I have noticed while under full load (usually while gaming), the system power will switch back and forth from plugged in to the battery several times for maybe 20-30 seconds at a time.
So far I've tried:
- Rebooting (no change)
- Getting more airflow by propping up the rear of the system while gaming (no change)
- Cleaning fans and heat sinks of any visible dust and obstructions (they were both largely clean, and the flickering back and forth continued after)
- Running the system on battery power only to try playing while charging from a lower percentage (still flickering)
- Removing the battery and running only on AC power (the system shuts off completely when under load and the flickering would have occurred)
- Updating EC (no change)
- Updating BIOS (BIOS updater says installation successful, but the BIOS still reads previous version)
The AC adapter doesn't appear to be losing power at any point. I've run it on a surge protector and direct from the wall, and while the housing does get a little warm while under load, it never gets overly hot, and the LED indicator doesn't flicker or show any sign of losing power.
My battery isn't swollen, and I'd say I had pretty mild use of the laptop as a whole up to this point. I only recently started gaming more heavily, which is why I've started noticing this trend. I'm beginning to worry this may be a motherboard issue, or some smaller surface mount chip I don't have the equipment or skill to replace.