Originally Posted by
WWGuy
This has worked for me on DL aircraft. I think it probably also helps to do whatever you can to minimize power consumption during laptop operation. I.e. use the "battery" hardware power setting, reduce display brightness, avoid spinning CD/DVD and USB drives, and ideally run your OS from SSD if possible.
May be a difference in aircraft (I haven't flown Delta since 1988 and the former NW since 2000), or in the power supply. Do you mind saying what machine (or at least brand) and roughly what power supply you saw that with?
The Dell 130W supplies I tried have tripped the breaker on CX (77W) and AA (77W and 738) as soon as they were plugged in, whether or not the laptop itself was attached, and if attached, on or off. The machine model in question is the Precision M3800 and the power supply was except for the 738 the XPS-style mini-plug one (says DA130PM130) on the back; on the 738 it was an older PA4E that I tried because of the problems with the XPS-style adapter... didn't work either.
The older 90W Latitude PA-10 supply and the 90W Lenovo supplies have always worked for me on AC style plugs, and ditto the 90W DC auto/air adapters from both Lenovo (actually Targus, I think) and Dell on older AA aircraft.