From: Caesar Valenti on
I have an XPS M140 that will not charge the battery and will not run on
AC. It does NOT seem to be the power jack or a loose connection....I
checked for good continuity; even the center communications pin.
I assume that somehow the computer cannot communicate with the charger,
so it will not function or charge the battery. The laptop works
perfectly off of the battery.
I hate to toss this but a replacement motherboard is
$150-300....certainly not work it. I guess I can part it out on ebay.

Any ideas on this? I know bad power jacks are a common problem, but
what about other commonly known issues.

thanks
CV
From: William R. Walsh on
Hi!

> Any ideas on this? I know bad power jacks are a common problem,
> but what about other commonly known issues.

Have you tried another power adapter? (Didn't see that mentioned in your
original post.)

The DC-DC converter circuit is another common problems. Newer laptops
usually have this built in the motherboard. If it fails, you may have to
replace the motherboard. However, limited repairs are possible. Look for
micro or even picofuses that may have blown (test with a multimeter if you
can't see whether they are blown or not). Some look like little glass tubes
(very little) while others may take the shape of ICs (these have very few
legs). They may also look like resistors or diodes.

William


From: Caesar Valenti on
William R. Walsh wrote:
> Hi!
>
>
>> Any ideas on this? I know bad power jacks are a common problem,
>> but what about other commonly known issues.
>>
>
> Have you tried another power adapter? (Didn't see that mentioned in your
> original post.)
>
> The DC-DC converter circuit is another common problems. Newer laptops
> usually have this built in the motherboard. If it fails, you may have to
> replace the motherboard. However, limited repairs are possible. Look for
> micro or even picofuses that may have blown (test with a multimeter if you
> can't see whether they are blown or not). Some look like little glass tubes
> (very little) while others may take the shape of ICs (these have very few
> legs). They may also look like resistors or diodes.
>
> William
>
>
>
The problem is not with the power adapter....I have several.
I had not thought about looking for a fuse...I might try that.
From: John Novicki Jr on

"Caesar Valenti" <caesarv(a)email.com> wrote in message
news:4b5d1f0c$0$1657$742ec2ed(a)news.sonic.net...
> William R. Walsh wrote:
>> Hi!
>>
>>
>>> Any ideas on this? I know bad power jacks are a common problem,
>>> but what about other commonly known issues.
>>>
>>
>> Have you tried another power adapter? (Didn't see that mentioned in your
>> original post.)
>>
>> The DC-DC converter circuit is another common problems. Newer laptops
>> usually have this built in the motherboard. If it fails, you may have to
>> replace the motherboard. However, limited repairs are possible. Look for
>> micro or even picofuses that may have blown (test with a multimeter if
>> you can't see whether they are blown or not). Some look like little glass
>> tubes (very little) while others may take the shape of ICs (these have
>> very few legs). They may also look like resistors or diodes.
>>
>> William
>>
>>
> The problem is not with the power adapter....I have several. I had not
> thought about looking for a fuse...I might try that.

Are you sure that the center pin is not broken? Also, you have to change a
setting in the Bios if the center pin is broken to allow the computer to
boot with AC only. Confused me at first when it occurred on mine.

From: Caesar Valenti on
John Novicki Jr wrote:
>
> "Caesar Valenti" <caesarv(a)email.com> wrote in message
> news:4b5d1f0c$0$1657$742ec2ed(a)news.sonic.net...
>> William R. Walsh wrote:
>>> Hi!
>>>
>>>
>>>> Any ideas on this? I know bad power jacks are a common problem,
>>>> but what about other commonly known issues.
>>>>
>>>
>>> Have you tried another power adapter? (Didn't see that mentioned in
>>> your original post.)
>>>
>>> The DC-DC converter circuit is another common problems. Newer
>>> laptops usually have this built in the motherboard. If it fails, you
>>> may have to replace the motherboard. However, limited repairs are
>>> possible. Look for micro or even picofuses that may have blown (test
>>> with a multimeter if you can't see whether they are blown or not).
>>> Some look like little glass tubes (very little) while others may
>>> take the shape of ICs (these have very few legs). They may also look
>>> like resistors or diodes.
>>>
>>> William
>>>
>>>
>> The problem is not with the power adapter....I have several. I had
>> not thought about looking for a fuse...I might try that.
>
> Are you sure that the center pin is not broken? Also, you have to
> change a setting in the Bios if the center pin is broken to allow the
> computer to boot with AC only. Confused me at first when it occurred
> on mine.
Thanks.
I have full continuity from all 3 contacts on the power supply connector
to the motherboard. The laptop is completely dead if the battery is not
installed; even if AC power is connected. It is as if a fuse is blown,
but I haven't had a chance to check yet. The bios setting is only for
checking compatibility of the AC adapter.