Vostro 3550 charging problem!

Hi. Got a real issue here and I don't know the cause. My 3550 which I've used everyday since 2011 isn't being charged properly as of last night.

With the mains charger plugged in to mains, the small rectangular green light on the charger itself comes on, so there is power to the mains charger. I plug the mains charger into the laptop but the battery icon on the task bar doesn't change to show any charging. There's no message that comes up saying anything like 'plugged in not charging'. The battery is just running down as though it's not connected to a mains charger. Eventually the battery runs down and the laptop shuts down.

Once it has shutdown, the battery icon on the front lip of the laptop then illuminates in white as long as the mains charger is still plugged in.

I left it overnight plugged in, booted it up this morning and the battery was around 90+% but still no change to the battery icon. So as soon as it's booted, the battery is running down again. It's as though the mains charger is giving a very slow trickle charge. Also, the laptop won't power up at all if I take the battery out and just have the mains charger plugged in.

I uninstalled the various compliant battery manager thing's in device manager and they reinstalled themselves again after rebooting, but it didn't make any difference. The centre pin in the centre of the connecting plug of the mains charger is intact and not bent. The socket on the laptop looks ok too.

Is this the mains charger at fault? Clearly it's giving a slow charge, but only when the laptop is shutdown. And why doesn't the laptop turn on when the battery is removed and the mains charger is plugged in? I'm hoping it's a simple fix of buying a new mains charger. The battery appears to be ok, and the Dell battery manager says it's working normally. Over the months, I've had a warning ocassionally come up on screen saying something like "The AC power adapter type cannot be determined. .." On the mains charger adapter block it says Dell Inc. Model: FA90PM111

 

I would suspect that the BIOS can no longer determine the charger type / power rating (either dead chip in the charger or the comminication via the centre pin in the power plug isn't working). In this event the computer may choose to not use the PSU because of the risk of overloading it.

Dell uses a very limited range of chargers for all its business notebooks. I would try a new charger (personally, I always keep a spare so there's one on my desk and another in the bag). I think you need a 90W PSU. Looking on the 'bay a genuine Dell one is £20 and a compatible one less than half that. If another charger doesn't fix the problem then the next place to look is the power jack on the computer. These are suprisingly common on the 'bay which might indicate that they are a source of problems.

John

 

Hello John,

Thanks very much for your detailed reply. I believe you're correct. Well, I popped into PC World today and they let me try one of their universal own brand 'Logik' chargers with the correct plug adaptor. Guess what.... it showed charging I'm so relieved. I didn't buy it as they wanted £70! And knowing Logik, it would probably break in a few weeks.

Before you replied and before I went to pcworld, I spoke to someone at an online laptop power supply shop today. Very helpful chap who said similar things to yourself. They have a genuine OEM 90w PSU for £33:

www.thelaptoppowersupplyshop.co.uk/dell-vostro-3550-oem-laptop-charger-151359&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=products&utm_campaign=product%2Bsearch?gclid=CL_40Lvf4sYCFTQatAodbKgKSg

It's a different shape to mine, mine is completely rectangular. I believe theirs is a later version. I'm tempted to buy it as I'm a bit wary of eBay compatibles and anything around £13 to £20. Should I be?

 

Thanks for the update.

Look for the words "genuine" or "original" if shopping on ebay . The shape and size of the genuine Dell PSUs has changed over the years but they are all interchangeable (subject to the power rating).

John

 

What do you think about the one I've pasted a link for below, John? Delivery would be fast enough, by tuesday. Couple of points though.

Not supplied with clover shaped mains lead. But I could use the one I already have, right? Also says:

"A 100% compatible part will be sent out if the exact required part is not available in stock." Surely they can't advertise genuine and then send a compatible?


www.ebay.co.uk/itm/MAINS-CHARGER-LAPTOP-ADAPTER-FIT-FOR-Dell-Vostro-3550-/291428136198?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item43da787506

 

As weird as it may seem, they can. Dell PSUs aren't actually made by Dell. My M6700's PSU is made by Delta. Dell will simply buy the unit in bulk and rebrand it with a Dell logo on it. This essentially means that someone sourcing the exact same PSU from Delta would actually get an identical product, but without the Dell label. In a sense it's a genuine part, but in another it isn't since there is no Dell logo on it.

It gets even more complicated if you consider that Dell PSUs are usually forward/backwards compatible. I have a M6600 PSU made by Flextronics instead, no Dell logo on it, but it is 100% compatible with my M6700 and registers as genuine too. I got the M6600 PSU for 40$ on eBay and it's hooked to my docking station permanently.

If the part isn't something that Dell uses, you'll get a warning message that a non genuine adapter has been detected. Dell PSUs "declare" themselves to the laptop with an additional chip that reports that the PSU is genuine and what's the rating. That is also the reason why you'll get a warning about anemic PSUs if you try to hook something from more common latotudes to some higher end Precisions.

 

Interesting stuff, thanks tijo. I won't worry then if they send a compatible. But I'll call them on Monday and ask them if they have branded in stock . They're not far from me either so will see if I can pick it up same day. Just hate not being able to use my laptop!

 

To answer your other question: Yes, you can use your existing cloverleaf cable.

John

 

Thanks John. I'm also considering buying a new battery. I suppose I'd be better off with a 9 cell. Though from what I can tell, it would protrude a bit and not sit flush?

My current battery, 4 years old, gives up just over 2% every minute while just idling, so that's maybe 40 minutes battery life just on standby! How many hours should I expect to get on a new 6 cell battery? I don't remember what the battery life was like when this was new.

Genuine/original batteries are more expensive though, around £40. Would this unbranded one be good? But it's 9 cell.

www.ebay.co.uk/itm/9-cell-battery-for-Dell-Vostro-1450-Vostro-3450-Vostro-3550-Vostro-3750-07XFJJ-/281365357471?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item4182aea39f


Or this one which is the same model number as mine, J1KND 48w (6 cell). I'm not sure if it's genuine or not, I doubt it for that price.

www.battdepot.com/uk/opn/notebook+battery/dell/j1knd/lde240.aspx

 

I would expect a 4 year old battery to be well past its best. However, before you decide whether to opt for 6 or 9 cell, take a look at the power drain when on idle as measured in W or mW. Try using BatteryInfo View which will also tell you the current capacity (which I would expect to be well down from the design capacity). Once you know the power drain (which I would guess would be in the 10 to 15W range depending on the hardware and background programs that keep the CPU busy, then it's simple arithmetic. Assume your maximum battery time is about (battery capacity * 0.9)/ battery drain rate. eg for a 48 Whr battery and 12W power drain = (48 *0.9)/12 = 3.6 hours. The brighter the display and the higher the CPU usage then the longer the run time. Or get the bigger battery which, as you anticipate, most likely sticks out the bag and adds about 0.15 kg to the weight.

In the absence of genuine Dell parts at the right price (sometimes you find businesses clearing their cupboard of spare unused batteries when they upgrade their notebook inventory) I would prefer to purchase from a company that specialises in batteries. The one you linked to also offers the bigger battery.

John