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January 19th, 2014 12:00

AC Adapter Unknown Plugged in (not charging)

So, I've had a dead battery on my Inspiron N5010 that would not hold a charge. I also noticed that when i plug in the Dell 65W AC adapter that came with my computer without the battery (as a temporary power source) and the light on the AC Adapter shut off. I've used other dell AC adapters and the same thing happens (AC adapter light cut off). Identifying these problems, I purchased a new battery and the battery worked perfectly fine but when i plug in the AC Adapter, the AC Adapter light would cut off and would not charge the battery. I figured it was a Mobo issue but discovered that the I/O ports for the AC Adapter are on the daughterboard. I purchased and replaced the daughterboard. I plugged in the AC Adapter and now the light on the Adapter stays on. The adapter can now be used with or without the battery but it will not charger the battery. Every time I turn on my Dell Inspiron N5010 laptop, I get the following message:

"The AC adapter wattage and type cannot be determined. The battery may not charge. The system will adjust the performance to match the power available. Please connect a Dell 65W AC adapter or greater for the best system performance."

- I replaced the I/O circuit board (daughter board)

- I Flashed the BIOS

- I Installed Dell QuickSet

- I am using the 65W Dell AC adapter that came with the laptop

- The AC adapter that came with my N5010 works on other Dell laptops

- I've used a different 65W Dell AC Adapter. 

- The adapter is not charging the battery (Plugged in but not charging)

- The green light on the adapter stays on all the time when in use

Inside of the BIOS the AC Adapter Type is "Unknown". what else do you recommend I do?

9 Legend

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87.5K Posts

January 19th, 2014 12:00

You have a short in the charge circuit on the mainboard - the system board will need to be replaced.

4 Posts

October 5th, 2014 20:00

I have had the same exact problem and replacing the motherboard fixes the problem for about 2 months...then it just does it again..

I have found that I can unplug the system... remove the battery...plug in the AC adapter... reboot the system...go into the control panel and remove all the ac/battery drivers I can... shut down the computer....remove the ac adapter....insert the battery....reboot the computer....once loaded...plug in the ac adapter...and boom...most of the time...it charges...

So the AC adapter is fine...the battery is fine....the Motherboard is fine....its a software issue?  please repair this Dell...thank you.. 

1 Message

February 3rd, 2015 13:00

I have the same issue!!

I have replaced the power adapter.  I have replaced the battery.  I have replaced the power jack on the system board.  I have done EVERYTHING FROM EVERY POST.  I have also held my tongue, bit my tongue, pulled my finger.  THIS IS A DELL ISSUE THAT NEEDS TO BE FIXED!!  Once the warranty runs out you are screwed.  Throw it out and get an HP Laptop

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