My 1555 a/c power adaptor is HOT and BUZZING?!

Hi all,

I received my 1555 today and am absolutely over the moon. Trying to installing Windows 7 RC on at the moment and apart from some small hiccups - due to user erroor everything is going smoothly. BUT

From the moment I plugged in the a/c power adaptor I noticed that every so often it produces a buzzing noise? It happens every 20sec to 1min or so and last between 1sec to 10sec each time. Does anyone's do that? Not only that, it gets pretty hot as well, when I put my hand on it(on the label side) it feels really hot, in fact so hot that I have to take my hand off unless I 'made' myself stay there. Is this normal?

Please advise me on this as I'm getting quite concern that it might catch fire or blow up...

Thank you very much.

 

I'd speak to Dell about that power supply; it should not be buzzing like that.

As I said in another thread, make sure you try it in another power outlet, just to rule that out. I seriously doubt it's the problem, but can't hurt to make sure.

 

Thank you for replying to my post.....again I'll definitely ring them tomorrow. Should I call the sales rep I bought from or do they have a aftersales dept?

How hot does yours get?

 

I second fragilexx on this one - talk to dell as soon as possible. having lost televisions this way (long story) I'd get that checked out ASAP, not to mention that power adaptors have a history of fire-starting. I don't want to scare you out of electronics owning in general, but I'd definitely sort out any power source issues as soon as possible.

 

Call Dell and have it replaced I had one for my XPS M1330 adapter that did that and had to have it replaced.

 

For your own safety I'd probably also advise against using it until you've spoken with Dell.

 

Thank you everyone. I've unplugged the adaptor now and will call Dell first thing tomorrow.

 

And to answer your question, the heat generated from mine is so little that after using it all day, 30 seconds after unplugging it you'd be hard pressed to know it had been used so heavily before hand.

 

If i put my powebrick to my ear I can hear a faint buzz, but we're talking very faint. And its cool enough that I can put it against my face without worry... haha

 

In that case, there's definitely something wrong with mine... I wonder how long it'd take a new one to arrive?

 

Well if you tell them that you need to use the computer desperate for whatever reason they might express it out to you

 

They'll send it pretty quick anyway, because at the moment you could send the entire machine back and ask for a refund. When you are in that position still they tend to move pretty fast.

 

From my past experiences with Dell they usually ship next day business

 

I got a adaptor/power cord and power button assembly in 3 days...

 

Goodness! What a customer experience!

I called up technical support this morning and explained the situation. They said that I'd need my adaptor replaced and I could either have a 'refurbished' one sent with a next day service or a 'brand new' one from the factory which will arrive within 5 to 7 working days...

Well neither are good for me really, I naturally prefer a new one coz this is a new laptop but 5-7 working days is just too long to wait. I persisted for a while but they wouldn't budge so I reluctantly settle for this option.

The more I thought about it the more annoyed I was so I called up customer care this time and told them that I want to return my laptop coz I bought extra warranty as well and this kind of service is just not good enough. The manager came on the phone and agreed to send me a brand new replacement straightaway and will only take two days.

I'm quite satisfied....for now. Let wait and see what happen. You never know, call me a pessimist but perhaps neither of them would turn up.

 

The first operator obviously hadn't grasped that you would and could return your notebook and get a refund. Told you that as soon as they got that, they'd be pretty quick about it.

 

My S1555's power adapter is very hot to the touch when I use the notebook while it's plugged in. If the notebook is off and its charging, it's barely warm though.

I haven't noticed any buzzing with this one, but my old power adapter with my inspiron 6000 buzzes.

 

A little heat is the norm for most AC adapters when plugged in but the buzzing would make me worry.

 

So both of these adaptors have been serving you well?

There is no way I'm going to leave my laptop alone until the new adaptor comes. I think I'll charging the battery with the laptop off and/or using the laptop whilst leaving it plugged it with the battery removed. See if they'd make any difference.

From my experience, with any power adaptors, a little heat and buzzing is expected but NOT so hot that I can't touch!

Special thanks to Fragilexx, only after reading your comment I called them back about returning it and they got their act together.

Will report back...

 

re: the 1555, it's not so hot that I can't touch it, but it is hot. This is when I have it plugged in and am using at the same time.

When the system is off, and it is plugged in and charging, it is barely warm. It clearly seems to be working much harder powering and charging the notebook simultaneously.

re: the inspiron 6000, I've had it for almost 4 years now. the power adapter buzzes, but I've never had any problem with it.

 

A power brick that buzzes all the time is one thing, but one that comes on and off like the op said, that is different, doesn't sound fully right. Also, yes some heat can be expected. Mine does not get hot at all, but again, to the extent that you can't hold it, then that is too hot.