# Asus laptop only charges when turned off



## Nimra387 (Nov 22, 2014)

Hello,

I just got this Asus X501A laptop, and it only charges then it's turned off. As soon as I turn the laptop on, the red battery indicator light turns off.

The specifications on the Laptop are: 19V 3,42A
The charger's specifications: 19V 1,75A

I've tried using a charger from an older laptop, which has 20V 3,25A, and it works perfectly, it charges both when it's turned on and off.

Is the original charger that I got with the laptop too weak? What should I do?

Any help would be very welcome! Thank you!


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## Deejay100six (Nov 24, 2007)

Hi, :wave: and welcome to TSF.

Did you buy the laptop used or new?

If its used, depending on the age, I'd guess that the original charger failed and rather than purchase a proper replacement, tried a charger that they had just lying around and it _appeared_ to work so they just left it at that.

I don't pretend to completely understand voltages and amps etc., but at 1,75A, the one you have is only half of what the laptop needs. Perhaps thats why its only doing half of the job, ie, charging but not running at the same time.

A replacement is relatively inexpensive, http://www.amazon.co.uk/Charger-Com...1416690677&sr=8-1&keywords=asus+x501a+charger but don't take that as a recommendation. Laptops and chargers is not really my field.

You may be better waiting for one of the hardware techs to come along. :smile:


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## Bill_Bright (Dec 17, 2004)

> but at 1,75A, the one you have is only half of what the laptop needs. Perhaps thats why its only doing half of the job, ie, charging but not running at the same time.


It does not work that way. It is the voltage that matters most. You cannot fully charge a 12V battery with a 6V charger, for example. You would need a charger that provides a bit more than 12V to charge a 12V battery. This is why car chargers and alternator systems output 13.8 to 14.4VDC. 

The current (amperage) value of the charger determines how fast a battery can be fully charged (assuming correct voltage). A car "trickle" charger, for example, can still fully charge a car battery, but it might take 24 hours or even longer. But a large battery charger as might be found at a repair shop may do it in 1 hour even though both are rated as 12V chargers. 

However, in this case if the less amperage charger is being tasked to charge a discharged battery AND power the notebook at the same time, that may place too great a demand on the charger. You might need to leave the notebook turned off and let it fully charge the battery, then see what happens. 

Or, if the battery is failing or is bad (has an internal short), it may be attempting to pull too much current from the charger and protection circuits are kicking in before something gets too hot. 

But first, you need to answer DeeJay's question, "_did you buy the laptop used or new?_" If new, send it back now.

I generally advise against using a charger from a different notebook unless you really know what you are doing. Sadly, notebooks, and consequently notebook batteries and chargers are often proprietary - that is, they are designed for that brand and model of notebooks. The connector may reverse polarity or the adapter may apply the wrong voltage. This is why Universal Notebook Power Adapters come with so many different connectors and provide several different output voltages.


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## Nimra387 (Nov 22, 2014)

Bill_Bright said:


> It does not work that way. It is the voltage that matters most. You cannot fully charge a 12V battery with a 6V charger, for example. You would need a charger that provides a bit more than 12V to charge a 12V battery. This is why car chargers and alternator systems output 13.8 to 14.4VDC.
> 
> The current (amperage) value of the charger determines how fast a battery can be fully charged (assuming correct voltage). A car "trickle" charger, for example, can still fully charge a car battery, but it might take 24 hours or even longer. But a large battery charger as might be found at a repair shop may do it in 1 hour even though both are rated as 12V chargers.
> 
> ...


Thanks for the reply! The laptop is actually new, but I've bought it through the Internet (eBay similar). Anyway, there are no traces of usage on the laptop.

The thing that happened is as you said it would: I've let it fully charged while turned off, and now it charges normally! Now I don't know if that is normal or if that actually should happen? Should I get another charger?


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## Bill_Bright (Dec 17, 2004)

> Now I don't know if that is normal or if that actually should happen? Should I get another charger?


Well, I think if you read the manual for ANY rechargeable battery or rechargeable battery operated device, it will clearly state something similar to, "_Fully charge the battery before first use!_"

It says that for my Toshiba notebook, my cell phone, my camera, my tablet, even my razor. 

I would not replace the charger just yet and see how it goes for awhile. You may find what you really need is what many portable device users do, and that is to buy a spare battery.


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## BIGBEARJEDI (Aug 8, 2012)

If you do buy a new Charger; don't scrimp on that item! There are many on the Internet and ebay in particular for $10-$30; those are often cut-rate items made with inferior components.:facepalm: If you buy an aftermarket charger, expect to pay at least $65 or more. The other more expensive route is to buy a *FACTORY CHARGER*, in your case an *Asus charger.* If you're shopping online, make sure the photo shows an Asus logo on the Charger block. Expect to pay $75-$200 for a Factory Charger. The advantage of course if that if you pony up and spend the extra bucks for a Factory Charger, and the charging problem remains, then it's likely your battery has failed as well and* THAT* needs to be replaced with a *FACTORY BATTERY* *very expensive*.

Given this scenario, when played out, if you replace these 2 items, Charger and Battery, with Factory replacements and the problem persists, most likely the Charging Circuit has failed in your Motherboard and must be replaced to remedy the problem. If you are at $200 or so for the Factory components; charger and battery, you are now faced with a decsion. That new Motherboard repair is going to cost you $175-$400 in the US; 2-3 times that outside of US. In either case you are at a $375 US investment minimum to repair this laptop; possibly $1,200 or more outside of US. If you didn't pay a whole lot for that laptop (over $375 US); it might be wiser to just junk that laptop and buy a brand new Dell Inspiron 15 full size laptop; they go on sale tomorrow morning for $179! :grin:

The alternative to this approach--and this is a radical suggestion for this free help forum--and that is take your laptop to your licensed Computer Pro and pay him to diagnose the actual problem and get an estimate of the failed component or components and how much the repair will cost parts and labor total. They have special tools such as Multimeters which allow them to test the exact voltages coming out of your charger, battery, both no-load and under-load to determine if they have failed and recommend replacements. Of course, after testing, they may determine your Motherboard has failed and after reading my estimates above, you can see that will be a *VERY expensive* repair. This most likely will bring you to a_ "repair vs. replace"_ conundrum decision.

Some stuff to think about...opcorn:

Post back your final solution.

Best of luck to you!
<<<BIGBEARJEDI>>>


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## Bill_Bright (Dec 17, 2004)

If you intend to buy an exact replacement charger, then I agree with BIGBEARJEDI - get one from ASUS. You pay more - just as you do for common car parts if you buy them from the dealer. But you can be sure it has sufficient current, is the correct voltage, and has the correct connector end. 

But as I noted above, you do have an alternative, a much less expensive one too, and one that I use all the time and recommend. And that is a Automatic Universal 90W Notebook Power Adapter. I use this one on service calls and when troubleshooting notebooks. You select the proper tip (out of 13 provided) and it automatically adjusts its output voltage for the battery or notebook it encounters. Thus far, I have had no problems using it on my own Toshiba, as well as several client's Dells, HP/Compac, eMachine, Sony, Lenova, Acer, and even Apple notebooks. 

Because this charger has a more than capable current capability, automatically detects and selects the correct voltage, and comes with the necessary connectors, you can be sure it will be compatible. At least I have yet to find a notebook/battery it does not support and I've used it on many notebooks, old and new.

The problem with buying a factory replacement as suggested, besides costs, is that it is highly probable you will NOT be able to use it on your next notebook. 

Sorry, but I missed this:


Nimra387 said:


> The laptop is actually new, but I've bought it through the Internet (eBay similar


Since this notebook is "new", I would urge you to contact ASUS and see what warranty support options you have. I note using any charger besides the one provided with the notebook may void the warranty.  My only fear is that you said you bought it off an eBay type site - which may not be an ASUS authorized distributor.

Have you contacted the vendor?


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