My laptop wont charge, is there any way to check if it's the battery or the charger that's at fault without going to the expense of buying one or the other? When i first turn it on it momentarily appears to be charging, then it stops.

Probably your battery is dead because if there would have been any problem with your charger port, you cant be able to use it on plugged mode. Buy a new battery ASAP.

Hello. There is a hardware failure with the laptop not the AC charger. AC chargers have some range of protections of their own. If the power requirements of the laptop are bigger then what the charger can handle, the charger will turn off. Also other parameters can bring the charger offline. In your case, you have a problem with a small chip, the battery charge controller unit, witch regulates the amount of current required to propperly charge the battery. When this thing fails, the charging requirements for the battery are reported rong and the AC charger is forced to give more power then necesary. This results in disconnection of the AC charger ( an internal fail safe of the
AC charger) and the laptop to swich back to battery power. When the laptop is turned off, it can charge the battery because the power requirements are low, having all processor, main board, hard disk etc turned off. Therefore the AC charger can handle the load. However you will need to have it checked by a service center as it is a hardware fault. Both AC charger and laptop needs that check.
The charge controll circuit needs to be replaced probably. It will be a somewhat expensive repair. Don't buy any other battery untill you have the laptop checked.

Acer Aspire 7520

Hello. There is a hardware failure with the laptop not your acer 4730 AC charger. AC chargers have some range of protections of their own. If the power requirements of the laptop are bigger then what the charger can handle, the charger will turn off. Also other parameters can bring the charger offline. In your case, you have a problem with a small chip, the battery charge controller unit, witch regulates the amount of current required to propperly charge the battery. When this thing fails, the charging requirements for the battery are reported rong and the AC charger is forced to give more power then necesary. This results in disconnection of the AC charger ( an internal fail safe of the AC charger) and the laptop to swich back to battery power. When the laptop is turned off, it can charge the battery because the power requirements are low, having all processor, main board, hard disk etc turned off. Therefore the AC charger can handle the load. However you will need to have it checked by a service center as it is a hardware fault. Both AC charger and laptop needs that check. The charge controll circuit needs to be replaced probably. It will be a somewhat expensive repair. Don't buy any other battery untill you have the laptop checked.

Hello. There is a hardware failure with the laptop not the AC charger. AC chargers have some range of protections of their own. If the power requirements of the laptop are bigger then what the charger can handle, the charger will turn off. Also other parameters can bring the charger offline. In your case, you have a problem with a small chip, the battery charge controller unit, which regulates the amount of current required to propperly charge the battery. When this thing fails, the charging requirements for the battery are reported rong and the AC charger is forced to give more power then necesary. This results in disconnection of the AC charger ( an internal fail safe of the
AC charger) and the laptop to swich back to battery power. When the laptop is turned off, it can charge the battery because the power requirements are low, having all processor, main board, hard disk etc turned off. Therefore the AC charger can handle the load. However you will need to have it checked by a service center as it is a hardware fault. Both AC charger and laptop needs that check.
The charge controll circuit needs to be replaced probably. It will be a somewhat expensive repair. Don't buy any other battery untill you have the laptop checked.

Replacement HP Pavilion DV7 Smart AC Adapter 90Watt 19V 4.74A

1)Reason:
a.The battery has no voltage.
b.There is problem with charger, as it has no output electric current.
c.Low charging efficiency due to external cause.
2)Solutions:
a.Test whether the charger has voltage and output electric current or not.
b.Check if the charger is well contacted with battery.
c.Activate the battery with voltage and current 1.5 time higher then the highest ones of battery. (Use this method only when the battery can't be charged.)

come from laptop battery site:http://www.buy-battery.ca/faq.htm

Just because the light comes on does not mean the charger is charging. You will have to use a meter and check the actual output of the charger. The problem could be the charger , charger plug, cables or battery. Start the checks with the plugs and cables and go from there. The light can come on but no power going out to the battery.

there is a problem with your charger. dell chargers have a habit of blowing. there is a small chip in them that tells the computer that it is ok to charge the batery, that little "safety feature" blows out and will no longer charge your battery. you will have to buy a new charger, either at a store like best buy (make sure it specificly says it is compatible with dell) or go to the dell website to order an "official" one. both options are unfortunately a little expensive, but your only option. i had the same problem with my xps1330.

Replace the battery, if laptop works fine from charger without battery installed that proves battery is at fault.

it seems the charger port on ur laptop have some fault...take it nearest service center...