I was just given my sisters Toshiba A200-JA2, it's about 16 months old but is in fair condition. She got a Macbook once the Toshiba began giving her problems. The computer has this weird issue where it charges for about 2 minutes, then stops charging, but the computer still recognizes that the charger is plugged in. I asked my sister about the problem and she said that the AC adapter (charger) wire had been damaged and that I have to get a new charger, so I did, but that did not fix the problem. I have no idea what to do.

Battery issue? Try contacting Toshiba.

someone suggested taking out the battery and charging it to see whether the battery is at fault

Yeah, if you take the battery out can you still run the laptop off the charger properly?  You should be able to use the laptop perfectly well without the battery and just with the charger plugged into the wall.  If this works then the battery is the problem.....if not then it's either the charger, or if you've replaced that then it's some part of the circuit between the laptop & the battery

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Originally posted by SonicSam
Battery issue? Try contacting Toshiba.

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Originally posted by Hotdeal

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Originally posted by SonicSam
Battery issue? Try contacting Toshiba.

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Contacted Toshiba, they told me that it could be that I have to update my BIOS. I don't understand what the BIOS have to do with this issue.

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BIOS has to do with everything in the system. Plus they are kinda the people making that machine and dealing with the same kind of problems on a daily basis, so they know what they are talking about.

Plus like Sam said, why not update a BIOS? If I know there is an BIOS update available I always update, whether the machine is currently running fine or not. Updating the BIOS firmware in the old days used to have this dangerous image and it could brick your system, so it used to be this "if it's not broken don't try to fix it" thing. But a current BIOS can be updated without much risk. Manufacturers tend to not put out changelogs of BIOS updates, but it's not like they are randomly adding new features for fun, new BIOS version either means a bugfix or (rare for laptops) compatibility update for new hardware like CPU/RAM.

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Originally posted by SonicSam

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Originally posted by Hotdeal

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Originally posted by SonicSam
Battery issue? Try contacting Toshiba.

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Contacted Toshiba, they told me that it could be that I have to update my BIOS. I don't understand what the BIOS have to do with this issue.

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Why wouldn't you update it anyways ?

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Yeah, looks like it's the battery. Is it under warranty? If it is, get a new one.

When you are using power directly from the mains you shouldn't be using your battery. This makes it last less long of a period of time.

When not in use, e.g in the holder when in the mains, take it out and keep it in a cool place (even the fridge). This will make it last much longer and less chance of malfunction like this

If they don't replace it, burn it and say it did it while you were on your laptop and threaten to sue

(Joke)

It sounds like bad battery, but there is also some possibility of failed charging circuitry inside the laptop (this could be a separate board or on the motherboard).  I wish you had posted before wasting money on the AC adapter, as that would've been easy to rule out.

If the laptop is under warranty, you should have it looked at to rule out an internal charging circuit problem and confirm it really is the battery.  However, it is likely that the battery itself (if you need one) won't be covered under the warranty regardless.  Batteries are like tires on a car -- they wear out from normal use and are usually covered for no more than 3-6 months.