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Nate4Prez

Nate4Prez

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I have a Gateway 17" laptop (model MP8708) that just crapped out on me, I have had it just over 3 years. I came home from work yesterday to find it wouldn't turn on. I thought it was the battery so i tried running it with out the battery in and the power cable plugged in. Still it does nothing. I took it to a plae called Data Doctors and the guy told me that it was more than likely that the motherboard crapped out and that it would cost more to replace than a new computer.

Does that happen?
Does his answer make sense?
Would it cost more to fix than a new computer?
Would any of the parts be any value to anyone?


I have all the data backed up, and more than likely I will pick up a desktop anyway, but I just want to hear someone who knows more about computers than myself.



Sorry about any spelling or gramar errors, made this post on my phone
 
Laptop parts are really expensive, he could be right. There's a lot of great deals on laptops out there right now.

You can't get it to turn on at all? I would at least take it somewhere else and get a second opinion.
 
44Thrilla said:
Laptop parts are really expensive, he could be right. There's a lot of great deals on laptops out there right now.

You can't get it to turn on at all? I would at least take it somewhere else and get a second opinion.
Click to expand...

nothing when I try to turn it on. I don't know anyone here in Arizona, and Best Buy wants $75 just to look at it. Not worth it if they will tell me the samething. Weird part about is it performed tuesday as well as the first day I opened the box. It just stopped working so suddenly.
 
yeah, basically you bought a laptop which means it's hard to replace things. They are convenient for carrying around, but it is not easy to change things on it. But maybe get a second opinion if it's not too expensive. FYI if it were a desk top, it would probably run you about 100$ to replace
 
If you're looking for a replacement, let me know what you want to spend and I'll find you a good deal.
 
Thanks for your thoughts, I'll probably pick up a cheap desktop off amazon. Does anyone know if the 17" screen, which worked great is worth anything to anyone? I'll probably donate it.
 
Did you drop it? Give it a hard knock? Did the dog get it? Do you have the owners manual? If not look it up on Gateway's website. See where the ram and hard drive are located. Open those areas and make sure everything is still in their correct slot.

Yes, motherboards fry. POOF! Laptops are packed tightly with all of their little hardware guts so heat is always a problem / concern. Heat kills.

You can look for model of laptop (used not new) on craigslist or ebay to get a rough idea of what yours is worth if it still worked.
 
deals.woot.com and slickdeals.net always have good deals on computers.
 
SlyPokerDog said:
Did you drop it? Give it a hard knock? Did the dog get it? Do you have the owners manual? If not look it up on Gateway's website. See where the ram and hard drive are located. Open those areas and make sure everything is still in their correct slot.

Yes, motherboards fry. POOF! Laptops are packed tightly with all of their little hardware guts so heat is always a problem / concern. Heat kills.

You can look for model of laptop (used not new) on craigslist or ebay to get a rough idea of what yours is worth if it still worked.
Click to expand...

I never damaged it at all, just came home and it wasn't working. I always kept it on a cooling fan so I don't think it overheated. I'll try pulling it apart and see what happens.
 
Does it power up at all? Do you hear the drive spin up or any lights come on? You can test if the display just crapped out by hooking external monitor.
 
Yes, this happens. sometimes when motherboards crap out though you'll get a Blue Screen of Death warning you beforehand. Could be a problem in the power supply. Did you have a storm in the area recently (i.e. lightning?)

Open it up, re-seed the memory...doubt that will do anything but worth a try. Also see if any of the small cables are disconnected, might be a bitch on a laptop though as taking them apart is a bitch but if you're going to give it away, might as well try it.

And Gateway is bottom barrel now for PCs. stay away.
 
Nate4Prez said:
I never damaged it at all, just came home and it wasn't working. I always kept it on a cooling fan so I don't think it overheated. I'll try pulling it apart and see what happens.
Click to expand...

I had a desktop that just quit like that and it was just the start switch. Not a Laptop but could be something similar.

Where is the guy that used to post on here that worked for Free Geek in downtown Portland. Anyone help here?
 
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