Acer 3680 Occasionally Fails to Boot

I recently purchased an Acer Aspire 3680-2249. It's a great basic laptop, except sometimes it won't boot.

The power led and the fan both turn on, but the LCD doesn't come on. Apparently it doesn't even go into the bios or attempt to start up windows, because the hard drive LED remains off. I've left it like this on several occasions for about half an hour and nothing would happen.

This usually occurs when I restart windows (it'll shut down properly, but never start back up). Sometimes it also happens when trying to start up Windows with the power off. When this happens, I just turn the laptop off and power it up again. After this, Windows will usually start up normally (sometimes it takes 1-2 tries).

It has nothing to do with the operating system (since it occurs before the OS even starts up, and I've tried both XP & Vista). It has nothing to do with the power, because it's happened with the battery in/out &/or AC in/out.

I've narrowed the cause of the problem to being RAM-related. I never have this problem when using only the 512MB Samsung RAM that came with the laptop. As soon as I add additional RAM, the problem starts occurring. Whether I'm adding an additional stick of 512MB or 2x1GB. Also this is Kingston RAM that doesn't have any problems in my other system.

Anybody have any clue about what's going on?

 

I can't help you, but my girlfriend Acer 1652LMi does the same. And it isn't memory related. It came stock with a 512Mb Ram and started to do that 1 or 2 months later. I then upgraded it to 1 GB (2x 512Mb) and sold the spare module and the problem stays.
Sometimes it boots to Windows, sometimes don't. Need to turn of an on a couple times.

 

I contacted Acer and they were aware of this problem. It occurs when you have two identical sticks of RAM installed. They have since released a BIOS update as a solution to the issue.

 

I bought a 3680-2633 a month ago, added 2GB of ram and am having the SAME problems. Sometimes I have to try it 2-3 times to get it to boot! When this happened for the first time, I figured it was RAM related so I took out just 1gb and left 1gb it and it didnt do it. Strange.....

I wonder if its a BIOS problem. Maybe the 2gb RAM makes it all hot and bothered...lol

 

SCORE. I figured thats why when I took 1gb out and left 1gb in, it didnt act up. Im going to acer.com right now! Thanks!
Ok I went and downloaded the new BIOS flash and it wont load!! Heres the error message I keep getting:

 

When searching through Acer's support website for the BIOS update, I noticed an update listed BIOS v1.3223. My current BIOS version is v1.3502, but I'm having this problem like everyone else. Am I finding the wrong update? If so, could someone point me in the right direction for the correct update? (I searched the PanAmerica support website).

 

Forget acer panamerica they never have the most up to date drivers or BIOS updates. Instead use the acer euro site located here.

Select your notebook model from the drop down list and you will get everything for your notebook. It looks like the latest bios for this notebook series is 3216.

 

Ditto, same BIOS here (v1.3502) and still have the RAM problem. Im almost considering taking out one of the 1gb sticks and putting the 512mb stick back in there for a total of 1.5gb RAM. At least that way I'll still have a whole lotta RAM and then the thing will stop freezing because it wont be 2 of the same RAM to confuse the BIOS.

It wont let me change my BIOS period anyways. Errors keep on popping up, even if I want to "flash" the BIOS to the same version. This sucks

Oh and I tried the Acer eur page, same error. Still wont work.

 

Same problem on Aspire 5672WLMI that came factory with 2GB.

On this model, the yellow envelope icon will stick - it is right next to the power switch. I typically have to turn the unit on/off/on/off/on to get it to power up. Works perfect after that. seems like a BIOS timing issue.

on the Feburary 2007 "Vista" BIOS.

 

I recently bought the 3680-2633 and I just successfuly updated the BIOS. I found BIOS version 1.3505 on Pan America's site. This version said it should fix dual channel memory issue.

The error upon flashing is due to the program not running as administrator mode. You do this by right clicking on the SWinFlash.exe and run as administrator (make sure you loging as adminstrator first).

I recently bought 2gig of RAM on Newegg should be here later during the week. So i'm amped till then, because 512k is not cool using Vista. Good luck.

 

Thanks for the tip! I ran the BIOS flash as Administrator (how stupid anyways) and it installed. Hopefully my problems with the 3680 freezing upon startup/wakeup from sleep are over!

In the meantime I bought the 2gb at the same time I bought this laptop. There was "no way" I was using any modern laptop without at least 2gb of RAM. I thought it was humorous that Acer sends them out stock with 512mb :laugh: Thats embarrassing for a stock computer with Vista. Really.

Ok so my next issue is this keyboard. My "Z" key has fallen off, I cant get it to stay on. Now the "Q" key is loose too My 30 day warranty is up, thankfully I bought the 3 year extended warranty from Acer. Im going to call them this week and send the laptop back for a keyboard R&R. To me though, for a laptop that I only bought this past 4-29, Ive had a few problems that I've never had with other laptop manufacturers. Just my opinion, thats all....

 

You can always use gorilla glue . Anyhow yea hopefully that will stop that error your having.

 

So far it has. I have put it to the test several times since the flash earlier and it has come to life each time. Before it would freeze 3 out of 4 times when coming back from "sleep". And 4 out of 5 times that I tried to turn it on after being shut off.

Are there any other updates that I need to do?? My card- scanner works good. However my audio sucks. When Vista is loading, and it makes the "welcome vista" noise, it breaks up several times like it doesnt have enough memory to load.

 

Thats great!! Now I shouldn't have any problems when my RAM comes in.

I would try re-installing the audio driver and see what happens. If it really bugs you then I would try a system restore.

I whish the speaker on the 3680-2633 were a little louder. Can't hear much when my window AC is on.

 

I read on Epinion that flashing the latest BIOS works, it should be 1.3223 released 1/07, and that should be on all 3680 made since 1/07.

Otherwise, failure to boot is a hardware problem, is their a POST response?

Can you get to the Phoenix BIOS settings?

If you can get to the BIOS settings but cannot boot beyond it, its very likely bad RAM.

 

Yeah the speakers are weak on the 3680. Im going to invest in those Sony walkman speakers. I tried watching a DVD one night on this and at 100% volume, I could barely hear it!

 

Actually if you go to Acers website, the BIOS version that resolves the RAM issue (the BIOS has trouble recognizing 2 RAM sticks of the same size i.e. 2- 1gb sticks) will say so under "instructions". The BIOS flash version that resolves the issues with freezing and memory issues is V1.3505
.

To get it to run, you must download it and right click on swflash.exe and run as administrator. Good Luck!

 

Thanks for the clarification, michacerboy!

 

I don't suppose you could provide a link to the BIOS you found? I've been having the no-boot problem since upgrading to 1GB, and my BIOS is at 3502. The newest I can find is 3223 from Acer Europe... Any help would be appreciated.
Thanks,
-Steve

 

My BIOS was 3502 also. But you need to flash it with the 1.3505 version BIOS.
I dont know if this link will work for you, but here goes!
http://www.acerpanam.com/synapse/forms/Acer_drivers.cfm

Remember to run the .exe file as adminstrator (right click on file and run as admin). Good Luck!

 

Well I just received my 2GB of RAM today from Newegg. Poped them right IN and fired it up on the first try. Every thing seems smoothe; its blazing fast!

I found mine on Pan America version 1.3505.

 

I need help. I bought Acer Aspire 3680 with Vista Basic and I'm about buying more memory and to avoid problems which you had I've tried to upgrade my bios to 3505 but I met troubles. I ran it as administrator but I don't know what file's directory should I use. When I don't do any changes (backup file - "bios.bak" ; new bios file - F:\FLASHABL.ROM") it doesn't work. Should I create new folders and where, with what names? When I tried to create folders and ran flash bios I got message "cannot load file" "access denied" "error code:5"

JACEK

 

Just extract and run SWinFlash.exe as adminstrator. Browse for the new BIOS: ZR1_3505.WPH. Follow the rest of the instructions that pops up.

 

I've been having the same problem with my 3680-2633. I updated the BIOS but it didn't fix it. Laptop powers on fine with 1 stick of ram, or 2 sticks of un-identical RAM, but when I put both of my identical chips in, it won't start.

Anyone know how I can fix this? Acer is no help at all.

 

Which Bios version did you use? Whats is the brand of your identical stick?

 

1.3505

This is my memory

 

Thats strange it should work, I also bought mine at newegg with same brand but mine is DDR2 667 which works fine.

You can always run mem test on each of stick and see if passes.

 

I ran a 24 hour memtest on each stick, and both of them passed. It works fine with 1 stick in and the 512 stick that came with it, but once I put both g.skill - it refuses to start.

 

Anyone else have any suggestions?

 

Please help I'm having the same problem, I upgraded my memory to 2G. Since then boot up is very slow and sometimes it stays at a blank screen and I have to do a hard shut down and try again.

I've tryed downloading the new 3505bios but once I get download the WinRar file to my desktop I then open the SwinFlash file, I then right click the SWinflash application and 'run as administrator' it starts to download but then I get the error box: See attachment

Can someone please help me with this its driving me crazy!

Thanks
Tim

 

hey ppl!!!!!1 even the diff ram chips fails!!! i have put 2 gb ddr2 (transcend) and a hynix 256 ddr2~~!!!! but still no avail! ! it doesnt work well after the ram increases!!!! i think even acer wont help cuz they might go in a big loss!!!!

i tried bios updates tooooo!!!!! upgrade to all os!!!! but still!! it doesnt work!!!! it work only on 256 ram! and 512! !!!!!!!

 

u mean u r trying to run 2.25gb ram in an acer 3680.. ..ur chipset cant handle that much....best go for the 2x1gb PC2-4200....thats the best it can support....and do not buy transcend..

 

I am having the same problem with aspire 3680 and took it in for repair and they said when the ram was upgraded it shorted out the motherboard. I am thinking of replacing the motherboard but I am not sure how I would boot it up. I don't have a restore disk. The hard drive has vista ultimate on it and the ram that came with the computer is on 512. I have read that in to upgrade the ram I first need to flash bio's. Does anyone have any info on how I should go about this.

 

if you are talking about replacing a motherboard on an aspire 3680,

unless you find a nice person with one CHEAP or get lucky find one on EBAY at a fair price,, IMO, it would be almost as CHEAP and much more prudent to replace the entire LAPTOP..

This is my laptop(but i've upgraded CP) and
a similar priced model
both of those are under $500 including shipping... and a 1 yr warranty
refurbished ASPIRE 5315's are selling for $379 and up (90 day warranty)


you can expect to pay around $150 to $250 for a used or NEW motherboard to replace the bad one.. (you may even get a 90 day warranty with a NEW replacment part)

i personally wouldn't pay too much to revive an old note book that can be out performed by a $380 refurb that uses a SOCKET P cpu (meaning you can upgrade to a T9500 CPU in the future, and can accept more RAM as well as SATA HDD performace increases along with faster FSB & RAM speeds too)

 

There are 2 motherboards right now on ebay. I am now just worried about putting the ram in and shorting out another motherboard. Since the 3680 didn't cost me anything I just thought I'd give it my best shot. Having Vista Ultima may also be a problem. Those are the things I am worried about. Do you that will be a problem.

 

the only time i've seen RAM blow a motherboard was when a stick of ram that was already burned up and melted....

as long as you are using good memory... and you remove the power cord and battery then you should have no problem

that laptop was designed before VISTA.... and while it should run... it will be slow due to limited CPU speed and amount of RAM you can install

to be honest, if you are nervous about putting RAM in a motherboard, it's my oppinion that you are getting in WAY OVER YOUR HEAD when considering a motherboard replacement.

good luck,, if you do try a motherboard replacement i'm sure someone around here can point you to a link to the SERVICE GUIDE. you are gonna need it!

 

I am only nervous about putting in new ram because where I took the computer for repair said that when the person who put in the 2nd piece of 512 ram it shorted out the motherboard. I never heard of ram shorting out a motherboard. I was worried at first about putting in a new motherboard because I had never worked with a Acer. I have since found info on this board on taking the computer apart and putting it back together. It is no different then what I am used to working on. I have replaced the motherboard on another laptop and also replaced the screen with no problems. Adding ram should not have damaged a motherboard. When I received this laptop just turning it on it was very hot.
The other problem would be the os but it seems that vista would not have a problem with drivers.
Now when I get the motherboard you don't think adding the ram would short it out again?
I have the ram that was in the laptop 512 ddr2and I also have 2gb of crucial ram ddr2. From what I read on this board the second piece of ram should not have been added with out a bio's update first. Is that correct?

 

i think the BIOS update is required to use DIMMs (ram sticks) larger than 1 gig each..

a bios upgrade would not be needed for using say (2) 512mb dimms,, but i'm not sure if that system even supports memory above 2 gigs.. if it does then you will definately need the BIOS updated to the newest version. (actually there are 3 different MAJOR revisions of the main board in that system...

each version has a different intel chipset... i940, i943, and i945... however i'm not sure about how RAM SIZE and MAX RAM relates to each different motherboard...

you could read thru the 3680 UPGRADE thread,,, i'm sure the info is in there somewhere.


as for RAM blowing a motherboard... you would have to force it in backwards (breaking the key slot out) or physically SHORT IT across different pins (i once cooked a RAM STICK due to bent connectors on a desktop motherboard... but even then the board didn't die.... just the RAM fried)
short of inserting it while powered up, it would require shorting across multiple pins to kill the motherboard,

if the second ram slot required a BIOS update to be used,, then the worst that i would expect from inserting GOOD RAM into the laptop would be a laptop that wouldn't boot until the added ram was removed from the second slot.

 

I really have my doubts that the motherboard is bad but I am not an expert and do not know how to check it. If I could get it to boot I could go on line and do a system check. I know the number is i940 because it is on the motherboard. Do you know of any way to check the motherboard? I have read all of the 3680 upgrade some of it I have read several times because the info was so good and not knowing the product I keep going back.
Do you think if I could find a system restore cd it would of any use?? Where I took the computer they want $475. to replace the motherboard and I am still not sure its bad. At least if I buy one on Ebay if it didn't work I could resell it.
Please let me know what you think about trying a recover cd if I can find one.

 

does the system have any RAM in it now??

what does it do when you try to turn it on?

 

No I took the ram out. When I turn it on it lights up and the fan starts and the hdrive starts to spin up then everything just stops. When I put the ram in should I just put the orignal 512GB stick that came with the laptop?

 

for NOW only try 1 stick of RAM at a TIME... the original stick may have blown when the owner tried to add that second stick (if he didn't unplug and remove the battery)

i would try it with ONLY the original first.... if you get no BOOT then it's time to SHUT DOWN,, remove power cord and battery... then swap the old stick out and replace it with the new stick... (i'd try to make sure to try the memory in the original slot, not the slot that the EXTRA RAM was added to)

 

Hi well we picked up the computer and I tried the ram just as bigozone said and no luck. How ever in my laptop spare parts I found a 512MB 2rx16 pc2-4200s-444-11-A0 I know this is good ram it came out of a new computer. I also tried connecting to a monitor and got no picture at all. I am still waiting on the ebay aution but I see newegg has the intel motherboard with celeron m processor. Sp I guess now it is just a waiting game.