plugged in, not charging

Hello All, i had a similar problem in Nov-dec 2008 after 9months of owning a M1530, as i wasnt in the country where i bought the laptop i sent an email instead of calling Dell (30mins waiting on a international call would have been a killer), i got a response 3 days later, i replied & got another response 2 days later with the solution to my problem - a new ac adapter & a new battery. I had it posted to the address i got when i bought the laptop & subsequently had them sent to me in the country i am.

point sending email may not get immediate responds but its works 

I'm not going to blame Dell on this one until I try out a few things. 1) Dell is sending me a new battery (I bought it, as my computer's out of warranty). 2) My various power supplies have no impact upon this (I own two). I can run on AC power, not battery. 3). I bought an extended warranty from BEST BUY, so I may run up there. If they have to replace the motherboard, so be it - I back up regularly. 4) I did try a suggestion on checking the drivers for batteries, but I'm up to date. 5) While laptops should be able to take some abuse, I had mine fall off the desk the other day, so this may be MY FAULT.

I had this issue on my dell Inspiron 6400 with vista.

I saw that a number of people had linked it to a bios issue, not hardware. However, you can only flash the Bios if you have 10% of battery remaining and i didn't have that. About to give up i installed Presto, the instant on OS so that I could at least use the laptop in some way. But in Presto the battery charged and I was able to start windows again and flash the Bios

Flashing the Bios to the latest version (A17) worked. In this case it was a Vista issue not a hardware one

i too have the same problem but my computer is an inspiron 1526 i have had

1.a new battery

2.a new AC adapter

3. a new motherboard

and still my computer is doing the same problem as the rest of u.  nothing seems to help i am convinced that i have gremlins living in my computer and customer service sucks.  so what i am proposing is that all of us and anyone else u know with this problem contact the Better Business Bureau to help resolve our issue i feel that if we all ban together we can get what we want becuase after all it IS NOT OUR FAULT that our computers are faulty and that no one with Dell will help.  we have taken all the steps to try to resolve the issue but when they arent willing to hear or us or willing to help us then we have to take matters into our own hands and i feel  that this is the best way to do that.  i am personally going to file a claim with the BBB and i hope everyone else out there will too.  not only will it benefit u but when everyone does it we will all have a better chance of succeeding.

SOLUTION!!  I have a Inspiron 1526 purchased from Best Buy and a Inspiron 1525 purchased directly from Dell.  I also have a work Dell Latitude, so I was fortunate enough to be able to try alot of different combinations.  I had the problem with the 1526 only.  IT IS NOT - the battery, the charger, the bios.  I tried all of the solutions, updating the BIOS, installing the updated Dell power management driver, even the "magic" ones like taking the battery out and holding down the power button for 10 seconds etc.  THE PROBLEM is a loose connection somewhere between where you plug in the AC adapter and the motherboard.  What actually worked for me was LIGHTLY punching/tapping the surface next to the plug, right where it says "Inspiron".  It must've jarred the loose connection and now it it making the connection.  This kinda makes sense that some of the other solutions worked.  Depending on how aggressively you press the power button or put the battery back in may also make the loose connection "reconnect".  The actual solution is probably to take the cover off and check those connections, but most of us aren;t technical enough to know what to do, and would probably do some damage.  So I recommend tapping on the surface, just above the esc key above where the plug sticks in and continuing to tap across till the first button.  I did this while the computer was on and "plugged in, not charging" and it switched to plugged in charging within about 5 seconds.  I don't remember if I saw anything flash on the screen or if something in the tray changed, but I think it did.  I am not joking, this really did work.  Obviously, when you tap/pound on your own computer, you are taking a risk.  This is your own computer, so if you use this technique, use it at your own risk.  I am merely posting what worked for me, just understand that if you punch your computer you can damage it also, so be careful.  Good luck, I'm glad mine is finally working again.

Unhappy Dell customer!!!! I also have the Inspiron 1525 with the dreaded message (plugged in, not charging). I too have tried every suggestion, replaced the AC adapter and battery, NO LUCK!!!! I need my laptop to be mobile for my business and I can't if I have to plug it in. This computer is barely over a year old and should of held up better. I definitely will not purchace another Dell unless i get this resolved.:emotion-45:

The resolution is to replace the system board - and at $400+ it's probably better to replace the system.  If you do, buy a 3-year warranty next time.

In an earlier post they replaced, adapter,battery and motherboard and still not charging. It was working and charging fine untill I downloaded a few updates including the bios upgrade. I may try backing up and do a reinstall back to factory install. I can get a new motherboard from www.discountelectronics.com for 249.00 but not sure if i want to spend the money especially if it doesn't fix it.

I too have an Inspiron 1525 with this problem.  I've read extensively through the forums on the web, and tried all the possible solutions suggested.  However, it seems the motherboard needs replacing (that is the only thing I haven't done yet).  That is ridiculous for a 14 month old laptop.  I have just bought an Asus laptop to replace the Inspiron.  My desktop PC (also a Dell) is due for replacement, but I'm not even going to consider buying another Dell.

Just replaced the motherboard and still (plugged in, not charging). This is ridiculous, I'm out over $500 for a new ac adapter, battery and motherboard. I wasn't going to buy the motherboard but I need my laptop for my business and $300 was cheaper than purchasing a new laptop with the configuration that I need. You would think Dell would see that this is a problem and come up with a solution. Now I forced to buy another laptop and guess what, It definately will not be a DELL!

Just replaced the motherboard and still (plugged in, not charging). This is ridiculous, I'm out over $500 for a new ac adapter, battery and motherboard. I wasn't going to buy the motherboard but I need my laptop for my business and $300 was cheaper than purchasing a new laptop with the configuration that I need. You would think Dell would see that this is a problem and come up with a solution. Now I'm forced to buy another laptop and guess what, It definately will not be a DELL!

I am shocked to admit it, but this actually worked for me!  And it does make sense, I tripped over the power cord yesterday, so I might have jarred something.  I tapped firmly (but didn't beat on it) for a few seconds and when I checked the status below, my power had increased and changed to "plugged in/charging".  I'm not sure yet if this is a permanent fix, in which case I will be contacting Dell.  I'm a little afraid that if I move the laptop and wiggle the plug again, it will go back to not charging, but it's a good short term fix, and will save me some time today waiting for Dell to answer the phone...I couldn't even get through on the online chat before I found this solution.  I'm up to 36% already, from 20% about 10 minutes ago...So thank you for the solution!!!

I tried the removal and scan for hardware. It had now effect. I still get "plugged in, not charging".

Nope still not working, Taken batteries out restarted now I have tried this, any other suggestions