Hi betula,

Thanks for posting.

Looks like you've tried just about everything.  How about reinstalling the Operating System?

Backup your system and do an OS Repair.

Hi,

I did a clean OS reinstall, and the problem still exists.

However I have just discovered, that my battery has died. It looks slightly 'inflated', just like it wants to burst. It was also a bit difficult to take it out. I think, I am lucky, it did not blow up.

It is slightly annoying to experience this just a few days after I run out of warranty cover.

I have no idea for how long the battery has been like this, but I have ordered a replacement one.

The question is, is it possible, that a damaged battery is causing me keyboard problems?

The escape button is not working in any circumstances, and the function buttons work only with the Fn+ key. F5 for example does not refresh the page in a browser, but when used with Fn key functions, it does work.

Any thoughts or suggestions?

Many thanks,

Matt

I think, the root of the problem might be in the BIOS, or in my recent BIOS upgrade to A20 version.

In this BIOS there is no option for function key settings which some websites suggest to change when experiencing escape key malfunction.

I am also lacking Dell extensions in my Windows Mobility Center, so can't change function key settings.

I was wondering to do a BIOS reset to default settings, but I received scary messages saying after resetting to default my SATA drive won't work preventing me to successfully boot my OS.

Should I try a BIOS reset? Or even a BIOS downgrade?

What else it could be if not the BIOS?

Yes, that is entirely possible.  Try rolling back the BIOS version to the one where you didn't have problems.

Apparently the battery has to be connected for rolling back the BIOS. I don't want to use the damaged battery for this, so I will wait until my replacement arrives.