I'm asking for my uncle, who has an ASUS TUF Gaming F15. The laptop was dropped a while ago and the display was badly cracked. About a week ago, he took it to a local repair shop for a screen replacement. The technician said he had an identical laptop that no longer booted and planned to use its screen as a replacement.
Later that night, the technician called and said the laptop was not booting, but still charged for the screen work. After getting it back, one of my uncle's tech-savvy friends inspected it and noticed soldering marks on the motherboard. They believe components, possibly ICs, were removed from the original working motherboard and replaced with parts from the defective laptop. The laptop worked normally before being handed over, but now it receives no power and will not boot.
The repair shop is denying responsibility. A replacement motherboard would cost around 70% of the laptop's original price, so we're wondering whether board-level repair would be cheaper or even practical. What should we do now?
3 Answers
Ask the repair shop in writing to explain what work was performed and why the laptop was returned nonfunctional. Keep the damaged board and every part they give back; don’t accept a claim that the problem was unrelated without an independent inspection. If they refuse to cooperate, consider a formal consumer complaint or small-claims action based on the written diagnosis and evidence. Also, if the screen was never successfully installed, dispute or challenge that charge where appropriate.
A motherboard repair could cost much less than a replacement, but it depends heavily on the damage. A reputable microsoldering technician should first check the input power circuit, fuses, charging circuitry, shorted rails, BIOS area, and any missing or incorrectly installed components. Don’t let the original shop continue experimenting on it, because more damage could make recovery harder.
First, document everything before attempting more repairs: take clear photos of the soldering marks, record the laptop’s model and serial numbers, save the repair messages and receipt, and get a written diagnosis from an independent board-repair specialist. The fact that it worked before service and came back completely dead is concerning, but visible soldering alone does not prove exactly what was changed.
It was working normally shortly before being sent in, and now it does not respond to power at all. We’re going to get the damage documented before anyone touches it again.
The motherboard is currently not receiving any power, so we’re treating it as potentially serious damage. If a specialist says it cannot be repaired economically, selling it for parts may be the fallback.