Laptop turns on for a few seconds and then shuts down. No video appears on the screen.
Today I was able to fix a “dead” notebook simply by reseating connectors. The customer brought in Compaq nx5000 notebook with the following complaint:
“Laptop shuts down on power up. When the power button is pushed, the laptop flashes green lights for several seconds and then powers down. Unit will not stay on with battery or when plugged in”.
I plugged the AC adapter and tried to turn on the laptop. After I pushed on the power button, fans started spinning and were active for a few seconds and laptop just turned itself off. The video never came on. I tried to power it on for a few times with the same result.
Here is how I fixed it.
First of all I tried simple stuff: remove the battery and start the laptop with AC adapter plugged in, reseat and swap the memory module, remove the hard drive, the DVD drive, the wireless card. Nothing helped to start the laptop normally. After that I went a little bit further. I opened up the laptop case, removed the LCD screen assembly and reseated the video card and… Surprise, surprise, the laptop started fine with an external monitor attached. Just in case I restarted it 3-4 times and each time I got video on the screen. After I assembled everything back, one more surprise was waiting for me. The laptop failed to boot again with the same symptoms. So, the only part that I added before it failed was the LCD screen assembly. I unplugged the video cable from the system board and the laptop started fine again with the external monitor. Now I know that the problem is somewhere inside the display assembly (of course, if the video connector on the system board is fine). The next logical step would be opening up the LCD display assembly and check if all connectors are seated properly. Bingo!!! I wasn’t very surprised, but I was very happy. The video cable was half-way out from the connector on the back of the LCD screen. The laptop started perfectly fine as soon as I plugged the video cable back in place. Fixed!
That was my first experience when improperly plugged video cable prevented entire system from booting.
Read more:
How to troubleshoot and fix laptop video problems
Laptop has bad video on the LCD screen. What is wrong?
Entry Filed under: Everyday Laptop Repair
137 Responses to “Laptop turns on for a few seconds and then shuts down. No video appears on the screen.”
Pages: « 14 … 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 [1] Show All
Pages: « 14 … 11 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 [1] Show All
September 2nd, 2006 at 2:06 am
It sounds like I am having the same exact problem I need help. I’m from the states, but i’m over seas. My compaq presario laptop i thought was damaged on the plane ride over here. It starts up for a few seconds and shuts off just like yours. It has turned on a few times and when it turns on, i can do whatever with it, and it works flawlessly. I can reboot it without any issues. But if i shut it down, or shut it off, it will not turn back on and have the same issue. today i can no longer get lucky and get it turn turn on, can you tell me all the steps i need to follow to try and fix this? I’m open to any suggestions. thank you. If you could please email me if you can help.
August 20th, 2006 at 1:00 pm
Thanks cj for the advice, I really appreciate. I am definitely going to try that route to narrow down the problem.
August 17th, 2006 at 7:59 pm
Zak,
You’ve replaced the CPU in this model, so I assume you know how to take it apart. First of all, try to reseat the memory module/modules. That’s would be nice if you can find a test memory for a while.
When I have a weird laptop problem and cannot figure out what is wrong, I take it completely apart and assemble a basic system outside the laptop box, right on my bench. For a basic system you’ll need the system board, the CPU with cooling module and the memory module. Assemble everything together outside the laptop base, connect an external monitor and turn it on. You’ll have to remove the power switch board from the top cover or carefully connect it to the system board without removing, it’s up to you. If it still will not boot up, then one of three components is bad. You already replaced the CPU, so it would be either the system board or the memory.
If you can boot the basic system, start assembling it back and test after each step. Make sure that you put correct screws into correct holes.
August 17th, 2006 at 4:45 pm
I have a similar problem with my Toshiba M35X-S161 (bought 2/05). When I try to turn on the laptop, the power button lights up and the heatsink fan does it’s initial power-up. Sometimes nothing else happens, the power button just stays lit and the I have to hold in the power button for ~10 seconds before it shuts down. Other times it’ll power up with no problems for a VERY short time (usually just past CD-ROM check and the initial splash screen and POST but on rare occasions, it’ll make it all the way to Windows) and cuts the power again to everything but the power button. I checked inside and I have the updated speaker grounding and I’ve replaced the CPU thinking it was sensing an overheating. I know it’s not a faulty DC jack since the battery gets fully charged all the time. Any ideas would be GREATLY appreciated!!
August 6th, 2006 at 1:04 pm
I purchased a Toshiba Satelite M50 back in December 05 and had no problem with until a few days ago. I would go to turn it on and the fans spun but then it would shut off. Sometimes it would go on and would shut down randomely. I sent it to Toshiba with no clue whats going on with it. Does anyone know what tthe problem could be so I dont get messed with the company? I know ofr a fact that it isnt a virus because I was able to to a full system recovery. If anyone knows what it could be, please help.
July 31st, 2006 at 9:17 am
Yes I already tried, and when I wiggle the power cord on the back of the notebook it starts. But if it started when I still wiggleing it works properly doesn’t shut down. But the most intresting thing is that, when i plug the battery unit in and unplug the AC power it makes the same: Just little fan moving a HDD turn off and one
amber flash next to the power on green indicator led. But if i plug the AC without the power just the end of the power cord and start
wiggling it starts from the battery as well.
What else can be the problem beside the memory modules?
It is a HP Compaq NX5000
July 30th, 2006 at 9:51 pm
Peter,
Your problem is very unusual, I’m not really sure what’s going on. Have you tried to replace the memory module?
July 29th, 2006 at 1:47 pm
I have a Compaq NX5000 I have a similar problem with my laptop. The problem is when I start my notebook in the afternoon when the temperature is around 30 Celsius, it starts the fan on the backside and after shuting the fan the flash led next to the power on led flashes once and nothing happens. But if I start the notebbok in the morning on the third starting up try it starts the fan starts to work the num lock, caps lock, and scroll lock leds flashing once and the power on led is stays on and the computer starts. It is working then properly till next afternoon? What can be the problem??? Can somebody help me? I tried the connection cable on the back of the LCD panel but it looks ok and when I unplugged from the motherboard the problem was the same, tried to start with an external monitor but it not helped. PLEASE HELP ME!
July 16th, 2006 at 7:48 pm
[…] I would test the AC adapter first. I think it’s possible that the adapter is bad and the battery is discharged. Try to remove the battery, plug in the AC adapter and start the laptop without the battery installed. Then I would try to install a test memory module or at least reseat it. Does is make any difference? If nothing helps, you can minimize the system as much as possible and try to start it with an external monitor. Normally you need only 3 components to successfully boot a laptop and see if you have some basic functionality. These components are… […]
July 7th, 2006 at 11:34 pm
I have an A75 S209 purchased Jan 2005 which has performed flawlessly until several days ago when the dreaded DC jack failure arrived. A search in Google lead me to this site which is fantastic.
After reading all the horror stories I figured I was doomed. Then I discovered the disassembly notes and photos which I printed and thought I would plunge in (well after a little soul searching) and tear the thing apart. Discovered the problem with the jack, the center pin connector was broke up inside the jack. I soldered in a new piece of wire and put everything back together plugged it in and turned it on and it worked for about 10 minutes and failed again.
Bought a jack from ebay for $8.95 but after pondering the problem most of the day I decided to take it apart again and remove the jack. Using Tony’s approach I attached the jack (the bad one) with a piece wire so that it is located outside the case. Works like a charm. My technique was slightly different than Tony’s but the outcome was the same and I think this fix will last for awhile.
It took about 11/2 hours to complete the job most of the time was spent routing the wire so it didn’t interfer with anything which required several attempts. If you follow the disassembly procedure and take your time it’s not to difficult. You’ll need an assortment of tools and a soldering iron.
Rather than route the wire as Tony did I used the hole for the jack. I used 2 wire ties attached to the wire on both sides of the case as restrains to keep it from moving. It’s nice and secure so should last for a while. And when the new jack arrives I’ll have a spare just in case.
Thanks for a great site.
Lee Nicholas