Broken Hinge on my Dell Laptop Inspiron - 1525

Having now replaced the hinges on my daughters 1525 twice in the space of 2 years, here is how I see the problem. Basically, the whole issue is down to very poor design. The hinges when new seems to operate reasonably however over a fairly short period of time they start to accumulate dirt and dust and seize-up and the top becomes stiff and difficult to open and close. When this happens, this is the time to take off the power on/off cover and give the hinges a (small) dose of WD40. The problem is that the deterioration in the operation of the top cover is a slow process and a lot of users would not notice this until it is too late!

If the issue is not addressed as soon as the problem a starts, due to the very poor mounting design of the hinges excess strain is then placed on the (very small) mounting points on the cover and "ding", the mounting system breaks (or occasionally the actual hinge breaks).

Bottom line is that this is a design fault and the fact that Dell have consistently refused to recognize this fact and provide a replacement/repair support indicates a company that has little (if any) interest in their customers. We all know where that paths leads (apart from Dells Customer Support........). Personally, I will not be buying any more Dell PCs until they recognize that they need to improve in this area - maybe I will buy an Apple (ouch!).

Same here when I asked them to repair it for me (I was out of warranty as I do OS and software related stuffs myself), they asked me to purchase a cover which will cost around Rs.14,000. On saying it is really too much for a hinge, they said it is their policy and we can do nothing. It is really very ill of them, I am going to advise everyone not to purchase Dell from now onwards, I am owning 3 Dell laptops and 1 desktop in my family and has been purchased more than 10 systems by my friends and relatives on my advise. I will advise others not to go for Dell.

Another Inspiron 1525 user with a broken cover/hinge issue. Still waiting to hear what the service department is going to tell me. As with several others--I'm a very unhappy customer.

I got the Dell Inspiron 1525 in 2008. I just replaced it with an Asus K53U-RBR6 because:

- The component that charges the battery has burned out

- The infamous hinge issue

- I've gone through two AC adapters

- The monitor fried out and I had to replace it

I've owned several laptops, and I can say this will be my first and only experience with Dell. It is the worst laptop I've ever used, and I regret buying it. 

Made a huge mistake of buying it in 2008 in UK. Will never repeat it again.

Also purchased a 3 year NBD warranty when the 1 year CAR was about to be over. Was promised that I will be covered.

Moved to India.

The same hinge problem appeared. Twice visited the service centre and contacted the customer care through telephone.

They tell me that this problem is not covered under warranty. I am surprised. I have also gone through the NBD warranty terms and conditions here and there seems to be no reason for not taking care of this.  www.dell.com/.../nbd%20warranty%20sow.pdf

Apparently this is wear and tear. This is an exclusion in the T&C document available with CC India. I find this hinge problem a common complaint and manufacturing defect.

The system was brought in late 2008 from UK and the NBD warranty for 3 years from Denmark by myself. It is still under warranty. Also, I have neither accidently nor maliciously damaged it.

Now I have to buy another warranty to protect from accidental damage (which is absolutely not the case). I can't show it to another vendor as it will void the existing useless warranty which is still supposed to be working for another year. And I am stuck with a useless piece of junk called Dell.

Another case of DELL HELL

I too have replaced three power supplies, two hinge sets, and a internal power plug.  The 1525 sucks

I gave up on the 1525 some time ago after multiple re-builds and replacement of the hinges (and screen surround). Replaced it with a Macbook Pro and have never looked back - take note Dell............... this is what happens when you have a "don't support customers" Customer Support!

Add one more!  The left hinge on my Inspiron 1525 broke last week.  I have it since Dec. 2008, (ordered directly from Dell) so of course the warranty has expired, but I don't abuse the laptop in anyway - I keep it constantly charged, never take it out, or even around the house, it stays in one area & I use it there for the basics -  email, web searches, paying bills, etc - no games or movies - and hibernate it or shut it down, closing the cover when not in use.  I haven't contacted Dell on the issue yet, thought I'd do a search first & am quite surprised to see that it is an ongoing problem - and the fact that Dell is not being conducive to it by appropriately taking care of the problem or doing a recall!  That's corporate greed for ya!  But I read the comment where Dell is trying to say it is the owner's fault due to wear & tear, which, considering it's been happening quite frequently to specific Dell models and no other brands, and obvious that it is a factory defect makes their excuse beyond inadequate.  Computers are extremely expensive to fix, most repair places charge $100 just to look at them, which doesn't even include the  additional exorbitant fees to do the repair, and although I greatly depend on my computer, I don't have that kind of money to put into something I already spent over $700 on - even if it is 3 1/2 years old!  (What can I say - I'm old enough to remember when products were quality made in the USA, didn't break the bank to purchase & lasted life-times, especially electronic items!)  Perhaps if complaints were made to the Better Business Bureau or Bureau of Consumer Protection, maybe Dell will become more responsive to taking care of the problem!  I will contact them first to see what they have to say, and if it's the same lame response, then I will definitely be contacting those agencies!

I have the same problem, left hinge as well, the rest of the computer is fine but the plastic is just falling apart around the hinge! :(

www.insidemylaptop.com maybe help you.

Hi rollerblind,

Kindly let me know the system model and service tag. Meanwhile I would check for part availability.

I have added you as a friend. Please accept my friend request by clicking on my name highlighted in blue and then click on “Friends” tab at the top and then click on “Request to Review” and finally click on “Accept” button.

I am sending you a private message as well. Click on “Inbox” to respond to the message and provide system’s Service Tag and contact details so I may access your system records and check for further course of action. You could also click on Start Conversation to send a private message.

Awaiting your response!

Add another name to the lengthy list of disgruntled customers who will never be purchasing another DELL computer again, especially of the laptop variety.

My laptop, after a mere 3 years, is literally bursting apart at the seams. And that is extremely sad & frustrating for me because I am currently in medical school & need to use my computer pretty much every single day. The issue is clearly due to normal wear & tear & a faulty cheap design flaw by the manufacturer. I have never been rough with my computer, never dropped it, never hit it on anything, simply using it as it was intended by opening & closing the top lid whenever I was either just about to use it or just finished with it. But God forbid I actually use my laptop computer by placing it in my lap. These computers appear to not have been built for that.

I'm not exactly sure which model it is because it doesn't say so anywhere on the front of the computer. And I refuse to turn the computer over to find out because the top half which has the screen is literally hanging on by a thin electrical thread to the bottom half which houses the keyboard. But I suspect it is a 1525 as well. The on/off button on the right hinge has been rendered essentially useless, & juts out to right on the cheap piece of plastic bevel that is supposed to hold it in place to the hinge. I can see much of the internal wiring on this laptop & feel extremely fortunate that I haven't been electrocuted to death yet while fiddling with this disastrously designed piece of hardware.

The entire computer frame seems to be made of some extremely cheap & frail plastic, which can hardly serve its purpose as the vital "frame" of a computer screen when its durability is that much in question. And ironically, I was already naive & desperate enough to take this computer to a computer shop & pay $200 to get the on/off button defect fixed to the best of the technician's ability. I knew not to call DELL because doing so would be a waste of time, & I have learned long ago to never trust any company's warranty program because they always find some lame excuse for why they can't honor the warranty. It's a shame in this day & age that all the majority of companies care about is getting your money, without reciprocally exchanging such for a quality product in return.

My mother had an older DELL laptop that for the majority part was much more sturdy & worked fine for years, but it fell to the wayside because of a different issue of not being able to plug the battery cord all the way into its socket on the computer, thereby rendering the computer useless because with no battery & no way of charging it, of course, the computer wont have any way of being able to turn itself on. Despite this problem, I was always curious as to why so many people had such an issue with DELL as a computer manufacturer, but now I have experienced what everyone has been referring to as "DELL HELL".

Never again. :emotion-52:

Oops, actually, I did my math wrong! I received this computer in Aug. - Sept. of 2010, so the computer is only a mere 2 years old, not 3. I started having troubles shortly after the 1st year. Wow. Unbelievable.

hey dud i also get same problem while i closing and opening my laptop flapped my display get broke ... my laptop still in under warranty plz suggest me is they replace free ya they will charge me and how much ? 

I have my dell 1525 since August 2008. I've had the hinges on my laptop fixed 4 times (under warranty). The sad thing is that I had to have it fix two times in two months. Yesterday was the last time it broke and of course I did not renew the warranty.  I haven't had any hardware problems - all have been cosmetic... which is truly sad. I will not be ordering a dell again. I ordered a HP which is coming this week... but I'm considering sending it back and getting a Mac. I'm so fed up.