💻 My Trusty Old Laptop
I own an MSI Mega Notebook S260. It is an old machine but it has served me well over the years. I bought it secondhand from a friend. He was honest about all the issues: the model was outdated, it had no external audio output and the USB ports worked slowly. Later I discovered that the sound would only work if I slightly moved the screen or began closing it.
Despite these problems, the laptop proved to be useful for my daily work.
🌒 A Dim Screen Issue Appeared
At the end of last year, a new issue showed up. The screen backlight stopped working unless I opened the screen fully or partially closed it. It became annoying but manageable.
When I visited Turkey, my brother insisted that I take it to a repair shop. We found one in PERPA. They confidently claimed they would fix it quickly. Two days later, we managed to get it back from them with difficulty. On top of that, they charged 40 Turkish Lira. Still, I thought positively. It was cheaper than buying a new laptop.
🔧 Round Two: DIY Repair
After returning to Kosovo this year, the screen problem came back. I was about to throw the laptop away but my wife encouraged me to try fixing it myself.
I had attempted to open it when I first bought it but I failed. This time, by the will of God, it opened easily. I checked what the technicians had done. They had told me they replaced the cable but in truth they had just taped a loose wire.
I thought, if they could do it then so could I. I removed the tape and, just in case the wire ends were damaged, I cut both ends a bit. Then I re-taped it carefully.
It worked perfectly.
🔊 One More Issue Solved
Today I remembered another problem: the internal speakers never worked. They are located just under the screen. I figured the cable must have been disconnected. I opened the laptop again, cut the speaker wires and rejoined them.
Sound came out immediately.
There is always a special joy in fixing something by yourself.
🎤🎥 What’s Left
Now my laptop only lacks a microphone and a camera. I am confident I can install a microphone myself but we will have to use an external webcam for now.
Of course, the best solution would be buying a new computer but for the time being this one will do.