by “power jack” do you mean the thing that is connected to the motherboard or the thing that connects to that thing?

There are really only 2 ways to screw up a computers insides permanently:

1) Cause static electricity to shock your components. Don’t do this. Make sure you are touching metal things to eliminate static and don’t stand on carpet with socks on while working on your computer.

2) Do something to the computer that you couldn’t reverse yourself.

If the “power jack” is connected to your motherboard then it is possible that it would require soldering to get a new one on.

Let me know what type of laptop you have (model too) and I can see if I can find instructions for you.

http://www.megaemarket.com/dcpojaforcop12.html

The question is - is the jack just really loose? Won’t hold the cord? Or you just can’t charge it?

$3 dollar part plus a couple hours of work could easily warrant $100.

I have a feeling that you could learn to do it yourself Drew. I mean, if the laptop is unusable without it then it might be worth trying to replace yourself and if you can’t then send it in somewhere.

Although, depending on what you use this laptop for…maybe you should just buy a new one.

Look into “netbooks”…they are small laptops for $300 or less that are perfect for browsing the web, writing documents and carrying with you. If you don’t need it to watch movies or do really heavy processor intensive tasks…they are great.

Acer Aspire One - http://gizmodo.com/5078313/dealzmodo-acer-aspire-one-priced-at-350-too

Then there is the Asus Eee pc which started the whole “netbook” market:
http://eeepc.asus.com/global/

Of course…you made this post to save money…not spend it. So I’ll shut up.

Uhhh… no.

The housing on the old one was cracked and a piece of it was halfway out of the back. The contacts were shorted, too. After 2 minutes of wiggling and soldering, it was back in action.

Bonus: I have 6 extra screws now!