[Q] My GPS is no more working. - AT&T Samsung Galaxy S II Skyrocket SGH-I727

Tried the app TopNPT, but did not work.
Tried AGPS Patch. Did not work as well.
I don't know if it is because of the new 4.3 version of Jelly Bean. I've tried a few 4.3 AOPK ROMs, but none of them gave me GPS signal.
I've tried installying UBER kernel to see if there is any difference, but not luck.
Now, I have no idea what to do. Maybe try to install 4.1 Roms but don't really know which Rom is good for my GPS to work, because I believe I saw the OP in the "AGPS Patch.." said Agps or GPS code is disable in CM.x roms...
:crying:

hmmwhatsthisdo said:
Tried the app TopNPT, but did not work.
Originally Posted by hmmwhatsthisdo View Post
Holy thread necromancy, Batman!
I just got around to opening the phone and trying to fix it. It works BEAUTIFULLY now.
I used these parts:
A small Phillips screwdriver - not quite sure what size, but a fairly small one should do.
A few lens wipes (the alcohol-soaked and foil-packed kind, not the microfiber ones)
A small flathead screwdriver
A thin, bevelled plastic card - If you have a guitar pick, these work MUCH better. Spudgers are awesome too.
Here's what I did:
Remove your case (if necessary), your battery cover, battery, microSD, and SIM.
Unscrew all 7 screws under the battery cover. 5 are on the top, two are just below the battery slot.
Use a guitar pick, spudger, thin non-PVC card, or other soft bevelled edge to separate the rear bezel from the rest of the phone. Do NOT use a non-bevelled-edge PVC card, screwdriver, or other metallic implement. You'll scratch something.
Once all the clips are popped, the rear housing should lift right off.
Open the lens wipe packet, and gently wipe ALL of the gold plates and springs in the housing and on the mainboard. I think there were a total of 5 or 7 plate/spring combos. Do NOT rub against the spring, only in the direction the spring points.
Use a jeweler's screwdriver to GENTLY bend the springs up just a hair. Put the screwdriver under the top end of the spring and lift SLOWLY and EVENLY across the left and right parts of a spring. You shouldn't go farther than 0.5mm (about 1/64th of an inch)
Once you feel satisfied, make sure all ribbon cables are seated evenly and put the rear housing back on. It should fit securely and no clips should be left un-popped.
Put all 7 screws back in. Tighten them AS TIGHT AS SAFELY POSSIBLE! Pay special attention to the screws next to the SIM and the top mic.
Put the rest of the parts of the phone back together, and use GPS Status from the Play Store to verify GPS is fixed.
:crying:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK. So I think I fixed the problem following this guide......

Related

HTC Apache Audiovox PPC6700 LCD / Digitizer Replacement Instructions

All I have right now is this from someone online who said he had the instructions. If anyone has clear outlined pictures to do this, please post it.
Thank you!
"There are additional screws that need to be taken out. You have to pop off the housing on the top that covers the camera and the antenna port. there will be at least 2 more screws there. Then you will carefully have to pop off the back starting at the bottom by where the stylus is and pull that off. There is probably going to be another screw holding the board in place. It has been a few months since i have done this. Then the board comes out and you have 4 more screws these are phillips heads. That will take the back housing off of the front. Then 4 more screws to take the back plate off of the front housing."
Places i've tried to find LCD Digitizer replacement instructions for cracked LCD
The Audiovox PPC-6700 I have has a cracked screen. I got an LCD replacement, but have no detailed instructions on removing the cracked screen. Here are some useful places i've looked at to find the answer to this issue if it helps you:
http://forum.xda-developers.com ... of course why else would I post it here
http://buzzdev.net/component/option...tart,0/index.php?option=com_phorum&Itemid=125
http://forum.brighthand.com
http://www.mobiletechreview.com/ubbthreads/ubbthreads.php
Not the best...but better than nothing....
Here are my own instructions I started... maybe someone else can expand/refine/clean this up. I'm done with this finally. Changing this is possible, but not necessarily easy. There's this tinny like sticker on the OEM LCD in the phone that's a real pain to pull off of the LCD. The pictures are terrible too...sorry...again..something= better than nothing.
In the end, it works...everything except my toggle does not click in like it used to...that's probably because of that rubber piece I did not know about. (A rubber piece fell out when I was taking it apart and I never figured out where it was supposed to go..so if anyone knows where that belongs and how it should be oriented..please post it.)
I took the stylus out.
I took the miniSD plastic blank out/ or miniSD memory card out just in case.
I took the battery cover off.
I took the battery out.
I set the camera lens in between the picture of the flower and the sun in the back.
I took the rubber piece out..there's a little probe looking thing behind it. (Probably was not necessary to take out.)
I took the back camera cover off. (Remove two Philips head screws with a PH0 head.) There are 7 notches holding it in place. [One above sun/flower adjuster, one slightly to the right above the flash hole, one above the rubber piece, one a tiny bit below the rubber piece, 2 on the insides at the bottom of the philips head screws, and one to the right of the speakerphone.]
I took the green circuit board that has camera flash behind the camera cover off. (Pops up off slot after removing one philips head screw.)
I took the camera unit off. (Do not pull up on camera, just pull the green board up off. The camera is sitting there, the board is wired like the camera flash board was plugged in, just pop it off.)
I took the cell phone antenna philips head screw off that is above where the camera was.
I took the 4 torx .050 allen head type size screws out to remove the back plastic cover of the phone off. Be very careful prying this portion apart. There are probably about 14 notches maybe that holds the back plate on. Some say to start trying to pry it apart from the antenna, but I was able to pry it apart from the bottom part of the phone on the antenna side... not where the antenna is. Be extremely careful how you pry this apart. You have to watch out for the speakerphone wires, there is a plug for what I think might be the keyboard and or LCD, the vibrating weight, and the main board itself... you don't want to scratch or sever any of these parts.
I slid the antenna off of the main board. Lift the board and gently pull up and out the black antenna.
I did not take the speakerphone off, but it looks like you have to pull the wire from the board that would still be attached to the back plate. The vibrating weight is also on the backplate.
I took the main board out of the phone. Keep the slider in mind between the IE button and the recorder button on the side of the phone. The black portion on the main board needs to line up with the actual switch you would slide up or down with your thumb on the side of the phone. When pulling the main board out, slide open the keyboard fully/halfway. Watch for a black rubber piece.
I removed the 4 philips head screws that hold the keyboard portion of the phone to the LCD portion of the phone together and lifted them apart. There is a silver/grey tape that you need to pop up the data cable and pull the tape off to completely separate the LCD portion.
I removed the 4 torx screws from behind the LCD screen and carefully took the LCD portion apart.
...ok well it's getting quite annoying to try and write everything I did after this, but it's pretty self explanatory. If it's not, you probably should not be changing your LCD in the first place anyhow. In order to release the LCD ribbon, the plastic piece at the end will need to pop up at an angle..it's kind of like a winch.
Here's a similar phone that gets taken apart if that helps you out in any way.
.........http://www.mdatweak.com/downloads/Wizard_Service_Manual.pdf
Pix 1-5 of 21 attached.
Pix 6-10 of 21 attached.
Pix 6-10 of 21 attached.
Pix 11-15 of 21 attached.
Pix 11-15 of 21 attached.
Pix 16-20 of 21 attached.
Pix 16-20 of 21 attached.
Pix 21 of 21 attached.
Pix 21 of 21 attached.
re
what is the toggle you are refering to? i took mine apart to clean around the screen without any instructions, and everything still works, but the digitizer has had it, where did you get your replacement from?
I got my replacement from eBay. goldelec
The LCD had a weird rainbow thing going on in the center of it, that you can see if you look at it at the right angle and the bottom corner looks bright white when the screen is on for an extensive period of time. Again, it works...better than what I had. I did not get great instructions, but what he sold me worked fine.
The toggle i'm talking about is the button in between the call and hangup buttons on the front face of the phone. That toggle switch just does not seem connected or stiff like it used to be. I can't "click" up/down/left/right or select anything. I am convinced the rubber piece goes behind it somewhere somehow. I just have to take it apart and figure out the orientation of it.
thanks for these pics & instructions, I just replaced with a part from goldelec on ebay as well (though the auction list instructions as part of the deal, they didn't come with my shipment, so your play-by-play was invaluable)...and there's no screws left afterward! Always a good sign.
Maybe this will help some people...
http://wiki.ppcgeeks.com/index.php?title=How_To:Disassemble_your_6700
lcd replacement instructions
www.htclcd.com has a lot of good lcd replacement instructions also
as well as the LCD's
I just took apart two 6700's today (had to replace the buttons on the face and the circuit board underneath so for now I scavenged the parts from my backup phone)
anyway the phone is surprisingly easy to take apart and surprisingly straight forward.
You do not even have to organize the screws as there is ONLY 2 kinds (I like that) and its obvious when to use each as they are very different in size.
a straight head will take out the star bits if your careful (if you have one of those many different jewlers drivers kits you will find one that fits just fine)
OK cover card stylus battery out.
4 screws. 2 dark large at the bottom 2 small silver at the top of the battery cavity (the one on the top right is hidden underneath a small white sticker)
Now the "top" plastic section comes apart. (the area with the camera) make sure the camera switch is ALL THE WAY one way first it will make things easier later.
Lift from the bottom LEFT there is a tab under the black antennae casing and a tab on the right next to the speaker. Pry gently and it will "pop free" don't YANK as the speaker is attached still.
Pop the speaker out (leave it attached no reason to mess with that wee connector.)
Remove the single screw from the center of those board. NOW caution there is a square white soft "seal" around the led do not lose it.
finger tail "pop" the boards out.
Camera module same thing finger nail "pop" the module pops out but those asside.
3 more larger dark screws remove them now.
Now you need to remove the back half the the shell. Lift with force till you have a small opening and start poking at the hold downs till you can work it free. the hang point is again the black antennae housing. This was the most difficult part to remove and it was not that hard. Use care so it will look clean when you put it back together if thats important to you.
Now you see the mother board. one single screw is left silver middle right side (away from antennae)
Time to remove the main board. you need to use CARE here as its "catched" on opposing side (the usb port and ear piece ports) and the Black antenna housing.) and also atached via a short ribbon cable.
Once you have it free SLIDE out the keyboard this will give you a lot more slack to lift up the main board and tilt it sideways.
Peel the tape carefully once its free it will "pop" free using the same style connector as the camera board etc.. used.
remove and put asside.
now remove the 4 screws holding the keyboard to the phone. its free put asside (those are the only 4 that are different just LEAVE them in there holes they will stay if you don't toss it around)
now remove the 4 black screws holding the back of the keyboard housing down. Pop it free (its not hard there are poke holes made for this like flat screwdriver slots)
once you do this the ribbon will slide through the opening no worries.
now act like your breaking a glow stick and "bend" the case sides so the screen can be popped up a little.
lift the orange tape and you will see a different kind of rubbon connector. its white with a tiny black flap. use a finger nail and lift it will ROTATE 90's to vertical. the ribbon cable will now pop free.
now remove the 2 screws holding down the circuit board. remove it and the button pad (this is why you had to lift the screen a little or these won't come out.
Thats it. I did not go further than this but I do not remember it "looking" like it would be hard at all to get the screen and digitizer out.
This is all straight from memory so read ALL this first and adapt as you progress. DO not take it verbatum.
If something does not want to give ASSUME you forgot a screw and be extra diligent to find it before attempting to increase the amount of force you use though sometimes it just "needs" a wee more force.
Good Luck
I should have taken pics which I usually do when I do this again I will take detailed pics.
Ohh dolt reassembly
do everything in reverse. thats it. here are some tips for the tricky spots.
Reinserting the button pad ribbon. IE reconnect the ribbon BEFORE you put it in. its a lot easier. make sure its in all the way push the flap back down push the tape back down. Easy
Rescrewing the keyboard into the main shell. Get it roughly lined up and LOOK INSIDE one of the holes as you wiggle it around. you will see the screw hole quite clearly when it appears. insert and screw down. Do one on the other side easy as pie.
When you put the main board back in you need to make sure the VOLUME slide switch is in the MIDDLE neutral position so it it lines up with the volume slider itself IE it has to move BOTH direction misalign this and it will be jammed one way or the other. Pop it apart and try again.
When you put the final cover back on make sure the SWITCH for the camera is in the same direction as the plastic lever (the actual switch) so that they line up when you snap them together.
thats it. Really not that hard.

[Discussion/Guide-in-the-making] Housing Replacement

EDIT 2011 08 13: Skip to the post where I'm working on a guide.
Also:
EDIT 2011 08 13: I have since ordered a Black Battery Cover to match it. However, I still can't find a Black "8.0 Xenon" label and a Black little rubber from the top left.
====
Background info:
Ok, so my XT720 is really beat up right now, and I'm looking into replacing the whole housing of my phone.
I bought these:
Front and back housing
Battery cover
(Yes, so the back housing is black and the battery cover is blue, I plan on vinyl dying it)
But I haven't been able to find any guide on disassembly and assembly...
Has anyone tried?
Hmm, you may run into some issues, that is for the xt701 which as far as I know has no HDMI out.
So the housing probably will not either
cdstewart said:
Hmm, you may run into some issues, that is for the xt701 which as far as I know has no HDMI out.
So the housing probably will not either
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I checked just now, it actually does have the HDMI out port.
The XT701 case will not fit the XT720. I read somewhere else, someone ordered this and tried. Will not fit. No HDMI port on the 701 and the USB port is on the other side up by the power button.
Why not use the correct case? http://cnn.cn/shop/motorola-milestone-xt720-housing-p-10055.html
dude,
the phone is made of really strong casing. I'm wondering how did u do it to be beaten up.
I think no one has gone thus far till taking the phone apart. Just my two cents here, beware that the body has 6 screws, 2 totally hidden and 2 partially hidden.
the top two screws are hidden under the rubber bud beside the camera lens and under "8.0 Xenon" label.
the middle row of 2 screws are visible just above the battery.
the bottom row of screws are partially hidden underneath the loud-speaker grills. The grill might be damage in the process of removing these screws. but since you're replacing the whole housing, it won't be a problem for you.
Brian5475E said:
The XT701 case will not fit the XT720. I read somewhere else, someone ordered this and tried. Will not fit. No HDMI port on the 701 and the USB port is on the other side up by the power button.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you link me to that source?
Because the housing I got has an HDMI port on the other side of the power button, and the USB port is on the left side of the phone, just like my current housing.
spiderx_mm said:
the phone is made of really strong casing. I'm wondering how did u do it to be beaten up.
=snip=
The grill might be damage in the process of removing these screws. but since you're replacing the whole housing, it won't be a problem for you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Firstly, thanks for the heads up about the screw locations!
I carry my phone in my keys pocket, and it banged up the chrome bezel a lot... After I swap it I'll put it in another pocket.
The grill actually doesn't come with the replacement housing, so thanks for the warning about potentially damaging it!
Ok so I finally decided to try putting on that XT701 casing on my XT720.
==== Step 1
I used a T5 screwdriver. And as explained, there's 6 screws:
- 2 of them are openly accessible after you take off the battery cover.
- 2 of them are under the speaker grill - simply run your fingers under it to pry it out
- 2 of them are at the top:
1 under the "8.0 Xenon" label - use a push pin and run it along the edge to pry it open
1 under the top left tiny rubber cover - again, use a push pin, dig into it and pry it out
==== Step 2
Run your fingers along the egde of the blue plastic (where the blue and silver meet) and dig your fingers in to unhook the mechanism. The blue back cover should come right off after you run your fingers around the contour 1-3 times.
==== Step 3
Here's where I'm stuck. I'm trying to separate the electronics from the front silver part. There's some screws that I believe attach the screen to the front cover. But those screws are even smaller and my T5 did not work on them. I just ordered a set of T4 and T3 screwdrivers from China. So I'll get back to this in maybe 3-4 weeks.
Wow, black looks sexy. Post some pictures when youre done.
You got as far as I did
Hahutzy said:
Ok so I finally decided to try putting on that XT701 casing on my XT720.
==== Step 1
I used a T5 screwdriver. And as explained, there's 6 screws:
- 2 of them are openly accessible after you take off the battery cover.
- 2 of them are under the speaker grill - simply run your fingers under it to pry it out
- 2 of them are at the top:
1 under the "8.0 Xenon" label - use a push pin and run it along the edge to pry it open
1 under the top left tiny rubber cover - again, use a push pin, dig into it and pry it out
==== Step 2
Run your fingers along the egde of the blue plastic (where the blue and silver meet) and dig your fingers in to unhook the mechanism. The blue back cover should come right off after you run your fingers around the contour 1-3 times.
==== Step 3
Here's where I'm stuck. I'm trying to separate the electronics from the front silver part. There's some screws that I believe attach the screen to the front cover. But those screws are even smaller and my T5 did not work on them. I just ordered a set of T4 and T3 screwdrivers from China. So I'll get back to this in maybe 3-4 weeks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dude, you got as far as I did... I got the smaller torx bits & started my attempt to separte the electronics from the face plate... found my fingers were too large to manipulate & figured I'd do more harm than good... I still have the replacement housing... phunny thing, a few months after giving up, my 3g radio stopped working.. Cinci Bell tech couldn't fix (go figure!)... so I ended up buying the phone insurance for 6 bucks a month & got a free replacement.... Housing fixed! Bouyaaah!... If anyone wants the housing I have, you pay shipping & I'll send it to you... it is missing the USB door (i used it on my old XT720). Sorry I couldn't be more helpful.

[FIX] Annoying creaking noise

I just started developing this odd creaking noise near the bottom and sides of my S4G. Even with a Seidio Active case wrapped around it, the creaking can be felt and heard when hitting the bottom buttons.
The fix is pretty easy. You just need to decrease the amount of movement the back cover has.
I had some .010 mil fiber (fish) paper laying around so I cut a small square that covers the sim card and microsd card area. You can probably use something else, but hey, why not use some insulated paper if you have it.
Lay the paper on top of the area and then slowly place the back cover back on. No holes are in that area above the sim and microsd, so no worries there. You should see an immediate improvement
I needed more than that to stop the creaking/screen movement.
Pathetic we have to go to these lengths
jlevy73 said:
I needed more than that to stop the creaking/screen movement.
Pathetic we have to go to these lengths
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What did you have to do?
I tried used two squares of paper, but that made the back bulge out a little too much to my liking.
GideonX said:
What did you have to do?
I tried used two squares of paper, but that made the back bulge out a little too much to my liking.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I took a post-it and folded it twice. Then placed it on the bottom right area and closed up the cover. For me when I press down on the bottom right side of the screen the whole screen sort of depresses a bit. Only way I could get rid of that was to place the paper in that region. Problem solved.
Post it would have been my backup method
Sent from my HTC Sensation 4G
buy another battery, i recently got an anker also had the creaking problems, noticed the anker is a TINY bit thicker than the stock battery and it removed that problem completely. and that anker battery was DIRT cheap
I just lined the case with some scotch tape. from the bottom to about 3/4 of the way up. I just went around the antenna nubs and the usb hole.
Posted this in another thread, but felt it was valuable here too...
Got the creaking here also, definitely a design flaw. Being obsessive with my devices i couldnt live with it!
I do not recommend putting paper in the cover to fill the gap, as this is just expanding the cover further making it even MORE loose when the paper is not in there. Also i wouldn't recommend it because the paper pushes the back cover out a little more, you may loose a connection for the ground. Which is the little metal springy thing, half way up the right hand side. Obviously its not a good idea to 'push' the cover further away from this ground spot. I have heard that people have had issues with screen responsiveness due to a static build up from not grounding properly.
What i did to fix this problem was a bit of a kitbash of sorts.
Mine was creaking on the bottom right area, like most. The problem is there is too much play between the little black catches on the battery cover and the latch on the handset. Instead of filling up the gap between the phone and the cover (Ala paper, card in the cover) I closed it!
What you need to do is get some very thin plastic film. Like that on kids toy packaging etc. Not the thicker stuff though. This stuff would be under 1mm thick. It came as a viewing window in the box my new wallet came in. So you can sorta imagine what im talking about.
I cut a piece about 10mm long and as wide as one of the two little black catches. I applied a VERY thin coat of super glue to one end of the film. Just enough to cover the area under the catch. Then i carefully placed the film with the superglue on it under the catch, and then quickly applied some pressure to it with some tweezers. Then i carefully cut the excess off with a pair of finely tipped nail scissors.
The result is that it now PULLS the screen/phone INTO the cover more by making the little black catch thicker. Not the opposite (paper method), which pushes the cover out, creating a further problem of adding more paper under the cover over time as the cover expands/loosens to compensate. Not to mention a possible grounding loss and resulting damage.
Hope this helps some people that have had multiple replacements or could not be bothered replacing for such a cosmetic issue. (Like me). It definitely works, just got to get your surgeon on and be accurate with your placement of the film.
Apply this to what ever side creaks the most, and bam its gone. Nice. Solid phone... again.
If anyone wants more specific details etc, im all ears.
Regards,
Matt.
will try it with an double side film ...
i mean a film that hold back cover and phone together ;-) i think doing paper in there will do damage with time
I contacted HTC and they sent me another/new one. No more creaking!
RaptorRVL said:
I contacted HTC and they sent me another/new one. No more creaking!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Back cover or whole phone?
I have the same problem too. And it just seems to get more and more "cracking"

Super Simple 5 minutes Wireless Charging Mod for Samsung SG3

Hi all,
Here's my 5 minute wireless charging mod. Now new and improved so that NFC performance is not affected at all. I've also posted step-by-step pictures to aid in explaining the hack.
You need to make one decisions before you start, do you care more about using NFC or using a magnetic compass app? The reason for this is that the magnetic sensors are in the bottom part of the phone. If you use magnets instead of metal disks, this will affect the accuracy of the magnetic sensors, so a compass app will not work well. But if you use the metal disks that come with the Palm case, and you do the hack with the coil very low in the phone case, it won't hold through a case, so you may need to build some sort of rest for it. I use NFC all the time, and never use the compass, so decided to go with replacing the metal disks with N42 magnets. Also, this charging mod works fine through most cases, I've tested it with TPU and with the Rock cases. It might not work through an Otterbox, I haven't tested it. Using magnets makes it more likely to work with cases. Alternatively, you could use the nonmagnetic disks, but rig up some sort of support so that the phone would sit in the right place on the charger without depending on magnets.
No soldering, no carving, the only tools you need are a knife, and some scotch tape! Some sort of plastic tool, even a plastic knife is helpful too.
The shopping list is below, and totals about $17-$19 depending on which vendors you buy from. The links below are from Amazon, for simple one-stop shopping. You may want to buy two Touchstones for home and office. I wouldn't try to cheap out and use another AC adapter, as most of the adapters I tried failed to work with the Touchstone base.
Palm Pixi Charging back
Palm Touchstone charger
Palm Touchstone AC adapter (important, most chargers won't work)
Copper Tape
OR
Copper tape from Michael's
50% off coupon for Michaels
If you want to replace the metal disks with magnets, to make the phone hold better to the charger, then buy these magnets from Amazon, or
http://www.amazon.com/Applied-Magnets-Earth-Neodymium-Discs/dp/B0012AUU84/ref=sr_1_1?s=hi&ie=UTF8&qid=1350067151&sr=1-1&keywords=neodymium+disk+magnets+1%2F4+1%2F32
these from ebay: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=190734931794
Total = $17-$19
Time: 5 minutes.
Okay, here's what you do.
Picture 1: Shows the Palm Pixi charging case as you will recieve it. (I recommend the Palm Pixi, not the Palm Pre, as the polarities are reversed on the Palm Pre.) After you get all the parts, gently peel the black tape off the Palm pixi case, (Picture 2 and 3). Then gently and carefully remove the circuit board (Picture 4), the silver metallic tape (Picture 5), the coil (Picture 6), and metal discs. Preserve the silver foil tape, you will need it. You may also want to preserve the black tape.
Next, I show that you can make a template for positioning the coil and discs/magnets by cutting up the Palm Case (Picture 7), and then drilling out holes where the metal discs and the center of the copper coil are (Pictures 8 and 9). I then made a paper template, which is easier to use (Picture 10).
Now here's the clever part of the hack. Put the coil into your Samsung battery cover upside down, as shown in Picture 11. Then fold the L shaped flexible circuit board up as shown in Pictures 12 and 13. This positions it so that you can make an easy connection to the phone using just copper tape. You will run small pieces of copper tape from the top and the bottom power terminals, which are those little square metal terminals shown in Picture 13. (Picture 14 and 14-5). You can then position the discs or magnets. The easiest way to do this is to plug in your Touchstone base, and then lay the back cover on the Touchstone charger. Put your magnets or discs in, and make sure they align with the magnets in the Touchstone base. Note that if you use magnets, you may have to flip them to get them into the right orientation. Use the template you made to check the alignment. Once you get it like the picture, just tape everything down with scotch tape. (Not the terminals.) (Picture 14-5 shows this clearly.) Note that you need to put back in the silver tape over the coil as shown in Picture 14-5, otherwise it won't charge.
Cut the copper tape down to about 1/8 of an inch, and tape two extensions from the charging terminals in the phone. I used a pencil to poke the tape down into the little wells so there was a good contact. Next, lay down the cover and the phone, and tape copper tape to the charging terminals on the charging coil so they will hit the tape on the phone when you close the cover. I folded under the final 1/8 of an inch to make a little lump, to make it more reliable. (Picture 16).
It's useful to check your work with a voltmeter. Place the battery cover with the mod onto the Touchstone base, and check to make sure you are getting 5.5 volts off of the two terminals. Then after you add the copper tape extensions, make sure they are reading the same voltage. If you are not getting voltage, press the tape harder onto the terminals, as the sticky side is less conductive. You could also fold over the copper tape onto the terminals, and scotch tape it down.
Finally put the back onto the phone, and test to see if you get the popup message in Picture 19. If all is good, then you can open it up again and add back the black tape to make it pretty (if you care). (Picture 15). Then should be no real bulge as shown in Pictures 17 and 18.
If it's not working, there are three possible reasons. One, you have a bad connection between the terminals and the copper tape. Check it with a voltmeter. Two, the copper tape that goes into the phone's charging terminals is not making good contact. Fold over a bit of the tape, and gently jam it down into the terminals. (Gently so that you don't break them off!) The third reason is that the tape pieces from the coil are not making contact with the pieces on the phone, see Picture 16 for how the alignment should be. If you are getting the popup repeatedly, then you have an intermittent connection.
Oh, one more thing. Be sure to test this with your phone at less than 100% charge, as it won't work if your phone is 100% charged! I found this out the hard way!
Close the cover and you are done! It sounds complicated, but actually if you just copy the picture, it takes 5-10 minutes.
Here are the pictures, numbered as in the instructions:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/qpymo0x6rpmkezx/XMT4z_wDq_/New%20Improved%20wireless%20Charging%20Hack
Thank you's appreciated.
A FEW UPDATES: Here are a few updates from clever ideas from our members.
You can use hotglue to attach everything once you are sure of the location.
The disks in the Pixi cover are metal, not magnets. Replace them with magnets for a better hold.
The magnets (and the coil) could go in a case like an otterbox, instead of inside the phone. Then you'd run thin wires into the battery case. Or you can run the copper foil out from inside your phone so that it connects with the mod inside the case. See post #217 for a way to do this elegantly.
BE aware, the Palm Pre polarities are reversed, so if you use a Palm Pre back, you will have to reverse the polarity.
IF YOU AREN'T GETTING VOLTAGE:
The most common problems are:
1. You are not using a palm charger and cable for the Touchstone. Most chargers/cables won't work, it's better to just use the Palm charger, they cost $4 on Amazon. Are you using the Palm charger/cable?
2. Your copper tape is not making good contact with the little prongs on the flexible circuit board. Try removing the tape and checking voltage on the prongs themselves. Then put the copper tape on firmly, and check the tape for voltage.
3. The coil is not in the right place. You may want to make a template like I suggested to get everything aligned properly. You won't get voltage if the coil is not just right. Use scotch tape to get everything working, then you can use more permanent methods.
4. You used a Palm Pre back instead of a Palm Pixi back, and you forgot that the polarities are reversed on the Pre back.
5. You are not getting a good contact at the charging pins on the phone. Do this: (thanks nonsns3)
Cut tape a quarter inch wide. Ball up a quarter inch on one end and tape it so that the ball is right above the connector pins. Also make sure the exposed part of the ball is not the sticky side. Using a pen, push the ball end into the hole so that it contacts with the pin and you should be all set. This should be the easy part.
Most of the time the two issue areas are:
1) copper tape doesn't make good contact with the pin on the back cover because one side is adhesive.
2) copper tape doesn't make contact between the back cover and the copper tape on the phone itself when you close the cover.
FAQ:
Can I charge the regular way with a micro usb charger after I make this mod?
Yes, it works fine. Just don't plug in the micro usb and the touchstone simultaneously, as I don't know what would happen.
Should I use magnets in the mod instead of the metal disks?
It depends on how thick a case you plan on using, and how firm a grip you want the phone to have on the Touchstone base. You can always use scotch tape and test it both ways.
Will this interfere with NFC?
No, typically it won't, and you can decide on the placement of the mod over the battery, or below the battery. Below the battery has no effect on the NFC, over the battery makes NFC a little more finicky about positioning.
Will this interfere with my compass app?
Only if you use magnets instead of the stock metal disks. And then only if you put the mod low in the battery cover, as the sensors are low down.
Will this interfere with GPS?
Absolutely not.
My phone slides off the Touchstone base, what should I do?
I've modded my bases so that the top is horizontal instead of sloped, which makes phone alignment easier. I used Sugru, but any substance that allowed you to fit in the bottom will work.
Everything was working great, now it stopped working.
Usually the reason is that you've dislodged some connection inside the phone. If this happens, just open up the battery cover, and check all the connections, especially where the copper tape meets the charging terminals inside the phone.
Should I put magnets onto the Touchstone base?
Yes, see my attached picture, this helps with a firmer grip, and may even obviate the need for using magnets inside your SG3 case. Note the magnets can attach two ways depending on their polarity.
I find the charging noise annoying, especially after the phone is fully charged, and it keeps beeping at me.
Yes, on some ROMs this is very annoying. To fix it if you have root, use Root Explorer to got to /system/media/audio/ui . Then press the button on the top right that says, "Mount R/W" so you can change the files. Find Charger_Connection.ogg and either delete it or if you might want it back, just rename it to Charger_Connection.ogg.bak . Reboot, and no more noise, but be sure you see the charging indicator on the phone since you won't hear a beep.
I am considering doing this but with a twist. I would put the coil between the otterbox rubber and hard plastic and put the wires though a hole in the battery door. I would probably have to cut or thin out the rubber so it would fit flush, but I am confident it could go through the fairly thin otterbox plastic.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2
This seems like a cool idea but whats the point if it needs to stay on the touchstone? (If im correct on that)
Nice work. I really like this and will be doing it as soon as I get money for the parts. Thanks for sharing
Sent from my s3 using xda premium
I'm pretty sure all wireless charges have to sit on their charging bases. The simply alleviate the need to hook up cables to you phone (which could as to the life of the phone considering how many times you'll be plugging it on over the next year or two).
--
Sent on the fly.
Just curious. Does this mod interfere with NFC?
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
The point here is to eliminate the foolish cases that wireless chargers have to equip your phone with to work. This is one of those amazing things that this site has to offer. Fine work my friend!
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
android94301 said:
Hi all,
Here's my 5 minute wireless charging mod.
No soldering, no carving, the only tools you need are a knife, and some scotch tape!
The shopping list is below, and totals about $17-$19 depending on which vendors you buy from. The links below are from Amazon, for simple one-stop shopping.
Palm Pixi Charging back
Palm Touchstone charger
Palm Touchstone AC adapter (important, most chargers won't work)
Copper Tape
OR
Copper tape from Michael's
Total = $17-$19
Time: 5 minutes.
Okay, here's what you do. After you get all the parts, gently peel the black tape off the Palm pixi case, and remove the coil, and magnets. Preserve the silver foil tape, you need it. Mark the top of the magnets with a marker, and gently dig them out with a knife. Don't break them.
Pop open your Samsung Galaxy S3.Lay the back cover on the Touchstone charger, and put the magnets in the same orientation they were in in the Pixi cover. If you flip the orientation, they will be too close together. Then lay in the coil, with the tape extending up to the right. Make sure there is enough room to add the copper tape later. You may need to slide the cover so the magnets are slightly to the left.
Once you get it like the picture, just tape everything down with scotch tape. (Not the terminals.) Cut the copper tape down to about 1/8 of an inch, and tape two extensions from the charging terminals in the phone. I used a pencil to poke the tape down into the little wells so there was a good contact. Next, lay down the cover and the phone, and tape copper tape to the charging terminals on the charging coil so they will hit the tape on the phone when you close the cover. I folded under the final 1/8 of an inch to make a little lump, to make it more reliable.
Close the cover and you are done! It sounds complicated, but actually if you just copy the picture, it takes 5 minutes.
Several tips:
I actually replaced the magnets with some that were a little more powerful, but you can get away with using the original magnets.
If you want to have a more finished look, you can use the black tape cover from Pixi cover to cover over the mod, but I'd tape it first, and make sure everything works.
Here are the pics:
Thank you's appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wouldn't those magnets mess with the phone's magnetometer thus things like the compass? I wouldn't see a problem to do away with the magnets and just put it on a regular wireless charging pad so there isn't a need for the magnets. Other than that issue, kudos for the directions for such a cheap mod :good:
RyanW114 said:
Wouldn't those magnets mess with the phone's magnetometer thus things like the compass? I wouldn't see a problem to do away with the magnets and just put it on a regular wireless charging pad so there isn't a need for the magnets. Other than that issue, kudos for the directions for such a cheap mod :good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
I just tested it with Smart Compass, and it seems to work. How many people use a compass app anyway? Don't most use GPS, which isn't affected by the small magnets.
In terms of NFC, I haven't tried NFC, so I don't know. But other's who've used the same system don't have problems with NFC. You could always mount the coil lower, so it wasn't near the NFC chip.
I don't understand the question about the phone needing to stay on the Touchstone. How is that different from the phone needing to be plugged in while charging? The major advantage of this mod is that a) it's way cheap and way cool, and b) you won't wear out the micro usb port plugging in and out. Also, I find it much more convenient to just lay my phone down on the charger whenever I am not using it, so it's always fully charged.
con247 said:
I am considering doing this but with a twist. I would put the coil between the otterbox rubber and hard plastic and put the wires though a hole in the battery door. I would probably have to cut or thin out the rubber so it would fit flush, but I am confident it could go through the fairly thin otterbox plastic.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That would work, although with slightly stronger magnets like what I used, my phone has a Rock Case on it, and everything works right thru the back cover and the Rock Case.
Ahh I see, not worth it to me, I use my phone while charging a lot.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
android94301 said:
That would work, although with slightly stronger magnets like what I used, my phone has a Rock Case on it, and everything works right thru the back cover and the Rock Case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad to hear this works through the Rock case!
I already had all the parts you listed in the mail before you started this thread, and my biggest two worries were:
1. Slight bulge from coil might prevent Rock case from fitting
2. Rock case will prevent this from charging
Great to know neither of these will be a problem!
K
android94301 said:
Hi,
I just tested it with Smart Compass, and it seems to work. How many people use a compass app anyway? Don't most use GPS, which isn't affected by the small magnets.
In terms of NFC, I haven't tried NFC, so I don't know. But other's who've used the same system don't have problems with NFC. You could always mount the coil lower, so it wasn't near the NFC chip.
I don't understand the question about the phone needing to stay on the Touchstone. How is that different from the phone needing to be plugged in while charging? The major advantage of this mod is that a) it's way cheap and way cool, and b) you won't wear out the micro usb port plugging in and out. Also, I find it much more convenient to just lay my phone down on the charger whenever I am not using it, so it's always fully charged.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Last time i checked the 'magnets' in the palm pixi cover are not magnets but small pieces of metal. The magnets are in the pixi charging pad. I did this mod a long time ago and just used some really really small wires to complete the connection, i have been meaning to buy the copper tape but, lazy.
Nice mod!! If you could post a vid of a tutorial that would be sweet!??? I have always been the type to learn the best by watching it in action... Great job though!!:good:
TheMorlince said:
Last time i checked the 'magnets' in the palm pixi cover are not magnets but small pieces of metal. The magnets are in the pixi charging pad. I did this mod a long time ago and just used some really really small wires to complete the connection, i have been meaning to buy the copper tape but, lazy.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, they are small and thin neodymium magnets. What phone did you do it on "a long time ago"?
Ordered
Just ordered the parts. Touchstones for $3.50 and back covers for $3. Makes me sad though to see how Palm has fallen. My wife had a Pre Plus and touchstone and we both loved that phone. Probably would have bought a Pre 3 if they had ever come to market. Got 2 touchstones so I can have one at work. I will most likely epoxy the components to the battery cover since new battery covers are like $5. Should hold up better than Scotch tape over time.
Will report back when I get it all working.
nsmal24 said:
Just ordered the parts. Touchstones for $3.50 and back covers for $3. Makes me sad though to see how Palm has fallen. My wife had a Pre Plus and touchstone and we both loved that phone. Probably would have bought a Pre 3 if they had ever come to market. Got 2 touchstones so I can have one at work. I will most likely epoxy the components to the battery cover since new battery covers are like $5. Should hold up better than Scotch tape over time.
Will report back when I get it all working.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's a good idea, maybe I will have two covers, one with wireless charging for most of the time, and maybe one plain one for travel, etc.You might want to play around with it a little first, using scotch tape, check out NFC, etc, before you commit to gluing it all down.
Can you post a video that would be really cool
Sent from my SCH-I535 using Tapatalk
F***ing brilliant
For those looking to glue & not use tape just use silicon as it is easy to remove with no damage if needed but more stout than tape
This is awesome, thanks! The cover fits after gluing all that extra stuff without a problem, right? And how fast is the wireless charging?

[Q] Unable to acquire GPS lock [4.0.4 Stock / CM10]

I have been having some problems with GPS recently - I can "see" satellites in GPS Status, but they seem to remain in the "ephemeris" (yellow) stage and with the signal bar being near-empty. I'm not getting a fix on any of the 16-22 satellites I can see. On the few occasions that it DID work (this was a few weeks ago), it was VERY spotty and only worked for a minute or two. I tried flashing CM10 (probably should've done that a LONG time ago), but it was to no avail and I'm having the same problem. GPS Status has been trying to get a fix while next to my bedroom window for about 45 minutes and it's getting ridiculous.
When closely examining the GPS Status "main" view, I see a fair number of satellites clustered at 0 degrees North.
Is my GPS fried?
Try the GPS patch from the aroma installer Boombah created in the dev section. It always locks with ease for me after flashing it
-------------------------------------------------
Sent from my Skyrocket i727 running MIUI v4.1
-----------Nexus 7 running AOKP M1-----------
Mike on XDA said:
Try the GPS patch from the aroma installer Boombah created in the dev section. It always locks with ease for me after flashing it
-------------------------------------------------
Sent from my Skyrocket i727 running MIUI v4.1
-----------Nexus 7 running AOKP M1-----------
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I already had that, it didn't seem to help. But, I'll humor you. Which build would you recommend?
hmmwhatsthisdo said:
I already had that, it didn't seem to help. But, I'll humor you. Which build would you recommend?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What do you mean by build? What rom combo or which agps patch? I haven't used agps patch from its original thread but used the one found in Boombah's 1.57 release from the aroma installer
This thread: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1732304
If that doesn't help I would take a look here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1438129
^^haven't used it from this thread because it was easy enough just to flash the one in aroma, so I can't note whether it was effective or not
-------------------------------------------------
Sent from my Skyrocket i727 running MIUI v4.1
-----------Nexus 7 running AOKP M1-----------
This is most likely a HW problem - might be as simple as GPS antenna contacts not touching well. Search for the solution, you should find it.
No amount of SW flashing cures a HW problem. All the "GPS patches" can only make it lock faster by providing better aGPS data (almanac and ephemeris) faster and get more accurate time. The "patches" don't influence signal strength at all. So if someone is writing that he has close to none signal strength - all the "patches" can be skipped.
hey OP, i think i have the same problem. my phone is unable to lock onto any satelites. when i have GPS status open, it's able to see some satelites, but it's never able to lock on to any of them and the status remains yellow. i've left GPS status on for over an hour and i have yet to lock onto any satelites. i've attached a screen shot of what I see on GPS status. like jack said, it's probably a hardware issue. did you find any clues on how to fix this yet?
I have a feeling this might be a hardware issue, seeing as how my mother's SR does just fine. I'd RMA it again, but... let's just say my experience with RMAs through AT&T have been less than stellar.
Is it possible to fix it w/o voiding the warranty?
since it's a HW issue, we're probably gonna have to open up the phone if we want to fix it ourselves, which would probably void your warranty. do you have any ideas as to what might have caused the issue for you? I'm not sure when mine stopped working, it was definitely working before though. I recently replace the lcd myself since it broke after dropping my phone, and my warranty was already up, so I'm not sure if I messed something up while replacing the LCD or if it was from the fall, or if it stopped working due to something else..
does anyone know what the GPS unit looks like?
i found this, but this is for the i9100, not sure if it will be the same for the i727
It's the same for I777, and this pin needs to have a good contact with this pad. Bending it outwards a bit and cleaning the pad with alcohol for better contact should do the trick.
Holy thread necromancy, Batman!
I just got around to opening the phone and trying to fix it. It works BEAUTIFULLY now.
I used these parts:
A small Phillips screwdriver - not quite sure what size, but a fairly small one should do.
A few lens wipes (the alcohol-soaked and foil-packed kind, not the microfiber ones)
A small flathead screwdriver
A thin, bevelled plastic card - If you have a guitar pick, these work MUCH better. Spudgers are awesome too.
Here's what I did:
Remove your case (if necessary), your battery cover, battery, microSD, and SIM.
Unscrew all 7 screws under the battery cover. 5 are on the top, two are just below the battery slot.
Use a guitar pick, spudger, thin non-PVC card, or other soft bevelled edge to separate the rear bezel from the rest of the phone. Do NOT use a non-bevelled-edge PVC card, screwdriver, or other metallic implement. You'll scratch something.
Once all the clips are popped, the rear housing should lift right off.
Open the lens wipe packet, and gently wipe ALL of the gold plates and springs in the housing and on the mainboard. I think there were a total of 5 or 7 plate/spring combos. Do NOT rub against the spring, only in the direction the spring points.
Use a jeweler's screwdriver to GENTLY bend the springs up just a hair. Put the screwdriver under the top end of the spring and lift SLOWLY and EVENLY across the left and right parts of a spring. You shouldn't go farther than 0.5mm (about 1/64th of an inch)
Once you feel satisfied, make sure all ribbon cables are seated evenly and put the rear housing back on. It should fit securely and no clips should be left un-popped.
Put all 7 screws back in. Tighten them AS TIGHT AS SAFELY POSSIBLE! Pay special attention to the screws next to the SIM and the top mic.
Put the rest of the parts of the phone back together, and use GPS Status from the Play Store to verify GPS is fixed.
hmmwhatsthisdo said:
Holy thread necromancy, Batman!
I just got around to opening the phone and trying to fix it. It works BEAUTIFULLY now.
I used these parts:
A small Phillips screwdriver - not quite sure what size, but a fairly small one should do.
A few lens wipes (the alcohol-soaked and foil-packed kind, not the microfiber ones)
A small flathead screwdriver
A thin, bevelled plastic card - If you have a guitar pick, these work MUCH better. Spudgers are awesome too.
Here's what I did:
Remove your case (if necessary), your battery cover, battery, microSD, and SIM.
Unscrew all 7 screws under the battery cover. 5 are on the top, two are just below the battery slot.
Use a guitar pick, spudger, thin non-PVC card, or other soft bevelled edge to separate the rear bezel from the rest of the phone. Do NOT use a non-bevelled-edge PVC card, screwdriver, or other metallic implement. You'll scratch something.
Once all the clips are popped, the rear housing should lift right off.
Open the lens wipe packet, and gently wipe ALL of the gold plates and springs in the housing and on the mainboard. I think there were a total of 5 or 7 plate/spring combos. Do NOT rub against the spring, only in the direction the spring points.
Use a jeweler's screwdriver to GENTLY bend the springs up just a hair. Put the screwdriver under the top end of the spring and lift SLOWLY and EVENLY across the left and right parts of a spring. You shouldn't go farther than 0.5mm (about 1/64th of an inch)
Once you feel satisfied, make sure all ribbon cables are seated evenly and put the rear housing back on. It should fit securely and no clips should be left un-popped.
Put all 7 screws back in. Tighten them AS TIGHT AS SAFELY POSSIBLE! Pay special attention to the screws next to the SIM and the top mic.
Put the rest of the parts of the phone back together, and use GPS Status from the Play Store to verify GPS is fixed.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
..hahahah Seems unbelievable. But it works....)
Thanks a bunch !!!!! THANKS A BUNCH !! ! !

Categories

Resources