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I have a Dell Inspiron 5521 which has no problems whatsoever. I bought it in Oman but I live in India. Consequently, I had to purchase a 3 pin converter to use the laptop charger back home.

However, recently (after about a year of usage) the adapter has started to stop working. It works sometimes, and doesn't work other times. It has a little green rectangular indicator on the main AC-DC unit. So, when the adapter does not work, the green light does not glow.

I have checked with different input cables (cables connecting this unit to the 3pin converter connected to the wall socket) from my friends, with no avail, showing that the input cable is not faulty. I have also checked that when the green light is not working, the laptop is not charging, showing that the indicator light is probably fine. Also, the socket is currently charging my phone, so the socket is fine as well and working properly.

What went wrong with my adapter? And how can I fix it, if I can? I really need to use my laptop, and I can't charge it. Also, my laptop is well out of warranty.

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Two common causes of intermittent issues in power supplies:

  1. A broken cord or connector. In addition to the tests you tried, wiggle the plug that goes into the laptop gently to see if the charge light goes on or flickers.

  2. A component in the power supply pulling loose from a PC board. If tapping the power supply makes the charge light flicker, that's a likely culprit.

If you are comfortable taking apart the laptop to fix the connector, or have tools and skills to fix a power supply (these are usually potted and difficult to open), you can try to fix these. If it's the laptop's DC power connector, and that is beyond your skills, find a local repair shop.

However, if it's just the power supply and/or its connectors, a replacement "universal" power supply can be bought for ~US$10, depending on the specs. Match the voltage output of the present supply, and equal or exceed the current needs.

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  • No response from the laptop charge light(I.e. no flickering). I have already opened up my laptop and checked, the DC power ports and the motherboard are fine. Tapping the power supply did not help as well. Also, I must mention, I am able to charge my laptop absolutely fine from another compatible charger from a friend who bought the same model in my home country. Also, what happens is that, regardless of whether the charger is connected to the laptop or not, when I switch on the supply, the indicator on the adapter(the AC to DC converter) comes to life for a moment and then fades away.
    – x__x
    Commented Oct 14, 2015 at 5:21
  • It appears you've identified the issue is in the [power supply. Though you might want to try cutting into the case of the PS to find the cause and try to fix the issue, I'd still recommend buying a replacement. Amazon has a variety of replacement supplies, as does NewEgg.
    – DrMoishe Pippik
    Commented Oct 14, 2015 at 18:49
  • I have done just that. Opening the power supply is quite a hassle though. I don't have all the tools to open it. But even after that, I don't have the glue to stick it back together. But Oh well, I guess I will learn something new from opening the PS. Thanks for all your help! I appreciate it.
    – x__x
    Commented Oct 14, 2015 at 18:58

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