Predator helios 300 only keyboard replaced!

geekromi

Hello to everybody, I just want to share my experience about a faulty keyboard  after three years of use: the annoying issue was that during games the UP arrow key, the most used to go forward so like the W  key, after a certain time  being pressed, when the laptop got heated  on heavy load, started to have a bad delay on releasing : i.e. on racing games the car after releasing the gas pedal  (UP arrow key), the car for some second was keeping going full throttle often ending in a crash , and playing this way was getting really frustrating, so I thought, well, it's time for a keyboard replacement! ; in all my previous laptops the operation eventually it would have been easy and quick, just pulling it up from outside, but on new generation laptops, the keyboard is mounted on the inner side of the palm rest being fixed to the frame by thermo - soldered plastic rivets : officially the keyboard itself can't be replaced  unless You buy the whole palm rest with the built-in keyboard, being this way much more expensive  for an average user that gets forced to take the laptop to assistance, spending  a lot of money , and  that's not fair.
Anyway I decided to replace only the keyboard keeping my palm rest, Yes, it has been not easy and quick, because I had to take everything out to reach the keyboard ( battery, motherboard, usb board, metal plate) , then, cutting  all the plastic rivets edges using a dremel  and re-solding the keyboard and the metal plate using a grass trimmer nylon wire and an electronics solder.
Actually the keyboard  its not a predator one but it's a "V-15 compatible" that , in my opinion looks flashyless without those red-rounded WASD keys.  

 This is the metal plate, you can see the black plastic rivets,  already cut 



Finally reached to the keyboard : some rivet cut, some not yet


This is the palm rest freed from everything, you an see the plastic bits that will be re used to fix keyboard and metal plate


this is  the "V-15 compatible " keyboard I bought: in my personal opinion, flashyless, not so boyish and above all, much cheaper solution!  (about 30$)


This is  how it looks  at the end: still having the red backlit as the original one, but without those "red rounded" WASD keys. 

In conclusion, I feel very happy for the result, and  I have to say that on a 1200$  gaming laptop like this,  (Helios 300 G3-572 in my case) this issue should not happen and I am sure that I'm not the only user that encountered this problem, by the way, if anyone else had the same trouble, let me know, and for any question, I will be happy to help. 

HDanyRodriguez

Hello, good work!. Do you have a tutorial to create this process? I have the same problem, I got the keyboard, but i just don't know to remove the one that is installed. Can you help me?

xapim

HDanyRodriguez said:

Hello, good work!. Do you have a tutorial to create this process? I have the same problem, I got the keyboard, but i just don't know to remove the one that is installed. Can you help me?

HDanyRodriguez as i previously said above its doable but not for everyone it takes skill and patience in order to do this procedure for the average user i would recommend to buy the proper official keyboard with the complete top chassis as its way easier to replace and takes much less time/hassle thats why acer does not replace the keyboards only but the full chassis

StevenGen

geekromi said:

Hello to everybody, I just want to share my experience about a faulty keyboard  after three years of use: the annoying issue was that during games the UP arrow key, the most used to go forward so like the W  key, after a certain time  being pressed, when the laptop got heated  on heavy load, started to have a bad delay on releasing : i.e. on racing games the car after releasing the gas pedal  (UP arrow key), the car for some second was keeping going full throttle often ending in a crash , and playing this way was getting really frustrating, so I thought, well, it's time for a keyboard replacement! ; in all my previous laptops the operation eventually it would have been easy and quick, just pulling it up from outside, but on new generation laptops, the keyboard is mounted on the inner side of the palm rest being fixed to the frame by thermo - soldered plastic rivets : officially the keyboard itself can't be replaced  unless You buy the whole palm rest with the built-in keyboard, being this way much more expensive  for an average user that gets forced to take the laptop to assistance, spending  a lot of money , and  that's not fair.
Anyway I decided to replace only the keyboard keeping my palm rest, Yes, it has been not easy and quick, because I had to take everything out to reach the keyboard ( battery, motherboard, usb board, metal plate) , then, cutting  all the plastic rivets edges using a dremel  and re-solding the keyboard and the metal plate using a grass trimmer nylon wire and an electronics solder.
Actually the keyboard  its not a predator one but it's a "V-15 compatible" that , in my opinion looks flashyless without those red-rounded WASD keys.  

This is the metal plate, you can see the black plastic rivets,  already cut 

Finally reached to the keyboard : some rivet cut, some not yet

This is the palm rest freed from everything, you an see the plastic bits that will be re used to fix keyboard and metal plate this is  the "V-15 compatible " keyboard I bought: in my personal opinion, flashyless, not so boyish and above all, much cheaper solution!  (about 30$)

This is  how it looks  at the end: still having the red backlit as the original one, but without those "red rounded" WASD keys. 

In conclusion, I feel very happy for the result, and  I have to say that on a 1200$  gaming laptop like this,  (Helios 300 G3-572 in my case) this issue should not happen and I am sure that I'm not the only user that encountered this problem, by the way, if anyone else had the same trouble, let me know, and for any question, I will be happy to help. 

geekromi you can buy a stand alone "US Layout" keyboard (don't know about other layouts?) for a Predator Helios 300 G3-572, they are readily available on eBay and Amazon, yes you have to go to the lengths that you have done to replace the OEM keyboard only but, this is also a similar process for many other laptops. The Acer OEM parts for the Predator Helios 300 G3-572 does not have a stand alone keyboard only replacement part, it has an "UPPER CASE ASSY" for different countries that includes the touchpad. Its great that you have given a guide of how to replace the keyboard only but you don't have to use the "V-15 compatible" keyboard as there are specific none OEM keyboards specifically made for the Predator Helios 300 G3-572 like this one "New for Acer Predator Helios 300 G3-571 G3-572 G3-572-72YF US Keyboard Backlit" but and for other countries and languages it could be a problem in just buying a stand alone keyboard and consumers will have to buy the Acer OEM upper case assembly specific for their country and language.

geekromi

StevenGen said:

geekromi said:

Hello to everybody, I just want to share my experience about a faulty keyboard  after three years of use: the annoying issue was that during games the UP arrow key, the most used to go forward so like the W  key, after a certain time  being pressed, when the laptop got heated  on heavy load, started to have a bad delay on releasing : i.e. on racing games the car after releasing the gas pedal  (UP arrow key), the car for some second was keeping going full throttle often ending in a crash , and playing this way was getting really frustrating, so I thought, well, it's time for a keyboard replacement! ; in all my previous laptops the operation eventually it would have been easy and quick, just pulling it up from outside, but on new generation laptops, the keyboard is mounted on the inner side of the palm rest being fixed to the frame by thermo - soldered plastic rivets : officially the keyboard itself can't be replaced  unless You buy the whole palm rest with the built-in keyboard, being this way much more expensive  for an average user that gets forced to take the laptop to assistance, spending  a lot of money , and  that's not fair.
Anyway I decided to replace only the keyboard keeping my palm rest, Yes, it has been not easy and quick, because I had to take everything out to reach the keyboard ( battery, motherboard, usb board, metal plate) , then, cutting  all the plastic rivets edges using a dremel  and re-solding the keyboard and the metal plate using a grass trimmer nylon wire and an electronics solder.
Actually the keyboard  its not a predator one but it's a "V-15 compatible" that , in my opinion looks flashyless without those red-rounded WASD keys.  

This is the metal plate, you can see the black plastic rivets,  already cut 

Finally reached to the keyboard : some rivet cut, some not yet

This is the palm rest freed from everything, you an see the plastic bits that will be re used to fix keyboard and metal plate this is  the "V-15 compatible " keyboard I bought: in my personal opinion, flashyless, not so boyish and above all, much cheaper solution!  (about 30$)

This is  how it looks  at the end: still having the red backlit as the original one, but without those "red rounded" WASD keys. 

In conclusion, I feel very happy for the result, and  I have to say that on a 1200$  gaming laptop like this,  (Helios 300 G3-572 in my case) this issue should not happen and I am sure that I'm not the only user that encountered this problem, by the way, if anyone else had the same trouble, let me know, and for any question, I will be happy to help. 

geekromi you can buy a stand alone "US Layout" keyboard (don't know about other layouts?) for a Predator Helios 300 G3-572, they are readily available on eBay and Amazon, yes you have to go to the lengths that you have done to replace the OEM keyboard only but, this is also a similar process for many other laptops. The Acer OEM parts for the Predator Helios 300 G3-572 does not have a stand alone keyboard only replacement part, it has an "UPPER CASE ASSY" for different countries that includes the touchpad. Its great that you have given a guide of how to replace the keyboard only but you don't have to use the "V-15 compatible" keyboard as there are specific none OEM keyboards specifically made for the Predator Helios 300 G3-572 like this one "New for Acer Predator Helios 300 G3-571 G3-572 G3-572-72YF US Keyboard Backlit" but and for other countries and languages it could be a problem in just buying a stand alone keyboard and consumers will have to buy the Acer OEM upper case assembly specific for their country and language.

Hi StevenGen, are you maybe writing from Australia?  G'day mate! , then!,: I bought that "VX -15  compatible one (sorry for writing V-15) just because I could'nt find any Italian Layout predator keyboard , so like the whole uppercase, it was not available in Italian, the only italian  was this one :

geekromi

HDanyRodriguez said:

Hello, good work!. Do you have a tutorial to create this process? I have the same problem, I got the keyboard, but i just don't know to remove the one that is installed. Can you help me?

Hi, Yes it would be not easy and quick, but if you want to go trough the procedure, have a look at youtube  "notebook soldered keyboard replacement"
Anyway for any specific question, I will be happy to help.