Toshiba Satellite A70 and A75. Taking apart notebook.
I repair Toshiba Satellite A70 and A75 laptops almost every single day and I like to work with this model. I think that Toshiba Satellite A70/A75 is one of the easiest Toshiba laptops for disassembly. Unfortunately, this model has some issues. About 90% of all laptops we repair have one of the following problems:
- Not properly grounded top cover. The laptop will shut down or lock up when you touch it around the speaker or touchpad area. This problem could be fixed by replacing the top cover assembly.
- Overheating problem. The laptop will shut down by itself without any reason. To fix the overheating problem you have to take the laptop apart and clean up the heatsink.
- The power jack issue. The laptop will not charge the battery. The laptop LED flicker when you wiggle the power jack. To fix this problem you have to replace or resolder the DC jack on the system board.
August 16th, 2006 at 2:40 pm
I have Toshiba A70. After I removed the hard drive,I could not find any screw securing the DVD drive. Please give a better picture, where I can find the screw.
Thanks.
August 15th, 2006 at 11:51 am
Lee,
I think it’s still possible that the AC adapter is causing the problem. Not sure 100%. Just recently I had to repair Toshiba Satellite Pro with a similar problem. The laptop had an intermittent problem with power and battery charging. Sometimes it worked fine, sometimes didn’t boot at all and the power LED flashed orange. I don’t know if there was a relationship between the CPU load and the battery charge, I didn’t test it. At first I thought that’s the motherboatrd problem.
The AC adapter on this laptop had a normal 15V output and it was the original Toshiba adapter. As soon as I connected my test adapter, the problem disappeared.
Don’t buy it right away; try to find somebody with a similar model and test it.
Are you sure it’s not the power jack problem? (comment 140)
Hey guys, if you have any other thoughts please help to resolve the problem. Any comments are welcome.
August 15th, 2006 at 11:34 am
cj2600,
The generic AC adapter has an output of 19v~6.3A. The unit does charge fine with the generic when plugged in and in use as long as I use the Toshiba Power Managment Utility to change the processor speed to low.
To remind you of my issue, with default settings it seems that when I plug in the charger it charges fine until I do something like watch a movie or play a game for a over 10 minutes. Then it stops charging and goes back to battery power (as if it’s not plugged in at all). I’m on my third adapter as the other two just stopped working alltogether. Can it still be the generic charger even though the output is correct?
Thanks
August 15th, 2006 at 10:20 am
I ended up purchasing a replacement motherboard for my A70. After installing it, the system is acting very similar to Ryan’s from post 118.
So I took it apart again and reseated everything including reapplying the thermal paste but it is still the same. Stays on, charges the battery, CD activity but no display.
Would a bad keyboard cause this? I noticed a small crease in the keyboard cable. I’m just leery spending more money on it unless I was relatively sure it would work afterwards.
August 15th, 2006 at 8:29 am
Hello Cj2600, first of all thanks a lot for the guide, it’s very easy to follow and you helped me to solve the dust problem inside the ducts, you’re a genius man!
Now let me ask you a couple of questions, I wanted to take apart my Toshiba because it started to make very loud noises from the fans and to shutdown from overheating. The overheathing issue was solved but the fans are still making a very loud “Brrrr” noise specially when it’s slightly tilted, do you think I might need to replace the fans?.
And second question. Everything worked fine when I reassambed the laptop but my wireless conection died, I’ve checked the tiny cables and the card but no use, any suggestions?
Thanks again for the nice guide, I’ll be waiting for your reply.
August 14th, 2006 at 6:59 pm
Hafeez,
Check if the CPU is seated properly and LOCKED in the socket. It’s not gonna work if the socket unlocked. When you remove the heatsink, the CPU might come out with it. In this case, you’ll have to separate the CPU from the heatsink (very carefully). After that you UNLOCK the CPU socket on the motherboard, then put the CPU back in place and LOCK the socket. Now you can clean the CPU surface and apply new thermal compound. Finally, attach the heatsink.
Also check if the memory module is seated properly. If it’s not seated properly (very common mistake), your laptop will not boot.
August 14th, 2006 at 6:48 pm
Lee,
I think that your problem might be somehow related to a generic AC adapter you use. The original AC adapter outputs 19V~6.3A. If your generic adapter gives you 15-24V with unknown A, then it could be your problem. It also explains a relationship between the CPU load and the battery charging. Your generic AC adapter doesn’t provide enough power for your laptop and it fails charge the battery. Loaded CPU takes more power and as a result the charging process fails faster. That’s my guess.
August 13th, 2006 at 7:44 pm
Hi, I took apart my laptop to resolder some external leads for a dc in jack but trying to put it back together is getting to be a nuisance. I can’t get the screen to come back on. What’s the deal? I have the ground and the lcd video cable plugged in… the power is on. The hard drive and dvd drive are not plugged in but shouldn’t matter. It doesn’t make a difference either. I’m not sure if i put the processor back in place properly. I took it off to clean the heat sink. The processor mount has a lock and unlock switch. I kept it on unlock to fit the processor on along with the heat sink. I cant switch it after i put the processor on because the processor is attached to the heat sink (w/ thermal glue). I tried both settings but this failed. Any other ideas fellas/fellis?
August 11th, 2006 at 7:58 am
Cj2600, I think you missed my question since you posted literally 2 minutes after I did. Number 140. Please help me out. Thanks
August 10th, 2006 at 10:16 pm
Bryan,
After you remove the harddrive cover, you’ll have to slide it away from the connector to disconnect from the motherboard. After that you lift it up from the bay.
August 10th, 2006 at 10:14 pm
Apac,
I have the same problem as you for my Toshiba A70. BE CAREFUL! I have burned out two A/C adapters (one authentic & one generic) and am now am on my third (generic) by pushing it’s use (unplugging when it stops charging and plugging it on again). I noticed that if I lower my CPU capacity to low it works for a longer periods of time.
cj2600,
You are awesome for doing all of this. I believe there is a direct correlation between pushing the CPU usage and the charger ceasing to charge just like Apac. I haven’t opened up the unit yet, but was wondering what your thoughts were about this. Jiggling the cable and such doesn’t seem to solve the problem, so it’s probably not the power jack, what could it be?
August 10th, 2006 at 2:36 pm
Hi there. I have a satellite a75-2762 and i like it very much. I have only had the one problem with the top cover not properly grounded and it messed up the systemboard and the AC outlet on the laptop. Thankfully though i bought the 4 year warranty and they fixed it without charge. Anyway i recently bought a new Slim DVD burner by NEC. Its an NEC 6750-A and it is a good burner for 70 dollars. I bought it off newegg and i looked at the reviews and i saw one person who installed it in an A75 satellite which also sold me on buying it. I havent installed it yet because i had a question about how to remove the hard drive. Does it slide out or does it come straight up out of it?
August 8th, 2006 at 8:29 pm
Hi again,
I would like to help you, but it’s very hard to troubleshoot a laptop over the Internet. In most cases (I think about 90%), if you have a faint image, a new FL inverter fixes the problem. Unfortunately, not in your case. Have you tried to reseat the video cable on the system board? Disconnect the video cable on the system board and look inside the connector. May be you have a bent pin inside? Also check pins inside the connector on the LCD screen.
Did you replace the backlight bulb or just connected it to the inverter for testing? I believe that the date cable (flat ribbon video cable) has to be connected to the screen in order the backlight to light up. I did this mistake before. I tried to troubleshoot a backlight problem and connected a test backlight bulb to the inverter but didn’t connect the screen and the backlight didn’t light up. I almost misdiagnosed the problem.
August 8th, 2006 at 8:23 pm
I’m pretty much ready to throw my comp away. I replaced the FL Inverter AND the backlight bulb and the problem is exactly the same. I’m thinking I may have messed up the motherboard where the power supply solders in. As of right now everything else works fine except you can barely barely see the screen.
August 7th, 2006 at 11:26 pm
Warren,
You still would be able to see a faint image on the screen, even though you have no inverter installed or if it’s damaged. The data from the system board goes through a separate bus in the video cable and is not affected by the FL inverter.
BTW, I emailed you about your previous request.
August 7th, 2006 at 11:23 pm
Apac,
Not sure how it could be related to 100% CPU utilization.
When the battery stops charging and the LED light goes off, try to connect and reconnect the AC adapter, wiggle it a little bit when it’s plugged. If you can get the battery charge LED back on, then most likely it’s the jack problem.
I really cannot give you 100% recipe over the Internet.
August 7th, 2006 at 11:13 pm
Daniel,
There is no switch. The laptop should run on the battery power when the AC adapter is unplugged. As soon as you plug it in, the laptop should switch to the AC power automatically.
August 1st, 2006 at 6:12 pm
It shouldn’t have been possible to pull the cable out because the monitor was intact. I went ahead and completely replaced the FL Inverter with a brand new one, and still have the same exact problem. This is where I get confused. Even if I have “NO” inverter plugged in at all, the screen looks exactly the same, where I can barely see an image. Does that mean a connection to the Inverter is bad? Or even worse but the backlight bulb?
July 31st, 2006 at 5:50 am
Thanks for your response cj2600. I am coming to realize that my problem may be an issue with the power jack. After a few days of tinkering I’ve figured out that I only have this issue when it gets warm from things like 100% CPU utilization. Once the machine warms up the battery no longer charges. After several hours of cool-down time and some fiddling with the wire and jack, I can get it to start charging again. I just found it interesting that the lights indicate that the power cord is attached (by looking at the first of the 3 lights), but the battery light doesn’t come on at all. I don’t have a few dollars to get a new jack at this very moment, so I am considering doing the failed power jack work-around. When I had the machine apart I noticed one of the solder joints on the jack looked odd, but I shrugged it off as a poor home soldering job (I got this unit used with no information on work that may have been done). I’m thinking the solder joint could very well have been broken or damaged in some way.
Does this overheating/battery charging issue still smell like a failed power jack to you? I may very well do the power jack work-around very soon.
July 30th, 2006 at 12:20 am
I forgot to put that my laptop is a A75-S209.
July 30th, 2006 at 12:18 am
I cant figure out how to switch from battery power to outlet power. Please help me.
July 27th, 2006 at 10:40 pm
Apac,
I still think that you can have a problem with the power jack. Sometimes a crack between the positive pin and the motherboard is so small that it looks like a solid connection, but it’s not. Also check if the power plug on the AC adapter makes a good connection with the wire.
July 27th, 2006 at 10:21 pm
Hey Jonathan,
If you wish, you can make a donation (I’ll spend it for beer). The donation button is located on each page of the disassembly guide.
When I disassemble a laptop, I usually use small plastic cups for collecting screws. I name the cups by a layer I’m working on. I have 5 cups named: bottom, keyboard, under keyboard, screen and system board. It helps me to keep everything organized.
BTW, that’s a great idea about a beer, it’s so hot outside.
July 27th, 2006 at 9:47 pm
Label your screws or keep them seperte otherwise you get to play the guessing game like I did for 45 minutes. But otherwise these guys got it perfect, I have been without my laptop for 2 weeks and it just turned on, only just 2 days after my project was due but it beats sending it off for a few weeks. Anybody know how I buy these guys a beer?
July 27th, 2006 at 8:09 am
I took my A75 apart to clean the heatsink, and when I put it back together I did a day of CPU intesive work on it. It didnt feel as though it was getting too warm, it seems like the cooling system is working decently. Today, it has started not using A/C power and stopped charging the battery after the system is running for a few minutes. If I shut it down and then turn it back on and load windows, it charges to about 25% and then the charging/charged (3rd) light goes off, even tho the first light (the A/C one) stays on. If I leave it off the first and third lights come on, and it seems to be charging ok. But if I boot windows again after a few minutes the battery stops charging and it uses battery power. My D/C jack is touchy, but its definately got a good connection ATM. Any clue on what the problem could be?
July 26th, 2006 at 11:01 pm
Scott,
The memory slot is located in the same bay as the wireless card. On the step 2 the wireless card is marked with a red arrow and the memory slot would be on the left side from the Wi-Fi card. There is only one memory slot available for upgrades. You also can see 4 chips (on my picture they covered with a sticker) right by the memory slot – that’s onboard memory.
July 26th, 2006 at 10:53 pm
Warren,
Is it possible that during disassembly you pulled the cable from the FL inverter board? If the FL inverter board is not connected, the backlight bulb will not light up. I would try to reseat the connectors 3 and 4 pictured on the laptop LCD diagram.
July 24th, 2006 at 9:48 pm
Really good instructions. I have a slight problem in that, I have only taken off the HD cover and the Wireless cover. Where would the memory upgrade go? It is not entirely obvious from the diagrams, I am a bit old sighted. I won’t start till I know what I am doing.
Is an A70 says it has 488Mb of RAM (strange figure but I’ll buy it just now) need to go to 1Gb. I am going to assume it is a 512 stick and I need to add another. So where does this go?
July 24th, 2006 at 7:03 pm
First off thank you for this site. I have a A75-S206 which has had the motherboard replaced 3 times for the power jack, and since my warranty has ran out I have had to resolder my jack myself at least 5 times. This time I decided to REPLACE the jack. All of the new connections seem to be fine but my problem now is the monitor is at about 3% brightness. It boots up fine but you can barely barely see anything on the screen. Also I know the battery in it is nearly dead but all 3 light are green. The right one is orange for a quick second then turns green. Do you happen to know what I did wrong? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you
Warren
July 14th, 2006 at 2:53 pm
I just finished this project on my downstairs neighbor’s computer – it was having an overheating problem, seems to be working great now. A note for anyone working specifically on unclogging the heatsinks – it wasn’t necessary for me to disconnect the modem or remove the heatsinks + CPU, I just cleaned them out while still attached.
After 5 years as a microcircuit tech in the USMC, I’ve got to leave my compliments here: This walkthrough was one of the best I’ve ever seen. Congratulations and thank you so much for such a well-written, well-documented and thorough article.