Taking care of your M11x (Paranoid)

So ever since getting my M11x I've been a bit paranoid and have been hectic in taking care of it. Would love if the community can share their tips in taking care of their M11x and for future M11x owners.

Looking for ideas on keeping the fan in tip top shape. Meaning having the machine completely silent when not using the GPU and effectively running with GPU in reducing heat.

Any materials or products to keep the screen healthy and clean? The keys dust-free? My old laptop keys were becoming oily and worn, I didn't want the same to happen. How about keeping the ports clean and nice and the overall casing smooth and shiny?

I'm thinking about maybe buying wipes or those air cans and I have this vacuum just for electronics like keyboards, how safe are these and would you recommend any, or specific brand?

What are your tips/tactics in keeping your m11x in tip top shape?

Thanks a lot! I want my baby to be fresh as new even after years of abuse ;P

 

Best way to keep your m11x clean and perfect is to put it in a box with fans and filters on it. Then use a external LCD/keyboard/mouse.

You never have to really touch the computer other than to turn it on.


But really, I air can mine out every week. I use a micro fiber cloth to clean it. Every month I take it all the way apart to clean the fan and heat sink with q-tips.

I will usually wipe it down before I put it in the sleeve. This keeps dust and dirt from ending up in the sleeve too.

 

You may also want to get some sort of a screen protector. I suggest one from photodon. I have had good success with mine. And it has already saved my screen from at least one scratch over the last month.

this is a review for the matte version Screen Protector Shootout - Part 5A - YouTube

and here is a review for a clear version Screen Protector Shootout - Part 5B - YouTube

While I am thinking about it, that review does not properly apply the protector, that is why he got stuck with little bubbles. Follow this video for proper installation instructions. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K-JcyOKAsNY

Photodon has pre-cut protectors for the M11x available. I am extremely happy with my protector. It is invisible once properly applied. Incredibly durable, and highly scratch resistant itself. It comes in a variety of choices for surface types, and is very affordable. Here is a link to their website if you need it. http://www.photodon.com/c/alienware-laptop-screen-protectors.html

 

i just use some silly water based spray with micro fiber cloth (surprisingly effective for some water based nonsense) to clean screen and everything, blow out keyboard from dust and crap etc. plus blow out the fan thoroughly... Though the heat sink does clog in time and i do take it completely apart and clean the dust with arts brush... Still couldn't avoid paint wearing off in the center below the palm rest... not really sure how it got worn since i don't really rub it against anything...

 

Thanks for the feedback, time to get air cans, cloths, and q tips

Looking at the protector, guess I'll be getting one of those too =D

I'm no good with taking things apart, too scared I'll ruin something and it'll never turn on again. >.<

 

I use a KB cover. Keeps crap out of the keys and the common keys from showing more wear. Bonus is it keeps screen off the keys.

I also use extra rubber bumpers to space the screen away from KB a bit.

 

Alienware - 11.6" M11X - Anti Glare Film or the HD one? What's the difference if it's the same size... I mean it says the non HD one reduces by 65% compared to the HD by 25%.

EDIT: Any purchase of the film comes with a microfiber cloth?

 

it depends on what you want for your screen. some people like the clear, others like the matte. watch the reviews and decide which one is best for you =) if you go with the matte, i suggest the one I put the review up for. keep in mind that it will add a bit of speckling.

I do not mind the speckling because when I am playing games i usually hook it up to a larger external monitor. And i really hate the reflective glossy. But that is personal preference. Some people prefer glossy.

And yes, I believe every protector comes with a complimentary cloth. Mine did.

What kind of keyboard cover do you suggest Gnangs ? linky?

 

Oh! one other very important thing. When you use compressed air to clean the fan area, make sure you hold the fan still with something while you use the air to blow on it.

Do NOT spin the fan with compressed air! You can spin the blade so fast it will destroy the bearings and ruin your fan. That is why you have to hold it still with something when you use compressed air to blow on it.

 

I ended up having to use an old stiff piece of grass to hold it still. That screen has some tiny holes.

 

tiny holes? if you mean scratches, after 3months my screen is still 100% spotless... dunno how you can get any...

 

Hahaha. Sorry, I was unclear. I mean the wire mesh protecting the fan, not the display panel. Screen, not screen.

 

oh lol! just use a toothpick... silly of me to misunderstand like that!

 

I bought the photodon screen and officemax cans

 

Also another thing many don't realise is that by spinning a fan artificially you actually create an induction current than can be several volts depending on the fan. If the board the fan is connected to does not have protection against this it will fry stuff cuz the current will be flowing with opposing polarity. i have seen many a power supply or motherboard get burnt up in a pc due to somebody blowing air into the fan and letting the fan spin like crazy. I always jam a screwdriver in the case of a desktop or a toothpick in the case of a laptop to stop the fan from spinning when blowing it out.

 

ripjak, watch that last video I posted for install instructions. it is one of the best videos I have ever seen in explaining how to properly apply one of those screen protectors.

 

Ya, thanks a lot

 

I've spent a lot of time with several M11x R1 notebooks and an M11x R3 and I can tell you that you WILL eventually lose the rubber feet on the rear. It's a tiny bit of rubber on a tiny plastic peg that's melted into a tiny hole in a tiny squarish area stamped in the sheet metal of the baseplate/chassis. Additionally, the tiny square area stamped metal often shears clean away from the baseplate/chassis because they pressed it too hard. It looks every bit as likely to happen on the R3 but I've had it since June with only one rubber foot coming off.

Now, the rubber bumpers in the palm-rest area will also eventually come off. The adhesive seems to break down and turn into a gum instead of a glue and it loses it's tack. I've seen this happen on many other rubber bits on other notebooks. I have tried superglue but it isn't the greatest and doesn't always work, likely due to greasy-feeling residue from the old adhesive.

My best suggestion is to add your own rubber feet that surround the ones on the bottom and add a thick sheet of rubber on the palm-rest area but I never got around to it.

 

For rubber bits I usually scavenge from dead systems

 

does the palm wrest really show that much wear? one would think that since it is plastic, it would be the same black color throughout, so wear wouldn't really matter as the color should be the same even after some wear. Isn't it?

Could you post a pic or two of what the wear looks like along with a short description of the type of use over time that caused it? I am curious.

 

Turtle wax your r1! mines so shiny now

 

turtle wax

and palm rest, its just the edges... get a little glossy rather than matte/textured...

hate how touch pad wears on 1 spot... its like this glossy circle on it, might just polish the whole thing?

 

Yeah. I was at work withno access to toothpicks

 

I only clean mine with a lint free cloth that came with my Samsung TV, works well on the soft-touch finish.

Still, there's nothing I can do to stop the trackpad from going shiny from use happened on my R1 too!