Boot up problems

Averatec 3150P System (labtop) powers on, green light goes on, two adjacent blue lights come on, screen comes on, screen goes off, two blue lights go off, green light stays on. all in a matter of 1-5seconds. System goes no further. Any ideas as to what may be wrong-cause of the problem? Any ideas as to how to fix it?

 

Sounds like it is not getting past the POST. If the 3150 is like the 3250, when the AVERATEC screen comes up, hit the ESC (or TAB) key to see the POST. It may report an error.

 

This just got worst, the system now shows no signs of life. No fan or hard drive noise, no LEDs or LCD.

 

This is just a shot in the dark: is your charger charging the battery? Just had a cousin of mine with a brand new Toshiba - the charger wasn't charging the battery, so he unknowingly was using the lappy on the battery until it couldn't run anymore.

 

Ditatch the power cord and the battery from the notebook. With the notebook switched off, press and holf down the "on" button for up to 2 minutes.

Then put back the battery and AC power. Try again now.

Give it a try, it works sometimes for such problems.

 

Have tried powering on with: just the battery, just the adapter, and both together. Still no response. Too, the friend who gave me the labtop now says that, in one of her frustrating attempts to power the unit with the power adapter, "...there was a spark!" On question, did you connect the adapter to the wall socket before you plugged the adapter to the labtop? Answer, "Yes!" Since then, I had someone else say that they had burnt out their unit when they did the same thing. Might this "spark" have caused damage enough to incapacitate the unit completely? If so, where is my range-of-standing(s), now, as to possibilities for repair?

 

there could maybe be a possibility that your power brick could be dead, that way there would be no power to charge the batt or run the laptop.

 

Power grid? Where, what is it? Please expand.

 

Found the answer to my question:

(pow´&r brik) (n.) Also referred to as a transformer, an element of the external power supply for a notebook and/or laptop computer, used in conjunction with a battery pack. Since notebook computers rely on low-voltage DC, they need a way to convert the AC from a power source into DC that can be safely used by the computer. The power brick takes the AC voltage and converts it to a DC voltage slightly higher than the battery (the slight elevation in voltage ensures that the battery stays fully charged). Batteries normally supply the safe DC voltage to the portable computer, but power bricks are intended for use in conjunction with or instead of a mobile device’s battery.

Note Well: Unlike power supplies and voltage regulators for desktop computers, those for portable computers do not conform to any industry standards, so power bricks are not necessarily interchangeable among portable devices.

The power grid/transformer I am using with the labtop is not a 33150P adapter. It is one whose dc voltage can be adjusted from 8-24. After receiving your suggestion, I connected it to an external cdrom drive I have and it worked fine. I also tried an 18-24 adapter but that did not give life to the labtop either. In fact, the 8-24 adapter is the one I was using for the labtop when I originally received it, when the labtop 'was' powering on but not booting.

 

Thanks for the suggestion. I would not have thought of that myself. Will do and let you know how that turns out.

 

Ahhhhhhh .... so you are not using the original manufacturer's charger for the lappy! [ ]

In that case the best bet is to find someone with a similar model unit to yours and try their charger. Or go to a store that has your model on display and ask them to try their charger on your laptop.

 

The power source you are using may have the voltage needed, but it could not have the correct current rating. Which would mess with the computer.

 

You didn't do my advice correctly, read it again:

<blockquote id='quote'> quote:<hr height='1' noshade id='quote'>Originally posted by wipeout

 

Sorry 'wipeout', failed to mention that I'd tried your suggestion, with no luck. Nevertheless, thank you for your input.

 

So are you saying then that either the tip you were trying to use before did not fit right or that it might have been putting the reverse polarity into the system? I thought it used to work before?

 

UPDATE: Got it going fellas. If you promise not to laugh, I'll tell you what fixed it? Went to Best Buy to see if they had a 3150P unit so that I could ask to try out their 3150P adapter on my labtop. They did not have a 3150P, but the salesman suggested I try out a 'Valence Notebook Adapter Tip for N-Charge Power System NC-TP1' which they sold for $9.99 and is compatible with 3150P units-if it doesn't work you won't need to buy. IT WORKED!!!!! GO FIGURE. I don't understand how nor why the tip got it going but I don't care much. It's going. When I told the friend who'd given me the labtop, she kicked herself because someone had made the suggestion that she try to power it up with a similar item, and she did not because it seemed to her too simple a solution for it to work. Thanks for all your input.

 

It used to work before, in the sense that it powered on while the original owner still had it and was talking of possibly giving the unit to me. It powered on, but would not go any further. Whereas, it would not even power on for me once I got it home. As to whether the tip fit correctly or not, I am not sure. The circumference of the tip's outer circle might have correctly fit into the opening that provided access to the power connection, but at the same time, the inner circle might have been larger than the circumference of the power connection itself. I don't know for sure. What is truly odd is not just the fact that the adapter my friend used was the same when the unit was both fully functional, and not. But the fact that throughout the time she owned the unit, she used the same adapter as I am now using-an 8-24 transformer-which is the reason for my having purchased it. I did not at the time, nor since, nor plan to in the future, verify whether her adapter's tip is the same as my new tip, nor whether her adapter's tip would also get the unit going now. I will not test, add, nor change any accessory on the unit that is presently, successfully, performing its function. If it is not broken , don't fix it! Just as it is rule to remove the last peripheral added on to the system before it malfunctioned, it is a rule to not go back to doing what you'd been doing before the system was repaired. However, I don't believe the reason the unit is now fully functional belongs to the new tip alone, but to a combination of things I'd done in the past to get the unit going again. What might that combination of things be? I don't know. Neither do I know whether the polarity was the cause or reason for repair or disfunction. One joyous thing I do know, my friend will now regain access to the school and personal files she'd stored on the labtop's hard drive. No small gift.

 

I certainly agree with the "if it ain't broke ...." saying. Glad you got it fixed finally.

 

Could not have done it without the support and suggestions from all of you. I am immensely grateful. Thanks all.