Acer Aspire Switch 10 won't power on with orange light - SW5-012.

Jcheung07
Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

Tinkerer
edited May 2021 in Switch Series
Hi all,

I have an 5+ year old Acer Aspire Switch 10 here that had a problem with powering on.

The laptop had issues powering up initially, even when actively charged, the LED won't turn on. Thinking it was an old battery problem without any replacements done since bought. I ordered a new battery from CanadaLaptopBattery.com for a battery replacement. I installed the battery and tried charging it. The LED light turned blue for 0.5 seconds when plugged in initially, then turned orange after a while when actively plugged in for charging. However, a few problems persist:

1. The heat sink gets all heated up within 5-10 minutes to temperatures that feels overheated.
2. Pressing the power button won't turn on the screen.
3. I saw a few posts floating around and have tried the power button + volume up button for 30 seconds as an option. The method did not work. 
4. The laptop would not turn on when unplugged. Same applies with (3) when unplugged.

Are there some other problems that I might have underlooked? I saw a post that led to a MOBO replacement and I don't feel like it's worth geeting a new MOBO for the sake of fixing an old laptop. Any suggestions/help would be much appreciated.





//Edited the content to add model name.

Answers

  • Jcheung07
    Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

    Tinkerer
    Update 14/5/21: The LED turned blue after a while of charging. But the problem remains the same.
  • billsey
    billsey ACE Posts: 34,219 Trailblazer
    I don't see anything obviously misaligned from the disassembly/reassembly. The light is the normal behavior, amber while charging, blue when fully charged. That cable marked Audio takes the signal from the power button press to the motherboard, so if it's not fully seated or has some contaminants in the socket it might act like that.
    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful or click on "Yes" if it answers your question.
  • Jcheung07
    Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

    Tinkerer
    billsey said:
    I don't see anything obviously misaligned from the disassembly/reassembly. The light is the normal behavior, amber while charging, blue when fully charged. That cable marked Audio takes the signal from the power button press to the motherboard, so if it's not fully seated or has some contaminants in the socket it might act like that.
    I'll disassemble and check the parts separately and will give an update after. 
  • billsey
    billsey ACE Posts: 34,219 Trailblazer
    Yes, please let us know.
    Click on "Like" if you find my answer useful or click on "Yes" if it answers your question.
  • Jcheung07
    Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

    Tinkerer
    Update 19/5/21: I took off the audio cable and had a look at the boards. I don't see any contaminants in the sockets. I even remounted the audio cable the other way and still nothing happens. However, I have a growing suspicion about a broken power switch since the LED lights and everything seem to work except the display.
  • Easwar
    Easwar Member Posts: 6,727 Guru
    Hi Jcheung07,

    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. 

  • Jcheung07
    Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

    Tinkerer
    Easwar said:
    Hi Jcheung07,

    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. 

    Mind sending a diagram for where the pinhole is? I can't seem to find it.
  • Jcheung07
    Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

    Tinkerer
    Easwar said:
    Hi Jcheung07,

    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. 

    In case you're wondering, I've seen some posts indicating the pinhole is between the MicroSD card slot and the microphone. But I don't see such a pinhole on the device.
  • Easwar
    Easwar Member Posts: 6,727 Guru
    Hi Jcheung07,

    Can you see the 2nd hole from the right side.
    Acer Aspire Switch 10 2-in-1 Windows tablet review - Liliputing

  • Jcheung07
    Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

    Tinkerer
    Easwar said:
    Hi Jcheung07,

    Can you see the 2nd hole from the right side.
    Acer Aspire Switch 10 2-in-1 Windows tablet review - Liliputing

    What is the model number of your device? Again, I do not see such a pinhole on the device.

    My device's model number is SW5-012.

  • Easwar
    Easwar Member Posts: 6,727 Guru
    Hi Jcheung07,

    It looks like hardware issue. Contact acer tech support,

    https://www.acer.com/worldwide/


    OR book the unit for repair service,

    https://customercare.acer-apac.com/CustomerSelfService/CaseBooking.aspx?CID=IN&LID=ENG

  • Jcheung07
    Jcheung07 Member Posts: 8

    Tinkerer
    Easwar said:
    Hi Jcheung07,

    It looks like hardware issue. Contact acer tech support,

    https://www.acer.com/worldwide/


    OR book the unit for repair service,

    https://customercare.acer-apac.com/CustomerSelfService/CaseBooking.aspx?CID=IN&LID=ENG

    If it really came down to a repair at tech support, I'd rather spend the money on a new comp instead. I posted in hopes of getting it fixed without.
  • Coughdrop
    Coughdrop Member Posts: 1 New User
    Heya, did you ever figure this out? lots of problems going around where people have it not turning on but everyone doesn't have a light at all, you're the only person i've found that has the exact same problem that i do, would love to get it figured out.
  • StevenGen
    StevenGen ACE Posts: 12,155 Trailblazer
    Jcheung07 said:
    Easwar said:
    Hi Jcheung07,

    It looks like hardware issue. Contact acer tech support,

    https://www.acer.com/worldwide/


    OR book the unit for repair service,

    https://customercare.acer-apac.com/CustomerSelfService/CaseBooking.aspx?CID=IN&LID=ENG

    If it really came down to a repair at tech support, I'd rather spend the money on a new comp instead. I posted in hopes of getting it fixed without.

    You could be having internal circuitry issues related to power on/off that need diagnosing by an experienced tech on your SW5-012, as and if power cuts out and/or doesn’t come on even with a new battery its in the power circuitry where either a Mosat or a Capacitor has either burned out or is shorted out and needs replacing. As you don’t have the equipment to diagnose and/or replace these components my suggestion to you is to not touch your laptop and take it to an experienced tech so he can fix it, its won’t be a major issue or a job as it’s a 5 min job that wont cost much to change especially as much as a new laptop =) if not then you could do more damage than fix anything.


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