Theres nothing worse than being greeted with a black screen when trying to power up a laptop.
We have a tip that has helped many of our customers get their laptops working again without requiring a visit from a TechSolver.
How to fix a laptop that wont start up
So youve opened up your laptop and it hasnt woken up like it usually does.
Youve tried pressing the power button but there are no signs of life at all.
Youre tried different power cables and still, it wont start.
Even holding down the power button for minutes at a time has no effect.
Before calling a technology specialist, try this tip to drain residual electricity.
Its easy to do, theres no risk and it might just do the trick.
Who should try this?
Users who get no response from their laptop when pressing the power button.
Who wont it help?
This wont help you if your screen shows any kind of activity during the startup process.
Theres no harm in trying but we wouldnt expect any change in behaviour.
What brand will this work on?
Dell, HP, Samsung, Toshiba, Acer, ASUS, Sony, Lenovo, IBM well, all of them really.
About laptops and residual electricity
Laptops can fail to start if they detect residual electricity on the motherboard or its components.
This safety mechanism avoids too much electricity overloading components.
You might see this behaviour if your laptop powers off suddenly while you are using it.
How to fix this problem
The fix is very simple:
- Unplug the power cable from your laptop
- Locate and remove the battery
- Press and hold the power button for 30 seconds
- Re-insert the battery and plug in your laptop
- Attempt a restart and cross your fingers
With a bit of luck, your screen is now showing signs of life and the operating system is booting up.
Why does this work?
Removing the power cord and unplugging the battery removes all sources of electricity. Pressing the power button starts the laptop which will try to use whatever electricity it has to power up.
The laptop only has residual electricity available which is usually entirely consumed within seconds.
Holding the power button down allows plenty of time for the laptop to completely drain itself of electricity.
Did this fix your problem?
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