Develop Bugs

Loose connection using micro-usb connection lead

I've noticed that the connection using the micro usb cable is not snug, if I apply slight leverage to it the charge/connection is lost.
Im a bit dissapointed because I have certainly not pulled on the lead/dropped the device while attached or anything else that might have buggered the plug.
Is there any way I can make the connection snug again, or is this typical for all other devices too.
If this does turn into someting more problematic what are my steps to get it fixed, I brought this phone as an orange locked unwanted upgrade from ebay. fully boxed and sealed. (i.e. new)
Im a bit annoyed because the micro-usb plug is supposed to be more robust than the mini-usb. but to my eyes that not the case, and has proven to be not true either.

I have this issue too. Interested to see if it's a common flaw.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App

Same problem here. Just got it yesterday. The loose connection is very annoying in that you cannot be sure you left in a charging state unless you unlock it and check the screen. I wonder if it supposed to be that way?
After having posted this, I realize that the thread is not for my phone, a Samsung Captivate. I trusted Google search a little too much I guess. Interesting that the problem is the same.

Same here.
Xperia X10 with a loose connection that got much worse with time. I don't expect a fix for a hardware issue, but I am taking it back to the store for a replacement. The problem is that it has gotten so bad that I can't maintain a connection long enough to get my data!! Not pleased

Jamescousins said:
I have this issue too. Interested to see if it's a common flaw.
Sent from my HTC Desire using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
me 3. another thread here t=689367 and here t=692242 (wont let me post full url as noob)
May have to return to T-mobile as its really annoying

I have the Captivate, and I had to exchange mine for one that did not do this.

Yep I started getting this problem a few days ago. Pissing me right off.

can someone tell me if the Samsung captivate and Xperia X10 both have micro-B USB ports also ?

Micro USB Sucks
I have the HTC Incredible and whenever its plugged into my PC you can tell by the audibles (and by HTC Sync failing 1/2 the time) that it keeps disconnecting and reconnecting - especially if you lift the phone or move the cable. So I was just as surprised to hear the MicroUSB was supposed to fix some of the wear and tear issues of MiniUSB - which is just untrue!!!

My HD2 has a loose connection
http://app1.appserver.dk:8080/RepairPictures/servlet/getPic?id=51371
<-- This is the chip. And HTC wont repair it. They say it's my own fault? :S

I've got this problem too with my desire and realised it's the cable. I got my desire on the release date (had it preordered) and the plug on the cable is smooth on all sides so it slips in and outu the phone easily. However, my girlfriend got a desire 2 weeks ago, and the micro-USB plug on her cable has two little spring loaded bumps on it, which gives it a positive "click" when it's plugged into the phone and it takes a lot more force to remove it.
Hence I stole her cable

My cappy too
This problem is happening, albeit not as seriously as some of yours, to my cappy now. I have had it for just under a year now. Looking back I could have been a little gentler with it...
Running Teamhacksung's ICS Build 9.

I've got the same issue - turns out that it's the cable more than anything, as when I plug the in-car charger one (a different cable) in, everything worked perfectly.

terrible design
Every device I or my wife has that is micro USB has charging issues. The design in a laboratory is supposed to get 10,000 cycles. But our experience is that a device after 6 months starts to have issues. Finally after a year about every device must be replace as the charging port is so loose that not even the highest quality cables will stay seated well enough to guarantee a charge or data connectivity. Very disappointed that EVERY phone uses this. Well other than Apple, which I may just have to go to since I cannot afford new phones constantly. The wireless companies KNOW it is a flaw in the design of the port also. Not a one of them will warranty the phone if the issue is the charging port. I am talking clean ports here also. No lint or anything.
Down with micro USB

lukester01 said:
Every device I or my wife has that is micro USB has charging issues. The design in a laboratory is supposed to get 10,000 cycles. But our experience is that a device after 6 months starts to have issues. Finally after a year about every device must be replace as the charging port is so loose that not even the highest quality cables will stay seated well enough to guarantee a charge or data connectivity. Very disappointed that EVERY phone uses this. Well other than Apple, which I may just have to go to since I cannot afford new phones constantly. The wireless companies KNOW it is a flaw in the design of the port also. Not a one of them will warranty the phone if the issue is the charging port. I am talking clean ports here also. No lint or anything.
Down with micro USB
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree, micro USB is horribly unreliable across all brands. Too bad I absolutely loathe iOS, because I would consider getting an iPhone if I could run Android on it. Hopefully USB Type-C will be better.

5 data points and a question
First, additioanal data points:
I've had 2 different devices with micro usb connectors and both failed within 3 days of beginning to use them. I can't swear it was the female socket that was damaged but that was my impression. The prongs on the male connector were NOT flattened. I looked for that.
I had another device, a Nook Color I believe it was called, that had a usb charging/data connector that was their own slightly modified design of one of the usb standards. I can't swear whether it was a modified mini or a modified micro but I think it was a modified micro. Anyway the socket was a little deeper than the standard. The idea was that if you plugged in a standard male connector it worked the same way as a standard socket but if you plugged in the longer Nook male connector it went in deeper (I'm straining to refrain from low humor here), additional contacts came into play and it would charge faster. In the Nook case it was definitely the male connector that would break. I replaced the charger twice before the Nook failed for other reasons (I suspect a cat baptised it). If you search the net you'll find a lot of people had the same problem.
So in my case micro-usb is either 2 for 0 if you don't count the Nook, 3 for 0 if you count the Nook once, or maybe 5 for 1 if you count the Nook replacement chargers and charitably assume the last one would have worked for a while if the cat hadn't scented it.
I've NEVER had a problem with large, plain, standard, type A rectangular connectors. I think the idea that the mini is too big is one only Madison Avenue types could come up with. Even the standard type A isn't really too big. After all, how big is a thumb drive? I suspect it has more to do with making it a wee bit cheaper than making it smaller.
So yeah, micro-usb just plain sucks. Assuming Frank's posts in this thread at stack exchange:
electronics.stackexchange dotcom /questions/18552/why-was-mini-usb-deprecated-in-favor-of-micro-usb
aren't fraudulent, Nokia pressured the USB Implementers Forum to accept the micro standard, implicitly against the better judgement of some people involved. I'm therefore inclined to never buy a Nokia anything.
So much for the problem. I'm thinking about workarounds because there is a tablet I'd really like to use that charges through a female micro usb port. If I can't charge the battery it's useless. So I'd appreciate comments regarding the feasbility of these alternatives:
WORKAROUND # 1:
Carefully insert a male-micro-usb-X-female-standard-type-A adaptor into the device and glue them both to a piece of waterproofed luon (very light plywood) and then connect with a cable that has male standard full size rectangular type A connectors at BOTH ends. I've never had any problem with the standard full sized type A and they are easy to replace if I do. Though both adaptors and cables as described, are readily available, it is said that the maleXmale cables can damage equipment in some cases and I'm don't know enough to be sure this is not one of those cases.
WORKAROUND #2:
Alternately I could just glue the micro end of the kind of cable that comes with such devices to the luon and leave the rest of the cable dangling. Downside: Messy dangling cable. Upside: I KNOW it is safe.
Any thoughts on these workarounds would be appreciated.

[Q] Inductive Case

verizonwireless.com/b2c/store/accessory?action=accessoryDetails&accessoryId=47423
Looks to be a new Inductive case. Sorry but what is the point exactly to charge "wirelessly" like this when the phone is still having to be placed on a station?

because some people can't be bothered to plug in a cable to charge their phones. It just means the phone will charge if you put it down on the charge pad.

I work in a vzw retail store and one of the #1 problems I see in phones 2+ years old is the charging port is worn out and the phone can no longer charge. Although this can be mitigated slightly by simply being careful, no matter what you do every time you plug in there's a chance you could bend a pin, bend the end of your charger, or ream out the port. (happened to my old droid 2)
Wireless charging means no physical wear and tear in the charging port except when using data cable.

I like the idea of just putting my phone on a pad to charge. This would be great at work where I occasionally check on my phone and can just toss it back on the pad. I've definitely noticed how annoying it is to hold the phone while a cable is connected. It isn't anything that'd make me want to throw my phone against the wall, but annoying enough that I notice it.
My only gripe about the cover is that it adds that little bump on the back.

Now what would be awesome is if the inductive field were strong enough to actually charge the phone while it's standing up on the kick-stand. That would mitigate the annoying location of the usb port in terms of not being able to charge while watching videos in landscape mode.
mcmillanje said:
I work in a vzw retail store and one of the #1 problems I see in phones 2+ years old is the charging port is worn out and the phone can no longer charge.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fair enough, but how many people keep their phone 2+years? Of all my friends, there's only one of them that has so far, since moving to smartphones.
l7777 said:
because some people can't be bothered to plug in a cable to charge their phones. It just means the phone will charge if you put it down on the charge pad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the charging pad is large enough, and you have multiple devices, there's the advantage of not having to have a separate plug/cable for each device.

inductive charging is awesome, can't wait til they figure out a way for it to charge while it's in my back pocket off my butt's voltage

Need some input!

Didn't know whether to put this in General or Accessories.
I have been toying with the idea to make something for the HTC one, really would be compatible with most all android phones. I don't have a tablet as it's an awkward device to use most of the time. Doesn't type too well and they tend to be more breakable than I would like. Now as some of you will point out something like this has existed before, although I didn't even know about it till recently.
The Atrix. Basically it was a phone that could plug into a laptop, "shell" and be the core for the laptop. Kinda like a portable bigger screen and a mechanical keyboard and track pad for mouse.
Now I want to do the same thing for the HTC One (m7). Mine is fully rooted and uses the Version 31 HD Rom.
I know most of you who know anything about the phone there are a few ways to go about this.
1. MHL - HDMI - LCD Controller Board - Video
Bluetooth'd USB Hub - Input (I have a plan drawn up on creating my own Bluetooth setup to do this.)
2. NFC for all Video / Input: I have done some research into the NFC field and from what I understand it has a very high data throughput, but I would have to make a custom Android program as well as a custom receiver set-up.
3. Design and program a 11 pin micro usb connector to connect in place of the micro usb connector that is in the phone. This would also require a special program to utilize.
In all cases I will use a power control board that will work both off battery and the wall. The easiest of them all will be number one. For the other it would take me substantially longer to learn what I need to make them happen. Also the benefits of number one would be having extra usb ports past just the keyboard and track pad.
What do you guys think? For my life style and job it would be the ultimate machine. My current laptop is a Compaq 6910p that I have been nursing along. I have blown a could resistors off it already and soldered in jumpers.
The point I'm trying to make is the HTC One is more than capable of running NES - PS2 games quite well while my laptop has trouble with just PS1 games and some DS games.
Wouldn't it make since to combine the two? Have the phone as the core and the laptop shell for when I need a more desktop like environment?
Kinda a price out for something like this:
LCD Screen about 50 dollars.
Controller Board about 30 dollars.
Bluetooth'd USB Hub about 70 dollars.
Power circuits about 50 dollars.
Shell any crappy old laptop shell will do, free.
Laptop Keyboard and Track Pad about 30 dollars or free from a donor.
So anywhere between 200 -250 dollars to make the prototype. Then I can take my design to a circuit board company and get a single board designed that can do all of it and shrink the laptop design even further or add new accessories.

I have all the found all the items needed to make a prototype. The hardest part that I have still to do is design an auto off circuit that charges the battery but doesn't flow into the power bus.
The easiest would be to have 2 separate battery packs, once the low voltage is reached it would switch to the second battery pack, and charge the first one if plugged in.
If anyone could contribute to a simple specific design or item that can be purchased to help with this matter feel free to chime in.
The battery packs I am designing are using a Li-Polymer pack. Just one of these packs I'm build should last multiple days of use, & charge your phone.
I will not initially be able to include a USB port, I have to design a micro controller to take USB convert it to Bluetooth then make an android program to change it back for use.
I'm initially gonna make the prototype on a piece of acrylic, flat, to get testing and working hammered out.
I will then move to making a light weight housing to package it.
Since I am using a lot of pre-built components I will not be able to patent this but I can make money building them for people. Of course once I finish and have it all working I will post links to all the items I used so ambitious individuals can venture to build their own.

I have no interest in such an item but I am looking forward to seeing your progress on this.

Its so funny you mention this, 2 days ago I was looking up if there were any such things up for the HTC one or any new phones of some kind of lapdock item. I ALMOST considered buying an outdated device just to toy with the lap dock 500 and use it. I has that lap dock during the bad snowstorm 2 years ago in the NE on Halloween and it kept my phone charging as well as a good size to browse the web.
Please let me know how this works out, as well as a kick starter if you make one. It would be nice to have a software to use when on the lap dock that's separate from just an enlarged android screen!!
The agnostic, dyslexic, insomniac stayed up all night wondering if there really was a dog.

this sounds cool, however i myself dont see much people having a use for this. i look forward to your progress.

Attached are diagrams of the power circuit i created over the last few days. Made so you can charge the battery when plugged in and use the wall power. Incorporated a smart charging design to prevent over charging or discharging.
This will keep your phone powered and even charge your phone. All those components are no bigger than 1x2x1in each.
With using a mechanical relay since it was the simplest when you unplug from the wall there might be a screen flash because of the mili-sec interrupt in power. Since the phone & BT Input both have internal batteries you wont lose your BT Sync. Once power come back on, MHL will resume.
Now I know there are probally smaller circuit card designes out that but those are expensive. By using all premade and mostly inexpensive parts can bring the price down consierably.
I will be working with a ~14 inch laptop screen 1280x800 max rez. The video controller board I am working with is capable of running up to a 1080p LCD monitor.
I have located every componet needed to make this project a reality, but since some will be coming from china it may take ahile to get an assembled prototype.
Next Ill be writing down the sizes of each componet to get a generic idea of the size of the power circuit compartment.
Because I found some high capacity high current Li-Ion batteries the potential for this to be usefull will increase expecially if i can keep a phone charged for a week off it.
The down side is the high capacity will take longer to recharge.
The total weight of this laptop seems like it will be between 2-3 Lbs, rough estimate.
The only down side to my circuit is that if you plug it into the wall and have the switch in battery still the video control board will not power up. I do not want the charger feeding the power bus.
I will be installing three voltage monitoring small digital displays in the prototype so I can monitor voltage drop over time on the battery and set a safe low limit and measure acurate time through real world usage.
Once I get a fully working design I will take my work to a PCB company and make a single board design.
There are two ways to use this design, the stock way which emulates or extends the stock android desktop.
The second is how I will use it, I dual boot Android and Ubuntu at the same time using a handy free app. Once I plug in my phone I will put Ubuntu on the display for a desktop environment and still have access to my android through my phone.
Currently Ubuntu is trying to create a working Android replacment OS, other than Nexus devices they have been unable to get the phone part working yet so I'm following that as well.
Which type of mount would you like to see?
A vertical off to the side
A horizontal laid into the input surface
A slide in compartment where you can't see phone at all anymore

So I did some more research it seems connection wise it will be possible to create a Bluetooth usb hub. using a external powered 9 pin serial Bluetooth adapter - 9-pin serial to usb cable - female/female usb adapter - external powered usb hub.
Connection wise it would work but I'm not sure if it would allow you to read and rite tot he drive. I'm reading more into the slave/master modes.
there is also some information I have to figure out with the RS spec. there are apparently multiple specs. RS232 and the like.
Although this probably wont make it into the prototype it's a step forward in learning.

Good luck with this. No use for me but I'm sure there is people out there willing to use it

Wired charging not working - Help identifying a broken component

The charging port on my Nexus 7 2013 starting playing up and only charging when the cable was held in certain positions and then finally it stopped working altogether.
I took it apart to replace the port and the problem was that the legs on the connector had actually lifted the tracks off the board.
I replaced the connector and wired the legs to the nearby pads the tracks I believe they're supposed to go to and when plugged in both the charging symbol appeared and usb data communications worked.
However I then had a slight mishap while handling it and managed to knock off and break the component pointed to by the arrow in the photo.
The component has no markings on it and is about 2mm x 1mm. I can't measure the original with a meter as it's physically broken.
Can anyone tell me what the component is so that I can replace it?

I meant to also add that while looking for info I came across this site regarding the port repair which some people may find useful although personally I think you're better of removing the sub board and then using a proper desolder station if you have access to one.
http://freemansgarage.com/blog/?p=1082

Ollie2 said:
what the component is so that I can replace it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This component has a sub-ohm resistance and is a fusible resistor or choke/inductor. Either way you can just short/bridge it - no worries

k23m said:
This component has a sub-ohm resistance and is a fusible resistor or choke/inductor. Either way you can just short/bridge it - no worries
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you very much for the reply, that's just the kind of answer I was hoping for.
With the link bridged the device does show it as charging when plugged in however the charging rate is now really, really slow and at it's current rate of charge looks like it'll take about 50 hours to fully charge.
If I put an ammeter across the two pads then it looks like it pulls about 85ma whereas I'd expect it to be more like 10 times that.
I've tested it with several cables and chargers (0.5A, 1A and 2A) that used to work perfectly with it previously and still work with other devices..
I've ordered an inline usb ammeter that should arrive later today to double check the current usage but the charger or battery don't get warm so I'd guess it's correct.
The repaired tracks look to be correct and beep through fine, the data cable works and I can transfer data but presumably there is something else wrong with it.
Any suggestions of what else to look or is there anything that I need to do with software to reset the charging process?

Ollie2 said:
If I put an ammeter across the two pads then it looks like it pulls about 85ma whereas I'd expect it to be more like 10 times that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The ammeter's internal resistance may trigger N7's lower charging current draw which normally happens to prevent overloading USB2 or weak chargers.
Anyway, do a recalibration:
fully discharge N7
recharge it completely while off
disconnect the charger and turn N7 on

Thanks for the reply.
I added the ammeter inline as it was charging so slowly and the 85ma it looks to pull roughly equates to the charging times I'm seeing.
The tablet is fully charged at the moment (via a wireless charger) but when it's not needed for a few days I'll flatten the battery and let it charge using the cable, I'd guess it'll take 2-3 days to do so.
Interestingly apps such as ampere show the sort of current I'd expect the device to be getting in the 800ma range however I'm guessing it's calculating this as the requested current but it's just not making it to the battery for some reason.

What package do I need to enable fast wireless charging while using a USB DAC?

M:y phone is sitting in the official samsung wireless fast charger (the stand up one for the Note10+) I am also using the official cord and charger. With the phone fast charging in the holder I plug my chord Hugo 2 (an audio DAC, it doesn't charge or draw power at all) into the usb-c port and the phone reduces the charging speed from fast wireless to normal wireless. This dramatically slows the charging rate. The problem is entirely software based so I believe there is some sort of package I can disable to prevent this. The phone believes I am using the charging port to charge it or some other device but I am actually only using it to send digital data to the DAC. I have tried changing the settings for USB devices in developer options (transferring files, etc) but no luck. Thank you.

I need a fix too. Anything yet?

maybe it is just like that because it thinks it will overheat... on the lg g4 it only charged faster when it was not picked up or moved and i think screen off. well the screen was off when i used the watt meter

ike__1985 said:
M:y phone is sitting in the official samsung wireless fast charger (the stand up one for the Note10+) I am also using the official cord and charger. With the phone fast charging in the holder I plug my chord Hugo 2 (an audio DAC, it doesn't charge or draw power at all) into the usb-c port and the phone reduces the charging speed from fast wireless to normal wireless. This dramatically slows the charging rate. The problem is entirely software based so I believe there is some sort of package I can disable to prevent this. The phone believes I am using the charging port to charge it or some other device but I am actually only using it to send digital data to the DAC. I have tried changing the settings for USB devices in developer options (transferring files, etc) but no luck. Thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I spent sometime looking and I have not seen nor encountered any package you can disable to do what you want to do. Charging functions like that are gonna be android system files, and things like .dll, .sys, .cfg and etc. This excludes any form of hardware components that monitor, limit, protect and control charging.
To be honest circumventing the charging functionality on the phone is a potential recipe for disaster.. it's not fast charging for a reason. It could very well be a safety precaution to prevent damage or overheating.
When I read up on the device the DAC might be trying to draw power from the phone via the USB connection. I get the same thing when I plugin a USB-C to HDMI adapter into my phone, and the adapter is obviously drawing power. Even though one would figure it shouldn't be since it's just a little ol' adapter something, it obviously is because it does get a little warm to the touch. So I wouldn't discount the notion that the DAC is drawing power in some fashion, because the phone isn't throwing that charging message for no reason.
Try making sure the DAC is in desktop mode (or equivalent) when you use it, so the device is drawing from it's internal battery. You should contact the company that made the device and ask them for suggestions/ideas. It maybe as simple as getting a specific cable, a compatibility issue with the DAC or what you do when you plug the DAC into the phone. It may just very well be that there is no solution and this is how it will work.

scottusa2008 said:
I
spent sometime looking and I have not seen nor encountered any package you can disable to do what you want to do. Charging functions like that are gonna be android system files, and things like .dll, .sys, .cfg and etc. This excludes any form of hardware components that monitor, limit, protect and control charging.
To be honest circumventing the charging functionality on the phone is a potential recipe for disaster.. it's not fast charging for a reason. It could very well be a safety precaution to prevent damage or overheating.
When I read up on the device the DAC might be trying to draw power from the phone via the USB connection. I get the same thing when I plugin a USB-C to HDMI adapter into my phone, and the adapter is obviously drawing power. Even though one would figure it shouldn't be since it's just a little ol' adapter something, it obviously is because it does get a little warm to the touch. So I wouldn't discount the notion that the DAC is drawing power in some fashion, because the phone isn't throwing that charging message for no reason.
Try making sure the DAC is in desktop mode (or equivalent) when you use it, so the device is drawing from it's internal battery. You should contact the company that made the device and ask them for suggestions/ideas. It maybe as simple as getting a specific cable, a compatibility issue with the DAC or what you do when you plug the DAC into the phone. It may just very well be that there is no solution and this is how it will work
.
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Click to collapse
Comprehensive and concise in your hypothesis. Thank you. Most likely something they took into account with any adapters. Going to do some other testing too.:highfive: