I’ve run into this problem many times, so I thought I’d share.
What the problem is: the laptop, you had noticed, had been loosing battery charge even though it was plugged in. The computer lasted a while, but then the battery died, and so did the laptop.
Often times, the user may not even see that the battery is being used, which is observable in the bottom left hand corner by the clock showing up with a % left of the battery usually.
What this tells me is that the power adapter has stopped working. This can be caused by many things like:
- dead components
- dropped and cracked
- wrecked connector on the end
- exposed wires
- cheap manufacturer
The easiest way to see that this is the problem, is that when you plug the power cable in, it doesn’t show any lights that it’s now charging the battery. These lights are standard on all Laptops, so if they don’t show up, this is your best bet.
What I will usually do, is search Craigslist or the local computer stores for the proper compatible battery, and bring the laptop in to the store, plug the power supply in and if the lights light up, then you know it was the faulty power adapter, and the new one is doing it’s job!
Hope this helps!