timppu: On my main PC (ASUS G75VW laptop), the right-side fan has started making some irritating extra noises when it spins up, resonating somewhat. Sigh, I guess I need to replace it, before it breaks down... I already opened it enough to clean the fans from dust with compressed air, but that didn't affect the sound. I am unsure though if the fan is really breaking up or just become a bit loose (hence resonating), but whatever, I guess I will replace it.
I've already checked online, genuine CPU and GPU fans for ASUS G75VW costs around 25€ a piece, I'd probably change both fans at the same time, so that's around 50€ + postage.
While G75VW isn't the hardest laptop to open up, it still seems you have to take out like 20 or so screws. I'm just afraid I will forget which screw goes where, even if most of them are marked. Anyway, I guess after I've done it once, it feels easy. Too bad though the fans can't be replaced from the bottom even if they are visible there, but you need to remove the keyboard panel first.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z9KHrJKInmA Or then I'll just bring it to some repair shop and they'll replace them, but I don't feel like paying extra for something I should be able to do myself. Heck, I change my winter tyres myself as well!
Does it need to have Genuine fans? That seems like a lot of money for a simple piece like that. Had a similar thing on our satellite receiver - it was unique, in that the plastic frame was shaped oddly. They wanted $30 for it. So I bought a regular fan, used a Dremel tool to cut two corners at an angle so it would fit in the bracket, and saved $25.
To track the different screws, an egg carton will do the trick nicely. If you've never had a laptop apart before, it's not that difficult. There will most likely be a couple snap-in pieces so be careful not to break the tabs on those. Other than that, not bad at all. Kinda cool digging around in there, to see how they shoved a desktop inside that small package.
Good luck with it.