Proprietary Dell AC Adapter Required to Charge Battery?

Hello,

My AC Adapter for my Dell Latitude X300 laptop recently broke, and my computer is out-of-warranty, so I decided to turn to eBay to buy some cheap generic AC Adapter for my laptop. When I received it, it powered the system fine, but failed to charge the battery. When the computer started up, the BIOS reported that the system failed to recognize the AC Adapter.

I called Dell and before I was even able to explain my problem, I was told that non-Dell adapters can power the system fine but they will fail to charge the battery. Is this true? I can't think of any other reason why the adapter would power the system but not charge the battery. Normally I would think that they are just trying to discourage the use of generic adapters and get people to buy their overpriced proprietary products, but the technician was able to predict that the battery wouldn't charge with a generic even before I told him that I was experiencing that problem.

 

I am currently using a refurbished Kensington AC Adapter with a N19 tip which I purchased off ebay. It charges my M1530 and also comes with adapters for use in a car or plane. Here is a link to the shop I purchased it from;
http://search.stores.ebay.ie/Eurus-Wings_kensington_W0QQfciZQ2d1QQfclZ4QQfsnZEurusQ2dWingsQQfsooZ1QQfsopZ1QQfsubZ10QQsaselZ205316207QQsofpZ0

The N19 tip is also compatible with your laptop model

 

That is correct, if you want to purchase a Dell AC Adapter you can buy one here: http://accessories.us.dell.com/sna/...cs=19&l=en&s=dhs&mfgpid=162927&chassisid=8490

 

That is a terrifically awful thing for Dell to purposely design... requiring the purchase of a $70 adapter to charge the battery. Pathetic.

 

I'm pretty sure this is BS. At worst, it's definitely not the case for ALL generic AC adapters. I've got a few old D600s running off cheap Chinese fakes and they all power up and charge batteries.

 

Helps prevents the thing from exploding, among other considerations. It's most likely for safety.

Spare adapters are usually <$30 when you configure a system.

 

Check the power output of your adapter. Most new laptop requires 90W or higher to charge the battery. I am using an ICE90 with Targus S35 tip to charge my Vostro 1400 without any problem.

 

Ya I have to wave the BS flag on this one. I would like to know how they could detect one AC adapter opposed to another. Seems like it would add complexity that really isn't worth it . . . even if you are trying to prevent competition.

I would check the power output ratings carefully and make sure that they match. Generally speaking, I have been able to use generic parts on any device I want provided I stay within specified power envelopes.

On the BS note . . . how could a Dell tech be aware that you need a proprietary adapter to power a specific laptop, but not know about the prevailing defective GPUs? I think that you got an answer instead of the "I'm not sure, let me actually find out and then tell you" response.

 

I have a friend who's company makes AC adapters for Dell. He tells me there is a special part of the plug, like a pin that connects to the Dell laptop that differentiates it from a generic adapter. It is just a small hardware modification.

 

That'd be the small communications pin in the center.. I have seen genuine dell adapters with broken pins being identified as fake by the laptop...