My Acer Nitro 5 (N20C1) Turned off SUDDENLY during use! my laptop can no longer turn back on

As the title says: My Acer Nitro 5 laptop just SUDDENLY turned off on its own while I was playing a game called War Thunder.

The first thing I did was I checked to see if my laptop charger was plugged in, and yes, it was indeed plugged in.

This had never happened before, and I have no idea what could have possibly caused my laptop to suddenly turn off like this.

In addition, normally my laptop would have a light indicator to show me if my laptop is plugged in or not. This light indicator would be either orange to show that the laptop is charging, or blue to show that the laptop is fully charged. However, even when it is plugged in, this light indicator is no longer lit for some reason.

After this sudden shut-down, my laptop can no longer turn back on, and I have no idea why.

I also checked to see if my laptop charger mightbe at fault here, so I tested it on another older laptop. After testing this, the charger was working just fine on an older laptop, so it appears that it was not the charger that is the issue.

I hope someone has a solution for me for this issue, because this is the first time my laptop has done this. I have been using this laptop for at least 2 years now without any issues, and this is the first time this issue has occured.

[Edited the thread to add issue detail]

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William_mk2

@Userperson

It might also be the issue with battery, charger or power outlet. Try to use the charger in a different room on a different power outlet. Try to bypass the surge protector and connect it directly to power outlet. Try to use an alternative charger if possible. Try to turn on the computer without the charger and check it ( as long as the battery is not drained out )

I am really sorry for the inconvenience.. Let us do the basic steps first..

Doing the power drain and bios defaults will really help. Kindly follow the steps given below:

Turn off the laptop. Disconnect or unplug the charger cable, devices or any other cables connected to your laptop. Close your laptop. Turn it upside down. On the bottom of the laptop, you can find a pin hole. It is a tiny hole. You can a find a battery symbol indicator next to the hole. It is like a + and – sign symbol as though somebody is trying to shift the battery out. Insert the pin on to the hole for 30 seconds. Remove the pin. Flip the laptop. Connect the charger cable, turn on the computer. Only on laptops where the battery is inbuilt you can find the battery reset hole on the back of laptop.

If you don’t find a pin hole on the back of laptop then you might be using removable battery. There is no need to unscrew anything to remove the battery. Turn off the laptop. Disconnect or unplug the charger cable, devices and any other cables connected to your laptop. Close your laptop. Turn it upside down. On the bottom of the laptop, please look at the top or bottom depending on the way you look at it. You can find a long door. It is a battery removable door. Just below that you can find a latch. If you move the latch you can remove the battery door. Once the battery is removed, flip the laptop. Open the top cover, press and hold the power button for 1 minute. Connect the battery back on the back of computer. Connect the charger cable back and then turn on the computer.

If you don’t see a reset pin hole on the back of laptop or if you are not able to remove the battery (if it is inbuilt) then please unplug all the cables and devices out of laptop. Hold the power button for 1 minute. After releasing the button you should wait a while before plugging in power. Just because the button has been pressed doesn’t bleed off all the residual electricity on the motherboard. Wait 15-30 minutes before plugging in power. Then once power is connected wait for a full battery indication before turning the system on. That allows the battery to fully reset it’s internal statistics.

Connect all the cables back and restart the computer.

While turning on the computer, tap f2. It will go to bios. Press f9 once. It will show load bios defaults with a yes or no popup. Press enter. Popup screen will disappear. Press f10 once. It will show save changes popup with yes or no. Press enter. Computer will restart and it will load into windows.

Try windows x
go to device manager
expand Battery
right click on all the items below battery – uninstall
Restart the computer

It should work fine..

Userperson

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1191126#Comment_1191126

I tried using different power outlets in different rooms, and it is the same result. My charger can charge the older laptop but it still does not charge my Acer Nitro 5 laptop. This is so strange because this has NEVER happened before! This is the first time this has happened!

Furthermore, you mentioned a tiny "pinhole"? I am using an Acer Nitro 5 Model N20C1 laptop, and this model does NOT have a pinhole.

It also does not have a removable battery, all I see are screws on the underside.

It looks like my only option here would be the "holding the button for 1 minute" technique. I haven't tried it yet, so I will let you know if this worked for me or not.

William_mk2

@Userperson

If you don’t see a reset pin hole on the back of laptop or if you are not able to remove the battery (if it is inbuilt) then please unplug all the cables and devices out of laptop. Hold the power button for 1 minute. After releasing the button you should wait a while before plugging in power. Just because the button has been pressed doesn’t bleed off all the residual electricity on the motherboard. Wait 15-30 minutes before plugging in power. Then once power is connected wait for a full battery indication before turning the system on. That allows the battery to fully reset it’s internal statistics.

Connect all the cables back and restart the computer.

William_mk2

@Userperson

If it is still not working , kindly follow the steps given below

First of all we need to determine whether it is a hardware or software issue. We need to isolate the issue.

If it is still not working then we have to do a refresh and reset

click on start - settings - update and security - recovery - reset this pc - get started

or

on start - type here to search - type reset this pc - click on reset this pc on the top - click on get started

It will show you keep my files and remove everything
chose keep my files
chose the account - type the password - click on local reinstall - click on reset
It will be in progress..
login to computer and start using the computer.
If it is still not working

click on start - settings - update and security - recovery - reset this pc - get started
chose remove everything
click on local reinstall - just remove my files - click on reset
It will be in progress

Note:

If you do refresh ( keep my files ) - all your personal files like pictures, music , documents , videos will still be intact. Only the applications will be lost

If you do reset ( remove everything ) - you are doing a factory default. It will become like a day one computer. It will wipe out everything and take your computer to day one like a new computer.

You can also do the recovery in an alternative way..

There are two alt keys on the keyboard. If you look at the bottom row of keyboard you can see the one on the left side of space bar and the other on the right side of space bar. The alt key on the right side will be looking like alt, alt gr or alt car. Turn off the computer. Hold the alt key on the left and tap f10 continuously. It will go to repair mode. It will show you chose an option, continue, troubleshoot. If it is not going to repair mode, turn off the computer. Turn on the computer. Hold the right alt key ( alt gr or alt car or alt ) and then tap f10 continuously. It will go to chose an option continue and troubleshoot..

It will show you chose an option, continue, troubleshoot
Go to troubleshoot - click on reset this pc
click on keep my files ( only applications will be lost ) chose your account and type your password - click on local reinstall - click on reset
It will be in progress

If the keep my files option is not working

Go to troubleshoot - click on reset this pc – click on remove everything – click on local reinstall – just remove my files – click on reset
It will reinstall windows.

If the just remove my files is not working..

Go to troubleshoot - click on reset this pc – click on remove everything – click on local reinstall – Fully clean the drive – click on reset
It will reinstall windows.

Note: You can also go to chose an option , continue , troubleshoot by holding the alt key + tapping f10 or alt gr + tapping f10 on the keyboard while turning on the computer. Once you see the troubleshoot option, you can stop tapping the f10 and stop holding the alt key. Then you can try the keep my files and remove everything ( just remove by files and fully clean the drive ) by following the steps which was mentioned above.

It should work fine after reinstalling the windows.

Userperson

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1191140#Comment_1191140

Okay, I have now tried this, and unfortunately this technique did not work.

You also mentioned another comment afterwards. I cannot do those and cannot go to any settings as I cannot turn ON my laptop, despite being plugged in.

Puraw

Hi @Userperson

The charge light indicator being off while the adapter is plugged in indicates you have a power issue, disconnect your battery (open the back of your laptop and unplug the battery connector from the motherboard). Press the Power Button (hold it pressed down) for 2-3 minutes to discharge any stray/static charge on the motherboard. Reconnect the battery cable to the motherboard and try to power up (press the Power Button). If that didn't do anything, disconnect again the battery from the motherboard, close the back of the laptop (no need to screw it yet) and plug in the power adapter to see if your laptop will start without a battery (some models can run with a power adapter only). If that works you know you need a new battery, if it still won't start consider a new battery depending how old the battery is, if more than 3 years playing games and discharging a battery below the 5% charge threshold can ruin a good battery. I had 2 old laptops (HP) that acted the same way as you describe because of a dead battery.

Userperson

Ok, so… A few days later, my laptop STILL will not turn back on again, even though the charger is plugged in.

I ended up bringing my laptop to a repair shop. I just hope they will find a solution to the problem…

volcanomitchell

Hey I'm having the same problem, but I heard a Zap, I checked the back to smell for burnt electronic smell. but couldn't identity any. The zap was on the left side twords the back please help!

Was plugged into the wall.

No signs of life, no indicators no nothing.

Also happened while gaming.

Could it be the same bad capacitor like a older model or not?

Edit I tried the battery removal and trying raw adapter but no life tried to remove and plug back in the battery too but to no avail

volcanomitchell

I tried all the battery methods as you said but....

Apoiz

I just got this problem. Tried all the steps too. Do you get it fixed by the repair shop? Any inputs you can share? Im dumbfounded

Apoiz

Do u got it fixed?

WilliamJester

Bro, me having same problem right now. Can't believe it happened. I

Userperson

UPDATE: Hello everyone. Sorry for the late reply so I just wanted to give an update on my laptop situation.

In the end, I did NOT get my laptop fixed. According to a laptop repair shop I went to, the battery was so fried that it was non-repairable. According to them, it was due to excessive use.

In the end, I ended up buying a new laptop with the help of my older brother. I also got help in transferring all of my data from my old laptop to my new laptop.

Once again, sorry for my late response, and thank you everyone here for trying to help me out.

julianoas

Hello everyone.

I bought an Acer Nitro 5 1 week ago, and I have exactly same problem.
I have that pinhole button, and I need to press it several times, when turn off suddenly or when I need to turn on after some time off. I have to grab that kind of smartphone pin, and also a philips tool to open it if necessary. It seems by design problem by Acer. It is my first Acer LapTop, also the last.

AyanPathan

Regarding this problem, I had a similar issue. I was playing a game, and my laptop suddenly shut down. I tried all the solutions mentioned above, but nothing worked. The next day, I was leaving for a four-day trip, so I left my laptop at home. When I returned and tried to start it, the laptop worked fine.

In my opinion, this problem could be due to overheating. If you're facing a similar issue, try waiting for 24 hours before attempting to start it again.

julianoas

I had a question about it too:

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/713029/acer-nitro-5-v15-i-must-reset-battery-on-pinhole-almost-everytime/p1?new=1

And I got no answer. Is the first and last time I bought Acer.