Replacement Laptop PSU

Cysero · November 20, 2023

My Sony VAIO VPCEH1L8E has gradually stopped charging over the past 18 months. At first it would charge intermittently then it would only charge using certain sockets and in the past 6 months it has stopped charging almost entirely. It occasionally charges to no more than 9% then stops. I am looking at replacing the PSU first then the battery. The PSU cable is worn in sections from being caught in covers for recessed floor sockets so needs replacing anyway.

Should I purchase a replacement Sony VGP-AC19V33 from eBay or should I purchase a universal laptop charger? Bearing in mind around 5 years ago I upgraded the Core i3-2310m (35W TDP) to a Core i7-2720QM (45W TDP) which was never an option on this model. The CPU appears to boosts very close to its advertised maximum frequency of 3.3GHz when under load so it must be drawing more power than the system was designed for. Just wondering whether the laptop would benefit from a more modern and powerful charging solution.

As an aside I would also appreciate any thoughts on purchasing a replacement laptop battery in the UK. There are a lot of online retailers that sell the correct battery but not sure what quality and lifespan I should expect from a third party battery.

Average Nerd · November 22, 2023

On 11/20/2023 at 11:33 PM, Cysero said:

My Sony VAIO VPCEH1L8E has gradually stopped charging over the past 18 months. At first it would charge intermittently then it would only charge using certain sockets and in the past 6 months it has stopped charging almost entirely. It occasionally charges to no more than 9% then stops. I am looking at replacing the PSU first then the battery. The PSU cable is worn in sections from being caught in covers for recessed floor sockets so needs replacing anyway.

Should I purchase a replacement Sony VGP-AC19V33 from eBay or should I purchase a universal laptop charger? Bearing in mind around 5 years ago I upgraded the Core i3-2310m (35W TDP) to a Core i7-2720QM (45W TDP) which was never an option on this model. The CPU appears to boosts very close to its advertised maximum frequency of 3.3GHz when under load so it must be drawing more power than the system was designed for. Just wondering whether the laptop would benefit from a more modern and powerful charging solution.

As an aside I would also appreciate any thoughts on purchasing a replacement laptop battery in the UK. There are a lot of online retailers that sell the correct battery but not sure what quality and lifespan I should expect from a third party battery.

A universal charger should do fine and will probably be safer, as long as it has the correct connector and voltage as well as enough power for your laptop. (I´d say something between 65W and 90W will be enough)