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Laptops: How Often Do the Hardware Break?

K

ktchong

Member
Do these things break often at all? For a desktop, if it breaks I know how to fix it. However, for a laptop, it's trickier.

How's the quality of laptops nowadays?

Do they break down often (i.e., the hardware)?

What's the chances of getting a defective unit (much more likely than a desktop or about the same)?

How hard is it for me to fix a laptop or replace a defective parts myself? (if I already know how to diagnose and fix a desktop)

Is it advisable to get a discounted or refurbished laptops at all?

Is it advisable to skip the extended warranty plan?

I'd just like to find out YOUR personal, general experience. I've been putting togethar and using my own desktops for years and never had a problem with it, but I have no experience with laptops. Thanks.
 
I'm my laptop experience, they tend to break as much as you drop em 🙂 I've never had any crazy hardware annomoly on any of my units before, but it does happen occassionally. Don't know if they are any better or worse than Desktops in that department though. Laptops are not hard to fix, just time consuming. If you're a laptop repair virgin, I'd recommend finding an old ass 486 or pentium notebook, and canabalize it to see how stuff fits together, and get a feel for taking one apart.
 
It depends on the hardware manufacturer and even the particular model, much as reliability can vary between car brands and individual cars. It's not enough to say "all Lenovo laptops are built well," just as you wouldn't assume that every Toyota will never break down.

The rate of defective units is probably similar. They're more likely to break, but that's somewhat unavoidable - they're designed to be carried and don't have the luxury of all that extra space to absorb heat or shock. Some laptops (like Apple's and Lenovo's) have hard drives equipped to park the drive's I/O head if there's a sudden drop, so they're less likely to corrupt their data in a drop.

I can't advise you on refurbs, but whether or not you get an extended warranty on a laptop depends on which manufacturer it is and how you'll treat the laptop. Dell is the kind of company whose laptop I'd want to get an extended warranty for, as their build quality isn't always great and I don't want to spend money in addition to waiting on hold with tech support in Bangalore. I'm not sure if I'd do that with Apple unless I knew the system would be tossed about or my life's work would depend on it. Don't get the local big-box electronic store's warranty for a laptop - there's a good chance they won't be able to fix or replace the system themselves anyways.

In general, I tend to look at laptops as OEM units rather than homebrew projects. You can't often get replacement parts beyond the manufacturer, so approaching it with the DIY attitude isn't the best idea.
 
I am on my 5th laptop since 1992 - and have never broken any hardware component. They last and endure in accordance with the care you give them. Some folks drop them - bad! Some connect long wires or cables to them and then trip over the wires or cables and break then connector or pull it off the table. Bad!

I have travelled extensively with all of them to many states by car, overseas to Europe and Latin America by air - never a problem.

I keep them about 2-3 years and then give them to my kids while I upgrade to a new one. This is the trickle down theory at work. 🙂
 
Laptops are very tricky to repair. (Sometimes, I've actually had to use a tweezers.)
The rate of hardware faliure varies a great deal between laptops. Dell laptops have a fun tendency to fail on a regular basis. (I'm on my 4th i9100 motherboard.) IBMs, however have a rep for lasting one heck of a long time.
 
I've owned 6 laptops and 2 of the lcd's backlight inverter failed other then that I have never experience with hardware failure.
 
One thing to consider: if a manufacturer has coverage of accidental damage, get it if you can afford it. This will cover even those disastrous moments you never expect, like spilling coffee on the keyboard or (as I've had happen a few years ago) the cat catching on the power cord and flipping the laptop off the coffee table. Some home insurance will also cover laptops.
 
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