Re: Laptop power problem

[John Hedtke <john -at- hedtke -dot- com>]

I have indeed encountered this, both on laptops and on portable ham 
radio gear.  The problem is that the female adapter takes a lot of 
strain from most power plugs, which go in straight rather than using 
a 90-degree flushmount connection.  As a result, anything that pulls 
on the power cord presses the pin in the center of the jack to the 
side.  The internal connection to that pin is usually a heavy-duty 
woven wire that's capable of bearing a large power load without 
overheating.  This requires extra solder for a good connection... and 
therein lies the problem: it's stiff and a little brittle.  After a 
while, the solder starts cracking and the quality of the connection 
goes down until it just doesn't work anymore.

What you have to do to fix this is take it to a computer repair place 
(doesn't have to be a Dell or Compaq or what-have-you place 
specifically; this is a really standard repair that any qualified 
technician can do) and have the connector replaced.  Bad news: it's 
not very cheap.  Most of the cost is labor, but it's still probably 
going to run you $100-150.  (I had to do this on one of my wife's 
Compaq laptops recently and it ran $140.)  When you get this done, 
ask if they can find you an adapter for the power cord that plugs in 
flush as I mentioned, or perhaps a strain relief connector of some 
kind that protects the power jack by anchoring the power cord 
elsewhere on the chassis.

If you've got a friend who's handy with a soldering iron, you may be 
able to have him/her pop the case and do this for you.  It's actually 
not a difficult repair for people used to opening up laptops, but it 
*is* a pest, hence the cost.  Some laptops also have the connector as 
part of the motherboard, which means you may have to replace the 
motherboard.  Check and see--the price may be radically different for 
your laptop as a result.

It's not the best news, but I hope this helps.

Yours truly,

John Hedtke
Author/Consultant/Contract Writer
www.hedtke.com <-- website
Region 7 Director, STC
541-685-5000 (office landline)
541-554-2189 (cell)
john -at- hedtke -dot- com (primary email)
johnhedtke -at- aol -dot- com (secondary email)


At 12:31 PM 4/7/2008, Nancy Allison wrote:
>Intensely annoying!
>
>The power connection to my laptop has become increasingly 
>unreliable. When I plug in the power cable, the connection isn't 
>made, and the laptop continues to work from the battery. I used to 
>be able to jiggle the connector to get it to settle in so the 
>connection would persist.
>
>Now, short of standing and pushing down on the connector with my 
>thumb, I can't get the connection to stay up. I am currently using 
>my backup cable, which has the same problem but it is not as severe (yet).
>
>At the computer store where I bought it (and where the warranty is 
>long outdated), the salesman said that this is the "dirty little 
>secret" of laptops and that lots of them have this problem. Only 
>IBMs and Apples have solved the problem (the Macs by splitting the 
>cable into four, with four magnetic connectors).
>
>Have you encountered this problem, and were you able to solve it? 
>Maybe my backup cable will last until the laptop is obsolete, but if 
>it doesn't, I will have no way to use my laptop.
>
>Thanks for all suggestions.
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