How to choose a laptop power adapter?

A laptop charger is one of the devices with often have the hardest time. Tripping over a cable, stepping on a plug and accidental kicks are part of the everyday life of power adapters and, as a result, their life ends much faster than that of a laptop. When it finally does, there’s the problem of finding a new charger. Today we will tell you what to pay particular attention to when choosing a laptop charger. In this article you will learn:

• How to check the power adapter’s model
• How to read parameters from the rating plate
• How to choose a laptop charger

How to choose a charger?

Let’s start with the simplest method of choosing a charger, which is to check its model directly on the original battery’s rating sticker.

Charger model

Most chargers have a specific model designation to identify them. Logically, this would mean that you only need the model to find a suitable charger, but there are certain complications. The model in question applies only the electrical parameters, not the type of plug. Let’s take a look at the example of Asus laptop chargers.

The PA-1650-78 power adapter model for Asus laptops has the following electrical parameters:

Voltage: 19 V

Amperage: 3.42 A

Power: 65 W.

You can be confident in these values, and each charger in that model should have these exact parameters. However, depending on the variant, they may differ in the type of plug. We currently offer two PA-1650-78 model chargers. One featuring a 4.5mm-3.0mm plug with a pin, and the other 5.5mm-2.5mm without a pin. The difference is visible to the naked eye.

Examples of laptop adapter designations:

Model designation on the Asus adapter:

Model designation on the Dell AC adapter:

Model designation on the Lenovo AC adapter:

Model designation on the Toshiba adapter:

As mentioned previously, the model itself may not be enough, so once you’ve identified it, you need to move on to measuring the plug.

Plug dimensions and type

So let’s talk a bit about plugs. Years of competition on the laptop market have led to quite the chaos. While we have around 10 standards in common use today, if we include old-fashioned laptops and rare types of plugs, the number gets much larger. Our offer currently features over 120 models of laptop chargers which have 21 different plug types. Most plugs are round in shape, but there are exceptions, such as the USB shape for Lenovo or the octagonal Dell plug. This is a table of the most popular plugins along with the assigned laptop brands that use them. The first number is the diameter of the outer circumference and the second is the inner circumference.

As you can see, it is not that simple, Asus chargers, depending on the series they support, can have up to 5 different plug types. However, if you’re an owner of Apple computers, the matter is much simpler. MacBook chargers so far have only had 3 types of adapter plugs and each one was quite distinct from the prior one. Chronologically these were – Magsafe 1, Magsafe 2 and USB-C.

Choosing a charger according to the parameters

If you don’t have information about the power adapter model, you can also choose a new charger using the laptop’s parameters, which are stated on its internal rating sticker, found, for example, under the battery. The same values can be found on the power adapter itself.

INPUT – input parameters

These data indicate which socket type the charger is designed for. This does not concern the plug type, but the voltage standard in a given country (you can read about the types of plugs around the world here).A voltage of 230 V applies in Poland, as well as in almost all of Europe. in some African countries and the Middle East, and the lowest – 100V actually only in Japan. However, this doe no matter In the context of choosing laptop chargers. The operating range of all Green Cell chargers is 100-240 V, which means they can work with any global standard. 

OUTPUT – output parameters

The OUTPUT values tell you what current the power supply sends to the laptop, informing you whether the charger is suitable. The data comprise two values:

• voltage in volts (V)
  
• amperage in amperes (A)

These values, when multiplied by one another give the power, which is expressed in watts (W). For the model in the picture above, the calculated power is 90W.

Finding a power adapter in the store

When you have all the necessary data, you can go to find the power adapter in our store. Let’s go back, then, to the example PA-1650-78 model. There are three ways to quickly find the correct product:

1. Type in “PA-1650-78” into the search box at the top of our page. Remember that the charger in question comes in two variants – with a 5.5-2.5 mm and 4.5-3.0 mm plug, therefore you need choose the right one. Suppose you have the first version – then the charger you’re looking for is this model.
2. Enter the OUTPUT parameters – “19 V 3.42 A” – in the search engine. As before, you need to pay attention to the given width of the plug – for example, identical parameters are found in Acer laptop power adapters (their plug has a diameter of 5.5-1.7 mm). In addition, also note whether or not you have chosen the car version of the charger.
3. You can also use filters on our website. Just select the “Chargers” category on the main page. There are filters on the left side, which allow you to mark the appropriate parameters of our power adapter – voltage 19 V, amperage 3.42 A and a “round 5.5-2.5 mm” plug. After selecting these filters, there will be one suitable power supply in the recommendations.
   
   

NOTE!

You can also buy a more powerful power adapter – it may have a higher A value, which is no problem for the laptop. The device will automatically select the optimal charging power. For example – you can buy the 90 W version of this power adapter.

Green Cell PRO power adapters

As we have mentioned at the beginning of this guide, chargers are the most vulnerable part of a laptop. Therefore, it is worth betting on equipment that will last for years, even with very intensive use. These needs are answered in the Green Cell PRO power adapters. They guarantee over 3 years of trouble-free operation. Such a long operating time is ensured by the highest quality transistors, which enable a higher operating temperature. These power supplies also have an additional mains filter and a larger heat sink, thanks to which the charger is properly protected and is less prone to heating. The quality of Green Cell PRO power adapters is guaranteed by a 36-month warranty. 

We hope that this guide will help you choose the right power adapter that will provide fresh energy for your laptop for a long time. If you still have doubts, we strongly encourage you to contact our Customer Service Office. Our consultants will happily answer all your questions and quickly solve any problems.