Aspire A515-51 Screen Blinking / Locking When Keyboard Touched

After a full factory reset failed to correct the issue I took my Aspire A515-51 laptop in for service twice for a blinking black screen issue. The first time they ran all kinds of tests and found nothing wrong. The second time they replaced the motherboard and screen but it continued to have the black screen / blinking issue. The manger at Microcenter agreed to let me exchange the laptop for a new one since they weren’t to able to fix the problem. Well I just got it home to set it up and the new laptop is having the same problem! It happens when I’m typing or even lightly touch the keyboard. I plugged in an external keyboard and mouse and typed for a good 30 minutes without issue. So it seems to be an issue with the laptop keyboard. Sometimes it blinks black and sometimes it completely locks so I need to enter my passcode to unlock it. Does anyone have any suggestions? It’s extremely frustrating.

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thamahes2018

Hi Kristen8108, kindly update or uninstall the keyboard driver from device manager and make sure not to check the box which say delete the driver.

Kristen8108

thamahes2018 said:

Hi Kristen8108, kindly update or uninstall the keyboard driver from device manager and make sure not to check the box which say delete the driver.

Thanks for the response. I tried to uninstall it and restart the computer 3x but it didn't resolve the issue. It said I had the most up to date driver installed when I clicked on "Update Driver".

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/xe/oqaditb41ye7.jpg

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/da/0f4ilfabl1en.png

JackE

it may be due to a safety interlock switch on the mainboard that is being activated while applying pressure to the case or keyboard. It was designed to cut power to the laptop when the case was opened but sometimes the case isn't assembled properly the the switch is activated usually by moving the machine or applying pressure to the keyboard. The fixes are relatively simple but since the machine is still under warranty you should arrange for warranty service but make sure the service center is aware of the safety interlock switch problem by referencing these two links for similar ACER models. Jack E/NJ

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/546665/#Comment_546665
https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/549720/#Comment_549720

Kristen8108

JackE said:

it may be due to a safety interlock switch on the mainboard that is being activated while applying pressure to the case or keyboard. It was designed to cut power to the laptop when the case was opened but sometimes the case isn't assembled properly the the switch is activated usually by moving the machine or applying pressure to the keyboard. The fixes are relatively simple but since the machine is still under warranty you should arrange for warranty service but make sure the service center is aware of the safety interlock switch problem by referencing these two links for similar ACER models. Jack E/NJ

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/546665/#Comment_546665
https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/549720/#Comment_549720

Thank you very much. I tried searching my issue on the forums but didn’t find this. The computer store I purchased my laptop from is 25 miles away and I’m tired of driving out there so I might just give up inn Acers. The manager knows how frustrating this has been for me so he went outside their 15 day return. Policy and allowed me to exchange my defective laptop. I could have received a full refund and purchased a different model but I figured what were the odds of it happening again in a new computer? I should have opted for the similar Dell that was about $100 more. I’ll see if they can service it on the spot while I’m there. The photos in the other thread should help. Thanks again.

JackE

>>>The manager knows how frustrating this has been for me so he went outside their 15 day return. Policy and allowed me to exchange my defective laptop. I could have received a full refund and purchased a different model >>>

If the manager is still accomodating, I'd probably go for the Dell. Jack E/NJ

Commodore_1995#

Make sure that putting a few layers of electrical tape on this button solves the problem, because as fellow @JackE said, this button may be activated by putting pressure on the keyboard or when using the notebook on the battery!

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/xw/p6q7uw24coc9.jpg

Commodore_1995#

Maybe the warranty will solve the problem! However, if this issue is resolved with the suggestion presented, I would particularly choose not to trigger the warranty because of a simple problem like that! Also, you will have to stay a while without the computer!

TECH_MAN

Hi

https://superuser.com/questions/488322/permanently-remove-disable-touch-keyboard-in-windows-8-taskbarAttempt 1 — disable toolbar:

Right click taskbar
Click Toolbars
Uncheck 'Touch Keyboard'
It disappears, but will reappear again whenever I'm using the touch screen a lot and it's prompting me with a text input.

Attempt 2 — disable service:

Press Win + R, type 'services.msc', press Enter
Find 'Touch Keyboard and Handwriting Panel Service', and double tap/click it
Click Stop
Select 'disabled' at 'Startup type'
Click Ok, then reboot
This works at first, but when I put the device to sleep and turn it on again, it's back. This does not happen on a normal reboot.

Attempt 3 — disable all toolbars:

Press Win + R, type 'gpedit.msc', press Enter
Navigate to User Configuration > Administrative Templates > Start Menu and Taskbar
Find 'Do not display any custom toolbars in the taskbar', and double tap/click it
Click Enabled
Click Ok, then reboot.
This disables all my toolbars, which is not what I want. I need my download/upload meter toolbar to stay.