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SUS Chromebook C204 is designed with one thing in mind: to keep on going however tough the environment gets.

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Unable to boot abnormal voltage with battery

Hello everyone,

I have been helping out my local schools by repairing the chromebooks they use for students. I mostly do solder work on the boards since they are becoming harder and more $$$ to find. Several have come in with the same issue.

Off the battery the USB-C port reads 5 volts for an instant then jumps to 14.9-15 volts low fluctuating amps...this is normal. The problem comes in when the battery is plugged in. The volts stay at 5v, but the amps raise to normal charging 2.85amps. The device will not boot. The odd thing to me is that some spots on the board around the battery get 12+ volts....

Could this signify a "brain" issue (CPU, RAM, NAND, BIOS) more than a power issue?

Any reply is appreciated!

Answer this question I have this problem too

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Not entirely clear.

Many electronics need 12V when operated from 5V. This is created with a boost circuit, so it would not be unusual.

The question is, is there ANY activity? fans, beeps, screen flashes, anything????

no activity = a power problem

fans only = power, CPU or firmware problem

Beeps = firmware or screen problem

If the battery is fully charged then something is running on the MB to draw that current. Likely the CPU.

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2 Comments:

Hi bill, thanks for the reply.

There is no activity that I notice. There is a daughter board to these devices that will have different light codes depending on the power state but that is not doing anything when plugged in. These chromebooks don't utilize a fan, but I have not tried any troubleshooting with the speakers plugged in...I'll do that now.

I've been probing around the larger IC's that I have researched and found to be power management but nothing is measuring different compared to the working board I have.

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Hi Jacob,

Did you get anywhere with this problem? I have a common Chromebook problem. My normal USB C charge voltage is between 14.8 and 15volts.

I am getting a bunch that draw 4.9 volts and .453amps. Battery in or out same 4.9volts.

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Jacob Ludden will be eternally grateful.
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