X41t shutting off while booting

[Ivey]

Hello,
I have a ThinkPad X41 Tablet that seems pretty dead. It has an old battery, and ran while it was plugged in.
A few months back however, a friend unplugged it without closing it and it hasn't turned back on. It happened once before, but it started up after my brother (a computer whiz) took the battery out and put it back in again. This time nothing will happen, though we've taken the battery out, put it back in, plugged the cord in, etc.
Before it shut down completely, it showed about 7% battery life and it would read "charging", but it never got higher than 7% and every time it was unplugged the battery life got lower. We suspect the power cord may be at fault (besides the glued-to-an-outlet battery) but wanted to get a second opinion before purchasing a new cord.

Thank you very much for your time!

[rkawakami]

Welcome to thinkpads.com!

Before spending any money on another AC adapter, which can be had for ~$15 on eBay, try the following:

- Check the output voltage of the AC adapter. Plug it into an outlet known to work (try a light, clock, any other appliance that will give a visual or audio indication of working). You will need to have/borrow a voltmeter that can measure at least 20 volts DC. Put the red (positive) lead of the meter into the end of the DC plug and hold the black (negative) lead of the meter on the outside metal barrel. Be careful to make sure that you do NOT touch the leads of the meter together when they are connected to the DC plug.. A good adapter typically reads 16V or slightly over. If the voltage reads lower than 15.5V, your adapter is bad. If the voltage reads over 17V it is also bad and you should also not plug it into the laptop as damage could be done. Assuming that the adapter checks out okay at 16V...
- Remove the battery, plug in the AC adapter and check if any of the LED indicators light up. With no battery, I'm pretty sure it shouldn't; I'll check tonight with my own X41t.
- Re-attach the battery and with the AC adapter still plugged in, see if any LEDs light up. At a minimum, the battery LED should light up and/or flash if the adapter is good. Note and report the color and status of the LED (blinking, steady, flashes one time only, etc.).