Database Users

XDA Atom thinks earhones are plugged in

My Atom thinks the earphones are plugged in when they aren't.
If I answer the phone, no sound, presumably because it thinks the earphones are plugged in and is trying to use those.
Activating the start menu or media player has no sound.
The FM Radio starts (which will only happen if it thinks the earphones are plugged in).
But they are not plugged in.
I am currently on ROM 20060426B1WWE.
The same thing happened on ROM 20060105B1WWE, the first ROM I upgraded to.
I know what you're going to say, that there is a hardware fault, either with the earphone connector or the speakers simply don't work.
Firstly, the speakers do still work. If I start the FM radio and set the little button at bottom left to use the speakers as well, they work.
As for the earphone connector, when I had the problem on the 0105B1 ROM, I could fix the problem by performing a hard reset. Sadly this doesn't fix the problem with the latest ROM, but I'm pretty sure that a hard reset doesn't fully reset the device's configuration.
So I'm pretty sure this is not a hardware issue. I think the OS keeps track of whether the earphones are plugged in, and this has got out of sync somehow.
The last time it happened, I did the following:
While I was playing an mp3 and listening with the earphones, I pulled out the connector and the speakers did not start to play as I think they should have. Now, as I said above, it thinks the earphones are connected all of the time.
Anyone seen anything similar, or have an idea of what I can do? I rang O2 and while they admit it is probably a s/w problem, they want me to send the Atom to them. I don't want to be without it for a week or so because it is my phone and I rely on it. So I thought I'd try here.
Thanks,

invisible earphone...
Hey Peter
I've got the exact same issue once...
But the problem i found for mine was that SOMEHOW when I plug out the headset jack, the slightly retarded Atom thinks I have not..
Just plug in the headset again and pull it out slowly... Then try out the phone if its back to normal...
It seems that the Atom is slow in picking up the disconnected headset...
Hope it works for you as it did for me...
Good Luck

Invisible earphones
Hi bulletproof_78,
Thanks a lot for the reply.
I have just tried it and no luck. I pulled the earphones out very slowly.
I think this is one of the biggest problems with any style of MS Windows. They want to cache everything for the sake of performance, and the cache gets out of sync with the thing it's caching. In this case I bet it tries to keep track of the earphone state internally. But if it misses an event like unplugging them, the internal state is different from the thing it is trying to cache.
Anyway, down off the soapbox.
I'll keep in mind what you said, and try it a few times over the next few days.
I might end up having to send it to O2 (all the way up to @#$%^! Queensland) so they can lose it, or replace it with some questionable one that they haven't fixed properly, or god knows what else.
Anyway, thanks again.

Atom thinks earphones plugged in
For anyone listening out there, the problem has gone away.
I don't really know why.
The only thing I did out of the usual was to turn Bluetooth on. The timing was perfect for me to think that this is what must have fixed the problem.
Do you think that might have fixed it? No I don't either.
And I'm reluctant to try to get it back into that state to see if this fixes it because I'm not that confident that this has fixed it.
I sure hope someone else has this problem and O2 or Microsoft hear about it.

I had the exact same problem you did. I fixed mine by very gently running a paperclip around the inside of the audio jack. Problem Solved!!!

I had the exact same problem you did. I fixed mine by very gently running a paperclip around the inside of the audio jack. Problem Solved!!!

hi guys i faced the same problem last week and i had to get it reparied from the repair shop and they informed me that the jack it not working properly and they will replace it with other jack which is used in sonyerricson cell phones as it is the same. I have got it done and now i have no problem.
Please try this method at the last.

Thanks Novice Boy
i tried the paper clip idea and it worked.
About 5mm inside the earphone jack, on the side closest to the USB port, you can feel a small 'bump' (lets call it the g-spot!) as you run over it with the paper clip. Do this with an MP3 playing or something and voila.....the music comes out of the speaker again and the phone rings, i can talk to people again. Seems there is a fault in recognising whether the earpiece is plugged in or out as many have suggested.
MT

Thanks Novice Boy
i tried the paper clip idea and it worked.
About 5mm inside the earphone jack, on the side closest to the USB port, you can feel a small 'bump' (lets call it the g-spot!) as you run over it with the paper clip. Do this with an MP3 playing or something and voila.....the music comes out of the speaker again and the phone rings, i can talk to people again. Seems there is a fault in recognising whether the earpiece is plugged in or out as many have suggested.
MT
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even a tooth pick would do :shock: Have not been using my FM radio but decided to try and got this problem! Was carful not to "short" anything inside so used a toothpick and it worked :lol:

Hi, mine is doing exactly the same thing and did intermittently for a while. Now I cannot get phone audio at all! I have even tried flashing the ROM and still nothing. Works perfectly with portable hands free. Do you think the audio plug is shot? Thanks.

awesome!!!
the paper clip trick really work!!! thanks Novice boy !!
I had this problem too, thanks to you guys and now its fixed.

Worked for me too..
Ok...This toothpic thing really works..
But I cant believe that after paying so much...I am encountering problems like these..
Anyone has any idea if the problem is solved for good or now we need to carry a toothpic too with a stylus...

Even mine problem got resolved automatically. I faced it 2 weeks back.
I tried re inserting the Headphone slowly and removingit and everything came back to normal

hey ive also had this problem...the only thing is that my phone doesnt think it has the headset plugged in because when i open the FM radio it says insert headset...it works when the headset is in and when its on speaker phone but other than that i cannot hear the person...i dropped my phone and this happened....i tried all the methods mentioned but its not fixing the problem...im guessing it could be hardware but the speaker and everything still works except for when your in a call...any ideas?

same prob due to wrong adaptor
i have the same problem. it's like the earphone jack is stuck because the fm radio works even without the earphones. sometimes this registry setting works sometimes it does not let me know if it works for you/anybody...
Windows Registry Editor Version 5.00
[HKEY_LOCAL_MACHINE\System\State\Hardware]
"Headset"=dword:00000000

even i had this problem in my atom exec a few weeks back sorry i saw this now and for a pemanent solution for it is dont put anything inside just apply very little coconut oil on the handsfree connecter and then connect it to ur phone and keep removing and reinserting it for a couple of times and it will work for sure this happens due to dust or some particles getting stuck between those connectors not allowing the mechanism to work correctly hope it helps beacuse toothpick trick works fine but its temp and reoccur

t.stratus said:
even i had this problem in my atom exec a few weeks back sorry i saw this now and for a pemanent solution for it is dont put anything inside just apply very little coconut oil on the handsfree connecter and then connect it to ur phone and keep removing and reinserting it for a couple of times and it will work for sure this happens due to dust or some particles getting stuck between those connectors not allowing the mechanism to work correctly hope it helps beacuse toothpick trick works fine but its temp and reoccur
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have the same problem and was very sad until trying the toothpic trick, even thought If I hit my pocket the problem returns, so I will try your recomendation, thanks!
Is there a hardware repair procedure, so maybe this part can be removed and replaced?

Yes it is a hardware problem. The headphone socket is faulty.
I've a HP 6828 - which is identical to Atom. I had this problem also.
Pls check this thread how to solve it yourself:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=421982

same problem goes to me to.. at first i'm quite shocked..there might be something damaged..then i insert a tooth pick (scared if i use paperclip could short the electrical terminal inside..) into the earphone jack.hoping a miracle to happen, then few moments, my atom back to normal..

Qtek 9100 - Mic & speaker dead, for the 2nd time

Hello all!
First, thanks for an awesome forum! It has both helped me tweak my Wizard, and also get help when I have needed it.
Well, I have no choice now but to ask here. Last autumn, my warranty was almost up, and a wierd problem presented itself. The mic and speaker suddenly just stopped working! The sidespeakers still work, I think, because the phone rings when someone calls me. But the caller can't hear me, and I can't hear the caller. And there isn't a hint of sound in it, no static or noise, there simply is nothing.
As there were only a few days before the 2 year warranty was up, I ran to my dealer and turned it in. A few weeks later, the phone returned, working again. But now that I come to think about it, I don't remember if I got a replacement or if they actually repaired it... It looked a little like they handled it rough though, maybe it was another phone... Well, that's not important right now.
The same thing has happened again! Summary:
1. Mic & phonespeaker dead
2. Stereo speakers work under certain conditions
3. Wired headset that came with the phone works, both for calling and media
So it seems like a hardware problem. Please note, although I downgraded the phone to original, official Swedish Qtek 9100 ROM, it has been thoroughly tweaked and upgraded to a number of different WM6 ROMs - but all that has been working beatifully!
Still, what are the odds for the mic&speaker dying twice in a row, on different phones (i think the present one is a replacement)?!?
Question: Does anyone recognize this? Is there a possibility that it is software related, and maybe fixable? I have searched both the web and these forums but haven't really found any information on it.
ANY input would be greatly appreciated!
Additional information:
Qtek 9100 (Swedish), G3 model, WM6 upgrade successful (unlocked)
EDIT: There are no system sounds, which is wierd, because the phone can still ring. I thought the system sounds came from the stereo speakers on the sides of the device?

Hello all!
It is a glorious day to be alive!!! Or to have a fully functional Wizard, at least!
Lol - my topic isn't very old, and i reply to it myself with a solution (?). I Googled after the Wizard service manual, and found it right here on Xda .
In all honesty, i didn't do all that much. I just followed the disassembly instructions of the wizard about half-way through, to the point where you get down to the back of the motherboard. I poked and fiddled enough to locate the mic assembly, only to discover that the mic is soldered to the mainboard of the phone. So, i figured i'd just leave it be, because if the mic is really broken the motherboard needs to be repleaced, or a replacement mic needs to be soldered on there.
After removing A LOT of dust in there (honestly, i think the service center that had my device last time wasn't very careful with anything, even a screw was missing! ), i reassembled it. The flat cable running to the keyboard was also a little skewed, but that may have been me, anyway i corrected it too. Same with the speakers.
Long story short, after successfully reassmbling the phone, i fired it up, called my home phone and voila! I works!
Not much of a fix, as i don't really know what i did exactly, but dust, dirt and some bad connections/soldering may have benn the culprit.
All in all, i'm very pleased with my afternoon here. Thanks for stopping by .

epatnor said:
Hello all!
It is a glorious day to be alive!!! Or to have a fully functional Wizard, at least!
Lol - my topic isn't very old, and i reply to it myself with a solution (?). I Googled after the Wizard service manual, and found it right here on Xda .
In all honesty, i didn't do all that much. I just followed the disassembly instructions of the wizard about half-way through, to the point where you get down to the back of the motherboard. I poked and fiddled enough to locate the mic assembly, only to discover that the mic is soldered to the mainboard of the phone. So, i figured i'd just leave it be, because if the mic is really broken the motherboard needs to be repleaced, or a replacement mic needs to be soldered on there.
After removing A LOT of dust in there (honestly, i think the service center that had my device last time wasn't very careful with anything, even a screw was missing! ), i reassembled it. The flat cable running to the keyboard was also a little skewed, but that may have been me, anyway i corrected it too. Same with the speakers.
Long story short, after successfully reassmbling the phone, i fired it up, called my home phone and voila! I works!
Not much of a fix, as i don't really know what i did exactly, but dust, dirt and some bad connections/soldering may have benn the culprit.
All in all, i'm very pleased with my afternoon here. Thanks for stopping by .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi epatnor,
I think the problem with your phone was a stucked microswitch in the 2,5 mm connector for the headset. I read about it here in the forum. Sometimes the switch stays in the closed position and the phone still thinks the headset is connected. Thats why all the sound is sent to the not connected headset and therefor your phone seems to be not working (unless you connect the headset)...
But removing the dust is for sure not a bad thing...
For the next time: I think there was an easier solution for this problem than disassembling your phone...
regards
huibuh_1

Thanks huibuh_1,
Yes this was probably not the smoothest way of "fixing" it. That said, the stucked microswitch theory would actually fit my problem well - I can see now that the exact problem I was having would arise if such a switch was indeed stuck.
However, I think that the problem would be more intermittent since I actually use that port now and then - especially since it's the only way to talk (besides using a bluetooth headset that is). And since I connect the wired headset now and again the switch is used and moved, I suspect that this would result in the speaker/mic coming online again maybe..? Temporarily at least?
All the same, thanks for replying - this might happen again and with your information I'm better prepared for it!

I'm part of the club!

Haha sorry guys for posting an essentially pointless thread but I've been ALWAYS wanting an Advantage and I finally got one coming for a good deal. I'm pretty geeked. I also have a Touch as a backup so I may only use this during certain situtations. My main and ONLY concern was that it doesn't have an earpiece but I'll figure something out. I think I may take a BT headset apart and flatten it to the back or something. I'm sure I'll post my efforts here so look out.
Does anyone have a suggestion to what the "best" ROM is available? I'm looking for speed and stability and one that works with GSEN on an x7500.
Cheers

no clue since i own the 7510
but GSEN works perfectly for me.
Coolest thing is when watching videos in CorePlayer, with GSEN, it rotates on the fly, and it doesn;t matter how you have the thing aligned, it'll always show it correctly

AllGamer said:
no clue since i own the 7510
but GSEN works perfectly for me.
Coolest thing is when watching videos in CorePlayer, with GSEN, it rotates on the fly, and it doesn;t matter how you have the thing aligned, it'll always show it correctly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sweet can't wait. My luck it won't work on the 7500...

if you want gsen to work with your 7500, you would have to download roms made by irus or sogarth. i've installed these on my 7500 and gsen works just fine. if you don't install these roms, most likely you will come up with a message saying "cannot locate gsen 3" or something like that. so far these roms that they've released are the best for the 7500 (if you want to have the autorotate feature). although gsen will work, there are many applications / games (ported out from the htc diamond) that work for some and at the same don't work at all for others.
however, roms by michy are also fantastic...though they don't support gsen....but i think he's working on that =)

congrats, juice. Its definitely not intuitive/easy-to-use in the phone department, not like most dedicated phones on the market. I recently went back to using an old flip phone for a week (trip to Disney, didn't want to loose or damage my Athena) and it definitely made me yearn for ease-of-use for simple phone calls. But, with a device that can almost literally do everything you have to accept some trade-off.
Many of us use the Jabra BT8010. It somewhat makes up for the shortfalls since its has vibrate, caller ID, and gives you a private earpiece. Also gives you stereo of you want that.
I've been thinking about trying to find a cheap flip or candybar phone that supports bluetooth HFP with Athena as host, or HSP, or PBAP and SAP, or maybe CTP ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluetooth_profile ). Bottom line, the ability to use the dedicated phone as a phone without having its own SIM. But, it would be a larger solution than just sticking with my 8010 and would probably need charging every other day so I stick with my 8010. The battery on the 8010 lasts forever.

techntrek said:
congrats, juice. Its definitely not intuitive/easy-to-use in the phone department, not like most dedicated phones on the market. I recently went back to using an old flip phone for a week (trip to Disney, didn't want to loose or damage my Athena) and it definitely made me yearn for ease-of-use for simple phone calls. But, with a device that can almost literally do everything you have to accept some trade-off.
Many of us use the Jabra BT8010. It somewhat makes up for the shortfalls since its has vibrate, caller ID, and gives you a private earpiece. Also gives you stereo of you want that.
I've been thinking about trying to find a cheap flip or candybar phone that supports bluetooth HFP with Athena as host, or HSP, or PBAP and SAP, or maybe CTP ( http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bluetooth_profile ). Bottom line, the ability to use the dedicated phone as a phone without having its own SIM. But, it would be a larger solution than just sticking with my 8010 and would probably need charging every other day so I stick with my 8010. The battery on the 8010 lasts forever.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good info thanks alot. Yeah I sometimes take a bunch of calls and sometimes hardly ever. I'm thinking I'm just going to ignore calls that I can call back later in private over speaker. I'm also going to try and stick my ear up to the speaker(probably not possible since the speakers look located on the side). Holy $hi4 would that be hilarious looking. But my main prob will be the calls that I have to take in public... I'm serious about flattening out a BT headset to the back or side.
Have you seen the guy who put a BT headset in a glove? Same concept. Take apart a BT headset it ends up being mostly wires and/or a little chip(s). Maybe put a slight mold/cover over it so there might be a minimum hump. But at the size it already is wouldn't be a deal breaker in any shape or form. It however would need to be charged separately. I'm going to be carrying it without keyboard or case so I'm trying to minimalize it's "footprint" all around. Having to carry another piece of tech like a BT headset I think would get very annoying. I will probably keep one in the car though.
Speaking of the car, thats another reason I'm getting this. My commute to work just doubled and I always wanted a "car computer". IMHO mounting an Advantage(or a UMPC for that matter) is the quickest easiest way to do that. I can watch the news on my way home from work via Sling(not that I would ever do that because it's very dangerous and probably illegal). Check realtime weather not to mention big screen GPS. Oh can't wait to test Live Search with the Satellite view. I also got some webcams set around my house that now I can watch in VGA!
This is going to be interesting.

not sure what you find so hard about the Athena as a phone.
but using any BT headset, specially the Jabra BT8010, you can do a simple 1 click, and say who you want to dial, and it dials it for you.
sooooo easy to use.
my Palm Treo never worked so well, even with th same features.
techntrek said:
and it definitely made me yearn for ease-of-use for simple phone calls. But, with a device that can almost literally do everything you have to accept some trade-off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Dedicated phones are 1-hand friendly, with all my other phones (since 1993) I've been able to use memory dialing or even dial a new number without even looking at the phone while going down the road.
With my BT in my pocket where I can't get it when I'm driving, its a multi-step process to make an outgoing phone call right from the Athena... turn off BT takes 3 button presses, then dialing can take from 2 to many more... then turn BT back on when I'm done... and most if it also can't be done with one hand.
Nothing as easy as using a dedicated phone, even with my old Motorola Star-Tac.

hey juiceppc - also make sure you upgrade your phone to radio 1.58 if you are often in 3G coverage. Otherwise I recommend 1.57.

Tips for buying a used universal

Hello! could people please share tips and things to remember when buying a used universal? I mean what are the things that you should do to check or find tell tale signs of defect, hardware, the firmware the os, I have already done a search in the forums and already know some, but there might be things that I have missed, so help would be very nice, I will be meeting the seller so I get to inspect the device up close so it would be nice to armed with the info how to inspect the device from how to check the bootload etc.
Thanks for the help and I hope that this helps others too

The Universal can be bought cheap at german eBay. Look for MDA PRO. You should be able to purchase one for around or less than 100 Euro.
Preferably look for the following signs:
1) Unmodded. Many users got the Universal within a contract from the operator, but did not use it much, because it is too big for them. Such Universals are normally in good condition. When advertised that it ships with an OS different than WM5, you know that the owner has been flashing it. I personally don't like that, because that means it belonged to a power user and must be more worn out.
2) Warranty stickers. Make sure the hinges have the warranty stickers inside. If they are missing, the device has been opened. You don't want to purchase one that has been opened.
3) Screen. Screen should be without scratches and should have had always a screen protector.
4) Speaker. The external speaker which is used for calls can break, as it is fitted with some kind of pogo pins. Make sure it is working.
If you get to test the device first, do as this:
- do a call (bring your SIM card)
- check WLAN and Bluetooth (bring a headphone and try it somewhere with WLAN activity)
- bring a SD card and see if it is read
- check for bad pixels
- play a song
- take a picture
- try the keyboard and touch screen
- try all the buttons
If everything works, that is the best you can check it for.
Of course it could break the next day, but it shouldn't.
Cheers,
vma

Great guide vma!
I´ll just add:
Take special care on the swivel piece (The one that gives Uni it´s great and unbeatable form factor: PDA - Micro Lap top)

take care of another thing when i bouted my universal after i used it for about 1 week the phone was hangs soo much the reason was in the memory crd .....so you must try a memory crd and play a small video on it about 10 minutes

The most important thing everyone forgot to mention is USB port. When looking for a device, see if the port moves in any way or wiggles in its opening. See if the device synchronises with AS, charges etc.
The fact the device had been flashed or opened wouldn't play a huge part for me if everything else works well and the body is in sound condition, e.g. the hinge is not loose, the screen rotates and closes properly, all keys are present and work, keyboard backlight works with and without sensor etc.
Speakers don't just break, as post No2 claims (POGO PINS??), but it is good to check that phone is capable of making/receiving calls, you can hear the other party and the other party can hear you, can play music and earphone plug is in working condition/attached properly
Not reading SD or SIM card is a biggie, dim screen, lost touch sensitivity, scratched or damaged digitizer, worn out buttons - all obvious signs. You can open the back, remove the battery and SIM card and check for a small white blotting paper sticker covering the small mainboard pins under the SIM card, any change in color towards pink - do not buy.

@enigma1nz:
Shame on me, I did indeed forget the USB port!!! You should of course check both: charging and Active Sync connection. A broken USB connector is a mayor issue and hard to solder without proper equipment.
Regarding the speaker: I am speaking out of experience, as one faild on me. The speaker is like a small button and it has two contact plates. They are not pogo pins, but act like them. The speaker will be pressed by the case against two contact points on the PCB. What happens is that apparently some car-holders do too much pressure on the sides of the Universal casing, causing the speaker contacts to bend back and forth everytime the phone is placed or removed from the holder. After a few months the contact gets worse and worse until one of both plates brake off. Because they are so tiny, it is impossible to repair the speaker - believe me, I have tried. I ended up buying a new speaker cell at eBay.
Cheers,
vma

vma said:
@enigma1nz:
Shame on me, I did indeed forget the USB port!!! You should of course check both: charging and Active Sync connection. A broken USB connector is a mayor issue and hard to solder without proper equipment.
Regarding the speaker: I am speaking out of experience, as one faild on me. The speaker is like a small button and it has two contact plates. They are not pogo pins, but act like them. The speaker will be pressed by the case against two contact points on the PCB. What happens is that apparently some car-holders do too much pressure on the sides of the Universal casing, causing the speaker contacts to bend back and forth everytime the phone is placed or removed from the holder. After a few months the contact gets worse and worse until one of both plates brake off. Because they are so tiny, it is impossible to repair the speaker - believe me, I have tried. I ended up buying a new speaker cell at eBay.
Cheers,
vma
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And believe me, I repair devices for a living. Thanks for the run-through, although I could give you the same. It happened to you, doesn't mean it happens often or it is a fault in design. I could give you a list of design faults in quite a few models of expensive cellphones on the market today, the mentioned speakers are not one of them.

I appreciate, the help people! any more inputs? I am happy that all the previous posts were, about how to inspect the device upfront and some other useful tips what to check other inputs will be highly appreciated

Battery can be also considered. Some are sold with good batery some with dead battery. It is not so expensive, but costs something. In general if battery shows less than 50% and devidce still works (even under load) that is a good sign.
Also as for the touch screen - the best test is to open note taker and try to paint something. The painted line must exactly follow the stylus movement if it jumps somewhere, then the touch sensitive layer is bad. I bouht such UNI on eBay (was described as perfect working order), had to replace the digitizer myself.
I do prefer buying not working UNI's on Ebay with good display. Once I bought not booting one - mtty job fixed that. Other time I bouht one where the display was still off - the flex cable popped out from connector. Etc....

Thanks for all the advice people! now, please welcome me to the HTC universal family, (well actually, I have a Dopod 900 but what the heck all are the same right?) your inputs had been essential, for me to get my new baby without any hitches I hope that nothing manifests after the one week assurance the seller gave me
Special thanks to enigma1nz for all the patience and help provided to me I asked her a lot of questions in the pm's but she answered in full detail
Now I have my own device so I will be flashing away, I hope without any problems. Again my thanks to the community hopefully there are more inputs for others who are thinking of buying their 2nd hand universal via meet ups

Excellent news! Congratulations!!! And welcome to the Uni family, of course. As you can see, we are one friendly bunch, all help and support will always be available. Have fun

Damn, I was hoping to do a very good Marlon Brando Godfather impersonation with 'Welcome to the family'

LOL
You started in the right direction!

to midnightsights : welcome

orb3000 said:
LOL
You started in the right direction!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, sweetie, the right direction would be an Orb3000 impersonation and 'Welcome to the forums', but I was worried, being Orb2000, hehe, that I simply won't be able to compete with a more updated version

enigma1nz said:
No, sweetie, the right direction would be an Orb3000 impersonation and 'Welcome to the forums', but I was worried, being Orb2000, hehe, that I simply won't be able to compete with a more updated version
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL.........

enigma1nz said:
No, sweetie, the right direction would be an Orb3000 impersonation and 'Welcome to the forums', but I was worried, being Orb2000, hehe, that I simply won't be able to compete with a more updated version
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks dear, you´re nice
you´ll be Orb4000!!!
Cheers and have a nice weekend,

replacing G1 speaker

Hey guys,
The earpiece speaker on my G1 has developed a fault, the fault being it doesn't appear to work, how easy is it to source a replacement for it and how easy is the repair itself? is there any guides as to how to do it around? (i looked but i couldn't find anything).
I've tried flashing the rom and doing a hard reset but its still faulty.
The loud speakers working fine though so atm all my calls have to be done on the handsfree kit or via loudspeaker which can get annoying.
any help is much appreciated
regards
Streather

Are you using a ROM where sound works?
What ROM are you using?

Tried it with cynagen and the stock tmob one, same results.

Same problem
I'm using CyanogenMod 4.2.5. I dropped the phone about a foot (it fell out of my shirt pocket as I was tying my shoe!), and the earpiece stopped working. Everything else (speaker phone, etc.) works fine.
I've seen a number of similar cases in other forums, so I'm thinking that this is a weak point. I'll attempt disassembly and see if the speaker contacts got moved or something simple. Fortunately, replacement receivers/earpiece/speakers are available over the net.
Meanwhile, I'd love to learn of others' experience with this. The tech manual makes it look like you have to just about completely disassemble the phone to get at the earpiece, even though you can easily access 3 screws on the back of the lcd. Is there a shorter route to the receiver than a complete disassembly?
[update] I found some good info (including a technical manual) by Googling "g1 phone disassembly". And searching for "g1 speaker" on eBay gave some decent looking results.
[update 2] I disassembled my phone, took out the receiver, cleaned its contacts, replaced it, and and reassembled everything. That was a pretty serious chore, and it demonstrated that a nearly complete disassembly is required to access the receiver (yes, including all the stuff at the opposite end of the phone). I don't know how to test the receiver without being in cell range, which my house is not. But at least nearly everything else still works, except the camera--I need to tear back into the phone and make sure I fully seated the FPC. I think finding a replacement receiver will be a challenge--most of what turned up on eBay is actually the main speaker on the back of the phone, and I have yet to find a vendor that sells receivers.

Sadly, you will almost have to tear down the whole unit to get to it. It's not extremly diffucult, but you will need to be steady and gentle. Good luck.

Success!
I haven't seen many report back after tearing apart their phones to address issues with a bad receiver, so here goes. My simple-minded approach of opening it up, cleaning the receiver contacts with a pencil eraser, and ensuring good alignment before reassembling WORKED. I did not have to buy a new receiver.
Now if I can just get my camera to work again (I think I didn't get the cable well seated).
[update]: camera works! Seating that FPC took some nimble fingers--I got it on the 3rd attempt. I hope this proves useful to others who, like me, do not have the warranty option for various reasons.

I dropped my phone once, by accident, same thing happened. The speaker you use to put your ear up to when making a phone call doesn't work, but the speaker phone speaker works as does a bluetooth headset. Called HTC lied said that it just stopped working out of no where, they said its covered under warranty. Luckily the phone is under warranty until March and will be replaced.

I ran into the same problem. I was having intermittent problems with the earpiece. Yesterday I was able to take out the battery and put it in and it started working again. Today that didn't help either. I saw this thread and I thought that I'd try blowing really hard on the earpiece to see if that helps. It seems to be working again! I hope it continues to work.

dirtprof said:
Now if I can just get my camera to work again (I think I didn't get the cable well seated).
[update]: camera works! Seating that FPC took some nimble fingers--I got it on the 3rd attempt. I hope this proves useful to others who, like me, do not have the warranty option for various reasons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you post details on how to do this?
My camera stopped working too.

I personally found it easier when disassembling the phone to carefully lift the entire camera and IMEI sticker as a whole unit and remove it as part of the motherboard. That way you dont need to mess with that hard to reach connector. So from where you are at, lift the board back out, reattach the camera assembly, and reassemble as a unit. I think you will find it is MUCH easier

Seat the camera FPC fully
RueTheDay said:
Can you post details on how to do this?
My camera stopped working too.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I had to lift the motherboard up and away from the hook that held it down in order for the FPC clip to open fully. Then I inserted the FPC *fully* before closing the FPC clip (my failures resulted from not being able to fully seat the FPC because the FPC clip could not fully open as long as the motherboard was in place). Then the trick was to get the motherboard back under its hook without accidentally pulling the FPC back out again. What I did was to press it gently straight down, using my fingernail to ease it past the hook.
Good luck!

bump...
Yeah looks like all there is on Ebay for speakers is the back one, the one for the receiver earpiece looks like it has two wire connections at each end while the one for the back speaker has them right next to eachother.
So if anybody had this problem, it is very odd and might have to do with the spring connection maybe.
Still I had this problem before and it fixed itself randomly, but this problem came out of nowhere because 12 hours earlier I had dropped my phone on its back and it continued to work fine. Than on my way driving randomly it would not work and I barely set it down in my car.
Once again hopefully somebody has found a part for this because ebay only has back speaker parts.
Best bet is to blow on it and massage it or tap it until it works, damn this sucks because it is basically the very last step to get to after dissambling your phone. So much work to get to such a common problem for many people.
I almost wanted to try to shortcut it and undo the two screws on the screen section to move it around to make connection. Now I am the deusche bag with the bluetooth in his ear all the time.

I almost wanted to try to shortcut it and undo the two screws on the screen section to move it around to make connection.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That was what I tried at first. It didn't gain me access to the speaker.
Taking the phone apart is a pain. You really need nimble fingers and faith that you're not breaking the phone when you're levering apart the *very* tightly held together plastic parts. HTC did not make this thing with servicing it in mind. Just be sure to have the right tools (including light and a good magnifying glass if you're over 40) and patience.

Removing the 3 screws that are accessible without disassembling the entire phone will get you in there if you are VERY careful. Unfortunately the one I tried this on did not work differently with a known-good speaker in it. You can delicately dig out the old speaker with a knife (Xacto) and drop the new one in. Takes patients, but not nearly as hard as disassembling the entire phone (been there, done that x10)
I have at least one spare speaker. Maybe more, gotta check my stockpile!

Hey,
My phone got dropped in a rum & coke on Saturday, so i soaked it in 90% rubbing alcohol and let it dry in a rice bath. after 4 days in the rice, it looked dry, so i turned it on. IT WORKS! The screen looks a little trippy (the pattern is even changing throughout the day) but the touch and accelerometer work great. The only real problem is the speakers sound like crap. the receiver is so quiet that it sound like they're wispering, and the back speaker is all crackely.
I found a replacement receiver speaker, but as i haven't taken it apart yet, i was hoping one of you could tell me if this looks correct.
http://www.tvc-mall.com/details/Replacement-Speaker-Earpiece-Receiver-for-HTC-G1-HTCO-G1/photos.htm
If so, i guess i'll order both speakers and attempt to replace them.

That looks about right. Bear in mind, of course, that those pictures are greatly magnified. If you haven't taken apart a G1 yet, you're in for a bit of nerve-wracking prying. Just go slowly and be patient. Getting all the way to the receiver speaker means taking the phone most of the way apart.

Thanks!
I have taken apart a phone before, the Dash (excalibur). I had to replace the screen, it involved removing almost every component.
I think i'll go ahead and order it, and cross my fingers. right now the phone isn't much more then a tiny computer, since i can't hear anyone and i don't have a Bluetooth.