HowToFixComputers.com

carl97 · Contributor Joined: 06 Jun 2006 Posts: 9

I have come accross the powerjack problem in many computers but HP takes the biscuit. Many of my friends have come to me for the HP repair.

Anyway i will undertake any powerjack problems providing the motherboard hasn't blown. (If it's the case of holding the jack in a possition and boots up) This offer stands for UK as postage for me is a problem. Within the UK I pay return insured postage. The usual time for me to do the repair is 2 hours at my pace, i charge £40 per hour and usualy works out at £80 per repair, Max £100 if there complications.
I am currently advertising in Ebay "HP Laptop Power Jack Repair"
Anyway Contact me at colin@truestate.com if interested int the Repair
Colin

twc14450 · Member Joined: 29 Jun 2006 Posts: 2

So, can anyone tell me what dc jack that i need for my HP Pavilion ZE4805us?? I have looked at several websites that sell the dc jacks, but haven't found one place yet that sells them for the ZE4805us....

HP tech support said that a dc jack for the ZE4400 would work, but it is a little shorter than the original (which burnt to a crisp and melted)...so the plug didn't fit in it all the way...That isn't really a problem now though...i have cut the case around where the plug would attach...

But I would still prefer to have the correct dc jack in the unit...

carl97 · Contributor Joined: 06 Jun 2006 Posts: 9

Maplin and RS Components do Longer Jacks, i believe they do a Motherboard mount that would fit your laptop

Aambrosia · Member Joined: 05 Jul 2006 Posts: 1

I will add my own story in case somebody is monitoring this for law suit reasons or whatever. I experienced the same story as everybody else, and almost find it humorous that I see myself reflected in so many other people.
August 2004 - I order a BRAND NEW CTO HP Pavilion zx5000 for school (and personal reasons, the Radeon 5600 probably wasnt needed for MOST my classes wink

). Get the laptop and it works great! Does my schoolwork and plays my games (although I notice some serious heat radiating from this monster of a laptop. Also the AC adapter gets extremely HOT! when I play my games, ). Buy a cooling pad and play it on the pad and all is well.
August 2004 thru September 2005 - Use the laptop for many grand days of Everquest gaming, but was always careful to remove the battery while playing (don't want to take any chances on frying the battery!)
October 2005 - I notice my battery failing to charge to its full potential. I don't think too much about it because it works good enough to keep me going on my downtimes (non-games).
November 2005 - The laptop fails to charge the battery to even half the charge and I notice a it switches randomly from AC to battery power while plugged in (don't wiggle that cord!). I noctice a recall on an HP laptop battery (YAY! maybe that will fix my problem). I go to the website and although I meet ALL the guidelines, I somehow don't qualify for the recall. Back to the drawing board.
December 2005 - The battery is a lovely paperweight in my laptop bag, so I stop carrying it in my backpack, and run the laptop off only AC power (don't wiggle that cord!). I start experiencing random blue screens, probably attributed to the sudden power losses from the wiggly cord and no battery to back it up! I contact HP via the web chat and they tell me to try the regular 'my battery is dead' tests and then tell me to pay to replace the MB (now conveniently past their 1-year warranty).
May 2006 - Finally break down and buy another battery in preparation for a trip I am going to take. Plug it in and it charges to full! Yay!
June 2006 (Sometime in the middle of my trip) - Notice the battery is not charging to full again. Getting concerned. Get back from my trip and the battery is showing around 20%, and NOT getting higher. Unplug the laptop and it immediately turns off. Much H8 for HP and their shoddy workmanship. Run it off the AC adapter again, and hope I don't bump the cord while in the middle of a quest!
July 2006 - Found this website, will be calling Ken for my fixit! I haven't seen him post here in about half a year, but his site is still up, so that's a good sign.
I always preached about HP and even had my sister, my mom and my co worker order BTO HP laptops because I thought so much of HP! But I have lost faith in their shoddy workmanship and their lack of care for the customer. Fortunately I noticed that they have a different plug for their newer models, so I hope that they will not have the problems I am having!

carl97 · Contributor Joined: 06 Jun 2006 Posts: 9

I have quite a bit of experience with the Power Jack Problem and laptop dissasembly. LOL and reassembly to. (No screws over etc.) I have probably done over 100 units all models and not just HP sofar. I am quite happy to take on any model with this problem. It must be the exact problem as i am not a genious. Any soldering job above 0.25 mm is no problem.

I don't charge rippoff prices and i am very proud of my workmanship
I usually Solder all the joints, replace Jack if needed and Epoxy Bond it to the board for a Super Solid Connection. I Guarantee the work on a return to base depending on circumstances. I am very sure my work will last more than 3 years of medium abuse. I am supportive and flexable in all regards. To give an idea, the laptop needs to be stripped to bare bones to get motherboard out then repaired and tested. Whole job about 2 to 2.30 hours. I usually charge £30 per hour thats £60. i usually charge £80 and that covers £20 Postage return. Client has to pay there Postage etc.

My question is: where and how can i spread the word, where i can do some good and earn my living?? and kick HP Butt at the same time.
I would be very greatful for any help, and ofcourse would be willing to give back. Say your Laptop has the prob and someone else you know has the same, Send both and i do yours for half price etc. we work a good deal etc. I am happy to work on computers all day, better still if it pays for my hobbie.

I tried advertising help on HP Forums and they just deleted my Postings.
Didn't send a commercal post or break forum rules.

Hey i am happy to Spread help if you like to take on the Prob Yourself.
Colin

cpw515 · Member Joined: 07 Jul 2006 Posts: 1

carl97 · Contributor Joined: 06 Jun 2006 Posts: 9

CPW515,
Only a few models Arc. I dont know exeactly witch.

It is a bit dodgy why they plan the charge control so close to the dodgy Weak solder joints. One thing i always say, HP, Compaq and IBM are nothing but trouble. I concider them with personal experience as Cheats.

gonzalez628 · Member Joined: 21 Aug 2006 Posts: 1

OMG.....This really sucks. I have a HP zv5000 laptop and the DC jack is busted and I dont know how to repair it. For some reason I can take the shell off but I can't get to the DC Jack. I need help if posible. This really sucks that their was not a recall on all of these HP's. cry baby

....I want to have a laptop that works.....Oh one more thing I called HP and spoke with this lady and she tells me that my laptop was out of warranty. So the only way I can get help was to pay $99. So I asked her If I do that are you going to let me know if you guys can repair the problem. She told me she can not answer anything that I ask until I pay the $99. HP thumbsdown

carl97 · Contributor Joined: 06 Jun 2006 Posts: 9

To get to the Solder Side of the Jack you need to Strip the motherboard down and remove the board to solder. You need to Remove the Acid from the Pins, And discarge the Power onboard otherwise you will find it hard to solder. If your in the UK you can send it to me and i will fix it for you.
Email me at carl97@truestate.com for details

njj023 · Contributor Joined: 24 Mar 2006 Posts: 7

Markthomas and CPW i am having the exact same problem as well with my zv5000 charging fine when turned off but having problems when turned on. So i had a few questions regarding that
1. Markthomas does your laptop work absolutely fine with HP's all in one media cable? I am getting kind of sick with this and i might just end up getting that cable. You think we wil have this problem with the media cable too? Also i would love to hear the experiences so far from people who have bought the cable
2. Sometimes when my laptop is turned off the blue charging laptop blinks on and off continously. What does that mean?
Thanks

lynbeth

I'm glad I'm not the only one. Finding you guys and all the solutions has made my day! I am going to fix this myself as that seems to be the only real solution! I have already paid to have it fixed by a local computer repair guy and it worked for a month. If I can take photos of each step I will post them. I have a zv5000. It should be called a pos5000. big grin

_________________
Have a great day!

Maureen · Forum Regular Joined: 26 Sep 2006 Posts: 15

Newbie here posting how grateful and miffed I am to have found this information. I have an HP Pavilion zd7310 which is out of warranty and I'm unable to use it because of the problem.

I did call HP and thinking it might be the adaptor they sent me a free one. I think they were taking pity on me because I bought the laptop in November '04 as a secondary unit, and didn't use it from January '05 until September of '05 while I was in, and recovering from, chemotherapy. Since that time, I've used it at night or on weekends, if at all. When they found out it wasn't the adaptor, but the pin, they stated there was nothing they could do for me since it's out of warranty. So here I sit with a laptop I can't use unless I cough up at least a $200 solution - since repairing it, getting a docking station or a media cable all cost about $200. As a divorced mother of two teens and one in college, with my situation and lost income for eight months last year, I can't afford this.

Like Dell, I'll be crossing HP off my list for future purchases.

Has anyone gotten any information about the class action lawsuit I read of here?

Maureen

njj023 · Contributor Joined: 24 Mar 2006 Posts: 7

The class action suit is old news i think now. Our Z series pavilion laptops bought 2-3 years ago with the powerjack problems have now been replaced with newer lines of HP laptops and unless these new ones have the same problems as well, there is nothing that can be done.
People who bought the XC1000 cable earlier were smart, the price of it online has been jacked up from 30 bucks to 200 currently which sucks( although i have seen people sell them on ebay for much less and i highly recommend buying one). I bought the cable a month ago and its working absolutely fine and (knock on wood) it seems more or like a permanent solution since the power cord locks nicely into the cable. If you are careful with the cords( dont trip over it etc) the cable should last you for a decent time.

Maureen · Forum Regular Joined: 26 Sep 2006 Posts: 15

Thanks, njj, for your reply. Thanks to the help I've gotten in pm's and in the forum, I've been keeping an eye on ebay and this afternoon, after reading your message, checked again, and found an xc1000 for less than $100, so I bought it. I hope that's a long term fix for me. I've spent enough just buying the laptop without all this added expense just to keep it functional.

KansasUser · Forum Regular Joined: 29 Oct 2005 Posts: 14

Maureen,

I read your post with great interest and sympathy. You have worked through a very difficult time and I applaud you.

As to the media cable, I hope it works, especially since you have already spent the money.

If I may, please note that I have had very good luck with a repairer named Ken at Ikenfixit. He fixed my power jack problem for not a whole lot more money than you paid for your media cable. I mention this hoping the cable will work, but not particularly optimistic about it.

Here is the link to my interaction with Ken, just for your information. (It is a post about halfway down the list for that screen.) If you need help at some point, I know that Ken can do you a terrific job. And I would be willing to call Ken and encourage him to give you a deal with these circumstances.

Also, please know that I and others on this board care about you and support you, and that you are not alone. May God bless.

KansasUser

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