The laptop is a relatively new [purchased last September] Dell Inspiron 5000 series [I can't get the exact type since I'm not risking trying to boot it at the moment]. Attempting to plug it in will result in the computer recognizing that the power cord is plugged in [the battery light turns on and the taskbar icon changes], but after 10-30 seconds it will say that it's been disconnected and is running on battery. Unplugging and replugging has a 80% success rate of getting it to recognize the plug again, but will shut itself off within 30 second as per usual. This happens even if the laptop and cable are completely level and stationary. Sometimes the computer will re-recognize the plug and continue charging for a few moments.
The AC adapter LED is a steady green and the computer said the battery was still in excellent condition. I do not have any other AC adapter handy at the moment, but I have attempted a myriad of outlets already.
EDIT: Setting the entire cord on the table helps it, but I still have to replug periodically. I noticed that the cord from the adapter brick to the laptop, while reinforced, seems to be heavily bent and attempts to straighten it out have had little effect.
UPDATE: I grabbed another power cord, a universal adapter type. There are points were it stops charging for 1-2 seconds, but otherwise the system remains charging. I don't know now if it's just a broken adapter or broken laptop.
The AC adapter LED is a steady green and the computer said the battery was still in excellent condition. I do not have any other AC adapter handy at the moment, but I have attempted a myriad of outlets already.
EDIT: Setting the entire cord on the table helps it, but I still have to replug periodically. I noticed that the cord from the adapter brick to the laptop, while reinforced, seems to be heavily bent and attempts to straighten it out have had little effect.
UPDATE: I grabbed another power cord, a universal adapter type. There are points were it stops charging for 1-2 seconds, but otherwise the system remains charging. I don't know now if it's just a broken adapter or broken laptop.