vgn-fw235j hinge broken?

I purchased a fw235j notebook about two months ago and the circular hinge near the charge port popped out so that it sticking out very loose, preventing me from shutting my computer. I think it happened because of the tension of the charger plugged into it. Sort of hard to exlpain, but if you own this notebook you know what part I'm talking about. (And if you don't own it i would recommend against it just because of this serious design flaw lol).

Has this happened to anyone else with a fw235j? If so what did you do to fix it? I tried forcing the piece back in so that i could shut the comp but that isn't working. It looks like a little plastic piece might have snapped off but it's so small that I can't tell for sure. I imagine this could be a pretty common problem because of the way this piece was designed. I mean, mine broke after 2 months of normal use (no falls or anything).

anyway, my computer is still functioning fine-it can still charge, its shuts down and boots up fine. but because of that piece it won't shut which is more than just a little bit annoying.

 

I too have an fw235j. I noticed that the hinge was slightly loose just days after purchasing the computer. At first I assumed that this was an intentional design to prevent stress on the male connector pin inside the charging port (a sort of shock absorber). But yesterday, after using the computer, I couldn't close the lid because the port had fallen completely out of the computer. The wires are still connected and charging the battery, but I can't get the port back into place.

Did you ever find a resolution to this problem? If so, some guidance would be greatly appreciated.

-ajdarby

 

that's fairly common issue with the FWs - is only the plastic broken or is the main chassis also damaged?