Troubleshooting laptop batteries

Note that these steps correspond with decision points on the flowchart and are indexed by the diamond symbols. The text below cannot be read sequentially.

Does the laptop need AC adaptor in order to boot?

The first step in troubleshooting of your laptop battery is determining whether it can hold enough charge to boot the notebook. Will the laptop power up and run on the battery, or does the AC adapter which doubles as the laptop battery charger need to be plugged in?

Troubleshooting Laptop Power Failure

Note that these steps correspond with decision points on the flowchart and are indexed by the diamond symbols. The text below cannot be read sequentially.

Laptop Power LED On?

Most Laptop have a series of LED’s on the front Edge that offer a basic status report. Normally, there are separate LEDs that will light when the when the laptop power cord is plugged in, when the battery is charging, and when the laptop is powered on. In addition, there may me LEDs for hard drive and wireless activity and for DVD or CD action.

Problem with laptop power cord, jack, charging or AC/DC adapter

Warning! Before Disassembling Laptop always remove battery. See the expanded text below the flowcharts for explanation of each step.

Because laptops are designed to be portable and function on battery power, they are engineered to run on the DC (Direct Current) power that batteries provide. But all of the power distribution networks in the modern world utilize AC (Alternating Current) because it's a more efficient and economical way to move electricity long distances.This means that laptops are shipped with an AC adapter that plugs into a regular outlet and converts that AC power into the proper DC voltage for the laptop.

Introduction to Laptop

Laptop computers are the largest growing part of the computer industry, with sales that continue to outpace desktop systems. According to data from the NPD group, August 2003 sales of laptops were up 55% over the same period in 2002, whereas desktop system sales increased by only 14%. Also, the average price of a laptop in August 2003 was $1,334. At the same time, desktop systems averaged only $725. Obviously, for those in the industry, there has never been a better reason to get into upgrading and repairing laptops, because not only are they selling better than ever, but their higher prices allow you to charge more for services rendered. Gartner, Inc. states that laptop computer shipments are expected to make up 28.8% of all computer shipments by 2006. Much of this is being driven by wireless technology, which is projected to reach 90% of the mobile system installed base by 2007.