Member Avatar for CarrieR

I'm amateur repairman in our household but I can't seem to google what this problem is. My roommate used her laptop last night -- the battery ran low so she plugged it in, used it for a few minutes, shut the lid (so it hibernated) and then unplugged it, took it to another room and plugged it back in overnight.

When she went to use it this morning, it won't even attempt a boot. The lights on the right side blink -- power and either battery or cylinder -- and if I hold the power button down, all three of the locks at the top blink. One longer flash, and then quick flashes until I release the power button. Same deal if I use FN & power.

I'm terribly afraid it's the motherboard but it seems more like it would be a power supply issue. We've tried her battery in and out, attached and detached from the AC adapter, my AC adapter, etc. I also reseated the RAM in case that was the issue. Any other ideas? The laptop is several years old but aside from general slowness it was working just fine last night!

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  • Latest Post Latest Post by Member #931611

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Brief expert summary and next moves (for the thread): the front/right LEDs and the three keyboard “lock” lights are Dell POST/diagnostic indicators. Those light patterns tell where POST stopped and can point to anything from missing/failed RAM to an embedded controller or system-board fault — Dell’s diagnostic table is the reference to decode the exact amber/white blink counts. (dell.com)

Recommended diagnostic sequence (practical, low-risk, ordered by what’s quickest to check):

  • Record the exact blink pattern (color, counts, long pause vs short pulses). Match it to Dell’s diagnostic table to see which subsystem POST flagged first. (dell.com)

  • Do a power-reset cycle (drain residual power). Hold the power button ~15–20 seconds with AC and battery disconnected, then try AC-only boot and/or the built-in pre‑boot diagnostics (F12 → Diagnostics) if the machine will reach the boot menu. Dell documents both the reset step and how to run the ePSA/SupportAssist pre‑boot tests. (dell.com)

  • Verify the AC adapter output (good quick filter step suggested by ). With the adapter plugged into the wall, set a DMM to DC volts and measure the adapter plug (red probe to the inner pin, black to the outer sleeve). The Inspiron 1520 expects about 19.5 V (65 W or 90 W adapters per the service specs). If the adapter reads far below that or is intermittent when wiggled, the adapter or DC jack is suspect. Follow normal meter safety: don’t short the contacts or open the adapter. (manualzilla.com)

  • If adapter/voltage are OK, focus on memory and the DC jack next. Try one SODIMM at a time in each slot (or a known-good stick) and look for blink-code changes that map to “no memory” / “memory failure” in Dell’s table. Also check the jack for intermittent contact (wiggle test) — a loose/soldered DC jack can cause exactly the symptoms described. (dell.com)

If the decoded blink pattern points to CPU or system-board faults, board-level repair or replacement is likely. For triage, capture the exact blink/code and any ePSA error code — that makes quoting a repair shop or Dell support far more accurate.

Member Avatar for Member #931611

Try hooking it up to the AC, and remove the battery. Then, using a multimeter, see if the laptop's actually supplying power to the battery.

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