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    Lights on but no one at home!

    Discussion in 'Hardware Components and Aftermarket Upgrades' started by vidfletch, Jul 10, 2011.

  1. vidfletch

    vidfletch Newbie

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    I have a friends Acer Aspire Timeline 4820T with me to try and fix. When you press the Power Button the Caps Lock and Num Lock lights flash once and the power light stays on but NOTHING else happens. It doesn't boot in in any way, screen doesn't light, no noises etc. After a minute or so the fan kicks in, so something is happening. The odd thing is that once in a while it will boot up and start when you switch it on.

    I have stripped it down and checked for anything obvious but nothing looks out of the ordinary. I have removed the RAM, hard drive, DVD drive, removed and replaced the CMOS battery etc, but no joy. I can only assume the board is dead.

    Any ideas?
     
    vidfletch, Jul 10, 2011
    #1
  2. Tsunade_Hime

    Tsunade_Hime such bacon. wow

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    Is it still under Acer warranty? A 4820T should be a relatively new model.

    You could try removing the battery and AC adapter and hold down the power button 30 seconds 2-3 times. Otherwise sounds like a bad motherboard.
     
    Tsunade_Hime, Jul 10, 2011
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  3. vidfletch

    vidfletch Newbie

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    It's not long out of warranty! Was working fine until one day he went to switch it on and it wouldn't. I've tried discharging too but no joy.
     
    vidfletch, Jul 10, 2011
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  4. ramgen

    ramgen -- Morgan Stanley --

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    Sounds like a dead mobo. Best bet is to find a salvaged mobo of the same model on ebay.


    --
     
    ramgen, Jul 10, 2011
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  5. naton

    naton Notebook Virtuoso

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    I'm just wondering....

    I saw a lot of laptops sold in ebay for spare or repair with the same symptoms as the OP. What are the chances that some of them don't boot because of a faulty/corrupted BIOS?
     
    naton, Jul 11, 2011
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  6. vidfletch

    vidfletch Newbie

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    I'll tell him to take it back to the shop he bought it from. UK law says it should last longer than just over a year, no matter what Acer's warranty is. The shop will fight it no doubt but so will he!
     
    vidfletch, Jul 11, 2011
    #6