Broken Lap Top

[RandFan]

Ok, I've got a 1 year old Compaq Presario. It's still a great computer however the sensor for the power plug keeps switching between battery and power cord even when the power cord is plugged in and the battery is low. I just can't do my work in the field without it. It seems that the female connector on the laptop is loose and if I wiggle the cord it will show go back to the power cord but for different amounts of time. Can anything be done or do I need to buy a laptop this weekend?

I realize that this might be a bit obscure for many here.

Thanks,

RandFan

[bruto]

I've seen a couple of laptops with this problem, and I think it may depend on how difficult it is to open the case. The power jack in most of these laptops is pathetically poorly designed for stress. Chances are that either the jack itself is cracked, or it has begun pulling off the circuit board. If the latter, sometimes you can resolder it, and perhaps add a piece of wire to bypass a damaged trace (the circuitry is pretty large and coarse in this region). If it's actually broken, you'd need to replace it, and if the circuit board itself is actually broken, you need to find a different way to support the jack. I repaired a laptop of my stepson's a couple of years ago by replacing a broken jack on a broken circuit board with a mini headphone jack.

Of course all of this depends on your willingness to open it up, and the risk that you'll end up breaking it worse. I've never done it on a computer as new as yours, and I'd be pretty cautious if it's an expensive one.

[Chris Haynes]

That happened to my 3 year old laptop earlier this year.

How about replacing the power cord? It could be a damaged wire that only has intermittent connection.

There was a thought that it may be the part that it plugs into, the tech did change that also (my computer was still under the extended warranty). But it turned out to be the power cord.

Edit to add... I don't remember the jack being that difficult to change, but it may be the design of the machine (HP). But the new power cord is not HP, but a generic brand with the same tranformer specs, that would be easier to try.

[stormer]

Make sure the power supply cord is not internally broken first. Borrow another PSU and see if you can recreate the problem.

Otherwise, send the laptop for repair. It may be a simple problem like a dry joint at the power socket. Any technician should be able to check this out. Opening the laptop properly is another matter though.

It is a good excuse to buy another laptop :) Core 2 Duo is amazingly powerful