If this isn’t perfectly clear, its because my head is still humming with pissed off thoughts.
I recently spent most of my savings on a new “HP pavilion a350n desktop.” Now after waiting a week for it to arrive, I unpacked it and started to set it up; well, I didn’t get far. The light for the keyboard and optical mouse blinked once before fading to black, which is also the current state of the monitor. I contacted the company and they told me they would call back with return information so I can have it repaired, but I have to dish out the money for the shipping and handling.
I don’t have the money (I spent it all on the computer). Is the problem flying completely over my head, or am I going to have to send it in to be repaired? I have neither the patience nor the inclination to pay for the shipping and handling and wait nearly a month for them to supply me with a functioning computer. Can anyone help?
Yeah, okay. I’ve already made myself look like an ass. The title was supposed to read: Computer Question: Non-functioning peripherals on an HP, or is it?
First, I can’t believe they’re making you pay S&H to have them fix a non-working, brand-new computer. It didn’t arrive at your home in working order, so why should you have to pay EXTRA money to make it work? Heck, if anything, they should be paying YOU.
Anyway…
It sounds like you’ve got a short. Two weeks ago I would’ve said “power supply!”, but one of my computers did exactly the same thing after my cross-country move, and it turned out to be an after-market power cable running to one of the hard drives- a fifty cent replacement got it up and running.
I doubt that’s your problem, though. How hardware-savvy are you? Comfortable taking the cover off and playing with some wires?
Your best bet- if HP insists on being dicks about it- is to take it to a local shop and have them run a diagnostic. You’re probably looking at around sixty bucks to have 'em do so, but that’ll generally go towards the cost of fixing it if/when they find the problem. Odds are they’ll be able to find the problem within a day, if not sooner.
Did you pay for the computer with your credit card? If so, if it shows up on your statement, and you still don’t have a working machine, write to the credit card folks explaining that you’re not going to pay for it, since you have not received what you paid for. It’s outrageous that the company you bought the computer from would try to charge you for the return shipping.
I did pay with a credit card. If I can’t find an alternate solution to the problem, I’ll definitely be informing the credit card company that I receieved a non-working system.
On a different note, I’d like to clarify the situation a little bit. The on-light installed on the front of the computer turns on, but the activity indicator flickers off after just a few short moments of illumination. The monitor is black; but the on-light is coloured that dull orange colour that indicates that it’s receiving power, but the computer isn’t on. I can plug my cable connection into the ethernet outlet, and the light beside the plug will give a reassuring green glow. I’m still lost.
I’d bet a dollar that your RAM has unseated in shipment. Open up the chassis and make sure all the drive cables are firmly seated and the RAM is firmly and properly socketed. (you may have to remove the PS to get at it) A PC will usually power up to the BIOS screen even if the drive cables are loose but the RAM being loose will stop them dead.
You might also try removing the mouse and keyboard and see if the system starts without them plugged in. A short in the mouse or keybaord can also stop a PC dead.
Jesus Christ, that’s it. One of the sticks of RAM was loose; it happened to me before, so I should have guessed that was the problem. I knew someone on the SDMB was going to know what was wrong. I could have drawn this out so much further and made such a bigger fool of myself if it wasn’t for you. Thanks.