Ninth Circle of Dell

So after having pretty well established that getting my old 7567 battery charging fixed would involve a motherboard replacement, I started searching around for a new laptop. I found an open box special at a local retailer for a ridiculously low price, and of course it was a Dell. But it was just too good a bargain to pass up, and in many ways it was just what I was looking for. The problem was it didn't have a power adapter.

For some reason I assumed since the laptop had a different connector, I wouldn't have to deal with the charger identification nonsense that I had to deal with on my old laptop. Boy, was I wrong. I bought a generic adapter from said retailer and I ran into some of the same problems I had had before; it would power the laptop, but would not charge the battery.

Fortunately this new laptop had a USB-C connector. I found that the bloody laptop *would* charge with a 65w USB charger connected - sort of. For some reason the Dell only recognizes the charger as a 60w charger, even though it is really a 65w charger. I get a BIOS message during POST that the connected adapter is only 60w, but the laptop requires a 65w adapter. It will top off the battery and power the laptop, but the CPU throttles during high usage.

Here are the new laptop's model number and specs:

Dell Inspiron 15" 7000 2-in-1 (model 7586)
Intel i7-8565u
Nvidia MX150 2GB
16GB DDR4-2400 RAM
512GB Toshiba NVMe SSD
UHD 4K IPS 15.6" touchscreen display

For now I'm limping along on 7 out of 8 cylinders, but it would be nice to get my laptop performing at full power. Am I going to have to buy an adapter from Dell?

 

Not from dell, just one made for that laptop. I am using a 3rd party travel charger on my inspiron 13 5000 2 in 1 now as I type this. Keeps the laptop going full tilt. I suggest going to amazon, find the charger that is made for that model number and go from there. I bet that your laptop will charge and run fine after that.

 

Just for sh**s and giggles, I took it to a repair shop. He pretty much confirmed what I feared; the power chip on the motherboard is fried. It's still useful as a desktop, but I have more powerful hardware I can use for that purpose.

After visiting the shop, I went online and found an outfit called parts-people.com that claim the problem I'm experiencing is most likely related to the DC/power jack. At this point I'm not sure who to believe, nor am I eager to throw more money at this hunk o' junk. Has anyone heard of them, or had any experiences with them? They seem to specialize in Dell parts and repair.

 

...and I'm also considering option B - an external battery, with the proprietary Dell connector. It wouldn't be much heavier than the standard issue power brick, and if properly equipped can power the laptop and recharge itself at the same time while plugged into a wall outlet. It's the surest fix, but it means that lugging around a brick with an already heavy laptop is mandatory.

 

A lot easier to just replace the battery manager IC, its usually a BQ2xxxx from IT, it costs like 1-2€, and it takes 5 minutes to replace it with a decent hot air station with a heated bed.. Much better than thinkering around with a 19v battery(that is not all that common), plus you would still need to have a charging circuitry in that battery.

 

I'd do that, but I can't solder, much less microsolder. I'd send it to Louis Rossman, but he just does Macbooks. I'm also not having any luck finding a local shop that'll do IC replacements. All the runs I've checked will just replace the motherboard, which is worth about as much as a new laptop.

 

find a electronics repair centre in your area. One that works on boards etc. They can repair it easily. Don’t bother with Rossman. Last thing we need is him whining and cursing constantly about dell. It’s bad enough he’s constantly posted around complaining about Apple. Too bad, his message is correct. But man he’s painful to listen to.