AC power on old Toshiba Satellite bypasses battery; does not charge

dorker

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Oct 25, 2009
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18,510
I recently got an old Toshiba Satellite notebook (c. 2003) that works nicely in most ways except that its battery does not charge.

Using the "TOSHIBA Power Management Utility" I can set the laptop's power use mode, but it continues to rely on AC power. Because of this baked-in software, I cannot use the default Windows power management controls.

When I first tried to fire the machine up (without its cord) I got a few seconds of boot on the residual charge, so I know the battery connects alright.

More info on the laptop on request.

How do I get it to charge? Please help!
 

dorker

Distinguished
Oct 25, 2009
8
0
18,510


It's probably as old as the laptop. I thought it might simply be worn out, but the fact that the comp doesn't even recognize it as a legitimate power source (however toasted) and that it simply bypasses it leads me to believe there's something else wrong.