Have you ever bumped into the power cable while it was plugged into your laptop? Do you forget to take the power cable out of the laptop when traveling? These bumps and tugs can cause damage to the power connector, which is often just called a DC Jack (because it is a receptacle that receives “Direct Current” electricity, or DC).

Does your power cable “wiggle” around and feel very loose when plugged in to your laptop? If so, you might have a faulty DC Jack. HAVE NO FEAR! You don’t need to toss your laptop out the window, or wait 6-to-8 weeks and pay crazy repair and shipping fees to get some manufacturer to repair this for you. Discount Electronics repairs these every day, with a turn around of 3 days or less. The flat labor rate is $99, plus the cost of the DC jack itself. For most Dells, that’s just $15. Of course, seeing as we’re Austin’s favorite computer store, we stand by our work – every repair is warrantied.

Still not sure if you need a Battery, a power cable, or a DC Jack replacement? Just bring it by one of our shops and we’ll make sure you leave with exactly what you need in order to make your laptop happy again.

Happy Laptops means Happy Customers. Happy Customers means Happy Discount Electronics.

To check the remaining battery charge, press the button & release. The number of lights that appear will tell you charge amount. If all 5 lights come on the battery is nearly 100% charged. If only one of five illuminate the battery has approximately a 20% charge.

To check the battery’s remaining charge cycles or life, press and hold the button for 4 seconds. If no lights illuminate, the battery has 80% or more of it’s original life span left. Every light that illuminates represents incremental degradation. If five lights illuminate the battery has less than 60% of it’s original charge capacity.

Companies lease computers rather than purchase them because of the tax advantages. Lease payments can generally be expensed entirely while purchases need to be depreciated over 60 months. For that reason the vast majority of computer equipment used by big business is leased not bought. And that is great news for you.

When a company agrees to lease an Optiplex desktop from Dell it is for a predetermined period of time, most often 24 months. So the computers are not replaced because they are out dated or unable to complete the task they were intended for. They are replaced because their time is up.

These corporations send the lease return computers back to Dell and Dell sells them to computer dealers across the US. These used computer dealers in turn sell them to the public. The resulting savings is tremendous. A laptop that retailed for as much as $1300 when new 24 months ago may sell for less than $400 now. Best of all, these are the commercial grade computers and laptops. 95% of the Dell off lease equipment is Precision, Latitude and Optiplex. The crem della crem so to speak.

Imagine you could by a 24 month old company car for 70% off. Who wouldn’t jump on that deal. But like a used car the warranty on a computer is important. Be sure to make your purchase from a reputable dealer that offers a complete year long warranty, and always be sure the used equipment you buy is Dell.

So thanks to Uncle Sam and the IRS, lease return Dell computers ARE a great deal.

Thanks to all of our customers in Austin and beyond and to all our fantastic employees that make this company the great place it is.

Instead, buy a used business machine like a Dell Latitude. These laptops can be bought at deep discounts when the businesses that originally leased the laptops are done with them. A quality Dell business laptop that was over a thousand dollars when new can be bought for $400 or less when it comes “off lease”. Regardless of the brand, always go for the business line rather than consumer models when buying a laptop. Laptops built for the US consumer are made with one thing in mind; price. The only way to build cheap computers is with cheap components.

The lease companies sell these Dell laptops to computer dealers throughout the US that in turn sell them to individuals and businesses at deep discounts. Some of these dealers offer warranties from as little as thirty days to as much as a year. Find out about the warranty before you buy. Be sure the warranty is through the store directly and not a third party. Otherwise you could find yourself shipping the laptop to a faraway repair facility if a problem occurs.

Make sure the computer store you are buying from has been established and has a good BBB rating. The warranty is no better than the store giving it.

Be careful when buying from individuals. If the machine fails you have no way to insure the person you bought it from will stand behind it. Worse yet, you could be buying stolen property.

One of the most common indicators your Dell PCs power supply is on the way out is the computer is off and you didn’t turn it off. If you find your computer is shutting off on it’s own; and when you reboot windows is asking if you’d like to start regularly or in safe mode there is a good chance your power supply will stop functioning shortly.

Notice a blinking amber light on the front of your Dell computer at any point and the chances your power supply is about to fail is even greater.

To prolong it’s life while you wait for your replacement power supply to arrive from DiscountElectronics.com turn your computer off when not in use. Shutting it down will also help prevent possible data corruption from power failure.

If your Dell PC has difficulty powering on and you get the blinking amber light failure is eminent. I have seen instances where reducing the load on the power supply by unplugging unneeded USB and internal devices will put off inevitable.

Dell power supplies are better than most. The vast majority of the machines we see needing replacement are more than 2 years old and come from environments that are dusty, where computers are left on day and night or both. But when they do fail it is most often in the SFF or small form factor desktops. The limited size of these machines means the components are closer together. As a result there is less air and less air flow to dissipate the heat.

All Dell power supplies are easy to change. A swap can be done in less than five minutes with nothing more than a screwdriver.

If you want to lengthen the lifespan of your PC’s power supply keep the machine in a well ventilated area and free from dust. Vacuum out the inside of your computer every couple months. Holding the vacuum nozzle to the back of the power supply itself will help too.

Some Dell laptops like the Latitude D810 and D820 require the PA-10 regardless if you are using the port replicator or not. In most cases, Dell D-Series laptops with 14.1″ and smaller screens can use the the 65watt PA-12 while the D-Series Dell notebooks with a 15.1 or 15.4″ LCD need the PA-10.

Got an even bigger screen? Then you need an even bigger AC adapter. Dell makes AC adapters all the way up to 150 watts. It’s a PA-15. The PA-16 is just 60 watts though.

If ever in doubt just call us and we would be glad to help you out.

What gives? Are we ever going have flash in the palm of our hand on this side of the pond? I for one, am not more likely to buy a snazzy new gizmo because you made me wait six months. Actually, I and the rest of the folks suffering from adult ADD are more likely to have moved our thoughts on to the next hot gadget. Fortunately for Dell that may be the 7″ version of the Streak. We need a fast track program from R&D to UPS.

Rick

PS. Michael, My new Dell Latitude Z is hands down the best laptop I have ever owned. Keep up the good work.

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