How to fix Dell Inspiron laptop won’t turn on

When it comes to computers, not turning on and not booting up are two different problems and it’s necessary that we distinguish one from the other in our troubleshooting so that we won’t cause confusion to our readers who are asking for our help. In this post, I will tackle an issue with the Dell Inspiron laptop wherein it doesn’t turn on for some reason.

But before we actually jump to our troubleshooting, I would like to briefly differentiate the “not turning on” problem from the “not booting up” issue. When you say your laptop isn’t turning on, it means it doesn’t respond when you hit the power key. It doesn’t have power and therefore won’t operate. But when you say it’s not booting up, it means it still has power but it won’t successfully start but  you can still see the screen displaying texts or graphics.

We will try to rule out every possibility just to be thorough in our troubleshooting. But let me tell you in advance that there’s only so much we can do about a laptop that doesn’t turn on but don’t let that fact stop you from doing something for your computer. Now, before we proceed, if you found this post while finding a solution to a different problem, then visit our Dell Inspiron troubleshooting page for we have already addressed some of the most common issues with this machine. If you can’t find something useful, then fill up our computer issues questionnaire and hit submit to contact us.

How to fix Dell Inspiron laptop won’t turn on

As always, we will use the deductive troubleshooting method to point out what the problem really is so that we can try to formulate a solution that might fix the problem for good and bring your laptop back to life. Don’t worry, the steps in troubleshooting a laptop that doesn’t turn on is easy and practical. You don’t need expert knowledge to follow them. That being said, here’s what you should do with it:

Step 1: Perform a visual inspection

The purpose of this step is to make sure you laptop doesn’t have physical damage or signs of liquid spillage. Your Dell Inspiron is not waterproof so any sort of liquid can find its way into it and when it happens, you already know what comes next when water meets electricity. Water can enter into your laptop through the keyboard and ports so if there was an instance that a glass of water got spilled near your laptop and this problem occurred shortly after that, then it’s possible your computer has liquid damage.

Your Inspiron is also vulnerable to drops and other physical impact. If it got dropped and the problem occurred, then it’s clear what the cause of the problem is.

Either your phone has physical or liquid damage, you need help from a technician to bring the machine back to life. But then of course, physical and liquid damages are often not covered by warranty so you may have to pay the tech for his services.

But assuming your laptop doesn’t show any signs of physical and liquid damage, move on to the next step.

Step 2: Try charging your Dell Inspiron to know how it reacts

If the hardware components of your laptop are all fine, then it should charge when you connect it to the charger. The operating system usually doesn’t intervene with the charging process especially if the laptop is not powered up. So, after doing a visual inspection and you are sure that your machine isn’t suffering from liquid damage, then you should try charging it:

  1. Plug the AC adapter to a functioning wall outlet.
  2. Connect the other end of the AC adapter to your laptop.
  3. The LED indicator should be lit the moment you charge it.
  4. If the screen doesn’t turn on immediately, it means the battery was all drained out. Give you laptop a few minutes to charge before attempting to turn it on.

If it doesn’t charge, however, then you should check the AC adapter for signs of damage. It’s not advisable to use a different charger from other laptops so if you think it’s an issue with the charger, go bring it to the shop and let the tech check it for you.

Step 3: Press and hold the Power button for 10 seconds

After giving your Inspiron enough time to charge, press and hold the power button for at least ten seconds to see if it turns on. If it does, then the problem is solved at this point, otherwise, you should decide to bring it to the tech.

I understand that some of you may think of opening the laptop by yourself, well, we discourage that especially if your machine is new and still has warranty. By removing the screws, you have already voided the warranty and if you’re not really used to fixing laptops, you pose a greater risk of damaging it instead of fixing the problem.

By the way, just before you bring it to the shop, if your Dell Inspiron has a removable battery, try removing it and then press the hold the power button for at least 30 seconds. Do this while the laptop isn’t connected to the charger. After which, connect it to its charger and then press the power button again to try to turn it on by getting power from its charger. If it’s still won’t turn on, then take a trip to the shop.

Explain to the tech what you’ve done so far and what might have caused the problem. It’s always very helpful for us technicians if owners provided us more information about the problem.

I hope that we have helped you one way or the other.

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