Big problem with card reader, m15x

Well, here's another thing to add to the list of things that go wrong with the m15x. I was going to try out the card reader for the first time today. I noticed I had an SD card and tried to push it in. I noticed immediately that the card met some resistance and wouldn't slide in smoothly but I found that at the right angle it did eventually go in without the use of excessive force. What was strange was that it just kept sliding in with no sign of stopping until it was sitting flush with the chassis and I started worrying that I might not be able to get it out. Furthermore, a crack had appeared in the chassis right above the card reader. Being slightly worried I tried pushing on it some more in hopes that a spring mechanism would eject it back out but nothing happened. The SD card is currently stuck in there and it seems like there is nothing I can do to get it out. I have contacted alienware by mail and will wait to see what they have to say. I just hope that I don't have to send it in because then that will probably be the last I will see of it. Anyone have any good suggestions? Picture of the problem attached btw.


Update: After removing the battery and the power chord I used pliers and a lot of patience to very slowly pry the SD card out of the slot. I got it out with no additional damage to the laptop but the top of the SD card had clearly been scratched by something inside the machine. Anyone experience similar problems, or know what I can do to fix it?

 

If there is some space inside the card-reader above the sd-card you could try to stick some tape onto the card with a knife oder some other thin tool and then pull the card out with the tape.
Had the same problem with a memorystick pro duo going too deep into the reader of my current book!

Edit:
A too slow, you got it out already! Stupid question, have you inserted it with the right side up?

 

i dont like the look of that gap above the card reader.
it sounds like the internal card holder is not sitting correctly internaly and that could be why youve got the gap in the chassis.
sorry to say but after spending all that money the only option is to send the thing back.

oh i am sooooo looking forward to when i finally receive mine. at least us in the uk have a 14 day grace for returning it for a full refund and NO restocking fee.

 

If I look inside the Card reader slot you can tell by the way the pins in there are seated which way you are supposed to insert the card and I inserted it the correct way. What is interesting and which you can't make out from the pic is that there is a metal strip inside the machine which probably is there to guide the card in to the correct position. But the thing is that something inside the machine is bending this guiding strip out of shape. When I insert the card it takes up space and bends back thus forcing this crack to appear.

 

OMFG!!!!!!!

What I did was jam a match stick in there to keep the door open and then use a flashlight to closer inspect the innards of the card reader. You will not believe what I found. TWO LOOSE SCREWS were laying on their sides above this guiding metal strip, pinned between the chassis and this metal, thus forcing this guiding metal thing out of shape and leaving no room for the memory cards. WTF! Why are there loose screws inside my system? Are they extra or is there something that is now not secured in place? This is EXTREMELY sloppy work if you ask me! I'm trying to take a pic of it now but I'm having problems getting the camera to capture the detail.

 

wow! your lucky you didnt get charged extra for them.

they are most probably what is meant to hold the card reader in place.

 

I can't be sure but I don't really think so. The card reader seems pretty securely locked in place, though maybe you are right.

 

It is normal for the sd card to slide in so that it is flush with the outside of the case making it a little tricky to remove it, but in your case this is clearly a defect. The card should slide in smoothly with some small amount of spring resistance until it locks in place. Removing only requires that the card be pushed in slightly further to release it and then it comes out easily. The loose screws in your SD slot are simply poor workmanship and quality control. No excuse for that.

 

I have to say that quality control seems to be non-existent. Which is funny after they make such a big deal of their whole quality build process.

FR33M4N the sad thing is you have to send your notebook back for repair.

My card reader physically is ok, but It only allows the SD card to be inserted once. Any subsequent insertions go undetected. Sony memory sticks work just fine but SD cards don't for me. Even if I select remover hardware via the control tray I can only get one successful detection by Vista. Otherwise I have to reboot in order to get the card reader to detect an SD card again.

My notebook is currently in repairs for this issue and three others. 3 weeks and counting.

 

my SD reader works fine, though, i havn't really tested it very extensively. for those who don't know (either because they havn't tried, or don't have the materials to try), the SD cards stick out about 1/16th of an inch (if that) and are fairly easy to push further in, so they pop back out of the computer. they DO NOT sit 100% flush.

 

if mines like that it's going right back

 

I had the same problem with my SD card. I updated it with the latest software from the site and seems to work good now.

 

Surprisingly it wasn't that hard getting the screws out. I took a short steel wire, bent it to a hook and insulated it with electrical tape. I wonder if I still should send it in?

 

If it was me i'd see if it now works, if not then send it back but, you'll then be without it so....

Just my 2p

OB

 

i'm with OB, if it doesn't work after removing the screws, send it back. that media card reader is probably part of the motherboard itself... who knows what else might not work if that doesn't... or what kind of damage there is...

if it does, the likelihood that it would work even with anything being damaged enough for it to fail or any other subsystem to fail would be small. what i'm saying is, the probability that there's any real damage to the unit is small. maybe a bent plate, thats in *relatively* the right spot, though with a small crease from where the screws sat...

be sure to use a working SD media in the drive... test it with anything.

and don't settle for "oh, windows sees the drive, it's OK", go into the device and poke around the data... if it seems ok, then the reader is probably ok.