Do I need a new MotherBoard?

Nino Valenti · #1 01-28-2009, 03:55 PM

I have 2 identical Dell Laptops. Inspeiron 1501, XP home, SP3.... roughly 1.5-2 years old.

I'm having the same issues on both laptops...

1st, wouldn't do any of the automatic energy saver stuff like, the screensaver wouldn't work, wouldn't hibernate, harddrives won't shut of.... THis would happen periddically but now nothing happens.

After a week or 2 of going back and forth with Microsoft, nothing. Did all of their suggestions and nothing. I totally re-installed XP and nothing.

2nd, the batteries won't charge and the adaptor is not recognized at startup. Bought 2 new adaptors and nothing. Googled it and it seems to be an ongoing issue with Dells.

I just bought a new battery and I'm waiting for delivery on it but I have a feeling that it's not the battery.

Do you computer techs think I should change my Motherboard? Do you think it'll be a waste of $$$? HELP!!!!!

**bassybill** · #2 01-28-2009, 04:04 PM

Nino, I have an Inspiron 6000 and after 18 months the battery would hold no charge at all and the thing would ONLY work on mains power. A new battery solved it. Don't know whether that is your problem for sure, but it's worth waiting until your new battery comes before doing anything else.

As far as the power management goes, Dell Quickset can be a bit weird if you have it installed and can override some of the XP settings.

Nino Valenti · #3 01-28-2009, 04:06 PM

Definitely waiting for the battery before I decide on anything but the Energy Saving issues happened before I was having issues with the battery.

jokn388 · #4 01-28-2009, 04:27 PM

You can get diagnostics for your laptop that would point out any hardware failure. Go to Dells website, go to warranty information, enter in your dell service tag (will be on the laptop) and look for that model's diagnostics. Put it on a CD and boot from it. Follow the onscreen instructions and you'll be good to go. The diagnostics will take a couple hours so be patient.

You can do this while waiting for the battery!

If it is the motherboard, it is best to just get a new laptop. The motherboard will be expensive, and since it is 2 years old, it is only a matter of time before something else breaks..

Hope this helped

Linas · #5 01-28-2009, 04:39 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jokn388

You can get diagnostics for your laptop that would point out any hardware failure. Go to Dells website, go to warranty information, enter in your dell service tag (will be on the laptop) and look for that model's diagnostics. Put it on a CD and boot from it. Follow the onscreen instructions and you'll be good to go. The diagnostics will take a couple hours so be patient.

You can do this while waiting for the battery!

If it is the motherboard, it is best to just get a new laptop. The motherboard will be expensive, and since it is 2 years old, it is only a matter of time before something else breaks..

Hope this helped

+1 this should help steer you in the right direction.

Nino Valenti · #6 01-29-2009, 06:43 AM

I can't seem to find the Diagnostic on the Dell Website.

Nino Valenti · #7 01-29-2009, 06:52 AM

Is this it?

http://support.us.dell.com/support/d...&fileid=176966

Kenbuntu · #8 01-29-2009, 07:02 AM

Not sure if this applies for new batteries, but here goes:

TIPS for a longer battery:
1. NEVER charge the battery unless its really low (~10%). Even if there less than 50%, and you're going on a trip, don't charge it. Take your charger along with you.
2. If your battery is full, and your connected to the socket, TAKE YOUR BATTERY OUT. Even though it says its full and not charging, it is and it will decrease the life of your battery.
3. If you rarely use your laptop on the go, be sure to drain your battery once a week, and charge it up again.

Does this work? I'd like to think so. I have a 2005 IBM T42. those things are old. I still get over 2 (sometimes 3 with wifi etc. off) hours. Which is crap, but not bad considering how many time this things been charged over the years (my mom used to use it at work).

jokn388 · #9 01-29-2009, 08:31 AM

I'm not sure if that is the correct diagnostic. It is correct if that is the diag they gave after entering in your service tag. Dell does a horrible job of just letting you find the correct downloadable diagnostic based on the model. If your comfortable posting your service tag I or someone else should be able to give you the correct link.

If you still have your Drivers & Utilities CD then you can also use this step by step instruction to get those diags running.
http://support.dell.com/support/edoc...ml/trouble.htm

The Crusader · #10 01-29-2009, 08:47 AM

Hi Nino,
My 2 cents:
a) I will never, ever buy another Dell computer. had a laptop from them and it turns out that the HD was a refurb. That computer, even after changing the HD, was just never right. We've got some dells here at work, and I think that they blow.
b) I will never buy another new computer (well maybe an HP laptop; I have one now with no issues). Used desk top computers are cheap and they work great. I brought my 6 year old HP pavilion 790n to work, cleaned it up, added a HD (not changed), boosted memory, put in a card reader and extra USB ports. This computer runs better than the new one that it replaced at home. probably something to do with that XP versus Vista thing

I guess what I'm trying to say is, save what you can and buy a used desktop.
Just my opinion though.
John

Nino Valenti · #11 01-29-2009, 09:05 AM

I have a desktop but I want to be more mobile.

I'll never buy a Dell again, either.

Nino Valenti · #12 01-29-2009, 09:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by jokn388

I'm not sure if that is the correct diagnostic. It is correct if that is the diag they gave after entering in your service tag. Dell does a horrible job of just letting you find the correct downloadable diagnostic based on the model. If your comfortable posting your service tag I or someone else should be able to give you the correct link.

If you still have your Drivers & Utilities CD then you can also use this step by step instruction to get those diags running.
http://support.dell.com/support/edoc...ml/trouble.htm

I did and have previously ran the Diagnostic from hitting F12 and that found nothing.

I'm 99% sure that I have the Drivers and Utilities CD. Is the Diagnostic test on that different than the one I ran?

Georynn · #13 01-29-2009, 10:00 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nino Valenti

I did and have previously ran the Diagnostic from hitting F12 and that found nothing.

I'm 99% sure that I have the Drivers and Utilities CD. Is the Diagnostic test on that different than the one I ran?

Well, it does sound like you are definitely having a power related issue. battery may well fix it. I'm not sure about that diag.

There are also inverter cards in this model, but the manual doesn't specify whether the inverter is for the LCD or the battery charger?

The MOBO's aren't that expensive for that model actually... PM'ed you a link...