Database Info

[Q] Strange power problem

My HTC Sensation seems to have a very strange power problem and I am hoping someone can help. Around four months ago my phone started switching itself off when I went to do something, it could be read a text, make a call or maybe send a text. What I noticed is when I turned the phone back on the battery level would jump down, it could “lose” 20-60% of its battery life.
If I then put it on charge it would never return to 100% unless I restarted it, it was almost as if the phone didn’t recognise the % of battery it had “lost”. This could happen many times a day and once it switched itself off around 15-20 times as I tried to make a phone call when hiking in the mountains.
The only time it keeps working is if it is connected to a power source. Also when it does switch off I notice it becomes quite hot at the bottom of the screen.
I swapped batteries with my girlfriend who has the Sensation XE and with her battery my phone worked fine but with my battery her touchscreen wasn’t as responsive as normal which was very strange.
I was running the HTC stock firmware but I moved to CyanogenMod to play with it and see if it was a software issue but the problem continues with CyanogenMod.
I spoke to HTC but they said I was out with my 12 month accessory warranty so I’d have to buy a new battery. The problem kept happening and it drove me round the bend for a while until I just decided I’d buy an Anker battery. I’ve had it for almost two months and all was going well until yesterday when my phone turned itself off as I tried to send a text.
Since then it must have turned itself off around 6 times either trying to make a call, read a text or send one.
Does anyone have any ideas? I thought it was just a dud battery at first but now with the exact same thing happening to the second one I wonder if it’s something else.
Thanks

try to put a piece of paper or something to fit where the battery connects with the device
maybe loses somehow the connection
best wishes

Hi Lsmith,
This issue seems to happen on many Sensation devices... but there is hope!
Sometimes it's due to a custom Rom or due to a let's say "faulty" connection between battery and the connectors of your device.
- I would first suggest to charge your phone up to 100% (if possible). After that, perform a reset (make a backup) and look how your device behaves.
- If you still detect the same behavior follow this thread ->
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1531232 (check out the last picture). This is the so called paper trick...
For me it's enough placing a folded paper on the battery itself, covering part of the sim card. Just try out what suits you best.
Cheers
tneS morf ym noitasenS gnisu klatapaT

Thanks guys, I'll take a look at that thread.

[Q] Hardware Issue - Vibration motor going out

For the last few weeks the vibration will stop randomly in the middle of typing a text or in the middle of receiving a call. I've narrowed it down to being a hardware issue because when it goes out, if I tap on the back of the phone, the vibration will start again and work for a little while. This last week it has gotten really bad and because I carry my phone in many places where I have to have it on vibrate only, I need to look into fixing it. I'm afraid that I am going to start missing calls/texts/etc because of the vibration motor not working.
I've done some searching and have only come up with several people who had software issues or who have had what sounds like a similar issue that i'm having but the resolution suggested by most people before the thread goes cold is "Drop the phone again" which may have fixed it for them. I actually tried that in case something was just coming loose but it didn't have any change.
I'm relatively handy and have done repairs on several laptops and on a few iPod Touches so I feel confident enough in cracking open the case on my phone to look at the motor but I do like to be as educated as possible before I do.
So my questions are:
1) Has anyone had similar issues to this and attempted to fix/replace the motor? Were you successful?
2) Does anyone have a closeup of just the motor area? Is it soldered in or just a cable connector of some sort? I'd like to know what I'm looking at before I dive in. I've found a few images of the board but nothing specifically of the motor area.
3) Anyone have any other suggestions/tips/hints/etc. before I jump in?
Images I've found of the motor board: Image 1 Image 2 Image 3 Image 4

What I only say is that a few months ago my phone vibrator stops working, I tought it was a hardware issue, but after installing ViperS 3.0.1 with JB and a JB kernel, it starts working again!!!
I don't know if yours is the same problem, but if you have an ICS Rom, try to flash a JB one like ViperS and test...
Hope it will helps you a little bit... :highfive:

Crespovski said:
What I only say is that a few months ago my phone vibrator stops working, I tought it was a hardware issue, but after installing ViperS 3.0.1 with JB and a JB kernel, it starts working again!!!
I don't know if yours is the same problem, but if you have an ICS Rom, try to flash a JB one like ViperS and test...
Hope it will helps you a little bit... :highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the suggestion. I should have put this in the original post but I am already running a JB based ROM - I'm running CM10.
I guess I shouldn't assume then that it is for sure a hardware issue. It just seems really suspect to me though because of being able to tap on the back and have it magically start vibrating again.
-- Zeustopher

solution for not vibrating Sensation XE
Hi guys,
I have been reading a lot at this forum already and had the same problems with the vibration as described.
It started after a fall of the XE.
At startup the Phone vibrated normally but in the menu it stopped vibrating when I touched the screen when typing.
Vibrating continued when I dismounted the back cover (the one without the screws)
Strange I thought.. very very strange
I have been reading things about software issues and so on.
That couldn't be my problem because the Phone was Original and the problem started after a fall.
So I opened the Phone and searched for the problem. I took me for about 4 hours to find the problem.
I noticed that after the fall the backcover which you have to unmount with screws damaged a little bit of the black ribbon cable.
Exactly at the point where the backcover has a metal grounding plate.
I covered the damage of the black ribbon cable with some tape and voila, problem solved.
After thinking over the solution I can imagine what happens when you drop your Phone: the metal grounding plate damages the ribbon cable.
So: open up your Phone, look for the little damage of the ribbon cable, cover it with a little tape and your Phone will vibrate again like normal.
Hopefully you can use my solution.
My apologize for the English (Or american ) I am from the Netherlands.
With kind regards,
Klokn

complete audio silence (mic and speaker)

my One S started to cut all audio randomly. it happens when i am talking on the phone (i have a suspicion that it's related to the way i put pressure on the phone's body, especially the bottom part, while holding it). it's usually preceded by a sharp/loud chirping noise, after which the speaker and the microphone stop working completely (the call is still on-going, but the other party cannot hear me, and i cannot hear the other party). at first, after rebooting the phone twice, it would go back to its normal mode and would function properly for a while, but now, it refuses to play any sort of audio signal at all. (for example, the YouTube app refuses to play videos, telling me that something is wrong, whereas Slacker radio refuses to broadcast any station, telling me something along the lines of "audio not functioning properly".)
i have tried wiping cache, and i have not reset the phone to factory settings and wiped all data on it. and it's still completely silent. my guess is that it is hardware related, but i don't know whether there is any solution for it or not. btw, my phone is T-Mobile US-branded, and it is unlocked (using HTCDev) and rooted. otherwise, it was (is) completely stock.
any ideas or tips?
PS: during that period of audio-silence, sometimes the phone becomes super sluggish; for example, if i press Disconnect, it takes a very long time to disconnect the call, or it takes a very long time to update the counter at the top which records the duration of the call. sometimes, the delay is so long that i get an error message "Activity Phone isn't responding", and it asks me whether i want to stop it or wait.
EDIT: i found this thread; someone suggested a little mod to the phone. still, i'd appreciate any help.

anybody?
EDIT_1: i also found this thread. seems like this is not an isolated incident.
EDIT_2: anyhow, i opened my phone (well, just the bottom plastic cover that is held in place by plastic tabs and sticky tape). there was dust along the edges, which i cleaned. and i straightened the connectors from the speaker (housed on the plastic cover) to the motherboard. it seems to have fixed things, but i only tested that for a short while. i will use the phone and report back.

darxider said:
anybody?
EDIT_1: i also found this thread. seems like this is not an isolated incident.
EDIT_2: anyhow, i opened my phone (well, just the bottom plastic cover that is held in place by plastic tabs and sticky tape). there was dust along the edges, which i cleaned. and i straightened the connectors from the speaker (housed on the plastic cover) to the motherboard. it seems to have fixed things, but i only tested that for a short while. i will use the phone and report back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
just wanted to update. the issue came back after a week or so, the and phone randomly loses all audio functions. i opened it up again to make sure the speaker connections are fine (they are). to fix it, i have to power the phone off once or twice, and let it be powered-off for about 5 minutes or so, and then the sound comes back.
anybody knows of a real fix for this or should i just retire my One S and buy another phone?

Finicky LCD? Other problems too

So i've been having a lot of issues with my N5 lately, mostly small stuff like general slowness, poor battery life, not surprising on an almost 3 year old phone. I also lose cell service way too frequently (not an issue with my carryer, all my friends are on the same network and are fine). Camera won't focus anymore (though im pretty sure this was my fault, probably broke it while taking it apart). I'm pretty sure the battery connector on my motherboard is damaged. I've had many problems with the battery reading its temperature as -30 C (battery heath "cold"), i've replaced the battery 4 times now and i still get that problem every now and then. Pushing on the connector fixes it temporarily, so im pretty sure some pin is bent slightly out of place and i don't know how to fix that. It recently started having this issue where just moving or bumping the phone the wrong way would cause the phone to shut off. Probably an issue with the battery connector again. I tried fiddling with it but it didn't do much.
The other day i turned it on and the LCD was backlit, but black except for one single vertical white line. Rebooted and it looked normal. Few hours later i got really pissed off with it for shutting off in the middle of an important text and threw it at the wall (not the best idea i know). Screen was already cracked so i didn't really care. Ever since then the LCD has been a real pain in the ass. i can turn the phone on but there's nothing on the screen. Ii get haptic feedback when the Google logo would up, and the notification LED is flashing like i have a message. The backlight is on and pushing hard on the cable connecting the motherboard to the daughter board i can see it start to turn on, (Google logo, few seconds of boot animation) but then back to black (while still backlit).
I can post photos if it would help diagnose/fix this, my phone is my main camera and i don't want to bother anyone if i don't have to.
Anyone know any tricks that might squeeze another mouth out of this dying phone? Any response is appreciated, Thanks!

The issues could have been related to the power button or physical internal damage. My suggestion: replace the screen with a cheap 3rd party screen if the internal components are still working. This will give you more time with your existing phone and allow you to have a working backup.

Looking for informations about daughterboard/ribbon cable issues

Umm... hi
I have two Nexus 5, one which is out of warranty and one brand new one.
So the first one I stopped using because the screen is acting funny.
Meaning suddenly turning black, image flickering, touch not working.
Sometimes tapping on the back of the phone helps, but I do forced reboots alot to fix it.
Also, mic is dead and speaker tends to ask for a tap to make it work here and there.
My second phone was meant as replacement, but after two weeks the backlight
of the entire right screen half started to go on and off several times a day. Tapping helped,
but I just returned to it get it replaced.
On youtube, you will find a huge amount of videos showing how various of those screen
and touch and reception and mic issues can be solved by simply replacing the 20$ daughterboard.
The one connecting the bottom half of the phone with the mainboard. This includes display, mic, speaker
and more. I intend to do that aswell on my broken-af first Nexus, but before that, I thought going to XDA
asking if anyone here knows why this component is so receptible to damage. It's not a moving part
and does not run near the CPU, so I really wonder why this part is failing to incredible often. Anyone can
tell me more about that?
Thanks