Worth the money or not?

i have a Inspiron 1000 that's mobo is fried, so i can't use it as a laptop. WHen i opened it up i found that it can start up if i unplug the internal LCD cable, and just use an external monitor. So for now i took the whole LCD off, and it just using it as a Computer-in-keyboard desktop....teh local PC shop didn't do any tests or anything jus the "press the button, do nothing further and give opinion"...if its the mobo is it worth spending $358 on a replacement from Dell (I traded an old 450MHz P3 desktop for it = worth $100..so is it worth spending the $358 for a SiS mobo. Or just keep using it as a "desktop"? Its a 2.2Ghz, 768MB DDR RAM. Anyone know how i can make sure its the mobo and not the screen? because a LCD is cheaper (i think and hope) if it is teh mobo, should i just save up more for a few more months after i get teh $358 and buy a new laptop...thing is that it might take a while to get more than the $358....NEED HELP, thanks though

 

if the external monitor is showing a pic, the motherboard is not fried.

358.00 is a long way to a new, later technology inspired laptop.

hopefully you can use as such, and wait.

 

so if the mobo isn't fried, what can it be? the comp. said that if might be a capacitor on the board that is over strained when the internal LCD wants power, making it short out/turn off. this the case (belive some people here are much more experienced and correct than the local PC guy). if i could spend less than $358..hey that would be great, and i would thank everyone here...so please let the opinions roll in :-D...as i asked before, how can i see if its not maybe the LCD or LCD cable that is shorting out. It has no PSU, built onto the mobo, so.... please help!

 

Yeah, if the thing runs, I'd keep it around. 358 is a small amount of money to get it working again. I agree with kjanz, though. If it works with an external screen, the mobo is not shot. I know adapters are available to use a laptop screen plugged into a normal d-sub port. That would be one way to test the lcd. Or if you know of anyone with a laptop they don't mind cracking open to test their screen in your laptop... although I'm guessing it'd have to be the same brand laptop. Those are a few ways to check.

Those specks are nothing to scoff at. If you did want a new laptop, I'd still get this one fixed up and sell it to put towards your new laptop. It'd definitley go for more than $400. I've seen 200mhz laptops go for $200+ on ebay.

For now, use it as a desktop.

My .02

 

can anyone tell me where i can get this adapter so i can test the LCD?? i have someone with a Presario 2700, that might be willing to open it up, but would the LCD even fit? (just to test that is)....and seeing as how i put in 512MB over the 256MB..its got plenty of RAM for my audio editing...the little i would do, the resti would do on my 2.4Ghz, 160GB plus 40GB HD desktop. It would be really nice to fix this for just a new LCD maybe. Also, i've been told that the SiS board isn't that great, any one agree/disagree? (and "not good" is ok, but is it horrible?)

 

If you have someone that will crack open their laptop, that's probably easier. You don't have to "fit" his monitor into your laptop. Just take it out of his, plug it in yours-- if it even will, and boot up. Don't worry about getting it in your bezel. You just want to see if it displays anything.

The adapter is more of a kit, I guess. Link here's a site that discusses converting a laptop LCD for desktop use. It has links to other pages as well. It is more complicated than a $5 plug-it-in-and-go part radio shack.

The explanation they gave you at the tech desk sounds legit. Although it is pure speculation based on what you said of how they looked at it. If that's the case, it seems that replacing the mobo is the way to go. Don't worry about it not being "that great a mobo" As long as you're happy with the laptop and it does what you want, replace it. You won't likely find any other mobo to fit your laptop's case. There's no industry standard yet for that kind of thing. It's all proprietary from the manufacturer.

 

what i meant by "fit" was not the whole LCD, just the LCD cable/plug into the mobo. I have heard that $358 through dell isn't a bad price for a laptop motherboard, this true, i've always been a Gateway person...but seeing as how i got this laptop for $100, with broken LCD/mobo whatever it is, i though it still might be a good deal. and spending a total of $458 on the laptop in the end, didn't sound so bad, but the reviews i've seen of the Inspiron 1000 wasn't great, so i was wondering if it is still worth it???......Thing is that money is tight...being a student and all, so it might take a while to get the $$ and wondering if by that time it might be outdated/not worth it anymore with the model and time it would take to save up..... (about 6-12 months maybe for the saving up, since there are other things that needs to happen first) thanks for your help...just need a little more

 

If I were you, I'd go on ebay and see what kinds of prices you can get by parting out what you have. I garuntee you'll get more than $100. Since you don't know exactly what is wrong, you can sell the screen as is with the bezel. Also try selling the bottom half as a unit. I'd provide as much info as possible, but you'll still get a good chunk of change for it. Even in it's current state I'd be surprised if you don't get $300-400 all said and done. I'd rather make a $200-300 return on my investment than have a Dell laptop anyway-- not to mention you don't know what you'll be able to get it to do-- or how much it'd cost to get there.

G'luck.

~Moy

 

i've been looking on ebay, and it doesn't look like the Dell parts are selling...guessing too low demand for number of products out there. By the way, from Dell out of Warranty service, both a LCD and motherbaord costs $358....so much money for so little machine if i could somehow sell the parts, then i would, but it doesn't look like it is selling

 

Check out the Buy, Sell and Trade Forums. There is a dude on there who is buying broken laptops.


-Steve

 

want to be nice and send the URL?? :-D

 

http://forums.majorgeeks.com/forumdisplay.php?f=28


-Steve

 

thanks...i thought for some reason you were talking about a forum at ebay....my mind was on a fieldtrip again. THanks for the URL though...do u know what the guys's "name" is?