Travel Technology - Laptop keyboard replacement after red wine spill?

Yes. I know. Laptops and adult beverages are never a good combination. :D :D

Somehow I managed to spill a half glass of red wine to the keyboard the other night but it appears that the laptop survived but the keyboard did not. Luckily I just got a temporarily keyboard from the butler for the duration of my stay at this hotel.

BTW some of the keys seem to work but yield different characters though.

Any ideas whether the keyboard is worth replacing or should I just go ahead and buy a new laptop? I just bought this less than 6 months ago.

Would rather not spend another day wiping the Windows Vista and replacing it with the XP Pro. It takes forever to install all the programs and transfer the data etc.

I replaced mine on a dell D820 for $20 off ebay. As long as you are adventurous enough to take it apart, it is only a few screws and one cable connection.

Depends what manufacturer its from, but generally a replacement keyboard is a cheap/easy thing to put in yourself. I've done it for IBM Thinkpads and older Apple notebooks (1 iBook and 1 Macbook) and it usually takes 10 - 15 minutes. IBM/Lenovo even have nice videos showing "how to" on their support website, so you can watch and it and decide if you want to do it yourself or send it off for service.

For a "still under warranty" computer you want to buy a replacement from the manufacturer, or for a cheaper one you can go ebay or shop around. Even from the manufacturer I'd be surprised if the keyboard was over $100-$150, definitely much cheaper than replacing a 6 month old notebook.

Bob

Yes. I know. Laptops and adult beverages are never a good combination. :D :D

Somehow I managed to spill a half glass of red wine to the keyboard the other night but it appears that the laptop survived but the keyboard did not. Luckily I just got a temporarily keyboard from the butler for the duration of my stay at this hotel.

BTW some of the keys seem to work but yield different characters though.

Any ideas whether the keyboard is worth replacing or should I just go ahead and buy a new laptop? I just bought this less than 6 months ago.

Would rather not spend another day wiping the Windows Vista and replacing it with the XP Pro. It takes forever to install all the programs and transfer the data etc.

Definitely just replace the keyboard. It is pretty easy to do on most laptops these days. You can probably call it in as under warranty and just forget to tell them that you spilled a glass of wine in it. The keys making wrong characters show up on the screen should be enough for them to ship you a new one, I'd think.

Google your laptop brand and model and replace keyboard to see how much effort it is. I replaced the Dell D410 one I'm using now with a $15 one off e-bay (new generic one), it takes two screws to get the case off and one connector. It was easy as could be.

There are others that are not that easy, but if it is that easy, then go for it.

If you need something to hold you over, a wireless keyboard is like $25 or less, wired ones even less until you work it all out when you get back home.

mine responded in a similar fashion to an unexpected infusion of hot coffee.... at about the 48 hour mark, the keyboard started to work, but yielded unusual results. after 72 hours upside down (to aid in draining) and a visit to the beauty parlour (hair dryer), it was back to its usual self.

hth - good luck!

I googled the part number for my keyboard to find a replacement.

I spilled some orange juice on my laptop keyboard, and they keys stuck.

I took out the keyboard, rinsed it under warm water, let it dry for a few hours, and put it back on the laptop.

The keyboard is as good as new. :)

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I bought a mini USB keyboard from Fry's and will manage with it for few days. Had a look and there seems to be compatible keyboards available off of eBay for $25 or so. That us probably where I will end up buying one.

It all depends- was it a cabernet, a merlot, or chianti? Vintage? The sweeter the wine, the more the keys will stick.

I replaced a laptop keyboard on a dell once, pretty simple replacement.
On my lenovo, I often have to pop up the keys and spray out the junk underneath with a compressed air spray can.

Thanks for all the suggestions.

I bought a mini USB keyboard from Fry's and will manage with it for few days. Had a look and there seems to be compatible keyboards available off of eBay for $25 or so. That us probably where I will end up buying one.

You don't mention where you bought your laptop, but if it's 6 months old it's probably under warranty. Dell Fed Ex-ed me a new keyboard recently after 15 minutes on the phone walking me through some tests to confirm it was indeed broken. I didn't spill anything on it, but if I had they never would have known. The replacement was a breeze even though I'm not a geek and not particularly handy.