Dell Inspiron 1520 Power Plug Problem

Mario · Post by **Mario** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 11:36 pm

I got a Dell Inspiron 1520 laptop last Christmas, so I'm pretty sure it's not under warranty. This'll have to be DIY.
But anyway, here's the story. I was using my laptop when my brother tripped on the cord. It pulled the computer pretty hard, but it seemed to be fine. A while later the battery dies, this leaves my quite puzzled as it is still plugged in. To make a long story short, I found there is a problem with the power plug and the computer can't charge. When I plug the charger in to the wall, the green light turns on, but when I plug it in to the computer, it turns off. I think the power connector is shorted somehow, but why would that happen from pulling it? I know where to get replacement plugs, but is there any way to fix this?

gameboy fixer 77 · Post by **gameboy fixer 77** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 11:40 pm

Mario · Post by **Mario** » Fri Jan 16, 2009 11:43 pm

... What?

Post by **bicostp** » Sat Jan 17, 2009 10:00 am

Check the power connector with a multimeter.

Maybe the wires inside the cord that attach to the connector broke. (Though it's pretty weird that its light goes off when you plug it into the laptop.)

You might be better off buying a universal replacement at the store.

Jongamer · Post by **Jongamer** » Sat Jan 17, 2009 10:55 am

At School I have fixed like 3 laptops with broken power connectors in the last month (One we had to order a replacement jack, because it was pretty much busted into pieces.)

More than likely, your power connector is broke, and ripping the cord out probably wasn't the whole reason why it broke, power jack could have been jerked around so much that the solder connections broke loose from the board once the cord got ripped out.

Open the laptop and take a look, I know that is easy for me to say, I have taken apart probably like 6 different laptops in the past month or two.

It is quite unlikely that the wires inside the power cord were ripped apart unless there was a rip in the shielding.

vskid · Post by **vskid** » Sat Jan 17, 2009 11:05 am

Jongamer wrote:It is quite unlikely that the wires inside the power cord were ripped apart unless there was a rip in the shielding.

And it would probably short (if thats what is causing the light to turn off) whether or not its plugged into the laptop.
I got a laptop that had a messed up power connector, would only work at a certain angle. I opened it up and there was a piece of metal that was completely separated from the connector and board. I soldered a little piece of wire to the connector and the board, so now it can flex a little. Worked nice for a bit, but now its gradually getting worse. Not as bad as before, but still not very good when the battery is completely toast.

Jongamer · Post by **Jongamer** » Sat Jan 17, 2009 11:24 am

vskid wrote:
Jongamer wrote:It is quite unlikely that the wires inside the power cord were ripped apart unless there was a rip in the shielding.
And it would probably short (if thats what is causing the light to turn off) whether or not its plugged into the laptop.
I got a laptop that had a messed up power connector, would only work at a certain angle. I opened it up and there was a piece of metal that was completely separated from the connector and board. I soldered a little piece of wire to the connector and the board, so now it can flex a little. Worked nice for a bit, but now its gradually getting worse. Not as bad as before, but still not very good when the battery is completely toast.

Well yeah, but usually you can play with the wire, and get a connection with the shorted wires.