dell M1730

[pcclan]

well the thing is the laptop doesn't reconsign the power adapter as 230 watts output is there a way to get it to do it or is it not putting out enough juice to charge it properly . if so how would i fix the problem with out buying one from dell. because from what i read they haven't built the power adapter properly.
i really need help please.

the specs of the laptop are
t9500 @ 2.6 ghz
4gb of ddr2 ram
NVIDIA 9800m gtx in sli
17 inch lcd

[x88x]

I'm not sure I understand the problem..is it powering the laptop but not charging the battery?

[pcclan]

yes and the bios won't reconsign it as 230 watt adapter

[x88x]

I'm assuming this is a recent thing? Rather, it used to charge the battery and identify in the BIOS as a 230W adapter? What are the printed specs on the adapter itself?

[pcclan]

model : da230ps0-00
input: 100-240V-4 a 50-60 hz
output 19.5V---11.8a

[x88x]

Do you have any way of measuring the voltage and current levels that it is putting out? Without seeing hard numbers, my guess is that it's not putting out enough current anymore. If the voltage drops too low the laptop shouldn't power on at all, but if the max current level drops it shouldn't affect normal operation of the laptop much since I doubt you ever hit 230W power consumption. It must have something hardwired into the BIOS or some other control circuit, though, that it won't charge if the available current drops too low...that's annoying. On the plus side, any ~19.5V >=~11.8A power adapter with the proper plug should work just fine.

EDIT:
Though, that is an incredibly large max current level for a brick power adapter...you might have trouble finding one that's not directly from Dell.

[pcclan]

oh i thought it had to be the right wattage

[x88x]

Well, wattage == power level == voltage * max current. So yes and no. Voltage is the most important factor (ie, breaks things if it's too high), and is put out at a constant level. Current (amps) is only drawn when needed. Think of it like the total processing power of a CPU. It's always there, but it's only used when you need it. Like I mentioned, I think your BIOS has either a low-voltage or low-current sensor that stops the integrated battery charger from working when either drops below a set value. The system probably tries to pull a certain amount of current at startup, and if it can't pull at least that set amount (say, 11A), it won't do certain things.

Long story short, you have a little wiggle room, and lower values might work fine, but you don't want the power adapter's output voltage to be over probably ~19.5V (20V might be ok, but no promises...it depends on the power circuitry inside the laptop), and you don't want the adapter's max output current to be less than probably ~11A. Feel free to try lower voltage and higher current rated supplies, but not the other way around. For the best results, though, I would shoot for 19.2V and at least 12A. Most switching power supplies work most efficiently at ~50% capacity (ie, pulling about half the rated max current), so increasing the max current that the unit can output will put less of a strain on it with the same load.

[Luke122]

Voltage must match, Amperage can be higher, but should not be lower.

Most Dell laptops I've worked on will tell you the condition of the battery in the BIOS, including whether or not it is/will charge(ing).

My XPS M1210 adaptor started to die, and could not charge the battery while the laptop was running, so I had to get a replacement (generic.. just match the connector and the voltage, and make sure the Amperage/watt rating is the same or higher and you'll be fine.)

[pcclan]

well now i have ran to another problem i cannot boot it with the nvidia drivers with out getting a bsod