Weird Laptop Battery Question

[yourbeliefs]

Ok.. my friend has a laptop that has something wrong with its AC adapter. I don't mean the AC cord, I mean the AC component on the actual laptop. As a result the battery (which sucks anyways) can't get charged, and they can't run off of just the AC anyways because the connection is nothing resembling stable. The AC connection (on the laptop) is cracked. Its an older HP laptop (I'll get the exact model number soon.) What I'm basically wondering is is there any way to charge a laptop battery without using the AC component on the actual laptop, almost like a separate charger like you'd use for a normal battery? My friend doesn't have alot of money at their disposal, so the simple answer of "Buy a new laptop" isn't going to win any favors (even though I will be the first to say that that is the best solution.) If anyone has any ideas or thoughts as to how to remedy this it would be greatly appreciated. Thanks.

 

[navychop]

Been there, done that. It's trash. Sorry.

 

[Hermitman]

Find another old laptop that uses the same type battery. That one doesn't have to be completely or partially operational, just as long as the battery changing system works. Then use it just as a battery charger. Good luck.

 

[SKrueger]

The AC connection (on the laptop) is cracked. Its an older HP laptop (I'll get the exact model number soon.)

Seems to be a design flaw with the HP laptops. Same thing happened to mine and the shop I took it to said it happens a lot with HP's. He might be able to get it fixed, I did the first time for about $250, but about a year and a half later it went again and the shop didn't think they'd be able to solder it again.

 

[lumpkin666]

You might open the laptop up and see if the connector is coming off the board. I've had 3-4 toshibas that I had to resolder the AC connector to the board. Otherwise, looking for the same model on ebay - one with a bad screen or something, should yield you the parts you need to
make one working laptop for reasonably cheap.

 

[Foxbat]

You might open the laptop up and see if the connector is coming off the board. I've had 3-4 toshibas that I had to resolder the AC connector to the board.

We had a similar problem with a number of IBM Thinkpads as well. Surface-mounted components are great for a lot of applications, but connectors aren't one of them. Given the modular nature of these machines, you might be able to find the board on eBay or HP.

 

[LER]

I had a HP Pavillion laptop that had this happen. Mr. Notebook here in Austin fixed it for me, but said that not a lot of shops do that kind of work.

It was like $100 or so, IIRC.

 

[Bogy]

I had a Toshiba Tecra that had this problem as well. (Why is this the weakest part in so many laptops?) The first time it broke I had it fixed for about $100. The second time I bought another laptop of the same model, without hard drive/memory/battery for less than I paid to have it fixed previously. Plugged in my components and was good to go. I also found a used dock for about $10 to plug my laptop into so that as much as possible I was not depending on that very fragile part.

 

[Pepper]

(Why is this the weakest part in so many laptops?)

Because idiot mainboard designers put the high stress connectors directly on the board instead of attached separately to save $0.50 on parts (same issue with HDMI connectors on Dish ViP receivers).

 

[Bogy]

(Why is this the weakest part in so many laptops?)

Because idiot mainboard designers put the high stress connectors directly on the board instead of attached separately to save $0.50 on parts (same issue with HDMI connectors on Dish ViP receivers).

It isn't so much that I didn't know why it was the weakest point, it was a rhetorical question as to why so many idiots try to save $0.50 on a $2000 piece of equipment. The rest of my Tecra was built like a brick, with the AC connector sticking straight out the back of the laptop, placed so that tipping the laptop back, say, while sitting on your lap, would cause it to snap the connector off the mainboard. (Or in my case, my teenage son's lap. Twice.) Brilliant. Do the people who design laptops actually use them? Another rhetorical question. I'm sure they do. I'm sure they also have access to nice, new laptops well before the connectors have had to withstand to many instances of stress.

 

[Foxbat]

(Why is this the weakest part in so many laptops?)

Because idiot mainboard designers put the high stress connectors directly on the board instead of attached separately to save $0.50 on parts (same issue with HDMI connectors on Dish ViP receivers).

Without risking a "Mac v. PC" Flame War, the magnetic interlock that Apple uses on their MacBook line prevents this problem by disconnecting instead of stressing the circuit board/connector junction.

Of course, nothing is perfect, and the Wikipedia site for the MagSafe connector says that some people have experienced high temperatures and melting power connectors eek on their MacBooks' power supply. I'm sure some PC manufacturer will come up with something similar. (The magnetic interlock; not the melting/high temperature failures!)

 

[navychop]

I'm sure some PC manufacturer will come up with something similar. (The magnetic interlock; not the melting/high temperature failures!)

Naw. Sony came up with the high temp batteries. Copied the wrong feature!