Laptop Starting To Shut Down Often

flyswatter

Hi,

Just wondering can anyone help with this. I have a two and a half year old Dell Studio laptop and lately it's been turning itself off for no reason, just completely switching off, making me have to power it on again.

This has happened with increasing regularity of late.

Should I perhaps replace the battery, is that the issue?

The base of the laptop does seem to get hotter than other laptops I've been around but it just happened there when I had it on a cool enough cloth surface on a table not on a couch or the like where it picks up heat quicker.

Any help would be appreciated.

MiniNukinfuts

It's funny how this majority of laptop in this forum with problems are dells :P

Anyway, try removing the battery out of the laptop, and plugging the power cable into it, then try use it like that for a while and see if it shuts off. If it does then it's not the battery's fault. I'd say the motherboard is broken. Get onto Dell if that's the case.

promethius42

Do the above battery test also, do the fans flare up? It could be overheating?

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

It's funny how this majority of laptop in this forum with problems are dells :P

Anyway, try removing the battery out of the laptop, and plugging the power cable into it, then try use it like that for a while and see if it shuts off. If it does then it's not the battery's fault. I'd say the motherboard is broken. Get onto Dell if that's the case.

I suspect Dells outsell every other brand in Ireland by a large amount - hence more issues.

OP, when you use the laptop, are you making sure it is on a solid surface with plenty space for air to circulate?

flyswatter

kippy wrote: »

I suspect Dells outsell every other brand in Ireland by a large amount - hence more issues.

OP, when you use the laptop, are you making sure it is on a solid surface with plenty space for air to circulate?

It's on a wooden table at the moment yeah, think it heats up quicker on the likes of a couch for example. Overheating seems to be an issue with this particular model.

Checked the temperature, it's running at about 83-85 celcius .

kippy

flyswatter wrote: »

It's on a wooden table at the moment yeah, think it heats up quicker on the likes of a couch for example. Overheating seems to be an issue with this particular model.

Checked the temperature, it's running at about 83-85 celcius .

Running it on a couch or something with a soft surface is not a good idea as it can block the air vents which allow aircirculate around the major components of the machine.
The laptop shutting down is the "safety mechanism" that kicks in when components get too hot, however oftentimes this is more likely the component just saying "I cant take it anymore" and shuts down for a while.
Continued use like this (overheating) will lead, and probably has lead to component failure in your case. The processor, motherboard (or any component on the board) could be heat damaged, causing this erratic behaviour.

People dont realise it but laptops need to be used on solid surfaces allowing air to circulate. It's also important not to move laptops or give them a "jolt" when the hard drive is active as this can cause major damage to the hard drive.

MiniNukinfuts

kippy wrote: »

I suspect Dells outsell every other brand in Ireland by a large amount - hence more issues.

I wasn't denying that, they more than likely are, but still, the have more faults than any other brand. I've owned 2 dells in the past, both broke. The first was having a similar issue as the OP, the motherboard was the fault, it was 5 months old so it was replaced. That proceeded to die the week my warrranty ended.

The second one melted the plastic on the base. It was always being used on a flat surface.

OP, have you tried testing the battery?

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

I wasn't denying that, they more than likely are, but still, the have more faults than any other brand. I've owned 2 dells in the past, both broke. The first was having a similar issue as the OP, the motherboard was the fault, it was 5 months old so it was replaced. That proceeded to die the week my warrranty ended.

The second one melted the plastic on the base. It was always being used on a flat surface.

OP, have you tried testing the battery?

They have more faults than any other brand because there are more of them out there, particularly in the home user sphere, where a lot (not all) of the faults can be put down to user mishandling.

MiniNukinfuts

kippy wrote: »

They have more faults than any other brand because there are more of them out there, particularly in the home user sphere, where a lot (not all) of the faults can be put down to user mishandling.

People use that excuse way too often I know of more faulty dells than i know good ones. The good ones are enterprise models and for some reason they're better built and have less faults. So, this user mishandling you speak of, I suppose the base of my laptop melting was due to me mishandling? And my friend's motherboard starting to smoke while typing a document?

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

People use that excuse way too often I know of more faulty dells than i know good ones. The good ones are enterprise models and for some reason they're better built and have less faults. So, this user mishandling you speak of, I suppose the base of my laptop melting was due to me mishandling? And my friend's motherboard starting to smoke while typing a document?

You know of more faulty Dells than good ones because you will only ever hear about the faulty ones (via forums such as this)

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

People use that excuse way too often I know of more faulty dells than i know good ones. The good ones are enterprise models and for some reason they're better built and have less faults. So, this user mishandling you speak of, I suppose the base of my laptop melting was due to me mishandling? And my friend's motherboard starting to smoke while typing a document?

Have a read of this:
http://www.electronista.com/articles/09/11/17/reliability.study.has.apple.4th.place/

MiniNukinfuts

kippy wrote: »

Have a read of this:
http://www.electronista.com/articles/09/11/17/reliability.study.has.apple.4th.place/

Have a look at the date of that article, times have changed. Dell have gone downhill if anything.

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

Have a look at the date of that article, times have changed. Dell have gone downhill if anything.

Show me something more recent that is not based on your own opinion?

flyswatter

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

I wasn't denying that, they more than likely are, but still, the have more faults than any other brand. I've owned 2 dells in the past, both broke. The first was having a similar issue as the OP, the motherboard was the fault, it was 5 months old so it was replaced. That proceeded to die the week my warrranty ended.

The second one melted the plastic on the base. It was always being used on a flat surface.

OP, have you tried testing the battery?

Trying it without the battery now.

About 10 minutes ago I had the battery charging and unplugged it and it turned off, this has happened 3 times recently.

Hope it's a battery problem rather than a component problem.

As regards Dells, well I haven't had much stress with this computer, if anything it's been the ac adaptors supplied I've had to replace twice.

The Studio laptops I find pretty solid, I've heard bad things about Inspirons however.

MiniNukinfuts

flyswatter wrote: »

Trying it without the battery now.

About 10 minutes ago I had the battery charging and unplugged it and it turned off, this has happened 3 times recently.

So, you were using the laptop while the battery was plugged out and the charger plugged in?

kippy wrote:

Show me something more recent that is not based on your own opinion?

Why should I bother? The amount of complaints on this forum alone is enough to see that the quality of the machines are rubbish.

flyswatter

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

So, you were using the laptop while the battery was plugged out and the charger plugged in?

No. It's been turning off while the battery has been in and when it's charging or not charging. In the last few days it has also turned off the second after plugging it out. It has done this about three times.

I have it on without the battery in now. No problems so far.

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

Why should I bother? The amount of complaints on this forum alone is enough to see that the quality of the machines are rubbish.

Again, I'll point you to the fact that Dell outsell most other brands in this country by a large amount. (I don't understand why you don't think this is relevant btw)
Also, the amount of complaints on a website does not in anyway show a fair reflection of what actually happens, the reason for the failures or the percentage of failures.


You'll also note that almost every brand of laptop/broadband reseller, service provider, has negative posts about it somewhere on this website. You generally only ever hear the negative side.

MiniNukinfuts

flyswatter wrote: »

I have it on without the battery in now. No problems so far.

Okay, just keep us updated. You might be lucky enough so that the battery is at fault and not the motherboard.

kippy wrote:

Also, the amount of complaints on a website does not in anyway show a fair reflection of what actually happens, the reason for the failures or the percentage of failures.

What does it show then?

kippy wrote:

You'll also note that almost every brand of laptop/broadband reseller, service provider, has negative posts about it somewhere on this website. You generally only ever hear the negative side.

The negative side is what people (including me) want to hear also, it helps determine the good from the bad.

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

Okay, just keep us updated. You might be lucky enough so that the battery is at fault and not the motherboard.



What does it show then?



The negative side is what people (including me) want to hear also, it helps determine the good from the bad.

It shows that laptops suffer from failures..........

Let me give you an example.

Dell sell 100 laptops in Ireland every year.(you dont know how many they sell)
Of these 100 laptops you see that 10 people have had issues with them (they posted on boards)
Ten posts on boards about Dell failures - my god, that's a lot of failures........
HP sell 10 laptops in Ireland every year.(You dont know how many they sell) Of these 10 laptops you see that 2 people have had trouble with them.
You rarely hear from those without issues.

Conclusion from reading posts on boards - Dell are crap, they've threads all over boards about them failing (for whatever reason), I've only seen two threads about HP issues. Therefore HP are better laptops........Dell are crap.
Reality, failure rate of dell laptops 10%, failure rate of HP laptops 20%

(I can't believe I have had to explain this by the way, as well as backing it up with as recent an empirical study that I can find on the issue)

The point about only hearing the negative side, almost every service provider has problems and negative comments - how they deal with them is generally what differentiates the good from the bad.

Allyall

OP, sorry if this has been asked, Did you update the BIOS and the drivers for the Chipset and Video Card?

What model is the laptop?

MiniNukinfuts

They only thing I took in from that was.

kippy wrote: »

Therefore HP are better laptops........Dell are crap.

Also, I think you should stop bitching and leave this thread get back on topic. kthxbai.

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

They only thing I took in from that was.



Also, I think you should stop bitching and leave this thread get back on topic. kthxbai.

If thats what you took from it fair enough, but it's completely wrong and ill judged.
You are the one who brought up sniping towards Dell products in the first instance without any foundation. Whatever about your own personal feelings, trying to (wrongly) put other people off a certain product based on false premises is just wrong.

I've given my advice to the OP.

MiniNukinfuts

kippy wrote: »

If thats what you took from it fair enough, but it's completely wrong and ill judged.
You are the one who brought up sniping towards Dell products in the first instance without any foundation. Whatever about your own personal feelings, trying to (wrongly) put other people off a certain product based on false premises is just wrong.

I've given my advice to the OP.

Without any foundation? I think when the base of a €1800 laptop melts fully after 3 months that warrants me to bad mouth them (they refused to repair it btw). I'm not trying to sway people decisions at all, it's up to them, i'm just telling them my experiences.

kippy

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

Without any foundation? I think when the base of a €1800 laptop melts fully after 3 months that warrants me to bad mouth them (they refused to repair it btw). I'm not trying to sway people decisions at all, it's up to them, i'm just telling them my experiences.

Thats the point I am trying to make, your experience is completely different to mine and you are basing you comments on the number of posts on this forum about failures, which is completely misleading as to the failure rate of one piece of hardware over another.

I had an xbox once, just died on me. Xbox's are a piece of crap, stay away from them.......

MiniNukinfuts

kippy wrote: »

Thats the point I am trying to make, your experience is completely different to mine and you are basing you comments on the number of posts on this forum about failures, which is completely misleading as to the failure rate of one piece of hardware over another.

I had an xbox once, just died on me. Xbox's are a piece of crap, stay away from them.......

I see what you did there.

flyswatter

Allyall wrote: »

OP, sorry if this has been asked, Did you update the BIOS and the drivers for the Chipset and Video Card?

What model is the laptop?

It's updated as far as I can see.

It's the Dell Studio 1557.

MiniNukinfuts

Are you in still warranty? if not you could always try a replacement battery, they're relatively cheap on ebay: here

Allyall

Do you have ATI Powerplay? Can you disable it, and check if that makes a difference.

flyswatter

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

Are you in still warranty? if not you could always try a replacement battery, they're relatively cheap on ebay: here

Thinking of trying that if the problem persists. Thanks for the suggestion.

Allyall wrote: »

Do you have ATI Powerplay? Can you disable it, and check if that makes a difference.

I do have that yes. Does it not affect performance if I disable that though?

Allyall

flyswatter wrote: »

I do have that yes. Does it not affect performance if I disable that though?

Not general performance, i.e. Internet browsing, word etc., but it will hinder your ability to play some high end games.

But for now, disable it. And work away on the laptop as normal, with battery in, and power etc..

Do you use it for playing games much.

GPU-Z download

Also Download Speedfan

You don't have to install them yet.

You have an i7 Processor, right? That caused loads of overheating issues a year or two ago, not sure if it's still giving those problems..

Dell Studio Wikipedia

The 1557 and 1558 model is known to have problems with overheating, which is generally linked to 3D video graphics related gaming or other 3D applications. Downloading the latest ATI catalyst drivers and BIOS updates does help reduce the risk of these problems. There are also several reports of 1557 models freezing up during booting, or having inaccessible hard drives. No clear cause or fix has been put forward by DELL, but it is also likely linked to overheating related to the built in video card, or software-hardware malfunction related to the built in ST Microelectronics Accelerometer which is supposed to protect the HDD incase the laptop is dropped. One proven method to avoid this problem is to remove the ST Microelectronics drivers, and thus disable the HDD protection function, whilst keeping the BIOS (currently version 9 as of Sept.2011) up to date is said to also reduce the risk. Frozen hard disks however can usually not be fixed by updating the BIOS or removing the ST Microelectronics driver, in these cases usually the HDD has to be replaced. DELL has been criticized by some consumers not to take the overheating and freezing issue seriously, whilst others complain that the repair takes too long (2 weeks) and that the usually adopted fixing method is to remove the old HDD and put in a new one (probably with a factory install image of the operating system) and returning the "fixed" laptop and the original but damaged HDD to the owner.

flyswatter

Allyall wrote: »

Not general performance, i.e. Internet browsing, word etc., but it will hinder your ability to play some high end games.

But for now, disable it. And work away on the laptop as normal, with battery in, and power etc..

Do you use it for playing games much.

GPU-Z download

Also Download Speedfan

You don't have to install them yet.

You have an i7 Processor, right? That caused loads of overheating issues a year or two ago, not sure if it's still giving those problems..

Dell Studio Wikipedia

Yeah it's an i7.

I use it for games sometimes yeah but it's mostly music and internet.

Play games like Football Manager and maybe the odd Shooter game.

flyswatter

What are GPU Z and Speedfan used for?

I_p_freely

Could be dust or animal hair build up inside the laptop reducing airflow and causing the laptop to overheat. Did you try using a can of compressed air to blow out any dust? Or try a hoover - carefully, though, as this could potentially damage it. Or if you're brave you could open it and clean out the dust. I did this before but lost my f4 key somehow....

One time my girlfriend had an overheating problem and it turned out that after trying to clean it out the problem was actually caused by a widget that she had downloaded from the Microsoft website of a cat clock. turned out that this widget caused the CPU to run at ~%100 causing it to overheat! Found this out by looking at task manager. Check if something is using an excessive amount of CPU power.

Tazz T

I had this problem for ages with a Dell Inspiron. First I thought it was overheating, then I thought it was the battery. Tried everything, couldn't find the problem, then one day the lead came out of the charger. Got a replacement charger and it never happened again.

See if you can find a compatible charger.

Allyall

flyswatter wrote: »

What are GPU Z and Speedfan used for?

GPU-Z displays information about your GPU and temperatures etc..

as does Speedfan, Speedfan in some instances can control the temperature, and bring it down when it is overheating.

Forget GPU-Z, for now anyway.

Install speedfan (With Powerplay disabled), once installed, Tick "Automatic Fan speed" (as Below)



Then go to "Configure" > "Options" and Tick "Enable Dell Support"



Go back to main window, "Minimize" and Re-enable Powerplay.

You will probably need to reapply some thermal compound, or a copper shim, if you can't do it, a PC repair shop will do it, or a Console Repair (Xbox repairs etc) May be able to do it for fairly cheap (About €30).

While Speedfan is minimised, use your laptop as normal, and see if it makes much or any difference.

duckysauce

I_p_freely wrote: »

Could be dust or animal hair build up inside the laptop reducing airflow and causing the laptop to overheat. Did you try using a can of compressed air to blow out any dust? Or try a hoover - carefully, though, as this could potentially damage it. Or if you're brave you could open it and clean out the dust. I did this before but lost my f4 key somehow....

One time my girlfriend had an overheating problem and it turned out that after trying to clean it out the problem was actually caused by a widget that she had downloaded from the Microsoft website of a cat clock. turned out that this widget caused the CPU to run at ~%100 causing it to overheat! Found this out by looking at task manager. Check if something is using an excessive amount of CPU power.

its over heating as the above poster says , google a you tube video of how to take fan apart will only take 10 mins, blowing air at this particular model will not shift the large lump of fluff blocking the vents.

duckysauce

MiniNukinfuts wrote: »

Without any foundation? I think when the base of a €1800 laptop melts fully after 3 months that warrants me to bad mouth them (they refused to repair it btw). I'm not trying to sway people decisions at all, it's up to them, i'm just telling them my experiences.

do you work in IT ?

MiniNukinfuts

duckysauce wrote: »

do you work in IT ?

Yes, why you say that?

flyswatter

Allyall wrote: »

GPU-Z displays information about your GPU and temperatures etc..

as does Speedfan, Speedfan in some instances can control the temperature, and bring it down when it is overheating.

Forget GPU-Z, for now anyway.

Install speedfan (With Powerplay disabled), once installed, Tick "Automatic Fan speed" (as Below)



Then go to "Configure" > "Options" and Tick "Enable Dell Support"



Go back to main window, "Minimize" and Re-enable Powerplay.

You will probably need to reapply some thermal compound, or a copper shim, if you can't do it, a PC repair shop will do it, or a Console Repair (Xbox repairs etc) May be able to do it for fairly cheap (About €30).

While Speedfan is minimised, use your laptop as normal, and see if it makes much or any difference.

Does Speedfan have to be minimized and running all the time? I've carried out the Speedfan instructions and re-enabled powerplay.

Duggy747

flyswatter wrote: »

The base of the laptop does seem to get hotter than other laptops I've been around but it just happened there when I had it on a cool enough cloth surface on a table not on a couch or the like where it picks up heat quicker.

flyswatter wrote: »

It's on a wooden table at the moment yeah, think it heats up quicker on the likes of a couch for example. Overheating seems to be an issue with this particular model.

Checked the temperature, it's running at about 83-85 celcius .

It's fluff built up in your fan, it's a common problem with laptops, regardless of brands. If you put them on surfaces like a couch or bed then the fan acts like a hoover and sucks up all the dirt and fluff where it builds up like a wall between the fan and grill. Blowing compressed air into the vent will do nothing, you will have to remove the fan itself and take all the dirt out and THEN use the compressed air to blow on the inside.

Your temp should be averaging 40-50 degrees, maybe the 30s and peaking around the 60s (early 70s if you're running graphic-intensive games). 80+ is too high as most laptops have a cut-off point of 90-100 where it shuts off as a safety measure.

Dell Studios are easy enough to take apart, though you will have to remove the display from the laptop itself but that's not a daunting task at all.

You can google service manuals for your model no. (Studio 1557 service manual, for example) / youtube videos to show you how to do it. Just be gentle removing everything. A guitar plek is great for removing panels without causing damage.

Repair shops can do the job cheap enough, shouldn't be over €50.

flyswatter

It shut down again a while ago with the battery attached, doesn't seem to be a problem when it's removed.

Temperature is around 88-90ish degrees, way too hot I know.

I think it's just a problem with this model to be honest, the 1557's are known to run hotter.

CrazyFish

flyswatter wrote: »

It shut down again a while ago with the battery attached, doesn't seem to be a problem when it's removed.

Temperature is around 88-90ish degrees, way too hot I know.

I think it's just a problem with this model to be honest, the 1557's are known to run hotter.

Have you ever cleaned the inside e.g by opening. If you were confident you could try opening the laptop and give it a clean. You would be surprised how much dust you find. My laptop was rebooting recently and gave it a clean and its running much cooler now and not rebooting.

flyswatter

CrazyFish wrote: »

Have you ever cleaned the inside e.g by opening. If you were confident you could try opening the laptop and give it a clean. You would be surprised how much dust you find. My laptop was rebooting recently and gave it a clean and its running much cooler now and not rebooting.

What would I use to clean it? I don't have one of those compressed air cans.

Allyall

flyswatter wrote: »

Does Speedfan have to be minimized and running all the time? I've carried out the Speedfan instructions and re-enabled powerplay.

Yes, it should be running all the time. I'm willing to bet it is Powerplay causing your problem (But not the source of it), best is to just disable it, and only enable it when you want it. For now.

You should reapply some Thermal paste, or Thermal pads, after thoroughly cleaning it first.

Or try THIS. If you feel confident enough..

flyswatter wrote: »

What would I use to clean it? I don't have one of those compressed air cans.

You can buy one HERE

Or try using a vacuum cleaner at the vent, be careful, and block the outside of the vacuum nozzle that isn't over the vent.

EDIT:

If you bring it to a PC repair shop, it shouldn't cost a lot, to do that. Anywhere between €30 and €50 depending where you go..

flyswatter

Allyall wrote: »

Yes, it should be running all the time. I'm willing to bet it is Powerplay causing your problem (But not the source of it), best is to just disable it, and only enable it when you want it. For now.

You should reapply some Thermal paste, or Thermal pads, after thoroughly cleaning it first.

Or try THIS. If you feel confident enough..



You can buy one HERE

Or try using a vacuum cleaner at the vent, be careful, and block the outside of the vacuum nozzle that isn't over the vent.

EDIT:

If you bring it to a PC repair shop, it shouldn't cost a lot, to do that. Anywhere between €30 and €50 depending where you go..

It's not Powerplay anyway, had that switched off when it shut down again.

Allyall

Found another thread on another forum dedicated to this problem, and fixing it. Many of the results in google point to this thread eventually.

Most of the comments i have read, say this fix works. I didn't read any that said it doesn't work, but one or two that didn't further their posts after they tried it.

It states that a copper shim with the dimensions 1/2 inch square by 3/64 of a inch thick (12.7mm square, 1.2mm thick), applied, with thermal paste on either side will work to stop the overheating.

Make sure everything is clean of old thermal paste before you apply the new.When you put it in,cover one side of the shim with artic silver 5 and stick it to the heatsink,then cover the gpu's (of course to cpu the same) core with as5 before you install the the heatsink.
Keep a eye on on the thermal pads for the memory,they are very stick and can get creased or folded.make sure they are straight and flat.

You can read through the entire thread HERE

Duggy747

Don't take a household hoover to your fan, the thing is a static generator and can end up frying it and you'll be left with a dead machine.

Even so, it won't get the dirt out. You have to take the laptop apart to clean it properly.

Fluff build up in the fan and between the grill is a really common thing to happen in laptops, far more than people expect.