Troubleshooting ASUS G73 Touchpad Problems

[BrodyBoy]

Doing some more research now that I can see what people are talking about, will execute a fix, and report back. I will wait a couple weeks to report so that I don't give any more bad information out there. Ultimately I think I'm going to start with the most conservative approach and go forward one step at a time, first the tape, then the silver film, finally the black film, maybe the Faraday cage. If that doesn't work I'll probably just order a new touchpad at my own expense. I'm determined to get this fixed, I otherwise *love* the machine.

Thanks to all those who've gone before and documented their results.

Wish me luck!

Good luck, and by all means, keep us posted!

While some owners have reported success with their DIY-repair (of an already erratic touchpad), it seems that most eventually report that the issue returned. Personally, I've come to believe that once the ground has failed, the touchpad PCB may be permanently damaged and can no longer self-calibrate as designed. In situations where owners RMA'd the unit and got it replaced, but Asus techs followed the same installation protocol that the factory used, there seemed to be a decent chance of the 2nd one failing as well, for the very same reason as the first.

The one sure-fire fix that I have seen is this: A brand new touchpad installed with a proper ground. If it never has a chance to fail in the first place, there's no risk of PCB damage.

@shadowen2: Touchpads aren't all that expensive. If you can find the appropriate unit for your particular laptop, it might be worth your while to just go ahead & order a new one.....and install it properly. That might save you a lot of time and headaches.

[shadowen2]

Good luck, and by all means, keep us posted!

While some owners have reported success with their DIY-repair (of an already erratic touchpad), it seems that most eventually report that the issue returned. Personally, I've come to believe that once the ground has failed, the touchpad PCB may be permanently damaged and can no longer self-calibrate as designed. In situations where owners RMA'd the unit and got it replaced, but Asus techs followed the same installation protocol that the factory used, there seemed to be a decent chance of the 2nd one failing as well, for the very same reason as the first.

The one sure-fire fix that I have seen is this: A brand new touchpad installed with a proper ground. If it never has a chance to fail in the first place, there's no risk of PCB damage.

@shadowen2: Touchpads aren't all that expensive. If you can find the appropriate unit for your particular laptop, it might be worth your while to just go ahead & order a new one.....and install it properly. That might save you a lot of time and headaches.

Thanks for the tip. I was actually just logging on to report on my progress, which I'm sure you can tell what that is. I'm sad to report that after I completed my "repair" that the touchpad went the vast majority of the day completely trouble free. But just now it started acting up again. I rebooted and now it seems ok again. Usually after a reboot it acts up again right away and so far I'm going on about 15 minutes and no change. I'll go check the Asus parts page and maybe try a new tp and get it looked at.

On a side note, not for the faint of heart, but I also repasted my gpu and cpu. I woudln't recommend the gpu to anyone unless they have a lot of experience but the cpu was an easy thing and it lowered my temps by 1-2 degrees C.. So not bad for a "since I had it torn apart anyway" kind of thing. I also opted for the full monty once I saw the whole thing torn apart, removed the sticky tape everyone talks about (the adhesive is a bitch!) and the silver and the black film only because their respective adhesives were also particularly nasty. The black plastic was the easiest to remove. Took it right off with some adhesive remover (attainable at any reputable auto parts store).

Thanks again to everyone for all the help and support.

[BrodyBoy]

...... I also opted for the full monty once I saw the whole thing torn apart, removed the sticky tape everyone talks about (the adhesive is a bitch!) and the silver and the black film only because their respective adhesives were also particularly nasty. The black plastic was the easiest to remove. Took it right off with some adhesive remover (attainable at any reputable auto parts store).

Thanks again to everyone for all the help and support.

AFter reading all those posts about the tape and backing and whatnot (and noting that most of those DIY-repairs weren't permanent), and then having seen TP failure myself, I'm of the opinion that erratic TP in the G73 are caused by the same thing that appears to cause it (still!) in the G74. It's not static buildup from the tape or backing, but simply grounding failure.

These newer kinds of TPs have to self-calibrate and maintain their capacitance within a certain tolerance. Their connection to the chassis ground seems to play an important role in this. The G73 and G74 (among other models) use a cheap "tape" grounding system, unlike other laptops that emply a rigid metal ground bar/strip/cage.

The tape ground is vulnerable to failure....it's just secured with a weak adhesive and assembly quality varies considerably....and I think that, once the ground fails, the TP may experience spikes or imbalances that permanently damage its ability to self-calibrate.

Different scenarios (restart, sitting powered off, etc.) may "reset" it for awhile, so that failure takes more or less time to recur, but in these damaged units, it always does. This is why I think simply replacing the TP and grounding it properly from the start is the only real solution.

[shadowen2]

AFter reading all those posts about the tape and backing and whatnot (and noting that most of those DIY-repairs weren't permanent), and then having seen TP failure myself, I'm of the opinion that erratic TP in the G73 are caused by the same thing that appears to cause it (still!) in the G74. It's not static buildup from the tape or backing, but simply grounding failure.

These newer kinds of TPs have to self-calibrate and maintain their capacitance within a certain tolerance. Their connection to the chassis ground seems to play an important role in this. The G73 and G74 (among other models) use a cheap "tape" grounding system, unlike other laptops that emply a rigid metal ground bar/strip/cage.

The tape ground is vulnerable to failure....it's just secured with a weak adhesive and assembly quality varies considerably....and I think that, once the ground fails, the TP may experience spikes or imbalances that permanently damage its ability to self-calibrate.

Different scenarios (restart, sitting powered off, etc.) may "reset" it for awhile, so that failure takes more or less time to recur, but in these damaged units, it always does. This is why I think simply replacing the TP and grounding it properly from the start is the only real solution.

I know you've worked with the ground issue a lot, do you have a suggestion for when I get my new touchpad (I'm going to order one) so that I can ground it and hoepfully make a permanent fix? I looked back through the thread and I could have sworn you posted a photo of a ground that you made on your machine but I can't seem to find it.

Thanks.

[BrodyBoy]

I know you've worked with the ground issue a lot, do you have a suggestion for when I get my new touchpad (I'm going to order one) so that I can ground it and hoepfully make a permanent fix? I looked back through the thread and I could have sworn you posted a photo of a ground that you made on your machine but I can't seem to find it.

Thanks.

Grounding the touchpad is easy....which is why it's so inexplicable that Asus keeps mucking it up in successive models!! You just need to establish secure electrical continuity from the grounding pad to the metal backing of the top cover.

This can be a piece of bare foil that spans the short distance between the two, and is secured on either side by tape, etc. Here's a photo of the OEM grounding tape, pulled off and laying upside down next to its intended location. You can easily imagine how sloppy assembly might (1) misalign the tape and/or (2) not secure it well, leaving the foil contact very tenuous and prone to failure. You could make something similar with a piece of foil or wire, secured & backed by a strip of electrical tape.




Basically, anything that's conductive, that lies pretty flat (there isn't much clearance when you put everything back together), and that can be secured at either end....will work.

I happened to have a little piece of metal that I was able to shape and secure into the clearance clip located close to the TP grounding pad. (That's just my name for the "protrusions" on the top cover backing that create the proper clearance from the motherboard. I don't know what they're actually called. ). It fit great (with a little shaping & fine-tuning), established perfect continuity, and felt very secure....so I just left it.




But that's just one approach. I've also tested with the foil & electrical tape mentioned above and had equally effective results. The important thing is to securely ground the new touchpad from the outset. As I mentioned before, I think that grounding failure, once it's allowed to occur, can permanently damage the TP. Better to prevent than to repair.......

[chaos ninja]

I FINALLY FOUND A WAY TO FIX THIS PROBLEM! I sold my POS g73 and bought a laptop that actually functions properly. I dealt with the nasty trackpad issue for over a year and a half. I finally got fed up after checking this thread on a weekly basis hoping to find a fix that didn't involve RMA or taking this laptop apart. I bought a macbook pro. Ive never been a mac guy, but my last experience with a PC was so horrible i figured i'd give this a shot. I LOVE IT! everything, including the track pad, actually works! AND it has multi-touch gestures that work as well! HUZZAH!!

[Cody Bishko]

lol @ chaos ninja

Yeah that works ;-) although taking the time to take the tape off works too and it has worked for me flawlessly since I did it last year -- and cost much less than a MBP :P

[shadowen2]

Grounding the touchpad is easy....which is why it's so inexplicable that Asus keeps mucking it up in successive models!! You just need to establish secure electrical continuity from the grounding pad to the metal backing of the top cover.

This can be a piece of bare foil that spans the short distance between the two, and is secured on either side by tape, etc. Here's a photo of the OEM grounding tape, pulled off and laying upside down next to its intended location. You can easily imagine how sloppy assembly might (1) misalign the tape and/or (2) not secure it well, leaving the foil contact very tenuous and prone to failure. You could make something similar with a piece of foil or wire, secured & backed by a strip of electrical tape.




Basically, anything that's conductive, that lies pretty flat (there isn't much clearance when you put everything back together), and that can be secured at either end....will work.

I happened to have a little piece of metal that I was able to shape and secure into the clearance clip located close to the TP grounding pad. (That's just my name for the "protrusions" on the top cover backing that create the proper clearance from the motherboard. I don't know what they're actually called. ). It fit great (with a little shaping & fine-tuning), established perfect continuity, and felt very secure....so I just left it.




But that's just one approach. I've also tested with the foil & electrical tape mentioned above and had equally effective results. The important thing is to securely ground the new touchpad from the outset. As I mentioned before, I think that grounding failure, once it's allowed to occur, can permanently damage the TP. Better to prevent than to repair.......

I'm just curious about your experience here. This sounds like a solution you've implemented a number of times? Has it worked in every case? The only reason I ask is that this thing is a bear to take apart and I don't want to do it (again) and have it not work (again).

I'm also curious about where to get the touchpad? I've seen some references to asusparts.eu which I don't mind ordering from outside of the US if I can get the part. I'm just not entirely convinced from their website that the part I'm ordering is the exact right one for my rig. I'm in a G73SW and the part it gives I think is for the JW. I don't know if that makes any difference or not. I also saw that they had 3 different SW's, it looks like versions (a1, a2, a3) and I don't have a clue which one I have. My model number on my unit only says G73SW.

What do you think?

I really appreciate the time your spending with me to get this right. Thank you so much!

[BrodyBoy]

I'm just curious about your experience here. This sounds like a solution you've implemented a number of times? Has it worked in every case? The only reason I ask is that this thing is a bear to take apart and I don't want to do it (again) and have it not work (again). [

Yeah, I have been in there lots of times! I've had two G74s with bad touchpads.....I tried all kinds of fixes for those.....every kind of ground, every kind of adhesive removal, etc. Nothing proved to be a permanent fix in an already bad Sentelic touchpad. In my 3rd G74, I installed the improved ground on the touchpad before I ever even turned the machine on.

So....does it work? No, it doesn't work as a repair of a faulty/damaged touchpad. Yes, it does work as a stable ground that will prevent a new touchpad from experiencing grounding failure and subsequent damage. (I've opened up the machine many times since that original touchpad mod, and I occasionally check the ground continuity...always stable & secure.)

I should note that the G73 and the G74 implement the TP slightly differently. The basic idea is the same, but the G73 doesn't have that foam backing....I think it has a big foil cover. And though I know it doesn't employ a rigid "cage"-style ground, I don't remember exactly what its tape-ground looks like....it's been awhile since I looked at photos of the G73's Synaptics TP.

I'm also curious about where to get the touchpad? I've seen some references to asusparts.eu which I don't mind ordering from outside of the US if I can get the part. I'm just not entirely convinced from their website that the part I'm ordering is the exact right one for my rig. I'm in a G73SW and the part it gives I think is for the JW. I don't know if that makes any difference or not. I also saw that they had 3 different SW's, it looks like versions (a1, a2, a3) and I don't have a clue which one I have. My model number on my unit only says G73SW.

What do you think?

I really appreciate the time your spending with me to get this right. Thank you so much!

I'm not sure, but I think the G73 TP is available here in the U.S. You might want to call the "official" Asus parts store in California and see what they say. If nothing else, maybe they can at least get you the right part number and you look on eBay, etc.

[shadowen2]

Awesome...thanks for the information. Based on what you say I think it's be a good test for us to try to determine if this can be repaired or not. At this point, based on how I got my last computer back from Asus I'm not willing to send it in and let their clowns disassemble it. I'll do less damage to the unit myself and probably end up with a more stable rig when I'm done anyway.

Thanks so much for your information. I'll get the new touchpad ordered and report back on the forum in case there's anyone else out there whose interested in doing the same fix. Plus, based on your time learning and doing research, I'm betting you'll be interested in if we can execute a repair.