A customer told me my HDMI port soldering was "too sloppy"

I've been repairing gaming consoles for about 3 years now, mostly Xbox and Playstation stuff out of my garage in Austin. Last month a guy brought in a PS5 that wouldn't charge controllers, turned out the USB port was totally busted. I did my usual thing with a hot air station and some flux, got the old port off and a new one on in about 20 minutes. Then he looked at it under a magnifying glass and said my joints looked like a third grader did them. I was pretty annoyed at first but when I looked closer he was right, there was flux residue all around and some solder balls next to the port. So I cleaned it all up with isopropyl alcohol and a brush, reflowed a few pins, and it looked way cleaner. He paid me $65 instead of the usual $45 because he said he could tell I actually cared. Has anyone else had a customer call them out like that and change how you work?

3 comments

3 Comments

benclark1mo ago

Man that's wild. I think your story actually proves Ivan's point more than he probably wants to admit. Yeah a clean joint is nice and all, but the real win here is that the guy paid you twenty bucks extra because he saw you fix your own work. Most customers would just leave a bad review or never come back if they spot something they don't like. That's the thing about this kind of work - people aren't just paying for the repair, they're paying for the confidence that you know what you're doing and you care enough to do it right the first time. The flux residue and solder balls might not kill the connection today, but they show a lack of attention that makes people wonder what else you might have half-assed. So yeah, clean up your boards, not because the joint needs it, but because the customer needs to see it.

ivan_mason2mo ago

Honestly, I'm with @hugomurray on this one but I gotta say I think folks get way too hung up on how a joint looks. 65 bucks for a USB port swap on a PS5 is already a solid deal, most shops would charge you double that and not even let you see the board. I've seen brand new factory boards with flux all over them, it's not like Sony is out there with a magnifying glass on every single unit. If the connection works and it's not going to short out, who cares if there's a little leftover goop? I get that the guy was being polite about it but that's the kind of nitpicking that drives repair prices up for everyone. A clean joint is nice but a working joint is what actually matters, plain and simple.

hugomurray2mo ago

Your joints looked like a third grader did them" - man, that's BRUTAL. I can't believe he actually said that to your face, especially after you fixed the thing. But honestly, props to you for taking it on the chin and actually fixing it up instead of getting defensive. Most people would have just gotten mad and told him to kick rocks, you know? That's a pretty cool story though, showing that sometimes the harsh feedback is actually worth listening to (even if it stings at first). I bet you've been checking your own work closer ever since that day.