The power jack is the socket your charger plugs into. It takes a lot of strain every day, and a trip over the cable or years of wear can loosen it or crack its solder joints on the motherboard. The good news is that a faulty power jack rarely means you need a new laptop – it can usually be replaced on its own.
Common faults
- The laptop only charges when the plug is held in a certain position
- The charging light flickers on and off, or the laptop keeps switching between mains and battery
- The plug feels loose, wobbles or won’t stay in
- The centre pin is bent or broken, or the socket has snapped inside the case
- A burning smell or scorch marks around the socket
- A USB-C charging port that no longer charges reliably
Not every charging fault is the jack. A failed charger, a worn battery or a fault in the charging circuit can look very similar, which is why we test before replacing anything.
What we do
We start with a laptop assessment for £45 + VAT, where we check the charger, battery, jack and charging circuit to find the real cause. You then get a fixed quote before any work goes ahead.
Many power jacks are mounted on a small cable or sub-board and can be swapped directly. Others are soldered to the motherboard, and we replace these at component level, cleaning and repairing any damaged pads or tracks. If the surge has damaged other parts of the board, we can repair the motherboard at component level rather than replacing it. Repairs carry a 90-day parts and labour warranty.
Models and brands
We repair power jacks and charging ports on laptops from all the main brands, including Dell, HP, Lenovo, Acer, Asus, Dynabook (Toshiba), MSI and Razer, as well as gaming laptops with high-power barrel connectors. For MacBooks, see our MacBook charging port repair page. For other faults, start with our laptop repair in London page.
FAQs
Can I keep using the laptop if the jack is loose?
It is best not to. A loose connection can arc and overheat, which can damage the motherboard and turn a simple repair into a bigger one.
Do I need a new charger?
Sometimes the charger is the real problem. We test it during the assessment so you only pay for what is actually needed.
Will my files be affected?
A power jack repair doesn’t involve your storage drive, so your files should be untouched. As always, back up anything important if you can.
Related: laptop battery and charging repair, laptop motherboard repair and all our laptop repairs.