13 R3, AGA, power outage, no power

Question

My 13 R3 was plugged in sleeping, connected to my AGA (Alienware Graphics Accelerator). While I was out of town, the power went out and came back on a couple of times. My spouse reported a pretty loud noise and flash from the transformer near us. When I came home the 13 R3 was powered off. I had it plugged into the 300W power supply and the blue light on the connector was flashing. It wouldn't power on. I unplugged everything, plugged it back in, no joy. I tried my 180W power supply. When I plugged the PS into the 13 R3, the green light went out. The 13 R3 would not power on. I opened it up, disconnected the battery, held the power switch for 30 seconds, reconnected the battery, and the 13 R3 would not power on. I reconnected it to the 300W PS. The light was solid blue before I connected it and flashing blue after. I disconnected the battery, held the power switch for 30 seconds, then plugged the PS in. Same. I assume it is time for a trip to Dell for repair, but thought I would solicit other ideas to try if warranted. Thanks.

Ling_alienware · Accepted Answer

Thanks. That is what I figured, but I always like to be surprised I am DIY-capable and have built a few and repaired many. I am not interested in attempting to replace soldered/floated components, but am very familiar with other board and component replacement. It looks like they are going for so cheap that it will be unlikely that I can find parts cheaper than another system, but my is the top of the line, so I at least want the i7 so I can use my RAM, NVMEs, etc.

crimsom · Answer

Hi @Ling_alienware thank you for a good description of the external power problem, the Alienware 13 R3 status and your fix to reinstate laptop function. Guess that the Alienware Graphics Accelerator has no problems, that you know of.

Connecting ac adapter's power cord to laptop and seeing diagnostic LED switch off or flashing blue says that the 13 R3 charging circuit handshake fails and its probably the 13 R3 circuit that stops further damage. Evidently there is no 13 R3 POST (Power On Self Test) Diagnostics and no signs of laptop trying to power on. Removing laptop residual flea power to reset BIOS does not get laptop working.

Using a bright light, visually examine rear Power-adapter port (6) for any signs of damage and check that ac adapter's power cord plug has good connection (do not force).

Please disconnect all external connections to 13 R3, remove base cover and disconnect battery. Laptop without battery functions as Desktop on ac adapter power. Connect ac adapter to see if power cord diagnostic LED remains on, if Yes press power-on button.

Please share update. Thank you.

Alienware 13 R3 with base cover removed

Alienware 13 R3 rear ports

Ling_alienware · Answer

Thanks very much for the reply. You are correct that without a working AW13R3, I have no way to test the graphics accelerator. Hopefully it is good. Correct that there is no POST. I am not sure whether I have cleared the BIOS or not. Is there a button battery somewhere (under the wifi like my AW17)?

I looked at the connection, I don't see any damage, discoloration, etc.

After my post the other day, my AW13R3 was left plugged in and the blue light on the adapter connector is no longer flashing? Likewise, the green light no longer goes on out my 180W PS when I plug it in. Very weird. I did go through attempting to power it one with the battery connected and disconnected with each of the two power supplies. No response of any kind.

crimsom · Answer

Hi @Ling_alienware the Alienware 13 R3 has coin-cell battery, see Clearing CMOS settings, steps 7 remove, 8 wait and 9 replace coin-cell battery.

The dc-in socket is soldered onto the motherboard (main board) and it is possible that its replacement might get motherboard working, but seemingly motherboard has has an electrical surge/spike and is dead. Dell assigned contractors replace motherboard if your Alienware 13 R3 has warranty that includes accidental damage. Dell Alienware 13 R3 Motherboards | Dell Alienware 13 R3 Laptop Parts (parts-people.com) Your household insurance should accept claim for all the household equipment that was damaged and should now be replaced.

Are you DIY adept and prepared to dig deeper in the hope that Alienware 13 R3 can be repaired? Is there a local repair shop that can be trusted to tell you extent of damage? The quick and easy option is to buy a replacement laptop and hopefully see that AGA is working. Does any of your colleagues have Dell laptop with AGA port, so you can check that AGA works.

Is the Alienware 13 R3 + AGA used every day, working-from-home, etc., and a different system is now required. Do not leave this on standby, and disconnect from mains when not being used.

Ling_alienware · Answer

I'm guessing that the rest of my components are still good, maybe the RAM got zapped, but I would not expect the NVMEs to be damaged. I assume that the first pico-fuse in the circuit popped and the rest is history.

Ling_alienware · Answer

'Buy a new computer' is really not a 'solution'. If it were, technical support would be pretty simple and 99% of the population would be A+ certified. 'Contact Alienware support to return your machine for repair', might be a solution. Today, I tried disconnecting the CMOS battery following the Dell/AW instructions. No joy. Then I noticed warped/melted plastic near the heat pipes, scorched stickers on the heat pipes, and a scorch mark on the corner of one memory SoDIMMs. Obviously unrecoverable trauma. I don't know whether the discoloration would be visible in a photo, but they are visible in person. I had seen a stain on the tote that the AW13R3 was sitting on, but didn't connect the two. As used models are going for about the same price as my insurance deductible I will go that route. Disconnecting your computer from the wall when you leave home for a few days is probably not something I will do. I did notice that what I thought was a surge protector was actually a power strip, so I am going to invest in a good quality surge protector. It is a little disappointing that Dell/AW wouldn't put over-voltage protection in the power supply so that it would fail before frying the computer.

Alienware

13 R3, AGA, power outage, no power

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