Another Ebay farce

[CigarStone]

The power cord on my laptop was failing so I ordered a new one from a guy on Ebay. I searched for "power cord Dell Inspiron 600M" and his listing came up and says the power cord is for a few models including the 600M.

I get the unit and it's output is 4.6 Amps and mine is a 3.4 Amp output. So I contact him and he says to send it back but states that the auction specifies 19.5 V 4.6A output. I tell him I should not have to pay for return shipping because the unit is not as advertised (it won't work on a 600M as the auction says). So I eat the power cord or eat the $10 to return it?

I am done with Ebay!

Edited to add detail.....The first time I emailed the guy he replied saying "go ahead and use it, it is perfectly safe". Then I told him that the IT PC guys I spoke to said "no way, do not use it". That's when he indicated that the auction states 19.5V and 4.6A output which it does, but not in the main body of the auction where it specifically says it will work on a Dell Inspiron 600M.

 

[BlindedByScience]

If the DC output voltage is correct, it may work just fine. While it's capable of putting out more current than your old supply, your laptop won't draw more just because it's available.

Good luck - B.B.S.

 

[Marco-Polo]

x2 on that - a given brand of laptop will generally have the same input voltage on the charger. Wattage (amperage) can vary by model, or model line; the main problem is that modern laptops often draw more power than their older cousins, and so older ac adapters will either work slowly or not at all (which is my problem right now - bought a new laptop and they sent it with a 65W adapter, not the 90W adapter that comes stock.)

 

[CeeMmm]

Yeah, as long as your lappy is rated for 19.6V...Use it.

The current rating on the power cord (4.6A) is the maximum it can put out before it will be damaged .

The current rating on your lappy (3.4A) is how much it will use at it's maximum draw.

Therefore your supply is capable of handling an additional 1.2A @ 19.6V.

This is actually better than using a power supply that is rated exactly the same as your lappy. The internals of the power supply don't have to run at their maximum rated current and the efficiency will be higher.

(I'm an Engineering Electronics Technician who gets to occasionally do some actual Engineering)

 

[Turk10mm]

Ditto on BBS.. Its available amperage shouldn't effect your laptop as long as it isn't below the required current required. Your laptop can't physically take in more than it needs as long as the voltage is correct.

 

[Satchmo]

x3 on the cable. It should run just fine and have room to spare. Back to the eBay taintlicker..... customer satisfaction is out the window when it means spending money. You can slam his feedback, but most of these a$$pipes sell thousands of items a year and are not worried about 1 or 2 poor feedbacks from buyerrs.

May I recommend this for a return package:

www.poopsenders.com

 

[mrrt]

Agreed on safe to use. That is a minimal difference in current draw. When it wouldn't be safe to use is if your laptop required 4.6A and the supply was only 3.4A. Maybe your IT PC guys heard you wrong because they should have known it was ok to use. If they still don't agree I'd love to hear their reasons.

Art

 

[CigarStone]

Thanks guys

I still hate Ebay

 

[{tpc}]

lol...ebay used to be kinda ok, but its gone waaay downhill the last few years. This post kinda reminds of the time when I was a kid and working on my car. I think i was changing the battery or hooking something to it, and my dad says "don't touch both posts of the battery thats xxx amount of amps it can kill you"...so me knowing this isn't true, I grabbed both posts and starting screaming and flailing about....until I couldn't control the laughter anymore.

Dad didn't find it as funny as I. What a smartass i was back then.

 

[Niko]

IDK, Saying, "I hate Ebay" is really broad! There are millions of sellers on ebay, some good, some bad... I have been on ebay since 1999 and have had maybe 2 problems with over 650 feedback. It just kind of makes me say, "huh?" when people talk about ebay like it's one certain company or one guy selling his crappy shit.

Just my 2 pennies...

 

[CigarStone]

IDK, Saying, "I hate Ebay" is really broad! There are millions of sellers on ebay, some good, some bad... I have been on ebay since 1999 and have had maybe 2 problems with over 650 feedback. It just kind of makes me say, "huh?" when people talk about ebay like it's one certain company or one guy selling his crappy shit.

Just my 2 pennies...

The problem with Ebay is that it's very easy to be a shyster and, conversely, it's very hard to get help when shysted. Thus it creates a haven for shysters.

Additionally, Ebay and Paypal are "very" active haters of smoking and go out of their way to inflict their opinion........... they should not be in the business of opinion enforcement.

Just another .02......we all have one :thumbs:

 

[Niko]

IDK, Saying, "I hate Ebay" is really broad! There are millions of sellers on ebay, some good, some bad... I have been on ebay since 1999 and have had maybe 2 problems with over 650 feedback. It just kind of makes me say, "huh?" when people talk about ebay like it's one certain company or one guy selling his crappy shit.

Just my 2 pennies...

Just another .02......we all have one :thumbs:

I know, they're like assholes... :sign: :laugh:

 

[sonuvabum]

I ran across a scam on eBay while purchasing a Dell power cord last year. It was New Jersey based.

The outfit was selling bad power cords (I'm certain of this). Their return policy was so convoluted, it was virtually impossible to comply with. But one of the many features it required was for the package to be "well packaged" and sent USPS with insurance. They would supposedly refund once they received it back.

This part I don't know for sure but suspected, is that they were filing lost package or damaged goods claims against the USPS for their already bad parts. I also suspect they never intended to pay a refund because they would claim it was not packaged properly. The wording was just too demanding.

In the end, I opted to eat the $15 or so I was out, but did notify eBay and also wrote a nice letter to the Postmaster in their home zip code. I doubt if anything ever really came of it, but I took some satisfaction in the fact that I might have caused them a little trouble.

Hope springs eternal.

 

[Seanholio]

Dell provides two power cords for the Inspiron/Latitude series for the past several years.

The PA10, which you received, has a higher output so that it can power a docking station. The smaller one (A PA8 [acronym="If I recall correctly"]IIRC[/acronym]), which you had previously, is intended as a travel brick for use on the laptop only. The docking station brick will not harm the laptop. I use them interchangeably at home.

 

[CigarStone]

Dell provides two power cords for the Inspiron/Latitude series for the past several years.

The PA10, which you received, has a higher output so that it can power a docking station. The smaller one (A PA8 [acronym="If I recall correctly"]IIRC[/acronym]), which you had previously, is intended as a travel brick for use on the laptop only. The docking station brick will not harm the laptop. I use them interchangeably at home.

Thanks

Actually the one I had was a PA-12 and the one I got is an aftermarket jobby.

But I am satisfied that I am okay.

 

[chainer]

Ebay has never failed me, for sales and for buying. Buy/sell safe and smart, that is all you need to do. Remember, feedback and communication is key! If something looks iffy, it probably is.

 

[CigarStone]

Ebay has never failed me, for sales and for buying. Buy/sell safe and smart, that is all you need to do. Remember, feedback and communication is key! If something looks iffy, it probably is.

IMHO feedback is the basis of the farce that exists on Ebay. For example, let's say I sell thousands of things on Ebay every year and I am as crooked as the day is long, you come along as a casual user of Ebay and buy something from me which your not satisfied with. You contact me and I ignore you so you leave me negative feeback and because I am an asshat I leave you negative feedback as well. Who is hurt by this transaction, me with 1000's of feedbacks or you with 20? You now have a rating of 95% and I have a rating of 99.9%.

Because of this flaw, the little guy is reluctant to leave negative feedback and so the big guy continues to roll along ripping people off.

 

[{tpc}]

Actually i think ebay changed their policys regarding leaving feedback? I think as a seller you can't leave negative feedback on buyer or something like that now.