I have an old Dell Inspiron 640m and recently the screen only flops over back and forth and won't stay up on its own. I watched a video about tightening the hinge screws to the laptop, but that didn't do anything. It was also suggested the problem can be the hinges themselves and I may need new ones. Any idea if this is true, or any advice? I'd love to avoid having to buy a whole new laptop if possible (despite the age on this one), but if it wouldn't help I don't want to spend $20+ on new hinges.

Thanks in advance. If someone is able to help me specifically here to save a bit of money, I'll try to reward that person via a game (though I don't have much money right now obviously, so it'd probably have to be a sale game :P)

Sorry cannot help with fixing but it seems to be from 2006. Really old for a laptop. Are there no shops that sell used computers around you? Maybe get something from say 2009 for $100?

Having disassembled laptops before myself, yes replacing the hinges would probably do the job.... if they match the size and offer enough resistance to keep the screen open.

If you take the current ones off, you might be able to bend/tighten them slightly to also give a similar effect.

Otherwise if you are at a stationary location (desk, other) putting a box to have it lean against might also be a workable solution.

Hey if I can spend only $20-30 on hinges and keep this puppy running, it'll be worth it. Thanks for the info. I'm trying to understand (visually) how these hinges offer resistance, since I'm used to the idea of hinges just swinging freely like on a door.

I wonder since laptop screens are standardized, I wonder whether the hinges are as well. Maybe Dell Laptops mostly use the same hinges.