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SeanSun

3 Posts

62502

January 25th, 2005 12:00

AC Adapter Problem with Inspiron 5150

Hi,
 
I bought this laptop 2 yrs ago.
 
Yesterday, I pluged the ac adapter, but it didn't start to charge my battary, also the green light was not on. Then I pulled out the battary, try to use the adapter only. When I pluged it in, there is a short falsh of the light, however, when I pressed the power button, there was no reaction.
 
My friend have a Inspiron 5160, which use the same adapter. So I tried hers, it works well.
 
So, I think it shouldn't be my motherboard's problem.
 
I also tried to restore the bios by Alt F, after restart, it displayed "the AC Adapter is not determined".
 
Now, I really dont know what's going on.
 
Plz help me out!  Many thanks.

RichardLusignan

269 Posts

January 25th, 2005 18:00

It looks like your AC adapter is defective, if still under warranty, call Dell tech support and file-in for a replacement.
 
If your warranty as expired, well, I'm afraid that you will need to buy a new one, which is rather expensive...
 
You've done most of the tests that Dell tech rep will ask you, except maybe try your adapter in your friend's Inspiron and see if it works.
 
Wishing you luck (and hoping you did get the extended warranty....)
 
Rick

SeanSun

3 Posts

January 26th, 2005 08:00

Thanks a lot. I ordered one on dell's website. £27, not too bad.
 
But I really dont understand what cause the adapter defective.
 
Anyway, everything should be fine after the arrive of the new adapter

ruded63ogg_63

1 Rookie

 • 

11 Posts

January 26th, 2005 18:00

hey man, i am having the exact same problem. i have had my computer for only 4 months. like you say, for no reason at all it will start running off the battery while the ac adapter is still plugged in. what makes me mad is that i know of 3 other people in my dorm alone, who own Dell computers who just had the same problem as i am having. i am actually getting kind of sick of dell computers. i was really excited when i got mine but all my friends with other brands don't have any of these problems. first, after a couple months, the whole screen blew and it took them two weeks to get that fixed and now my battery has run completely dry. i can't get my computer to come on at all. it was doing this a couple days. sometimes if you unplugged the adapter for a moment and plugged it back in it would recognize the adapter and start running off AC again but now it won't respond at all. i'm trying not to get too mad about this, but i have a lot of important programs and documents on my computer that i don't want to lose. all my friends ended up getting new hard drives and adapters and this is just a bunch of junk. my friends with cheap brand computers don't even have these kinds of problems....

SeanSun

3 Posts

January 28th, 2005 12:00

"it was doing this a couple days. sometimes if you unplugged the adapter for a moment and plugged it back in it would recognize the adapter and start running off AC again but now it won't respond at all."

Same situation as mine. You should try your friend's adapter. If it works on your laptop,  just send your adapter to dell ask them to repair it, or ask them replace a new one for you.

 

ruded63ogg_63

1 Rookie

 • 

11 Posts

January 28th, 2005 18:00

tried my friends adapter...didn't work. tried the new one dell just sent me today...didn't work. i'm really frustrated with this....

Charmee

1 Rookie

 • 

22 Posts

January 28th, 2005 21:00

I'm having this problem on my 14 month old 5150, too. I'll be working while plugged in when I get a warning beep that my battery is nearly dead. I check the power brick, and it's green light is on, so I unplug and plug in the end that goes into the laptop, but I don't get AC power. Strangely, if I restart, it doesn't help. If I turn off my 5150, then turn it on again, it does work on AC.
 
Occasionally, on boot up, I'll get a message stating that the AC adapter is of an unknown type, but it works fine anyway, I just ignore the error and continue the boot and it works fine. It would be nifty if this was a software problem.
 
But I suppose the more likely scenario is that the brick is going bad. This problem will begin to happen more frequently, and I'll end up needing to replace the brick. Should it be going bad this soon? A part like that should last for years, shouldn't it? All my other power adapters seem to last forever!
 

ruded63ogg_63

1 Rookie

 • 

11 Posts

January 29th, 2005 01:00

trust me, its the exact same as mine.... there isn't anything wrong with your adapter... nor the other 3 people in my dorm who have had the same problem with the 5150. there is obviously a problem with this model that needs to be fixed. you think 15 months is short? i've had mine for 5 months and my screen has blown already, and now this. there is a problem with this model most definately but instead of fixing it, they would rather run you in circles and replace every part of your computer one by one. since the adapter they sent me doesn't work, i'm getting a new motherboard, memory, programmer, and a heat sinc. i didn't pay a load of money for this thing so that i wouldn't be able to rely on it. thank god i have a warranty or i would have bought this thing twice already.

antoinefoucault

7 Posts

February 12th, 2005 14:00

Hi,

I have the same problem. When I plug the AC in it won t do the job (recharging battery). I have a hafl second light on, the left and the right on, the middle one stays off. But nothing further. Battery is not charging and i am wondering what s happening.

All conclusion made. To me it is definitely coming from the motherboard connector. My adapter works fine. And the battery too. Fortunately I have my roommate having the same 5150 and could run some test. Which leaded me to the conclusion that the probems comes from the motherboard ac connector.

I am absolutely raging against dell because counting all the problems I had with my laptop, them and their Dutch call center, it is getting way over the top.

According to numerous threads I have been reading on the internet, AC adaptateur problem is common to a lot of 5150 owners and to my mind this looks like a generic problem, one more regarding the 5150. Now what? what is dell gonna do about that? Letting owners returning their machine to dell to fix and then charge them while it is a problem for a lot of users ?

Charmee

1 Rookie

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22 Posts

February 16th, 2005 08:00

Yes, i was wrong before when i said the brick needed replacing. What is bad on my machine is where it plugs into the laptop, the motherboard connector. Mine is loose. It's terrible when I'm working and it starts flashing from batt to AC over and over again. But strangely, turning it off then turning it back on again has been working, for a while, if I'm careful not to move the laptop (my immobile laptop). It's still a big problem, having to keep doing that, and the flashing screen drives me nuts. I'm afraid to let my battery go down for fear I won't be able to turn on my laptop again.

Has anyone found a repair shop that can repair or replace the connector without replacing the motherboard?

Maybe we should start a new thread called something like 'motherboard connector' or 'power connector' and see if this is a widespread problem. I've been soooo gentle with this machine, I don't even move it! I can't imagine why the connector broke.

Charmee

ruded63ogg_63

1 Rookie

 • 

11 Posts

February 16th, 2005 16:00

i'm telling you buddy, there is no problem with the way you've handled your computer. i'm sure you were as gentle with yours as i was with mine and it messed up for no reason. its definately the motherboard adapter. thats what fixed mind. i finally got a technician to bring the part and fix mine. this OBVIOUSLY a problem with a LOT of these 5150 models. dell should do something about that! i read a lot of complaints on this forum and i know of 4 people in my dorm alone that have had this problem. its crazy....

antoinefoucault

7 Posts

February 17th, 2005 14:00

I totally agree with you. Dell should maybe think of outing a recall on 5150 or computer having same symptoms.
This absolutely unacceptable from abrand like "DELL" supposed to be a standard in quality.
mine is only 18 months old. SO i really don t understand.
In the past i have had toshibas laptop for years... getting very old but with never any problem.
I think it was the first and the last time I was trusting dell for my comuters needs!
Quality is not there. A shame for such a company.
Antoine

ODYSSY

1 Message

February 28th, 2005 18:00

Wow...  i'm having the same problem too.  I thought it was my AC adaptor...  but it's not.  Then i thought it was my battery...  but it's not.  So then i called dell AFTER i bought a new AC adaptor and battery and they tell me it's the motherboard.  To top it all off, my warranty just expired, i'm really mad right now.  Is there anything we can do?  It seems to be a huge problem with the 5150.

rpoched1

4 Posts

March 2nd, 2005 19:00

Yeah... fixing the motherboard doesnt help either. Mine was under warranty so I replaced the motherboard, it worked fine for 3 months then it broke again. So I just had the mother board fixed AGAIN yesterday... and today... SAME PROBLEM, wont always recognize the AC adaptor, if you move it around and tape it in place it will work sometimes, and it's a pain to not be able to MOVE A LAPTOP. it's not the battery, it's not the adaptor, there is something wrong with the mother boards they are putting in the computer and there seems to be nothing we can do about it. My advice is throw your computer away cause it's junk, and never buy dell again. I'm going to contact dell and see if they can give me a different computer, I know they won't but hey... we'll see. Until then, keep me posted if any of you guys find a fix.

John T and Sere

1 Message

March 5th, 2005 09:00

I'm having a similar problem. My boss bought 5160 model about a month ago. He also got another one through the company a few days later. He decided to sell us this one. We had the memory updated and we are not able to turn it on at all now. We just got it back from the memory upgrade. We had problems with it not registering the AC and not charging. Now all 3 lights flash rapidly but can't turn it on. Doesn't matter if AC and/or battery is plugged in. The power cord is drawing power but I don't know if the problem is the battery or motherboard or whatever. We only had use of this computer for about 4 days.

rpoched1

4 Posts

March 5th, 2005 17:00

Try taking out the battery and just use the AC adaptor to plug your computer into the wall (this way you can easilly find a connection). Then hit the power button. It normally won't work, but move the part of the AC adaptor that goes directly into your computer (the motherboard) until the computer powers on. It should work if you press it downward, or to the side. Lately this is how I turn mine on. I then insert my battery so it can charge. This will work all day, until the next day when I have to repeat the process when I power off. Let me know if it works for you.

My guess is you need a new mother board and a new AC adaptor (both seem to be disposable), if your Boss or whoever you bought it from has the warranty have him get the stuff for free from Dell. If not, then I recommend you buy a new computer, b.c like I said before this will be the 3rd time in 6 months that I replaced the motherboard. Looks like he ripped you off! I could not afford that if It wasn't for my warranty.

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