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Saturday, June 18, 2011

How to troubleshoot Laptop Battery and Power Supply Problems?

POWER SUPPLY & BATTERY PROBLEM
If the laptop battery is more than 3 - 4 years old then the battery could be worn out. Rechargeable batteries have a finite number of charge and discharge cycles and will lose their charge capacity over time, i.e. won't charge to 100% and gradually the charge reduces until the battery won't charge up at all.
OR The battery shows a 100% charge but when the adapter is disconnected the battery drops off to zero capacity in a very short time.
If the battery drops to an unacceptable charge level then the battery needs to be replaced.

Check power adapter?s DC plug that connects into the laptop power socket with a multi-meter, the voltage should be slightly higher than the voltage that is printed on the label on the bottom of the adapter. If the voltage is zero or way below the voltage that is printed on the label then the power adapter is faulty and needs to be replaced.
If the adapter is OK then connect it to the laptop and power it up, then look at the power/battery charging LED light and wriggle the power plug in the laptop's power socket. If the power/battery LED light flashes and in a certain position this LED light stays firm, then the power socket is either faulty or it has a dry solder joint where it is connected to the motherboard.
This can be repaired but it requires the laptop to be completely dismantled to get at this power socket and repair. If you cannot DIY then I suggest you get a quote first.

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