Check out that chat I had with ASUS Tech Support. Why can't they tell me a price?
Check out that chat I had with ASUS Tech Support. Why can't they tell me a price?
Look at this chat I had with ASUS Support (WHY can't they give me a price UNTIL they get my laptop if I want a NEW motherboard installed???) Shanice_F. I see here you have an issue with your device's motherboard. Is that right? Me: ...so I guess the pin might be bent on the motherboard. How much would it cost to replace the motherboard with a new one? I don't know how to handle this. I have no experience to risk looking inside my computer. There is no external damage. I am 40 and other than that accident, I treated the laptop very carefully. Shanice_F. Sadly we can only give you a quote once they decide what needs fixing Me: If the repair team says I need to replace the motherboard just to fix it, then how much will I pay? Shanice_F. They have to tell you Shanice_F. This looks like a hardware problem. You will need to get your device fixed or serviced to solve this issue. I see here that your warranty ended on 2023/03/22 . Since your product is no longer under warranty, there must be an $85 non-refundable diagnostic fee you pay before sending it for repair. This fee does not cover the actual repair cost. When your device reaches the repair shop... Me: Okay. I am not being mean but honestly I wonder why can't you tell me how much to replace the motherboard? The reason is that this would be the same price on any other laptop with the same model number as mine. I understand repairing my motherboard cannot know the cost until they see it because every bad motherboard looks different, but if we just swap out the part for a new one, the price would be the cost of the board plus the repair cost = total cost Shanice_F. Sadly ASUS does not sell spare parts themselves. Me: I'm not asking for parts. I'm saying for ASUS to use the parts they have. We in this department do not know how much it will cost Me: I am asking ASUS how much money it would take them to replace my motherboard with a new one Shanice_F. We can only say $85 for repair diagnostics fee Me: With my laptop serial number, they know exactly what part they need to put in. So why does no one tell you the price? Shanice_F. Sadly we cannot talk about pricing even if they knew the exact part it would cost What is the reason for that? It really surprised me.
It would be really strange if they charged you a price. I don't know why you think that's happening; this is just a big department in a huge company that doesn't even do the repair work itself. Even if they tried to do it, they wouldn't have any idea what the inside looks like once they arrive. It would be completely stupid if their customer service was basically giving out guesses for prices.
Your first guess was probably right, but you might just have a bent pin stuck on the motherboard. How much will it cost to swap out the whole motherboard for a new one? I don't know how to open things up safely because I lack experience doing this. There is no water damage or broken wires visible. I am forty years old and I've been very careful with my other laptops, not like this time. You are guessing about a bent pin, but it could be something else entirely, like another part that's failing or a connection is loose. Customer support can't tell you what the real problem is without looking inside to see for sure, so giving an estimate now would be wrong. That 85 dollar fee just to run diagnostics on your laptop is standard. A certified repair technician needs to physically inspect your device in person before they can give a real price tag on fixing it. Once they find out what's really wrong, then we will make the estimate.
I've never fixed computers before, but what makes my request special? They can't give me an estimate because I'm asking for a completely new motherboard installed. Since they already have my model number, they know exactly which part needs to go on and how long the job will take. It's like your car dealer when you ask them to put a brand-new part in place instead of just fixing what broke. They say, "We can't tell you until we see your car in person." That sounds okay if they were looking at all the cars in the lot to solve a mystery problem, but that doesn't make sense here because I'm asking for a price on a replacement part no matter how it works out.
So if they just swap your motherboard and that doesn't fix your problem, they still ask for full price? That sounds like too much trouble, right? There is no service that actually works this way. They will figure out what the real issue is and tell you what they can do about it. If they decide to replace everything inside the laptop, better get a brand new one because it will be cheaper in the end.
When you call a car dealer, you talk to the service desk or someone on the phone who is about 45 minutes away from the lot. You're not doing that when you call a giant company like ASUS. You're talking to a customer service rep whose main job is just making sure your laptop gets shipped out and they aren't even in the same state as where your friends are fixing it. At some point, you've got this crazy idea that the person on the phone has an insane price list for every single part of their machines. They have a set script to follow and the goal is just to get the job done fast so they don't spend too much time with your problem. People aren't going to pay extra for good service, so companies are not going to take hours just to answer one theoretical question about an out-of-warranty fix.
Do you think a bent pin is in your motherboard? Laptop processors come soldered right into place, so there are no pins involved for them. Check eBay and you'll probably find a new motherboard up for sale. You'll get a rough idea of how much the fix will cost. Since warranty has expired, the best thing to do is take this laptop to a local repair shop.
Every single port on your laptop has tiny metal pins inside. If you bend that pin and let it touch the floor or metal surface while using the device, it could damage a part inside the motherboard.