freachable.net - Sony Vaio VGN-A190 Disassembly / reassembly advice with pictures

Sony Vaio VGN-A190 Disassembly / reassembly advice with pictures

[Edit: check out my older post on the subject too.]

If you are replacing a broken hinge, leave it open at 90 degrees or so -- make sure you support the angle so you don't break the other hinge and possibly rip a display cable.
Power off and remove the battery.
Remove the keyboard by unscrewing the two dotted arrow marked screws. BTW: Between those two is the access cover to one of two PC2700 SODIMM SDRAM modules. Stock configuration has two 256MB modules but will support two 1GB modules.
Gently pry up the bottom edge of the left/right edge of the keyboard and lift up a little.
Locate the keyboard ribbon connector and gently work it out of the socket. At this point you can see the second SODIMM SDRAM module.
Under the keyboard there are two totally different screws that need to pulled out.
Now unscrew the fifteen million other screws from under the machine. You only need to remove the arrow marked screws. Most are the same size, but two are long -- use your screwdriver to scratch the case or use tape to indicate where they go.
Now the "palm rest" can be lifted with a little gentle wiggling.
Look for the two ribbons (mouse, speakers/buttons) that need to be taken off.
Remove the palm rest. Now you should be able to see the base parts (feet) of the two hinges. At this point, you're only one or two screws away from being able to replace the power connector and not many more to replace the stock 80GB 2.5" 9.5mm PATA hard drive. The largest I found was the 250GB 5400RPM WD Scorpio WD2500BEVE. This will likely be the largest PATA 9.5mm drive ever given the switch to SATA interfaces. [Edit: A 320GB 5400RPM Scorpio WD3200BEVE is now available.]
Now for the display bezel. Use a dull point to lift off the rubber covers off the screws in the four corners of the bezel. Unscrew them.
Now you will have to use a little bit of force to pry the bezel off, but be careful not to slip and crack/scratch the display. (That's a $700 part!) Also watch out for the hinge area of the bezel.
Lift off the plastic hinge cover.
Be sure to support the display while you unscrew the screws holding the arm of the hinge.
Then unscrew the foot including the one screw on the back edge and you should be able to slip the hinge part out without totally disassembling the display frame.
Slip the new hinge arm in and screw it down, now angle the display so the hinge foot is against the base flat and screw it together.
Now make sure that the display cable (both sides have some cabling) slips in the hinge without interference.
If you are replacing both hinges, replace the broken one first and screw it in before unscrewing the other one.
When putting the palm rest back on, you need to slip the higher end in first and keep it pressed down. It's hard to explain, but in this picture my thumb is a little under and lifting the lower end while my index finger is pressing gently down to allow the palm rest to slip in.