".
Member since:2006-05-30
Well, similar method fixed an XBOX Elite that was RROD. Reflowing the solder is a short term fix though, if the root cause of the issue isn't addressed. It's usually something to do with excessive heat and lack of cooling. The XBOX, I re-greased the CPU/GPU heat syncs and it booted and ran last time I tried it (but as we have a newer model now, it was mainly a project to experiment with console maintenance rather than anything else.)
Member since:2006-01-26
High capacity capacitors with a 10mm diameter cost two euros each.
Sounds like you're shopping in the wrong spot then...
I tend to use mouser.com, and I can usually get all the caps I need to repair a board for $15 or less (which includes the shipping).
I always order twice as many as I need anyway, so I always have spares lying around for the next project (which comes in handy quite often)...
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The Tizen Greek Community has some screenshots of a very recent build of Tizen running on a Samsung GT-i8800. It looks wholly unremarkable.
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/23/13 22:04 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/23/13 22:01 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/23/13 17:52 UTC
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Linked by Thom Holwerda on 05/22/13 22:23 UTC
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Member since:
2010-11-06
The nicest repair I did, after reading the trick on the web, was fixing a laptop mainboard with a kitchen oven.
The laptop did nothing when the power button was pressed except that the fans and the disks started running. Conclusion: defect cpu or mainboard. I replaced the cpu without result so the mainboard was the last option. A replacement costed 2/3 of the price of a new laptop. I stripped the mainboard completely, including the fixed battery, and put for 10 minutes in the oven at 200C. This fixed defect soldering connections and the laptop has been running nicely for three years since then.
My experience with defect caps is that you often need 10 of them, which are nearly as expensive as a second hand replacement mainboard. High capacity capacitors with a 10mm diameter cost two euros each.
Edited 2013-01-01 15:55 UTC