Definitive Inspiron Power Connector Problem(s) Summary

After seeing hundreds of postings here regarding flaky and broken power connectors on Dell Inspiron's, and having had all of the problems below, and being an electrical engineer, I would like to clear up the issue and post fixes for some, but unfortunately not all of the problems.

First of all, the symptom:

Wiggling the power cord near the laptop causes the AC power to come and go. This can be observed by seeing either the on-screen power management icon switch between charging and battery, or by observing the green charging light flicker as the wire is moved. Also since the screen brightness settings are often different from Battery to AC, you may observe changing brightness levels flicker) of the screen.

Also you may feel some heat near the broken wire or near the pin holes on the connector when you pull it out.

There are two possible causes for this problem. They both have the same symptoms. You may have one, or both of them.

 1) The connection between the wire and the female connector on the adapter cable has broken internally.
 
 2) The internal male power connector has become disconnected from the board.

If 1) is the problem, the power adapter can be replaced for short money. I had this problem within 3 months of purchasing my Inspiron 4100. I was able to peel back the insulation and re-solder the wires. then wrap it in electrical tape. This lasted a few months. In retrospect I should have sent it back to Dell under Warrantee for replacement. This problem is caused IMHO by:

 a) Inadequate strain relief on the connector. Any motion of the connector, particularly using the laptop on your lap, causes it.
 
 b) The heavy, cylindrical ferrite EMI filter located on the wire near the connector makes the problem worse. 
 
Basically this is bad design on Dell's part. The good news is you can get a replacement power adapter from Dell, Targus, and others and many are available new on Ebay. I have had good results with Targus.
 

Problem 2) is a much worse problem. If you have recently replaced your adapter and still have the problem, it is likely the male power connector on the motherboard.  Other than having Dell replace the motherboard, there is no good solution to this problem. Under warrantee this should be free, unless they claim that mechanical damage caused it. Without warrantee, the repair can be done by Dell for a complete motherboard replacement at about $700. Mine failed shortly after the 1 Year warantee ran out.
 
This small and flimsy power connector is soldered to the motherboard with two pins, which provide all the electrical and mechanical support for the connector and the mating cable. The problem here is both mechanical and electrical. Electrically, 2-3 amps at 20V are drawn through this connector, and the combination of mechanical strain plus high electrical currents ultimately causes the connector pin solder joints to fail. Then once the connection begins to fail, they get hot and fail rapidly after that.

I have tried to clean and resolder these connections. The first time the fix lasted 1 months. The second time I added a short piece of wire because I didn't trust the PC board, and this lasted 2 months. This repair requires complete disassembly of the computer, and even then I could barely access the connector through the sheet metal mounted to the board.

I ultimately gave up trying to fix it or get it repaired and now use plan B: I plug the computer into a Docking Station (Advanced Port Replicator, ~$100 on Ebay) to charge the battery. It uses power pins on the docking connector and completely bypasses the evil little power connector. This is a poor fix for anyone that needs portability.

In my opinion problem 2) represents a bad design on Dell's part. The fact that they require a $700 repair (out of warrantee) to fix their design flaw with a $1 connector, that they have not addressed this widespread problem on their support site despite hundreds of complaints in unconscionable, and enough to prevent me from ever buying or recommending Dell again.

If anyone has a better solution to 2) , or knows of a repair source for reasonable money, or even of a source for these connectors, I'd love to hear about it.

Thanks,
Dave Erickson
ex- Dell Customer