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My Dell XPS M1330 Zapped Me

July 4th, 2009 - Saturday

I just got hit by an electrical shock when my left index finger touched the brushed aluminium panel encasing the touchpad of my laptop. The discharge was strong enough to give me a jolt me and temporarily numbed the tip of the finger. A search on Google revealed that this problem occurs in Dell XPS series, MacBook Pro and other makes of laptops with similar metal panels. I am currently using the Dell XPS M1330. Hopefully, this is just a static discharge instead of an electrical leakage of the system. My laptop is already connected to the power socket via a three-pin plug.

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This entry was posted on Saturday, July 4th, 2009 at 13:04 and is filed under General. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

7 Responses to “My Dell XPS M1330 Zapped Me”

  1. DC Says:
    July 4th, 2009 at 13:57

    Wow, sound dangerous!

    Peter:
    Not really… :)

  2. Bryan Says:
    July 4th, 2009 at 14:38

    Be careful, even a static discharge may damage the component of the motherboard, which will in turn, damage your pocket.

    Peter:
    It did not happen after that. I will wait and see.

  3. Jason Says:
    July 4th, 2009 at 16:37

    That’s not a pleasant shock.

    Glue some tapes over the metal plate?

    Peter:
    It is going to be messy. I will wait and see if it will occur again.

  4. IonBuck Says:
    July 4th, 2009 at 22:06

    I’ve got zapped by a Fujitsu laptop a few times. An Aiwa VCR also did the same to me. I don’t suppose they make electronic devices like they used to. :(

    Peter:
    But they make it cheaper with more functions. :)

  5. dragoncity Says:
    July 5th, 2009 at 09:52

    huh.. this is dangerous if it is really electric leakage.. Better call DELL to check it out. It is FOC ma.

    Peter:
    If it happens again I will surely call. Thanks.

  6. ex penang boy Says:
    July 5th, 2009 at 20:54

    If its a thin decorative aluminium panel then its probably stuck on the plastic case with adhesive.Its probably static then.The action of rubbing your fingers on the scratchpad can cause static buildup.Most laptops nowadays run on lithiums and the adapter is rated at about 20volts or thereabouts.That voltage shouldn’t be an issue.A multimeter set to ac would detect any leakthru mains onto the output which can happen if the system is not earthed or the neutral and live wires at the plug are reversed.Or, if there is a fault with the adapter itself where there is a leak thru’ of the mains into the switching circuit.It generally doesn’t affect the system as it doesn’t sense a complete circuit for the leak except for yourself when you touch it!!

    Peter:
    Thanls for the explanation. The aluminium is not decorative. It covers the harddisk and something else, I think. Metal is good for such places especially in laptops as it dissipates heat better. I guess I will just live with it for now or until I get electrocuted.

  7. michael Says:
    July 6th, 2009 at 02:51

    Peter I agree with Dragoncity. Call Dell and get them to sort it out!

    Peter:
    It is a once-off thing I hope. Cannot be replicated at the moment. So I will leave it as it is for now.