my laptop is broken. i need help.

[btm8595]

i have an alienware area51 m7700 laptop with a nivida geforce go 7900 gtx. the screen it messed up and wont show anything. i tried doing some at home diagnostics. i took a dvi to vga adapter, plugged that into my laptop and then into a monitor and nothing showed up. i went to the geek squad to ask them whats wrong with it. i mentioned that there is probably something wrong w/ the video card. he never opened it. instead he told me that its going to cost 4 to 5 hundred dollars to get it fixed because the video card is integrated and it would require precise sodering and it would be better to just buy a new mobo. if it is going to cost that much i would rather just sell it as is on ebay. here are some things i would like to know.

1. is my video card integrated?

2. can it be replaced easily and cheeply?

3. how much would i get for the laptop on ebay as is?

thank you.

 

[strollin]

When you attached the external monitor, did you the press the Function key that controls which monitor is used? Usually cycles thru internal LCD, both, external.

From what I could find using google, your laptop does have a discrete video card which is accessed via a cover on the underside. From what I read, you should check to make sure the card is fully seated. If the card is in need of replacement, it may be difficult to find one. You might try ebay.

 

[connchri]

Did you get any results with Strollin's advice?

I don't know much about your laptop, but the little research I did suggests that yes, your graphics is indeed discreate and removable. In addition, I found a few articles that suggest that those GF 7900GTX Go's were renound for failing . I'm not sure where you'll get a replacement though, as the laptop is a tad old and rather unique. Ebay is perhaps your best bet. As for the price of your part, I have no idea, but I'd hazard a guess that it would be quite shocking.

What could you get on ebay? I wouldn't say much more than ~£45, if that. This is because in the grand scheme of things, it's very outdated. It doesn't work. It isn't in high demand. It's old and not very portable. Perhaps breaking it up would get you a little bit more, but then you'd have to weigh it against the effort and ebay listing fees.

Personally, I'd forget about repairing it unless you get a hold of a replacement graphics card, once you've confirmed that's the problem, at a decent price. A dual core Pentium chip based on Core 2 archietecture would be much faster and HP do laptops with them for about £300 with 3GB of DDR3 RAM, a fresh warranty and in some cases, ATI - better than Intel Integrated - Graphics. An Intel i3 could even be in reach for a bit more. I'd seriously think about a new laptop along those lines over considering paying the $400 to $500 dollars the Geek Squad are asking.