I work in an environment with about 600 Samsung Chromebook 4 units, the oldest of which being 2 years old. I have probably had to replace batteries on 50 of these Chromebooks, another 40 that need new batteries, with users coming in every day w/ the same issue:
Battery doesn't charge
When plugged in, no battery icon, charge light flashes red/green/blue
In most cases Chromebook will not turn on
Powerwash does nothing
Resetting battery does nothing
Replacing the battery is the only thing that works. At this rate I will be close to replacing batteries on 200 units by the end of the school year.
Seeing this regularly with our Chromebook 4s. Sometimes applying pressure to the bottom of the case will cause the battery to be detected but it's very finicky. I have some with the same red/blue/green flashing you described or in most cases they're just blinking red.
My only guess so far is that the batteries are dying and discharging below 1% causing internal battery failures, but can't confirm. Battery replacement seems to be the only reliable fix.
Only other suggestion I have is encourage users to keep the devices charged and not let them die, and see if you notice any improvements in the number of failed batteries.
Good to know that it's not just me! I definitely think it's an issue where users are letting the devices die. I have another building where the Chromebooks are kept in carts nightly & we haven't had a single issue. Thank you for your input!
Thank you for confirming this. I've been seeing an increased number of these battery issues and/or Chromebook won't turn on. Students tell me they have tried plugging it in different places with different chargers with no luck. Then I randomly luck out by just plugging it in and holding refresh and power. In fact that just happened about an hour ago in front of a student.
Now that it's most likely an issue where they're letting them die out, I'll let them know to keep them charged as much as they can since all the ones that are in carts and are always charged never have issues.
