I tried looking all over the net and within the many forums and could not find any articles relating to repairing the bad reception on the universal units.
Here is my solution, 1) download the UNIVERSAL SERVICE MANUAL from the ftp site here on forum.xdadevelopers.com 2) Follow the instruction on disassembling the unit up to the point where it shows how to remove the antenna. 3) Remove the antenna and from the back of the antenna unit you will see two metal prongs on top and two metal prongs on the side.
4) There is a large metal plate on the front of antenna housing and a small metal strip off to the side of the plastic housing. 5) Take a small strip of aluminium foil (or cigarette pack foil) and roll it into a small roll that covers the back of the plastic housing and fits neatly into the grooves of the back of the white plastic antenna housing. 6) The two metal prongs that correspond to the large metal plate must be lifted gently to allow the foil to make contact with them and be placed underneath the prongs and not on top of the prongs. DO NOT PLACE THE FOIL IN CONTACT WITH THE TWO OTHER PRONGS OF THE SMALL METAL PLATE AS THIS WILL SHORT THE UNIT. 7)Reinstall the antenna.
You will notice once you have finished assembling the unit and have turned it back on that the reception indicator does not show full strenghth, however from my experience the call quality and reception is excellent even when there is only 1 or 2 bars showing and as of yet I have had no hang up or missed calls.
PLEASE NOTE THE ABOVE PROCEDURE VOIDS ANY AND ALL WARRANTIES
how about some pictures mate ?
adolfotregosa said:
how about some pictures mate ?
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You just download the Service manual from link:
ftp://ftp.xda-developers.com/Universal/UNniversalL_Service_Manual_CONFIDENTIAL.pdf
pictures of what he did
how do you get those littel rubber plugs out for the external antenna.
thanks!
Sky
the above link requires a password ... would u tell us about the theory behind this ???
Username and password: XDA
hell yeah! BUMP!! please tell us more about this! I'm having reception problems but I wish pictures before tearing this unit appart!
Has anyone (besides the poster of this topic) tried this.
And I know there are pictures in the manual, but we do want some more pictures of the procedure.
Like a picture of the two metal prongs on top and two metal prongs on the side
Thnx
Hello everyone.
I recently got a used TP2 with torn off wi-fi/bluetooth antenna.
I started experimenting with insulating tape and aluminum foil and managed to find an antenna shape that works quite well, but I don't know if it is as well as original antenna.
Any information on shape and size of original antenna would be very useful to me. Wi-Fi antenna is situated under the back cover, on the bottom of a phone, right between miniUSB and stylus. If at least anyone could make a good hi-res photo of antenna, I would highly appreciate that.
Thanks and sorry for my English, if its not quite well.
Looks like you should be talking to the guy on this thread!
Thanks again, I finally got a nice photo on my local forum and made an antenna identical to the original. Amazingly, original shape performs a bit worse than inverted-F type that I came up to while experimenting. To compare antennas, I measured a signal level from three WiFi access points with WiFI Monster and the level is about 3-5 dBm higher with inverted-F shaped antenna. It also seems to be higher regardless of antenna orientation, so i guess the gain pattern is OK, its still omnidirectional.
And improvement is even more noticeable with bluetooth headset (i tested on Plantronics Explorer 230), which now has a max distance about 12-15 meters (compared to 7-8 with original shaped antenna).
That is an interesting observation. I wonder if you could show us all the pattern, someone may be interested in modding their original antenna.
Photos attached.
On the first you can see what is left from original antenna.
On the second there are some variations of inverted-F shape (these are made from copper, not aluminum foil):
The bottom right performed best, on the third it is taped to the phone.
A couple more words on antenna modding.
As I found out, antenna does not like soldering for some reason (can't tell why, don't know enough about RF engineering), so I just fixed a new antenna to the remained piece of original with a masking tape. It should be better to make the whole antenna from one piece of copper foil, including the inner part, even though it will require partial phone casing disassembly.
Here I attached a file with exact sizes in millimeters. Antenna itself is actually about the same size as original, but extends a little further on the feeding line, which positively affects its performance.
And another interesting fact: TP2 has a miniature RF connector on the mainboard right next to antenna spring contacts, so it is definitely possible to use an external antenna.
I was thinking about how the Dinc2's back cover is the antenna, and how BAD this phone's reception is. Has anyone ever tried to add copper tape or mod the rear cover in any way to increase reception?
Rumblur said:
I was thinking about how the Dinc2's back cover is the antenna, and how BAD this phone's reception is. Has anyone ever tried to add copper tape or mod the rear cover in any way to increase reception?
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Not being an Electrical Engineer with concentrations in antenna design and RF, I can´t say for sure, but you may harm or hurt the phone. I´d first look at cleaning the contacts of the existing rear cover to try to increase the efficiency of the antenna as designed, and watching how I hold the phone. This could also mean the phone has less work to do searching for signal, which can boost battery life. Also, maybe use some conductive paint. I´d imagine the copper tape would be a bit thick in the case personally, and as for the design of the new antenna, I´m clueless.
but seriously, give it a shot and let me know how it works! If all else fails, you can use the external antenna port to really boost the sucker, especially if you´re driving, or using it at home.
Rumblur said:
I was thinking about how the Dinc2's back cover is the antenna, and how BAD this phone's reception is. Has anyone ever tried to add copper tape or mod the rear cover in any way to increase reception?
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there's a thread about it in the general section. since I'm nice here's the linkclick here
First off, the motivation to do this came from these threads:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1610336
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1441510
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=21795243&postcount=62
---------- Please read these threads and hit their authors Thanks buttons, because they are awesome! ----------
Background:
I have suffered from call echo on every AOSP ROM I have installed, and even on custom stock ROM's. I have the D30 phone case T-Mobile sells, so I always thought that was the problem. Without the case, stock ROM's didn't really echo (it was there, but only noticeable to those who were really annoyed by it when I was running AOSP ROM's, such as the wife). Also, when I would shift the phone in my hand, the person I called would ask me what I was doing because it sounded like I was beating the phone on a hard surface. It is very frustrating.
I always assumed my call echo couldn't possibly be a hardware issue since I have never dropped my phone, nor been overly rough on it. However, after reading the above threads (including ALL the comments - scary, I know) I decided this fix was worth a try.
Now, for the fix. I take no credit for it as I simply followed in the footsteps of those brave souls who attempted this on the international version of the SII. I also assume no responsibility for any damage to your phone due to the instructions or information contained in this thread. If your phone explodes, fries, dies, breaks, you cut yourself and bleed to death, you let the magic smoke out of the phone, the fix doesn't work for you --- etc., etc., etc. --- I take no responsibility.
First things first, you will need tools (duh), a business card, scissors, probably tweezers, a credit card to pry the back off the phone, and PATIENCE!
1. Shut down your phone and remove the battery, SIM card and sd card.
2. Using the right sized Philips screwdriver remove all six screws in the order shown in the first picture. (The smallest Philips screwdriver I have is a #0 which is not small enough. However, with great care I was able to remove the screws with a 1.4mm flathead screwdriver. I recommend finding the correct size screwdriver before you try to begin.) Remember which screws went where. In case you forget or they somehow get mixed up, screws numbered 1 and 2 in the first picture do NOT have Locktite on them, the rest do.
3. Locate the prying points along the edges of the phone and use your credit card (or other sturdy, non-metallic object) to pry to clips loose. A few of the prying points are marked with arrows in the first picture. They all look similar. I recommend starting at the corner where screw #1 is and go clockwise around the edge of the phone until all but the top edge has been popped loose (unclipped). Picture 2 shows why you shouldn't try to unclip the top of the phone. There are three tabs that would be nearly impossible to pry loose without breaking them.
4. Starting at the bottom of the phone, near the speaker, carefully lift up the backing of the phone. There is a snap between the camera and flash that retains the backing. It is difficult to free it, so work slowly, keep steady pressure on it, work it back and forth, up and down, side to side until it pops loose. Again, I take no responsibility if you break the plastic backing of your phone. That said, the backing is fairly tough and can withstand moderate force (fingernail strength would probably be a good estimate of how hard you can pull on it).
5. There are no wires connecting the backing to the board of the phone, so you don't have to worry about undoing any connectors.
6. The speaker for my earphone was not secured in my phone, so I was easily able to lift it up and clean some of the pocket lint from the inside of the grill and the front surface of the speaker (please be gentle with the speaker!). I recommend you only lift it out far enough to clean under and around it, then put it back.
7. When replacing the speaker, ensure you gently push it toward the electric ribbon connecting it to the board of you phone to ensure it fully seats in the recess designed for it.
8. At this point I cut a small piece of a rubber band, about 1 mm thick, and trimmed it to fit between the earpiece and the noise cancelation microphone, which on our t989 is integrated into the board and is not accessible. There is no way to remove and reseat it like the threads for the international version recommend. However, by placing the piece of rubber band between the earpiece and noise canceling mic they become more insulated from each other, which is a good thing. The rubber was not easy to place, so patience and a steady hand go a long way here. The rubber band is circled in red and labeled 1 in picture 3. The point where the backing snaps between the camera and flash is circled in green and labeled 2 in picture 3.
9. Next I cut a piece of a business card to fit the gap between the top of the phone and the trim surrounding the camera (see picture 4 for the trim). Make sure the card doesn't cover the gold contact as explained in one of the above threads. --- see how I'm kind of forcing you to read those? ---
--- The business card I used was 0.39mm thick. I didn't measure the other dimensions. If I ever go back in for any reason I will measure them and report here, but don't hold your breath. ---
10. I then cut a piece of business card for the lower microphone. This microphone is integrated into the board of the phone as well (see picture 6). It cannot be removed and reseated like the international version can. However, I decided to place a piece of business card as shown in picture 5 in hopes it would help dampen any vibrations in the vicinity that the microphone might have otherwise picked up.
--- I used the same business card at 0.39mm thick. I didn't measure this one either. ---
11. Place the card you cut for the lower mic so that it doesn't cover the solder points for the usb connector, nor sticks over the edge on the right in picture 5 (where the arrow points). The backing of the phone has a piece of hardware that resides in that recess, so don't overhang it.
12. Time to reassemble. Make sure the business cards (or whatever you decided to use) don't move from their positions when replacing the backing of your phone. Place the three tabs along the top edge of the backing into their recesses in the top of the main frame of your phone, then rotate the backing down onto the phones frame. Snap the edges into place, and be sure to press firmly on the camera cover between the camera and flash to seat the snap there. Don't force anything though. If your phone won't snap back together just remove the backing and make sure everything is situated properly (especially the earpiece speaker). When all the snaps are seated, reinstall your sim and battery and make a test call. If your phone cover makes echo worse, make sure it's on your phone. I even flashed an AOSP rom that notoriously gave me call echo.
13. If you're happy with the results, continue to step 14. If not, go back and rethink how you installed everything. Maybe you need to use a more sturdy business card, or cut it to different dimensions, or use a thicker or thinner card. Use your head and think it through. You can do it. Just be careful in there.
14. Congratulations! You did it! All you need to do is reinstall the six screws and you are done! I installed them in the exact opposite order as I removed them (starting with 6 and working to 1). Anyone who has installed a cylinder head on a car will know the reasoning behind this (to help prevent kinks or ripples in the material between the screws).
This all passed the wife test for me, and it helped muffle the sound of shifting my fingers on my phone. It no longer sounds like I'm beating it on a hard surface!
I really hope this works as well for you all as it has for me. Now, keep in mind that I have only made a few test calls since finishing this, but every person on the other end has said everything is crystal clear. I can now run AOSP ROM's on my Hercules!!! No tape over the noise cancellation microphone required!
Again, please go to the above threads and thank those guys. I take no credit for the fix. All I did was provide pictures specific to the Hercules (and maybe similar to Skyrocket????).
Enjoy!
Wow!
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
Wow...thanks op, but...**** that lol
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
blackangst said:
Wow...thanks op, but...**** that lol
Sent from my SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
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It's actually easier than you think. The back cover pops right off basically. The hardest part was cutting the pieces of business card to the right size.
And there's no marking or tape that would tell the warranty center you were inside your phone.
This really works. I used a piece of rubber from a bicycle tire repair kit just because I did not want the paper to draw moisture.
Simply flash CM10.1 and echo will be gone. However, big thanks to OP for this experiment.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
Ya thanks OP, but you could try to flash CM 10.1 Nightly 2/22 or 2/24 and the call echo will vanish. If not you could flash different radios and the call echo will be gone.
Amanwithnomoney said:
Ya thanks OP, but you could try to flash CM 10.1 Nightly 2/22 or 2/24 and the call echo will vanish. If not you could flash different radios and the call echo will be gone.
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Thanks, but echo was present on every Rom I flashed. Stock Roms were better, but echo was still there.
This fix is for people who have echo on all Roms. If cm10.1 fixes it for you then go that route, but it just didn't work for me. Besides, I can flash anything I want now.
Easier to do than I had first thought , thanks for the thread.:good:
I had echo problems with Groove IP (cell tower calling worked just fine). This was the fix for goove IP echoing as well on my 989. :good:
This is kinda irrelevant, OP, but I see you're involved in Scentsy in some manner. Lol
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
Daltonyx said:
This is kinda irrelevant, OP, but I see you're involved in Scentsy in some manner. Lol
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
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Hahaha. Caught me red handed.
No hate. Lol. My mother is hardcore into it. She is one of the superstar consultant people. I've learned to recognize it, to say the least.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
Alarmmy said:
Simply flash CM10.1 and echo will be gone. However, big thanks to OP for this experiment.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-T989 using xda app-developers app
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What you and the OP are talking about are two different things. His is a hardware issue for call echo. The CM flash/fix is for the bad call/underwater sound software issue that the noise suppression fixes.
In addition to the constant influx of iPods and iPhones friends, family, and coworkers bring me to fix, I've taken apart a few different Xperia PLAY phones more times than I can count, so I thought I'd give a few "pro tips" to people who need to know the ins and outs of it. This isn't a disassembly, assembly, or even a repair guide, it's just the stuff I think those guys missed.
First, don't use a heat gun to loosen the adhesive on the front glass + digitizer. The plastic frame wrinkles and melts readily, particularly right under the face buttons.
Second, make sure you transfer as much as possible when you replace the frame. Replacement frames usually do not include the rubber shroud for the proximity sensor and it will not work right without it. I had one phone that seemingly worked fine until the screen protector peeled off while inserting in a pocket and then no amount of clear tape, screen protectors, or Sharpie-marking would fix it. A salvaged rubber shroud fixed it right up. Some replacement frames have a film-backed adhesive for holding it there and some don't. It probably depends on when they were yanked from the manufacturing line, assuming that they are original parts and not replica parts. You also want to make sure you transfer are the inner dust gasket that goes underneath the frame/glass or else things will be filling up with dust quickly. There is no speaker grill and the foam around it does not stop intrusion. A salvaged frame/glass adhesive is likely to allow dust in unless you didn't have to pick much out of it when swapping (usually glass shards). There are also little metallic grounding foam rectangles crammed in the corners that only one replacement frame I've seen has ever included (was probably salvage though listed as "new"). They probably aren't necessary and I've gone long periods without them, but why wonder if a static charge build up is responsible for your erratic touch screen?
Next, be extremely careful separating the glass from the frame. I've managed to crack good ones even going slowly and leaving gaps filled with picks and pry tools. Heat didn't seem to help much and, as mentioned earlier, is discouraged. Cleaning the screen after man-handling it isn't always easy, but don't avoid touching the back side because you will probably need the area to spread the pressure and avoid a crack. I use a levered "mini suction cup" from Harbor Freight on the top side and as many fingers as spread out as I can on the bottom, but the suction cup is near useless on a cracked screen (even tape-coated). I do suggest covering a shattered screen with tape to hold all the bits together but you are still going to have a hard time cleaning the adhesive up. You can always buy a frame with digitizer pre-installed but I know a lot of you want to buy complete replacement housings instead and it's kind of a waste, but at least you don't need to worry about that adhesive (still: don't forget to transfer the other bits!).
The digitizer parts I've salvaged from phones had higher version numbers than the ones I've seen sold as replacement parts and seemed to be more erratic so I prefer salvaged ones. There can be other problems as well. The flat flex cable from the digitizer is supposed to have an adhesive backing that holds it still where it connects to the tiny cable from the earpiece. Replacements often do not have it, which is yet ANOTHER reason to prefer salvage parts. It may not seem like such a big deal considering that there is a black plastic piece screwed down over it to protect it from getting caught in the mechanism, but the connector does not hold on very well and the phone will not boot if it is slightly out of alignment. If you reassemble it and just get a buzz from the vibration motor with no display and no other sign of booting, check this connection (same thing if the digitizer suddenly stops registering touch). Even a small drop/impact will cause it to happen again, so I recommend securing it with precisely cut tape or hot glue (stay clear of the sliding rails).
Now, keep it clean while you work or you will be staring at that contaminate or thumbprint for a long time. I usually wear fresh latex gloves when working on the glass but it doesn't do much good if you keep transferring oils from the rest of the phone. Wash your hands right before you start and clean the outside of the phone. Before you begin, try just touch a used dish soap dispenser with a damp thumb and run all along to screen except the buttons and earpiece. Do it again with just the damp thumb (dilutes the soap that remained from the first pass) and wipe it with a clean lint-free cloth. Your own clean and dry fingertips/palm should readily absorb any remaining streaks/oils. Be sure to wipe down the rest of the phone too and don't transfer it back to the glass. Once inside I use layer after layer of clear tape to lift gunk from the earpiece (no mesh, remember?). Put on new gloves before you start handling the glass after disassembly, even if you were wearing some for disassembly. To clean the back of the glass I put the adhesive between wax paper while I clean using lint-free cloths, 90+% alcohol, and acetone. For the LCD, use tape to lift most contaminates and resort to alcohol + lint-free cloth if that doesn't work. It doesn't need to be too perfect, especially if scratched from cracked glass. Most imperfections only show when it's off.
Hot glue is great for removing adhesive screw covers without showing pick marks or other signs of tampering but you have to make sure to leave an edge exposed so that you aren't just picking it out of the glue instead. I've been getting mine off cleanly without any tricks like this but it came in handy when I was first disassembling one and there weren't any guides to tell me that there weren't screws under the large silver strip (just covers rivets or injections mold points, IIRC). It's also good for sealing off water sensors, like the one you see through a hole under the battery door. There's another one by the contacts on the battery itself, one by the microphone under the gamepad, and one in the opposite corner under the PS Certified logo. I had an AT&T rep tell me that a brand new phone had a tripped water sensor (LIES!) so I would look for ways to do this with most any new phone.
I can't count how many times I've left the power button out while reassembling. It's not usually that I forgot: It's that it falls out while snapping the back on. I've left the face buttons out a few times too.
My first one had the cable folded wrong after reassembly. It still worked fine for a couple years but did eventually require replacement. Once it folds wrong it'll probably stay that way even after correct reassembly (like mine did). Do not try to attach it to the main PCB using a spudger, butterknife, or whatever to awkwardly push the connector down with everything pulled apart. The only thing you need to do is to slide the cable into the phone's closed position, align the plastic posts on the connector with the corresponding holes on the PCB, and then push down on the PCB until it snaps. I'm sure I tried this first back then but chickened out because the connector didn't snap very easily but that is how you are supposed to do it.
Before I talk about the replacing the slide cable, I want to express my annoyance at all the eBay/YouTube/iFixIt.com people who call it a "flex cable." I don't like the term flex cable because generally ALL cables should be flexible and that doesn't distinguish what it is well enough for people looking for the part. Technically, it's a flat cable or a slide cable, though I wouldn't object to it being called a flex PCB (flex PCBs usually have components other than just connectors like a rigid printed circuit board would). "Flex cable" is silly, redundant, and does not describe anything more specific than just "cable." To complicate matters, there are several actual flex PCBs in this phone to distinguish from when ordering the part. Why did so many people start calling flex PCBs "flex cables" in the first place?! In our case the sliding portion is a *flat* cable, so I can see where "cable" was introduced from, but people say "flex cable" for any flat cable made like a flex PCB these days whether fixed or sliding. At least you know now that you are probably going to have to use the incorrect terminology to find what you want online and sift through many useless results.
*whew*
Now, slide cable replacement is easier than it would seem but intact removal isn't and brand new replacements can be defective. It was a troubleshooting nightmare when I encountered a defective one because I replaced the LCD and glass + digitizer at the same time and suspected/checked everything else first, even taking apart my personal phone multiple times to test parts. The plastic part of the connector on the PCB end must be transferred to the new cable and the old one will not reliably stick back down to it even if you did not contaminate the adhesive. I successfully transferred a cable from a water-damaged phone to my personal phone before fixing up the water-damaged donor phone with a new one, so the adhesive on the salvaged part was weak and I didn't realize how hard it was to remove intact until later. When separating the defective new one there was seemingly no place to pry on one end other than underneath the part where the earpiece/camera connector was located. This broke the side of the connector that holds the locking flap though I was still able to use/lock it. I claimed warranty on the defective part anyway because the connector was not needed for proving the cable was defective (a functional cable works with that connector populated or not). This new part was slightly different from those found originally installed in the phone (different colored plastic connectors and such). The second new one I ordered from elsewhere had double-sided adhesive down the middle, a foil quality control sticker, and the same odd connector colors. I didn't think there was a market for replica parts on this phone but it does seem like more than simple factory revisions. Anyway, removing it involves removing metallic tape then lifting a plate that is still adhered underneath with amber-colored Kapton tape. You can see it from the slide mechanism below. I pinch the plate from above and below with two fingers and lift, gradually peeling the tape which I then fold inside and secure to avoid contaminating the adhesive. The cable has a plastic band across it that fits between fingers on this plate. When secured, this isolates the end with multiple connectors from the movement of the sliding portion, so make sure this is in place when reinstalling. It may be best to avoid removing the adhesive backing paper until after the plate and cable are securely taped back down with both the Kapton and metallic tape while the fingers are holding it in position. If you stick it down first and then secure the plate you may find it slightly too long or short to position inside the plate when securing it all back down. To thread the main connector through the slide board opening it may seem that it will only fit by folding the cable but DON'T! Coil it. Without flattening it, bend the connector 90-degrees over from the cable path and then adjust the angle until you have a coil-shape that you can work through with the connector sideways.
I ordered a "no useable parts" dummy phone just for the heck of it and, other than the Sony Ericsson logo on the fake battery door and maybe the stickers that cover the screws, they really don't have any salvageable parts. You can't swap any buttons, keys, springs, covers, etc into a real phone. The closest would be the face buttons. They will fit in a real phone, but they are too tall and put constant pressure on the PCB switches causing unintended key-presses (especially back and search buttons). The extra height easily protrudes out the top and is not the issue so filing them down vertically won't fix anything. I snipped some excess rubber to more closely match the design of the original buttons but it didn't help. I unscrewed the screw in the corner under the search key and unsnapped the bottom edge of the frame from the back/slide board and they work great until the phone inevitably snaps back together. I'd say they felt better then the original with the extra height (I can't stand how close they are to the screen). It's tolerable with ICS/JB's Navigation Bar (on-screen key functions), but I would rather salvage real buttons or pay too much for the eBay ones ($10-$20; very uncommon part; always sold with crap you probably don't need).
I have yet to find a replacement battery door that includes the rubber trim around the speakers and the foam piece surrounding the rear/noise-canceling microphone. I've ordered a few auctions that show them in the pictures but they always arrive bare. You can transfer them with a razor but it likely won't be perfect. Without them the speaker audio will probably echo around inside the battery compartment and make its way into the mic, though people usually don't notice it. Painting on some Plasti-Dip might do the trick, so try that if it bothers you.
Unlike an iPhone with a million different screws, you don't have to keep track of what goes where and everything is easily accessible. Bare minimum to take it all apart: Some fingernails, a T5 or T6 (pick one) and a PH0, 00, or 000 Phillips (pick one). There don't seem to be any tamper/warranty seals and the only concealed screws are the two obvious ones underneath metallic cover stickers on the display/slide board. There are no screws under tape or labels and no water sensors covering them either. All 6 Phillips screws are the same size but you'll likely want to keep the two with adhesive in their original holes to re-use the covers (adhesive usually remains on the screw instead of the cover). There are only two different Torx screw types but it's obvious what goes where (6 stubby flat ones on the top and bottom, 7 long thin ones around the battery area).
There are bits and bobs taped to and embedded in the rear housing including antenna/RF stuff, some more obvious that others. I've compared and the R800x is very different from the R800at even though the plastic frame looks really similar (R800x has a blocked SIM slot, of course). IMO, any housing swap should be limited to the front frame, the gamepad, and the battery door (only colored parts anyway). If you nicked your chrome, hopefully it was on a button or something that can be swapped (springs are a pain). It may be possible to transfer everything but I wouldn't trust it after all the peeling and picking. The one report I've seen of someone transferring between a GSM/CDMA models seems blissfully unaware of the metal wire behind the volume keys on the CDMA model that isn't there on GSM (at least it's not there on my R800at GSM).
That's all my advice for now. If you are having any trouble, let me know.
Excellent guide, thank you for taking the time to type this up. I think a mod should sticky this.....
Awesome guide! Thanks much for it!
@ozzmanj1 Agree, so more people will notice it.
Thanks for help buddy!!!
As for the case of the digitizer, mine has some parts (lower left) that are not recognizing touch inputs. Will realigning the digitizer cable help? I' d really not want to buy a new one right now as I am quite on a tight budget. Please help. Totally in distress here with my very sickly Play.
So, first I want to say thanks for this post as it's been invaluable in my working on my own XP.
I'm in the process of changing out the LCD and slide cable and am wondering about versions of the phone and compatibility. On Ebay I'm finding lots of parts listed as being for R800i\R800x\R800a. Very few parts are listed for R800at (which is what I have)
In changing out parts (anything hardware related) what parts are interchangeable and what parts are not? Anyone able to help?
Right now I'm looking at LCD screen and slide cable, but in the future I would like to change out the digitizer (I read the other page about having to possibly roll back to a different kernel) and perhaps other inner workings of the phone as well. I would just like to know what I can use from other models of the XP and what are model specific.
Thanks!
Arevyn said:
So, first I want to say thanks for this post as it's been invaluable in my working on my own XP.
I'm in the process of changing out the LCD and slide cable and am wondering about versions of the phone and compatibility. On Ebay I'm finding lots of parts listed as being for R800i\R800x\R800a. Very few parts are listed for R800at (which is what I have)
In changing out parts (anything hardware related) what parts are interchangeable and what parts are not? Anyone able to help?
Right now I'm looking at LCD screen and slide cable, but in the future I would like to change out the digitizer (I read the other page about having to possibly roll back to a different kernel) and perhaps other inner workings of the phone as well. I would just like to know what I can use from other models of the XP and what are model specific.
Thanks!
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Just about everything but the chrome back housing is a simple swap. LCD, slide cable, digitizer, camera/earpiece, face buttons, game pad, slide board, front frame, camera, headphone jack, etc. The only parts tied together for compatability are the motherboard and the chrome back housing and that is because it has all the antennas installed in it. It's probably possible to move all the components but I've never even had to take the speakers out and can't speak to the difficulty or possibility for certain. I'm worried that lifting the adhesive films would damiage the antennas inside. As I mentioned in the OP, there are other little parts to move when you compare the two and note the differences. Good luck!
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CZroe said:
Just about everything but the chrome back housing is a simple swap. LCD, slide cable, digitizer, camera/earpiece, face buttons, game pad, slide board, front frame, camera, headphone jack, etc. The only parts tied together for compatability are the motherboard and the chrome back housing and that is because it has all the antennas installed in it. It's probably possible to move all the components but I've never even had to take the speakers out and can't speak to the difficulty or possibility for certain. I'm worried that lifting the adhesive films would damiage the antennas inside. As I mentioned in the OP, there are other little parts to move when you compare the two and note the differences. Good luck!
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
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Awesome! Thanks so much.
---------- Post added at 06:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:11 PM ----------
CZroe said:
Just about everything but the chrome back housing is a simple swap. LCD, slide cable, digitizer, camera/earpiece, face buttons, game pad, slide board, front frame, camera, headphone jack, etc. The only parts tied together for compatability are the motherboard and the chrome back housing and that is because it has all the antennas installed in it. It's probably possible to move all the components but I've never even had to take the speakers out and can't speak to the difficulty or possibility for certain. I'm worried that lifting the adhesive films would damiage the antennas inside. As I mentioned in the OP, there are other little parts to move when you compare the two and note the differences. Good luck!
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
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Have you noticed a difference in an LCD screen with a green cable vs one with an orange cable? I have an orange one in mine, and wasnt sure if its a different part, or just a different batch of screens
Arevyn said:
Awesome! Thanks so much.
---------- Post added at 06:55 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:11 PM ----------
Have you noticed a difference in an LCD screen with a green cable vs one with an orange cable? I have an orange one in mine, and wasnt sure if its a different part, or just a different batch of screens
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I am color blind and never took notice but I switched LCD between R800i, R800x, and R800at and they were all compatible. They have no reason to make anything in that half of the phone different, so they don't.
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narflynn619 said:
As for the case of the digitizer, mine has some parts (lower left) that are not recognizing touch inputs. Will realigning the digitizer cable help? I' d really not want to buy a new one right now as I am quite on a tight budget. Please help. Totally in distress here with my very sickly Play.
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Hey, I've also experience same problems as yours... I just wonder is it the flex cable or digitizer....
matfai said:
Hey, I've also experience same problems as yours... I just wonder is it the flex cable or digitizer....
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If only some areas are responsive then I'm pretty sure it's the digitizer. The IC likely encodes the output so that all the raw connections don't need to be extended over the slide cable. IOW, the pins that carry digitizer data probably carry encoded data so that it's fewer pins. This means it would work either all or not at all if the slide cable had anything to do with it.
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CZroe said:
If only some areas are responsive then I'm pretty sure it's the digitizer. The IC likely encodes the output so that all the raw connections don't need to be extended over the slide cable. IOW, the pins that carry digitizer data probably carry encoded data so that it's fewer pins. This means it would work either all or not at all if the slide cable had anything to do with it.
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Thanks for reply... So, do I have to replace the digitizer or just realigning the cable will help?
matfai said:
Thanks for reply... So, do I have to replace the digitizer or just realigning the cable will help?
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In my experience, cable alignment has also been an all or nothing issue so you probably need to replace the digitizer. It couldn't hurt to realign the digitizer cable first just in case it can avoid an unnecessary expense. That fixed a Cubot C9+ I worked on Saturday (digitizer not working at all) but not the iPhone 4S I worked on yesterday (bottom row of digitizer not responding).
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stuck in safe mode after replace slider cable(flex)
Hi i'm writing here in hopes you can help me, i bought and replaced the "flex cable" and it kinda worked, somehow it can only boot in safe mode and back, home and menu buttons on the front is unresponsive (i can use joypad though) i've tried opening it up again to check for loose connectors and i even tried disconnect the cable to the front buttons but safe mode persists, i tried to flash several official ftf images and a custom rom to see if it helped, but also without any luck.
I hope that you can help me.
Thx for a nice indepth post
docsmiley said:
Hi i'm writing here in hopes you can help me, i bought and replaced the "flex cable" and it kinda worked, somehow it can only boot in safe mode and back, home and menu buttons on the front is unresponsive (i can use joypad though) i've tried opening it up again to check for loose connectors and i even tried disconnect the cable to the front buttons but safe mode persists, i tried to flash several official ftf images and a custom rom to see if it helped, but also without any luck.
I hope that you can help me.
Thx for a nice indepth post
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Click to collapse
If you are booting in safe mode, that "menu" button is always pressed. My guess is faulty/damaged flex cable. You can try your old flex cable and see can you enter flash/fastboot mode (test to see is back and search button is working)
Bakisha said:
If you are booting in safe mode, that "menu" button is always pressed. My guess is faulty/damaged flex cable. You can try your old flex cable and see can you enter flash/fastboot mode (test to see is back and search button is working)
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Search button is working as intended (also when booted into safe mode) and i can enter flash mode with back button and flash ftf files, back button is just not functional when booted (only on joypad).
I also figured it had to be the flex cable but i thought i was so carefull when mounting it so i didn't thought i damaged it.
The old flex cable didn't give any picture at all, so can't see if it boots into safe mode with that.
docsmiley said:
Search button is working as intended (also when booted into safe mode) and i can enter flash mode with back button and flash ftf files, back button is just not functional when booted (only on joypad).
I also figured it had to be the flex cable but i thought i was so carefull when mounting it so i didn't thought i damaged it.
The old flex cable didn't give any picture at all, so can't see if it boots into safe mode with that.
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I have received a defective flex cable before so it's possible you have also. In my case it didn't work at all (no picture).
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Thanks for your replies I'll see if I can get it replaced
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slide flex replacement
hi, its my second time replacing the slide flex cable of my r800i, however this time, my digitizer is unresponsive to the flex i bought, i bought it in the same store where i bought the first one which was perfectly fine before,
my question is does the slide flex cable of xperia play 4G differs to the slide flex cable of the old one xperia play r800i,
dashu31 said:
hi, its my second time replacing the slide flex cable of my r800i, however this time, my digitizer is unresponsive to the flex i bought, i bought it in the same store where i bought the first one which was perfectly fine before,
my question is does the slide flex cable of xperia play 4G differs to the slide flex cable of the old one xperia play r800i,
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They are the same. I have also switched then between a "4G" R800at and a R800x. I have also received bad digitizer flex cables that were new. It really is luck of the draw. A lot of replacement parts on eBay are factory seconds, which may have been removed from the production line for good reason. That's why I always order parts in sets of two for anything I know I will need in the future and I always test both. For example, recently I got two iPhone 4S screens and one had the frame installed upside down. Before that I ordered two replacement iPhone 4 30-pin dock replacements and one had a defective microphone. Before that I ordered two iPod touch 2G digitizer/frame assemblies and one didn't work along the left side.
Here I am identifying a couple bad iPhone displays from a lot:
http://youtu.be/TbxzCiGhwPM
I didn't own an iPhone so I had to test them all with the phone the first customer provided.
Edit: Oh! And make sure the problem is not with the digitizer connection under the black plastic cover. Mine works it's way loose all the time and needs to be secured with tape. Even when inserted fully straight and locked, I put it together and find it not working or the display black until I take it back apart and reseat it. It will twist slightly and even the slightest angle affects the connection.