Troubleshooting Dead Lappy -Thinkpad 390E

[marmasatt]

Alright, so a friend of mine gives me a dead lappy (IBM Thinkpad 390E specs here) and wants me to a) get it going and b) then upgrade it a bit if possible. I don't know if its worth upgrading too much, but we're letting the horse get ahead of the carriage a bit..... I digress.

So I'm a freakin wiz when it comes to desktops but I have no idea even where to begin with this. Never even held a laptop. You turn the power on and you get a blink of the green led for HD (2 seconds)and the only thing to happen is that the green led for the battery stays on. No boot up or anything. I have it plugged in with the AC but this is all that happens. I was under the impression that if a dead battery was the issue, you could always use the AC for boot up. That is not the case? Do I need to look for a new battery? Do I need to open this baby up, start messing w/ CMOS battery and stuff. Anyone, anyone? Thanks.

Oliver

 

[marmasatt]

ttt

 

[TygGer]

If it were a dead battery issue, it would and should start fine with the AC plugged in. Sorry I can't offer any other help.

 

[LokiX]

i know on some newer thinkpads if the pattery has ever been deapcycled it has to be reset. i think you have to take the battery out, disconnect the ac adapter, and hold down the power button for like 60sec. then put it all back together and try then. Dunno just a thought. Thats how t-21's are anyway.

 

[marmasatt]

pattery has ever been deapcycled

Not sure I know what the he11 that means . Reset the CMOS?

 

[LiLithTecH]

Originally posted by: marmasatt

pattery has ever been deapcycled

Not sure I know what the he11 that means . Reset the CMOS?

I believe he is speaking of reconditioning the battery.

Have you tried:

1. Reseating the RAM
2. Reseating the HD/Combobay drive
3. Using AC ONLY (no battery installed)

Also, does Cooling Fan come on?

 

[marmasatt]

Yeah, I haven't opened it up yet. I'm just making sure I'm not being stupid. So I will try to boot w/ out the battery? No cooling fan or any other action whatsoever. Get a blinking HD Activity led for a second and then it's gone.