789 - Powerports and Lenovo

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Oct 4, 2015, 3:47 pm

jnswinnipeg

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Join Date: Dec 2005

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789 - Powerports and Lenovo

Does anyone know if the power ports on the 789s are Lenovo friendly? Any other aircraft in the AC fleet does not seem to provide the voltage (???) that my Lenovo notebook needs.

Oct 4, 2015, 4:17 pm

alc

Join Date: Dec 2008

Posts: 4,519

I have the same issue with my Dell laptop initially, then I found Dell made a less powerful charger that will work with the AC power outlet. It does take more time to charge, but to me, it is more important for me to stay power on than to be able to charge it.

Last edited by alc; Oct 4, 2015 at 4:31 pm Reason: typo

Oct 4, 2015, 4:20 pm

zoobtoob

Join Date: Nov 2009

Location: YVR

Programs: Non-status bottomfeeder

Posts: 827

You're not looking at a voltage issue. Most laptop adapters can accept nearly anything and power a computer with it. 100-250 VAC at 50 or 60 HZ.

The issue is that, in general (anecdotally), any charger rated at 75w or greater trips the overload protection. Have you tried plugging in the adapter then plugging it in to your computer? Sometimes that procedure lowers the inrush current and it will work. If not, you will need a smaller power supply.

Oct 4, 2015, 5:00 pm

BlondeBomber

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I have also found that with some notebooks, I can charge them but not use them at the same time. When I need them I unplug from outlet and use whatever juice is there in the battery. When it gets too low, I stop working and plug in again. Rarely has this been a problem even on 10 hour flights (my battery is good for 6-7 hours of working) unless I wanted to watch movies on my notebook. Usually I can find something to do while it is charging (sleep, eat, IFE).

This has been a problem for me for as long as they have had power outlets.

Oct 4, 2015, 5:02 pm

KenHamer

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Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (BlackBerry; U; BlackBerry 9780; en-US) AppleWebKit/534.8+ (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/6.0.0.666 Mobile Safari/534.8+)

What he said...

-turn laptop on
-reduce screen brightness to minimum
-turn laptop off
-with laptop disconnected plug adapter in
-wait 5 seconds
-connect adapter to laptop
-wait 5 seconds
-turn laptop on
-keep brightness low

If you have the time on a long trip leave laptop off but powered to charge. If battery is fully charged adapter will draw less. Alternatively you could run on batteries for a while.

Last edited by KenHamer; Oct 4, 2015 at 5:43 pm

Oct 4, 2015, 5:12 pm

The Lev

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I've never had a problem with my Lenovo on any AC aircraft. What model do you have?

Oct 4, 2015, 5:20 pm

Sopwith

Join Date: Feb 2007

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Wandering a bit OT here, but I have a Lenovo that our IT geeks insist we use because it makes their lives easier

. Absolute piece of crap! Whenever I get to a new wifi connection I have to fight with it for an hour to get it to connect and then fight more to get it to stay connected. Also happens with some, but not all previous wifi connections

. Geeks have replaced the laptop twice, with the same result. Has anyone else had/solved this problem?

Oct 4, 2015, 5:30 pm

pitz

Join Date: Apr 2002

Location: YXE

Posts: 3,050

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sopwith

Wandering a bit OT here, but I have a Lenovo that our IT geeks insist we use because it makes their lives easier

. Geeks have replaced the laptop twice, with the same result. Has anyone else had/solved this problem?

Don't know if this is the appropriate forum for this, but posting the model number of your laptop, as well as any other pertinent details (ie: what WiFi card it uses) might be helpful.

Different WiFi cards are available from various sources which might help with your problem, but it can be a challenge to get them to work on Lenovo laptops due to their 'whitelisting'.

Oct 4, 2015, 5:42 pm

Chowtime

Join Date: Jul 2012

Programs: AC SE MM

Posts: 300

I can't comment on the Lenovo but I can confirm that the power ports on the 788 power my 15" MacBook Pro Retina with no problems for a whole flight.

Oct 4, 2015, 5:48 pm

#10

KenHamer

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Join Date: May 1998

Location: Vancouver, Canada

Posts: 6,222

Quote:

Originally Posted by Sopwith

Wandering a bit OT here, but I have a Lenovo that our IT geeks insist we use because it makes their lives easier

. Geeks have replaced the laptop twice, with the same result. Has anyone else had/solved this problem?

Ha ha ha ha ha... You must work for the same outfit as me.

Yes I have had exact same problem on several Lenovos.

No I have not solved the problem.

Oct 4, 2015, 6:08 pm

#11

canadiancow

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Quote:

Originally Posted by KenHamer

This is probably the best advice you can get.

Keep the power usage as low as possible. The easiest way to do that is to ensure the battery is charged.

Oct 4, 2015, 6:18 pm

#12

zorn

Join Date: Sep 2005

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Quote:

Originally Posted by canadiancow

This is probably the best advice you can get.

Keep the power usage as low as possible. The easiest way to do that is to ensure the battery is charged.

Technically it's easier to leave the laptop off in its bag and just drink wine the whole flight.