dayone | Channel 9

Laptop Revival Day 1 - Dissassembling the laptop

This was longest and the most difficult part of the project. Also this was the day I made the most mistakes. I could do it differently if I knew that there was an easier way. I learned from my mistakes, but hopefully this will help you do your project quicker and easier.

The following is the detailed plan that I wanted to accomplish on my first day of the project:

Pull all hardware out and throw away the covers
Study the hardware modules in the laptop
Select the modules that are necessary for the picture frame
Build a holding mechanism for the selected modules
Build an aesthetically pleasing picture frame around the holding mechanism and the modules
Assemble the picture frame
Test

It sounds simpler than it is. After completely disassembling the laptop and wasting a whole day, I found that it will be incredibly difficult to put everything together not using at least the back side of the laptop. All boards inside the machine had such an odd size and shape. The boards were also stacked on top of each other in 3D space in a complex way. It was impossible to extend the cables if I wanted to change the board’s position.

Building my own holding mechanism was out of the question at this point. I had to spend lots of money for screws, nuts, washers and who knows what else and the project timeline became indefinite. It was better to adjust my plan.

Here is the rpoject plan that I actually ended up implementing going the long way:

Disassemble the display lid and pull out the display
Remove the top cover of the computer (for clarity the computer is the bottom part of the laptop that supports the screen)
Remove the keyboard and the mouse
Build a holding mechanism for the display
Build a cover for the computer
Build an aesthetically pleasing picture frame to hold the display and the computer
Assemble the picture frame
Test

Although I will describe the steps for disassembling the laptop I will sincerely recommend to do not disassemble completely the bottom part of the machine. Just remove the covers for the display, the keyboard, the mouse and the top of the computer.

Another recommendation will be to read or at least to skim read the article to the end before you start the project. This way you will become familiar with the potential difficulties and be able to make the right decisions on time learning from my mistakes.

The following are specific steps for disassembling a Toshiba 9000 laptop. Use them like guidelines and not like exact instructions, because most likely you are going to work with a laptop from a different brand.

1) Make sure the laptop works before you disassemble it

a. Install an OS. In my case I used Windows XP. The machine was powerful enough to handle it.
b. Connect to the internet, download and install all drivers from the manufacturer site. Usually the drivers are under the support section. Most of the manufacturer sites allow you to search the divers using the product number. Use the search and the product number specified on the back of the machine to find the divers.

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c. Install all necessary updates for the OS. I used Windows update (http://windowsupdate.microsoft.com) and installed all mandatory and recommended patches

2) Make sure that there are no DVD’s or SD memory sticks in the machine before you start pulling it apart.

3) Disconnect the power and remove the battery

You do not want to have any power in the machine while you disassemble it, so make sure that the power supply is disconnected from the wall outlet and the machine is disconnected from the power supply. Flip the machine upside down, unlock and remove the battery.

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4) Remove the hard disk

Remove the hard disk first, before you continue disassembling the machine. This way the disk will not be damaged while flipping the computer upside down many times during the disassembling process. Remove the hard disk cover first, and then pull out the hard disk using the provided handle.

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5) Remove the DVD

Unlock and remove the DVD. Hopefully you did not forget a DVD disk in it. You will not be able to get it out of the DVD drive without power.

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6) Remove the memory cover

Remove the screws that are holding the memory cover using a screw driver. These are the first two screws that are removed from the machine. Put them in a drawer in the multi-drawer box. Get a piece of paper and start describing the screws and parts that go into this drawer. The screws may have different lengths, so record the lengths too. Keep the paper in the drawer with the screws. This way if you need to reassemble the laptop it will be a lot easier to do not forget any parts and screws.

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7) Remove the memory

This is the first circuit board that you are going to remove. All circuit boards are very sensitive to static electricity. Put it in a plastic cover that came with the packaging of some other computer device that you have purchased in the past or put it in one of the drawers in the multi-drawer box. Do not put other parts next to the memory board that may scratch or damage it.

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8) Remove all other covers

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9) Remove the top cover

a. Study carefully the back cover of the laptop/ Try to figure out the location of all screws that can possibly hold the cover.

b. Start removing the screws one by one looking for markings next to the screw. On the Toshiba 9000 the exterior screws are marked B8, B12 or B16. The 8, 12 and 16 describe the different length of the screw in millimeters. Put all the screws in the drawer in the multi-drawer box and don’t forget to update the note for the content of the drawer.

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c. Look for hidden covers and hidden screws. Sometimes the back cover of the laptop is attached with a hidden screw under a sticker. Try to discover all hidden screws before trying to remove the cover.

Even after removing all screws the case will not open. In Toshiba 9000 there are two hidden screws under the keyboard of the laptop. I discovered that after several unsuccessful attempts to remove the cover. Even after removing all visible screws including the ones that hold the USB, video, serial and parallel port connectors on the back of the machine, the cover had two tight spots.

Carefully observing the possible screws locations I figured that there is no way that the screws will be on the back side. The only possible location for the screws was under the keyboard.

10) Remove the keyboard

a. The different manufacturers may use different ways to hold the keyboard. Usually there are either four screws in the corners of the keyboard or two screws at the top. The screws are under the keys or a decorative plastic element. Start removing the keys from the top row.

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b. For Toshiba 9000 there are two screws at the top of the keyboard. Remove the screws and put them in a separate drawer. Pull the keyboard out. Be careful to do not break the connector that connects the keyboard to the peripherals board or damage the peripherals board itself.

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c. Disconnect the keyboard if possible. Put it on the far side of the project table. The keyboard is a module that most likely is not going to be used during the reassembly, because of the space it takes and the fact that the picture frame is not an input device. Let’s hope the machine will be able to boot without a keyboard.

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11) Remove the hidden screws under the keyboard

Remove the hidden screws that hold the top of the computer and put them in the same drawer where the keyboard screws were.

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12) Remove any metallic shielding.

Do this only if the metallic shielding is not glued in place. If it is glued just leave it where it is. It is not going to do any harm and will improve the heat and the electromagnetic isolation.

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13) Disconnect the display

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14) Remove the wireless card

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15) Remove the top cover

There are 2 sets of 2 screws that hold the hinges at the end of the display screen. Remove the screws and the display will be completely detached.

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At this point I had the the top of the machine completely removed. The following is a description how to pull appart the boards inside the bottom of the laptop. I sincerely recomend to do not do this and focus only on disassembling the display (DayOneContinues). After disassembling the display the project continues from the point where I was at the beginning of DayThree.

16) Remove the sound card and infrared device board
This will be the first major board that is going to be removed from the computer. It will be really nice if the future electronic picture frame could play music during the slide show. The intent is to keep the sound card and speakers if possible and use them for playing background music in the picture frame.

The screws that are holding the sound card of Toshiba 9000 are marked B4, B8 and B14. Remove all of them and put them in a separate drawer.

Sound card is connected to the peripherals board with a plastic connector with printed wires. This type of connector requires extra care. The plastic may have aged from the generated heat by the integrated circuits and the CPU inside the laptop.

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17) Remove the front panel LED and CMOS battery

This module contains all front panel indicators for power, battery and hard drive activity. This module is not necessary for the picture frame to operate, but unfortunately it also has the battery for the CMOS operation. If removed our picture frame will not remember the current date.

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18) Unidentified module

In every laptop there will be a device that may be difficult to identify. I could not identify the device that is on the picture here. In case like this do not remove and discard the device. The machine may not work whitout it later. Leave it in there just in case.

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19) Unplug all cables

Carefully unplug all cables. Do not pull the cables by the wire. Apply steady pressure on the connector and try not to shake the connector too much.

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Although I did remove the unidentified module I put it back later when I assembled the bottom of the laptop.

Mark the connectors if necessary. For example there are several wires with the same collors like the wires of the unidentified module. Mark the connectors and make a note in the notepad what the mark means.

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20) Remove the peripherals board

This is the next big board that could be disassembled. Store all screws in a separate drawer.

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21) Remove the CPU board

This should be the last board of the computer. Store the screws in a separate drawer.

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22) Remove the DVD and HDD plastic case

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At this point take a look around and study the boards that you have placed around the table. Try to figure out which ones you would like to use and start thinking about possible ways for assembling them back together.

For me this was the point where I realized that I did not have to completely disassemble the bottom of the machine and pull out all the boards. All I really had to do was to remove the keyboard and the top cover. I could have saved myself lots of work. I realized that I waisted a day and on top of it I had to put the boards back in!

I can not deny I had fun pulling the whole thing apart. It made me remember than when I was a kid my parents gave me a screwdriver kit. Let me tell you, do not under any circumstances give a screwdriver kit to a six year old kid. I went walking around the house, pulling apart all mechanical clocks that I could get my hands on. Not only this, but during my visits to my grandmother’s house the next day I disassembled all mechanical clocks there.

It was 15 clocks and a major embarrassment later when my parents figured out that they should take back the screwdriver kit. Instead I got another gift, a really nice erector set that kept me busy for the next 3-4 years. (I knew the screw drivers were a gift and I was not giving them back for nothing. I had to get something fun to replace them I intended to stay my ground!)

Realizing my mistake I went back to the project. This is the point where I will start if I had to build another picture frame from an old laptop.

Next: DayOneContinues - Disassembling the display