I know the Aspire 9805 is an old laptop, but that doesn’t make it junk—these machines still have resale value to collectors and I personally love this thing. I’ve been running into a strange issue with mine, and I’m hoping it might just be down to the BIOS version. If there’s a later update out there, it could be the fix I need.
As far as I remember, Acer pulled drivers for older systems around 2020, especially the ones without Windows 10 support. When I searched with my SNID and serial, nothing came up. Third-party sites like Driver Scape have some drivers, but I haven’t been able to find any BIOS updates. I do have the original recovery discs, but of course those don’t include newer BIOS files. My current BIOS version is 2.14.
Here’s the problem:
- With 3 or 4 GB of RAM installed, the BIOS only ever reports 3 GB total. The laptop boots normally at first—I can enter the BIOS, see the Windows logo, and even get to the disc check screen. But right after that, the display cuts out (backlight stays on). I can still hear Windows finishing its boot, so the system itself is running, just not showing video.
- It happens across the board—XP, Vista, 7, 8.1, 10, and 11.
- GPU seems fine (stable in games, benchmarks, even when overclocked just for testing).
- Tried swapping the CPU (T2600 → T7600) and testing many different RAM sticks and configs—no luck.
What’s confusing is that the chipset and Acer’s manual both say the 9805 supports up to 4 GB. I’ve even had it boot a few times in the past with 3–4 GB installed, and once in Windows it ran perfectly fine. OS installers for newer OS versions don’t display anything with 3+ GB, and Vista/7 installers load in very low color depth (only during installation). Linux likes to scream at me. Drop the RAM back to 2.5 GB or less, and everything works normally again.
Funny enough, I used to have another 9805 (might have been a display unit) that handled 3–4 GB without issue until it met its end thanks to a loose screw.
I’d like to track down the last BIOS version for the 9805. If anyone knows where to find it, or has run into the same RAM quirk, I’d really appreciate your input. This is the only issue holding this laptop back, and I’d love to get it sorted before I even think about swapping the motherboard.
Thanks in advance!
Basic summary: Aspire 9805 with BIOS v2.14 loses video output (but still boots) when 3–4 GB RAM is installed. BIOS only reports 3 GB max even with 4 GB installed. Works fine with 2.5 GB or less. Tried CPU/RAM swaps, GPU seems fine. Looking for the last BIOS version in hopes it fixes the memory issue.
