Dell Inspiron 1545 Palm Rest Replacement
Duration: 45 minutes
Steps: 17 Steps
The palm rest, a.k.a. the laptop’s stylish top cover, holds the touch pad in place. Whether you’re on a mission to give your touch pad a quick clean or swap out a broken one, this guide’s got you covered. Grab a new palm rest, follow these steps, and you’ll have your laptop feeling as good as new!
Step 1
– First things first, make sure your laptop is unplugged from any power sources and is powered down. Safety first, right?
– Now, flip that laptop over like a pancake ready for the syrup!
Step 2
– Push that release latch over and give the battery a firm tug backwards to pop it out.
Step 3
– Gently slide the battery out of its cozy little bay—you’re doing great!
Step 4
The top 3 screws are ‘captive’ (secured in place with a retaining ring) and won’t fall out, no matter how much they want to escape.
– Grab your trusty Phillips #1 screwdriver (3mm) and carefully unscrew the four screws holding the base cover in place. You’re almost there!
Step 5
– Gently lift the base cover straight up and away from your laptop, like you’re unveiling a surprise!
Step 6
– Pop out the battery, and then grab your trusty Phillips #1 screwdriver. Find the two 3mm screws hiding beneath where the battery used to sit—those sneaky little things are keeping the Center Control Cover from freedom. Time to set them loose!
Step 7
– Time to get started! Flip your laptop over and open the display as far as it will go, so you can get a good look at what you’re working with.
Step 8
The Center Control Cover is super delicate, so take it easy with those prying tools, alright?
– Gently pry off the Center Control Cover from the laptop. There’s a handy little notch on the right side—start there for an easier time!
– Slowly and carefully lift the Center Control Cover away from the laptop. Take your time, you’re doing great!
Step 9
– Take out the two 5mm Phillips #1 screws hanging out at the top of the keyboard—easy peasy, you’ve got this!
Step 10
Take it easy when removing the keyboard—tugging too hard might send the keyboard or its connector into a meltdown.
– Gently slide the keyboard out and away from the laptop, then lift it up to reveal the keyboard connector underneath.
Step 11
– Pop up the connector latch holding the keyboard cable in place on the motherboard, then gently slide out the cable like a pro!
Step 12
– Gently lift the keyboard up and away from the laptop—like you’re opening a treasure chest to reveal its secrets.
Step 13
– Time to unleash your inner tech wizard! Grab your trusty 5mm Phillips #1 screwdriver and let’s tackle those 11 screws on the back of the laptop. Remember, one of them is hanging out right in the middle, just chilling by the RAM. You’ve got this!
Step 14
– Gently tug those black and white wires from the WLAN that connect to the display, pulling them straight up like you’re pulling a stubborn weed from the garden.
– Carefully unwind the wires from the routing guides, giving them a little twist and shout to set them free!
Step 15
– Flip that laptop back over to its favorite lounging position, and gently thread the snazzy black and white wires that were chillin’ with the WLAN through their designated hole.
– Evict those 4 tiny screws (5mm Phillips #1) and the solo screw up in the top-left corner (3mm Phillips #1) from the palm rest. They’ve had their run!
Step 16
Gently tug on those plastic tabs for each connector to give them a little love and avoid any damage. You’ve got this!
– Alright, let’s pop things loose! Disconnect the Bluetooth card cable, Wed cable, Camera1 cable, power cable, and touchpad cable from their marked Motherboard connectors. Here’s the deal—pull the Bluetooth and Camera1 plugs towards the screen. For the touchpad and power cables, lift the black tab first, then gently slide them out. And for the Wed cable, just grab that blue tab and pull upwards—nice and steady!
– Next, free up the wires from their routing guides. Give ‘em a little wiggle to loosen things up!
Step 17
– To put your device back together, just follow these steps in reverse—easy-peasy!
– If you run into any trouble, you can always schedule a repair.