Apple Powerbook G4 Aluminum 15” Repair Manual
Copyright © 2004 Powerbookmedic.com. All rights reserved.
Any portion of this manual may not be copied, reproduced, or distributed without theexpress written consent of Powerbookmedic.com. Violators will be prosecuted.
This manual is presented as a guide in order to help you repair problems on yourpowerbook. Working on a powerbook can be dangerous if not done properly. We at
Powerbookmedic.com take no responsibility for any damage or harm done to yourself or
your powerbook as a result of reading this guide.
Suggestions for making this manual better? Email: sales@powerbookmedic.com

Tools Needed for Take Apart:
Torx T8 Screwdriver – Available from our online store
Torx T6 Screwdriver – Available from our online sore
Philips head screwdriver ( small and medium size screwdrivers)
Hex Wrench or pliers to remove hex nut (only for speaker disassembly)

Always remove the battery and power supply from the computer before beginning any
take apart or repair!

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Table of Contents
Battery Removal…………………………………………………...………....pg. 3
Airport Extreme Card…………………………………………..…………….pg. 4
Trackpad / Palmrest Removal…………………………………..……………pg.6
Keyboard Removal…………………………………………….………….....pg. 12
Hard Drive Removal…………………………………………..……………..pg 15
Modem Removal……………………………………………..………………pg. 19
PRAM Removal……………………………………………..……………….pg. 21
Optical Drive / Superdrive Removal………………………..………………..pg. 22
Display LCD TFT Screen Removal………………………..………………...pg. 24
Display LCD TFT Screen Removal Continued………………………..….....pg. 29
Display Back Casing Removal…………………….…………………..….....pg. 30
Display Inverter / LCD / Cables Removal……………………………..….....pg. 31
QuickerTek Antenna Installation………………………….…………………pg. 36
Logic Board / Mother Board Removal…………………..…………………..pg. 39
Speaker Assembly Removal……………………………..…………………..pg. 43
PCMCIA Mechanism Removal………………………..…………………….pg 45
Fan Assembly Removal……………………………….……………………..pg. 46
DC-IN Board Removal………………………………………………………pg.47
USB Port (Right Hand Side) Removal……………..………………………..pg. 49
Bottom Pan / Casing Removal……………………………………………….pg. 50

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Battery Removal
Before beginning any repair, remove the battery first! Using a flat head screwdriver or acoin such as a nickel, turn the battery lock to the unlock position as shown. Keep the coinor screwdriver in this position, and simultaneously lift out the battery.

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Airport Extreme Card
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Begin by flipping back the airport door inside the battery bay. The door opens out
towards the bay. You can open it by putting a small flathead screwdriver or yourfingernail in the small slit in the top of the door and prying outwards toward the bay.

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Next, loosen the clear plastic tab so that you can put both fingers on it as shown in the
picture below, and then pull the card less than half an inch out as shown.DO NOT TRY
TO PULL THE CARD OUT ENTIRELY YET.

Now you need to undo the airport connector from the airport extreme card. This is mosteasily accomplished by grasping the connector with pliers and pulling out gently, but canalso be accomplished with your fingers as shown in the picture below. You need to be as
careful as possible with this cable.
Once the cable is free from the card, you can pull the card out and replace as necessary.

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Trackpad / Palmrest Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Begin by opening up your unit and removing the two Torx T8 silver 1/8” screws asshown in the locations marked in red. These are in the top left and right hand corners.

Next, shut the lid of the computer, and turn it around to the back. Remove the four Philips
head 1/4” silver screws as shown. (Note: If you only need to remove the trackpad, it is
only necessary to remove the top screw on each side. The bottom screws anchors thedisplay.)

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Now, make sure the display on your unit is closed, and flip the unit over with the display
side on your work area. Remove all of the screws in the locations shown. The screws are
as follows: 2 Philips silver 1/8” screws inside battery bay, 4 Philips 5/8” screws on the
top lined in a row, and 4 Philips 1/8” screws on the ram cover.

Lift the ram door cover off, and remove the two Philips head silver 3/8” screws in thelocations shown. These screws will require a larger Philips head screwdriver than used
for the screws in previous steps.

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Remove the 3 Philips head silver 1/8” screws from both sides (port sides) of the unit asshown in the two pictures below.

Next, pull the trackpad up by first pulling on the two back corners. (You may have to do
this one corner at a time, and you might need to use your fingernails to pry the corners
up.)

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When the two back corners are freed, work around to the bottom left hand corner, and pry
it up in the same manner as the back two corners.

Now lift up on the right hand corner of the palmrest, and the whole assembly should
easily lift up.

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If you are having problems with the bottom right hand corner, then you may need tounlatch 3 latches located in the drive bay. You unlatch these by placing a flat plastic toolin the latch locations and then pulling the latch towards you. You can notice the locationsof the latches by the slits in the drive bay dust shield (the gray cloth) The locations areshown below as well.

Flip the Palmrest assembly up and back, and gently rest it on the LCD

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Undo the keyboard connector and trackpad connector by carefully pulling them out of
their logic board connectors. They are located in the middle of the logic board as shownin the picture below.

Lift the palmrest up and out of the unit, and place on a static free surface.

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Keyboard Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest
Begin by flipping the trackpad / palmrest upside down as shown in the picture below.
Then, pull the keyboard ribbon back as shown. At the base of the cable there is a weakglue adhesive. Gently pull the cable free from the adhesive. (Your replacement keyboard
will have adhesive tape.)
Next, remove the two Philips small 1/16” large head screws in the locations marked by
red in the picture below.

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Next, lift up the dust cover on the right hand side of the keyboard as shown below. The
dust cover will come completely off. Place it in a clean location aside the unit.

Now, with the dust cover removed, remove the 6 Philips head screws from the 6 locations
marked by red in the picture below.

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On the left hand side of the keyboard, lift the dust cover from the corner and pull up. This
dust cover will not come off, so you will have to hold it back.

Now, remove the 5 Philips head screws in in the locations marked in red below. Note thatfor the screw in the top left of the picture (next to the finger) you will have to move black
electrical tape slightly back off of the screw.

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The keyboard is now ready to come out. Flip the trackpad / palmrest over. There is aweak sticker adhesive on the bottom of the keyboard, so you will need to either use a flathead tool to pry up the keyboard from a corner, or you can use a screwdriver and pushthrough one of the screw holes on the opposite side of the trackpad to push the keyboard
out so you can get a hold of it. After you have a hold of the keyboard, just pull up and the
keyboard will break the adhesive and come out as shown in the picture below.
Lastly, feed the keyboard connector through the slot on the trackpad and remove the
keyboard from the trackpad / palmrest.

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Hard Drive Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Begin by unplugging the hard drive connector from the logic board ( shown in red) To dothis, use a plastic nylon tool or your fingernails to gently pry up on the connector.
Then, remove the two Philips head silver 1/4” screws on the right hand side of the drivein the locations shown by the red dots. After the screws are remove, lift the plastic divider
piece up and out.
Then, on the left hand side of the drive, notice the orange piece of tape holding down thebattery connector cable. You will need to remove this piece of tape.

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Next, remove the two silver 1/8” Philips head screws (large heads) on the left hand sideof the hard drive next to the battery bay in the locations marked by red dots

Pull the battery connector cable up and out of the way as shown in the picture. This will
reveal two silver Philips head 1/8” screws in the locations shown by red dots in the
picture. Remove these two screws.

.
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Carefully lift up on the hard drive and the plastic divider that you just remove the screws
from. Guide the hard drive cable UNDER the speaker wire cable as shown in the picture.
The drive should come out easily after the cable is guided under the speaker cable. If thedrive does not come easily, do not force it as it is probably caught on the speaker cable.
To replace the hard drive, you will need to carefully remove the orange cable from thehard drive you removed and place it on your replacement drive. You will also need toremove the T8 screws (2 on both sides) of the hard drive and put them on yourreplacement drive. Then reassemble.

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Modem Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive
Remove the two black Philips head 1/8” screws in the corners of the modem as marked
by red dots in the picture below.

Lift the modem up from the side as shown. This will expose an orange cable connected tothe modem. Unplug the connection by using a flat nylon tool or your fingernail to pry theconnector down towards the casing. It should come off easily.

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Lift the modem up as shown. Then, undo the cable going into the modem by simply
gently pulling the cable and modem away from each other as shown.

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Pram Backup Battery Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Replacing the PRAM battery is very simple. Grasp a corner of the PRAM battery as
shown in the picture, and then just gently pry up on the battery. It should come up very
easily. Then gently unplug the PRAM connector from the logic board at the location
shown in red in the picture below.

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Optical Drive / Superdrive Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
PRAM Backup Battery
Begin by removing the two pieces of orange static tape from the drive. (There is one
piece on the back left and right hand sides of the drive.)
Then, using a flat nylon tool or your fingernail, gently pry the orange connector cable(circled in red next to tape on left hand side of the picture below) from the logic board.

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Next, remove the two black 1/8” Philips head screws from the side of the drive (casingside) in the locations shown by red circles in the picture below.

Grasp the drive from the back left hand corner, and gently lift the drive up and out andplace it on a static free surface. The drive should come out very easily.

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Display LCD Screen TFT Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest AssemblySpecial Note: Be very careful when working with any component related to the logic
board or display. These are the most expensive components on the laptop, and damaging
these components will set your wallet back.
To remove the display, you will need to remove cables on both the left and right handside of the laptop. We will begin on the right hand side.
First, remove the orange piece of tape that holds the display cable to the fan. It is circled
in red in the picture below in the top right hand corner.
Then, undo the display cable from its logic board connection. You will need to do thisputting your fingernails on either side of the connector, and gently wiggle it out. It shouldcome out easily without forcing it. Be very careful with this cable!

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Next, locate the two torx T8 screws on the display hinge as shown in the picture below,
and remove both of them. The hinge in the back is 3/8”, and the hinge in the front is 1/2”.

On the left hand side, begin by removing the two pieces of orange static tape in thelocations shown in the picture below.

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Now, follow the black cables around the corner of the battery bay and notice that in thecrevice there is a green circuit board covered in clear plastic. This board is the Bluetoothconnector board, and it will easily pry out by placing a screwdriver underneath the board
and lifting up as shown in the picture.

Next, find the thin wire going into the board with the gold connector on the end. This is
the Bluetooth cable. Pull up on the connector away from the green board, and it will
easily come off.

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Next, disconnect the inverter cable from the logic board ( circled in red at the top in the
picture below) by placing your fingernails at each end of the connector and gently
wiggling it out of the connector.
Then, using a flat head nylon tool or your fingernail, gently pry up the orange L shaped
cable to undo the connector from the logic board.

Next, pull back the orange cable as shown in the picture below to reveal the airport cableconnection. You’ll notice a fat spot in the cable. This is where the two airport cables
connect. Pull on either side of the fatter spot in the cable to undo the cable.

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Locate the two torx T8 screws on the display hinge as shown in the picture below, andremove both of them. The hinge in the back is 3/8”, and the hinge in the front is 1/2”.

Lift the display up and out and set on a smooth surface that will not scratch the casing
such as a cloth.

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Display LCD Screen TFT Removal Continued…
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest
Display

Remove the two torx T6 screws
from the front of the unit in thelocations shown (bottom left andright corners)

Use a flat tool to pry up on the front
bezel to separate the back casing.
NOTE – Pry above the grey plastic
lining. The grey plastic lining is partof the back casing!
Also note that this picture is fromthe 12” model (hence the different
cables in the picture)

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Display Back Casing Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest
Display

Once you separate the back casefrom the front bezel, lift thedisplay off of the back bezel asshown, and flip it over. The grey
cable and black cable will still beholding the two pieces together.

Follow the black and grey cables
along the sides of the display,lifting them up and removing any
tape holding them in place.
Disconnect all cables from theback case so that it is by itself andnot connected to the rest of thedisplay. The cables will be help inplace by one small Philips headscrew on both sides. Remove these
two screws.

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Display Inverter / LCD / Cables Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest
Display

Remove the piece of orange
static tape holding the display
cable in place.

Undo the display cable from its
connector by gently pulling it
towards you. It should come out
very easily.

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Remove the two black Philips
head screws from both sides ofthe display in the locations
shown.

Then remove the four blackscrews at the top of thedisplay.

Remove the three pieces oftape from the bottom corner ofthe display with the display
cable. There is on piece ofaluminum tape on the display
cable, and two orange piecesof tape.

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In the groove in the bottom ofdisplay is a long green board (theinverter board) Lift the inverter
board out of the groove as shown.

Disconnect the inverter cable fromthe inverter board as shown. Pull
the cable towards you while
holding the board to disconnect
the cable.

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There are 5 Philips head screws
that hold the metal “frieze” on theunit. Remove these screws.

Remove the three torx T8 screws
from the hinge area on both sidesof the frieze.

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Lift the frieze on hinges awayfrom the LCD module. The hinges
should slip out of the frieze fromthe sides.

Now you must remove the display
front bezel from the LCD. The
bezel is held on by a semi-strong
adhesive. You have to pull up on
the bezel with slight force toremove it from the LCD.

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QuickerTek Antenna Assembly
To increase the reception of your airport wireless Internet, you can install a QuickerTek
antenna. These are available from our online store.
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest
First you will need to locate the “L” shaped orange cable on the left hand side of thepowerbook and undo the orange ribbon cable connection from the logic board by using
either your fingernail or a flat nylon tool. The connector you need to unplug is circled in
red in the picture below.

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Next, pull back the orange cable as shown in the picture below to reveal the airport cableconnection. You’ll notice a fat spot in the cable. This is where the two airport cables
connect. Pull on either side of the fatter spot in the cable to undo the two cables.

Now, from your QuickerTek package, remove the shorter of the two cables. (The one
with a connector on each end, and feed the cable through the PCMCIA slot on the far left
hand side as shown in the picture. It may help to hold the PCMCIA door flat with ascrewdriver. If you need to remove the cable, then holding the door down helps
incredibly. Make sure you feed the proper connector end through the PCMCIA door!
You are connecting the cable to the airport cable from the right hand side of the two you
disconnected in the previous step.

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Reattach the orange cable to the logic board, and you should be looking at a similar
picture to the one below.

Connect the other cable in the QuickerTek Package to the one you just installed. (Theconnection is circled in red in the picture below.) Then adhere the antenna to the top
corner of your display as shown in the picture below. Close up your unit, and you’reready to boost your reception!

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Logic Board / Mother Board Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive (Connector Cable)
Optical Drive (Connector Cable)
PRAM Battery (Connector Cable)
Display
Special Note: Be very careful when working with any component related to the logic
board or display. These are the most expensive components on the laptop, and damaging
these components will set your wallet back.
To begin, start on the left hand side of the logic board. Remove the two remaining orange
connector cables by using a flat head nylon tool or your fingernail and gently prying up.
Next, undo the remaining cable connections to the logic board. Specifically the red green
yellow black wire, and the double red wire on the corner of the battery bay (not shown inpicture.)Lastly. Unplug the fan connector from the logic board. The location of all of these cables
is shown in red in the picture below.

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Now, on the right hand slide, remove the two smaller orange connector cables by using aflat head nylon tool or your fingernail and gently prying up. Next undo the right handside fan connector from the logic board. These locations are shown in red in the picture
below.

Now for the screw removal. Remove the 3 Philips 1/4” large head screws in the top left
hand corner, one 1/8” silver Philips head screw in the bottom left corner, one 1/8” silver
screw in the middle bottom and one in the middle top, one next to the right hand side fan,
one in bottom right hand corner, one 3/8”silver screw in the top right corner, and one
1/4” silver Philips screw on the right hand side of the logic board next to the speaker.
There should be 10 screws in total.

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Next, remove the 1/8” black screw on the green board with the speaker. The location isshown in the picture. Lift this part up off logic board. This will reveal a screw
underneath the board that is holding the speaker and logic board to casing. Remove thisscrew.

Now, on the left hand side of the logic board, unplug the double black and double redwire from the DC in board. It isn’t necessary to undo this cable from the logic board.

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Lift the logic board up and out of the shell of the unit as shown, and place it on a static
free surface. The board should come out very easily, and if you meet any resistance, thenit is likely you forgot to unplug a connector along the way.

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Speaker Assembly Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive
Optical Drive
PRAM Battery
Display
Logic Board
Begin by removing the Torx T8 screw on top of the modem jack board. Secondly, on thegreen board next to the modem jack board, remove the two black Philips 1/8” screws.
Next, using a hex wrench or pliers, remove the hex nut near the speaker. Lastly, remove
the black Philips head screw on the black plastic next to the battery bay. (This screw is
cut off in the picture.)

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Lift the speaker assembly up, and undo the connector to the DC board as shown in the
picture below.

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PCMCIA Mechanism Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive
Optical Drive
PRAM Battery
Display
Logic Board
Speaker Assembly
To remove the PCMCIA mechanism, you will need to first remove the orange connector
cable. You can hold the cable back and locate the two Philips head screws securing it inplace. Remove the four Philips head screws securing the PCMCIA mechanism. The
locations of the screws are shown in the picture below. (Note that in the picture theorange L cable has not yet been removed.) Then lift the PCMCIA mechanism up and outof the bottom casing.

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Fan Assembly / Heat Sync Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive
Optical Drive
PRAM Battery
Display
Logic Board
Speaker Assembly
PCMCIA Mechanism
Remove the 3 screws on perimeter of left fan ( The long screw is in the top left) Remove
one on the corner of the heat sync, and then 3 in a diagonal line along the perimeter on
the right hand fan assembly.
The assembly will now lift out easily.

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DC-IN Board Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive
Optical Drive
PRAM Battery
Display
Logic Board
Speaker Assembly
PCMCIA Mechanism
Fan Assembly
Remove the hex screw circled in red in the picture below with either the appropriate hex
tool or by getting your T6 screwdriver, placing it inside the screw, pressing down andturning like a screwdriver. Pliers are another alternative.

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Now, lift the DC board up, and rotate it so you can view and remove the connector cableattached to it as shown in the picture.

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USB Port (Right Hand Side) Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive
Optical Drive
PRAM Battery
Display
Logic Board
To remove the right hand side USB port, begin by removing the piece of orange static
tape in the location circled in red in the picture below. Next, remove the two Philips headscrews from the USB board at the locations shown below in red. Lastly, lift the board up
and out and place on a static free surface.

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Bottom Pan / Casing Removal
Before proceeding, you must first remove:
Battery
Airport Extreme Card
Trackpad / Palmrest Assembly
Hard Drive
Optical Drive
PRAM Battery
Display
Logic Board
Speaker Assembly
PCMCIA Mechanism
Fan Assembly
DC-IN Board
USB Port (Right Hand Side)To replace the bottom pan, you will need to remove every component from thepowerbook as shown in the steps above, and then reassemble all of the components in the
new bottom pan.

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At Powerbookmedic.com, we strive to make our manuals as accurate as possible. If you
would like to see something in this manual or would like to see something improved inthis manual, please email us at: sales@powerbookmedic.com
For all of your Powerbook & iBook parts and repair needs, visit us at:

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