letter keys stopped working 23 February at 2:04PM in Techie Stuff 12 replies 159 views

bouicca21

Two of the keys on the keyboard of my laptop have stopped working.  I took the caps off to see if they just needed cleaning, it made no difference and they've not gone back on properly.

It's such a silly thing but I have no idea whether it is actually fixable.  Is it?  The laptop is a lenovo DESKTOP-GO4GL8B running Windows 10.

Neil_Jones

The "desktop" name is actually the (random) computer name Windows generates for you when you set it up.  It's not the model of the computer

Which letters are not working?  Type out "the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog" to see which one(s) are not working.  If its a relatively obscure key that you might use in a month of Sundays, I wouldn't worry about it.  If it was your letter E, then worth worrying about.

bouicca21

It’s x and y.  It’s astonishing how much one needs to use them, the x is worst because of control + x

It’s a lenovo thinkpad.  Sigh, I thought I was being so clever asking the machine what it was ...  in normal times I use it when out collecting information.

molerat

bouicca21 said:

It’s a lenovo thinkpad.

A bit more than that needed

Used keyboards available fairly reasonably priced on Ebay

But can you / know someone who can change it ?

Loads of how tos on Youtube.

Some an absolute doddle, others a complete PITA.

frugalmacdugal

bouicca21 said:

It’s x and y.  It’s astonishing how much one needs to use them, the x is worst because of control + x

Hi,

you could use the on screen keyboard meantime.

pbartlett

while you are waiting you could plug a normal external usb keyboard in.

as above, would be good if you could let us know exact model.of laptop.

IvanOpinion

You could also use 'alt' key combinations to get the relevant character - but I would go with pabartlett's suggestion of plugging in an external keyboard.

bouicca21

Gosh, you are all so knowledgeable and helpful. I had no idea there was such a thing as an on board keyboard!  I've worked out how to ask the laptop more questions and have come up with Lenovo ThinkPad X240 Laptop - 20AMS10F05

daivid

In the Sainsbury's (other supermarkets are available) near me Logitec wireless keyboard & mouse sets were reduced to £12.50 and as I was using a not very good wireless mouse (had to replace an old HP one in a hurry with the junk I could get immediately) I bought one to give a go. I'm really impressed so far, the mouse could be more ergonomic but functions perfectly well, the keyboard allows faster typing and makes it easier to get the screen and the keyboard as wanted. It claims amazing battery life (many months of typical use) but as I will use rechargeable batteries that doesn't worry me too much. It also means I can stay on the couch whilst selecting what to stream onto the TV

basill

Its quite involved to replace the keyboard in an x240, you need to disconnect and remove the motherboard to reach it.  Its fiddly but nothing is glued down so not impossible.
As mentioned above keyboards are available on Ebay.  A how to video I found runs for 45 minutes so there is a guide to the labour time if a shop was to tackle the swap for you.

bouicca21

Ta.  I think the on board keyboard is probably the way to go - I do have a spare external keyboard but the laptop is mainly for when I’m collecting information  away from home so I don’t really want to carry another keyboard around, not do I want to buy a new laptop just because of a minor fault!