Dead aspire one

I have an AOA150 which starts up (fan + power light) with a blamk black screen, and a green power light. So I followed the Acer instructions on how to re flash the BIOS. After letting go of the ESC and FN keys the power button starts to flash and the light on my memory stick flashes to access the files. All good so far.

Trouble is, after a few seconds the power light stays permanently on and nothing happens. Left it for an hour and no re-boot. Any thoughts or is it dead?

Thanks in advance.

 

Many have success with the reflash procedure... In my case it didn't work... So I sent it back to ACER under warranty and they installed a new mobo... All has been good since... Good Luck!

 

Double check that the Bios file name is correct as per the instructions. Are you pressing the power switch the second time after it starts flashing?

 

No. I'm following the instructions exactly as shown on the Acer site. I can see that the memory stick is being accessed and while this happens the power button is flashing. Then it just goes to a solid on light. and stays that way until I turn it off, say an hour later. I know that the filename is correct as I cut and pasted it and the file type changes to ".FD". It's either the Bios or a dead motherboard. I'm sending it off to one of them repair the bios companies as it's worth the twenty or so quid to see if that's the problem. If not, I'll be keeping it for parts for the other one I have. Shame really.

 

Please note these instructions, you press the power button twice (http://macles.blogspot.com/2008/08/acer ... overy.html);
Acer Aspire One BIOS Recovery
The AA1 has a built-in BIOS recovery routine, which makes it possible to flash the BIOS even if it doesn't POST and the system doesn't boot anymore. It's meant for emergencies and is also known as crisis disk mode. Use at your own risk.

First format an USB flash drive with FAT.

Download the latest BIOS, and extract all files from the zip file. Put both FLASHIT.EXE and the BIOS file with FD suffix in the root directory of the drive. The files must not be in a folder. Rename the BIOS file to ZG5IA32.FD, that's important.

Turn the AA1 off, with the USB drive still connected, and make sure both battery and AC adapter are also connected.

Press Fn+Esc, keep it pressed and press the power button. Release Fn+Esc after a few seconds. The power button starts blinking at this point. Press the power button once. The AA1 will now initiate flashing the BIOS, do not interrupt it under any circumstances. After a while the power button stops blinking, and the AA1 reboots shortly after. Wait patiently.

The BIOS has been re-flashed and all settings are reset to default.

If the AA1 doesn't reboot by itself, but the power button still blinks, wait a few minutes before turning it off, and try again.

 

jerryt, I did all that, followed it to the letter but it didn't work.

As a last resort I contacted a company called www.bios-repair.co.uk and sent them just the board (there's a link on here somewhere, on how to disassemble the Acer). Once they had the board they sorted it out for me for £25. I now have a working Acer Aspire One again.

I just want to say that I have no links with this company but like to give credit where it's due.

 

Sometimes it depends on the USB stick, it must be an ordinary USB stick, no card-reader with SD or f.e. a Sandisk SD-card with USB.

 

thanks to everyone. i rescued it by your solution. but i want to know is this a permanent solution? or should i consider get rid of it in someway asap? what caused bios break down in the first place?

 

This setup worked great... Thanks everyone. Especially ( jerryt ) Didn't know that it had to be FAT and not FAT32

1. FAT flash drive (16 not 32)
2. Latest BIOS (3310) DOWNLOAD HERE
3. Copy over the FLASHIT.EXE and the BIOS update 3310.FD to the flash drive.
4. Rename 3310.FD to ZG5IA32.FD
5. Keep Battery and AC plugged in!
6. Press Fn+Esc, keep it pressed and press the power button. Release Fn+Esc after a few seconds. The power button starts blinking at this point. Press the power button once more while blinking.

The computer will now start to reflash the BIOS. DO NOT INTERRUPT. The whole process on mine took about 30 sec to reflash and reboot with the screen and windows working great.

You computer may take a while longer. If the process does not work the first time, try it a few more times. After that.. it may be time for service.

 

Thanks for the macles blogspot link. I did not expect simply flashing the bios to work but it did, first time, easily. Not having to buy a new laptop > having to buy a new laptop

 

I have done all the steps for bios revovery still nothing,is it memory or motherboard?I get power light fan and hhd.

 

Its a AOD250 The motherboard is KAV60 LA-5141P V1.0 The key board was destroyed by kids,it would'nt boot to post,replaced key board, still nothing,I think old keyboard shorted out something,but I don't know what need help.On this model You get usb flash dive ready with flashit.exe and kav60.fd,take battery out and unplug power sup..,put flash drive in,hold down fn+esc,plug power sup.. in while holding fn+esc,then the power light will flash orange once,push power button on and then release fn+esc. But it dont work,the fan and hdd stay on,but thats it.If I try to turn it on nornal just get green light,fan runs for about 4 sec.,hdd runs,and black screen.I have also tryed to redo bios with steps for other models.So it the bios,motherboard,or ram? thanks!

 

That behavior is indicative of a RAM problem, but it could be the motherboard too. If you can get some known-good RAM to try in it without spending (and potentially wasting) too much money, I'd start with that.

 

OK thanks alot! I got ram on the way,I will report back asap.Thanks again!

 

Ram did not do it still nothing.Must be bricked bios or motherboard.Power light comes on when I try to recover,but it never blinks.Any Ideas?

 

I ended up taking it apart desoderd battery,left it unhooked for awile.Still nothing.Then I tryed shoorting battery on mothrboard,still nothing,so I sold it on fleebay it is bios chip or motherboard,I cant soder that good and motherboard is to much money.I hope this all helps anyone having problems.Thanks all!

 

Thanks so much, another user SAVED by this forum. The Bios re-flash worked for me just as I was about to give up the ghost and throw my warranty-less AspireOne out!

 

Guys, I've got a Black Screen, power light is on, but the fan starts for a few seconds and then, stops. There's no HDD led.
My AOD250 died?

 

I got my first corrupt bios. Thought for sure my HD had fried. I thought I saw a spark near the USB port just before it went under. Maybe a little static, maybe a dodgy external hd enclosure, IDK. Either way when the drive wouldn't spin up again and the boot was blank and silent, I figured at best the drive was toast, and maybe the whole netbook at worst. Google saved me from wasting money on new hardware and from wasting time. That was a heck of a quick fix.

Anyway, huge relief and I wanted to post it somewhere.

 

I am also having the BSOD problem on my A150. I have followed the flashing bios instructions several times and still can't get the A150 to boot. I did notice that in each case, my USB Drive does not show any activity (i.e flashing) of being accessed. I have tried several USB sticks/drives with the same result. Any suggestions?