XPS 15 9560, front LED blinking 4 amber 1 white

Question

Hi,

I have battery related issues with my XPS 15 9560 with a 97 Wh battery. During a train trip, the battery charge suddenly fell down from ~50% to less than 10% and the computer stopped after a low battery warning.
When I tried to recharge it, it seemed to work at the beginning, but finally it stopped charging at 60% and the front LED started blinking fast and amber. In Dell Power Command, it was indicated that there was a battery fault. Despite the battery at 60%, the computer immediately shuts down when I unplugged the power supply.

So I replaced the battery with a new one, but I still get some of the same symptoms. Battery is at 53%, but it won't charge anymore and the computer shuts down when unplugged. But now Dell Power Command says the battery is OK and the LED blinks differently : 4 short amber, 1 long white, in loop.

If I put back the original battery, it reverts to Dell Power Command indicating a faulty battery and a continuous fast amber blinking, but the battery level stays at 53% instead of 60%.

So I think there is an issue with the battery charging management. Does anyone know the meaning of the 4 short amber 1 long white code (or maybe 1 long white 4 short amber?)? What should I do?

JOcean · Answer

That light sequence indicates a bad battery. When you installed another battery, was it a genuine Dell battery as non Dell batteries can cause that problem. Also try a reset. Disconnect the battery and unplug the adapter. Then press and hold the power button for 30 seconds. Then reconnect everything and try again.

MattSGre · Answer

Hi, Thanks for your reply. The battery is supposed to be genuine and looks exactly the same as the original one. It is properly recognized by Dell Command Power Manager, which does not indicate any issue with the battery. In the detailed infos, it says the battery is a Dell battery manufactured by LG. But the serial number looks a bit strange (only 4 hex digits). I tried your reset procedure, it did not change anything :-(

MattSGre · Answer

I put back the original battery, it also has just 4 digits for its serial number, so I guess this is normal.

Waank1 · Answer

I had the same problem.  Replaced the Dell battery with a generic one.  Flashing went away for about a week.  More research suggested that the CMOS battery could be getting low.  Replaced that and the problem went away for about a week.  Guess I need to leave the screws out of the bottom to make it easier to constantly disconnect/reconnect the battery............

XPS

XPS 15 9560, front LED blinking 4 amber 1 white

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