Alternative supply for notebook

[carlmart]

After travelling to a nearby city, to stay probably for a few days, when I got there I realized I had forgotten my Asus laptop supply. This was the first time I forgot that, and allowed to see how essential that item was.

So I´m thinking of arranging another supply that would live on my traveling bags. So my question is: will any supply do or it has to be the specific one for my Asus model?

Of course that by "any" I mean same voltage and similar or higher current capacity.

The only remaining question would be the connecting pin, which of course has to fit in.

As I have some electronics knowledge, I guess it would be fine, but I prefer to ask here.

Now I'm writing this on my wife´s Dell notebook, and its supply is 19v 3.34Ah. It would probably work with mine, pity the connector is different.

 

[Bandalo]

As long as the connector matches (size and polarity), the supply puts out the right voltage and sufficient current, you'll be perfectly fine. 19V is pretty common, and Asus uses fairly common connectors for most of their machines.

It IS a good idea to stick with a reputable brand though. The cheap Chinese knock-off stuff is crap.

 

[carlmart]

Plug size is the main issue, because it has to fit exactly.

Polarity, being the greatest potential damager, seems to have been standardized to negative outer circle and positive internal pin. That is on "tube type" connectors.

Even so, after plugging the right plug on the supply, it´s better to check the polarity with a voltage meter.

The question is if I should get this supply now on some local store, or wait till I get back home, where I do have the tools to check polarity and else.

I had already cut the original cable and put locking adaptors in between, so I could use an external battery..

I´m always sorry all computer connectors are non-locking types, because the potential for bad connections (and subsequent errors) is so awful. But it seems that became a no-return path.

Computers and cell phones seem to have become a discardable market on the interface area, particularly on the usb and mini-usb area. I wonder how a user should deal with them so as to have less problems.

 

[Bandalo]

Plug size is the main issue, because it has to fit exactly.

Polarity, being the greatest potential damager, seems to have been standardized to negative outer circle and positive internal pin. That is on "tube type" connectors.

Even so, after plugging the right plug on the supply, it´s better to check the polarity with a voltage meter.

The question is if I should get this supply now on some local store, or wait till I get back home, where I do have the tools to check polarity and else.

I had already cut the original cable and put locking adaptors in between, so I could use an external battery..

I´m always sorry all computer connectors are non-locking types, because the potential for bad connections (and subsequent errors) is so awful. But it seems that became a no-return path.

Computers and cell phones seem to have become a discardable market on the interface area, particularly on the usb and mini-usb area. I wonder how a user should deal with them so as to have less problems.

Polarity, voltage and current will all be printed on the label of the power supply, and usually on the notebook itself. The print may be tiny, but it's required to be there in most cases. If the labels have come off, or are otherwise worn and unreadable, you can usually look online and find the required specs for your laptop model.

Look for an image like that one.

The tip size is usually given in mm, so you'll see something like 5.5/2.5, meaning a 5.5mm outer diameter with a 2.5mm inner diameter.

They are really FAIRLY standard, with only some of the "ultrabooks" using different ports due to the smaller sizes.

 

[dvsman]

Have you tried eBay or Amazon? I've used both 1st party (made by the laptop manufacturer) and 3rd party power supplies before with no issue. Just don't buy the super cheapest, no-name ones.

 

[carlmart]

Yes, I´m familiar with those diagrams. As I told you I have modified several of my stuff, like laptops or DSLR cameras, to use different supplies and adding a locking cable connector.

Then I can switch between AC supplies.

On my Asus N56j, which battery lasts about an hour, I would like to find a way to go inside and see if I can wire an external battery directly on where the internal feeds the 10.8v. The original one is 5.2Ah Li-Ion, so I wonder if I could wire like a 10.8v 10/Ah and get twice the time I get now. For that I would need the battery pins map, obviously.

For now I have been using an external 19v car jump battery with fairly good results, plugged on the external socket and lasting one hour. The battery is quite light, so I looked for one with more capacity, but I couldn´t one yet.

 

[carlmart]

Have you tried eBay or Amazon? I've used both 1st party (made by the laptop manufacturer) and 3rd party power supplies before with no issue. Just don't buy the super cheapest, no-name ones.

Ebay I did try, but I don´t seem to distinguish between 1st party and 3rd party suppliers. Amazon is not an option to buy from Brazil, as they charge you a lot for shipping, because they prefer to use couriers like DHL. Couriers packages always go through Brazilian customs, and they charge about 50% in taxes over price + shipping. Guess what the final price will be!

Same thing fro everything shipped from USA, so I always prefer things coming from Europe or China.