Dell Laptop Query Answered Quickly

by Galenka
( Далматово (Dalmatovo), Kurgan Oblast, Russia)

Dell Chat Excerpt

Dell Chat Excerpt

OK, this is something that happened to a friend. A year or two ago she bought a 'new Laptop' but quickly started to experience some issues with it e.g. screen freezing for no reason etc.

Anyway, she went to the Dell Chat and spoke with a support technician called Gail.

She gave her the model of her Dell Laptop and the Serial Number, and asked whether it was a brand-new device or a restored/refurbished Laptop.

The Dell Technician checked the Serial Number and confirmed it was a refurbished machine. She also explained what a refurbished machine actually means, which was helpful.

Either way, my friend bought the Laptop off eBay, and it was listed a New. In truth, she found out, it wasn't new, it was refurbished.

After thinking about it, she decided to contact the Seller. Fortunately, they were very helpful and apologized for the misunderstanding.

He sent her some device drivers which she installed, and the problems she was experiencing did not return.

I think she found Dell Chat very helpful, and I know she has used it several times since.

She says the technicians go out of their way to help, and she has always received good answers to her questions. I think she is a bit of a Dell Chat fan now!



Thank You Galenka for taking the time to write about your friends experience. I have used Dell Chat (and the Support Forums before that) and always found the online technicians to be very helpful.

However, it is worth pointing out that Dell Chat technicians are entry level, which means any technical issues that are complex and go beyond basic troubleshooting need more detailed investigation.

The Dell Chat Technician will refer you to another section of Dell where there are technicians with more in-depth knowledge of the device you are having trouble with.

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Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		I have Dell optiplex 3060
by: Bhavin Shah

When I start my desktop then msg, there is no signal coming from the computer. Press any key to wake it up'. Now no response from any key.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Battery problem
by: Mohana

Hi,

I purchased a Dell Inspiron 3551 in March 2016. It has been infrequently used.... But after 1 year it started having display problems, and now my Laptop is showing that the battery has expired

Is there any way to resolve this? Or do I have to replace with a new one?

I have a doubt, when my Laptop was repaired, whether the battery was changed. Is it possible to change the battery? How to know about that whether it is mine or not???


Hello Mohana,

It is unusual for a new battery to be so depleted after 12 months of low use.

Is your Laptop second hand? A classic symptom of a low battery is your system clock speeding up.

See the Forgotten BIOS Password Reset Steps for steps on how to remove your battery (and replace).

Thanks,

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Startup Problem
by: Biyas

When I start my Laptop, it sounds beep beep noisily.


Hello Biyas,

See the AMI BIOS page for Motherboard Beep sounds and what they mean.

Hope this Helps,

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstar 		Need a Quick Response
by: Ashok Sk

Hello technicians,

I have a question for you… and need a quick and accurate answer.

I am using a Dell Inspiron 5050 model from the last 4 years, but 2 days back one of my friends took my laptop for his work. After returning my laptop, when I am using the battery, it is draining far too quickly, and I am having doubts about my friend. Maybe he changed the original battery from my laptop?

If in case he changed the original battery, how can I know exactly what happened?

How do I find the original laptop in my battery?


Hello Ashok,

The Dell Inspiron n5050 is now over 4 years old. In that time, standard use of your Laptop in battery mode will generate natural wear and tear, which would explain your symptoms. It is most likely coincidence when your friend borrowed your Laptop.

A utility such as HW Monitor from CPUID will show you the state of your battery.

Alternatively, you could enter your Serial Number into the Dell website and see if it gives you the serial number of the battery shipped with your Laptop.

Good luck,

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Responses to Ravi & Saicharen
by: Steve

Hello both,

Ravi: Can you provide additional information, please? What O/S are you using? Could be lots of issues. Suspect a corrupt profile from your description, but can't be sure at this time.

Saicharen: This is a common Inspiron issue. The following steps tend to resolve in most instances.

1. Turn the machine off completely

2. Unplug everything

3. Turn the laptop upside down, and remove the battery.

4. On the side where the mic and speaker sockets are, look for 2 or 3 screws that hold the drive in.

5. Remove these screws, and pull the hard drive (to the side), then put it back re-seat).

6. Put the screws back in and replace the battery

7. Switch on and see if your issue is resolved.

I hope this helps,

Thanks,

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Problem When Swithching On
by: Saicharan

Hi,

My Laptop is an Inspiron 1545.

When I am switching on my laptop instead of loading the O/S, it is showing an error message as 'INTERNAL HARD DISK DRIVER NOT FOUND, TO RESOLVE THIS ISSUE TRY TO RESEAT THE DRIVER'.

I do not understand what to do. I don't have back up for my personal drives.

So please suggest me to solve this problem.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Desktop Issue
by: Ravi Teja

Sir,

My desktop isn't switching on. Instead of loading the desktop, it is simply opening the home page and I cannot access to the desktop any more.

Please provide me some solutions so that I could resolve my problem.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Password to PIN Reply
by: Steve

Hello Sanadhya,

It is not clear whether you are referring to your Operating System screen or your BIOS screen, i.e. when you first switch on your Laptop as opposed to when your Laptop has booted up.

I am assuming you are referring to your Operating System, as I would expect the BIOS password to lock if entered incorrectly enough times. It also doesn't generally display a PIN as such.

If you are using Windows 10, check the following Forgotten Password page to see what your options are for resetting your password.


Good luck,

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Need Some Assistance or Help For My Laptop Reply
by: Steve

Hello,

Sorry to hear about your Laptop issues.

I think it is clear there is an issue with your power adaptor. First, check the following:

- You are using or have been provided the right adaptor for your Laptop. Check with your supplier;

- Check you have the power cable (power cord) is plugged in to the adaptor pack properly;

- Check both ends of your adaptor are plugged in to your wall socket and Laptop properly;

- Confirm there is no obvious damage to your adaptor pack. If there is, unplug the adaptor immediately and return to your supplier.

I've seen the part your plug in to your Laptop be damaged inside, so it is not obvious. Check inside to make sure no small pins are bent or broken.

With it being a new Laptop, it is unlikely it has an out of date BIOS or any incorrect power settings enabled.

Other issues include your Laptop battery. Try re-seating your Laptop battery. There are usually a couple of clips underneath your Laptop you need to pull back to enable you to slide your battery out of position. Make sure it is firmly in place and secure.

As your Laptop is barely a month old, please take it back to whomever you bought it from. You should have at least a 12-month warranty in place, which means they should fix free of charge.

Good luck.

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Need Some Assistance or Help For My Laptop
by: Anonymous

Hello,

I am having lots of problems with my Dell Laptop.

My laptop model is Dell Inspiron 3148 Netbook. I get an "A.C. Adaptor not supportive" notification while switching it on.

The Laptop battery discharges overnight while in shutdown mode, and won’t start again until I put on charge.

While switching it on, I get rainbow lines, weird beep sounds, and a pop-up window showing details about the parts of the laptop and properties of the A.C. Adaptor.

Recently, I've received a hot temperature message, followed by a blinking of yellow lights a few times, then turning white, all in shutdown mode.

My purchase has not even turned a month old.

Please help.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Password to PIN
by: Sanidhya

Hello,

When I am starting my Dell Laptop, it shows a password screen, but one day ago, it showed a PIN screen.

I forgot the password, but I know the PIN. So, how to bring back the PIN screen in place of the password screen?

Thanks.
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Upgrading Hard Disk Reply
by: Stephen

Hello,

In short, yes, you can upgrade a Dell Inspiron 15 3543 Laptop to 1 Tb Hard Drive (HDD).

A quick check of the technical spec online suggests it is a SATA Hard Drive you need to buy.

SATA stands for "Serial Advanced Technology Attachment". It looks like this in a standard PC.

SATA HDD and Cable

There is usually a cover on the bottom of the Laptop you screw off. The hard drive then usually clips out of the SATA connections (you may need to remove more screws).

Rather than me explaining it in detail here, there are some excellent videos and information out there. Take a look at this hard drive replacement video, which explains some things you should do first before removing the hard drive.

I hope this helps. Let me know how you get on.

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Upgrading Hard Disk
by: Anonymous

Hi,

My laptop is a Dell Inspiron 3543. Its hard disk is 500Gb. Can I upgrade it to 1 TB? What are the procedures? How much does it cost?
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Help Provided
by: Stephen

Hello,

Sorry to hear about your issues with your Dell Laptop.

First thing to check is your warranty. If you are still covered, contact Dell and ask for the issue(s) to be fixed.

If you are not covered, you can try taking it to your local computer repair shop for advice.

Unfortunately, flickering screens on Laptops are usually hardware-related - often the power supply cable or the inverter (the latter usually results in an almost blank screen).

Sometimes the power cable gets damaged when you close/open your laptop screen, especially if not seated correctly or the cable itself does not run via its designated route.

Sticky keys are common issues on Laptops. Take a look at this How To Repair a Sticky Computer Key Yourself! Video, although I would advise getting it fixed at the same time as your screen.

Touchpad issues are often down to mouse settings.

If you are on Windows 7 go to your control panel/mouse. Hopefully, you have the right drivers installed, and you can see the ELAD-Smart Pad Tab.

Select this tab, then click the Options button, then the Advanced Tab. Here, search for the Backtracking option and amend the setting to Maximum.

This makes sure your pad does not react to inadvertent touches or swipes that can cause unexpected mouse actions on screen.

Hope this helps.

Steve
Rating
starstarstarstarstar 		Please Help Me and My laptop
by: Anonymous

Hi. My laptop is a Dell Vostro 5470.

When I open any applications, my screen keeps flashing. It does not work or just keeps working of its accord. When I close it, the screen becomes normal.

It must be said that a few days earlier my laptop keyboard was giving me problems. The 'V' button keep pressing of its accord.

Also, my Touch Pad also gives me problems in that it doesn't work properly.

Help!

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