Weird small balls on side?

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dustrman03 · #1 Post by **dustrman03** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 4:06 am

So I just noticed the other day that there is like a small plastic ball on the side of my R50. Then today there were 2 of them! What are these things? I can move my computer so that the left side is upward and the top one went back into the computer!! This doesn't seem normal to me.

Here it is with 2.

Here it is with 1.

#2 Post by **underclocker** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 7:46 am

It's a boy! Congratulations.

dsigma6 · #3 Post by **dsigma6** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 9:43 am

underclocker wrote:It's a boy! Congratulations.

AHHH!!!! They Dropped!

dustrman03 · #4 Post by **dustrman03** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 2:13 pm

Lol guys this is serious time.

But I guess it had testicular cancer because there were 2 and now there is 1! Haha.

dsigma6 · #5 Post by **dsigma6** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 2:27 pm

I have never seen balls inside of a laptop, connected to something or rolling around. Did you buy it used? Or perhaps a mischeavous child around?

dustrman03 · #6 Post by **dustrman03** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 2:48 pm

I have no idea. I haven't ever seen this either.

spwhiting@ · #7 Post by **spwhiting@** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 10:03 pm

Must be Lenova's latest marketing approach. I knew they could improve on IBM!

mbellot · #8 Post by **mbellot** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 10:52 pm

Is it possibly an IRDA port?

Usually they have a lens over the LED/Photodiode, but it could have fallen off.

In any case, if they are "rolling around" inside the case its probably not a good thing.

#9 Post by **AlphaKilo470** » Wed Aug 09, 2006 11:03 pm

Could it simply be something inside the packaging the laptop came in that made it's way into a nook or cranny?

dustrman03 · #10 Post by **dustrman03** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 12:46 am

spwhiting@ wrote:Must be Lenova's latest marketing approach. I knew they could improve on IBM!

Well it isn't a Lenovo. :/

dustrman03 · #11 Post by **dustrman03** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 12:49 am

I have usually had the left side down because I have had it in my backpack alot. It doesn't make sense for these small balls to have been in my backpack and then to have gotten into the port.

Would I be able to get a better look if I removed my keyboard?

#12 Post by **AlphaKilo470** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 1:02 am

Next time you buy shoes or a backpack, look for that small pack of silica gel and tear it open. Look at those pellets and tell me how much they resemble those two balls in the ThinkPad's opening. The inconsistant coloring on those balls combined with size lead me to this answer.

dustrman03 · #13 Post by **dustrman03** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 1:06 am

I have thought about that also but how could they get in there? Are any of the computer magnets strong enough to do this?

#14 Post by **AlphaKilo470** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 1:16 am

Probably happened sometime either in transit or while being handled; same way packaging foam has a way of lodging itself into some computers.

dustrman03 · #15 Post by **dustrman03** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 3:34 am

So I remembered that my backpack did have a bag of those beads in them. I checked and sure enough the bag was broken and I think that with all of the carrying around of my backpack during school I got those 2 balls inside through the air vent and then they just worked their way down to where they were in the pictures. Thank goodness they are out now! Haha. Balls.

smugiri · #16 Post by **smugiri** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 7:55 am

The opening is the laptop lock point where you would attach a cable to tie the laptop down. As for the balls, I have to go with the silicon desicant too. They put that in the packaging to suck up moisture and prevent damage to your stuff.

I think that you can leave them there without risk. If you want to remove them, the next time you put in a laptop lock cable, they will be ground up and spit out.

dsigma6 · #17 Post by **dsigma6** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 8:12 am

AlphaKilo470 wrote:same way packaging foam has a way of lodging itself into some computers.

Grrrr!!

dustrman03 · #18 Post by **dustrman03** » Thu Aug 10, 2006 2:22 pm

I would imagine that packaging foam would be harder to get out than these silicon desicant balls. I just moved my computer around so that they just rolled right out. Packaging foam would probably have to be removed by sliding off the keyboard.

#19 Post by **underclocker** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 9:23 am

While circumcision is a common practice, is this type of removal also covered under the support contract?! Has the notebook slowed noticiably after the procedure?

Fabulous mystery...solved. Thanks for the laughs.

dustrman03 · #20 Post by **dustrman03** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 1:10 pm

lol. No performance was sacrificed from losing its balls. haha.

#21 Post by **AlphaKilo470** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 1:16 pm

But with the removal goes it's chances of ever hooking up with a nice T40 and maybe having an X series or two.

dsigma6 · #22 Post by **dsigma6** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 1:18 pm

i have a feeling this post will continue getting bumped through 2008.

spwhiting@ · #23 Post by **spwhiting@** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 2:42 pm

This one needs to be a sticky. I'm still chuckling!!

dustrman03 · #24 Post by **dustrman03** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 7:12 pm

AlphaKilo470 wrote:But with the removal goes it's chances of ever hooking up with a nice T40 and maybe having an X series or two.

Why can't it be a T43? Why does it gotta be a T40? And why can't they have a Z series?

christopher_wolf · #25 Post by **christopher_wolf** » Fri Aug 11, 2006 9:07 pm

Here I am wondering how I could have possibly missed this thread.

Silica dessicant gel balls are also what I first thought. Next thought that hit me was "IBM/Lenovo is shipping *those* with the new Thinkpads now?"

dustrman03 · #26 Post by **dustrman03** » Sat Aug 12, 2006 3:08 pm

Oh it was definitely the silica. But why not some silicone? haha.

NS · #27 Post by NS » Sun Aug 13, 2006 11:39 am

spwhiting@ wrote:This one needs to be a sticky. I'm still chuckling!!

The 1st two replies are so funny that i accidently wack my cup of coffee and spill them on my pile of notes. Luckily it does not spill on my tp.
Nice thread. Should make it an announcement: IBM/Lenovo thinkpad joke. Best joke of the year...! Thanks

dustrman03 · #28 Post by **dustrman03** » Wed Aug 23, 2006 7:59 pm

NS wrote:
spwhiting@ wrote:This one needs to be a sticky. I'm still chuckling!!
The 1st two replies are so funny that i accidently wack my cup of coffee and spill them on my pile of notes. Luckily it does not spill on my tp.
Nice thread. Should make it an announcement: IBM/Lenovo thinkpad joke. Best joke of the year...! Thanks

Now if you were this girl I know who owns an HP, you would have spilled it all over the keyboard. Mind you she did not buy it herself, her daddy bought it. Some computers (TP's) are just taken better care of than other computers (HP's), like getting balls inside of the frame.

Weird small balls on side?

Weird small balls on side?

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