Acer Aspire 5 (A515-43-R19L) Performance Slows Down Badly After Unplugging From Power

Hi,
I purchased this laptop in February 2021 and started noticing some lags. I initially thought it was the 4GB RAM so I upgraded to 16GB RAM. Dead end!
When my Acer Aspire 5 slim laptop is plugged into power, it performs very well. When plugged in, It runs browsers, Photoshop, Illustrator, and even Premier pro very fine. But as soon as it is unplugged, the performance becomes a nightmare. Everything, from refreshing on the desktop to opening programs to even typing and browsing becomes very very slow.

How I have tried to fix this:
1. I have uninstalled several programs that I am not using.
2. I have cleared system caches (%temp%)
3. I have gone to "Power options" under control panel > Selected "Performance", then went to "Change Plan settings" > "Change advanced power settings"
a. I set "Minimum processor state" to 100% on both battery and plugged in.
b. I set "System Cooling policy" on "Passive" on both battery and plugged in and when this did not work, I set it again to "Active" after rebooting.
c. Maximum processor state =100% (battery and plugged in)
d. AMD Powerplay settings =100% (battery and plugged in)
e. AHCI power management = Active (battery and plugged in)

4. I have done a reset on the laptop and first few hours it seemed as if the issue was solved but it started again.
5. I have called Acer customer service and they could not solve this and cannot accept my return because I do not have a US or Canada address. They can't even sponsor shipping to the Middle East or South Africa service centers. I have to bear the cost!
6. Rebooting when the problem starts does not help.

I have tried all these and did not fix it. This issue happens randomly. Like 5 times in a week and the other two times will be fine.
I am beginning to think this is a processor issue right from the manufacturer or AMD. This is too bad! Most times when I unplug my laptop I will not be able to do any reasonable thing with it. I mean this is a laptop that can do editing photos and video editing when plugged in. When it is unplugged, it begins to lag baddddly. Even rebooting will not get it back to normal.

Can someone please help?

Accepted answers

All comments

JackE

Go to the elevated command prompt. Enter 'powercfg /batteryreport'. Then return to the desktop. Open file explorer. Then search for' battery-report.html' in the c:\windows\system32\ sub-folder. Double-click to open it in the browser. Post screenshot of the first part of the report if possible that compares design full charge capacity with its remaining full charge capacity.

Also open Control Panel. Search 'button'. Click 'change what the power buttons do' in left pane. Click 'change settings that are currently unavailable'. Scroll down and uncheck the box for fast start if not already unchecked. Shutdown Windows normally. Check unplugged operation again.

Jack E/NJ

AnatuGreen

JackE said:

Go to the elevated command prompt. Enter 'powercfg /batteryreport'. Then return to the desktop. Open file explorer. Then search for' battery-report.html' in the c:\windows\system32\ sub-folder. Double-click to open it in the browser. Post screenshot of the first part of the report if possible that compares design full charge capacity with its remaining full charge capacity.

Also open Control Panel. Search 'button'. Click 'change what the power buttons do' in left pane. Click 'change settings that are currently unavailable'. Scroll down and uncheck the box for fast start if not already unchecked. Shutdown Windows normally. Check unplugged operation again.

Jack E/NJ

Hi Jack,

Thank you for offering to assist. Here is the screenshot requested.

I have done as suggested with unticking the Fast Startup. This did not solve the issue.

Image: https://us.v-cdn.net/6029997/uploads/editor/nz/d9dieqq98607.png

JackE

Your battery pack's own internal charge control & monitoring board seems to be defective. Try this. Open Device Manager. Click batteries folder. Right click and uninstall ALL drivers that you find in this folder. Exit Device Manager without re-installing anything. Shut down Windows normally with charger plugged in. Wait for battery charge LED to turn from solid orange to solid blue. Turn machine back on. Test it again unplugged. Jack E/NJ

rich1974

what is the max cpu ferq on battery? let mi give you am exemple, on my side, i have a ryzen 2200u. i have 3.4 turbo boost on AC and 1.6 max freq on battery. but i have 7.7 V battery. yours has 15.4 V, it should be better.

AnatuGreen

rich1974 said:

what is the max cpu ferq on battery? let mi give you am exemple, on my side, i have a ryzen 2200u. i have 3.4 turbo boost on AC and 1.6 max freq on battery. but i have 7.7 V battery. yours has 15.4 V, it should be better.

How do I check this, please?

JackE

AnatuGreen

Your battery pack's own internal charge control & monitoring board seems to be defective as it's reporting incorrect information. Try this. Open Device Manager. Click batteries folder. Right click and uninstall ALL drivers that you find in this folder. Exit Device Manager without re-installing anything. Shut down Windows normally with charger plugged in. Wait for battery charge LED to turn from solid orange to solid blue. Turn machine back on. Test it again unplugged. Jack E/NJ

AnatuGreen

rich1974 said:

what is the max cpu ferq on battery? let mi give you am exemple, on my side, i have a ryzen 2200u. i have 3.4 turbo boost on AC and 1.6 max freq on battery. but i have 7.7 V battery. yours has 15.4 V, it should be better.

How do I check this please?

JackE

Open Device Manager. Click batteries folder. Right click and uninstall ALL drivers that you find in this folder. Exit Device Manager without re-installing anything. Shut down Windows normally with charger plugged in. Wait for battery charge LED to turn from solid orange to solid blue. Turn machine back on. Test it again unplugged. Jack E/NJ

AnatuGreen

JackE said:

Open Device Manager. Click batteries folder. Right click and uninstall ALL drivers that you find in this folder. Exit Device Manager without re-installing anything. Shut down Windows normally with charger plugged in. Wait for battery charge LED to turn from solid orange to solid blue. Turn machine back on. Test it again unplugged. Jack E/NJ

Hi Jack,
Thank you again for your time.
I have done the recommended and this is the current battery report.
Do you think I have fixed it? I am still testing for the performance. Since this happens not always, I need to test for some days to be sure that I am good.

JackE

AnatuGreen

That report looks more realistic. How old is this machine? Jack E/NJ

AnatuGreen

I have tested the device and the issue of performance dropping when unplugged is still on.

There is also the problem of constant disconnection from my phone's hotspot that is my primary means of connecting to the internet.
I have tried different this here too:
Gone to device manager> Network adapters>Qualcomm Atheros Communications Inc.> Properties>Power Management>
I then deactivated "Allow the computer to turn off this device to save power".
I did this for other power adapters there and I have made sure that my phone is not in power saving mode and that there is no setting that disconnects the hotspot automatically.
In fact, when the laptop disconnects from the hotspot, the hotspot will still be on and all I have to do will be to unlock my phone and it will be reconnected.
Sincerely I am tired of the Acer Aspire 5 slim laptop and will not recommend it to even an enemy.

JackE

The advanced settings in your power plan are not set to maximum CPU state on battery alone. You also need to turn off fast startup in Control Panel power button app or these settings won't take hold.

AnatuGreen

JackE said:

AnatuGreen
That report looks more realistic. How old is this machine? Jack E/NJ

It was purchased in January 2021.

Easwar

Hi AnatuGreen,

Try to do power drain,

1. Shutdown the unit.
2. Unplug the cables connected to the unit.
3. At bottom of the unit there will be a small tiny pin hole with a battery symbol close to it. Take a pin or a paper clip insert into it you feels like pressing a button hold it for 20-30 seconds.

JackE

If the pinhole reset doesn't work, click this link, select your country and click on support at top of page to arrange for ACER-authorized warranty repair.

Petros

If you remove the screws at the bottom of the laptop, remove the casing and disconnect the battery (obviously shut down first). The laptop runs as design, super quick, as soon as the battery is connected again, it slows down. Replace the battery doesn't help and the reset pin is a massive clue that the design of the main board is dodgy.

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