W3V palmrest changed

Just wanted to share this with the other W3v owners out there that have an issue with the palmrest and discoloration. About a month ago, I noticed that I had discoloration on the left side from my left palm. It progressively got worse. I even tried cleaning it and my wife even suggested using rubbing alcohol to cut the dirt. But all that did was take off some of the color.

So, I ordered the W3n part from the asus estore last week based on someone else doing this modification posted in the estore thread. I received the part this past Monday and installed it. The part was less expensive than what I would have thought ($17 total with shipping). I had no problem with the ordering process on the site and the shipping time was decent.

It took me a while to figure out all of the screws and connections. It probably took me about 2 hours to take my laptop apart. I would definitely not recommend this modification to anyone with no experience putting computers together. But this was my first laptop that I every took apart. Putting it back together took a lot less time. After everything was back in place, I was quite pleased with how it looks. Although, the stock brushed aluminum looked killer, the black W3n part has a nice tone and still as stylish as the original.

I have noticed in the past couple of days now that the speakers on the new part are a bit better (louder) than the stock speakers. The speaker assembly did come with the W3n part. This was just a added benefit to a worthwhile change. I really couldn't stand that the stock palmrest always looked dirty.

 

Where did you get it from?

I'm in the Uk and it doesnt look like i can find one over here.

For this reason alone i may have to go with the Sony SZ as i can't deal with a fading notebook.

 

Is the new black palmrest painted? or is it black plastic?

 

darrensen - I got the part from estore.asus.com. But I think they only ship to Canada and the US.

primetime - I'm not quite sure, but I think it's black plastic. I really didn't notice and can't really remember if the bottom side of the palmrest was the same color as the top. Maybe someone, a reseller, can say for sure.

 

Here's a couple of pictures of the new palmrest compared to the old.

 

How many hours a day do you use your lappy?

 

I use it maybe on average 2-3 hours everyday - definitely not excessive usage. I only use it a home after work on a daily basis. Once a week I need to use it at work for 6-8 hours.

I try to keep my hands clean whenever I use any computer. I think its just that I have oily skin.

 

Sweet pictures... did you do a full replacement? or just the palmrest?
I was thinking about doing a Z63a --> W3N or W3V conversion... I love the black look.

 

I only changed the palmrest. The estore does have the black w3n bezel also. But I figure how I have it - the lid and the bezel are dark grey, and the palmrest and the bottom are black - that color scheme works for me.

 

Back in Black!!!! Hehehe..

 

That looks great!!! I wish it came from the factory looking like that, with the matching bezel and a darker aluminum touchpad surround...although your touchpad surround looks pretty dark in the second picture, so I guess lighting can play a bigger role than I thought.

Nice work!!! I can't wait to see If the W3J adopts a darker overall look.

 

Good to know that the option is out there.

 

Anyone else also experience severe discolouring on their W3's?

 

The black palmrest looks really nice.

Discoloration is a nuisance, and may be a reason to buy the V6j if one has really oily or sweaty hands. I personally wash my hands many times a day and have never had a problem with any of my equipment.

 

I have a tiny bit of discolouration.. only noticable at certain angles (and barely noticable at all). If it gets too serious, I may have to saw it out as well...

 

Did you have an older version of the w3v? The picture on the Asus site now has the darker palm rest that you have on there now.

http://usa.asus.com/products4.aspx?l1=5&l2=61&l3=0&model=600&modelmenu=1

 

I couldn't access the site. Can you give me the direct link to the black plam rest??

 

Yep, that's how it started with me too - I would only notice it when I booted up the machine when the initial light from the lcd reflected off the palm rest. It just got worse from there. Now is the time for you to try some sort of protection like the pda screen protectors someone else suggested in the original thread about the discolorations.

 

Just tried, I can't get to the site either. I noticed yesterday that there were more things added to the estore, maybe they are doing more changes. Probably, try checking sometime later.


EDIT: looks like the site is back up. I sent you a pm with the link.

 

Ooooooo, that looks nice. My friend just ordered up a Z63A, I'll let him know about this.

He might not go for it because he's broke now, but maybe later. Nice~!

Hopefully it's not of lesser quality.

 

Meh... I'm not THAT adamant on keeping my notebook new-looking. Yes I want it to stay pretty... but it's a tool, afterall. All things show wear eventually...
Maybe when I get some free time this summer, I'll do a conversion...we'll see

 

I just ordered the plan rest replacement. Any body have any instruction on how to take the laptop apart??

 

I also cleaned my w3v palmrest w/ rubbing alcohol and it made it look terrible. I use my computer for about 6 hours everyday so the dark spot is probably inevitable. I ordered the black lcd bezel too, but I don't want to void the warranty by doing it myself. Anyone know if it can be sent back to the seller to do w/o voiding the warranty? It looks really bad right now and could use the change.

 

All I want to say is that the W3J's better not have this problem or I'll regret getting that Sony Vaio...

 

Looks really nice, way to go for taking action and getting that done on your own. I actually wish it came from the factory like that...maybe the W3J will sport this darker version!

 

is that really w3v in the picture? Looks like z63a to me.

 

i'm starting to get that same problem.

 

Strange, I had my palmrest and underbody changed, including my motherboard.

Thing is the palmrest that was installed is rougher than the one I had previously. It kind of feels grainy compared to my old one that had a nice glossy finish to it.

I don't know why.

 

any tips to offer when trying to change out the palmrest? other than to be careful and not to rip any wires out or keep all the screws?

 

Yes, it is a w3v. Bought it last year around July.

Yeah, other than ripping any wires and losing any screws - take your time to find all of the screws, don't force anything apart - there are a few peices (body parts and wire connections) that have clips that are pretty easy to deal with once you know how they are attached. You're pretty much taking the whole bottom assembly apart once you detach the lcd at the hinges. If you're really interested in the details I can dig up an email I sent to some else asking about what it takes to change the palmrest. Just send me a pm.

 

Thanks carjulreyes for the advice, looks great with the new palmrest, now all i gotta do is hope one day they'll have the brush alum lcd cover!

 

Thanks for the information on this thread. I ordered the black palmrest for my z63a and changed it out today. I think it looks great even with the white battery and bezel.

I just want to warn everybody that this upgrade is not easy. I pretty much had to take the entire laptop apart and it took 2-3 hours. There is a good chance you could break something if you attempt this. I actually damaged one of the connectors for the touchpad but luckily it's working fine. Most of the parts that you are likely to break are fairly inexpensive to replace but it would be a real nightmare to have to take this laptop apart again.

Good luck to anyone who wants to try this!

 

Thanks for the info. The estore is still working. It took me more than 2 hrs to replace it. But, the black top looks GREAT!

 

Glad to see others are having luck with this. After a little more than 6 months of regular use the black palmrest shows no signs of wear.

 

Can someone give me a direct link to the item. Thanks alot

 

http://estore.asus.com/shop/item.asp?itemid=3044&catid=384

this is w3v's replacement part. 'darker color'