Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

Trying to decide between three broken laptops.

#1: Toshiba L300. Self-explaining, and everybody on here knows what the fix is. Have done two so far, both successful.
3GB DDR2, 250GB hard drive, other details not given. Likely has one of those low-end Pentium dual-core CPUs.
$120.

Pros: 100% fixable. Looks nice.
Cons: Fairly old, crappy intel integrated video. Not too high resale value.

#2: Asus X55SV. Power problem (seller got it diagnosed some time ago).
Core 2 Duo T7500, 2GB DDR2, 250GB drive, 512MB 9500M GT GPU.

Pros: Gaming series so high resale value, nice screen (1440x900), good battery. Complete with original box and manuals.
Cons: Also pretty old, and another failure point could be the nVidia 9500GT GPU.
$150.

#3: HP Compaq CQ61. No video, small scratch on LCD (shown in pictures, doesn't look that bad).
AMD Athlon II dual-core 2.0GHz, 4GB DDR3, 500GB drive, 1366x768 LED screen, ATi HD4330 512MB.
$144.

I don't think this is any different from the HD4250s of which i've encountered a few. They all die from the typical HP plague, overheating. Reflow plus some cooling improvement fixes them. I've done a few and haven't had any come back... Even if it's been messed with and the chip is toast, the chips are cheap. $23 for a brand new one, or $14 for a reballed one.

Pros: Relatively new so high resale value, enough memory, big drive.
Cons: Described to have bad battery, scratch on screen.

I'll likely be able to knock $20 to $30 down on the price on either of them, so keep that in mind. So, which should it be? I'm leaning towards the Compaq myself.

[shovenose]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

I voted ASUS because both Toshiba and HP/Compaq are garbage brands. And 1440x900 is better than 1366x768.

Edit: are you buying these because you want a laptop for yourself, or you intend to flip them and profit?

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

I would either flip it or give it to mom and sell the HP DV5 she's currently using, as i don't wanna be replacing the fan in that thing for the THIRD time. Plus, at 4.5 years and counting, it's getting kinda old and runs poorly, even maxed out with the 2.2GHz CPU and 4GB RAM.

[c_hegge]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

I voted ASUS because both Toshiba and HP/Compaq are garbage brands. And 1440x900 is better than 1366x768.

I'll take a Toshiba over a Lenovo any day (and don't even get me started on ASUS...)

I'd go the L300. You know it's gonna work, and I've had good experiences with that model. I've sold lots of those to customers, and they seldom come back with hardware faults. They are a little old now, but they did seem to be decently built.

[rievax_60]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

For multimedia type of use, I have met nothing else that compares to the higher spec models in the Toshiba Satellite A200 series. Specifically, the models that have non-integrated graphics like HD2400 or HD2600 and also boast Harman/Kardon internal speakers.
The screens in these models tend to have a wider vertical viewing angle that doesn't make video look negative as bad as other screens when viewed from a low angle.
The speakers produce very pleasant sounding audio, with enough bass to make voice audio sound natural.
There are two conditions though.
The Vista sound drivers include some response tweaking to make the speakers sound their best. Win 7 drivers don't seem to include this tweaking and a graphic equalizer needs to be installed.
The speakers must be in good condition without cracked cone surrounds.
I buy replacements from EMPR.

[shovenose]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

i'll take a toshiba over a lenovo any day (and don't even get me started on asus...)

i'd go the l300. You know it's gonna work, and i've had good experiences with that model. I've sold lots of those to customers, and they seldom come back with hardware faults. They are a little old now, but they did seem to be decently built.

toshita!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

[spidey]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

asus

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

C'mon, no love for HP?

If it'll be the Asus, that makes it easier, as i have plenty of time to decide. I could likely buy one of the other two, fix it, sell it, and the Asus will still be there. This guy has been trying to sell it for the past 3 months, so i may wait for a further price drop.

[mockingbird]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

#1: Toshiba L300.

Very poor quality plastic, the threaded inserts break off inside the chassis, some of the weakest screen hinges in the industry... Toshiba also likes to use ALPS touchpads. These models do not age well. Stay away.

Asus X55SV

Stay away from nVidia GPU, unless you like opening the laptop up every few months and re-flowing. Either that or putting up with the random freezes, BSODs from the GPU malfunctioning. I also believe these models suffer from audio failure on the motherboard.

HP Compaq CQ61.

These age much better than Toshibas, except for the mesh screen above the keyboard which collects grime and dirt and the only way to clean it is to remove it altogether and that exposes the speakers. Keyboards on these are extremely cheap quality (But new ones can be bought for $10). The Intel models with the GL45 Chipset are pretty good, but the AMD ones just don't last as long. Also, $144 is way too high. I paid around $20 for a G56/CQ56, and after getting it up-to-date and replacing the screen, I was in around $100. And that included 4GB DDR2 and T8100 CPU upgrades.

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

CQ61 is DDR3, newer generation from the other two. Different from what you had.

I could likely get $30 off each, but any cheaper means missing RAM, HDD, power adapter, and god knows what else. Been there done that, and in the end it's more trouble than it's worth. And like i said, i'll be reselling it most likely, i currently have an Acer 5742G (i5, ATi) which works well. I don't need another laptop, let alone a model from 5 years ago.

[lord]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

CQ61 since they mostly need a BIOS reprogram.

[mockingbird]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

CQ61 is DDR3, newer generation from the other two. Different from what you had.

I could likely get $30 off each, but any cheaper means missing RAM, HDD, power adapter, and god knows what else. Been there done that, and in the end it's more trouble than it's worth. And like i said, i'll be reselling it most likely, i currently have an Acer 5742G (i5, ATi) which works well. I don't need another laptop, let alone a model from 5 years ago.

CQ56/CQ61/CQ62 and G56/G61/G62 are all pretty similar, at least when the models are the same platform, and I believe the only difference in the chassis cross-platform wise is an HDMI slot on the AMD version. Other than that, you can pretty much swap parts in-between them. Also, speaking of BIOS, the WiFi card are locked in the BIOS so you have to use the one that comes with it.

You are paying waaay too much. Take a look at the prices of brand new laptops these days. And these come with fresh parts and a new battery. You won't have any profit margin in the end. IF the resale value in Romania is truly that much higher, then you should have someone in North America buy broken laptops on eBay and ship them to you.

[lord]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

I am interested in buying broken laptops for a good price.

[shovenose]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

I'll happily send you a bunch of broken laptops from work. You just have to pay more than we get for scrap. Oh, and shipping. I can provide the owner's email address over PM if you want.

[spleenharvester]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

The Tosh L300s don't have much resale value but they're nice easy cases. I've personally sorted about 5 of them out for family members, costing about £45 each taking HDDs and stuff into account.

[Th3_uN1Qu3]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

True, not that much resale value. $60 profit at most, that's what i'd get for that kind of repair for a customer.

[lti]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

If you're going to keep it, get the Asus or Toshiba. The HP would be the best to fix and sell since it's the newest.

The Toshiba isn't going to be very fast, but it is an easy fix. You can put a faster CPU in it later if you need to. Toshiba laptops were good until they were made by Quanta, so that one won't suck like the newer ones.

The Asus has the best screen and a pretty good CPU. If you already know what is wrong with it, it should be easy to fix.

The Compaq has the worst screen, although a lot of people actually prefer the low resolution and poor picture quality. If it is made by Quanta, it will have the worst keyboard as well. Also, it's a Compaq.

[momaka]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

I don't know too much, but I'd go for the CQ-61. Bought my sister one about 3 or 4 years ago and it's still going solid without a problem. Her's has the HD4250 GPU, though.

The ASUS would be nice if it wasn't for the nVidia GPU. The L300 may be nice easy fix, but if it's that old and newer laptops aren't much more expensive, you may have a hard time selling it for a decent profit. However, if you're going to keep the L300, then maybe go for it.

But keep in mind I'm not even remotely close to being a laptop repair guru, so my 2 cents are inflated .
Personally, I'd wait for the prices on these to go down a tad bit more.

[spleenharvester]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

Also wrt the L300, it depends what chipset it has. GL960/GM945/GL40 won't find you much resale value. But if you have one of the extremely rare GM45 boards made for that model you'll make a packet. I bought an L300 GM45 board for £3 and sold it for £65 repaired.

[mockingbird]

Re: Want to buy a laptop to fix - which would it be?

I don't know too much, but I'd go for the CQ-61.

There's just one thing I forgot to mention about these generation of HP/Compaq laptops. The power button doesn't always wake up or turn on the laptop. I personally have this problem, and while I can always get it to turn on with the power plugged in (sometimes after pushing the power button several times), it doesn't always turn on with only the battery. This is important to consider, especially if you plan on selling one of these to someone.