Dell Inspiron N7110 power problem

[Pants]

This laptop is having the same problems as the guy in this thread:

http://en.community.dell.com/support-forums/laptop/f/3518/t/19460744.aspx

Apparently a lot of other people are having the same problem, which points to a manufacturer bug.

One suggestion is to replace the charger because this computer shows the charger as "unknown" in the bios, even though it's the oem original.

On the other hand the OP says he sent it to the MFR and they replaced the battery. I'm not sure which to go with.

The laptop runs fine on the charger, but when it's unplugged the the power goes off immediately. The battery obviously isn't charging, but is it because there's something wrong with the charger, or the battery? I want to say the battery needs to be replaced but the Dell guy says the charger should be replaced.

 

[CLC]

You should really pick up a universal charger with auto adjusting voltage like this. I have one and it works great, they sell them at best buy.

http://www.rocketfishproducts.com/products/computer-accessories/RF-BPRACDC2.html

 

[Pants]

I've got an iGo Wallmax adapter which does just that. Universal chargers do not work in troubleshooting every type of power problem, though. I've got a Sony Vaio laptop that won't power on when the iGo is plugged into it, but the laptop works fine with the OEM or equivalent charger.

My iGo does power the Dell laptop, but it doesn't charge the battery. I want to say that means the battery should be replaced, but because of my past experience with universal chargers not being 100% reliable in troubleshooting, I'm just not sure. The adapter in the bios shows as "unknown". The OS also gives an error message that the "AC adapter type cannot be determined, so the battery will not charge". I got a response from a dell support member who recommended replacing adapter first, so I'm gonna start with that.

 

[redmon]

It could be the motherboard(or DC jack daughter board) or charger. In my experience it is more often the charger.

 

[SpaceSquad]

In my experience it is more often the charger.

Same here. I always keep at least a couple universal ones with me.

I have been thinking of picking up some OEM ones to sell instead (HP, Dell, Acer...)as a lot of universal ones suck!

 

[Pants]

My universal charger powers the Dell just fine. The problem is the BIOS does not RECOGNIZE the charger, for whatever reason. If the universal charger should work with this, then the problem is probably the power jack(or something along those lines) or motherboard. Anyone want to stake some bets? I've got an OEM Dell charger coming, we'll see if that works. Thank goodness a lot of ebay sellers allow returns, or this could be an expensive troubleshooting process. I'm not like some other techs who have a lot of needed parts on hand.

 

[NYJimbo]

The problem is the BIOS does not RECOGNIZE the charger, for whatever reason.

Just for clarification its not the BIOS that recognizes the charger, the BIOS only reports back what it is being told from the charging circuitry on the motherboard. It could be the charger, the dc jack, the charging circuits (most likely the "master" controller), or any other circuits inline from the signal pin point on the mobo to the controller.

 

[Pants]

Thanks ^^^

 

[Pants]

It turned out to be a bad charger AND a bad battery. New charger would not charge old battery. And old charger would not charge new battery.

It is apparently true that some laptops require an OEM charger that both powers the laptop and is reported by CMOS setup interface.

My universal iGo adapter would power the laptop, but it would not charge the new battery. Let that be a lesson to you universal charger lovers!

I'm not sure if a generic OEM charger would work or not. But the iGo certainly does not.