Series 5 no battery detected after opening bottom panel

Hello everyone,

I've recently been researching whether or not I could upgrade the WiFi card in my Series 5 Ultrabook (NP540u3c-A03UB), and before I decided to buy the new card, I wanted to see if I'd actually be able to access the old one. So I removed all the screws (I did press the emergency pin and made sure the power was off) and started going around the bottom cover with a thin credit card. There weren't very many videos on this so I didn't know how deep I could go. I actually ending up cracking the cover near the ethernet port so I thought I should stop. I put it all back together and plugged my power back in. Now the power is working on my laptop, but it says no battery detected. Did I accidentally disconnect something? If so how easy would it be to fix. I'm scared to go back under there now.

Thanks

 

It shouldn't be easy to accidentally disconnect the battery. Does the computer keep running of you pull out the mains power plug?

Have you tried the basic step of turning the computer off and then on? I have a Dell Latitude 10 tablet which sometimes tells me that there is no battery in spite of running on battery (I don't think it contains another magical internal power source)!

If the computer doesn't run without being plugged into the mains then the battery is disconnected. One possibility is that the battery disconnect switch didn't automatically reconnect. I hope you didn't poke it too hard.

John

 

Hi there,

Yes, I've tried turning it back off and on, and the computer doesn't turn on unless I'm plugged in.
I'm guessing it does have something to do with the disconnect switch. I'm gonna go down there and see if I get a good click feel from it being depressed.

Thanks,
Ryan

 

We did have one member who poked too hard on that disconnect switch and caused damage (I'm sure that's what John was referring to). But in case your switch stuck in the disconnect state, you could try and poke it again (firmly, but not too hard) and see if that makes it snap back.

 

Hi, so I do feel it snapping back, but I'm still getting no battery detected. I feel it still may be damaged... I had used an staple cause I didn't have any paperclips so maybe the staple poked through the rubber in the switch? Was there any solution for the guy who did it before?

Edit: The laptop runs just fine on AC power... are there any "hold the power button for xx seconds" tricks I can try?

Edit2: I've been playing around with the disconnect switch and it really does feel fine (using a paperclip this time, and I've never used too much force on it)--which makes me think it's some connection to the mobo. So what are my options for repair? Just local guys who will overcharge me?

 

The evidence points to the disconnect switch not reconnecting.

Did you try poking it gently when power is connected? Ideally with the bottom of the computer facing downwards so that gravity is also helping.

John

 

Should the laptop be turned on or off for this? and am I actually pressing the button? or just prodding to see if the battery icon comes back.

 

The advantage of having the computer turned on is to be able to see if it briefly reconnects when you poke the switch.

John

 

Right. Well I tried that last night to no avail. I purchased some prying tools online and when they get here (Saturday I'm assuming) I'm going to see if I can epoxy the crack near the ethernet port and see if there's anything I can do about the disconnect switch. If not, do you think replacing the back cover and/or battery might do the trick? I've seen replacements like these on ebay for my model...

 

I don't think that changing the back cover will achieve anything.

The battery disconnect switch is the prime suspect and, if your computer is like the Series 9, then the switch is build into the battery so you have to replace the battery. However, first give the switch a closer examination once you get the bottom off the computer.

John

 

Open up the service door. From there you can barely see the Battery connector going into the mainboard. There might be some tape covering it. Make sure Its fitted correctly. Remember the battery is at the front, beneath the touchpad so the cable will go towards the mainboard pretty much at the middle. Right beside the screw you took out to open the service door.
My guess is that It got unhooked when you tried to open the bottom housing.

It is possible to reseat the cable without taking off the bottom, but you will have to remove the HDD and two (NP530/5) or three (NP540) screws to loosen the bottom around the area where the cable is.

 

Thanks, although I had already checked this connection, and it was fine. Just now, however, before I had a chance to get back into the bottom again, my battery has reconnected on its own. For anymore more knowledgeable than I am about these Samsung batteries--was there some sort of 48 hour thing going on? In other words, was there something I did (and can avoid doing in the future) that made the battery stay disconnected for this amount of time?

Thanks again for all the responses.

 

That's good news that it decided to work. I would avoid touching the battery disconnect switch again.

The switch must be a relatively small and delicate mechanism and perhaps yours (possibly a little damaged if you poked it too hard) needed the right alignment of the planets as well as electrical power to get it to connect.

John

 

Ahh spoke too soon, it's disconnected again. Come back planets, come back!

 

Alright final update on this topic: my battery connectivity eventually became reliable on its own and now I'm not getting disconnected at all. Also I was able to install the Intel 7260 ac card today and had no problems with the battery disconnect switch this time. It is now working as it should.

 

Thanks for the further update.

I have to wonder whether you had pushed the switch a bit hard the first time around and it took its time to get to the correct operating position.

John