Help with Dell laptop battery?

Question

I have an Inspiron Mini and have been having battery troubles. I sent in my laptop and they said my battery was messed up and sent me a replacement. The battery is dead now and will not charge when hooked up to AC adapter. It says its charging for like 5 mins, but then says running on battery power. I tried charging it with the computer off, on and in standby mode...please help!

Answer 1

Did they just replace the battery? Are you using the same power adapter as you were when you first experienced problems with the Mini and original battery?



My suspicion is either an adaptor fault, or a problem with the charging circuitry inside the laptop. Could obviously be another duff battery, but less likely...



Edit:



What Operating System are you using? If Linux, check this:



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Re: Dell Inspiron Mini 9 - battery not working

08 Mar 2009 04:08AM

I have been working on this issue with my friends Mini 9 for a couple of weeks now. The only answer on the forums is to update the BIOS to A04. I did the update, but it did not fix the issue. It has been very frustrating, as no one seemed to have a solution. Last night I stumbled across another blog that gave me the answer.



THE REASON: The reason that the battery is not charging, is because the OS (Ubuntu) thinks that it is in Airplane Mode. When in Airplane Mode, the battery will not charge.



THE FIX: Make sure that Airplane Mode is NOT enabled. Go to System -> Preferences -> Airplane Mode.



NOTE: When I first checked my friends Mini 9, it said that Airplane Mode was not enabled. I wanted to make sure though, so I enabled it, and then disabled it. The OS immediately saw the changes and began charging the battery. The Mini 9 now has no problem charging at all.



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Answer 2

When did you have the battery replaced? Was it recently or over a year ago and now the battery is not working?



If this is not a recent replacement, you may have an issue with a dead battery for a variety of reasons.



Battery run-time will vary as you use your laptop daily. One days reading may be different than another's due to the different programs you may run on the laptop or the hardware you open. Setting your computer to battery save mode will help to begin with, but there are some other major factors to consider.



WiFi and video streaming use up a lot of battery watt hours, so reducing the use of these two features by battery power will help lessen the drain on the battery. Best to use AC/DC power when doing these two functions.



Save your overall battery life by removing the battery while using the AC/DC Adapter since the battery will continue to drain while in use and the adapter will continue to charge as it drains. This is not good for the battery. Some laptop may allow you to turn off the battery so the laptop will not try and use both the AC/DC and battery at the same time.



Condition your battery once a month with a full discharge and charge to help boost the battery cells and allow them to remember how to hold the best charge they can. When you do not do a complete discharge and full charge, called shallow charges, not all of the cells get conditioned and eventually some of the cells will lose their ability to hold full charges.



Laptop batteries will last 500-800 charging cycles or 18-24 months on average. Shorter if you use the battery all time and do not remove the battery when using AC/DC power. Once the battery is charged. remove the charger so you do not over charge the battery.



More battery tips and a Dell replacement battery link:



http://www.batteryfuel.com/faq1.html



http://www.batteryfuel.com/laptops-dell.html



http://www.batteryfuel.com

Answer 3

Dell Mini 9 Battery

Answer 4

Watch for heat build-up. That is what is dangerous. Dell buys most of it's batteries from Sony, the people that make Exploding Batteries. In general, an Ion battery like used in a laptop, should be used towared discharge now and then. The charger and charging circuitry is supposed to automatically regulate, so it does not charge when the battery has a full charge. It should be OK to leave your battery in the laptop at all times, but watch out for heat. You can and should review the manual that came with the computer. Good luck and Happy Computing!

Answer 5

HI i am working on a frends dell inspiron mini 1012 and was running ubuntu but 1 main difrence it is on a full charge and wont even power on with the battery only on ac powerif i try the batery the power light just flashes twice note i have ben running puppy linuxand oh side noteif you can help here to the hdd needs replaceing thats why i am running puppy it runs on just the ram is there a version of ubuntu thatwwill run on just my ram toif so link me to one ps it ran on the battery agin breaflythanks

Answer 6

Hi,

Maybe you need to replace your inspiron mini battery with a new one,there,they sell cheap & high quality dell inspiron mini 9 laptop battery,it looks good,good luck and have a nice day!

http://www.laptop-battery-inc.co.uk/laptop-batteries/dell-inspiron-mini-9.htm

Answer 7

I know a website that sells dell inspiron mini 9 battery:



http://www.notebook-battery.us/notebook-battery/dell-inspiron-mini-9.htm



they guarante the battery meet or exceed original specifications, full one year warranty and 30 day money back. we provide better perormance and reliability at an affordable price!

Answer 8

Hi,



It sounds like a dodgy battery again.8-((



Contact Dell and ask them about it would be my advice as they have supposedly replaced it.



Arnak

Answer 9

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