Dell won't start up after holding down power?

If your model is an 8600 that problem was noted in the past, you most likely have a defective power button. Call Dell support.

Sounds like something's maybe loose/needs reseated...?

If the three lock LEDs turn on and stay lit for 10 seconds, you have a defective video card. Call Dell to get a replacement. (at least, that was my issue).

If it is out of warranty try to take the unit apart and find out what is loose. You have niothing to lose. Dell website should have assembly instructions.

would it start if u take out battery and use power supply only?

thats what mine does

same problem with a 5100

just wondering if you figured out what the problem was...i have a 5100 doing the exact same thing except it doesn't start at all, even when turned upside down. the lights flash once when the power button is pushed, but only when it is on battery only. absolutely nothing happens when the power cord is plugged in.

Any answer?

I would love to hear how this was resolved also. I am also trying to fix a 5100 that has these exact symptoms. The upside down thing is weird. Occasionally it will start but then shuts down, or maybe goes into suspend? Any solid ideas would be appreciated.

The girlfriend has an Inspiron 1100 and the damned thing won't start either.
Will not start on battery or on AC power, will hit power button, then hear the fan, then a click, and it's dead.

Called Dell's "tech support" (talked to a guy named Rez ), and this stoner told me that the mobo may be fried.

So, any ideas?

Disregarding the upside down situation my best guess would be that the AC adapter has gone bad. If that were the case and the battery was dead when you plug it in and try to start it the system would do nothing, however when running on the battery alone the system would try to start with the small ammount of charge the battery still has, and even when not charged they will hold a small ammount of charge for quite some time.

Does the LED light up on the AC adapter ?

It's certainly possible you simply have a bad motherboard. As for the ones that start when upside down, sounds like something loose or shorting out....

LED lights up on the adapter, and the three 'monitoring' lights on the front for about 3 seconds on the laptop itself.

Problem solved - for me anyway!

I finally got through to Dell tech support, and this is what they had me do. Hopefully I can remember all the steps! Note: mine is a 5100, the configuration might be different for other models, but I would think the basic diagnostic process would be the same

First verify the brick (power supply) is getting power (green light is on)

1. unplug the AC power and remove the battery, hold down the power key for 10 secs, plug AC back in and try to start the computer (didn't work)
2. remove AC plug, hold down power key for 5 secs (to discharge), remove screw from bottom of laptop labeled M (memory), remove all memory cards, plug in AC, and try to start (checks for bad memory - didn't work)
3. remove AC plug, hold down power key for 5 secs, re-insert 1 memory card, plug in AC and try to start (didn't work)
4. if there are 2 cards, repeat process with other card (didn't work)
5. remove CD/DVD drive - loosen the screw labeled O (optical) on the bottom of the laptop, inside memory bay is a black plastic tab, push the tab towards the CD/DVD drive to release the drive, plug AC back in, try to start (checks for problem with optical drive - my DVD drive would not come out - didn't get this resolved)
6. remove AC plug, hold down power key for 5 secs, re-insert all memory cards and cover, optical drive, and screws
7. remove 2 screws (unlabeled) securing hard drive (next to CD/DVD drive; also secures the PCMCIA card slot if there is one - all one unit) from bottom of laptop, and remove hard drive, plug AC back in, try to start (checks for problem with hard drive - didn't work)
8. diagnosis - bad mother board

Luckily, mine was still under warranty (10 months old) and Dell replaced the motherboard and CPU - works like a charm now

good luck!

I forgot one simple thing you should check before doing all the other steps - verify that none of the pins in the laptop's AC port (where you insert the AC adapter into the laptop) are bent.

Dell Inspiron 5100 - Startup Problems

I am hoping that this is something which can be fixed somewhat easily...
I have a Dell Inspiron 5100 that when plugged in and I press the power button, it lights the power led and the fan spins for about 2-3 sec, then you hear a click and it turns off.
If you only use the battery, it lights the battery led in green, the power led in green and the fan begins to spin. After about 3-5 seconds, the number lock led to the top of the keyboard beging flashing steadily, and the unit remains turned on, but the screen stayes black and the laptop doesn't go any further; but it remains turned on.
I tried an external monitor to test for screen problems, but nothing happened.
Does anyone have any iead what could be the problem and how to resolve it?

Appreciative of any assistance you can offer.

I have a inspiron 5100, and nothing works anymore.
When I push the power button nothing lights up.
Perhaps the charger is broke and because I left it turned on the battery could be completely empty. Could that be the reason why nothing happens?
I´ve been trying to find a person with a similar machine so I can put his battery in my machine, but no luck so far.
If you live in Belgium, please contact me to try that out.
Cheers

I have the exact same problem as LucianToy on my Inspiron 5100 and have been experiencing it intermittently since I first got it for Christmas last year. What works for me is to remove both the battery and the power cord, wait about 15 seconds, insert the battery ONLY and press the start button. After it has booted up, then I plug in the power cord and it seems to run fine. I don't know if this will work for you, but I hope it does.

I came across this same issue with my 5125. reading through countless pages and following Dells instructions didn't yield any good result. What finally solved my issues was to disconnect the power cord, take out the battery, remove the center underside panel, allowing access to Ram memory - and for some reason, taking the 2gb RAM card in slot 1, and moving it to slot 2, I was able to boot up, and test my system, finding that the computer had an error, and was unable to come out of hibernation. I had guessed this was the issue, but didn't want to really open the computer up like others had in previous posts, seeing that I was still under warranty. I was able to place the remaining 1gb RAM card in slot 1 - So essentially I just swapped the positions of both RAM cards - and since then the computer has had no issues. I made sure the hibernation feature was turned off from all power modes to prevent this in the future. Hope this helps someone out there.. Just remember, these are Dells: there will be more problems to come. Good luck




"
Problem solved - for me anyway!
I finally got through to Dell tech support, and this is what they had me do. Hopefully I can remember all the steps! Note: mine is a 5100, the configuration might be different for other models, but I would think the basic diagnostic process would be the same

First verify the brick (power supply) is getting power (green light is on)

1. unplug the AC power and remove the battery, hold down the power key for 10 secs, plug AC back in and try to start the computer (didn't work)
2. remove AC plug, hold down power key for 5 secs (to discharge), remove screw from bottom of laptop labeled M (memory), remove all memory cards, plug in AC, and try to start (checks for bad memory - didn't work)
3. remove AC plug, hold down power key for 5 secs, re-insert 1 memory card, plug in AC and try to start (didn't work)
4. if there are 2 cards, repeat process with other card (didn't work)
5. remove CD/DVD drive - loosen the screw labeled O (optical) on the bottom of the laptop, inside memory bay is a black plastic tab, push the tab towards the CD/DVD drive to release the drive, plug AC back in, try to start (checks for problem with optical drive - my DVD drive would not come out - didn't get this resolved)
6. remove AC plug, hold down power key for 5 secs, re-insert all memory cards and cover, optical drive, and screws
7. remove 2 screws (unlabeled) securing hard drive (next to CD/DVD drive; also secures the PCMCIA card slot if there is one - all one unit) from bottom of laptop, and remove hard drive, plug AC back in, try to start (checks for problem with hard drive - didn't work)
8. diagnosis - bad mother board

Luckily, mine was still under warranty (10 months old) and Dell replaced the motherboard and CPU - works like a charm now

good luck!"