So my laptop fan started giving me trouble... [No giveaways in here]

Where's the giveaway? WHERE IS THE GIVEAWAY!?

hmm i mean if you think it might just do the same thing again it might just be better to go w/ a new laptop w/ windows 8. its not that bad. i have friends who use it for gaming.

Seriously, suck it up and buy a new one. You'll use the damn thing everyday. It's not like you won't get incredible value out of it. It probably just means funding 1-2 fewer Hentai games on Kickstarter. You can do it! Willpower!

Windows 8 is fine (8.1 lets you boot straight to desktop mode, turn off charms, etc.), and unless your laptop was top notch when you bought it you can probably get something a lot more powerful for just a few hundred bucks, which is likely not a lot more than you would pay to have it fixed.

You may buy computer with windows 8 and then send it to the factory before accepting the licence so that they remove windows, they will send it back to you and you can then install any OS of your choice that you might already have, windows 7 or linux or whatever, and have the money back ( how much depends on the verion, a familly windows 8 will probably not be worth the time, i had around 70 bucks back some years ago from win 7 ).

That's practical if you are short in money and can get an OS somewhere else, possibly one you prefer. ( there are some tricks as to the eligibility etc look for it on the net )

before i would make any decision i would open up the laptop and clean the air passages which goes to the fan.
your laptop shutted down because it overheated and mostly this is on laptops because there is a lot of dust in the air passages.
I resurrected myself 3 laptops from friends from almost death by doing this in the past so far.

also if you dont want to open it go with the hoover carefully on the air supply vents (this is not as good as to open it and clean it 100% but works also!)

If its just overheating - Disassemble and clean it but then remove the heatsinks and apply a better thermal compound, ideally carbon based. Windows 8 is fine and pretty much an identical experience to Win7 after Startisback or similar program is installed.

You can always just install Windows 7 on your laptop. I got a laptop 5 years ago that came preinstalled with Vista, I never bothered to put 7 on it when it came out but I ended up doing it for my brother when I got a new laptop and gave him the old one. It's simple enough to do yourself. Of course there are ways to get Windows as my tutor likes to say, ahem.. off the back of a truck, but if you want to buy a legit copy you should still be able to get it online. If you do this, buy an OEM version, it'll cut the cost in half. My local home electronics store was selling Win7 home premium for something ridiculous like $250 or so, I ended up buying an OEM version from a local online computer parts place for just under $100. The main reason why the price is so different is because retail versions include both the 32 and 64 bit versions of Windows, where OEM versions you can buy separately.

Ive tried to repair a laptop myself once, it wasn't a success. But if buying a new one is viable, you really haven't got anything to lose by being a bit heavy handed with it. You could start off by simply removing the battery and blowing the sh1t out of it with an air compressor or something similar. If that doesn't work try and see if you can access the fan without tearing it too much apart (watch out for tiny ribbon cable connectors etc.).

Good luck.

EDIT: I have no idea about how consumer laws are in your country and how long ago the laptop was repaired, but if the same parts are affected shouldn't these be covered by the warranty?

Go ahead and buy a new laptop. I just want to say that most laptops that can run Windows 8 can easily run Windows 7.

The best advice: Instead of taking random opinions from unqualified people online you should seek professional help/opinion from someone at a store or local computer shop. This goes to all of the other threads seeking help with PC builds and such also.

This sounds similar to a problem I fixed in a friend's laptop. Does it start at all in safe-mode? If so it could be the processor's power management is dead.

Disassemble and clean it ? change cooler (not that hard to find replacement).
Buy new one, without pre installed OS.

i hear you,i have the same problem with mine -.- you need to open it and clean it once a year at least,or if you dont know how to do it like me,go to a professionist..if it turnes off by itself you have to do it now,that is the safe system of your laptop that when it reaches an high temperature,it turnes off by its own for not get damages. (i got all these info from a professionist)

When a cooler fails, CPU get hotter and process are very slow. If his temperature keep raising, it autoshutdown to prevent more damage. Try to do a repair (by your own) for the cooler and maybe could revive.

I had similar issues with an Acer 5750g and eventually had to give up on it (died twice under warranty and again a couple of months after the warranty expired), all related to the thermic module/cooling. I strongly suspect that it's an issue with the design, now they use cheap plastic for the casing to make the laptops as thin and lightweight as possible but they aren't sturdy enough to handle the heat anymore (mine came with an i7 processor and a gt 540m). When I was pressing on the awsd keys I could feel the keyboard pushing down against the components inside. Never had any issue with my previous "non-gaming" laptops with integrated graphics but the casing was sturdy as fuck. If you get a new one I'd recommend to at least take a look at it in a store first if you plan to buy it online but overall a desktop computer would probably be a better idea if you're not constantly travelling.

Windows 8 is fine once you get the hang of it.

That said if its still a decent PC try to fix it, not sure how much that would cost but if you don't want to buy a new computer its worth a shot.

Just buy a new one. Your laptop is old enough and you have already repaired it twice. Even if you do manage to repair it now, I doubt it will stay put for long. You will eventually buy a new laptop, and that will be using Windows 8 (or even newer OS if there's another). So I strongly recommend an entirely new laptop.

thanks for skyrim

Seems you've set your mind on replacing the laptop instead of the fan. Also if you have money to spare why don't you set a budget before asking here? (The fan might or might not be replaceable).

do you use these? You have to use 'em if you want your laptop to last.

Just get a new one

from the sounds of it, your laptop is overheating and needs to have the heatsink cleaned. buy some new thermal paste and reapply for optimal results, although you can still kind of leave the old stuff on and not peel it off as you remove the heatsink for cleaning

Anyone got a good brand?

Buy a Mac.