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    HP Pavilion lappy A/C Issue

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by Ariesjill, Oct 13, 2009.

  1. Ariesjill

    Ariesjill Newbie

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    Hi....haven't been here in years cause I have morphed into a little geek, and my 3 puters are always now POIFECT. lol

    This is on behalf on my friend; he has HP Pavilion DV6700 lappy, he thinks he bought in Jan of 09, but when I went to look for his warranty info, it said Jan of 08 expiring in Jan of 09. He thinks he keyed in the info wrong when he registered it online. Possible, given he is also running VISTA. lol

    Problem is: his A/C jack opening is surrounded by an LED bezel, which, when you plug in the adapter glows brite blue. He says suddenly the glow is very dim and the adapter is not charging/powering the lappy. His batt is still charged, but he naturally wants to conserve what charge remains.

    While he searches for his original receipt, I thought I would post.

    Given how badly designed many A/C lappy jacks are (tho not my Alienware's), what are the odds this is the jack versus the adapter per se, ya think? Why would an A/C adapter possibly die in under a year???

    He is not the sort who will go get a voltage tester to test the adapter, trust me on that.

    Thanks so much in advance for any and all feedback on behalf of my friend, John.
    Jill
     
  2. John Ratsey

    John Ratsey Moderately inquisitive Super Moderator

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    AC adaptors can die for what seem to be random reasons. However, they are first in line to receive any surges or spikes in the mains power and may die while protecting the computer from such nasties.

    Another way to cause them to appear to die is by being tidy and winding the power leads around the PSU. This causes fatigue in the wires where they come out of the PSU and they can eventually break. However, if there is still a dim light on the LED on the lead then I suspect the PSU itself.

    John
     
  3. Ariesjill

    Ariesjill Newbie

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    Thanks so much for these data, John! Also, only guys named John.....given that is also the name of my friend, are apparently qualified to respond in this thread. lol

    For once, I think I will chill until he gets the warranty issue cleared up and gets professional diagnosis, cause I think he is covered, he just has to prove it.....but I will be intensely interested to learn the accurate diagnosis!

    I never had an A/C adapter die, so just learning about that is really interesting.

    I will report back when I have stuff to report!

    Thanks again!
    Jill