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I have bought a recon laptop for my son but it had no power lead, went to buy a universal one and it wouldn't charge. Have tried other leads but no joy. It is a pretty old laptop but as he's only 8 I thought it would be a good starter one for him and if he drops it down the stairs etc at least its not my one!!! It is a Compaq presario 2100, does anyone have any idea what it could be and if it would be worthwhile getting it fixed?? any advice would be welcome. Thanks in advance

have you checked you have the right power setting on your adapter universal ones normally have different power settings .is it running and not charging or just nothing

have just looked at the specs for your computer and its not bad for a starter computer so may be worth a fix

There are two different power supplies for this, one uses 18.5/19v and 3.5A, the other uses 4.7/4.95A, so if your universal supply is only a 65W it'll work with one but not the other (needs to be 90W).

The guy I got it from assured me it is in full working order and just needed a power lead however I took it to a shop in Rhyl (was there visiting family) and he tried what he said was the right universal adapter and nothing happened, no lights came on and no charge seemed to be going through, he tested the adapter with a meter and there was power. My son is desperate for this to be fixed and can't really afford to replace it at the mo. Reasonable, reputable shop anyone or a self employed tech?? please not either of the ones in Liscard as 1 is expensive and 1 can't be bothered to help his customers (hope this doesn't cause offence to anyone as it is only my opinion)

It's as dead as a dodo

ask the doc ,based in rock ferry

put the power supply in and move it round ,watch the light on the fron if you get a flicker its a dodgy power socket

Thanks a lot for your help hun, I will try to find him. My son will be over the moon if I get this sorted and he can store all his music etc (he's an 8 year old teenager) on there instead of on mine. Thanks again x

I still have no power supply as guy in Rhyl said he wouldn't sell me the universal lead as it didn't work for that laptop and I don't want to buy one elsewhere if the laptop is unfixable. Knowing my luck it's the charging light that's not working after all this ha ha. It's been sitting here for 3 months now and I have promised my boy I will get him some answers soon. Have sent the Doc a pm and will keep my fingers crossed that he can help without it costing the earth. Really appreciate your help on this too, thanks xx

Try here for prices

I used to fix Compaq stuff for a dealer. A lot of those older laptops will not charge unless you use the official adapter that came with them.

This is what you need: CLICKY

There's 3 types available, make sure you get the right one. $23 is a fair price to ask.

Mine won't charge because the battery is goosed, works ok direct off the mains. It's a Compaq Presario as well.

I have the same laptop as you with the same problem. just as well i never take it anywhere.. and if the lecky goes, so does me lappy

Thanks for the info everyone, still unsure which 1 I need as I have never even seen the original charger and don't want to buy the wrong one. Will pop up to the docs in Rock Ferry once the half term hols are over and see if they can help. Thanks again for taking the time to reply