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January 13th, 2022 11:00
18 R1, Touchpad randomly stops functioning until reboot?
Hey all!
So I have a 2013 Alienware 18 R1 laptop with the Alienware A14 BIOS. Using Windows 10 64-bit. The exact model of the laptop is: P19E / P19E001.
I notice that randomly but not-too-often, my touchpad will just completely stop responding. When I touch my touchpad the touchpad base will normally illuminate. However when it gets stuck, it no longer illuminates. I hop on my device manager (painstakingly via keyboard only) and I see that the input device is still listed as "functioning normally".
What do you think the problem could be? Is this a common problem with this model or is it a specific issue to my laptop?
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mattyb3
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January 13th, 2022 13:00
It could be an issue with Windows or Command Center or even a hardware problem. There is usually a setting that can be turned on or off that will disable the trackpad when a mouse is detected. Command Center used to have AlienTouch where you could set this but I can't remember if it's still in Version 3.6 for the AW18 since it can be done through Windows Settings.
You could also try reinstalling the Synaptics driver
https://www.dell.com/support/home/en-au/drivers/driversdetails?driverid=h3h95&oscode=wt64a&productcode=alienware-18
Maybe the system is incorrectly detecting a mouse for some reason.
If it isn't a software glitch then it's hardware so maybe the problem lies on the system board. I'd have a mouse ready for when it happens.