Where can I buy new laptop chassis?

[Alexander Moore]

I can't find anywhere I can get a new laptop chassis. My current laptop chassis is damaged and has several issues with the ports and my computer manufacturer can't help me and even if I could ship the computer to them they'd want to be paid in full for everything.

I live in China so it makes more sense to just DIY it instead of paying insane shipping costs.

But the problem is that I can't find a compatible chassis anywhere. It seems that just about nobody sells laptop chassis.

Does anyone know where I can find a good chassis for a 17" dual-fan setup? My system is an EON 17-S from Origin PC and it use a P170HMx from Clevo as it's chassis. I was told by Origin that their current chassis model is a P170EM.

I can show you the inside of the unit if it helps you finding a good match for me. It's just a 17" setup with twin fans that bring in air from the bottom and blow out the back. One is a large fan and one is smaller. The large one is for the GPU and the smaller one is for the CPU.

TL;DR : I'm trying to find a chassis that will fit my setup but having no luck.

Thanks in advance. I really hope I can get something done about all this.

- Alex

 

[AddRAM]

Ebay ?

 

[FuturDreamz]

Generally Laptops don't get sold in parts, and if they do then it's just for the LCD screen.

Are the USB ports built into the motherboard?

 

[Alexander Moore]

eBay doesn't ship to China, nor have I found compatible parts in it.

Yeah I think they are built in.

 

[Alexander Moore]

So no luck I guess? I just thought I'd ask online and see if anyone else had any helpful info.

I'm just in a bad position to be in. I have a damaged chassis and seemingly no way to fix it without purchasing the computer again.

 

[TVeblen]

That is the deal with laptops (and tablets and phones). They are not designed to be repaired, only replaced. Very wasteful.
You will need to find a used unit to cannibalize for parts. That is what most folks do.

EBay may still be an option for you. EBay does not ship anything - the sellers do. I sell stuff on EBay and list it as US shipping only. But occasionally I will be contacted by an overseas buyer who would ask if I will ship to them. If they will agree to pay the (normally very high) shipping costs then we will make a deal and they will bid on the item. Most times a $90 US shipping charge is enough to dissuade them though.

 

[DeaconFrost]

Aside from finding one of the same model in a site like eBay, there is little you can do. Laptops don't follow a standard like desktops, so I'd doubt there would be much to use in a new chassis anyway. That's the decision you make when you choose a laptop over a tower, in exchange for portability. Sounds like this is a good excuse to buy a new laptop, and take it as a learning lesson to protect the new laptop.

 

[FuturDreamz]

if you're having trouble with the ports that are built into the motherboard, then those can't really be replaced without replacing the whole motherboard.

You best bet would be to replace the whole thing, or find one where it's been picked clean (no screen, ram, hdd, batterry) but still has the case and motherboard.

 

[Alexander Moore]

Problem with getting a new one is this is just a 1 year old laptop and it was a $5.5K buy. I don't think my father is going to buy a new laptop for me anytime soon.

Well I'm in a suckish situation. Looks like the only thing I can do is try to send it back. The cost to send it to Miami, Florida from China and back plus the cost of replacing all the things I need replaced is going to be insane.

By what I'm getting so far pretty much everything but the CPU, GPU, and SSD will need to be replaced because I'll be getting one of their newer chassis models as a replacement.

This is all given that I can actually convince my father to get it done, which is unlikely. He's already paid $5K for a computer and he hates computers. I highly doubt he'll put forth another thousand or more on it.

 

[Solarstarshines]

nevermind Just look for a replacement and get a hard shell for it

 

[Alexander Moore]

According to them the warranty only covers faulty parts. It doesn't cover damages.

I don't see why extended warranties are worth the trouble when they don't cover damages. Pretty much any faulty parts will go bad within the first month or two. This makes the extended warranty seem like a waste unless you can bullshit them into helping you.

But yeah they're telling me we have to pay for all the shipping and full price to repair the computer, no exceptions

I might just have to deal with the damages. Replace the faulty parts with the Chinese methods of fixing computers and leave the chassis damage as-is until it finally just falls apart, unless my father is friendly enough to actually go through with repairing it.

Thanks for the help though. This is just the product of having a crazy (now ex) girlfriend that goes ballistic for any small issue. She'll break your everything.

I couldn't buy a desktop because of the nature of my current life situaiton (foreign expat, internationalist). So much moving around and need a computer to take to school. It makes a desktop an impossible choice. I doubt I'd even be able to get a desktop computer into the country without huge trouble with Chinese security and trade administration.

Edit : Oh and I recently tried calling the number of Clevo's KunShan factory just to see if I could get lucky. Nope, the guy started asking what company we represent and how many we want. It's obvious they're only interested in selling in bulk - they're not going to do business with individuals.

 

[Layback Bear]

Post #11. I don't see why extended warranties are worth the trouble when they don't cover damages.
--------------------
The same reason car manufactures warranties don't cover cars damage caused by a wreck.
--------------------

 

[Alexander Moore]

Still, I think the idea of extended warranties are kind of silly. I mean, aren't all damages "physical" anyway? Couldn't they argue that any damaged parts I get after I start using it were damaged by myself? The only way you'd be able to figure out how it happened would probably a deep and costly investigation into the specifics.

Seems like following through with a warranty can easily become a situation where both parties would end up debating who's right and who's wrong. I'm going to guess that most warranties get the OK to go through with when consumers ask for it just because A) They're being nice B) It'd be a shitstorm to deal with if you reject them and C) It'd hurt their PR status.

Anyway, guess sending it in is the only thing I can do. Origin seems stricter about the warranty so I don't think there's any negotiating with them. I'll see what luck I get with pops.

There are a few parts that have been damaged by electrical problems. I'd love to get them there, saying that their system isn't working right in the power aspects, but they'd probably just rebuttle that I'm in China and the power is different.

Though, the electrical adapter specifies that 100 ~ 240V @ 50 - 60Hz is fine (and China is 220V @ 50Hz) I'm going to guess they'd come up with something to avoid the bullet. Something like "The system was only designed for use with 120V @ 60Hz (American power)".

 

[FuturDreamz]

What currency is that $5.5k figure in? I see it as $5,500 Can/US, which is really expensive for a laptop. You can get a fairly top-of-the-line gaming computer with Nvidia 650M for less than half that.

 

[Alexander Moore]

US dollars. Take a look at my system specs. The most costly was the CPU, GPU, and SSD.

It was bought a year ago so they were all pretty new at the time.

 

[FuturDreamz]

Ok just wanted to make sure. I've never seen a gaming laptop at that level.


I'm using a $700 pseudo-ultraportable with Nvidia 620M and an optical drive.

 

[Alexander Moore]

When I go back to the US I might build my own desktop computer.

But here's a quick thing I just thought of...is it possible to build a desktop using the components of a laptop?

Maybe I could just build a desktop using my laptop components and add some really good cooling as a bonus.

I could use the money I'm saving by doing this to get a nice monitor or something.

I could use my old Dell M1530 for mobile work.

 

[FuturDreamz]

Yep: Simple laptop conversion

if the screen is still usable, you can flip it onto the back and make an "all-in-one," and use the video-out for a second monitor.

There would be no real mounting points for heat sinks or water-cooling pipes.

I think if you don't need portability, converting it into a desktop is your best option. The people in the Overclocking and Case Mods sections can help you.

 

[Alexander Moore]

This sounds like an appealing option. I could use the cash I'm saving for some minor upgrades and coolness.

I'll probably have to take it apart again when bringing it back to the US but we'll figure that out when the time comes.

Actually, as far as the monitor goes, I've heard of really amazing Samsung monitors I'm thinking of looking at.

As for the cooling, well one way or another I should be getting better cooling in a desktop setup than a laptop one, which would mean I'm already running at temps better than the design specs are made for.

My only fear is...would the motherboard need replaced? I'm really unsure how it would all come together. My processor and GPU are just chips on little daughter boards.

I'll put some pictures on here later.

Edit : Hell, the motherboard needs replaced anyway. So many failing parts on it. What's a great motherboard that would work with laptop parts?

Edit 2 : Nice link. It turns out the the problem on my laptop is also a hinge issue. The hinge mechanism is broken because a metal part connecting to the frame snapped.

 

[Alexander Moore]

Anywhere where I can find a tutorial to build a proper desktop using laptop components and a desktop case?

What I meant was buying a new desktop case and putting the parts inside. I don't think anyone here has the tech savvy, resources, and creativity to do what those guys were doing.