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You are here: Home / Tech Questions & Answers / Q&A: Is a loose power connector on a brand new laptop a problem?

Q&A: Is a loose power connector on a brand new laptop a problem?

Posted on July 31, 2018

Question from Darla:  I bought a new laptop from Best Buy a couple of days ago. It cost a little over $800.

The laptop seems to work fine but there’s one problem. Well at least I think it might be a problem and I need your advice/opinion about it.

The power cable doesn’t seem to fit into the laptop’s power connector very well. It just seems to be “loose”.

When I wiggle the connector around it moves quite a bit but the laptop never shuts down or blinks or anything.

Every other laptop I’ve ever owned had a well-fitting power connection. Do you think this one is defective or is that normal for some laptops now?

I would just return it but I know that Best Buy charges a 15% restocking fee, which in this case would be $120! That’s why I’d rather not return it unless you really think I need to.

Rick’s answer:  Darla, a loose power connection is definitely a problem, and it’s one that you need to take care of immediately by returning the laptop to Best Buy for a refund before the 15 day return window expires.

The fact that the laptop doesn’t shut down or even “blink” when you wiggle the power connector doesn’t indicate that no problem exists.

Wiggling a loose power connector on a laptop that has a charged battery wouldn’t cause the machine to shut down or exhibit any other noticeable behavior because it would simply switch over from wall power to battery power.

Again, I strongly recommend that you return this laptop ASAP.

Hopefully I can ease your mind about the restocking fee. You won’t have to pay one because Best Buy eliminated restocking fees on most items several years ago, and that includes laptops (as you can see from the chart on their Returns & Exchanges page).

But that being said, even if Best Buy still charged a restocking fee on laptops they would almost certainly waive it in your case because the laptop has a serious defect that obviously had to be present from day one since you just purchase it two days ago.

A loose power connection is something that you don’t want to “live with” because that particular problem only gets worse over time. And besides, you paid $800 for a brand new laptop and you deserve to have one that’s in perfect condition.

Bottom line: I recommend that you return the defective laptop as soon as you possibly can.

I also recommend that you take the money that’s refunded to you and purchase a different laptop since this could easily turn out to be a common problem with this particular model.

Bonus tip #1: This post explains why I don’t recommend buying an extended warranty for your new laptop.

Bonus tip #2: Want to make sure you never miss one of my tips? Click here to join my Rick’s Tech Tips Facebook Group!

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