COMPUTER GENIUS
We’ve had a lot of laptops brought to the shop in the past few weeks, so I thought I would pass on some tips about laptop care.
Number one. They are made to be portable, if you are going to leave it plugged in 24 hours a day, don’t be surprised if the battery won’t hold a charge when you do decide to take it with you on vacation. Unplug it and let it run until you get a low battery warning. Laptop batteries need to cycle to maintain a charge.
And speaking of unplugging your computer, don’t carry it around with the power cord plugged into the back of the laptop. The DC jack is the weak link on almost all units. Many are held on the mainboard with just 3 solder points and can easily become loose or broken. We repair several of these a week, and they normally require a complete disassembly to repair. When I work on a unit with this problem, I usually solder it, and then epoxy the jack to the main board for added strength.
When you’re packing that portable keep in mind the LCD screen needs to be protected. Don’t put the computer in a case, then wrap up the power supply and cord and put it on top of the lid. Your luck might hold, or you may be in for a costly screen replacement. Try to find a place to store the power supply on the side of the computer or on the bottom if you have to.
As always, keep liquids away from your laptop. Yes, we have the ability to clean keyboards. However, soft drinks can be corrosive and, given enough time, can destroy the motherboard. We have had several units that if they would have been brought in right away could have been saved.
And the last tip for today. Heat is your laptops biggest enemy. Don’t hold it on your lap; you can block the fan intake causing it to overheat. There is very little clearance under the unit, so keep it on a hard flat surface. Don’t put it in the case while it’s on; make sure it is completely off before packing it away. And if it seems to run hot, take it in for a cleaning, sometimes the fins on the cooling unit look like the lint filter on your dryer, completely blocking airflow and causing the processor to overheat.
Remember that ounce of prevention and pound of cure adage that your mother kept telling you. If in doubt bring it in and have it checked out.
Any comments or questions you can reach us at ask@computer-genius.com.
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