Hello. A system recovery (factory reset) is the gold standard for determining if an audio problem is in the software or hardware. If the mic worked when the laptop was new, then it would have worked again after a factory reset except in the case of hardware failure. The reset would have fixed all software causes of failure.
Sometimes the mic fails either because it has slipped out of alignment with the hole, and sometimes the connection is loose. If the laptop is still under warranty Dell will fix it. If not you can take it to a shop or try to fix it yourself. An alternative is to get an inexpensive usb mini mic and use that.
Jim Coates
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January 24th, 2016 10:00
Hello. A system recovery (factory reset) is the gold standard for determining if an audio problem is in the software or hardware. If the mic worked when the laptop was new, then it would have worked again after a factory reset except in the case of hardware failure. The reset would have fixed all software causes of failure.
Sometimes the mic fails either because it has slipped out of alignment with the hole, and sometimes the connection is loose. If the laptop is still under warranty Dell will fix it. If not you can take it to a shop or try to fix it yourself. An alternative is to get an inexpensive usb mini mic and use that.