Had a close call with a cheap power supply on a laptop repair yesterday

I was swapping a motherboard in a Dell XPS and the off-brand unit I grabbed from the shelf let out a loud pop and a puff of smoke. I had to quickly unplug everything and check the new board for damage, which luckily was fine. Anyone have a go-to brand for bench power supplies they actually trust?

3 comments

3 Comments

joel_hall173d ago

Careful with that term. A bench power supply is the big unit on your workbench, not the little brick for a laptop. For those laptop bricks, I've had good luck with genuine Dell ones from their parts site.

nancycooper3d ago

Yeah, @joel_hall17 makes a good point about the Dell parts site. I grabbed a 90-watt adapter from there last year for an old Latitude, and it's been solid. It's worth checking their refurbished section too, since those often come with a warranty but cost less.

the_elizabeth3d ago

Just to clarify, Nancy meant a laptop power adapter, not a bench supply. Her advice on the Dell site is spot on though.