Power adaptor not recognized?????

Me again lol.

Getting used to the new laptop now (kinda) but just plugged it in to the mains and turned it on beofre powering up thelaptop....expecting it to bypass the "warning - battery power" boot message......

Got the message now saying "non dell ac adaptor plugged in" will continue to run on battery power! - whats that all about?

Any one care to pass comment?

 

Try the power drain.

 

whats that in beginner speak ?

 

Not 100% certain myself, but he might mean remove the mains power and the battery then hold the power button down for 20 seconds, then re-assemble and see what happens.

 

should i need to to do that on a brand new system? - seems odd to me that it didnt recognise its own power adaptor!

 

No you should not have to do it, but some notebook manufactures put a check in the bios to make sure you are using a recommended power adaptor, yours might be slightly off and is causing the warning, the thing is you notebook might run at full power if it thinks you are not using the right power adaptor, though i have never had an alienware.

If you keep getting the message i would get a new power adaptor.

 

think i will call alienware tech tomorrow as not exaclty happy about it and as im not pc savvy, dont think it should happen....maybe a simple thing but again, didnt expect that on a £2500 pc

 

It kinda happens to everybody here, I wouldn't worry about it too much. What I did is disable the osd notifications on the taskbar and it stopped bugging me.
As long as your battery is charging you're good.
Even if Dell will send you a mobo/battery/charger or even a new laptop replacement you will keep getting that
message...

 

Ya, I get that message occasionally. I just shut My laptop down unplug it for a brief second then plug it back in wait a few seconds and reboot. Alls well after that.

 

That is a normal bug for the r2

 

hmmmm...you would think they would fix it wouldnt you? - well i would expect so anyway! - spoke to AW about it today, the tech said its static build up....i said i have only had it 2 days and turned it on a few times....he wasnt really interested and just said to see how it goes......

 

If you are unsatisfied with the response from Tech Support, see the following post from BatBoy:

http://forum.notebookreview.com/del...m1730-battery-not-charging-2.html#post5515864

 

Hiya

Read that thread and well, my problem may be similar but ive only had it occur once (mind you the laptop is 5 days old). I havent had it since and ive been running the battery down, then plugging in the charger and it hasnt happened since....i do get the message when i boot without a/c power....2 beeps and biso screen advising to plug it it for optimal performance (but as already pointed out, that is the laptop letting me know it likes to run on a/c whenever possible)

Since i noticed the issue, it hasnt returned - AW tech said it was probably static and to call 'em back if it persists.

Someone did mention something about a "power drain" whereby i should take the battery out, remove a/c (i presume) and press the on button .....i guess to "drain" any residual current that is lurking.

Anyway, until i notice it again, i suppose im ok really....just being new to AW (and pc's generally) i wasnt sure how to proceed with it.

Any more advice gratefully received....

All this and i STILL havent stuck a game on it yet....tsk

 

I have completely solved both problems. To stop those messages from appearing I have disabled OSD's notifications on the taskbar.
Second issue is the battery- when I see it stops charging I lift the lappy a little take the battery out for a second (while still turned on and on ac power) and then put the battery back. It starts charging immediately. This is not my idea- someone else had posted this but I don't remember who. Anyway, it's working

 

I fix mine by just unplugging my power from the back of the laptop and plugging it back in. Fixed it everytime so far.

 

Hi Stevie

I have noticed this message a few times and hit F1 and everything worked normal after that. I think the laptop is checking too quickly for the correct charger on boot up and the charger may not have had enough time to regulate the correct current and voltage. A microsecond later the laptop recognizes the charger and everything is fine. Also not everyone in the UK has exactly the same voltage some may be a few volts higher or lower and this may throw off the boot up check for charger. Also make sure that the charger prong is clean.

 

Thanks for that.

I noticed too that when i boot on battery power, i have to hit f1 to continue or f2 to setup....f1 just boots without a/c and probably more efficient than all out performance on a/c - must say, i havent had a repeat of my initial post (which was whilst computer on and batt running low, i plugged the charger in and it said non-dell a/c, will continue on batt power). I make sure that i dont touch the prong and its clean and it has worked fine since, yeah a bit of a lag whilst the m17x recognises it and the icon on the taskbar starts to show that it is indeed charging but this is a second or 2 only - i can live with that and as you say, is likely to be down to different voltages and recognition of them i guess.

If you look at my other post for a/v software, you will also i made some changes regarding that too.....kind of on the back of your infor about this subject - so thanks in advance for that too!

 

I received an new R2 in early June and was surprised by this as well, especially when it is such a common issue and Tech Support starts by saying they know nothing about it - -

I updated the Command Center to the 6/17/2010 V. 2.5.54.0, A07
I updated the OSD to the 5/5/2010 V. 1.13, A03
Disabled the BIOS warning for non-supported ps

Now, I can get though a whole day w/o the message. There are times where OSD still kicks a "power on battery not charging error." I have found that powering down, pulling the batt and replacing (not even discharging comp), and reconnecting ps before powering up has worked.

 

As long s it doesnt keep coming up thats fine....what i dont want to happen is find that months down the line, im suffering from it all the time and that Dell still say they know squat about it!

 

Very interesting info here - I wonder, it sounds like this is just an issue with OSD only. Anyone see this with OSD uninstalled?

 

I have OSD running on the task bar (v 113) and although i did notice this one of the very 1st times i charged the laptop, it hasnt occurred since and i havent done anything to try and rectify this....it does take a split second to recognise that its on ac juice, for the icon in the task bar to start to charge but once its doing so its fine.

Havent had the problem since so im crossing my fingers!

 

My did that today for the first time, said that my adapter wasn't the correct one and would continue on battery power. I unplugged it and plugged it back in and now it seems to be working again.

 

seems odd that so many of us are having the same intermittent issue....there must be something behind it happening, i mean a reason for it......

 

Are you guys all running the most recent releases of the BIOS? I had this problem on an M17xR2 here at work and I was able to resolve by flashing from A02 to A05. Engineering is continuing to investigate this issue as well...

 

I am running the latest Bios A05, alienware tech support updated it as I had issues with my battery then I had the problem with the adapter about a week later.

 

Actually both issues happen regardless of the bios version. I for one can confirm that i can reproduce those on A05.

When i say both issues i mean (OSD Version 113, BIOS A05, latest CC) :

1. Power adapter not recognized warnings of the OSD
2. Battery not charging after connecting the power adapter (not a Fn+F2 issue, all three modes of Fn+F2 don't help)

 

Im running A05 according to my laptop..........and OSD v113

 

Stevie I have two charges, one at work and one at home. This morning I got that dreaded message again that it did not recognize the charger. I selected the option to change settings and which went into the BIOS. Than selected the power options. Than selected the option to turn notification of AC adapter OFF. Hopefully I won't see it again.

 

Might not be a good idea. I know with my R1, if you didn't power cycle the power adapter to get the message to go away and the adapter to be properly recognized, that the system would only run on battery power until you did so. I would keep an eye on your power icon and make sure you're never running on battery (in case the BIOS setting only makes the warning stop, but not allow A/C to be used still).

 

Yeah, i heard you could turn off the notification under power settings....to be honest, it worried me at first, but as i now know that its just the systems' way of letting you know performance = a/c power, then i can live with booting from battery with 2 beeps and the choice.

Annoying as it may be, I would prefer to leave it as it is as it wont mess with what its supposed to do.....regarding the a/c not recognised, since my first post, whhere it only occured the once, i havent had a repeat and its been on and off of a/c power for many boots.....maybe this is just the way of things but i would have expected better from a £2500 laptop but as long as it does what it says on the "tin", im a happy chappy.

 

Greetings,
I would strongly recommend not running A04/A05 (depending on your revision) as they do have a known issue with power adapter recognition. Keep in mind that the system will either switch to battery or lower the performance after the message is displayed. Although power cycling will get the message to go away, it will have intermittent issues.

Thanks,
Gabe

 

I think Dell has gone to great lenghts to protect the integrity of the power supply.

1) blue light to warn customers if PSU fails
2) boot sequence halted on battery start up
3) power supply options are very limited.
4) no longer can you run battery down to 1% as with older power schemes

The vast majority of people buying an Alienware M17x R2 probably use it pluged in rather than rely on battery. Batteries even if not used frequently have a short life span of say 12-18 months. Dell warranties their computers for say 3 years in some case. Lets assume 24 months from now the average Alienware battery purchased today has say 25% life left. Than lets assume someone draws that down under load to say 10%. Now you have a recipe for disaster where the system may fail from flucuating voltage and current and Dell is on the hook for the warranty. I think the systems is very sensative to power flucuations and this in part is why they have so many problems with 5870 CF and stable drivers.

 

Just wondering, if running on a/c all the time, is there a need to have the battery inserted? - does running on a/c with the battery in mean that its constantly trying to charge itself even though the majority of the time it would be at 100%? - does this cause any harm to the battery or shorten its life span??

Also, my r2 obviously shipped with A05 installed so why would i want to NOT run it? - if Dell installed it as a factory standard, surely there isnt cause to change to a previous version?

 

Running on AC does wear your battery and while taking it out is a solution a much simpler one is to stop it from charging using Fn+F2

 

Ahhhhh!!! i see! - does this just turn off the battery from charging then or does it do anything else which affects things?

 

Stevie I think we think a lot alike. High charge levels and elevated temperatures hasten permanent capacity loss. You might get about 350-500 charges and that is roughly 12-18 months. Your laptops however should give you at least 3 years service maybe more if well taken care of. Inside your laptop the temperatures are about 110F and this shortens the life of batteries. They say you are suppose to excercise the battery and draw it down at least once every three weeks.

Also your battery needs to be calibrated which is done by allowing a full discharge cycle and than a full recharge cycle. Full discharge means down to the prescribed limit rather than 0%. Short battery life is caused more by heat than charge cycles. If you don't calibrate as prescribed than the battery meter becomes unlrealiable. Cords fall out of laptops easily so best to leave the battery in place.

Even if you don't charge the battery it will still have a short life due to the excessive heat issue. No way of getting around it.

 

Nothing else, it just prevents the battery from charging.
I usually disconnect the power charger at night when the laptop is sleeping,and slowly drains the battery. when i see that it reaches low levels i Fn+F2 to charge it to 100% and then stop it from charging again.

 

Right! - so disabling the battery stops it from charging when on a/c....then enable it and disconnect a/c and run it down....

Does it cause any probs if the battery runs out while the laptop is on??

 

you don't need to enable the battery to use it, you just enable it to charge it.
No, it doesn't cause any problems.

 

Yup, we do think alike! - as i got this as a desktop replacement, its unlikey (but not impossible) that it will be getting out much....more than likely it will stay at home, so it will be on a/c juice most of the time....i will though, as you quite correcly say, run the battery down from time to time as i have done in the past to condition it and maximise its life.
You mention "prescribed" limits? - what would this be for the R2? - does it not allow you to run the battery down to 0%? (i guess if not, then this is a safety measure.....i presume that if thats the case and the battery does get that low, the laptop shuts itself down to prevent loss???)

PS - still not had any repeats of non dell a/c or not charging......

One of thee days, I WILL actually put a game on this thing! LOL

 

Hi Stevie

I found this interesting post on Dells site. Because there are two different power adaptors for these systems depending on the GPU configuration it sounds like the system gets mixed up as to which it is running.

Power adapter warning at boot
* Press F2 to get in Bios. you will see the watts are 193
* Unplug and replug the A/C adapter from the laptop. You will see the watts go to 240
* Press F10 and boot to windows
* Turn off Integrated and Hybrid graphics as low power has reenabled it for you (this last step would only apply to R1)

M17x R2 - Alienware Forum - Alienware Club - Dell Community

Here is the answer to your question about low charge. I think it is a voltage measure per cell.

How to prolong lithium-based batteries

 

Actually, there are more than 2 different adapters because I know of at least 2 different 240W adapters that Dell may provide. I have both in hand. Also, the low end adapter is not 193W, so it's not confused in that regard. The BIOS appears to be misunderstanding the power adapter signal because my R2 does not get the error with either adapter, and the R1 BIOS <A04 also doesn't get the error. They need to fix their coding error in the BIOS.

 

Hi Falcon

So, interesting reading there......i will try it out and see what happens.....specifically, do we know what adaptor should be provided for x/f 5870's? - are there any discernable markings on it to differentiate it from others?

Again, lots of questions for a newbie....seems that something so straightforward should be so confusing....surely if a power adaptor works , it works...d'ya get me?

 

Dual cards 240W
Single cards 140W

 

Extreme processor also bumps you up to the 240W.

 

My adaptor says 100 -240v on its reverse.....it also says rev A01....anything to do with bios here?....

 

That's volts, not watts..

 

I think you guys are getting your volts and watts mixed up....mains power is measured in volts NOT watts......therefore, mains is either 100/110v or 230/240v depending on where you are..in the UK its 230/240 mains ... US its lower , more like 100/110v....

When i boot and go into F2 setup and select power options, it shows my adaptor as 240v...nothing about watts......

 

???

 

OOOPPPS!!!.....my mistake.....sorry....volts watts amps milliamps ohms....so easily confused lol

Ok, so to correct myself....the power options on my r2 says 240 W whenever i check when the a/c is on....havent done any revisions or updates or fixes....have yet to see it showing 193 or anything other than 240....looks like i have the power supply for the dual gpu's i guess......and no sign of any more bother about not charging etc etc......sorry for my error!