Presario 700- won't do anything!

[goodby1]

Well, I bought a used presario 700 laptop about 2 months ago. The owner is a friend who told me that it was not the best computer but I wasn't really thinking of using it for much more than taking notes.

Anyway- i realized that the battery didn't hold much of a charge... it went from holding about 20 minutes to 10 to about 30 seconds. The other day, I tried starting it up PLUGGED IN and it wouldn't start. It gives a sound of about 1 second of the hard drive trying to do something and then NOTHING. Nada. no screen. NOTHING.

Called Compaq tech support (actually "chatted" with them). They said to unplug AND take out the battery and hold the powerup button down for 15 seconds and then replug it back in and try again. Didn't work. They say, now, to take it into the dealer.

Before I do and risk spending more good money after bad... any suggestions?

[borumas]

Unforetunately there isn't alot you can do with laptops, taking them apart is very difficult for the unexperienced and there are not many parts you can replace. Sounds like your motherboard may be bad, most laptops that I have taken apart have the AC power connector on the motherboard and while it is possible to have a cold solder joint that is easy to repair it isn't very likely to be the problem. The battery itself is probably bad, we have alot of Dell and Gateway laptop batterys die after a year or so of use so if yours is that old it more than likely is the problem (especially since its ability to hold a charge has degraded over time).

[goodby1]

My friend has a presario 700 as well.. if the problem is the battery, i could just borrow hers.

I was wondering, if it IS a dead battery, don't you think that the computer would start up with the AC adapter plugged in? Or is it necessary to have some kind of minimum charge in the battery for the thing to start up?

[borumas]

The PC should definitely startup with the AC adaptor plugged into it so that isn't the problem, the battery light when the AC is plugged in is usually orange or red when charging.

[bethy1979]

Well, I bought a used presario 700 laptop about 2 months ago. The owner is a friend who told me that it was not the best computer but I wasn't really thinking of using it for much more than taking notes.

Anyway- i realized that the battery didn't hold much of a charge... it went from holding about 20 minutes to 10 to about 30 seconds. The other day, I tried starting it up PLUGGED IN and it wouldn't start. It gives a sound of about 1 second of the hard drive trying to do something and then NOTHING. Nada. no screen. NOTHING.

Called Compaq tech support (actually "chatted" with them). They said to unplug AND take out the battery and hold the powerup button down for 15 seconds and then replug it back in and try again. Didn't work. They say, now, to take it into the dealer.

Before I do and risk spending more good money after bad... any suggestions?

Hi - did you find a solution to this problem? My presario 700 is doing the exact same thi8n

[goodby1]

Actually I sent my computer in to Compaq TWICE. The first time they couldn't replicate the problem (I couldn't start my computer for 2 days and then it got to their lab and it started up just fine!). The second time the found a bad sector on my hard drive and fixed it but then said that they couldn't be sure that that was it. Anyway, in the end, they sent it back saying that they didn't find conclusively what the problem was. Their options were

1) That the battery was so dead that somehow it was effecting the start up (even though it was plugged in)

2) That it was something software related so they recommended wiping the hard drive and starting all over.

3) or, that it was something that could be found and eliminated with Adaware and SpyBot but they didn't know exactly what.

So, after they sent it back (this time it started up for them AGAIN) I bought a new battery (about $120). I am going to wipe the hard drive soon and start all over and hopefully everything is okay. What's frustrating, I'm sure, is the inability to start it up. For some reason, once my computer hit their lab table, it started up. For me, though, it wouldn't start up for days.

Anyway- Radio Shack sends it to Compaq for $39. That's all they charged me since they couldn't find the problem...

Sorry couldn't be more help.

[jbean]

Actually I sent my computer in to Compaq TWICE. The first time they couldn't replicate the problem (I couldn't start my computer for 2 days and then it got to their lab and it started up just fine!). The second time the found a bad sector on my hard drive and fixed it but then said that they couldn't be sure that that was it. Anyway, in the end, they sent it back saying that they didn't find conclusively what the problem was. Their options were

1) That the battery was so dead that somehow it was effecting the start up (even though it was plugged in)

2) That it was something software related so they recommended wiping the hard drive and starting all over.

3) or, that it was something that could be found and eliminated with Adaware and SpyBot but they didn't know exactly what.

So, after they sent it back (this time it started up for them AGAIN) I bought a new battery (about $120). I am going to wipe the hard drive soon and start all over and hopefully everything is okay. What's frustrating, I'm sure, is the inability to start it up. For some reason, once my computer hit their lab table, it started up. For me, though, it wouldn't start up for days.

Anyway- Radio Shack sends it to Compaq for $39. That's all they charged me since they couldn't find the problem...

Sorry couldn't be more help.

I am curious.. as this seems to be very common.. I also have a presario 700 that does the exact same thing... try to turn it on.. and only the green light comes on... where you have to hold it to turn it back off.

Did the give you an answer as to whether in fact a battery does need to be in the slot ?
Or did you replace yours and have any luck ?

thanks

[phedge]

Hi,

As a disappointed owner of a Presario 700 I can offer the following advice.

Restart your computer using the discs provided (put the 1st disc in and switch it on and follow the instructions)

With any luck you will now have a "virgin" 700. Let it remain so. i.e. don't update windows.

Somewhere in the windows updates an incomptability exists. I reconfigured mine at least a dozen times before I realized that it would work just fine until I updated.

Hope this helps.

Pete

[jbean]

Hi,

As a disappointed owner of a Presario 700 I can offer the following advice.

Restart your computer using the discs provided (put the 1st disc in and switch it on and follow the instructions)

With any luck you will now have a "virgin" 700. Let it remain so. i.e. don't update windows.

Somewhere in the windows updates an incomptability exists. I reconfigured mine at least a dozen times before I realized that it would work just fine until I updated.

Hope this helps.

Pete

I understand what you are saying.. however.. I am unable to use the discs as it won't start at all.

:)

[aug]

Hi

I had the same problem with a 700C...and needless to say it has been driving me nuts. Will not power up...tried reseating the processor, removing the BIOS battery to reset the BIOS...nothing....removing everything I could...leaving it unpowered...nothing helped.

What I ended up doing is pulling the HDD, and trying to boot sans HDD...and that worked. Now it seems to be OK...so perhaps the HDD is starting to die...who knows....

Now I know about a bunch of these machines....

Hope that helps
[e-mail]

[steosaur(oWn)]

Haha I have a presario 2100, but im poor now. I've heard that batteries and touch pads are the first things to go.

[on_the_border]

I've had the same problem with my 701z Presario. It's been on-going for the last 2 years.

I've been able to get it to start up again by tapping on it with my fingers and turning it upside down a few times. It doesn't always work, but seems to work right before I throw it out the window in frustration! I also open and close the battery slot and try putting the battery in and then taking it back out again.

At first I thought it was the battery, but now think it's a loose connection somewhere. I've purchased an additional battery to see if that was causing the problem, but it doesn't matter.

I almost always have to take the battery out of the computer before getting it to work after it's been dead. In fact, I usually just run it without the battery.

It seems to shutdown after any slight movement of the computer. Not completely sure though. It seems to always happen when I'm using it.

At first I thought it might be over-heating and auto shutting down and tripping a switch, but not sure. It seems to happen after any slight movement, possibly movement to the power cord. I'm afraid to experiment with it since I don't want it to shutdown again. Sometimes it takes hours/days to get it to come back up again. Sometimes it takes just minutes to get it to come back up again.

When it does *decide to start working again, Windows starts without any error messages. It thinks it shutdown normally.

Any ideas?..

[RudeDoggy]

I seem to have a similar problem. My friend's laptop would not power up. When pressing the power button, the green light would go on, but no fan would turn on or anything. He took it into a shop and they determined that the CPU was fried. (Now, how accurate this is, I don't know, although my friend said they were an authorized Compaq Service Centre, for what it's worth...) Basically my question is: how likely is it that the CPU is fried, and if that is not the case, what else could it be? It's not a dead battery since he has an almost brand new battery (bought maybe a month or so ago).

[on_the_border]

That's exactly what mine does. No Fan - No Boot Up - just the green light for a second.

I know for a fact that my CPU is working - It usually starts working again after shaking and tapping and turning upside down and inserting the battery and taking it out, etc.. Eventually it starts working again, just like nothing was wrong. Like I said, it might be a few hours or several days before it works again.

The last time it wouldn't boot-up, I had been using it and someone brushed the laptop while I was using it and it went down. I really think there might be something loose causing this. What I don't understand is why Windows XP thinks that it was a normal shutdown. This makes me wonder if it's not some kind of suspend mode that's occuring.

Everytime I use the laptop I hold my breath and try not to move.. Jeez, you'd think a $1600 laptop would work better than this! It's only 2 1/2 years old!

[TKSS]

Did you send in the AC/DC cable converter for plugging into the wall WITH the Presario when you sent it back to compaq? If not, I'd say that the cable is your culprit...they wouldn't have been able to duplicate the problem...and perhaps they didn't even use your cable when you sent it. I'd get a digital multimeter and continuity check your power cable.

[RudeDoggy]

Actually, I managed to open the laptop and I think the CPU is the culprit. Here's a pic of the CPU. Notice the damaged resistor in the upper-left corner of the CPU. http://individual.utoronto.ca/cmike/temp/fried.jpg

So I'm going to get my hands on another CPU and hope that that will fix the problem (and not have any other problems like AC connectors or whatnot).

[jbean]

Nice to see that others are having the exact same problem ... green light comes on but nothing else..I suspect a loose ribbon cable or something inside.. I am about the pull it apart and have a look..

As a side note anybody know what roughly the current market value of these things are so that I know how much I am about to *iss away if I can't get the puzzle back together.

thanks

[TallCool1]

As a side note anybody know what roughly the current market value of these things are so that I know how much I am about to *iss away if I can't get the puzzle back together.

You could always do a search on eBay or uBid.

[dhurrell]

I bought three of these machines for work in a hurry about two years ago and they were fine for a year or so until two of them stopped booting altogether with the same symptoms you're all talking about. I never bothered trying to get the two machines that wouldn't start working again as I replaced them with thinkpads as soon as their garuantees ran out anyway (oh, the luxury of having a company pay your hardware bill!) but it recently dawned on me that the first ten chapters of a book I was writing are on the HDD of one of the machines so I'm going to tear the good one apart and see if I can brik-a-brak one of the broken ones together.

I'm pretty sure it's not the power cable as my office is power cable city and I've tried various cables including the one from the machine that works but no luck.

I'll start with RudeDoggy's suggestion as I too believe this to be the case. I think the CPU was fried due to overheating as the first time I ever experienced this problem was when I stupidly left one of the machines on, plugged into the mains but trapped inside the carry bag (I'm a professional, I know what I'm doing, ok!). It beeped non-stop for a while but by the time I got to it, powered it down and tried to start it up again it was dead.

Will let you know tomorrow if I manage to pin-point the problem but I suspect RudeDoggy's picture says it all.

[on_the_border]

Other than something loose inside, I've also wondered if "over-heating" might be causing the problem. It's interesting that I've always (knock on wood) been able to get it to *eventually* boot up again after shaking/moving it.

I'll be waiting to hear if you have the same problem as RudeDoggy. If so, I'll pull mine apart to see what's going on.

[RudeDoggy]

I bought three of these machines for work in a hurry about two years ago and they were fine for a year or so until two of them stopped booting altogether with the same symptoms you're all talking about. I never bothered trying to get the two machines that wouldn't start working again as I replaced them with thinkpads as soon as their garuantees ran out anyway (oh, the luxury of having a company pay your hardware bill!) but it recently dawned on me that the first ten chapters of a book I was writing are on the HDD of one of the machines so I'm going to tear the good one apart and see if I can brik-a-brak one of the broken ones together.

There may be a potentially easier way to get the data off that hard drive. You could take the hard drive out of the Presario 700 (you don't have to take out the keyboard...it's on the bottom, you will see two door-like flaps closed with a phillips screw. One of them is the modem and the other is the hard drive) and maybe pop it into another computer that's up and running. Sure, whatever OS you had installed on that hard drive from the Presario (XP Home?) might go a bit crazy since it's going to detect all the new hardware, but if you can boot up in safe mode, that may be enough to get the files off the hard drive and maybe upload it to some temporary place (setup an FTP or maybe a webserver if you have one). I'm not sure how the connectors work for notebook hard drives (is it a regular ide cable? what about power? it couldn't possibly be like the Molex connectors in desktops, could it?) so YMMV.

I'll start with RudeDoggy's suggestion as I too believe this to be the case. I think the CPU was fried due to overheating as the first time I ever experienced this problem was when I stupidly left one of the machines on, plugged into the mains but trapped inside the carry bag (I'm a professional, I know what I'm doing, ok!). It beeped non-stop for a while but by the time I got to it, powered it down and tried to start it up again it was dead.

Will let you know tomorrow if I manage to pin-point the problem but I suspect RudeDoggy's picture says it all.

I would not be surprised if another user's CPU got fried. These Athlons run hot, even if they are the mobile version. And there seems to only be a heatpipe that does not really seem sufficient. To see pictures of the laptop, check out this site: http://individual.utoronto.ca/cmike/compaq

[phedge]

After many frustrating re-formats I have finally fixed the problem wih my Presario 705 CA's freezing.

As far as I can tell, the 'freezing problem' is the result of one of XP's critical updates. i.e. if you do not update, the computer will not freeze. I was advised by the support line NOT TO install a specific update. Trouble was, it was rolled into one of the "packages" so I really didn't have any option short of updating all 47, one at a time (leaving out the offending update as well as the package).

In frustration I reformatted for about the tenth time and installed Windows 2000 Pro. It was a nightmare at first as the 700 series does not support this operating system (goodbye technical support). But using '98 drivers, XP drivers and abandoning the touchpad mouse in favour of a logitech optical . . . my system is running fine for the first time in two years.

The moral of the story as far as I am concerned is that I will never by a Compaq Presario again. Who is responsible for the incompatability issue is up for debate but I can't ever see it being fixed as the series is now obsolete . . . so why would they bother?

Meantime my 2000 powered 705 CA is chugging along quite nicely and will serve my purpose until I can afford and IBM, Toshiba or some other brand.

Hope this helps some of you.

Pete

[Comcrap]

Compaq 700z/701z AMD Athlon 1500+ / 1.3 128mb of built in Memory.

Same problem. Light would turn green but no boot. Not even into bios.

Well, I finally got it working. Here is what I did to get it to work. May or may not work for ya.

First I downloaded the service manual. The one I found was for a Compaq EVO but its more or less the same idea.

You need Adobe Acrobat Reader. The file is 4.21MB

http://us.f1f.yahoofs.com/bc/5e3ce3a4/bc/My+Documents/service+manual+Compaq+Evo+Note.pdf?bfcMoTAB7E89hWOV

Opened up the lappy. Top right, under the keyboard I took the Small battery out checked the voltage. It was ok so I put it back resetting the cmos. My HD was formatted from before so I put the XP home cd in & it went into the bios & then booted from the CD. I installed XP & as soon as it was done I had downloaded the Presario 700 Series and Evo N115 System ROM Update from Compaq & had it ready on a floppy so I installed it. Then I was on my way put Norton & Office 2003. Did all the major security patches then I only installed Media Player 9 & directX. Thats it. Try not to install everything on Microsoft website that you don't really need. Last time I did this the Presario failed when I installed the Presario 700 Series and Evo N115 Battery Controller/KBC Firmware Update . Do not install this.

Hope this helps.

I am definitely staying away from Compaq proprietary systems.

[jbean]

Good Idea about e-bay,I'll check it out.

[RudeDoggy]

My fears have been realized. The CPU was not the only problem in the laptop not POSTing. Yes, the previous CPU was damaged, but I got a hold of a replacement and it still will not POST. This is troublesome. I couldn't figure out how to take out the CMOS battery. It seemed to be in pretty snug with some white plastic bracket-type things. Anyone know how to get the battery out? And any other suggestions as to what the problem is? I'm this close to just parting out the system. Thanks.

[vxjester]

My fears have been realized. The CPU was not the only problem in the laptop not POSTing. Yes, the previous CPU was damaged, but I got a hold of a replacement and it still will not POST. This is troublesome. I couldn't figure out how to take out the CMOS battery. It seemed to be in pretty snug with some white plastic bracket-type things. Anyone know how to get the battery out? And any other suggestions as to what the problem is? I'm this close to just parting out the system. Thanks.

well you could try this link to see if it helps you any http://www.uktsupport.co.uk/compaq/mb/compmb.htm

[jbean]

Actually What I have just found with mine is ... turn it over... and drop from about 2-3 inches.. wallah.. works just fine.. so obviously just something loose.

[aaalaptop]

Just for interest sake:

The Presario 700 has several harware issues that some posters have touched on already. The machine has some harware incompatabilities with later updates of WinXP. Although these do not generally result in zero response they can lead to loss of data, unexpected shutdows and BSDs. Best advice is to run with an original installation where possible.

More serious is the fact that the CPU zif socket on many models is less than ideal. The CPU generates a great deal of heat and the cooling system is frankly inadequate. The result is that the seating system becomes "warped" and the CPU can easily loose full contact with the socket. Revision A00 to A04 boards were particulally vulnerable to this. On many systems, allowing the machine to cool will fix this (for a while) but this is a recurring problem. Shaking or knocking the machine after it has cooled will often reseat the CPU.

Because there is no audio code (the daft beeps) on startup to indicate a CPU seating problem (just the power light) most users simply have no idea this is the problem. Sending the machine for service is generally a waste of time as it takes a few hours for the problem to become apparant and the testing doesn`t last that long as a rule :(

Inserting a heat pad between the CPU and heatsink can add a little extra compression and provide a cure (sort of) for the problem but this also increases the chance of damage to the CPU - chips are delicate. Good quality thermal paste is essential (as with all Athlons) to dissipate the heat more efficiently. For those with a real wish to risk the future of thier machine you can try the fix below:
Cut a piece of cardboard the size of the CPU and twice as thick: Have some super glue or ready mixed epoxy resin to hand: Dissasemble the machine as much as possible while still allowing it to be functional: Start the machine up to make sure it is currently working fine: Shut down: Remove the CPU and carefully lift the edges of the zif socket and then apply a little super glue or epoxy resin JUST to the very edges: Place the cardboard over the zif socket and fix the heatsink in place (in order to compress the socket) and allow to set thoroughly: Replace the CPU and reboot: If all has gone well the zif socket will now be firmly fixed to the board and will not lift as the machine gets hot.

This fix has worked several times with these machines BUT it has also resulted in one or two "broken for spares" sales so be warned. Some customers have confirmed that a laptop cooler has made the machine more reliable.

Best advice: When the machine is running well - sell it on and buy a good laptop. A cruel but effective cure for your frustrations.

I hope this has been of some help.

[on_the_border]

Thanks aaalaptop! That makes perfect sense with what I've experienced with my 701.

I've always been able to get it to start working again by tapping on it and turning it upside down after it's been shutdown for a while.

I suspected that it might have something to do with it overheating.

Mystery solved!

[RudeDoggy]

Inserting a heat pad between the CPU and heatsink can add a little extra compression and provide a cure (sort of) for the problem but this also increases the chance of damage to the CPU - chips are delicate. Good quality thermal paste is essential (as with all Athlons) to dissipate the heat more efficiently. For those with a real wish to risk the future of thier machine you can try the fix below:
Cut a piece of cardboard the size of the CPU and twice as thick: Have some super glue or ready mixed epoxy resin to hand: Dissasemble the machine as much as possible while still allowing it to be functional: Start the machine up to make sure it is currently working fine: Shut down: Remove the CPU and carefully lift the edges of the zif socket and then apply a little super glue or epoxy resin JUST to the very edges: Place the cardboard over the zif socket and fix the heatsink in place (in order to compress the socket) and allow to set thoroughly: Replace the CPU and reboot: If all has gone well the zif socket will now be firmly fixed to the board and will not lift as the machine gets hot.

This doesn't sound like a very good idea to me. I would not want to run any Athlon-based CPU (or any CPU > Pentium 1) without a minimum of a heatsink at any time. Your instructions imply to boot the system the heat pipe/heatsink off the CPU.

As well, I may not be understanding your instructions but your instructions to cut out a piece of cardboard and place it on top of the CPU also seems like a sketchy idea. There would be no contact between the core of the CPU and the heatsink. Unless you meant to say to cut out the middle of the cardboard so that the core would be exposed, but even then, would there be solid contact between the core and the heatsink? This sounds almost like a poor man's shim except that its purpose is a bit different. (Instead of having the core level with the rest of the CPU and risk breaking the chip because of a high compression heatsink/fan, this appears to make it so that the cardboard makes the CPU fatter, such that the core is recessed.)

Almost sounds like an April Fools joke. I can't see how super gluing cardboard on top of the ZIF socket allows you to even seat the CPU in the socket.