Getting IBM to switch out the keyboards.

Message

admsteiner · #31 Post by **admsteiner** » Mon Jul 12, 2004 10:53 pm

needalaptop, I agree 100%. I'm happy with my keyboard, but if there's a better one out there, I'd love to get the better one, especially after spending over $2,000 for this wonderful machine.

ryan · #32 Post by **ryan** » Tue Jul 13, 2004 11:51 am

how can you tell what keyboard you have? do you have to open it up?

Leon · #33 Post by **Leon** » Tue Jul 13, 2004 11:59 am

yes

EnsignRicki · #34 Post by **EnsignRicki** » Tue Jul 13, 2004 12:37 pm

ryan wrote:how can you tell what keyboard you have? do you have to open it up?

Yes it's on the underside of the keyboard. If you're not sure how to go about opening it up just follow the instructions in the Hardware Maintenance Manual.

RaysMD · #35 Post by **RaysMD** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 1:12 am

BTW, did you know that you can look up the parts installed on your thinkpad with this handy website?

http://www-307.ibm.com/pc/support/site. ... sLookup.vm

now you'll know if you have a Thai keyboard or not.

Leon · #36 Post by **Leon** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 1:17 am

unbelievable..... thanks!!!

RaysMD · #37 Post by **RaysMD** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 1:43 am

yea, that's a cool utility, but I just ordered a T42 for my sister that shows an 14" IDTech LCD.

I'm not sure if the utility is correct for LCD displays because
1. IDTech 14" LCD displays aren't supposed to be available anymore
2. I had returned a T41p that had a poor display and the parts lookup shows that it's a Samsung.

we'll see when I get the package.

Rays

JaimitoBond · #38 Post by **JaimitoBond** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 3:37 am

Ha! Assuming the website is accurate (it was for every thing else I could verify), then the IDTech rumor is not true. My T41p's IDtech panel is very bright, no dead pixels, and has great contrast.

Checkout this page, and look at the bar of shades of gray near the bottom of the page.

http://www.dpreview.com/reviews/nikond2h/

On my LCD, I can see all the blocks distinctly, even blocks A and B.

cjsuh · #39 Post by **cjsuh** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 10:30 am

Well, that was quick. I called IBM on Monday for the "Made in Thailand" T42 keybaord (FRU #08K5044) and it came in today. I opened it up to make sure it was the right one and, sure enough, it is. The keys feel much more like the ones I demo'd at J&R that convinced me to go with IBM in the very beginning. I can't wait to get home and install this puppy. Gotta say, I'm impressed with the service. No questions asked and very quick delivery. Great stuff.

bluedoc · #40 Post by **bluedoc** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 11:06 am

cjsuh,

I would assume you have the 14" size LCD?

cjsuh · #41 Post by **cjsuh** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 11:29 am

yep. 14" T42.

yargok · #42 Post by **yargok** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 1:07 pm

cjsuh wrote:Well, that was quick. I called IBM on Monday for the "Made in Thailand" T42 keybaord (FRU #08K5044) and it came in today. I opened it up to make sure it was the right one and, sure enough, it is. The keys feel much more like the ones I demo'd at J&R that convinced me to go with IBM in the very beginning. I can't wait to get home and install this puppy. Gotta say, I'm impressed with the service. No questions asked and very quick delivery. Great stuff.

Yeah I ordered mine on monday too and it arrived this morning. Time to go swap that out when i get home from work today. I'm looking forward to seeing how much better the Thailand keyboard is.

EnsignRicki · #43 Post by **EnsignRicki** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 2:20 pm

My new keyboard came in today. I just replaced it. I don't notice any flex whatsoever. Also with my old keyboard the right side seemed to be slightly raised. The new keyboard doesn't have that problem.

mrbjr · #44 Post by **mrbjr** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 2:39 pm

Ordered Tues. AM, was told 5 to 10 business days.UPS just delivered it.
One curious side note,my original damaged KB had the shiny black finish, this one has the flat black matte finish. Both have the same FRU# 93P4780

jeremyas9999 · #45 Post by **jeremyas9999** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 3:30 pm

wow, you all are great! i just called and ordered my replacement thai keyboard. it's in stock and will ship tomorrow.

thank you for posting all the FRU info! interestingly, the guy couldn't even find 08K4986 in the catalog...

cjsuh · #46 Post by **cjsuh** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 3:57 pm

Just installed the new keyboard. Installation was a breeze. And everything everyone said about this keyboard is true! Keys type quieter, they feel much more responsive, and just generally better. The right side only flexes when I force it. 100% sturdier. I don't know who approved of the China ones or why they decided to switch manufacturers (I'm assuming cost reasons), but they definitely should not have messed with a good thing. This is what I paid for!

nesen · #47 Post by **nesen** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 5:07 pm

ordered it 2 days ago, got it today, that's fast

I wouldn't have ordered it if i had a US keyboard, but since i prefer the US layout over the German layout, and the keyboard really wasn't extremely amazing, but good, i just ordered one for 49 euros.

Just amazing that they don't charge shipping cost or anything, for me that alone justifies the extra cost of a thinkpad. (i think if you sum up, the extra cost is negative...)

JaimitoBond · #48 Post by **JaimitoBond** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 9:13 pm

I'm curious, what did all of you tell IBM, so that they will send you the KB? Just the fact that you don't like the one you have now?

taphil · #49 Post by **taphil** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 9:45 pm

I was going to ask that this afternoon too. But I went ahead and called IBM. Told them my keyboard creaks when pressing the right-arrow button and the trackpoint left and middle buttons creak as well. Those problems existed when the laptop was new. (I fixed the right-arrow button by putting a small felt pad under it, and a little silicone grease under the mouse buttons reduced the squeaking.) The guy just said ok and he would send me a replacement keyboard. I also asked for the FRU and the only one he said he could order was the Thai one. Pretty easy. And on the phone, I spent more time listening to menu options than being put on hold - great customer service.

taphil · #50 Post by **taphil** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 10:09 pm

One question:

Is it possible to replace the plastic cover surrounding the power/volume/access ibm buttons? I like the shiny/glossy dark black plastic that matches the indicator lights cover. The matte plastic looks cheap.

Humpa · #51 Post by **Humpa** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 10:17 pm

JaimitoBond wrote:I'm curious, what did all of you tell IBM, so that they will send you the KB? Just the fact that you don't like the one you have now?

I told them I was reading here about the differences between the Thai and China assembled keyboards, and how the China one's seemed to be sub-par, and that I wanted the Thai one.
I did mention that I had some flex on the right side (my left click and center scroll also started creaking, but not until after I ordered the new keyboard).
The tech/rep(?) I talked to said he could see that the 93P4840 and 93P4780 were valid FRU's for the 15" T42, but he could not tell where the keyboards were made, nor where they would ship from.
But he was more than happy to send me out a 93P4780, just on my say-so.

taphil, do have a 14"? I've read that if you call ibm, they only have the Thai keyboard listed now for the 14".
... It'd be nice if they removed the 93P4840 from the parts list.
They still list both the China and Thai one for the 15" on the FRU keyboard parts list for the T40 series:
http://www-1.ibm.com/support/docview.ws ... MIGR-46503
btw, I think I like the black matte around the pwr/vol buttons.

Humpa · #52 Post by **Humpa** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 10:22 pm

taphil wrote:Is it possible to replace the plastic cover surrounding the power/volume/access ibm buttons?

Yes. It snaps out. Just use a small screwdriver and pry at the top. There are three small snaps at the top that hold it in, then it just lifts out.

mrbjr · #53 Post by **mrbjr** » Thu Jul 15, 2004 10:49 pm

Just installed my replacement kb, really was a snap. Also another curious side note. They are both 93P4780's, but the original was assembled in China, Thailand was not anywhere to be seen and had every spare inch covered in fingerprints. The replacement made in Thailand was spotless.

jeremyas9999 · #54 Post by **jeremyas9999** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 12:50 pm

i ordered mine at 3pm yesterday, and it was delivered by 9:30 this morning. that's FAST service!

alas, i wasn't expecting it until monday, so i didn't bring the t42 to work today. but it says on the box that it's made in thailand.

as for what i told them, i said that the arrow keys move substantially when i press them, and it causes them to not respond correctly all the time.

synapse · #55 Post by **synapse** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 5:05 pm

I just got off the phone with them as well. My palm rest is creaking and I confirmed that I have the China model in my 15" T42p. They ordered me a Thia one but said it is either out of stock or very low and the Crew Dept. might sub it out to a different one. I called to check on it and they don't know which one will be shipped until Monday. So i'll call back then and see. Hopefully this will fix it even though it is a problem with the palm rest. They both seem interconnected in terms of providing support to one another.

jeremyas9999 · #56 Post by **jeremyas9999** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 6:07 pm

i just got home and swapped out the keyboard. it took less than a minute, and this one is much better. quieter, and the flex is gone! i'm sooo happy.

once again, thank you all!

synapse · #57 Post by **synapse** » Fri Jul 16, 2004 11:38 pm

Just tonight I noticed that my left trackpoint mouse button is creaking really loudly as well as the bottom of my keyboard. I have also seem to have lost functionality of my left Ctrl key as that no longer works.

I must have messed something up when I took the keyboard out to please the tech support guy on the phone. I hope the new keyboard (IF they send me the right one) will fix mouse and plamrest creaking, but does anyone know what I might have done to disable the Ctrl key?

Thanks-

-Dan

Conmee · #58 Post by **Conmee** » Sat Jul 17, 2004 5:26 pm

I ordered a replacement keyboard and specifically specified the China keyboard (for my work machine), and they sent me the Thai keyboard. Looks like the Thai keyboard is being phased out. Also, it came with the matte bezel around the Access IBM and volume buttons. As someone mentioned, it was easy to snap off an remove. So I changed out the matte finish bezel with a glossy bezel from a broken T42 keyboard. The glossy bezel is my preference too. So now I've got a great keyboard, no flex, though I put a business card under there just to be sure, and slilent TrackPoint buttons too... as well as the glossy bezel. Perfection at last...

Daniel.

JaimitoBond · #59 Post by **JaimitoBond** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 2:13 am

Daniel, did you liked the China better? I've gotten used to my KB (China, 14"), ever since I added a few strips of double sided tape under the right side of the KB, the flex was not an issue anymore.

Hostile · #60 Post by **Hostile** » Sun Jul 18, 2004 8:23 am

cjsuh wrote:Can anyone confirm that FRU #08K5044 is specifically for the Thai keyboard? I have seen people list it as 08K5044 RM87, but the representative I spoke with says they only use the FRU number (i.e. 08K5044) when ordering parts. I want to make sure I don't end up getting another China keyboard, if the FRU numbers for both are identical.

Thanks, in advance.

I just took my T40 apart and the bottom of the keyboard:

FRU NO. 08K5044 and "MADE IN THAILAND"

Of course I need a replacement as I spilled OJ on it.

Getting IBM to switch out the keyboards.

I got it!

question

Re: I got it!

Writing from my brand new FRU #08K5044 14" keyboard

Re: Getting IBM to switch out the keyboards.

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