Replacing a laptop keyboard

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(Edited)

This old keyboard has seen better days, one of the keys has completely come off and the other keys do not feel as good as they used to. Luckily I had a spare keyboard for this laptop laying around. I checked out some videos on how to replace it and then got to doing my own. It only took me about 15 minutes, and went alot more smooth than I thought it would. I wonder if all laptop keyboards are this easy to replace, or maybe just this Dell model.

First I remove the battery which exposes some screws I need to remove.

A small screw driver works best, a normal size one is just too small for these tiny screws.

Once the back panel is off there are more screws to remove.

I also take off the framing around the keyboard as even more screws hide underneath it that need to be removed.

Using my computer blower I clean off any dust that has got in there.

The ribbon cable is something you normally need to be careful with, its the most fragile part.. Both the connector and the cable itself needs to be treated with a lot of care.

Locating the spots I removed the screws from I work my finger under the keyboard.

With a better grip it comes right out, the bottom part sits in the palm rest but not screwed in.

I can now see the ribbon cable that I disconnected from the back.

There ya go, old keyboard is out and the new one is about to be installed.

Using my small screw driver I put the screws back in reverse order.

The framing is snapped back into place, careful not to crack it.

The ribbon cable is carefully installed, and goes quite well. Though I will not know for sure until I turn it on and test the keyboard.

Placing the back panel back on, after all the screws were put back in. I boot up the laptop and test it out. With Ubuntu installed previously I just opened terminal and tested some random keys.. all works! A successful keyboard replacement, and my first time doing it. I normally work on desktops so doing some work on a laptop was new to me. But all and all it went well and now my friend has a good keyboard to use.

Posted with STEMGeeks



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7 comments
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I would probably connect a usb keyboard because the default ones, at least in my country, always have some inconvenience both with the keyboard and the screen

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hehe yeah that would have been the backup solution.

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I know its very hard to repair laptop, even for a small replacement you have to open up everything. That was a clean job done there haha good job Solo

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Hah yeah I tend to stay away from laptop repairs as they are a pain in the ass. Though I was glad this one went really smooth.

Thanks alot!

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