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Laptop Fault - Dodgy Keyboard


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Ok, this is my 3rd post on laptops in the last week! I am hogging the forum!

 

I bought my wife a new Toshiba Satellite C660 over 2 years ago. This laptop cops a beating as it was bought her while on maternity leave, so it gets milk, baby food and puke over it. And nowadays it is mainly used for my daughter to watch DVDs on in the lounge room so we can still watch the main tv! So it cops more food and drink from her.

 

The last few months the keyboard keys on the right hand side have been playing up, the main enter button does this -

7*

 

The number keys do this - 1/3]16'498/3425]16

 

And the backspace button does this -////3

 

Is this a hardware fault or maybe it has nothing to do with all the food and drink being spilt on it. I was thinking of opening it up and getting the compressed air blower on it and leave it open to dry out for a few days?

 

Any other ideas/suggestions?

 

Thanks again!

 

Lefty

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Clean it as best you can, but changes are the liquids spilt over the keyboard have damaged the membrane over time. Search for the part/laptop on eBay, chances are you'll be able to get a replacement keyboard very cheaply.
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Keyboards on Laptops are very easy to do, I have done a few

 

There is a narrow strip to clip off using a small knife or screwdriver, which allows the tiny screws to be removed. From there, there is a plug or 2

 

Cost on eBay for a KB is negligible, hopefully your brand is there

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Yep, would be food/liquid spills is crossing a circuit or something in the keyboard. You can initially turn it upside down and gently shake stuff out. Be prepared to be horrified as what comes out LOL!

 

However it may not be salvagable so hit ebay for a replacement keyboard. Dead easy to replace.

 

Brad

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Thanks for all the replies. The keyboard is still usable, just frustrating as you have to highlight and delete anything you want to change and only use the number keys above letters.

 

I tried tipping it upside down and shake/tap the stuff out! I couldn't see anything come out. I took all the screws off the bottom in order to open her up and clean it all out but I couldn't figure out how to open it once the screws come out!?

 

I had a look on ebay and saw replacement keyboards. Can anyone tell me if there is any difference between these 2, the same seller but one is cheaper -

 

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Keyboard-Toshiba-Satellite-Pro-C650-D-C660-D-C665-L650-D-L670-D-L750-D-L770-/290749927371?pt=AU_Input_Peripherals&hash=item43b20bcfcb

 

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/Keyboard-Toshiba-Satellite-C660-02U-PSC16A-02U011-Laptop-Notebook-/300754946760?pt=AU_Input_Peripherals&hash=item4606644ac8

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Once you get the screws out from the bottom (around where the keyboard is place), you will most likely need to remove the top piece of plastic just above the keyboard, where the power buttons and LEDs go. It will be held in by plastic clips and you will need a soft piece of plastic/credit card to pry it off. From there, there will probably be a couple more screws above the keyboard which once removed will let you swing the keyboard out and disconnect it for replacement.
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Hey mate might be worth giving this a read before you buy anything..

 

http://forums.computers.toshiba-europe.com/forums/thread.jspa?threadID=58164

 

if what they are saying is right, and you can confirm it by taking the battery out for XX mins and then tessting it out again, if that fixes it then its probably a TOSHIBA issue rather than any hardware or any other fault.. Probably something bad in the bios or something physically bad on the hardware itself..

 

see the last link on the website i just gave you it takes you to a toshiba site stating

"Toshiba have noted that in rare circumstances the notebooks mentioned in the bulletin header may exhibit an issue which results in erratic operation of the internal keyboard

 

Symptoms may include the following

 

Lag when pressing keys.

Double input and/or loss of key input while typing."

"If you should experience the above issue on your notebook, please perform a BIOS Update in order to rectify the problem."

 

This maybe says your keyboard is OK and toshiba is just crap.. (p.s. i have a satellite as well dont worry i actually like them..lol)

 

 

But onto your other question (and if you do replace the keyboard).. Those two keyboards look the same but honestly your best to ask the seller since they should be able to give you a definate answer if they are different... I have no idea why one would be $8 more if it is the same but maybe with that one hes relying on hits from people searching for that certain model numbers (relying on people buying it that maybe dont realise the others are also compatible) <-- This is just a theory thus why I say to ask the seller....

 

In my experience usually the only difference between the same models (if any) will be the positioning of the ribbon cable on the mobo some other ebay sellers have pics of the front and back which would help with comparison with your original if you can get it out before buying a replacement..

http://www.ebay.com.au/itm/280941360750

 

Byrd is right, i can see 4 screw holes in the top so probably need to remove the , and usually you will have one screw in the back of your laptop labeled with a "K" or maybe pic of a keyboard or something. I checked if it comes to it theres a couple of youtube videos for you showing how to replace them so if you need them at least you know.. :)

 

Once again hope I helped some.. :)

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Thanks for all that info Walbowazza!

 

I read through it and tried disconnecting the battery and updated the bios as the foruum link suggested. Neither worked unfortunately! I thought it sounded good as it sounded like the same keyboard problem! But I guess it may just be damage from food and drinks as the problem is only on the far right side of the keyboard.

 

Anyway, I had a go at removing the keyboard and vacuumed it all out underneath and the keyboard itself. Still no success! I will now order a replacement keyboard from ebay!

 

Thanks for all the help!

Edited by Left jump left 1P
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haha yeah never know might work. Maybe pour some metho thru it might help as well if theres some residues inside the thing??.

 

Make sure its completely dry before you put it back though. Specially with metho, might make a bang! .hehe

 

Then again you might end up with a 100% useless KB after this procedure so dunno if its worth it right now mrs might not be happy..lol

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  • 3 weeks later...
Bang the KB in the dishwasher.. You've got nothing to lose.

 

Now that my new Dell laptop has arrived I thought I'd have a go at washing this old faulty Toshiba keyboard in the dishwasher! As said, I have nothing to lose and figured it is worth a try before buying a replacement.

 

So a few questions, should I add dishwasher power or just wash it without any cleaning products? Once washed how long should I dry it before replacing it in the laptop and trying it? Maybe a blow dry would aid in drying!?

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  • 1 month later...

Update: Washing the old keyboard in the dishwasher didn't work. Washed and let it dry for a few days, connected it back up and exactly the same faulty keys.

 

So I bought a new one from ebay, it arrived in like 2 days but was bent out of shape when I got it out of the box! It wouldn't have happened in transit as it was well wrapped in bubble wrap and the box was in perfect condition. I hooked it up and it seemed to work, but after a few uses I realise some of the keys do not work at all. All the non-working keys are in the same area, around, around the letter T (Note: this is a different fault to the original keyboard, the keys on that one gave the wrong letter or symbol). I would assume this is from being bent out of shape? It is identical to the old keyboard so I guess if it wasn't the correct model it just wouldn't work at all? The same seller was selling a 'TOSHIBA SATELLITE PRO C660D' keyboard, but I bought the 'TOSHIBA SATELLITE PRO C660' as the model number on my laptop has no D anywhere. The seller only has a generic photo of several laptop keyboards so I couldn't compare photos to see any difference between the two.

 

Anyway, just thought I'd check to see if people here agree it would be faulty from being bent out of shape or it could be perfectly fine and there is a fault elsewhere or a incorrect model or something?

 

Thanks,

 

Lefty

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a remote possibility might be a sw issue. easy to check by using a linux cd/dvd boot distro and check the keys in linux.

 

if same problem then def a hw fault, but hw fault could be on board (controller chip), interface cable/connector (loose, bad solder, dirty) or in keyboard matrix from a sticky residue.

 

if keys work ok, time to look for sw fault. also try a usb kb to verify sw fault or no.

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I checked the interface cable/connector (loose, bad solder, dirty) after you mentioned it, it looked like it was half out. I think this happened because the keyboard is bent out of shape, it took some juggling to get it into place and it must have popped out then. I re-connected it and carefully got the new keyboard in place and it now all works fine!

 

I am still not impressed with getting a bent keyboard! Not sure if it is worth returning. :unsure

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