Laptop manufacturers have to produce a way of communication between their devices and users. Otherwise, laptops would be unusable for most people. Besides various notifications appearing on the screen, a sequence of sounds and lights at start-up can signal some kind of warning.
Today, we will examine the common problem found in laptop chargers – the laptop charger light blinking when plugged in. Since I have found lots of queries on forums, I decided to write this in-depth analysis and provide you with all you need to know about this very problem.
We will cover:
- Explain laptop charger lights
- What are the potential common causes
- Cover this problem in various laptop brands
- How to solve this problem
Without further ado, let’s dive right in.
Why is my laptop charger blinking when plugged in?
When you charge your laptop, the first and obvious sign of the requirement is a notification on the screen that the battery is low. And then, as always, we plug it into a socket.
To know that the charger is working properly, the charger often has a led light that provides a signal of whether it works properly or not. However, if a charger does not have the light, the laptop will have it most of the time.
If the led light is solid, your laptop is powered and working. However, if it is blinking, there is something wrong with your charger.
Ok, but what is causing that issue?
There are two major reasons why laptop chargers blink when plugged in. First is that the charger is faulty and cannot pass the power to a laptop. The second is that your DC jack may be loose or damaged.
Let’s examine the two in a closer look.
Malfunctioned laptop adapter
The AC adapter, also known as a laptop charger, is used to supply enough power to run the laptop for long periods and to recharge the laptop battery. When the AC adapter fails to charge the laptop battery, the laptop does not switch on or operate until the battery is sufficiently charged.
One of the first things to do is to check the AC adapter. Is it firmly plugged into a wall socket that is proven to provide the correct voltage, or is it loose and unstable? If the latter is the case, simply try another socket.
Are the AC adapter and its cord working in one piece? Is the cord in a good state? Can you measure the adapter DC output (typically 18 to 21Vdc)?
DC jack is loose or damaged
DC jack or power jack is a small port on a laptop that serves as a way of connecting the machine to a power adapter. It is used to provide the necessary power to the laptop and charge its battery.
In most cases, the DC jack becomes loose. To be certain that’s the case, try holding the cord in a specific position. If you manage to get a cord into the position where it does not blink, your DC jack is loose.
If the power jack has come loose, reattach it to the motherboard with a soldering iron. It must be a decent one; inexpensive ones do not reach a high enough temperature to remove the old solder. If the power jack itself is damaged, you can usually get a replacement power jack online using the laptop’s make and model number.
If you aren’t comfortable with a soldering iron or don’t have one, you can disassemble the laptop and take the motherboard and power jack to a computer repair shop, where they should be able to repair it.
The disassembly takes up most of the time because it can be finicky, although instructions for many different models are available online and on Youtube. If the repair is not done properly, it can cause more damage to a laptop.
Here is another question to ask yourself.
Does the flashing has a pattern, or is it continuous? I suggest searching your laptop’s model and looking for its user manual. Some laptops can provide basic startup diagnostics feedback via LED lights.
For Dell users
The LED on the AC adaptor may flicker. The power cord connecting the adapter brick and the wall outlet may appear slack. When using simply the AC adapter, the battery will not charge, and the system will randomly shut down. All of this could be due to a faulty connection of the wall outlet power cord to the AC adapter brick.
- Make sure that the AC power cord is correctly installed. Plug the power cord into the adaptor brick, as shown below.
- Unplug the portable laptop’s adapter DC cable.
- Unplug the AC power cord from the adaptor from the wall socket.
- Remove the adaptor brick’s AC power cord.
- Attach the power cord to the AC adapter with two hands. Place the power cord over the prong connector on the adapter brick itself while holding the adapter in one hand.
- Push the power cord in completely with your palm until it clicks.
- Connect the AC adapter to the power outlet once more. Check that the LED on the AC adapter goes on and stays on without blinking.
For more official info on Dell’s laptops, go here.
In case you have the knowledge and required skills, check the video tutorial on how to repair a Dell laptop charger.
For Lenovo users
If you have a Lenovo laptop, the video below may help you.
For HP users
I know a guy who had an HP laptop with this problem. This was his story:
“ While my HP laptop was off, the charge LED next to the DC port was blinking white. After that, as I used it throughout the day, it kept on blinking when plugged in. The charging status would say plugged in, not charging. When I plugged it in and used it, the battery did not noticeably deplete, but it would not charge at all. There were no error messages displayed. This happened out of nowhere.”
And this was the answer from the official HP support:
I recommend that you take the following steps to isolate the problem and find a solution:
- Turn off the laptop.
- Take the battery out. If it is integrated and does not contain a release latch, leave it inside the laptop.
- Removed the AC adapter from the laptop.
- Hold down the power button for 15 seconds.
- Replug the AC adapter and reconnect the battery.
- Turn on the laptop.
Let us delete and then reinstall the battery drivers. The following steps will be beneficial:
Navigate to the device manager.
“Batteries” should be expanded. Uninstall the ACPI drivers by right-clicking on them.
Shut down the device management.
Restart the computer. Windows will reload the battery drivers when resuming.
If the battery still does not charge, please update the BIOS on the laptop. Please keep the charger plugged into the laptop while the BIOS is being updated.
If the BIOS update was successful, you could test the battery if it does not charge. The following steps will be beneficial:
- Check that the power cord and adapter are properly connected to the system and the wall socket.
- Push the power button until the computer totally shuts down.
- Start the computer.
- Immediately hit the F2 key once every second or so until the UEFI Hardware Diagnostics page appears.
- Select Component Tests from the UEFI Main menu.