Solved! Laptop won't charge

[idiot7221]

When I plug in my Dell Inspiron 15 3567, it's hard to insert the plug. When the cord is plugged into the wall, the light is on, but when it is plugged into the laptop, the light turns off and I hear a spark sound. Took it to my local Micro Center and they said that the power adapter jack was toast and the motherboard might be fried because of it. The thing is, the laptop booted and I could log in after it happened (forgot to tell them that at the store). Could the mobo still be dead if the laptop booted? If not, I could save a lot of money by either replacing the jack myself or taking it to a different repair shop. Thanks in advance.

 

[AlHuneke]

It's hard to imagine how a bad power jack would fry the motherboard. I would take it somewhere else. I wouldn't recommend you try to change it yourself unless you are experienced with this type of repair and know what precautions to take.

 

[idiot7221]

It's hard to imagine how a bad power jack would fry the motherboard. I would take it somewhere else. I wouldn't recommend you try to change it yourself unless you are experienced with this type of repair and know what precautions to take.

Okay, thank you. But is it possible for the laptop to boot with a damaged motherboard on the off chance it did get zapped?

 

[AlHuneke]

Of course it's possible. You can start it up and run diagnostics (most vendors have these for their laptops). However, it doesn't take much damage to the motherboard to make it stop booting up.

While there might have been some sparking when you plugged into the laptop, that indicates a short somewhere. The sparking is not dangerous be itself (not at the power jack) but does indicate a problem. Since they said the power jack was bad, assuming they are correct, then I would assume that was the cause of the sparking. If they are wrong about the power jack then it is possible there is a motherboard problem. But to say a bad power jack would fry the motherboard is very unlikely.