The battery in my laptop starts charging normally. Then after a few seconds the LED turns off and the battery stops charging.
I have a problem with a Toshiba laptop model M55-S325. When I plug the power cord while the laptop is turned on it starts to charge and the AC power LED turns on as well as the charging LED. Then after a few seconds the charging LED turns off and the battery stops charging but the AC power LED stills on. If I unplug the power cord and plug it again it happens again.
I also noticed that this happens only while I’m in Windows. If I charge my laptop turned off it charges normal. Also during the boot and loading of Windows the charging is normal. I checked the power jack and I don’t thing the problem is there. I move the power cord while connected to check for failures in both the jack and the cable and in both cases the laptop turn off and on but nothing happened, everything is the same. What do you think the problem might be? Please help.
Can the laptop run just on the battery power, when the AC adapter is unplugged?
The problem with your laptops is very similar to a battery charging problem with some Toshiba Satellite A105 laptops. Almost the same symptoms. In case of Satellite A105 the problem could be resolved by upgrading the BIOS version. I think it might work for your laptop too. Go to Toshiba tech support website and download the latest BIOS for your model. It looks like at this moment the latest version is v2.10
You mentioned that the charging problem occurs only in Windows. I think it might be somehow related to Toshiba Power Saver software. Try to reinstall the power saver.
If upgrading the BIOS version and reinstalling the power saver software will not help, you might have a hardware problem. In Satellite M55 the battery connects directly to the system board. So, it might be either the battery failure or the system board failure. The best way to test it is finding a spare battery and test the laptop with the new battery installed.
December 16th, 2006 at 10:45 am
Alex,
Did you try reseating the battery? It’s possible that contacts oxidized and the battery will not make a good connection with the system board. Otherwise, it sounds like you have a dead battery and have to replace it.
There is another small battery inside the laptop – RTC (CMOS) battery. This battery is responsible for keeping the BIOS settings and time when the laptop is unplugged. You didn’t use this laptop for 5 months and the battery got completely discharged. You said that you loosing time. Does it happen when the laptop is unplugged from the wall or you loosing time even when the laptop is plugged? Keep the laptop plugged for 2-3 days and after that check if you still loosing time. It’s possible that you’ll have to replace the RTC (real time clock) battery too.
December 16th, 2006 at 12:35 am
My battery won’t charge even though the computer says it is charging.
I have a Compaq Presario 2100, and it has always charged and the battery had always run well. I recently came into posession of a new laptop, so I had been using that laptop for about 5 months. My new laptop had a trojan, I couldn’t clean up my firewall because the trojan messed it up so much, I went to play around in the registry, and now the computer won’t go to windows anymore…whoops…
So I went back to my old laptop. It was completely dead as I thought it would be, but when I plugged it in to the AC adaptor it would fire up immediately. The battery charging icon is up, and it says 0% remaining (charging). The battery charging light is on. The only problem is the battery never charges. I will leave it on all day to come back and find that it is still at 0% remaining, and if I turn the computer off and attempt to turn it back on without the AC plug in, the computer doesn’t even try to turn on.
At this same time I have also noticed my clock is losing time drastically. I’m talking 1 minute for every ten minutes of real time. I went to work for five hours and came back to find my laptop was behind by two hours. I thought they might be related.
I tried to use the Windows XP battery optimizer but it never went anywhere. I left it on for a good 7 hours and it never moved past 0% completion. The only other weird thing is the battery charging light will turn off for a second at about ten to twenty minute intervals.
That is all the relevant information I can think of, so if you could please help me that would be great. Thank you in advance.
December 14th, 2006 at 7:17 pm
Spiff,
Check if the LED lights flicker when you move or wiggle the power plug. May be you have a loose power jack?
Remove the battery and start the laptop from the AC adapter. Will it die if you move the power plug or it just dies by itself without any pattern?
December 13th, 2006 at 8:38 am
Come to think of it, I didn’t mention this. The laptop DOES power. Mostly after having just died and reset as a result of running out of power. It can run without the battery, but it dies sometimes out of the blue.
December 13th, 2006 at 8:20 am
Hey. I think I have a similar problem with my laptop. Here’s all my information:
I’m using an eMachines M6811 which has worked fine for me for about fifteen months. I started having some problems with an AC adapter at one point, which I fixed myself with some solder. Worked fine for a number of months afterward. Eventually it got goofy again, and bi-daily soldering jobs were getting tiresome, so I got a new adapter. This thing worked for about two weeks before the end was cut cleanly from the rest of the cable, as if it had overheated to the point where it just melted off. I got yet another, and now I’m finding weird patterns of charging/discharging. First off, whenever my adapter is connected, my computer does indeed know it’s there. All the LED lights are on, and the charge meter on my computer says that the battery is charging. However, I am in fact LOSING power. I checked, and the output on my adapter is compatible with this machine in both voltage and amperage. My laptop is dying as I type this. Does this sound like a battery issue, a mainboard issue or an adapter issue?
December 12th, 2006 at 2:44 pm
Laptop switching to battery power while turned on with AC adaptor.
Model: Toshiba Satellite A70-TS100E
Hi,
I was wondering if you could help me in identifying the cause of this problem:
While turned on, the laptop will switch to battery power even if connected with the AC adaptor (sometimes during boot-up, or after a while) until the battery drains out, he then goes to hibernation. (the battery light is off)
If no battery in the laptop, it will shut down, and the AC light will blink very fast.
The battery (li-ion) will only charge up to 10%, where it then jumps right up to 100%,
And will discharge from 100% to 90% then jump to 0%,
I’ve published this comment and possible soution here: Laptop switching to battery power while turned on with AC adaptor
December 4th, 2006 at 3:59 am
My Toshiba Satellite M35X was dropped, the ac connector broke away from the system board. I have soldered it back on but now the machine will only work with the ac adapter plugged in. The green lighit comes on to indicate a full charge and power manager says battery is at 100% but it wont start with only battery power, no activity at all. works with battery removed but shows no lights exept power on. HELP!
November 29th, 2006 at 5:41 pm
After downloading updated power saving software my Toshiba M45 stop charging the battery. What I did to fix the probem was to use my sons newer laptop to charge the battery. Everything works fine now. The battery has some circuit board and must shut down the charging circuit. The battery was at 1% and nothing I tried would let it charge. The charging light now comes on and with my son’s battery. I was able to charge his battery on my laptop. I switched back the battery and I worked just like before. I also download the current bios but, it did not work until I switched batterys.
November 26th, 2006 at 12:23 am
Tim,
Yes, it should work just fine. The laptop also should work from the AC adapter even if you remove the battery.
I would try removing the battery and start the laptop just from the AC adapter. Also, find a multimeter and test if the adapter gives you any voltage. May be the adapter is bad.
November 25th, 2006 at 10:26 am
Hi,
I’ve got An older HP zt1155 laptop thats been sitting around for around 8 months, it worked great when my brother first gave it to me 3 yrs ago the battery needed replaced even at that time but never was, I’ve been opperating it w/ the a/c power supply until the screen started flickering and then ultimately shutting
off (just the screen if I remember correctly) now after 8 months it won’t power up at all no lights nothing. Now my question is will the laptop work with a completely dead battery while
plugged into the a/c adapter? I know some electronics will not. Thanks, Tim
November 17th, 2006 at 7:49 am
I am fairly shure it’s not the power jack. no lights go off when I wiggle it. It’s something dirrectly related to when the charger rises 1-3% I can hear a relay of some sort click and then the charge light just flashes. When I turn it on and watch the meter in windows it hapens exactly when it chages %. grrrrr
November 16th, 2006 at 10:55 pm
Jay,
Check if the power jack (the part where you plug the AC adapter) is properly connected to the motherboard. On some models (not sure about Compaq 1210US) the power jack might get loose overtime, the solder between the power jack legs and the motherboard cracks and you might get all kind of problems with power, including the battery charge issues. Here’s my post about power jack related problems. If that’s the case, you’ll have to resolder the jack.
Plug it the AC adapter and wiggle the power plug and look at the LED lights. Do they flicker when you move the power plug? Does the battery start/stop charging then you wiggle the adapter plug?
November 16th, 2006 at 10:15 pm
I have a Compaq 1210US and I bought a new battery. Actually I bought 2 1 for me and 1 for a friend with a similar laptop but not the exact same model. However both of our laptops used the same model battery. My friend put his in and his worked fine, but of course mine did not. The charging light will blink 4 to 5 times then go solid and begin charging, after the percent charged changes on windows the light will flash and quit charging. I have tried everything I can think of. This happens with the laptop on or off, I swapped batteries and power supplies (in separate stages and together.. I have tested every possibility). Everything works fine on his but not on mine. I have upgraded the bios, and I just bought a charging circuit and ripped apart my laptop and installed it, and still the same problem. The only thing I can’t be sure of is the circuit I just bought b/c it was from e-bay. Please help the only way I can charge my laptop is to plug it in and unplug it, wait for the AC light to turn off plug it in let it charge until the light starts flashing, and repeat the process 60 more times…. any ideas???
November 15th, 2006 at 7:59 pm
Tim,
Looks like you have a problem with the motherboard. The AC adapter and the battery plugs directly into the motherboard. You replaced the battery and tested the laptop with another AC adapter, so it must be a faulty motherboard. Check if there is an update for the BIOS. Try re-flashing the BIOS. You should find instructions for the BIOS update on the Dell website.
November 14th, 2006 at 4:37 pm
I have a Dell Latitude C640 that ran perfectly for about 2 years. For some reason now the battery will only charge when the Laptop is on…..I have purchased a new battery and that didn’t help. I also tried a new Dell A/C Adapter to no avail. The battery charges to 100% and lasts a long time as long as it is done when the Laptop is on….when I turn it off….the grren light on the side slowly flashes for a few seconds and then it goes blank. Any help would be greatly appreciated. Thanks. – Tim
November 9th, 2006 at 11:01 pm
HI everyone
i have a problem with my sony PCG-TR3AP. This laptop fell and broke a small plastic on the right-front side near the USB port but no damage to the board.
I dont know if this issue is related since when i got this laptop it has the following issue:
when plugged into power, the battery shows that its charging. I leave it turned on overnight and turn it on in the morning, it goes fine for couple of seconds, then the Power and battery light on the front start blinking (maybe noting the battery is dying). then shuts down after certain time.
The main thing is that, if i remove the battery, the laptop doesnt turn on whatsoever…. the battery has to be there to turn on, otherwise there is no life.
I was told it might be the power regulator or power adapter…i tried another sony adapter… and no luck.
anyone can help with info on the power regulator? or some other component?”
thanks in advance.
Mike
does anyone hga
November 9th, 2006 at 9:04 pm
Hey! Thanks for the response and the help. It’s worth a try to me and to my client.
I’ve taken notebooks apart before, and even put them back together successfully!
But, I’m more experienced in regular desktop type machines. Ultimately. we don’t
have much to lose and everything to gain. In the end, may have to send it off to Toshiba
anyway. It’s out of warranty, so … it’s worth a try. I’ll drop you a note if successful!
Thanks again.
November 9th, 2006 at 6:47 pm
Chris,
Here’s a disassembly guide for Toshiba Satellite M35X notebook (www.irisvista.com), it’ll help you to get to the system board. I cannot show you a location, but I know the CMOS battery is located on the motherboard and can be easily removed (after you remove the motherboard from the notebook). Take a look at the step 19, I believe the battery is located on the opposite side.
I’m not sure if removing the BIOS battery will help you to erase the BIOS password. I’ve never cleared the BIOS password on Satellite M35X before.
November 8th, 2006 at 9:43 pm
Greetings! I have a Toshiba Sat MX35-S114, and I need to get at the CMOS battery onboard the MB, to disable the Bios Setup password, like on regular desktop machines. Can you tell me where on the MB it is located, and can it be temp removed??? Have tried everything else, including upgrading Bios, to no avail. Customer has no clue what the password is … So, I figure this is the only way, short of sending it in, which is definitely not an option. Thanks, in advance. Blessings! Chris
November 7th, 2006 at 9:36 am
Rick,
It’s not a minor change. The RTC (CMOS) battery is located on the system board and it’s necessary to open the laptop case in order to replace the battery. I would recommend to send the laptop in.
November 7th, 2006 at 6:05 am
I just got a M45-S2629 Toshiba Satellite Laptop, and having a issue with the internal battery,and it won’t keep time when I turn unit off, and I called Tech support, and was advised to send laptop in, and I would recieve it in 2 – 3weeks.
I was wondering if someone can guide me in doing this minor change myself?
Much THANKS in advance
November 6th, 2006 at 7:48 am
Just like Hayden Katz, I am having the exact same problem w/my 9110s (I’ve got two of them). In reading the other forums, it is a comon problem w/the 9110s.
November 1st, 2006 at 12:45 am
Hi again,
Im gussing its the system board then since the battery lasts about half an hour with 50% charge. Since the laptop is so old a replacement battery isnt possible, and afterall, I did get this laptop for free anyway. It runs fine from the mains but a working battery would have been good too.
Thanks for your help.
October 31st, 2006 at 3:42 pm
Andy,
There could be a problem with the battery charge circuit on the system board, but most likely you just have a bad battery.
When a laptop battery is bad, it might take a long time to charge it up but as soon as you unplug the adapter, the battery discharges very quick, in some cases almost momentarily. Does it sound similar to your issue?
Unfortunately I cannot say witch one is causing the problem, the system board or the battery. The only way to test it is replacing the battery.
October 31st, 2006 at 2:19 pm
Hello,
I have a laptop that is relativly old, its a Triathalon model GN586. The battery seems to take an age to charge, but stops at 50%. It wont go past. This only started a few months ago. Ive tried another AC adaptor and that hasnt changed things. Ive checked for loose connections and everything seems fine. I can’t explain why it stops at 50% or takes an age to charge.
Andy ideas?
Thanks in advance.
October 30th, 2006 at 5:29 am
i want to learn about component level reapairing on line. can any one help me please. where i can find the learning metaril about component level reaprin. thanks.
October 27th, 2006 at 1:17 pm
Sorry Hayden,
I cannot help you with component level repair. It sounds like you have a problem on the system board.
BTW, just make sure that AC adapter outputs normal voltage.
May be the battery has no charge and the adapter is bad? It’s just a guess.
October 27th, 2006 at 1:54 am
I have a Compaq nx9110 laptop.
The first symptom was that the laptop would occasionally not charge. This could be fixed by removing and reinsterting the AC adaptor.
The problem escalated to the point where I would have to unplug the AC adapter, remove and reinsert the battery and then reinsert the AC adaptor.
Now, when I plug in the AC adapter, the charging light stays lit for approx 2-3 seconds, the dissappears. Not enough charge is present to turn the laptop on. The laptop will not power with or without the AC adapter.
After cracking the laptop open, reconnecting all essential parts on the kitchen table, and inserting the AC adapter, the light again lit for approx 2 seconds, after which I noticed a ticking sound. This seems to be centered somewhere near a voltage regulator in the charging circuit.
I have some electrical knowledge, but not enough to test the whole charging circuit from start to finish, I was wondering if you could point me to where I should start looking. The DC Jack on the back is seated fine, and conducts electricity quite well, I can see no obviously damaged components, and from limited testing experience, I can find no short circuits.
Cheers,
Hayden Katz
August 14th, 2006 at 9:46 pm
You know what? I have one more idea. That’s would be nice if you can find a second AC adapter, just for test. I think that you adapter might be defective and it doesn’t provide enough power to charge up the battery while the laptop is running. But it provides enough power for charging the battery while the laptop is off.
August 14th, 2006 at 9:05 pm
Yes the laptop works normaly when the AC adapter is unplugged and I downloaded both, the BIOS update and the Power Saver software and the problem stills there but now there’s a variation after a few times of trying to charge the battery it does charges so I don’t know what else I can do… Maybe I’ll try to borrow another battery to check if there’s a problem there