Power soft touch power switch not working - Acer Extensa 4620 Notebook

Most of the modern so- touch control buttons use electronic latching - press to energise the circuit and it should remain energised until a signal from elsewhere in the circuit interrupts the power...

If yours is a soft touch type I think there could be a circuit fault...

Main ON/OFF switch or soft touch power On button on the front panel of the TV?

Suggestion is that you see if the problem is the Power On switch, or the Power Supply.

Before you begin;

Check the power coming to the computer. Make sure the power cord for the power supply, is plugged into a working receptacle.

Point in case.
I have now run into three surge protectors where just One receptacle, in that surge protector was bad.

"Hmmm, surge protector power on light is on.
Monitors, printer, and router are plugged into the surge protector, and they are receiving power. Surge protector must be good."

NOT!

Check THE receptacle that the computer is plugged into. One way is to use a table lamp, or similar device, and plug it into THAT receptacle.

The method to check whether the problem is the Power On switch, or the Power Supply, is to use a jumper on the Soft Power On.

Using the jumper the Power Supply comes on, you have a bad Power On switch.

Using the jumper the Power Supply does Not come on, you have a bad Power Supply.

The eMachines eTower 677ir desktop computer, uses a TriGem Anaheim-3 motherboard,

http://www.elhvb.com/mboards/TriGem/profile/anaheim-3/Ana3_304176.htm

You will be dealing with the 20-pin ATX main power cable connector.

Plugs into the white female 20-pin connector on the motherboard, next to the ram memory slots.

[Shown in the above link photo.

You can enlarge the photo of the motherboard, if you wish for more clarity.
Right-click on the photo of the motherboard.

In the drop down list Left-click on - Save Image As
In the small window that comes up, look down at the heading - File name:

To the right of the heading File name: is a box with
304176-360 in it.
Put your mouse cursor right after the 0 in 304176-360

Left-click twice. Type - TriGem Anaheim-3
Go below, and left-click on Save.

This should go to your My Pictures folder.
I believe 304176-360 TriGem Anaheim-3 will be easier to find than just 304176-360.

Double-click on the file name.
In the window go to the bottom, and left-click on the Zoom In icon. Looks like a magnifying glass with a plus sign in it. ( + ]

This is what a 20-pin ATX main power cable, and it's respective connector looks like,

http://www.playtool.com/pages/psuconnectors/connectors.html#atxmain20

Viewing the photo to the far Right you will see a wire with Green insulation on it.
This is the Soft Power On wire.

ANY Black wire you see is a Ground wire.

A jumper wire is used to jump across from the Soft Power On wire, to ANY Ground wire.

The connection is a BRIEF one.
It is a Momentary Contact.

(The Power On switch is a Momentary Contact Switch)

You touch the jumper wire for no more than 2 seconds.

Viewing the photo to the far right, you are viewing the back of the connector.
The back of the connector is where the wires go in.

This is where the jumper wire goes.

One end of the jumper wire, will go down into the socket hole that has the Green wire, and the other end will go down into a socket hole with a Black wire.
(ANY Black wire. They are all Ground wires)

I use a jumper wire made from a wire, such as is used on the Power Supply power cable wires.
Same gauge (Size), and has insulation on it.

The jumper wire is approximately 3 inches long, and is bent into a U shape.
Each end of the wire has approximately 1/2 inch of insulation removed.
The bare wire ends are then twisted into a point.

The bare end of the jumper wire has to go pretty far down into the socket hole, in order to make a connection.

It goes down into the socket hole right next to the wire.

At the end of the wires that go down into the 20-pin connector, is a metal terminal. (Socket style)
The bare end of the jumper wire Must touch that metal terminal.

My method is to have the computer unplugged from power.
Insert one bare end of the jumper wire down into the Green wire socket hole. (Soft Power On)

Make Sure the bare end of the jumper wire is contacting the metal terminal.

I then plug the computer into power, and insert the other end down into ANY Black wire socket hole.

It is just a brief touch. No more than 2 seconds.

You may wish to use a glove on the hand that holds the jumper wire.
There Will be a Spark.

The Voltage is 5 Volts DC for the Soft Power On.
Two C cell flashlight batteries produce 3 Volts DC.

It isn't a real safety hazard as you can see, but I wanted you to be forewarned about the spark in advance, so you don't freak out.

If you jump the Soft Power On, and the Power Supply comes on, you have a bad Power On switch.

If you jump the Soft Power On, and the Power Supply does Not come on, you have a bad Power Supply.

(Make Sure the bare ends of the jumper wire, Touch the metal terminals, down in the 20-pin ATX main power cable connector)

The Power On switch is located inside the plastic Power On button.
This is an example of a Power On switch that I have found fits many computers,

http://www.directron.com/atxswitch.html

For any questions you may have regarding your problem, please post in a Comment.
(Believe upper right of your page)

Check tower that will not power's, Power On button, by bypassing it. (I kinda' liked the heading)

IF the Power Supply is good, the Power Supply will turn on. This would mean you have a bad Power On switch.
(Happens. They do wear out. Replacement is about $5 for the switch)

http://www.directron.com/atxswitch.html

HOWEVER, (Not shouting) there is another switch also. It's a Smart Cover Lock. If this switch is bad the Power On switch won't work.

If you're not familiar with computer hardware, it may seem like I'm typing in a foreign language here.
I understand this. Let me try to clarify.

When you press the Power on switch, you are making a Momentary Contact, that momentarily closes a circuit.
You can see the Power On switch is a momentary contact switch, by the fact that it is spring loaded.

The Power Supply when plugged into AC electricity, always keeps a 5 Volt standby power. (5 Volts DC)

Pressing the Power On button, closes this 5 Volt circuit momentarily, and the 5 volts turns the Power Supply on.
This is the Soft Power On.

It was brought in so that the Power On switch could be relocated to the Front Panel of the computer, and not mounted inside the Power Supply.

The older computers that do not have a Soft Power On feature, have a metal rod that one end is pushed by the Power On button, and the other end of the rod pushes against a Power On switch, located inside the Power Supply.

The Smart Cover Lock is a chassis intrusion switch.
If the cover is removed, the power supply cannot be turned on. (Or also said as the computer cannot be turned on)

To readily view where the Smart Cover Lock is located, and a view of the lock itself, I would like you to download the maintenance and service guide.

http://h20000.www2.hp.com/bizsupport/TechSupport/DocumentIndex.jsp?contentType=SupportManual&lang=en&cc=us&docIndexId=64180&taskId=101&prodTypeId=12454&prodSeriesId=96266

On this page scroll down to the heading - Service and maintenance information, and under the subheading - Title, left-click on this file name,

Desktop EN Series of Personal Computers Maintenance and Service Guide

This is a PDF file download. It may take a few seconds before you see the first page. It may take longer for the file to download all the way.
Suggest letting the file download all the way, before looking through it.

There are three different model versions of the Compaq Deskpro EN series.
The Small Form Factor, (SFF), model
The Desktop model
The MiniTower model.

You indicated 'Tower', so I'm going to assume yours is a MiniTower model.
Information for the SFF, and Desktop models, is different as to where the Smart Cover Lock is located.

The Smart Cover Lock is a solenoid switch. When the plunger part of the solenoid is out, the switch is open. No voltage passes through, hence the computer doesn't come on.

The Smart Cover Lock's plunger rests up against the computer case. When the case is open, the plunger comes out. This makes the switch a chassis intrusion switch.

If it were I, I would remove the Smart Cover Lock out of the system. (I'd cut it out, and use heat shrink tubing, and solder for the wires)

To bypass the Power On switch:

The Compaq EN series of desktop computers use a 20-pin ATX main power cable. Looks like this,

http://www.playtool.com/pages/psuconnectors/connectors.html#atxmain20

Note the photo in the middle. The front of the connector is facing you. The back of the connector is where the wires come in.

With the 20-pin ATX main power cable connector, connected to the motherboard as shown in the photo to the right, a jumper wire is used for the Soft Power On wire.

In the photo to the right, the Soft Power On wire is shown more clearly.
The Soft Power On wire is the Green wire.
(PS-ON, or pin number 14 in the chart below)

A jumper wire is connected to the Green wire's terminal pin, and over to ANY Black wire's terminal pin. MOMENTARILY.

ANY Black wire you see is a Ground wire. By using the jumper wire, you are completing the Soft Power On circuit, and bypassing the Power On switch.

Wires that come into the back of the 20-pin ATX main power cable connector, end in a metal male terminal pin.

http://www.mcmelectronics.com/product/WALDOM-ELECTRONICS-02-09-2118-/28-9405

The insulation of the wire is right up against the terminal pin, and the terminal pin is way down in it's respective socket hole of the connector.

The jumper wire is made out of a an insulated wire, that is the gauge of the Soft Power On wire, or larger.
The insulation is stripped back off of each end of the jumper wire, about 1/2 inch.

The exposed wire strands are twisted together.
The bare end of the wire must be able to go down into a socket hole, from the back of the 20-pin ATX main power cable connector, and touch the metal terminal pin way down in the bottom.

You may have to split the strands before twisting, and just use half of the strands, or less, so it will go down in the socket hole. There will be a wire in the socket hole, so it needs to be able to squeeze past it.

The jumper wire is bent into a U-shape. You hold the wire by the insulation.
My method is to have the computer unplugged from power.
I test the wire leads to make sure they will go down in the socket hole far enough, to touch the metal terminal pin.
You need to be sure.

I then leave one end stuck down in the socket hole for the Soft Power On wire, (Green), and have the other end ready to go down into a Ground wire socket hole.

ANY Black wire is a Ground wire, doesn't matter which Black wire's terminal pin you touch.

Now plug the computer into power, and use the jumper wire.
You are only making a Momentary contact. You are just touching briefly for no more than 2 seconds.

Warning you in advance that there may be a spark.
This is 5 Volts. A common flashlight uses 3 volts.

Have any questions concerning this, or need additional information, please state so in a Comment.

Make sure the switch on the side that locks the buttons is not switched on. To be safe, switch it on (so that the red shows) then off.

A.Bad Power On switch. (Behind the Power On button)

B.Bad power supply

C.Power supply cables have come loose inside the computer.
1.Power supply to motherboard. (20-pin connector on motherboard)
This connector has two pins in it for Soft Power On. The power supply does not connect directly to the Power On switch. The power supply connects to the motherboard, and turns on via Soft Power On.

ADVISEMENT!!
ALWAYS have the computer unplugged from power before reaching inside!

ALWAYS work on a table. DO NOT work on a bed, or directly on a carpet floor. These are high areas for Static electricity! Static electricity will silently burn out computer hardware components. You may not see it or feel it.
Touch the metal frame of the computer case, to relieve your body of static, BEFORE you reach inside.

Try hard reset, mostly it helps.

Well hope so you didn't damaged the sensors! try this : use the phone until battery is empty and switches off. then put it on the charger for 4 hours. If no joy,try different battery to make sure that device is not damaged and get a new battery.

soft reset no data wiped off press the power button upside of pda for 5 seconds it will turn off then press it again to switch on

hard rest factory default settings = when ur set is switched off press both buttons call and end key and then press power button on upside of pda for like 5 sec screen will appear asking to format all data take out ur card if u dont want to format that now confirm by pressing the centre action button in 4 side joystick and go