My z3 Waterproof weak point: Back panel adhesive - Xperia Z3 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

Hello,
I wanna share my experience with waterproofing and my Z3.
My Z3 was not waterproof from the very first moment, I noticed since I was getting lot of fog in the camera and I was failing the pressure test. Once it even died for few minutes!
Pressure test:
1. dial *#*#7378423#*#*
2. go to "Service Tests"
3. go to "pressure sensor"
4. slightly compress the phone using your thumb and index finger by pressing on the display and back. If the pressure doesn't change, it is not waterproof
I reached the conclusion that the back panel was not glued properly, since I could see it un-sticking a little bit while slightly bending the phone. I didn't send it to warranty since it would take a month to reemplace... and who knows it if would be really fixed.
I bought instead a sticker to to reemplace the original one online: http://goo.gl/oVnznw
I did the job carefully and afterwards it was passing the pressure test! I dunk my phone several times, no problem at all.
After a few days, the pressure test was giving much less difference in pressure, so I think it is getting un-sticked again.
Am I the only one having problems with the back panel and the waterproof? any idea for a permanent fix?

Send it off to Sony's Repair Centre

Related

[Q] N5 Random Shut Downs After Screen Replacement

So I ended up cracking my screen and installed a replacement last night. Everything seemed fine but I noticed, after putting it back together, that any slight bit of pressure or shock to the top causes my N5 to shut off.
I took it apart again to make sure all of the ribbons were properly connected and to take a second look and everything appears fine. I didn't have this problem prior to the replacement and I was very gentle during the tear down and reassembly so I don't the the CPU or anything on it is damaged. Other than the top being hyper sensitive the phone works perfectly.
Any ideas on what the problem is or could be?
SOLVED(sorry, I don't know how to change the title)
I just wanted to fill in anyone curious or running into this problem in the future on how I resolved the issue.
So after some time I narrowed the problem down to the second back cover (the one with the camera lens and beneath the Nexus branded cover) making contact with the motherboard. More specifically, compressing the power management IC with its aluminum cover. You want to make sure that chip is laid flush which was a PITA, for me at least, because the headphone jack and earpiece speaker wants to push it up and out. What I did was put the jack in, lay the board on top, then gradually adjusted the jack with tweezers while gently pushing the motherboard down until the board was flush, then placing the earpiece speaker in.
I then placed the second back cover on and tightened the screws until I could feel them just slightly putting pressure on the cover. I can't stress how light this pressure is as it is the key in resolving this issue. To compare it to changing your oil filter on your car; when you can feel the filter make solid contact with the block and you then turn it about another half turn to seal it; it's like that but without that half turn.
Anyway, I hope this helps anyone else unfortunate enough to both break their screen and then have their phone randomly shut down when any pressure is applied after fixing it.
hello
TCGUK said:
So I ended up cracking my screen and installed a replacement last night. Everything seemed fine but I noticed, after putting it back together, that any slight bit of pressure or shock to the top causes my N5 to shut off.
I took it apart again to make sure all of the ribbons were properly connected and to take a second look and everything appears fine. I didn't have this problem prior to the replacement and I was very gentle during the tear down and reassembly so I don't the the CPU or anything on it is damaged. Other than the top being hyper sensitive the phone works perfectly.
Any ideas on what the problem is or could be?
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hello where didu buy the screen for your new n5 ? there is any king of intrusion to do it .
thank:good:
josedecuba said:
hello where didu buy the screen for your new n5 ? there is any king of intrusion to do it .
thank:good:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought mine off of eBay and it cost me $150. I could be wrong but it looked like the screen can't be separated from the frame. You might want to keep that in mind when purchasing because there are sellers that sell the screen without a frame. Tearing down the N5 was pretty simple. The hardest part for me was getting the back cover off as there are 4 (two on each side) large clips. If you end up bending the clips any, you can push them back to shape to keep the back from creaking like every Samsung I've ever owned. There's a nice guide on iFixit if you want to look at the process prior to ordering a new part.
I've read from others that you can send your phone into LG and they'll repair the screen for you. When you send it in they'll email a quote to you within a day. The price I keep seeing is $146 and I have no idea what the turn around on that is.

What, if any, issues/manufacturing faults did you experience with your Z3?

I wanted to create this topic because I am curious and because I see many people asking if this phone isn't too fragile or has QC issues. I believe that the people with problems are the vocal minority but the best way to find out is to have a poll.
So, have you found any faults or is your device right as a little (Xperia) ray of sunshine?
You can select more than one option.
1st phone: defective camera (purple noise)
2nd phone: USB flap misalign when closed
3rd and current phone: so far so good
My first phone's screen had an area in a line from top to bottom, right of centre that had no touch sensitivity. The area was about .5 cm wide.
I couldn't touch anything on the line or drag anything across it.
I contacted Amazon.co.uk and they sent me a new one right away. They also let me hang onto the defective one until the replacement arrived without charging me.
Awesome! thanks for the replies so far! Please keep them coming!
My phone is perfect. The USB flap is a teeny tiny bit, like a fraction of a milimeter, misaligned but the seal is intact, I do not intent to take my phone into the pool anyway and thought it was pointless to go through the hassle of returning an otherwise flawless phone for something half of my friends can't see when I point it out. My carpenters eye is ridiculously accurate so meh.
The back glass scratched a few hours after removing cover. Ive only has the phone for 2 days and Bell wont take it back with damages. The phone has only ever been in my otherwise empty pocket...
Anyone else experiencef this? I thought both were gorilla glass.
I don't think the back is as scratch resistant as the front, as I too have very minor scratches on the back, using front and back tempered glass protects now.
My unit only has a slight annoyance which is the headphone jack is wobbly. It has about less than 1mm of wiggle room. I can see a gap between the metal body and the Jack. The Jack works perfectly currently.
Don't know if it's worth bringing to the Sony store, or to just seal it with some super glue or something. :/
Took some underwater pictures at the aquarium, thought it'd be cool.
Sending my phone into Sony to get a warranty replacement today.
xxquicksh0txx said:
Took some underwater pictures at the aquarium, thought it'd be cool.
Sending my phone into Sony to get a warranty replacement today.
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I assume water got in?
hanime said:
I assume water got in?
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That's what I'm assuming. I could also hear air bubbles when squeezing my device... :/
It worked fine for a while, I even rinsed it off in the sink after exposing it to the water. (It was fresh water, but there were fish in it) No more than 6 inches submerged for like 30 seconds. Was going through the pictures and the touchscreen just stopped working.
xxquicksh0txx said:
That's what I'm assuming. I could also hear air bubbles when squeezing my device... :/
It worked fine for a while, I even rinsed it off in the sink after exposing it to the water. (It was fresh water, but there were fish in it) No more than 6 inches submerged for like 30 seconds. Was going through the pictures and the touchscreen just stopped working.
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In reality, from what I have read, some are not waterproof out of the box. So sad to hear this when Sony advertised this phone as waterproof. Before submerging, did you try the water test via software (pressure sensor)?
hanime said:
In reality, from what I have read, some are not waterproof out of the box. So sad to hear this when Sony advertised this phone as waterproof. Before submerging, did you try the water test via software (pressure sensor)?
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Click to collapse
Yes(Although I don't really think the test proves the waterproofness), I had also had it completely submerged for 10 minutes when I bought the device.
xxquicksh0txx said:
Yes(Although I don't really think the test proves the waterproofness), I had also had it completely submerged for 10 minutes when I bought the device.
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This really sucks because there is no way we can tell if it is waterproof until we really submerge it. I am going to avoid submerging mine at all cost.
Hi
I had some problems with this new phone.
1: no nfc working
2: horizontal section from 9 to 177 of the touchscreen doesnt work properly
So i get a third replacement by SFR (in France) and I think I get a fully working Z3.
I love the advertisement of Sony for ils Z3 in France : demand perfection (exigez la perfection)!
I've had 2 copper Z3's. First one, front glass shattered whilst in my front left pocket, nothing else in the same pocket. I've carried all my phones in the same manner and never had an issue. Also had the pink spot issue.
Second phone has 2 stuck pixels.
I really like the phone. They just don't like me
Got a replacement from T-Mobile, the camera button seems to be stuck.. Only works like 20% of the time. Instead of feeling like a dual stage button, it's just a single press with no tactile feel.
When in the camera app it either does nothing, or is stuck trying to focus repeatedly.
Has the same issue with the glass coming up on the back as well. Definitely feels and sounds as if adhesive it being "pulled apart" per se.
Also, the flaps seem to be a little mis-aligned.
My T-Mobile must have gotten a bad batch...
If you have a misaligned usb flap, will replacing the flap with a spare one fix it or is it an issue with the frame?
First one I got in store, noticed the power and volume up buttons were stuck and wouldn't click, the next one's speakerphone didn't work, now this one's camera button is stuck and doesn't have the two stage shutter and can't take photos in the stock app. I still prefer the phone over any other currently out.
Edit: I got mine through t-mobile.
UPDATE: The camera button has come unstuck and works fine now, though it does get a little stuck still.
Two display/screen issues :
- Screen burn-in all the time : status bar and home button more particularly. I strongly suspect a defective screen : I send my Z3 back to Sony, and they did... a software update ! I'm kind of curious about what they did exactly because my phone was completely updated. Of course, it didn't solve anything...
- Strange parasite lines surrounding text lines. Probably a software issue. I'm waiting Lollipop to see what it gonna do on my phone.
Sent mine in for a screen repair in the USA. Its a d6603 international version that is rooted and an unlocked boot loader stock. They just informed me that they cannot fix due to it not having the correct software and it not being a US phone.

[Q] Z3 touch screen not responding after a short swim at the waterfalls

So, 2 days ago, i went to a short trip to malaysia, johor bahru, there was a nearby natural waterfall swimming area, i was thinking of testing out the water proofness of this phone as the ADS keep saying it is the waterproof phone you will ever need, note that i have been using every Z series phone that sony came up with, the last time i went there was when i was using the Z1 and the pictures turn out great, so i did not hesitate to use the Z3 to take some better pics.
i went down to the pool, cold water, drinkable i might say, and start snapping away, 15 minutes in and the screen just wouldnt respond to my touches, i did not enable the touch block feature, but the external buttons were all fine, so i continue taking pictures, thinking it was only temporary, but after reaching home and drying the phone, it still didnt respond to my touches, i tried resetting it using the small orange button under the sim slot, and using the volume up and lock button , again no respond, i just bought the phone a month back, and to think that the best waterproof phone just got water in it just make my situation a little bit funny so help meeeeeeeeeeee
I don't think you are ment to swim with it. It's water resistant not waterproof. Try putting in in rice and leaving it 24 hours.
I experienced the same problem with my Z3 D6633 Dual.
1 hour after an immersion the touchscreen stopped working just as you are describing. I let it rest for a few days in rice and it eventually started working again. Sadly, some other problems persisted: Vibrator did not work, proximity sensor did not work and the phone would not get a signal. So I decided to RMA it.
You should send it back to sony, could be a manufacturers defect.
I'm currently waiting on the return of mine, but my case is a bit more complicated, since the D6633 is not for sale in the US
slipsystem said:
I don't think you are ment to swim with it. It's water resistant not waterproof.
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Click to collapse
Er, no. Sony's own website both describes it as waterproof and says you can swim with it:
http://www.sonymobile.com/global-en/products/phones/xperia-z3/features/#waterproof
Waterproof and dust resistant
The Sony Xperia Z3 has an impressive IP65/68 rating, which means that neither water nor dust get in the way of performance for this slim and sleek smartphone.
Snap away with a dual SIM waterproof smartphone
With the waterproof Xperia Z3, you can take pictures with the best smartphone camera while swimming in fresh water for up to 30 minutes. You can even dive down to 1.5 metres with it.
As long as there is no Chlorine/Salt residue inside the phone and you closed the flaps you should be covered by warranty. Since you say waterfall, which is freshwater you should be fine with warranty.
But note for those who do not know, salt water (ex: ocean) and Chlorine (ex: swimming pools) are not recommended by Sony.
Actually, the manual states that chlorinated fresh water is okay. Only saltwater should be avoided.
Sent from my D6603 using XDA Free mobile app

New waterproof test? Try this!

hi guys,
with this post I would invite you to do a last test to verify the impermeability.
This test is similar to the last and I imagine you know very well, the only difference is to close the lanyard hole with a piece of tape; then, with a little weight on the front glass, check the pressure variation. I obtained this result:
initial pressure: 1017,10
With weight: 1018,50
The pressure decreased very very very slowly, for example from 1018,50 to 1018,40 in about 5 minutes.
By the way, pressure never fixed on a precise value.
From what I saw on XDA (guy in a video that closes the lanyard hole and checks the pressure and the topic about the classical pressure test means nothing about how that phone of the guy was full of water inside, after a positive test pressure) I think this is a new little step to have a more accurately test.
The way i checked, I believe is much better,
The best way to test the waterproof ability is to first check pressure *#*#service#*#* on dial pad and go to option to check pressure.
First open a flap and keep it opened, now apply pressure while a flap is open, you will notice the pressure does not increase at all. (Mine stayed at 1020)
Second now make sure all compartments are secure apply pressure on screen you will notice the pressure increases(My phone went to 1029) . If it doesn't that means there is an air leak.
FYI also check if by pressing the power button the pressure does not reduce, cuz I have heard people complain on forums that there power button became loose. Also be careful with your device it has water resistance but wear and tear will affect your phone's water resistance .
Give a thumbs up if you found this helpful.
Pressure test
I tried using the pressure sensor on the service tests to know if my xperia z3 is water proof or not. Whenever I put pressure to my phone the numbers don't go up. It only goes up to one number (from 1006 to 1007 sometimes 1006 to 1007 then to 1005) does this mean my phone isn't waterproof?
There is a likelihood of a leak but a small one meaning if there was a gap somewhere it would change only in decimals, so less than 3 points from rest state is still a lot less than I experienced . Recheck ur flaps and the rubber around the flap plus check around the power button and lastly carefully inspect the device closely for any gaps.
Sometimes the black rubber lining the flap might be twisted or damaged which can be easily repaired.If it's around the button area or between the metal and plastic u r out of luck. Check for hairline cracks as well.

Build Quality (Front screen)

Hi guys, please see pictures. Is this normal?
There's a tiny gap between my top side of the screen and the frame (fits 2 lotto papers easily.)
It is annoying because the bottom side is perfect; the back side is also perfect.
Any body has this problem?
Hey, well i was curios too, .... for me the top is very very tight , close and no gap , no paper is going in.
But for the bottom is not, easy enter a papper in the gap , and you can see it .
I'm not concern about the bottom beacuse i will NOT put it in water !
Check my pictures ( recomend use , and google plus classic , for zoom
https://plus.google.com/photos/113360088344058276817/albums/6369905804234775025
Wasn't this answered elsewhere, in that the gap is deliberate to allow for expansions and contractions in temperature? We may need to be careful not to become too paranoid with the design, as some will gratuitously return the handsets which may raise the bar for those with a genuine warranty claim. If it's a waterproofing concern, I don't think we're supposed to be submerging the handsets, which are more water resistant than waterproof as I understand it. Apologies if this sounds a bit "preachy" and feel free to correct me if I'm way off here......
On my unit the top, bottom and the left side of the screen/frame connection are tight, but the right side where the power button is does have sligthly bigger gap, very tiny difference.
I'm sure if the phone passes the pressure test, it shouldn't be a concern about it beeing water resistant.
If it doesn't pass the pressure test, take it to service and demand a new one.
But If you go to a dealer and look at other phones on a store display you'll see they all have this tiny gap somwhere, not each on the same place, so I guess it's there for a reason and there's a tolerance for it.
As I said, if it passes pressure test, don't worry about it and don't try to adjust it or re-glue it or something.
I have the same gap on the bottom edge. Washed my phone many times, took showers with it. I dont have any issues.
cizkek_ said:
I have the same gap on the bottom edge. Washed my phone many times, took showers with it. I dont have any issues.
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One has to ask, why?? All you need to do is wipe your phone with a cloth dampened with anti-bacterial spray. These phones are water resistant, not waterproof.
sunking101 said:
One has to ask, why?? All you need to do is wipe your phone with a cloth dampened with anti-bacterial spray. These phones are water resistant, not waterproof.
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You are right. I was irresponsible. Always wanted to do it though

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