Laptop touchpad gone squirrelly

[DaveC426913]

I've been using my ASUS X751 for several years and the touchpad it has recently become squirrelly.

It's as if the spot where I want the pointer to be (which can be anywhere on the screen) has a virtual magnet, and the pointer itself has a magnet of the same polarity. The pointer is happy to go anywhere except the very spot where I want it to go, no matter how carefully I tweak it. It'll go slow, slow, slow, until I am within a dozen pixels, then FAST to the other side, then slow slow.

I know this typically occurs if there is dust or detritus on the touchpad, and the sensor gets confused, but I wipe it down every time to be sure there's nothing interfering.

I am pretty certain that this is not a driver issue (and I've checked that I've got the latest); it is surely a hardware wear & tear issue.

It does not occur with mouses or graphics tablet.

Is there anything I can do to obviate this? I'm not sure the touchpad will come off from the outside (like keys can) and I doubt I could get at it from the back, since it'll be buried under other components.

 

[efdee]

Many disturbancies disappear completely by turning off the machine completely.
Wait ten seconds and restart. Maybe it helps.

 

[stoomart]

It's as if the spot where I want the pointer to be (which can be anywhere on the screen) has a virtual magnet, and the pointer itself has a magnet of the same polarity. The pointer is happy to go anywhere except the very spot where I want it to go, no matter how carefully I tweak it. It'll go slow, slow, slow, until I am within a dozen pixels, then FAST to the other side, then slow slow.

The first troubleshooting step is to plug in a USB mouse to confirm the problem is the touchpad. If the problem occurs with another mouse, unfortunately you have malware, as this is a "feature" of some.
If the issue is indeed the touchpad, I definitely recommend having a certified ASUS tech peform the repair.

 

[DaveC426913]

Many disturbancies disappear completely by turning off the machine completely.
Wait ten seconds and restart. Maybe it helps.

Well, it may have been the reboot, or it may have been the thorough alcohol wipe down I gave the touchdown to while waiting for it to boot up again, but it seems to be behaving for now. It does seem to come and go, so we'll see how long it stays in remission.

 

[DaveC426913]

Well, it hasn't gone away, though it's behaving itself at least a little better.