I've got a Dell Inspiron 510M with a dodgy power connector, it requires a lot of plugging in and out at the back to find the sweet spot where it will work and get the laptop to power up and the battery to charge. I've bought a new power adapter but the problem remains so it must be the power connecting socket in the laptop that's at fault.

Is there an easy fix for it? Can a new power socket be fitted easily or will it have to be sent away for repair? Or can't these sockets be repaired due to the design of the laptop?

Thanks for any advice.

Is this the spare I need?

Inspiron 510M Power Socket
The laptop fails to switch on and will not charge the battery. We repair or replace power sockets where the power pin has broken or has become disconnected from the motherboard. In most cases the motherboard needs to be removed from the system to complete the work. Sometimes the power connector makes a poor connection with the Inspiron 510M jack. This causes arcing which can generate enough heat to melt the Inspiron 510M dc jack and the power pin may become lose.

This gives a better description of the problem which I found from here

HI

Is the Power connector on the Lappie a Female connector? If so what can happen some times is that it can loose tension or the connectors can spread apart not allowing a good connection to the Male pin.

You can try pushing the Females closer to each other and see if that helps. If not then looks like it will be an internal connection that is bad.

If you don't have the rite tools to fix it I would sent it off or bring it to a repair shop you trust...

Now Udo might have some other ideas...

Besst

Terry

Hi stidy, good mate

well I'm not a fan of eBay I wouldn't buy those connectors. Who tells you about its quality? Do you have any guarantees that they'll work properly and not causing problems with the other hardware.

Go the save way mate.... send it to the Dell support.


BU

PS: Check our Intern other stuff. There's something for you waitin ;)

I wasn't planning on buying the part from ebuy, I was just checking that was the part that needs replacing I have been trying to find a legit supplier for it.

However I am getting a quote for the professionals to repair it.

First quote I've had back is either a complete rip off or they have mis-understood what's faulty or it really does require a new motherboard.

I got quoted about £430 for a new dell motherboard and fitting. Not sure if the power connecter in back of the laptop is physically connected to the motherboard if it is then it's just uneconomical to repair as for that money you can buy a new laptop that's a far higher spec than what's being repaired.

Will try to get a few more quotes but if that's the price I'm looking at it won't get fixed.

I have a Dell Inspiron 8100 that used to have the exact same problem as described above. I fixed it today by disassemling it and resolder one of the solder points for the connector. This seems to be a common problem with Dell Laptops, but the solution is fairly simple. Just follow the instructions at http://www.uofr.net/~greg/hardware/dell_power_connector/ and you probably find you have the exakt same problem. For me it was the exact same solder point as in the pictures!

Dell has a disassembly instruction for their Laptops on the net, just try and Google the right one for you.

Regards, Mirko