[mckeelaw]

I bought a used presario laptop model 1510US 2 weeks ago, and it worked fine--battery lasted 2 hrs, etc.
Now, it only runs for about 10-20 mins then shuts off, but power light stays on--also, the battery shows 2% and "charging", but it never charges, it's always 2%. Several techs have looked at it, and i've talked to others, and no one has a clue. I tried an under-laptop cooler fan and even blew a room-sized fan on it--it still shut off. However, when I took out 1 memory chip (it has 2 256's), it ran all day. But eventually it shut down, and no matter what I do with the memory chips it still shuts down in 10-20 mins! Doesn't sound like HDD or memory, really. Could the mobo be damaged somehow? Or maybe it has a faulty solder on the mobo? I just don't know if it's worth fixing or even paying $75 to diagnose. Thanks for any help.

Presario 1510US, P4, 2.2gh, 512ram, 60g HDD, CDRW/DVD, 15" monitor.

[Advertisements]

Welcome to G2G mckeelaw

Could you tell me whether this problem occurs regardless of whether you are running the laptop from the battery or from AC power?

Do you have any way of checking the temperatures, both system & cpu temps? You may find this info in the bios.

When it shuts down, does it happen even when you are using the laptop at that precise moment & without warning? If not, (not being funny), but have you checked the power management settings?

Did anything at all change just before this problem started happening? e.g did you add any new hardware or software? Change any settings? Drop or bang the laptop in any way? etc

[Samm]

Welcome to G2G mckeelaw

Could you tell me whether this problem occurs regardless of whether you are running the laptop from the battery or from AC power?

Do you have any way of checking the temperatures, both system & cpu temps? You may find this info in the bios.

When it shuts down, does it happen even when you are using the laptop at that precise moment & without warning? If not, (not being funny), but have you checked the power management settings?

Did anything at all change just before this problem started happening? e.g did you add any new hardware or software? Change any settings? Drop or bang the laptop in any way? etc

[mckeelaw]

Yes, this problem occurs regardless of whether running from the battery or AC power.

I do not have any way of checking the temperatures--the bios is very limited.

Yes, it shuts down even when I am using it & without warning. Power mgnt settings are ok.

I did add some new software, and changed various settings, but did a system restore and a "revert to last known good configuration."

I did not drop or bang it that I can remember just prior to the issue arising.

I hope this helps you out... and I really, really do appreciate your help.

Scott

[Samm]

Hi Scott

Thanks for the info. Couple of things to try :
1. Can try running the laptop straight from the AC power, with the battery removed completely?
I'm not sure at the moment whether there is only a single problem here, or several problems, but the battery should be charging above 2% regardless of any software issues. It does sound like a faulty battery (or faulty power supply).

2. Re. the temps, try running Everest. You can download it from this link :
http://majorgeeks.co...tion_d4181.html
Look under the Computer->sensor branch & see if the temps are reported there.

[mckeelaw]

Hi Scott

Thanks for the info. Couple of things to try :
1. Can try running the laptop straight from the AC power, with the battery removed completely?
I'm not sure at the moment whether there is only a single problem here, or several problems, but the battery should be charging above 2% regardless of any software issues. It does sound like a faulty battery (or faulty power supply).

2. Re. the temps, try running Everest. You can download it from this link :
http://majorgeeks.co...tion_d4181.html
Look under the Computer->sensor branch & see if the temps are reported there.

========================

1. Ok, laptop does not run any differently if battery is removed.
2. i'll try this and get back to you.
thanks

[mckeelaw]

========================

1. Ok, laptop does not run any differently if battery is removed.
2. i'll try this and get back to you.
thanks

=====================

Can I run Everest when the computer will only boot into bios, or to a Windows CD to do a new install--which the laptop will not complete since it shuts down abt 10 mins into it.

[Samm]

OK, this is almost certainly going to be caused by one of these things:
1. Overheating
2. Faulty motherboard / circuitry
3. Power supply

We've ruled out the battery as a cause by removing it completely but that doesn't totally eliminate the power supply. Am I right in thinking that the laptop has an external power adapter? (i.e a small box rather than just a straight cable). If so, check that the power adapter isn't getting too hot (it should feel warm to touch after a short period but not hot) and check that it is the right one for the laptop (I seem to recall you said this was a second hand laptop, right?)

As for overheating, check the vents are not clogged up with dust. Use a air duster to blow it out if necessary. This may even require dismantling the casing to a point but I'd advise you try & download the service manual for it first if you intend to try this yourself. Another possibilty here is that the cpu fan has failed.

You can download the sevice & maintenance manual from here :

http://h10025.www1.h...&lang=en&cc=us

[mckeelaw]

i finally figured it out--i put in a new 256mb memory chip and took out the two old 256mb chips that came in it and it works like new!! thanks for your help!!
================

OK, this is almost certainly going to be caused by one of these things:
1. Overheating
2. Faulty motherboard / circuitry
3. Power supply

We've ruled out the battery as a cause by removing it completely but that doesn't totally eliminate the power supply. Am I right in thinking that the laptop has an external power adapter? (i.e a small box rather than just a straight cable). If so, check that the power adapter isn't getting too hot (it should feel warm to touch after a short period but not hot) and check that it is the right one for the laptop (I seem to recall you said this was a second hand laptop, right?)

As for overheating, check the vents are not clogged up with dust. Use a air duster to blow it out if necessary. This may even require dismantling the casing to a point but I'd advise you try & download the service manual for it first if you intend to try this yourself. Another possibilty here is that the cpu fan has failed.

You can download the sevice & maintenance manual from here :

http://h10025.www1.h...&lang=en&cc=us

[Samm]

Ah, it may have helped if you'd mentioned about the RAM at the beginning!
Not to worry, at least you have resolved the problem now.