What's wrong with my laptop's keyboard?

[milesuy]

When I am trying to type something some of the keys on the keyboard aren't working. Although they would work normally again when I spam them or keep on pressing them until they work, but after a few hours of not using the keys, it would stop working again until I spam the keys again. The keyboard never got wet, but the laptop hadn't been used for a while. I also tried using an external keyboard, and it works normally. The laptop's model is Dell G3 3590.

 

What's wrong with the keyboard and what can I do to fix it?

[OddOod]

Have you spilled anything on it? How old is the laptop?

It *could* be a driver issue, I'd start by going to the manufacturer's website and grab the latest keyboard drivers, then reinstall. Do make sure to have an external keyboard if this goes awry because the onscreen keyboard is nightmarishly annoying to use

[Brando212]

has the laptop been opened up at any point for upgrade? And if so, is it one of those models that you have to unplug the keyboard ribbon cable to get it fully open?

 

I mention this because this sounds very similar to what my old Asus laptop was doing after I damaged the keyboard ribbon cable when trying to do a RAM upgrade. Terrible laptop design.

 

edit: either way, it does sound like a hardware issue, so unless you're good with that kind of thing, your options are try to take it to a shop or save up for upgrade/replacement.

[milesuy]

2 hours ago, OddOod said:

Have you spilled anything on it? How old is the laptop?

No, I didn't spilled anything on it. I got it late 2019, so its about 4 years.

1 hour ago, Brando212 said:

has the laptop been opened up at any point for upgrade? And if so, is it one of those models that you have to unplug the keyboard ribbon cable to get it fully open?

It had been upgraded, but I don't have to disconnect anything to be able to upgrade it. I do always disconnect the battery before working on the laptop.

1 hour ago, Brando212 said:

it does sound like a hardware issue

I am afraid of this, but are there other troubleshooting methods before proceeding to replace the keyboard?

The keyboard and touchpad for this laptop is riveted to the housing / frame / palmrest, so I think replacing the keyboard also means replacing the touchpad and housing, which would be very costly.

 

Edit: Touchpad is only screwed, but its still extremely costly to replace the housing and keyboard.

[OddOod]

On 2/7/2024 at 10:21 AM, milesuy said:

other troubleshooting methods before proceeding to replace the keyboard

I'd contact support. Sometimes they'll do you a solid

[milesuy]

On 2/7/2024 at 11:10 PM, Brando212 said:

edit: either way, it does sound like a hardware issue, so unless you're good with that kind of thing, your options are try to take it to a shop or save up for upgrade/replacement.

It is indeed a hardware issue as mentioned by @Brando212

I just replaced the keyboard assembly and it works well again.

 

On 2/14/2024 at 10:47 PM, OddOod said:

I'd contact support. Sometimes they'll do you a solid

As for support, the laptop's warranty period had ended a few years ago.