My Problem

I was trying to watch a movie on my original MacBook Air but the video kept freezing and I had to keep restarting my machine. After a little bit of looking, I discovered that it was more than likely the TIM paste on the CPU and GPU.

My Fix

The repair wen't really great! It took me no time at all getting into the inside of the laptop, un-screwed all the screws, pulled up the heatsink and I was beyond shocked at how much TIM paste there was! Oh my gosh!! It took me a while to remove it all, and quite a few Q-tips as well. I finally got the stuff off, shined up the CPU and GPU and applied the new Arctic Silver 5 paste as according to the instructions on ifixit. WOW!!! That made such an improvement! I was able to watch the same movie again without it freezing. Now if only they could throw two fans in the MacBook Air...

My Advice

Take your time! Put down a white piece of paper to put your screws on and place them in a little diagram of how they came out. Use the right size bit too! Kind of stripped a few screws.. oops.

My Problem

I had my "+" volume button which wasn't working anymore so I decided to fix it by myself because the price reparation was to expensive

My Fix

It wasn't so easy as I thought, the components were so little it was hard to replace them at the right place.

My Advice

I didn't thought about the screen fixation. As I had to take it off in order to replace my component, I didn't bought glue to put it back so I used the original fixation

My Problem

Battery needed replacement.

My Fix

Very well. No problems.

My Advice

No followed directions from ifixit, without any issues.

My Problem

The trackpad on my macbook pro had cracked, probably because of me dropping it from my bicycle.

My Fix

With the 54 bit driver kit I could remove the cracked trackpad from the housing and replace it with another one which I purchased from ebay.

My Advice

Don't try to open the screws on the motherboard with the wrong bit. My macbook pro was a refurbished one so it had a few philips screws of a different bit size. Using a wrong screwdriver can damage the screws and it would be hard to unscrew them.

My Problem

I discovered a badly crushed and crippled MacBook Pro in my department's pile of spare and surplus electronics.

The poor thing had either been sat on or crushed in a car door before the IT staff disassembled it for plunder. The screen was smashed and warped, lower casing bent, hard drive platters totally shattered (I've never before seen a hard drive casing that could be mistaken for a rain-stick from the sounds it made during handling), screws missing from pretty much everywhere, no RAM or battery...

I was able to find an appropriate stick of ram, hard drive cable, and a suitable battery in the pile of sadness and (with permission) rescued the battered carcass to my laboratory for revival. The next day, after I had charged the battery, plugged in an external monitor, plugged in the various parts I had collected, and brought my external recovery drive from home, I coaxed a problem-free boot from the system.

I recalled reading an article written by Will Smith on Tested.com about the electronics repair tools he found most useful in his tech explorations. Knowing I would need some special tools for this job, I pulled up the story and found your 54 Bit Driver Kit. After reading about the features offered in your kit and seeing its low price, my weapon of choice for the upcoming war on entropy was clear.

While searching for a replacement LCD I ran across a stripped MBP a1260 with a bad logic board but a nice display unit and lower case. I resolved that the cheapest fix would be a component swap into this shell.

My Fix

The repair went swimmingly. I refurbished my new laptop in about 90 minutes (it probably helped the initial take-down time that the original chassis was lacking most screws) for a grand total of $290.84 (driver kit, spare HDD chassis, spare screws, HDD mount bracket, and other items included), quite a bargain! I also have a pile of spare parts in case something goes wrong with the assembled unit, and my new found 54 bit Driver Kit friend feels like an insurance policy against any future technological breakdowns.

Sorry about the lack of photos, all of our cameras are attached to microscopes of one kind or another!

My Advice

The guides on your website were absolutely essential. http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/MacBook-Pro-...

http://www.ifixit.com/Guide/Applying-The...

This video was also useful (in particular to see just exactly how the tiny logic board connections are removed, something I was very nervous about):

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oMEsexDak...

Refine your technique on the dead board, be patient, and find a caffeine sweet-spot/zone before you start. I also found it extremely useful to tape the removed screws to a printed copy of the iFixit disassembly instructions as I followed the slideshow on a separate computer, so as not to confuse or lose screws. A blown-up photo is the way to go for keeping track of the logic board screws, the photo in the PDF guide is far too small to be used in this way. If you have a few bucks to spare it probably is not a terrible idea to buy a complete screw set for your notebook, just in case. My case was missing quite a few screws, so I did this as well. If you are a histologist (or know one), borrow some xylene, a glass Pasteur pipette and a suction system for the thermal paste removal step. Xylene might cause cancer, but boy oh boy does it dissolve thermal gunk and leave a mirror-surface shine on your processor and graphics chip (sans-residues)! It also evaporates very quickly and does not eat the plastic on your logic board. This is probably best done in a fume hood while wearing goggles. Di-ethyl ether would probably work very nicely as well.

My Problem

Some of the keyboard keys weren't functioning

My Fix

It was not difficult at all, took a while because i took my time

My Advice

Take ur time so that ur really careful to not break any little parts

My Problem

Fell with iPhone 4 in hand, hit the ground face first. Entire front screen shattered.

My Fix

First time with iFixit (but I won't lie, I kind have always wanted to take apart my phone, I'm a bit of a tinkerer, so I suppose my unfortunate fall was serendipitous).

As for the repair, I watched the video first and went over the instructions a couple of times before I got started. Which I highly recommend doing.

First, not including my preparation of watching and reading first, I would say it took about an 1 1/2 hours. The guide is excellent and the PDF print out for your screws and parts is amazing (seriously, use the printout, don't know how I would have done the fix without it.

Went step by step. I will say though, my model had the ridiculous amount of glue, so it took some prying to get that out, slow and steady prying on all sides of the battery. As for the rest, everything was pretty straight forward (read every bullet point on the guide).

Oh and take off the blue plastic covering the mirror on the back of the screen, in the video, it appears that she left it on, but I took my off.

Overall, step by step, it was time consuming but if you followed the images and don't mind messing with hilariously tiny screws, it was a fun experience.

The only downside was when I turned it on, the screen was gorgeous, but I had a deadzone on the left middle side. Every other part of the screen was responsive, except for that section.

But of course the great folks at iFixit sent me over a replacement screen right after I emailed them (thanks a bunch guys). So going over the process twice now, screen works wonders.

My Advice

Some advice, first that iPod plastic opening tool, somewhat brittle, my tip snapped off while I was trying to pry up the battery. So be gentle, like I said, slow and steady (no innuendo, I assure you).

Second, wear gloves, I used a pair of latex, with all the warnings of getting greasy finger tips on connectors, figure better safer with just keeping gloves on.

Also, when in the end I was trying to lift the screen, I found it easier to start at the Dock end of the phone to slowly pry it up and work my around the metal frame.

Finally, be vary careful getting the connectors through the frame, follow the video and make sure you don't get them caught up, and also when it comes wifi antenna, careful with the part that the 4.8mm screw goes into. It takes some delicate work to get the whole antenna out it out, even more so to get it properly back in.

Don't get discouraged and don't lose patience, those two little clips at the bottom are not insurmountable. :)

My Problem

My brother's PS3 stopped reading game disks. Because he is mentally handicapped, gaming is a very important part of his evening. He can be a little fixated on his entertainment. Rather than purchase a new system, I decided to spend $25 on a new laser, $25 on the tools I would need, and take a chance on fixing this out-of-warranty PS3.

My Fix

There are a lot of screws and interlocking parts in the PS3 case, but getting to the laser and replacing it was a fairly easy task. Reassembly (the next evening) was more challenging, and the first time I reassembled, I had three screws left over! The repair didn't work, and I spent a third evening disassembling and reassembling the device. I got very fast and professional, let me tell you. On the tenth attempt, I finally found the ribbon cable I forgot to reconnect, and the repair was successful.

My Advice

If possible, reassemble on the same day you disassemble. It is hard to redo what you forget you undid. If your wife comes home earlier than she said, keep working anyway!

My Problem

After 18 months of use, my iPhone battery was finding it hard to last the day - I guess too many apps and a remote location.

My Fix

Following your guide, the opening proved easy but the battery was glued in really strongly along a line underneath and towards the middle. I broke the plastic opening tool - does iFixit offer a metal one? Eventually it was levered out using a blade from the Driver Kit - easing from the outside side.

... Following that happy ending, I've now also replaced the battery in my wife's Nokia N8 for the same reasons and with the same ease thanks to your guides. Much appreciated iFixit!

My Advice

For the iPhone, suggest try loosening the battery first from the (long) side which is nearest the edge of the phone - in my case the glue was under the other side so lifting this first proved easier and gave leverage to breaking the glue bond.

My Problem

Upgraded ram and the hdd for my new macbook pro.

My Fix

With iFixit's guides and my new 54 bit driver kit my macbook was up and running in less than an hour, the guide made it so simple

I could have had my 3 year old perform the swap for me... Thanks

My Advice

Follow these guides, be patient, and i'll guarantee nothing will go wrong with your project... Thanks