Dell Precision Laptop Battery Charger Problem [solved]

Initial Event:

The Dell Precision laptop discharged and auto shut down while the AC adapter (180-Watt DA180PM111) was plugged in.

Symptoms:

• While plugged in 
• With battery
• The battery indicator light on the laptop slowly blinks white
• Powers on for a few minutes at a time before auto switching off
• Screen brightens erratically
• Without battery
• Indicator light does not turn on
• Does not power on
• Unplugged
• With battery, powers on for a few minutes then turn off due to low battery.

Troubleshooting:

At first I only had the original AC adapter and I couldn't find anything on the web specifically stating that my laptop could run from AC without the battery being installed so I wasn't sure if it was the battery, adapter or a motherboard problem.

Finally found another dell adapter (90 Watt) to test and everything works great again, even without the battery installed.

If I had known for sure that the laptop should be able to power on without the battery I could have saved time troubleshooting. Luckily I did not buy a replacement battery before I found another AC adapter to test.

Solution:

Replace defective AC adapter.

Further Reading:

Dell Indicator Lights

https://www.dell.com/support/article/ga/fr/gabsdt1/sln288817/precision-workstation-m4600-diagnostic-indicators?lang=en