Acer Travelmate 7730a Service Guide

							TravelMate 7730/7730A
Service Guide 
						

							II: 
Revision History
Please refer to the table below for the updates made on Travelmate 7730/7730G Series service 
guide.
Copyright
Copyright © 2008 by Acer Incorporated. All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be 
reproduced, transmitted, transcribed, stored in a retrieval system, or translated into any 
language or computer language, in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, magnetic, 
optical, chemical, manual or otherwise, without the prior written permission of Acer 
Incorporated.
Disclaimer
The information in this guide is subject to change without notice.
Acer Incorporated makes no representations or warranties, either expressed or implied, with 
respect to the contents hereof and specifically disclaims any warranties of merchantability or 
fitness for any particular purpose. Any Acer Incorporated software described in this manual is 
sold or licensed “as is”. Should the programs prove defective following their purchase, the buyer 
(and not Acer Incorporated, its distributor, or its dealer) assumes the entire cost of all necessary 
servicing, repair, and any incidental or consequential damages resulting from any defect in the 
software. 
Acer is a registered trademark of Acer Corporation.
Intel is a registered trademark of Intel Corporation.
Pentium and Pentium II/III are trademarks of Intel Corporation.
Other brand and product names are trademarks and/or registered trademarks of their respective 
holders.
                                                                                                                             PRINTED IN TAIWAN
Date Chapter Updates
Service guide files and updates are available on 
the ACER/CSD web. For more information, refer 
to http://csd.acer.com.tw 
						

							: III
Conventions
The following conventions are used in this manual:
Preface
Before using this information and the product it supports, please read the following general 
information.
1This Service Guide provides you with all technical information relating to the BASIC 
CONFIGURATION decided for Acers “global” product offering. To better fit local 
market requirements and enhance product competitiveness, your regional office 
MAY have decided to extend the functionality of a machine (such as add-on cards, 
modems, or extra memory capabilities). These LOCALIZED FEATURES are NOT 
covered in this generic service guide. In such cases, contact your regional offices or 
the responsible personnel/channel to provide you with further technical details.
2Please note WHEN ORDERING FRU PARTS, that you should check the most up-to-
date information available on your regional web or channel. If, for whatever 
reason, a part number change is made, it will not be noted in the printed Service 
Guide. For ACER-AUTHORIZED SERVICE PROVIDERS, your Acer office may have a 
DIFFERENT part number code to those given in the FRU list of this printed Service 
Guide. You MUST use the list provided by your regional Acer office to order FRU 
parts for repair and service of customer machines.
SCREEN MESSAGESDenotes actual messages that 
appear on screen.
NOTE Gives bits and pieces of additional 
information related to the current 
topic.
WARNING Alerts you to any damage that 
might result from doing or not 
doing specific actions.
CAUTION Gives precautionary measures to 
avoid possible hardware or 
software problems.
IMPORTANT Reminds you to do specific actions 
relevant to the accomplishment of 
procedures. 
						

							IV:  
						

							Contents
ContentsV
Chapter 1: System specifications  1
Features  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .2
System block diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .5
The Acer notebook tour  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
LCD panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .6
Palm rest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .7
Front . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .8
Left . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .9
Right . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Rear  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .10
Bottom view . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .11
Indicators  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .12
Easy-launch buttons  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .13
Touchpad basics  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
Using the keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .14
Hardware specifications and configurations. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
CPU  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
Controllers  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
BIOS  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .18
Memory  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .19
Hard Disk Drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .20
DVD-CDRW drive  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .22
DVD burner . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .23
Blu-ray drive  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
LCD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .25
Inverter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
Video subsystem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .28
Keyboard  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
Pointing device  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
Memory card reader  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
PCMCIA  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
ExpressCard (NewCard) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .29
Audio  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Wired LAN  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Bluetooth  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .30
Wireless LAN . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
USB . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Buttons/Indicators/Ports . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .31
Fingerprint reader  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Camera . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Fan . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .32
Battery  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Power supply . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Power savings . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .33
Chapter 2: System utilities  35
BIOS Setup Utility  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
Navigating the BIOS Setup Utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .36
BIOS Setup Utility screens  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Information screen  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .37
Main screen  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .38
Advanced screen . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .40 
						

							VIContents
Security screen  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .41
Boot  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .45
Exit . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .46
BIOS Flash utility . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .47
Removing a password lock  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48
Removing a HDD password lock  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48
Removing a Supervisor password lock . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .48
Chapter 3: Replacing notebook components  51
Preventing static electricity discharge . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
Tape . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .52
Preparing your work space  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .53
Tools required . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .54
Preparing the notebook  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Remove a PC Card  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Removing an ExpressCard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .55
Removing a memory card  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56
Removing the battery  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .56
Adding or replacing memory modules . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .57
Replacing the graphics card. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .61
Replacing the primary hard drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .64
Replacing the IEEE 802.11 wireless card  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .67
Replacing the CMOS battery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .71
Replacing the secondary hard drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .73
Replacing the optical drive  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .76
Replacing the keyboard cover . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .78
Replacing the keyboard . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .80
Replacing the power button board  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .82
Replacing the LCD assembly  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .84
Replacing the inverter . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .87
Replacing the LCD panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .89
Replacing the LCD panel hinges  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .92
Replacing the web cam . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .94
Replacing the palm rest . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .96
Replacing the microphone and speakers . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .103
Replacing the touchpad button board/fingerprint assembly . . . . . . . .106
Replacing the button board. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .109
Replacing the ExpressCard (NewCard) assembly  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .112
Replacing the Bluetooth card  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .114
Replacing the modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .117
Replacing the system board. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .120
Replacing the cooling assembly . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .124
Replacing the processor  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .129
Chapter 4: Troubleshooting  135
Diagnosing problems  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .136
System test procedures . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137
Testing the external diskette drive . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137
Testing the external CD-ROM drive  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137
Testing the keyboard or auxiliary input device  . . . . . . . . . . . . . .137
Testing the memory  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .138
Testing the power system  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .138
Testing the touchpad  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .139
Power-On Self-Test (POST) error message  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .140 
						

							Contents
ContentsVII
Index of error messages  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141
Error codes  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141
Error messages  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .141
No-beep error messages  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .143
Phoenix BIOS beep codes  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .144
Symptom-to-FRU error messages. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148
LCD. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148
Indicator . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148
Power . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .148
ExpressCard (NewCard) . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149
Memory  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149
Sound . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149
Power management  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .149
Devices . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .150
Keyboard and touchpad  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151
Modem . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .151
Intermittent problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .152
Undetermined problems . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .153
Chapter 5: Jumper and connector locations  155
System board top connectors  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .156
System board bottom connectors  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .157
Clearing password check and BIOS recovery  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158
Clearing the password check . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .158
BIOS Recovery by Crisis Diskette  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .159
Chapter 6: FRU (Field-Replaceable Unit) list  161
Introduction  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .162
Travelmate 7730/7730G exploded diagram . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163
Notebook chassis  . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .163
Notebook LCD panel . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .164
Travelmate 7730/7730G FRU list . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .165
Appendix A: Model definition and configuration  173
Appendix B: Test compatible components  235
Microsoft® Windows® Vista Environment Test . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .236
Appendix C: Online support information  239
Index 241 
						

							VIIIContents 
						

							1
❑Features
❑System block diagram
❑The Acer notebook tour
❑Using the keyboard
❑Hardware specifications and configurations
System specifications
Chapter 1
TravelMate 7730/7730G 
						

							2Chapter 1: System specifications
Features
Platform
For TravelMate 7730
❑Intel® Centrino® 2 processor technology, featuring:
❑Intel® Core™2 Duo processor T9400/P9500 (6 MB L2 cache, 2.53 GHz, 1066 
MHz FSB, 35 W/25 W), T9600 (6 MB L2 cache, 2.80 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 35 W) 
or higher, or P8400/P8600 (3 MB L2 cache, 2.26/2.40 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 25 
W), supporting Intel
® 64 architecture
❑Mobile Intel® GM45 Express Chipset
❑Intel® Wireless WiFi Link 5100/5300 (dual-band quad-mode 802.11a/b/g/Draft-
N) Wi-Fi CERTIFIED® network connection, featuring 1x2 or 3x3 MIMO 
technology, supporting Acer SignalUp™ with Nplify™2, 3 wireless technology
For TravelMate 7730G
❑Intel® Centrino® 2 processor technology, featuring:
❑Intel® Core™2 Duo processor T9400/P9500 (6 MB L2 cache, 2.53 GHz, 1066 
MHz FSB, 35 W/25 W), T9600 (6 MB L2 cache, 2.80 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 35 W) 
or higher, or P8400/P8600 (3 MB L2 cache, 2.26/2.40 GHz, 1066 MHz FSB, 25 
W), supporting Intel
® 64 architecture
❑Mobile Intel® PM45 Express Chipset
❑Intel® Wireless WiFi Link 5100/5300 (dual-band quad-mode 802.11a/b/g/Draft-
N) Wi-Fi CERTIFIED® network connection, featuring MIMO technology, 
supporting Acer SignalUp™ with Nplify™2, 3 wireless technology
System Memory
❑Dual-Channel DDR2 SDRAM support
❑Up to 2 GB of DDR2 667 MHz memory, upgradeable to 4 GB using two SO-DIMM 
modules
Display and graphics
❑17 WXGA+ high-brightness (220 nit), 1440 × 900 pixel resolution, supporting 
simultaneous multi-window viewing via Acer GridVista™
❑17 WXGA+ high-brightness (220 nit) Acer CrystalBrite™ TFT LCD, 1440 × 900 pixel 
resolution, supporting simultaneous multi-window viewing via Acer GridVista™ 
(for selected models)
❑Mobile Intel® GM45 Express Chipset with integrated 3D graphics, featuring Intel® 
Graphics Media Accelerator X4500 (Intel® GMA X4500) with up to 3587 MB of 
Intel® Dynamic Video Memory Technology 4.0 (8 MB of dedicated system memory, 
up to 350 MB of shared system memory), supporting Microsoft® DirectX® 10
❑NVIDIA® GeForce® 9600M GT with up to 23037 MB of TurboCache™ (512 MB of 
dedicated GDDR3 VRAM, up to 1791 MB of shared system memory), supporting 
NVIDIA
® PureVideo™ HD technology, OpenEXR High Dynamic-Range (HDR) 
technology, Shader Model 4.0, Microsoft® DirectX® 10 (for selected models)