Computer repair woes

January 30, 2007 3:41 PM

Due to circumstances out of my control, I must find a local computer repair shop and receive a written estimate on the cost to repair my laptop.

How can I find a reputable repair shop? I plugged "computer repair" into Google Maps business search, and most of what I came up with were not computer repair shops, or were sketchy services, such as one where the 24-hour service number is also used as a contact number for a poster on some LAN gaming board who notes in one post that his cell phone is also his repair business phone, and that he didn't answer a call from a fellow gamer because he was working at Hooters at the time. There were some potentially promising results, but reviews are few and far between. I'm not too keen on handing off my laptop to someone unless I can have some confidence that they're not a colossal ripoff or totally incompetent.

Many of the repair services seem to be just one guy, and offer in-home service only. This does not seem to fit my needs, as I doubt that my issue can be solved in-home (previously on AskMe).

The system is in the same state now as described in that AskMe, except the power button works now. The backlight is still spotty. Personally, I would prefer to buy a new laptop and dump the data from the old HD to the new system. In addition to the problems described in the previous AskMe, the hinges are cracking, the RAM in the system is inadequate, the hard drive is too small, the left speaker is inoperational, the headphone-out jack has occasional output problems (random cracking sounds), and I suspect that there is a problem with a fan (it's making a hell of a lot of noise).

But, again, the decision is not mine to make. I must find a local repair shop and acquire a written estimate for the repairs, and if I have to do that, I at least want to find a place that I can trust. Oh, and: Appleton, Wisconsin.

posted by punishinglemur to computers & internet (3 comments total)

Milwaukee PC.
posted by niles at 4:13 PM on January 30, 2007

If you only need the data off of the HDD, you really cna do this yourself.

1st. Order an external Hard drive case. Most laptops use a 2.5" HDD. Many are available from Newegg.com

2nd. When you receive the hard drive case flip your laptop over.

3rd. You should see a few screws, unscrew them until you see the HDD (pic).

4th. Remove the HDD and place it into the external case.

5th. Hook case up to a different computer and backup your data to that HDD and to another form of media for safe keeping.

Sorry I cannot recommend a local shop.

I do suggest checking with a local university to see if they can recommend a CS student or check with your local city council or Better Business Bureau.

Best of luck.
posted by imjosh at 4:38 PM on January 30, 2007

I am sorry I read too quickly, if you need a written estimate check with the local BBB or city council.
posted by imjosh at 4:46 PM on January 30, 2007