Acer laptop SF314-43 where it was not able to charge at all, will upgrading BIOS fix the issue

Brightness1982

Evening everyone,

My current Acer laptop is a Model Number: SF314-43 running Windows 10 Pro.

Recently, I had a MAJOR problem with my Acer laptop where it was not able to charge at all. I tried using 2 different charges and neither one worked. However, it finally was able to charge when I held down the "battery pin hole" on the back of the laptop for 30 seconds.

I just want to know if it's worth risking upgrading the BIOS as I know this can cause problems. HOWEVER, I desperately do not want the problem of not being able to charge again.

I'm EXTREMELY DESPERATE for help!

Thanks

[Edited the thread to add model name to the title]
[Edited the thread to add issue detail]

Accepted answers

billsey

The big one listed there is the security update. I typically always do the updates when there are security fixes, but make sure my battery is fully charged first, just to be safe.

billsey

You are welcome, I'm glad we could get it fixed. :)

All comments

billsey

Do not upgrade the BIOS unless you know the power is completely stable. A failed BIOS update can brick your system, requiring a trip to the service center to get it reflashed. The process of doing a battery reset (press button, release and wait a while then fully charge before turning things back on) will reset the internal data the battery keeps as to it's state. Since that data does tend to get corrupted clearing it will often fix an issue like the battery reporting full charge when empty or fully empty when it's not. Your system is only around three years old, so the battery should have a few years of life left. The inability to charge will very likely have nothing to do with the BIOS.

Brightness1982

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1288220#Comment_1288220

Thanks for your reply Billsey! You're always amazing!

What benefits would I get by upgrading the BIOS?

There are many other driver downloads available but everything has been working fine except sometimes my touchpad is a bit off and it's difficult for me to register a "right click"

Is it worth downloading these other drivers if I'm not having problems?

billsey

This is what I see on Acer's download pages for the BIOS on your system:

The latest BIOS says it fixes an issue with the battery information, and that might have something to do with your charging issue. If the charging is working right now, and the battery is over 80% charged, go ahead and do that update. The nice thing about updating the BIOS on a laptop is that if your house power goes down during the process it will continue on using the battery, unlike with desktops where you could end up bricked if you don't have a UPS.

Brightness1982

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1288357#Comment_1288357

Thanks for your reply Billsey!

You seem to have an unlimited amount of knowledge!

Ok I will update the BIOS now, but what about the other software that's available for my Acer laptop?

By the way, you selected Windows 11 while I'm only on Windows 10 Pro.

Is it worth it for me to install the other BIOS updates such as:

Version 1.06,

Version 1.04

Version 1.03

Version 1.02???

billsey

No reason to install anything but the latest, it will incorporate all the fixes to that date.

Brightness1982

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1289175#Comment_1289175

Thanks for your reply billsey!

Do you think it's worth installing the latest BIOS update?

I'm not worried about improving performance.

It's hard for me to tell how this will improve the reliability, security and stability of my Acer laptop? 😥😥😥

"1. Add Acer Battery Information Feature. 2. Update PI FP6_1.0.0.C. 3. Support OS May 23 CI security. 4. Add define four-part ID for Acer base driver."

billsey

The big one listed there is the security update. I typically always do the updates when there are security fixes, but make sure my battery is fully charged first, just to be safe.

Brightness1982

https://community.acer.com/en/discussion/comment/1290574#Comment_1290574

Great!

I will do the BIOS update ASAP!

You really the king of kings Billsey!!!

I'm going to try and put a BIOS password on my Acer Swift laptop but I've never tried this before. Should I do it after I upgrade the Acer Swift laptop's BIOS?