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

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CHTonRage

and thus I need to make a decision.
To tell the backstory, I decided to boot up my around 3.5 years old laptop which has been repaired twice in a span of around 1 year, and only those times, and got around to using it. Within less than 1 hour of boot, it suddenly started getting slower noticeably. At first, I thought it was system lag, so I went and closed some Chrome tabs. However, within 1-2 minutes of the "lag", the entire unit suddenly switched itself off. Surprised, I went to turn it on again, only to face an error message about the cooling fan.

The question is whether I should repair it again, which I'm extremely not wanting to do; or to get a new one and fuck around with Windows 8, since there doesn't seem to be anymore laptops fitted with Windows 7.

As stated, I really don't have the means to do a giveaway, so if you were expecting one, you came here disappointed.

Edit: The fan is dead, so I'll be getting a new one. Got any recommendations for brands?

11 years ago*

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143 Comments
ET3D

Whether a new laptop is a good choice depends on how happy you are with your current laptop. My wife's Inspiron 1720 (which is also the PC I use most at home) is five years old, and it's still a very good machine. I recently upgraded its hard disk to a 1TB SSHD. The 3.5GB memory limit is a bit annoying (I could install Windows 7 64-bit on it and get 4GB, but it's too much of a hassle), and the fan occasionally makes annoying noise, but if it failed I'd try to get it repaired. Just losing the 1920x1200 resolution display would be a pity.

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

I got nothing much I want to keep on it. The only stuff I may want is the RAM and maybe the data on the HDD.
I don't see the point of keeping most of the other parts. For example, the CPU is a first gen Core i7 which is pretty incompatible with most new parts.
The screen resolution ain't impressive and neither is the GPU, which is the GeForce 310M,

11 years ago
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ET3D

What I meant was that if it's good enough it's worth fixing, but if you feel that a new laptop will be a significant upgrade for your uses, it's worth buying a new one.

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

Considering 3.5 years of service it has pulled through, I highly doubt it will last long enough for the repairs to be worthwhile.
Since I mostly use the laptop for gaming, a new one would definitely be better here.

11 years ago
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CyberKiller

I'd replace the fan if it's possible (it's usually hard to get replacement fans for laptops) since it's dumb to throw away working hardware because of such small problem and then think about getting a new one. After that you can sell/give away the old one.

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

The non-working hardware as of now are the cooling fan and the DVD writer. I really don't wish to have to continue to prolong the inevitable death.

11 years ago
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evgeniy1977

Throw your laptop in the trash and forget about it forever)))

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

Doesn't deal with any issue I have, and just wastes money.

11 years ago
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akaSM

Open it

Poke everything that's inside

???

PROFIT!

Or just open it and try to see if the fan is actually dead or, it's not spinning at all because it caught a ton of dust, hair, an elephant or something.

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

Already opened it when I was cleaning, and did a test after. The fan is actually dead.
So no profits here.

11 years ago
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q8born2pwn

delta fans are bullet proof,

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

I don't need bullet proof fans, since it's on a laptop. I thought I explained that though.

11 years ago
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RanchMeAmadeus

Why would someone shoot a laptop's fan ? :)

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

Certainly doesn't make sense, does it.

11 years ago
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chairmankao

They wouldn't. But what if you sewed those fans together to make a make-shift, chainmail-like, bullet proof vest?

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

I rather get Kevlar than to use that idea.

11 years ago
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chairmankao

Yes, but sounds like you're on a budget.

11 years ago
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himohillo

Because OP is actually a superhero who uses fans as armor?

11 years ago
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q8born2pwn

get an asus

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

Is there any particular reason?

11 years ago
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Reynarg

Maybe all it needs is just a bit of lubrication on the fan, thats all, since it's been sitting there for a long while.

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

I have tried spinning it when it's off and it spins just fine. The fan itself is dead.

11 years ago
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Reynarg

You can basicly "force it" to spin, but without lubrication it won't reach the speed it needs, How do I know? Been there done that, a laptop that is way overheated does not bother to turn off, yours still protects itself. So I would go and lubricate that little guy and see what happens, is not hard, besides what do you have to lose? Just a small drop of a good lubricant in the axis of the fan and you are set, you might need to pull the fan plastic part to reach the axis though. It's a electro magnet so you need only lubricate the axis, there is no screw holding the fan blades which is what you might need to pull out. Just carefully pull it and you should be able to see the electro magnet and the axis.

11 years ago
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CHTonRage

What I mean is the fan blades will continue spinning for a while after my initial spin. And I really don't want to have to buy lubricant just to find out that the fan still doesn't spin on power on.

11 years ago
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edokan

Buy another fan, and a good lubricant from ebay. replace it and call it a day. I have an XPS m1730 which is 7 years old, with extreme cpu, two gpus and one physx controller. It really heats up. After 6 years of service, my graphics card died. I put it in a oven (yes, the one in the kitchen), and put it back. It still works.

and yes, it plays crysis.

11 years ago
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Closed 11 years ago by CHTonRage.