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I was using a 2 prong adapter (40W) and power cord that came with my Asus Eee Pc for years, but I didn't get this really low 'tingly' feeling when touching any part of the netbook. HOWEVER, I recently purchased a 3 prong adapter (40W) and cable and when I use that, I get that tingly/vibration feeling when I surface through the touchpad and around it.

So........ What's going on here ? Isn't it supposed to work the other way around ???????

Should I just continue using it or exchange it ?? Is it an issue with the adapter or just a low quality product??? Will it harm any part of the netbook in any possible way???? TOTALLY CONFUSED!!!

P.S. The adapter does not even have a brand name but the local dealer did give me a 1 year warranty.

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  • Switch-mode power supplies have a leakage tolerance, which is what you're feeling. Cheaper ones have smaller capacitors to smooth it out. It's not dangerous.
    – Tetsujin
    Nov 26, 2016 at 7:54

2 Answers 2

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Tingly could mean anything from vibration through to electric current being present on the body of the laptop. The latter obviously being potentially very dangerous. So suggest you get it checked out by a pro and report back with more specific info.

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If other earthed devices in your premises do not give you that tingling electrocution feeling have the new adaptor replaced under warranty as it is likely faulty. It sounds like one of the outputs from the new power adaptor is not properly isolated from your mains power. If this is the case, yes it could damage your netbook with this stray electrical current.

If your other earthed devices in the house also give you that feeling, have your household earth checked out by an electrician. Again this can also damage your equipment if not repaired, and also prove potentially fatal for you or anyone else in the house.

In either case that tingly electrical feel is dangerous, particularly if it suffers an avalanche breakdown and suddenly becomes worse while you are touching it, it could kill you or anyone else who touches it.

If it is just a vibration from a fan, you should have someone clean out the dust from inside the netbook and replace the dying fan.

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  • Wrong. These devices are never earthed, they are double insulated. The tingling is a within-tolerance leakage from the switch-mode transformer. It is harmless.
    – Tetsujin
    Nov 26, 2016 at 7:52
  • @Tetsujin Except if the power supply is faulty and the double insulation is not working, and at least one of the outputs is even slightly coupled to one of the inputs. This is how it can be dangerous. Have you watched how fast some of those isolation transformers are made? Especially the ones done on a hand crank. Or worse the ones done on an unattended machine that is slightly off. A few scratches in the wrong places can lead to all sorts of trouble. Nov 26, 2016 at 9:56
  • @Tetsujin the fact that the power supply has a 3 prong connector means that the earth wire is going in to the power supply. What, if anything it is connected to inside is anyone's guess until someone opens it up to look. But manufacturers normally don't use bigger parts than they have to, so they save money and use smaller cheaper parts. Nov 26, 2016 at 9:58
  • @Tetsujin it could even be that the stray electrical coupling due to a manufacturing fault is between the earth wire and one of the DC power rails. Due to the way 3 phase 3 wire power stations and 3 phase 4 wire distribution down the street operates this can lead to some unsettling voltages in the earth wire, particularly if the household earth is broken or not installed properly. Nov 26, 2016 at 10:02
  • too many errors in your arguments to reply to, sorry. My downvote remains.
    – Tetsujin
    Nov 26, 2016 at 10:04

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