Question about Lenovo Legion Y720 SSD SATA slot short circuit?
Question about Lenovo Legion Y720 SSD SATA slot short circuit?
Hello everyone, this is my first time here. Before this, I was in a passive role, but recently I experienced a genuinely frightening (maybe even silly) situation involving my second-hand Lenovo Legion Y720-15IKB (link below).
I was installing a 480GB SATA SSD without power, assuming the laptop battery wouldn’t be removed because it was securely mounted. I expected residual electricity to fade away and connected the SSD to the SATA port—a small socket with a few golden connectors and a thin cable. This time, a bright white flame about the size of a match lit up for 1.5 to 2.5 seconds.
The damage showed up as blackened plastic and soot on the gold pins inside the SATA connector on the motherboard. After letting it cool, I disconnected the laptop battery and the BIOS battery. I realize now that my actions were careless and completely unacceptable. I’m curious—what could have been done to salvage it?
I tried restarting the laptop the next day, but it showed no signs of life. I’ll post some photos later once I’m back home. Thanks in advance. ~retry915
Welcome to the forums, newcomer!
My main concern is whether there’s anything worth trying to fix.
You might be able to salvage the SSD (NMVe+2.5") and RAM, but if the laptop doesn’t have any soldered components on the motherboard—though it’s likely they could detach over time—it might not be worth it.
I attempted to restart the laptop the next day, but it showed no signs of life.
It seems the motherboard is probably damaged. You could use a multimeter to locate the short in the circuit or try voltage injection, but I doubt you have the necessary skills.
Remember, when replacing, adding, or removing hardware, always disconnect all power sources before proceeding.