Gateway laptops are known for their reliability; however, as with other electronics, you’re bound to encounter issues; in this case, it’s the touchpad that suddenly stops working.

This problem is somehow common among Gateway laptop owners, who have reported they’re unable to move their mouse cursor and are stuck on a steady screen when trying to use the touchpad.

In this blog post, I’ll walk you through the steps to fix this issue.

But first let me tell you why this issue is happening.

Well, common causes include the touchpad being switched off or disabled, driver issues, external device interferences, dirt & dust, problematic system updates, software bugs, and a malfunctioning touchpad.

Fix 01 – Restart Your Computer

You may have already done this, but if you haven’t, restart your laptop.

This basic one-click action is always effective in clearing temporary bugs and resolving issues that result from them.

Fix 02 – Remove All External Devices

Any external device plugged into your Gateway laptop, such as mouses, keyboards, external hard drives, USB drives, memory cards, etc., may interfere with your laptop’s proper functioning and cause certain components to malfunction.

For example, if you have an external mouse inserted into your laptop, Windows OS will usually detect it and use it as the primary mouse by default instead of your laptop’s touchpad.

Therefore, regardless of which external device is plugged into your laptop, you must disconnect ALL OF THEM.

Fix 03 – Check if Your Touchpad Is Disabled

Sometimes, when a touchpad “suddenly stops working,” users may not realize that the touchpad has been mistakenly turned off or disabled.

Almost all modern laptops offer the ability to toggle the touchpad on/off, either through Windows settings or by holding a specific function key combination on the keyboard; this is likely what you accidentally pressed.

To make sure your touchpad is enabled, follow these steps:

1) Check the function key combination:

On most Gateway laptops, the function key combination that enables/disables the touchpad is [the “Fn” key] + [a function key with a touchpad icon], which is typically ”F7” or ”F6”.

After pressing this function key combination, check your touchpad if it’s working or not.

Note: In some other Gateway models, the touchpad is turned on and off by double-tapping on the top left corner of the touchpad itself.

2) Check Windows Settings:

If you don’t have a function key to enable the touchpad, or if you want to verify that the touchpad is enabled on your Windows operating system: Go to Settings > Devices > Touchpad > turn ON the touchpad.

Fix 04 – Clean Your Laptop’s Touchpad

If dirt, dust, or other particles enter the touchpad, it may become unresponsive.

Therefore you should clean the touchpad:

Step 01: Turn off your laptop.

Step 02: Grab a clean soft cloth and moisten it with a few drops of water (Isopropyl alcohol is better for electronic devices), then rub it on the touchpad, making sure to clean every corner and every possible surface.

Step 03: Use a soft brush to carefully clean the touchpad’s edges, where dirt and dust tend to collect.

Fix 05 – Uninstall Any Problematic Updates

Some of those who encountered a similar problem with the touchpad not responding said that it occurred for the first time right after installing a new Windows update.

This could happen if the newly installed system updates contain bugs or are incompatible with the touchpad on your laptop.

If this is the case, uninstalling (rolling back) the recently installed updates is all that is required:

Step 01: Open the Settings app using the Windows+i shortcut.

Step 02: Go to Update & Security.

Step 03: Navigate to Windows Update > View update history.

Step 04: Select the Uninstall updates option.

Step 05: Find the most recent update (or the one after which the issue appeared) and uninstall it.

After that, restart your laptop and check that the touchpad is working properly.

Fix 06 – Update Your Touchpad Drivers

When it comes to updating drivers on Windows OS, most internet tutorials employ the “Device Manager”. However, I believe this to be useless, as it rarely updates drivers, even if they are outdated.

Instead, I always use a third-party driver updater, such as IObit Driver Booster, which I find to be more efficient and useful for updating outdated drivers on my computer.

So, all you have to do is download IObit Driver Booster or any other third-party utility you prefer, then run it on your laptop to see if the touchpad driver is outdated. If it is, the utility will notify you and allow you to update it.

Fix 07 – Reinstall Your Touchpad Drivers

If updating the touchpad drivers is ineffective, reinstall them since they may be corrupted.

Step 01: Right-click on the Start Menu and open Device Manager.

Step 02: Locate “Mice and other pointing devices” then expand it by clicking on the arrow to its left.

Step 03: Locate “Touchpad”, “Pointing device”, or “Trackpad”, then right-click it and choose Uninstall Driver.

Once the driver has been uninstalled, restart your laptop, and Windows should immediately reinstall it.

You can confirm that by going back to Mice and other pointing devices on Device Manager.

Fix 08 – Update Windows System

Windows Periodically drops new updates that usually improve any hardware or software performance, some of these are major updates while others are optional.

Missing any of these updates will lead to several software and hardware issues, including your laptop’s touchpad not working.

So you should make sure you have all the recent Windows updates installed. Here’s how:

Step 01: Open the Settings app using the Windows+i keyboard shortcut.

Step 02: Go to Update & Security.

Step 03: Press “Check for updates” and wait for the system to check for and install any available updates.

After that, you might have to restart your computer for the installation process to finish.

Fix 09 – Install the Intel Serial IO Driver

It appeared that many Gateway laptop users were able to resolve the touchpad issue by installing this driver.

The Intel Serial IO Driver is responsible for providing support for the Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI) and Inter-integrated Circuit (I2C) on systems with Intel Processors and can be found in your computer’s device manager.

These Protocols facilitate the connection between hardware components such as sensors, displays, and input devices which are required for a touchpad to function and be responsive.

Therefore, if this driver is missing or corrupted, certain protocols won’t function, which could lead to the malfunction of some hardware parts, including the touchpad on your laptop.

To install this driver; go to Google and search for "Intel Serial IO Driver + your laptop's model", then download and install it on your computer.

After the installation process is completed, restart your computer to see whether the problem still exists.

Fix 10 – Check Your BIOS Settings

Incorrect BIOS configuration always results in an unstable system and hardware malfunctions, such as the touchpad not working.

Therefore, you have to confirm that the touchpad configuration is set to “Basic” and NOT “Advanced” in the BIOS settings.

Step 01: Restart your laptop then press the “F1” or “F2” or “Delete” key repeatedly to access the BIOS menu.

Step 02: Search for where it says “Internal pointing device”, “Touchpad” or any touchpad-related setting using the arrow keys (it’s usually in the “Main” or “Peripherals” tab.)

Step 03: Make sure your touchpad is set to “Basic”.

Step 04: Finally, tap “F10” or “Save changes & Reset” to save the current configuration and restart your laptop.

Once your laptop restarts check whether the touchpad functions properly.

Fix 11 – Update Your BIOS

Another approach that appears to be effective for many users like you is to update the BIOS to a newer version.

BIOS updates improve system stability, hardware compatibility, and overall performance.

Even though it’s not required if your laptop is operating perfectly, it’s a good idea to perform it if you’re experiencing any kind of hardware or software issues.

Updating BIOS is a sensitive yet simple process, just follow these steps:

Step 01: Make sure your laptop battery is plugged in.

Step 02: Next, you have to check which is the current BIOS version you have:

  • Open the Run box using the [Windows + R] keys combination.
  • Type Dxdiag and press Enter.
  • In the BIOS section you will find the BIOS version on your system.

Step 03: Now, you need to find your Gateway laptop’s serial number:

  • Again, Open the Run box using [Windows + R] shortcut, then type cmd and press Enter.
  • In the command window type wmic bios get serialnumber and press Enter and you’ll get your laptop’s serial number.

Step 04: Open your web browser, then head over to Acer support.

Step 05: Now, type your laptop serial number, SNID, or model number in the empty field.

Step 06: Navigate to the “BIOS/Firmware” area and see if a newer BIOS version is available; if so, download it.

However, if you already have the latest version, you can do nothing but move on to the next solution.

Step 06: After clicking Download, you will get a ZIP file, extract it before doing anything.

Step 07: Right-click the BIOS update EXE file and open it as an administrator.

Step 08 Now, follow the on-screen instructions and wait until the process is finished fully.

To prevent bricking your laptop while the BIOS update is in progress, you should never disconnect the power cord, turn the laptop off, enter sleep or hibernate mode, or connect a USB device.

Alternative Solution – Seek Technical Help

If none of the solutions mentioned above handle the issue, it is likely that the touchpad components are defective or broken; in such situations, the components must be repaired or, in the worst case, replaced.

Therefore, if your laptop is still under warranty, you should contact Acer’s technical support or a qualified computer technician for help.

Conclusion

While a non-responsive laptop touchpad may appear to be a complex technical issue that requires expert help, in reality, you can fix this issue on your own by just following the troubleshooting steps outlined above.