Intermittent trouble powering on T41

[syedj]

Hi all,

I have a T41 which sometimes refuses to power on. As far as I know the laptop has never been dropped or spilled on. Pushing the power button does not have any effect; no LEDs, HD spinning, fan or power on thump from the internal speakers. If it’s stuck in this state then the only way I know of reviving it is:

1. Take out the battery and disconnect the charger cable
2. Push the power button in for a few seconds
3. Plug in the charger (with the battery still out)
4. Push the power button again and voila!

Sometimes even the above method also fails and I just keep repeating it until the machine powers on again. At times it turns on just normally without the above exercise and works fine afterwards.

I have tried different combinations of batteries and chargers with the same results so I know it’s not them.

I haven’t taken it apart yet but I couldn’t find anything visible from the outside that might have been shorting the battery terminals.

Any thoughts what could be the problem?

[sugo]

Not sure what's wrong, it can be anything on the motherboard. Is the thinkpad still under warranty?

[syedj]

The laptop is out of warranty now.

Maybe its time I should start looking into buying a more up to date system and sending this one to the auction block.

[christopher_wolf]

The laptop is out of warranty now.

Maybe its time I should start looking into buying a more up to date system and sending this one to the auction block.

Mmm, I have seen that kind of behaviour in various systems, although never in any of my Thinkpads. It is usually and indicator of a systeom board/ power supply issue. Although it can be indicative of *many* issues and can't really be tied to one specific thing.