This troubleshooting page will help you diagnose problems with the Acer TravelMate.

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The USB ports are unresponsive to external hardware.

Your USB ports will not function properly if their driver is outdated. To uninstall the driver:

  • Press the Windows key and the X key at the same time and select “Device Manager”. Then, select “Universal Serial Bus Controller”.Right-click on every yellow exclamation sign and select “Uninstall”.Restart laptop.Right-click “Device Manager” and select “Universal Serial Bus Controllers”.Right click on “USB Root Hub”, click “Properties” and select the “Power Management” tab.Uncheck the provided option and turn off the connected device.Click “OK” and restart the laptop.Unplug the AC adapter from the laptop.Disconnect the battery from the laptop.Hold down the power button for 15 seconds.Reconnect the AC adapter without the battery and power on the laptop.

The touchpad is not responding properly or is completely unresponsive.

If your touchpad does not respond properly, it may have been accidentally disabled. To re-enable your touchpad:'

Press the “Fn” key and the “F6” or “F7” keys (the key with the touchpad icon on it) at the same time.

Your touchpad will not function properly if the driver is outdated. To uninstall the driver:

  • Press the Windows key and the X key at the same time and select “Device Manager”.Locate and double-click “Touchpad Driver” from the left panel.Right-click the device and click “Uninstall”.Click “OK” to remove the driver. Windows should display a prompt confirming the driver’s removal.Restart your laptop after the driver’s uninstallation is complete.

The laptop will not respond or show any sign of powering on.

Remove the battery from the laptop and disconnect the power adapter. Hold down the power button for 45 seconds. Wait about 20 minutes before reconnecting the battery and power adapter. Your laptop should now turn on.

Plug in the power cord and check for the laptop’s charging light indicator. If the light is not on and the power cord is connected, the power cord is faulty. Consider purchasing a replacement power cord.

If the battery is behaving abnormally, try resetting the battery using the pinhole reset button. First, unplug the AC power adapter and locate the battery reset pinhole on the bottom of the computer. Next, insert a small paperclip in the battery reset pinhole. Hold the reset button for four seconds and let the computer sit for five minutes with no power before connecting the AC power adapter and powering on the system.

The laptop appears to be working, but the screen will not turn on.

If the screen does not light up, hold a flashlight at an angle close to the screen and see if the desktop display is visible. Try connecting an external monitor and see if there is a display on it when you power on the laptop.

If connecting to an external monitor does not work, there may be a graphics card issue. To replace the graphics card, take your laptop to a computer repair shop to see if the graphics card or motherboard can be replaced.

If the laptop boots up and displays a login screen for the operating system but the screen goes black or blank after you log in, there may be an issue with the operating system. Try restarting the computer first to see if it is a temporary issue and resolves itself with a reboot. If the problem persists, erase your hard drive and reinstall Windows.

If the picture is partially visible, the brightness may be set low or it may be turned down by a power saving mode. To ensure the laptop is not in a power saving mode, connect it to a charger and try manually increasing the brightness through Settings.

A laptop typically shuts down when it overheats but it may only turn off the display by cutting power to the graphics chip. Overheating may be caused by debris build-up on the fan, heat sink, or vents. You can try using canned air to blow out the dust and dirt.

The screen is working but will randomly freeze and become completely unresponsive.

The laptop may need a factory reset if its software no longer functions as it originally did. To factory reset your laptop:

  • Backup all of your data onto an external drive.Shut down any running programs.Detach any external hardware, including a hard drive or printer.Press the Power button to start up your laptop.Press the “Alt” and “F10” keys at the same time when the “Acer” screen appears at the start of the reboot process. Then wait for windows to present the reset files.Press “Restore System From Factory Default” in the eRecovery Management window.Click “Next” on the next two windows. A pop-up notice will inform you that resetting your laptop will erase all data and restore the laptop to its original settings and configuration.Click “OK”.Your laptop will now start resetting to factory settings.