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 ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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
Hit post #11 for a walkthrough on replacing the earpiece.
Funny but kinda looking for serious replies as it is quite important
Nokia AAC-0510 seems working. (Chinese) http://www.itfunz.com/thread-84490-1-1.html
Somewhere on this forum is a link to a Russian blogger who pulled one apart and (apparently) swapped out speakers.
post #157
Just to report back i received the k850i earpiece today and successfully replaced it with the original one from the Defy, works perfectly and no modding at all except flattening the terminals slightly, its a very snug fit but is working fine and is much clearer than the original one in terms of call quality. Maybe the mods could sticky this or something incase anyone else has the earpiece problem. Total cost of repair £1.99 for earpiece and about 30minutes of my time !! much better than sending to motorolla for weeks on end in my opinion.
Cheers
Wizard123
That is great info to know! I am more confident in getting a Defy now knowing I can fix it on my own.
Any guide with pictures for us?
well done wizard123
i hope i will never have to do what you did with your speaker but... who knows?
yes a detailed guide with picture and tools-to-use would be a nice idea - really useful for all the people who void the warranty
A quick question...
What's the waterproofing situation like? Is there a membrane between the earpiece and the outside world or is it built into the Defy earpiece?
No problem guys, i hope you never have the issues but i know it did hit alot of people including me and motorolla claim mines was out of warranty being only 3 months old ?! but hey i dont have time to argue or mess about as i need my phone.
I will try to get some pictures up but in the meantime follow these steps it is so so simple :
1. Remove battery & SIM card
2. Remove the 7 screws from around the phone casing and the 2 silver screws underneath the back cover. ( You will need very small torx bits )
3. Separate the two halfs of the casing, ( very stiff and fiddly but dont be affraid to use a little force )
4. Carefully lift off the 2 connectors on the main PCB board and lift it out ( careful not to lose the yellow rubber washers )
5. Use a small pair of pliers or long nosed pliers to gently grib either side of the earpiece and slowly wiggle side to side untill it comes loose and lifts out ( This takes patience as it is very well glued in but does free off )
6. Take your new K850i earpiece and place into the slot with the two springy copper terminals facing up towards the top of the phone ( you dont HAVE to but i did flatten the terminals a little bit so not to bend the PCB board when you place it back in ) having the springy terminals on these earpieces placed the correct way up creates a very solid connection to the board too unlike the original earpieces which dont have any at all just flat terminals.
7. Return the PCB board back into position and reattach the 2 connectors removed in step 4.
8. Return the casing back into place and install all the screws ( dont forget the 2 SILVER screws FIRST, these hold the PCB board down to the casing and hold the connection solid to the earpiece )
9. Place SIM card and battery back in and boot up your fresh earpieced Defy
Pictures to follow soon hopefully
Cheers
Wizard123
*EDIT*
Have attached some pictures to reference, hope they help
technome said:
A quick question...
What's the waterproofing situation like? Is there a membrane between the earpiece and the outside world or is it built into the Defy earpiece?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There IS a tiny tiny membrane between the earpiece and the casing and does appear that it would still be waterproof but i have yet to test that and not sure if i will as it is a BIG BIG risk lol ( maybe though hmmm )
Thanks for that.
So the membrane stayed with the handset casing through the procedure?
wizard123 said:
*snip*
having the springy terminals on these earpieces placed the correct way up creates a very solid connection to the board too unlike the original earpieces which dont have any at all just flat terminals.
*snip*
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's interesting. Maybe the failures are caused by poor connections in the first place. Perhaps a pre-emptive strike with some electrically conductive paint would save the day. It's claimed to function as an adhesive.
http(remove this bit)://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE-SILVER-PAINT-PINTURA-CONDUTORA-/110660756415?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&hash=item19c3e523bf#ht_1850wt_1062
wizard123 said:
No problem guys, i hope you never have the issues but i know it did hit alot of people including me and motorolla claim mines was out of warranty being only 3 months old ?! but hey i dont have time to argue or mess about as i need my phone.
I will try to get some pictures up but in the meantime follow these steps it is so so simple :
1. Remove battery & SIM card
2. Remove the 7 screws from around the phone casing and the 2 silver screws underneath the back cover. ( You will need very small torx bits )
3. Separate the two halfs of the casing, ( very stiff and fiddly but dont be affraid to use a little force )
4. Carefully lift off the 2 connectors on the main PCB board and lift it out ( careful not to lose the yellow rubber washers )
5. Use a small pair of pliers or long nosed pliers to gently grib either side of the earpiece and slowly wiggle side to side untill it comes loose and lifts out ( This takes patience as it is very well glued in but does free off )
6. Take your new K850i earpiece and place into the slot with the two springy copper terminals facing up towards the top of the phone ( you dont HAVE to but i did flatten the terminals a little bit so not to bend the PCB board when you place it back in ) having the springy terminals on these earpieces placed the correct way up creates a very solid connection to the board too unlike the original earpieces which dont have any at all just flat terminals.
7. Return the PCB board back into position and reattach the 2 connectors removed in step 4.
8. Return the casing back into place and install all the screws ( dont forget the 2 SILVER screws FIRST, these hold the PCB board down to the casing and hold the connection solid to the earpiece )
9. Place SIM card and battery back in and boot up your fresh earpieced Defy
Pictures to follow soon hopefully
Cheers
Wizard123
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great guide there - may well help quite a few people
technome said:
Thanks for that.
So the membrane stayed with the handset casing through the procedure?
That's interesting. Maybe the failures are caused by poor connections in the first place. Perhaps a pre-emptive strike with some electrically conductive paint would save the day. It's claimed to function as an adhesive.
http(remove this bit)://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ELECTRICALLY-CONDUCTIVE-SILVER-PAINT-PINTURA-CONDUTORA-/110660756415?pt=UK_BOI_Electrical_Components_Supplies_ET&hash=item19c3e523bf#ht_1850wt_1062
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes only the earpiece came away from the casing using the method i applied but again i can't swear by the membrane as it could possibly be different with other variants of the phone ( although i doubt it ).
And plus for me atleast, i'd rather have a working phone than a waterproof phone ( just me though )
I am nearly certain its an actual defect with the earpieces because if you blow the earpiece with some canned air it will function for 5-10 seconds before going off again.
I do think there may be a problem with both the connections and earpieces though as the way the oem connections are designed in the Defy for the earpiece contacts are piss poor, excuse my french lol.
Well, I'm sending my Defy in for repair today, after my earpiece started playing-up intermittently over the weekend. I tried to insist on a replacement but Motorola's support team were adamant that a repair is my only option under the terms of my warranty. Ah, well. I've got a spare phone.
That said, I will likely "paint" the earpiece connections upon its return and it's good to know that the K850i part works. I may buy a couple as a precaution.
technome said:
Well, I'm sending my Defy in for repair today, after my earpiece started playing-up intermittently over the weekend. I tried to insist on a replacement but Motorola's support team were adamant that a repair is my only option under the terms of my warranty. Ah, well. I've got a spare phone.
That said, I will likely "paint" the earpiece connections upon its return and it's good to know that the K850i part works. I may buy a couple as a precaution.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sucks man sorry to hear that, it seems to be not if it will happen but when it will happen with these earpieces, yep motorola sucks for customer support to be fair. I hope your phone comes back ok though, alot of people have had it repair only for it to fail again a few weeks later.
Can I just double check which seller you got yours from as I've had a look on ebay & the three that are for sale look different styles - unless the pics are not of actual items?
Cheers
sp8y said:
Can I just double check which seller you got yours from as I've had a look on ebay & the three that are for sale look different styles - unless the pics are not of actual items?
Cheers
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The actual one i used is this one :
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=300370841729&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT
There is an actual motorola one that has the same terminals as the original but ( my opinion i would not trust another earpiece from them ) :
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=220640434368&ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT
I wouldnt worry too much if they look slightly different aslong as they are for the k850i as it will most likely be because they are from different manufacturers
Hope that helps
That's great thanks very much
Might just order one to keep as you never know when it'll stop working.
I had my earpiece replaced by the company, you should really send it to motorola and don't mess around with the device.
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?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
there's a thread about it in the general section. since I'm nice here's the linkclick here
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!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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
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
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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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Click to collapse
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
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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.
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
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.
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
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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
Click to expand...
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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Click to collapse
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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Click to collapse
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.
Just replaced the screen on my Oneplus 3, and everything works fine except that the phone gets insanely hot (easily 50C on the outside of the back cover) when the back cover is on. When I removed the back cover however all parts of the phone are cool to the touch when it is powered on. Anyone know why this might be? Is the back cover shorting something out perhaps?
Freddieboy said:
Just replaced the screen on my Oneplus 3, and everything works fine except that the phone gets insanely hot (easily 50C on the outside of the back cover) when the back cover is on. When I removed the back cover however all parts of the phone are cool to the touch when it is powered on. Anyone know why this might be? Is the back cover shorting something out perhaps?
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Click to collapse
Since the covers are not metallic, I don't think so. But it is possible that the cover is compressing an area on the phone which leads to a short circuit.
Try a softer cover like a TPU.
tnsmani said:
Since the covers are not metallic, I don't think so. But it is possible that the cover is compressing an area on the phone which leads to a short circuit.
Try a softer cover like a TPU.
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Click to collapse
Im not talking about a case, I'm talking about the actual aluminum back cover of the phone.
Freddieboy said:
Im not talking about a case, I'm talking about the actual aluminum back cover of the phone.
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Sorry for the misunderstanding. Obviously, it is the positioning of the internal components (which should have been disturbed in your case) that cause the short circuit when the back cover is put on.
If the screen was replaced by a technician, it is better to take it to him. If you did it yourself, try troubleshooting with all the exposed components on the back.
tnsmani said:
Sorry for the misunderstanding. Obviously, it is the positioning of the internal components (which should have been disturbed in your case) that cause the short circuit when the back cover is put on.
If the screen was replaced by a technician, it is better to take it to him. If you did it yourself, try troubleshooting with all the exposed components on the back.
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Click to collapse
Yeah, I managed to fix it by putting electrical tape over some of the connections (likely used for antenna reception) which lead from the motherboard to the case. Now it is just a matter of trial and error to find which of these pins are causing the problem. I seem to have blocked the connection from the Bluetooth antenna though as the connection is really weak now, but that is a very easy fix
Freddieboy said:
Yeah, I managed to fix it by putting electrical tape over some of the connections (likely used for antenna reception) which lead from the motherboard to the case. Now it is just a matter of trial and error to find which of these pins are causing the problem. I seem to have blocked the connection from the Bluetooth antenna though as the connection is really weak now, but that is a very easy fix
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Click to collapse
I have the same problem. Could I ask what antennas/parts you put the tape over?
bhupinder2001 said:
I have the same problem. Could I ask what antennas/parts you put the tape over?
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You'll most likely either have fixed it by now, or thrown the phone out the window, but hey!
Mine was sort of fixed, but the touch was still acting up so I sold it as "not working" and bought a new one. Can't remember which pins I put tape over, but I assume they wouldn't be the same for two people anyway. It seemed really random to me at the time.