LAPTOP AND COMPUTER REPAIR ADELAIDE

MacBooks, Windows laptops, gaming machines and desktops

Cracked screen? Battery that dies before lunch? Charger that only works if you hold it at just the right angle?

Ctrl Alt Solutions repairs laptops and desktops for customers right across Adelaide. Drop yours in to the workshop at 161A Grand Junction Road, Ottoway, or we'll collect from anywhere in metro Adelaide for a flat $20.

We work at board level, so charge ports, power faults and liquid damage get repaired rather than turned into a quote for a new motherboard. On a laptop that's usually most of what the machine is worth.

The person who diagnoses your machine is the person who repairs it, and it stays in our workshop until it's done. Not sure what's wrong? The diagnostic is $70 and it comes off the repair in full if you go ahead.

Person holding a RAM module above a computer motherboard.

WHAT WE FIX

Screen replacement

Cracked, black, flickering or covered in lines?
We fit the new panel and test it before it goes back to you, and we confirm the exact panel price with you before anything is ordered, because a screen for a budget laptop and a screen for an ultrabook aren't remotely the same money.

Board-level repair

Been told it needs a new motherboard?
On a laptop that's usually most of what the machine is worth. We work at component level, under a microscope, so blown fuses, failed capacitors, dead power circuits and liquid damage are repairable rather than terminal. If someone else has already had a go at it, bring it in anyway.

Battery replacement

Battery won't hold a charge for an hour?
A new one usually gets you most of the day back. Which battery matters more than most people expect, and we'll explain the differences before we fit one rather than after.

Charge port repair

Have to hold the cable at just the right angle, or wiggle it until the light comes on?
Sometimes it's a cable, sometimes it's a whole port soldered to the board.
We'll tell you which one you've got before you commit to anything.

Liquid damage and insurance

Coffee, wine, a knocked-over glass?
We assess it, tell you honestly whether it's worth saving, and get your files off it either way. If it's a write-off we write the report your insurer needs, and most insurers reimburse the cost of it.

Overheating and thermal service

Fans howling, hot to the touch, frame rate dropping after ten minutes? A strip, clean and fresh thermal paste usually fixes it, and it's the cheapest job on this page because an open machine tells us everything else we need to know.

What it costs

Every job below has a price. Where the part cost varies a lot we quote the labour and charge the part at what it costs us landed, freight included, and we confirm the exact figure with you before anything is ordered. The third column is what a job costs when your machine is already open for something else. Bigger jobs don't have one, because the work is the same either way.

Service Price While it's already open
Thermal clean and repaste $120 $50
Thermal pads, gaming laptops Add-on to a clean only $40
Virus and malware removal $120 $50
Performance and slowdown fix $120 $50
Windows repair from $150 $50
Windows reinstall with data migration $120 $80
Linux or SteamOS install $150
Data backup $150 + media $70 + media
Data recovery, working drive $150 + media $70 + media
New computer setup and data migration $150
Laptop screen replacement $150 + panel
MacBook screen replacement $200 + display assembly
Battery replacement $100 + battery $30, or $50 if glued
Keyboard replacement $150 + part $50 + part
Laptop fan replacement $120 + fan $30 + fan
Desktop power supply $120 + PSU
Desktop power supply, with a graphics card and/or more than one SATA drive $180 + PSU
SSD upgrade with data transfer $150 + drive $50 + drive
iMac SSD upgrade, models up to 2019 $250 + drive
RAM upgrade, where the memory is swappable $70 + memory $30 + memory
Written insurance assessment and report $120

On a Windows repair, if it turns out the problem is hardware rather than Windows, we stop and tell you before spending anything more.

Quoted after we've looked at it

These depend on what's actually wrong, so we tell you the figure before we start rather than after.

Service Price
Diagnostic $70, credited in full against the repair
Liquid damage assessment $70, credited in full
Charge port, cable replacement $120
Charge port, daughterboard swap $180
Charge port, port soldered to the board $250
Hinge repair $180 + housing if needed
Board-level repair $70 to assess, from $300 if it's fixable

Getting it to us, and everything else

Item Price
Collection and return, metro Adelaide $20
Onsite visit, we work at your place $40
Anything not listed above $120/hr on the bench
Replacement charger cost + $20

All prices include GST. 90 days on our workmanship, plus the manufacturer's warranty on any part we fit.

Board-level repair

Most shops have two answers to a laptop that won't power on: replace the motherboard, or don't bother. On a laptop a new board is usually most of what the machine is worth, so both answers come out the same way.

We work at component level instead, under a microscope with hot air and proper soldering gear. Blown fuses, failed capacitors, dead power circuits, charge ports soldered to the board and liquid damage are repairable rather than terminal. If another shop has already been inside it, bring it in anyway.

Laptops are harder than consoles and we'll be straight about it. Console boards are a handful of models with every failure point documented. Laptop boards are one of thousands with no schematics, so diagnosis takes longer and not every fault is traceable. A failed CPU or GPU is a write-off and we'll tell you that rather than charge you to find out slowly.

Assessment is $70. If it's repairable we'll tell you the price before we start, with a $300 minimum for a successful board repair. If it can't be fixed, or we try and don't get there, that's all you pay.

Why Adelaide Locals Trust Us With Their Repairs

Straight Answer before you commit

Tell us what it's doing and we'll give you an honest read over the phone. If it sounds like a costly fix on a machine that isn't worth it, we'll say so, even if it means we don't get the job.

$70 to find out, and it comes off the repair

If you don't know what's wrong, the diagnostic is $70 and it's credited in full if you go ahead. If it can't be fixed, you've paid $70 for a straight answer instead of a guess.

No Surprises on Price

You'll know what you're up for before we start.
If we find something outside the job you brought it in for, we stop and ring you before touching it.

Liquid damage and insurance claims

Coffee, wine, a knocked-over glass, a laptop that went in the pool?

Don't leave it in a cupboard. Corrosion keeps eating the board long after the machine feels dry, so a spill we see this week is a very different job to the same spill next month.

Ring us first, it costs nothing. Some of these we can call from the description alone. If it's been sitting for a month, or it went in the sea, we'll tell you on the phone and save you the trip.

Assessment is $70, credited in full if there's a repair to do. We open it up, clean the corrosion off and see what survived. Sometimes it's repairable and we'll tell you what that costs. Often the honest answer on a laptop is that a board repair costs more than the machine is worth, and then the job becomes getting your files off it and writing the report your insurer needs.

If it's a write-off:

Your files come off it either way. Where the drive can be removed, recovery is $70 on top of the assessment because the machine is already open. Storage is soldered to the board on a lot of newer laptops and most MacBooks, which means the drive can't be pulled at all. We check during the assessment and tell you straight away, and there's no recovery fee if we can't do it.

Insurance report, $120. Most insurers want written confirmation from a technician that a machine can't be feasibly repaired before they'll settle. Ours sets out what was tested, what failed, and what a repair would cost against what the machine is worth. The $70 assessment comes off it, so $120 all up.

Most insurers reimburse the report. Worth checking with yours.

If it's a write-off you can take the machine home, or leave it with us and we'll recycle what's dead.
Either way your data comes off it first.

Linux installs

Windows 11 says your machine isn't supported?

Plenty of perfectly good computers can't take Windows 11, and the usual advice is to buy a new one. Most of the time the hardware has years left in it.

Sick of Windows anyway? Ads in the Start menu, apps reinstalling themselves, an account you have to sign into to use your own computer. Some of that we can just turn off, and if that's all you want, it's a $120 tidy-up.

Ubuntu or Linux Mint, $150

Linux Mint is a Linux “distro” that looks and behaves close enough to Windows that most people are running by the end of the day. We install it, move your files, set up browser, email and printing, and check the things you actually use before you take it home.

SteamOS or Bazzite, $150

SteamOS runs on desktops with AMD graphics, Bazzite covers NVIDIA, and most of the Steam catalogue plays through Proton without a hitch.
On AMD it's usually quicker than Windows, and the more modest the machine the bigger the gap. Independent testing through 2026 has put Linux anywhere from a few frames up to around 20% ahead on identical hardware. On NVIDIA, Windows still edges it by a few percent.

Keeping Windows as well?

Dual boot, no extra charge.
Where there's room on the drive we leave Windows exactly as it is and install Linux next to it. You pick at startup, and if Linux doesn't suit you, you just stop booting into it. On a 256GB or 500GB drive, dual boot usually isn't possible. Two operating systems plus your files need more room than those drives have, so it's one or the other. If you want both, a larger SSD is $50 plus the drive while we're already in there.

Going all in?
If the machine is going to Linux only, or you're going with SteamOS, we take a full copy of your Windows setup first. $50, and any time in the first four weeks we'll put you back exactly as you were.

What won't work

Desktop Office and Adobe, and a short list of competitive games that block Linux at the anti-cheat level. Windows-only accounting or industry software is usually a deal breaker. We'll go through what you use before we touch anything.

Ready to get your PC sorted?

Call or text us on 0492 982 293 send us a message anytime and we’ll get back to you on the next business day.

Mon to Fri, 10am to 6pm. Workshop open at 161A Grand Junction Road, Ottoway. Drop in without an appointment.
Saturday. Workshop closed, phone on 10am to 2pm. Collections and onsite visits by arrangement.

Can't get here? We'll collect your machine and return it anywhere in metro Adelaide for $20, or come out and work on it at your place for $40. Both run on set days each week and book out, so a few days' notice helps.

What people say

  • "Josh was so brilliant. Thought both devices were lost causes. He was so communicative and fixed both, after 2 previous attempts elsewhere."

    Tella W
    MacBook and iMac, both written off elsewhere

  • "Josh provided excellent service and was persistent in securing a screen replacement for my laptop. Would highly recommend Ctrl Alt Solutions for your repair needs."

    Jock C.

  • "Quick, professional and so easy to talk to. All around good guy and fixes all your problems, even underlying ones he finds."

    Jakob S.

  • "They came and got it, diagnosed it, kept me updated the whole time, then had it fixed and dropped back within a couple of business days. And all that for a very reasonable price."

    Adam H.

  • "Friendly, polite, prompt and professional. They were able to pick up from my home and drop off to me at work. 10 out of 10 would recommend."

    Zane B.

Frequently Asked Questions

What we work on

We work on most major brands sold in Australia. If yours isn't listed, ring us anyway, chances are we've had one on the bench.

HP

Pavilion, Envy, Spectre, EliteBook and ProBook. Hinges are the job we see most, and by the time one comes in the housing usually needs replacing too. Also screens, batteries, fans and overheating.

Lenovo

ThinkPad, IdeaPad, Yoga and Legion. Keyboards, screens, hinges, charge ports and thermal service on Legion gaming machines.

ASUS

ZenBook, VivoBook, TUF and ROG. Thermal service and repaste, screens, charge ports and SSD upgrades. ROG and TUF machines run hot and a clean makes a real difference.

Dell

Inspiron, XPS, Latitude and Vostro. Screens, batteries, hinges, charge ports and SSD upgrades. Proprietary power supplies on desktop Optiplex and XPS towers, which we'll tell you about before you buy a part that won't fit.

APPLE

MacBook, MacBook Air and MacBook Pro, Macbook neo. Screens, batteries, keyboards, trackpads, charge ports and board-level work on liquid damage and no-power machines.
iMac drive upgrades and data work on all models up to 2019.

Acer, MSI, Microsoft and everything else.

Acer Aspire, Swift, Predator, Nitro. MSI Katana, Sword, Cyborg, Thin, Bravo and the Stealth and Raider machines, which run hot and respond well to a clean and repaste.
Surface devices are heavily glued and not everything is repairable, and we'll tell you which before you commit.

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