Dell Vostro 1500 won't charge. Please help.

[bupkus]

I find in the BIOS "AC Adapter = Unknown device installed"

BIOS also states "PRIMARY-- This battery is performing normally."

It runs on the AC adapter with the battery removed.

Also, it runs with just the battery when the AC adapter is removed.

BTW, this is not the original AC adapter. The original was damaged and replaced by this:

Replacement AC Adapter
PA-10 FAMILY
MODEL NO.: PA-1900-02D

...almost a year ago. So it worked fine for that long.

How do I fix this?

 

[bupkus]

I performed some surgery on the original Dell AC adapter and found something interesting.
There are 3 charge component wires and not just 2 (+,-).

Now the BIOS recognizes the charger as 90W and it's charging the battery.

I never guessed there were 3 components/wires.

With the voltmeter I get 19.5V with the 2 outermost and heavier wire bundles. In the center is a thinner wire bundle resembling just visually the inner wire of coaxial. Leaving the voltmeter (-) contact on the outermost bundle and the + on that innermost I get a little > 18 V DC. I can't guess what that is for but I can't help but wonder if the replacement adapter listed above has that as well.

If you know more of this please post your understanding.
Thanks.

 

[C1]

Coaxials are unbalanced lines used in impedance matched circuits. Are you sure it is not just a shielded/ re-enforced/armored cable? Checking the adapter at the power connector should give insight. Is it a three terminal or a two terminal connection? If three wires are involved then you may actually have an adapter that is providing two voltages (ie, 19.5 and an 18v) one of which is needed as a reference for establishing battery charge status.

 

[bupkus]

If three wires are involved then you may actually have an adapter that is providing two voltages (ie, 19.5 and an 18v) one of which is needed as a reference for establishing battery charge status.

Interesting...
I ran tests on both AC adapters and discovered something interesting.
Measuring the outside cylinder of the plug as negative and the inside cylinder of the plug as positive I get a voltage of 19.5 in both AC adapters. However, again using the outside cylinder as negative but using the inside needle as positive I get different readings in the two AC adapters. The old Dell labeled adapter here gives around .05 volts whereas the new adapter that will not charge the laptop's battery reads at 0.0 volts. The previously posted reading of the inside needle's voltage must have been user's error.
This does, however, seem to indicate a failure in the replacement adapter.

I'm thinking of applying some electrical tape to the wires I twisted together to reconnect the plug to the wire. I don't want to spend $100 to get a Dell certified adapter.

 

[C1]

Check this out:
http://www.tomshardware.com/forum/9519-2-dell-laptop-power-jack-pinout

You may want to "bite the bullet" for an OEM adapter

 

[amdskip]

Those laptops are very fussy and require the 90w adapters.

 

[Lanyap]

The Dell PA-10 adapters have a small pin inside the connector that is used to identify the adapter. A special chip connects to the power jack and checks the pin to make sure you are using the correct adapter. You can usually find new Dell original PA-10 adapters on ebay for much less than ordering from Dell.

http://www.laptop-junction.com/toast/content/inside-dell-ac-power-adapter-mystery-revealed

 

[uptownnj]

i have Dell Vostro 1500 i had the charging problem after 5 years after i bought it
After this problem i thought my battery died thats why i purchased battery then i saw its not about battery but my charger was working at least i saw the green led light on the charger which shows you charger is working Yes that is mistake Even you see the light on charger it could be defective My charger was giving wrong voltages so it wasnt charge my battery It gives you enough voltage for run the laptop but No Charges Then i found 2 charger one is replacement charger not original the other charger is original I pluged the both chargers and i saw both of them worked So with my experience i highly recommend you to buy Charger which is around 10 20 bucks on internet