Home
Today I explain how to repair a damaged power connector also known as power jack in Toshiba Satellite L305 and L355 laptops. I started covering this problem in one of the previous posts.
Also this power jack modification should work for the following models: Toshiba Satellite L300, L305D, L355D, P305, P305D, Toshiba Satellite Pro L300, L350 and probably some other Toshiba laptops.
PROBLEM DESCRIPTION. The power jack gets pushed into the laptop base so it feels loose.
I will replace the original plastic jack with a generic metal jack purchased at RadioShack for about $3.
The RadioShack part number is 274-1576. This jack is designed for tip size 5.5mm O.D.x2.5mm I.D. You can order this jack online or pick it up in a local store.
Proceed on your own risk! If you do something wrong, you can damage the laptop.
In order to access and repair the power jack it’s necessary to disassemble the laptop and remove the top cover assembly (palm rest). Here’s an example of removing the top cover assembly from a Toshiba Satellite L355D, you’ll have to follow steps 1-14.
Disassembly steps for all above mentioned models will be very similar.
OK, let’s say the top cover is removed and we are inside the laptop. By the way, I’m fixing a Satellite L305D laptop.
Why the power jack feels loose? You see the answer on the picture below.
In my case both, the power jack and mounting brackets on the base assembly got broken. Even if you replace the broken jack with a new one, it will not stay attached to the base. If you send a laptop with a damage like that to a repair shop, they will recommend replacing the power jack harness and laptop base. This repair will easily cost over $200 but I have a better idea how to fix it for $3 without replacing the base assembly.
Here’s my new replacement panel-mount jack which should last for a long time unlike the original Toshiba jack.
All laptops mentioned above come with one of the following AC adapter: 19v-3.42A, 19V-3.95A, 19V-4.74A or 19V-6.3A.
All these power adapter will fit perfectly into the jack from RadioShack.
LET’S START THE REPAIR.
STEP 1.
Using a pocket knife remove plastic supports from the internal side of the base assembly, so the side where the new jack will be mounted is flat.
On the picture below you see plastic supports removed.
STEP 2.
Again, using the pocket knife remove the plastic wall surrounding the mounting hole. Make the hole larger, so then new jack fits in.
STEP 3.
The new jack is too long and if you install it as is the laptop cover will not sit properly on the base. It happens because one of the speakers (in Satellite L305D) is located very close to the power jack.
It will work if you make the jack shorter. You can cut off part of the long “-” lead or simply bent it as I did. After it’s done coat both leads with generous amount of solder.
STEP 4.
Now remove the damaged power jack from the laptop and cut off wires somewhere close to the jack base.
Remove isolation, twist wires and coat them with solder.
The red “+” wire will connect to the lead in the center of the new jack.
The black “-” wire will connect to the lead on the side – the one you made shorter.
In some laptops Toshiba uses green wires instead or red wires. They also should be soldered to the “+” lead in the center of your new jack.
WARNING! Check the polarity before you apply power to the laptop.
STEP 5.
Now mount the new power jack on the base.
STEP 6.
Solder wires to the new jack. Again, the red wire is soldered to the lead in the center and the black on to the lead on the side.
As you see, I soldered wires at a 90 degree angle to the jack so the top cover (and the right speaker) fits in.
I covered both leads with electrical tape.
The new (modified) power harness has been installed into the laptop base. Now you can tighten the nut on the power jack and secure it on the base.
STEP 7.
You’ll have to modify the top cover assembly a little bit so it fits on the laptop.
Remove plastic reinforcement walls so they do not touch the power jack when the cover is installed. If you leave these walls, there will be a gap between the cover and base.
The plastic walls have been removed.
STEP 8.
Assemble the laptop. You are done!
I think the new power jack is way more robust then the original one and should last for a long time.
And it looks great too.
Here’s an example of damaged power jack in a Satellite L355D laptop. This base is bigger than in Satellite L305 and you’ll have plenty of space for your modification.
Here’s another example of damaged base assembly in a Satellite P305D laptop. Again, there is plenty of space for the jack modification.
By the way, if your laptop is still under warranty, Toshiba might fix this problem at no charge. Call them first or take the laptop to the authorized repair center.
If this modification works for you, please mention the laptop model in the comments. You are welcome to post any suggestions and improvements.
If this fix works for any other Toshiba laptop, please mention the model number in the comments below.
If you find this article useful, please consider making a donation to the author. Thank you!
December 22nd, 2009 at 5:41 pm
Thank you SO MUCH for this clear, detailed set of instructions….my laptop is better than new. I found your site and printed out the instructions, bought the metal jack at Radio Shack for 2.99, and a couple of guys at my husband’s work did the fix in under 30 minutes! I’m so happy!!!
December 20th, 2009 at 4:04 pm
I used the procedure on a Satellite Pro L300. All went well, however, removing the top cover is slghtly different. There are 5 additional screws to remove at this stage and only two of the cables need to be disconnected. I liked the use of the guitar pick! Brilliant!
Fixed the DC jack with no problem. Then I converted the notebook to bluetooth by soldering a small BT dongle to a USB port so that the dongle is now located inside the machine. Cheap and easy to do but you lose one USB port.
Thanks for a superb guide which gave me the confidence to tackle a job for which I was quoted £100! Cost me less than £10 including the dongle – and a couple hours sat in the kitchen instead of going down the pub!
Cheers and Merry Christmas!
December 16th, 2009 at 7:13 pm
Worked great on my L305D. Thanks!
December 13th, 2009 at 5:05 pm
thanks very much, keep up the great work. Very detailed and informative.
December 13th, 2009 at 8:23 am
My girlfriend had a similar problem with her L305D the adapter was really loose so when she plugged in her adapter it wasn’t making a good connection. So I removed the top cover and carefully superglued the plastic adapter to the side of the laptop. The ac input is now nice and solid and the adapter plugs in nicely with no play, but unfortunately there is no longer any power at all getting to the laptop so it wont turn on. There appears to be no damage to the motherboard. I was just wondering if anybody else experienced this issue and if they did how they resolved it.
Thanks
December 8th, 2009 at 5:18 pm
Like many others, I’ll add my thanks. Everything worked fine. I hope others note that they can make a PayPal donation – after all, you saved many of us a considerable sum and I’m sure it takes more time that most realize to lay out a set of clear instructions with photos and all.
My main fear was in separating the bottom from the top and also when I removed the keyboard cable and there was no end on it – it wasn’t clear to me that there is no “plug” on this ribbon cable (and a couple of others later on). Also, the directions called for following steps 1-14 but I don’t think #14 was necessary. I also missed the links to page 1,2,3 of the disassembly for quite a while – they look pretty obvious now.
Thanks again.
December 5th, 2009 at 2:38 pm
Thanks for the excellent tip! I’ve got this working on my girlfriend’s computer with no difficulties, and after installing Win7 as well, it’s got a completely new lease on life. The model is L305-S5902. On this model, you don’t need to widen the hole that you put the jack through. If you buy the part suggested by the author (which is hard to find in a RadioShack store), it’s threaded, and it’s enough to tighten it through the plastic with pliers.
December 4th, 2009 at 2:26 am
Well, I feel sheepish. After reassembling it twice, I still didn’t have the RAM seated properly. When I started to go for the third time, I noticed it as soon as I removed the cover. So, other readers, if you get the same symptoms I did, try re-seating your RAM. Once again, thank you for creating this web site and taking the time to help out many people you will never even meet.
December 3rd, 2009 at 8:07 am
Great walk-through, I loved the detailed pics. I followed the instructions on my L355, and got it back together with no parts left over. However, now it will not boot. I can plug it in, and I get the indicator light below the touchpad showing that it is charging, but the screen never comes on. I can hear the fan, the hard drive spin-up, and the DVD accessing, but absolutely nothing on the screen. After about 8 or 9 seconds, the computer shuts itself off for about 3 seconds, then tries to boot again with the same result. I get the same problem with the unit unplugged if I hit the soft power button above the keyboard. Closing the unit stops the cycle.
I took it back apart to look for anything obvious, but I can’t see what I did wrong. I imagine it is something that I left unclipped, but nothing sticks out at me. Any advice you could offer based on these symptoms? Is there more info I could provide?
Once again, thanks for a great walkthrough. I’m sure whatever I did wrong was something pretty simple, as it is hard to go wrong with instructions that are this detailed.
December 2nd, 2009 at 12:29 am
Wow what a great guide and I can report I now have a working P300. I am in the UK and so I got part JK10L from Maplin (£1.59) and bought a soldering iron and solder. Guide for taking the laptop was nice and detailed and despite it being a complex laptop a bit of patience and it was in bits!
The maplin connector has 3 connectors so a multi meter helps to determine which is positive and which is negative. I used a drill to enlarge the power adapter hole and the new power adapter screwed in without any issues at all.
Thanks for the great guide!
November 27th, 2009 at 10:18 pm
mb,
You can fry the motherboard.
November 27th, 2009 at 6:17 am
if i filp the wires and plug in the cord will that fry my computer or the adapter?
November 25th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
thank you for the info
November 25th, 2009 at 10:32 pm
Javier,
I think it should work. Your Satellite L505D uses same type of AC adapter (19v-3.95A), so you can use same type of power jack from RadioShack.
Satellite L505/L505D has enough space to mount the power jack. Here are disassembly instructions for Satellite L500/L500D/L505/L505D laptops.
November 25th, 2009 at 9:39 pm
will this work on a Toshiba L505D-S5965?
November 24th, 2009 at 8:01 pm
Whoops, forgot to mention – our computers are L355D’s.
November 24th, 2009 at 8:00 pm
Thank you for posting this! I just performed the fix on my wife’s laptop, and it worked like a charm. If (or maybe when) my own Toshiba’s power jack bites it, I have the parts on hand and waiting. Thanks again – saved us a bunch of money.
November 18th, 2009 at 3:12 pm
Cory,
Yes, it should work, it’s similar to L355 or L355D.
Are you sure? It’s still available on their site.
November 18th, 2009 at 12:04 pm
Is there an alternative place to get this part, Radio Shack says they no longer carry it?
November 18th, 2009 at 11:03 am
Does this work on the L350D???
November 17th, 2009 at 9:38 am
London_Boy,
I’m happy to help. That’s why I keep this site up and running.
LOL. You can buy a brand new laptop for $370.
November 17th, 2009 at 6:03 am
Hello Laptop Tech,
I must admit, you are a life saver (in money terms). lol!. I phoned up Toshiba to ask them how much it would be and withouth any second thoughts they said it’ll be £220.50 ($370.26), only to change the jack!!…Couldnt believe it mate. Anyways, i googled and found your website and followed the instruction one by one and made it happen. The jack is BETTER than new, (Yes, it is. If any Toshiba employee is reading this, your company is a scam). In total, it cost me £22.93. (tools, radioshack, electric tape, solder and soldering iron).
Glad you posted this. Thank you once again.
November 12th, 2009 at 9:12 am
Willie,
LOL
I made exactly the same mistake while creating this guide.
I forgot to add the nut before soldering the wires. After that you cannot put it on because of the ferrite core on the harness.
1. Add the nut.
2. Solder the wires.
November 12th, 2009 at 9:04 am
Great information, I found the RadioShack (274-1576) part on ebay U.K. for only £3.00 (including postage)
Only took about 45 minutes to do, but I made one silly error, I forgot about the nut ;-(
NOTE TO ALL: REMEMBER TO ADD NUT BEFORE SOLDERING
Laptop working/charging great and the conntector is solid, it will last for years.
Thank you
November 7th, 2009 at 12:07 pm
Bob,
Maybe bad soldering job? Try resoldering the wires.
November 6th, 2009 at 8:04 am
Okay i did this mod, step by step. and the laptop now works great, but the second i put electrical tape on the wires, its starts buring the tape up. any ideas?
October 30th, 2009 at 10:36 am
Mb,
I cannot tell what is wrong without looking at the laptop. Maybe the soldering is bad?
October 30th, 2009 at 9:30 am
i did everything the instructions were great but when i pluged it in after i finished it the computer wasnt chrging or getting any power at all the ac adapter was working i tested it on a nother computer; i deas on what could be wrong
if u have and idea on what to replace please give me the name and where to buy it.
thnz so much
October 28th, 2009 at 11:48 am
This was so helpful, I was able to do the fix in less than an hour. Did not even take time to price the two toshiba parts. Thanks…
October 26th, 2009 at 5:52 pm
THANK YOU! I thought my laptop was done, and now it is better than new. Thank you for posting this information.