[Lieuwe]

Hello all,

I have a Dell Inspiron 1525, which suddenly died, while it was in use.
Rebooting does nothing, POST is not completed, so the BIOS won't start up. Num lock and scroll lock are permanently lighted and caps lock is flashing. I found some diagnostic codes lists, which suggest a memory error, but replacing the memory doesn't help. I also replaced the cell coin battery on the motherboard, but the problem still exists. Battery or AC-power doesn't make any difference.
Most weird: when it is down for about a day, it completes the POST after booting. I was able to view the BIOS, but after a couple of seconds the laptop went out.

Does anybody have any new suggestions?

Thanks!

[Advertisements]

Most likely your charging circuit has been damaged somehow. Perhaps it is just your power supply. You can test the output with a cheap harbor freight voltage tester to see if it is putting out the right voltage. If not that is the problem, battery is almost dead and the charger is not working. If voltage is good on the charger you probably have a damaged circuit on the motherboard. Also check the battery with the voltage tester.

http://tech-tips-ire...op-charger.html

http://www.briteccom...p-charger-test/

How to check a laptop battery.

http://www.g-battery...p-batteries.htm

SRX660

[SRX660]

Most likely your charging circuit has been damaged somehow. Perhaps it is just your power supply. You can test the output with a cheap harbor freight voltage tester to see if it is putting out the right voltage. If not that is the problem, battery is almost dead and the charger is not working. If voltage is good on the charger you probably have a damaged circuit on the motherboard. Also check the battery with the voltage tester.

http://tech-tips-ire...op-charger.html

http://www.briteccom...p-charger-test/

How to check a laptop battery.

http://www.g-battery...p-batteries.htm

SRX660

[Lieuwe]

Here are the test results. I performed three test.
1: The output of the charger is about 19.6 volts; according to the lable on the charger it must be 19.5 volts. No problem I think.
2: The "AC ripple" gives an interesting result: the output is about 3.5 volts; according to the article that is too much. Can this be the cause of the problem?
3: The battery output is about 11.3 volts, where Dell says it must be 11.1. No problem I think.

This leaves only the AC ripple problem.
What to do now? Will another charger solve the problem? Or are some electical circuits on the motherboard damaged? And why won't the laptop boot on just the battery?

Thanks for your help, SRX660!

[SRX660]

If the battery seems good and the charger is putting out the voltage it needs, then the ripple effect had damaged the motherboard and that will cost more than buying a new laptop(or close to it). If you are still under warranty or have an extended warranty, now is the time to use it.

SRX660