PROBLEM WITH CHARGING A DELL BATTERY

In our daily work we have seen many situations where a brand-new Dell battery would not charge correctly. Windows displayed the well-known message “plugged in, not charging”. At first glance the diagnosis seems obvious — a faulty battery. Unfortunately, reality is not always that simple. Recently we had several customers with exactly this issue. We replaced the battery with a new one — and the problem remained. We tried another battery, then a third one, and every single time the laptop still refused to charge. What’s interesting is that the very same batteries worked perfectly in other Dell laptops of the same model.

The solution was eventually found on an international tech forum. It turns out that laptops from the Dell Inspiron 15xx series are extremely sensitive when it comes to the power adapter. Even if the charger is original and correctly detected in BIOS, it may still not match the exact requirements of that particular laptop model. Dell laptops often require the “native” adapter — meaning that both the voltage and the current must match the specifications precisely. To solve this problem, it is best to visit a computer store or a laptop service center and test several different Dell chargers on the spot to check which one will properly initiate battery charging.

One of our customers found an alternative method that helped him solve the charging issue on his Dell laptop:

1. Turn off the laptop

2. Remove the battery

3. Connect the power adapter

4. Turn the laptop on

5. Before the operating system starts loading, insert the battery back into the laptop (without disconnecting the charger)

6. Once the system boots, check whether the charging process has started

We have not personally tested this workaround. However, we can assure you that inserting the battery while the laptop is powered on through the charger will not damage the laptop or the battery.