My four year old ASUS folding laptop got knocked a year or so back and the hinge is damaged. It still folds but needs realigning each time I close it. i am reluctant to change it as its still working and at that age repair is not economical.
I assume if the damage worsens and breaks the internal connections that I will only lose the display but can still attach a monitor to access what's on the machine to save the few things that are not backed up? Or are there vital connections that run through the hinge that will mean the machine is likely to totally inoperable?
Any advice folks?
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>> to save the few things that are not backed up? Or are there vital connections
>> that run through the hinge that will mean the machine is likely to totally inoperable?
>> Any advice folks?
Its possible the wifi aerial runs through the lid.
Last edited by: Zero on Fri 31 Mar 17 at 10:33
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Pretty easy d.i.y fix ! you can get the parts (from hinges to replacement lids) on Ebay, just had a quick look, hinges £8, lids from £13, depending on model.
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A cheap fix, not always easy. Hinges can be a sod.
However to your question; loads of things can go wrong on a laptop when the hinges breaks, but loss of data is unlikely to be one of them. Except perhaps the document you're actually working on at the moment it dies.
You can indeed simply plug in an external monitor. Equally you can pop down to Maplins, buy a disk caddy for about a tenner and then pop the laptop hard drive in it and simply use it as an external drive.
Last edited by: No FM2R on Fri 31 Mar 17 at 11:58
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Thanks to all for the quick advice.
Looking on ebay at spare parts and comparing to my damage, I think my actual hinge mountings from the keyboard may be OK. Whats definitely breaking is the part of the hinge system which sits in the screen/lid. There is a broad plastic unit thats part if the screen assembly and which receives the hinge from the keyboard unit. Its cracked, flexing and creaking when moved.
I'm going to leave it for now as it is working and I can use the ipad for most things. However I am surprised at how cheap the parts might be so I will ask around so see if there is a local repairer that can fix it at reasonable cost. I am sure a competent DIY er could do it but in my case I could see this ending in a kitchen table full of bits, a lost afternoon and a terminally broken laptop. I know my limits.
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Only just seen this post. I had an Asus laptop with the same problem, I used it for over three years with the broken hinge. The hinge is attached to an aluminium subframe which sits under the plastic screen surround.
Eventually, at the end of last year I bought a new subframe, which includes hinges, online and fitted them. It took a while, and it's not for the faint-hearted, but it was pretty straightforward and a PC repair shop could do it for you. Unfortunately the whole laptop went belly up at the end of April and is for sale on Ebay (in Germany), if you are interested you can ask the mods to pass my email address on. At the very least, I can give you details of the parts required.
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Mike, sorry just seen this. Thanks for your interest.
The hinge is now very creaky so I leave it in the up position. As I've now got an old (passed on) ipad which I use for most things I will just use the Asus occasionally until it dies. If I get another year or so out of it then it will be getting on for five years old. By then it won't be worth spending out for parts and labour.
I am definitely in the faint-hearted camp when it comes to electronics. If I cant fix something with a Black and Decker or a spanner then I leave well alone.
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Damaged hinge - borrowed time? - Zero
