Motherboard and repair services

Spilled water all over the keyboard. It leaked onto the motherboard. I didn't think it was that much, but now every time I try to boot it up, I get four beeps—which, for this Dell model, means a memory error. Tried swapping in a different stick of RAM, but it’s just more beeps. Honestly, feels like some minor fault on the board itself. Does anyone have recommendations for a reliable repair shop in Washington, D.C. where I could drop this off? Maybe it's still fixable if someone actually looks at it.

Come on, people... someone has to know something here.
The tech guy over at Best Buy took a look and cleaned out my motherboard, but still nothing. No boot. I’d have to leave the whole rig there, which isn't happening since they're all the way across town. Too much hassle.

I'm wondering if buying a new motherboard actually makes sense. What are the odds I mess this up and nothing works right, even if I grab the exact same model?

Is this actually a laptop? And how old are we talking here?

It’s eleven years old, but honestly, it doesn't matter. It performed just fine.
Or maybe motherboards like this aren't even being made anymore?
Dell Inspiron 5720

I think I found one... https://www.amazon.com/Dell-Motherbo.../dp/B00N28IKOA

The only thing is, you can't find a laptop this cheap in the US.

It’s worth it to me. New 17'' models are overpriced, and buying used is just a gamble where you end up with the same mediocre result anyway. Honestly, if I can find a used one for the same price as this, why bother? Maybe.
Thanks placidtinker39.

Do some math first. Figure out the cost of a replacement motherboard plus the labor at a repair shop so you don't end up spending more than the damn thing is worth.

That’s all assuming you actually know for sure the old board is dead and that any replacement you find is actually functional and compatible.

For around $2,000—$1000you could just grab a brand new 15.6" laptop that outperforms this one easily. So the real question is whether it makes sense to sink over $333 into an old machine.

So, I’m stuck between a rock and a hard place—I really don't feel like lugging my entire laptop halfway across town to a repair shop, but apparently, I'd rather just gamble on buying a random motherboard from god-knows-where for an eleven-year-old machine. Just great.

nice 👍

It's an 11-year-old machine, so I guess the big question is how much the keyboard is actually trashed after that spill. Like, when is it gonna start acting up? And if that original Hard Disk Drive is still sitting in there, who knows what kind of shape it's in... If I were you, I probably wouldn't mess around with it.

wiredotter14 said:First, run the numbers. Figure out what a replacement board costs plus labor at a repair shop so you don't end up spending more than the damn thing is worth.

That’s assuming you actually know the old board is dead and that a replacement is even functional or compatible.

For about $2,000— $1000 you can grab a new 15.6" laptop that outperforms this one easily. It’s worth asking if dropping over $333 into an old machine makes any sense.

I want a technician to inspect the motherboard to see if it can be repaired rather than just swapped out. If they can fix it, that would be $133, way cheaper than a new board. I'm looking to put money into this because of that 17'' screen; I want the kids to use it for school, and everything else is still decent even after 11 years.

Alexander Diaz4 said:So, you don't want to drop the whole laptop off at a shop because it's halfway across town, but you're fine with the headache and the gamble of buying a random motherboard for an 11-year-old machine?

Nice. 👍

Fair point. I could ship the whole thing via FedEx to get it fixed, provided it's even possible. Between the kids and catching the bus to the other side of town, we're just too swamped this week.

fadedorca66 said:It's 11 years old. Who knows what state the keyboard is in after the spill, or when it'll start acting up. And if it's still running on the original Hard Disk Drive, there's the question of its reliability. If I were you, I wouldn't mess with it.

The keyboard isn't the main issue. I found someone on Craigslist who has all the spare parts except for the motherboard, battery, and charger. The Hard Disk Drive seems fine for now. I think I'll keep messing with this until this precious machine is back up and running.

Emily Williams said:I'm taking it to a repair shop to see if they can actually fix the motherboard instead of just telling me to buy a new one. If they can patch it up, it would be $133, way cheaper than a total replacement. I really want to sink some money into this thing mainly because of that 17'' screen—it's perfect for the kids to use for school—and everything else is still surprisingly decent even after 11 years.

omfg 🤦

same here

Emily Williams said:The keyboard isn't even the big issue. I found someone on eBay who has all the spare parts except for the motherboard, battery, and charger. The Hard Disk Drive seems fine for now. Honestly, I think I'm just going to mess around with this until my precious, reliable machine finally breathes again.

🤦

If there's still a Hard Disk Drive in there, my god...

I don't know what your bank account looks like, but man, just buy the kids a new laptop already...

The other day I was swapping an old Hard Disk Drive for an SSD on a five-year-old laptop, and I nearly lost my mind waiting for Windows to boot up just so I could back up some files... imagine trying to do that on an eleven-year-old dinosaur...

Windows booted up pretty fast on mine; it had an i5 and 6GB of RAM. My kids are small, though—hence the spilled glass of water. The Hard Disk Drive is fine. It’ll fit in anywhere, or at the very least, I can just use it as an external drive.

The only real dilemma left is what happens if the repair shop tells me it's a lost cause. Either I walk away from the whole thing or start hunting down god knows what on eBay.

Emily Williams said:Windows used to boot up pretty quick for me—it had an i5 and 6GB of RAM. But hey, I've got little kids running around, so... spilled water happens. The Hard Disk Drive is actually fine. It'll fit in anywhere, or at the very least, I can just use it as an external drive later.

The only thing bugging me is the "what if" scenario—what if the repair shop tells me it's a lost cause? Do I just throw my hands up and call it quits, or start digging through eBay for whatever random parts might work?

Just head straight to Alibaba for the parts and it'll probably last another 50 years.

wish.com 🧐

Guys, just drop this thread already. This OP is definitely trolling.

wiredotter14 said:wish.com 🧐

Guys, just drop this thread already. This OP is definitely trolling.

Honestly, I’m not even sure about this one. A buddy of mine brought me his laptop the other day, claiming he had "internet issues..." and then he pulls out of his bag, and out comes... basically just a massive ball of cables:
"Where's the outlet?"
"The power strip is right down there..."
"No, not that one, the phone charger one."
WTF? He actually pulls out a modem! And the guy's been paying for DSL at home for like 10 years...
🤦
(The laptop was some old MacBook series, apparently bought for around $1,600, probably turned on maybe 20 times total, looks pristine, but is hopelessly outdated)

Also, the company is being super serious about keeping this "brand new, 10-year-old used computer" as the successor to the "old one that's currently running..."