a510 tablet power supply problem

jtl

hello. i have an a510 tablet thats a bit more than a year hold. it has worked fine up until a few days ago, when it started having problems charging. once the problems started, i had to jiggle the prong-thing a bit when it was in the tablet to get it to start charging. now that doesnt work either, and i cant charge it. i dont think the problem is the charger itself, becuase i dont see how wiggling the very end of the cable can affect the transformer part. i suspect the problem is inside the tablet itself. i live in brazil, where i cant find a replacement for the charger anywhere to test if the charger is the problem or not.  i can buy a charger on line, but like everything else in brazil theyre very expensive and i dont want to buy one if it wont fix the problem. has anyone else had a problem with the charger for this model? thanks. 

billsey

There are basically two things that can cause this type of problem. Either the socket on the tablet is worn or brocken, so either the center pin or the outer spring don't contact fully or there are partially broken wires in the power supply, causing intermittent connections. It's tough to tell if 'jiggling the prong thing' allowed the contacts inside the socket to better seat or if it was actually flexing the wire that allowed contact. You might be able to see something in the socket with light and maybe a magnifying glass. On my A100 I can see both the center pin and a bent spring that is on the outer portion of the socket. If your spring doesn't stick out at all or the center pin is bent or missing that points to the socket. If everything there looks OK I'd investigate a new power supply instead.

jtl

ok, thanks very much. 

RowdyKrow

Hi

 

Were you able to resolve this issue? I too have the exact same problem. I have always had to keep the power cable "aimed" a certain way to ensure consistent charging, and also when transferring files between my PC, needed to keep pressure downwards on the USB cable (therefore it is not my charger.)

 

Recently, however, none of this is working, i.e. the connection has become impossibly intermittent. I believe it is definitely the socket, and I believe that I see some missing pins when looking inside the hole.

 

So, does anyone know a solution. A local Acer parts supplier (though one that sounds very unknowledgeable about the A510, is suggesting that I need to purchase a whole new PCB, which is more expensive than purchasing a new unit. Ridiculous. 

 

If anyone can help, please advise.

 

K

roadwarrior796

Normally the power connection is soldered to the PCB and the problems described arise usually because the solder blobs, some or all, have come adrift. It's a very common problem with cheaper generic Chinese devices. It can usually be fixed quite cheaply with a delicate re soldering job. In some cases the power connection has broken and requires a new one to be soldered to the circuit board.

emjay180

I have the same issue with the a510.  At first, it would charge sometimes and other times nothing.  Then eventually, nothing at all.  Different outlets, wiggling, whatever.  I did finally take the suggestion and get a car charger.  Weirdly, that works every time.  I got an AC adapter for the car charger to charge in apt (yes, starting to sound like the human centipede), it works everytime at the charging speed of about 5% per hour.  Ugh.  Ridiculous.  

 

Other than the charging issue, the tablet is solid.  I just ordered a soldering iron and getting ready to operate.  Any tips?  Type of solder to use?  Any videos anywhere?  

 

Designing the **bleep** thing so you can get a homogenous charger from best buy would be a good idea.  Genius!