Laptop dead?

[dummyyy]

Hey guys.

Recently, I was using my laptop when all of a sudden, it started to smell like burnt plastic or whatever. Then the laptop shut off and then smoke was coming out!! The smoke came from the top right side of the keyboard.

Is my laptop dead? I'm afraid to turn it on again.


It's an HP DV6500T CTO. I had it for about 2 years. Also, there was a thread about HP recalling batteries but supposedly, my battery wasn't affected. (I emailed them about it).

[Neuromancer]

Every laptop is configured differently. Is your CPU in that area? (You can tell by the vents) IS the battery mounted in the rear? In the side or front)

Have you pulled the battery and physically examined it? If the battery is the culprit and they told you your battery was not part of the recall you need to contact them and RMA your laptop.

[dummyyy]

http://www.notebookreview.com/default.asp?newsID=3828 <-- this link pretty much is my laptop except the cpu. I have a T6600. And if you scroll down (sorry, I don't know how to post pictures), it shows you the configuration of my laptop.

About the RMA, can I still do that even though my warranty expired? I took out the battery but I'm not sure what to check for. It seems physically fine. The smell is coming directly from the laptop and not the battery.

[nightelph]

Hrm that doesn't sound (smell) good.

The first thing you should do is remove your hard drive and install it in a desktop or usb enclosure to back up your files. Then play doctor.

I would pull the battery, and try powering it on with the ac adapter. This would eliminate the possibility of the problem being the battery. But, like you said the smell is coming from the laptop with the battery removed.

Use this guide (http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=4954374#post4954374) to post images.

[dummyyy]

Hrm that doesn't sound (smell) good.

The first thing you should do is remove your hard drive and install it in a desktop or usb enclosure to back up your files. Then play doctor.

I would pull the battery, and try powering it on with the ac adapter. This would eliminate the possibility of the problem being the battery. But, like you said the smell is coming from the laptop with the battery removed.

Use this guide (http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?p=4954374#post4954374) to post images.



I tried turning on the laptop with just the AC adapter. It worked at first but it just turned off again. The light indicator is just blinking now. I tried just using the battery and it seems the battery is dead. AND NOW, the blinking light is barely visible.

[vgta88]

i have poor memory so i'm just gonna pre emp post

Note: Additional products were added to the following table on the 25th of September, 2009. The number of affected batteries sold by HP has not increased.

http://bpr.hpordercenter.com/hbpr/ your model is listed. dam...

ok so from what you said. if you were to place your laptop upsidedown.
the cpu is top right
the memory is buttom right
th harddrive is in the middle
the top left is the power adapter (flip it back up and your power adapter is top right)

it seems like it shorted out or something, there should be some voltage regulators in the area, most likely converting the dc voltage to something else. High voltage or current is the only thing that can cause this (from shorts, poor power adapter mounting, or voltage regulator malfunction) . I don't know what malfuntioned but if your battery is fine then its not that.

was your battery in at any point while this happened?

I'd chalk this up as heat damage or electrical problem. It's sad really, this can happen to any laptop users(I am one), usually probably due to manufacturers using not the best parts or poor design.

I'd also have to guess that maybe the power adapter brick is broken itself, the blinking light would make me think what if ac regulation didn't work (ac alternates so i'm not sure how that would show up on a light)

the motherboard is fried. i;m pretty sure of that unless you can provide more info like if only the power adapter port was shorted off.

there might be fuses on the motherboard but replacing them might be difficult.

[dummyyy]

Actually, the hard drive is at the bottom right and the memory is in the middle. But everything else is correct.

The battery was in while my laptop went bye bye. I tried turning on the laptop with just the battery (It had some charge left), but laptop still didn't turn on.

About the motherboard being fried: After my laptop poofed, I took out the battery, and the hard drive. I just used the ac adapter to turn it on. And it actually worked. It turned on and it showed "no operating system found". BUT THEN, it shut off again. And now that doesn't work anymore. The ac adapter port with the ac adapter in just blinks.

[vgta88]

stop plugging it in, it could die for good. are you good with electronics?

i'd suggest calling hp about the battery or seeing if there is similar cases of dying batteries with the same symptoms.

we don't know if the battery is the cause yet.

your harddrive may or may not be damaged I'd suggest putting it in a desktop to test. (its oem if you didn't do anything to the os it won't boot but you can access your files if you set it as secondary drive)

someone please answer if laptop sata is compatible with desktop sata

if you find that the battery is most likely the cause then i wouldn't even open the laptop. i'd try to get hp to repair it even if it's out of warranty.

it's good news that your machine works some of the time. it is obvious that there is some sort of electrical damage and that you shouldn't be trying to start it up again.

try to look up the model number/sn on your battery for failures.

btw did you ever have any video errors? you know about the nvidia notebook failure thing right? the nvidia ceo had to issue some public statement about it.(something about the right conditions in a notebook causing massive failures) he even claimed he would shell out the cash to fix this stuff(on youtube) so don't hack it up yet.

some people say that on board nvidia video has a design defect so it is not wise to get a replacement that will fail the same way. (I think it's the reason why some nvidia mxm cards can be revived by the oven trick)

again, it's only obvious that there is a problem with the laptop and the ac/dc brick itself. no clue if the battery caused it, not ruled out. the video defect is an idea

so it could be:
nvidia video card problem (people with broken mxm cards iirc have said it works if they replaced it)
(mxm is the pcie dedicated graphics slot for notebooks)
motherboard died independently (voltage regulators, capacitors failed , I have no clue if they even use them)
faulty power connectors (causing shorts, heat damage, or currently disconnected)
faulty battery shorted or overheated causing damage

The last thing I kept in mind is you said smoke so something overheated and failed around the dc adapter.

this site might be an interesting read for trouble shooting http://www.uofr.net/~greg/hardware/laptop_power_troubleshooting/

nvidia ceo http://go.overclockers.com/?id=1132X509988&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DQZB 6kxxgnOQ

the hp and nvidia thread http://www.overclockers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=626283&highlight=nvidia+failure

there's something non-invasive you can check. get a multi meter and check the voltages on your dc adapter. if it reads close to spec then we rule out the power brick.

I actually had a dc power go bad and make my voip router thing not work, also on my wireless router too (its like 10 years old, I just got a replacement dc adapter and they both worked again. my voip box would blink it's light forever so I had no clue if the dc adapter broke until i tried my router's adapter on it.

[dummyyy]

So I had someone good with computers look at my laptop and he said the power supply unit in the laptop is most likely blown. So he said my laptop is dead. :'(

[Xtreme Barton]

well most likely isnt a for sure .. are you comfortable with disassembling it ? i for sure wouldnt try turning it on anymore until you figure out what the issue is ..

you may be able to find a new parts on ebay for good prices

or if you feel comfortable send it to a trusted person here on the forums that would be willing to help you out and let you know for sure what went bad

[madhatter256]

Chances are, the unit that has the AC adaptor plug INSIDE the laptop is probably dead, hence you saw the smoke.

I would open it up and see if there is in fact that unit (there is one in my laptop DV4-1225dx) AND if it is detachable because if it is, it means you can replace it! Chances are there will be burn marks on that unit.

If you were to do this and see if it was indeed burned, and you decide to fix it, then I would also buy a new ac adapter as that might have been what killed it.

[dummyyy]

well most likely isnt a for sure .. are you comfortable with disassembling it ? i for sure wouldnt try turning it on anymore until you figure out what the issue is ..

you may be able to find a new parts on ebay for good prices

or if you feel comfortable send it to a trusted person here on the forums that would be willing to help you out and let you know for sure what went bad

Hmm. I never disassembled a laptop before. I'm sure I can find some guides on how to do it. The guy who looked at my laptop said he'll try to find the parts for me but I am wondering if the cost to fix it outweighs the cost to just buy a new one.

Chances are, the unit that has the AC adaptor plug INSIDE the laptop is probably dead, hence you saw the smoke.

I would open it up and see if there is in fact that unit (there is one in my laptop DV4-1225dx) AND if it is detachable because if it is, it means you can replace it! Chances are there will be burn marks on that unit.

If you were to do this and see if it was indeed burned, and you decide to fix it, then I would also buy a new ac adapter as that might have been what killed it.

I'll see if that was the cause. Thanks

[Xtreme Barton]

.. The guy who looked at my laptop said he'll try to find the parts for me but I am wondering if the cost to fix it outweighs the cost to just buy a new one.

just depends on what is wrong with it .. but im sure you could find parts allot cheaper than a new one ..

[vgta88]

I have a hp laptop maintenance guide(not your model) I have no idea how I came across it but it tells you how to take the whole thing apart. try not to void your warranty. there might be an extended since you have nvidia and your battery is listed on the recall list.