After owning the Touch HD for a full month I just noticed that down the middle of the screen there is something which I can best describe as an oil stain. It looks as if there is a liquid in between the glass/plastic screen and the resistive layer that lays on top of it.
The screen works normally and this "stain" can only be observed if I look at how the light reflects of it.
Any idea what happened?
Hi,
I have a small idear. The TFT-Monitor ist touching your Touchscreen. Probeply you pressed something on your HD, that the two Monitor touch each other, that is why it looks like a Water or Oil spot.
This can happen for example, if you are carrying your HD in your trouser pocket.
If you want to try to remove this spot, you have to turn with your both hand the hd, like the right hand turn with the clock and the left hand turn to the other way.
Sorry, my english is not very good for such a discribing. What I mean is like "to contort" or "to skew (up)". But you have to be very carefully. Before you start, remove the Battery
(I'll be incorporating a clearer explanation along the lines of what Dude10 was trying to say)
The effect you're seeing is IDENTICAL to what causes the colours to appear on an oil film actually!
The way the Touch HD screen works is to have the hard glass (polycarbonate plastic actually as far as I'm aware, but that's not important here!) with a squashy resistive sensor layer on the top.
This resistive layer detects touch as an increase in resistance at the spot that's compressed - be that by a finger or a stylus. Because the upper layer can be compressed, it can also be malformed by stronger than normal pressure, such as an object in a pocket. The effect can be more pronounced if your body heat warms up the screen surface making the screen "set" in position rather than spring back as it should do...
The "oil" effect is cause by the reflections of light from the outermost plastic layer and the outermost surface of the hard screen. When the gap is small enough, these reflections can interfere with each other, cancelling and re-inforcing different wavelengths depending on the thickness - hence the tapering of the screen from thinnest to thickest results in a "rainbow"
Now, why explain all this you may ask? Partly because I like science and it fascinated me in school to learn what caused that effect so wanted to share this! (And this also explains why it only presents itself when you look at the light reflections)
Anyway, more importantly, the solution to your problem is to restore the thickness of that part of the touch layer to it's original uncompressed state.
I'd firstly start trying to hold your finger flat against the top of the phone screen (on flat surface, portraint orientation, finger "left to right") then pressing resonably hard (the hard screen should protect the device - if not you're pressing too hard!) slide your finger down the screen from top to bottom trying to keep an even pressure. This should hopefully even out the surface.
Failing this, as Dude10 suggests, take the battery out and use your thumbs (holding with fingers in the battery well) to press and "smear" around the problem area.
Unfortunately, other than this I don't think there's a particular way to remove the effect totally if it doesn't work...
Obviously it's speculation given that you didn't mention how it happened in the first place, but it does sound like it got knocked or pressed by something either in bag or pocket - maybe even a fold in the pouch
Hope you manage to smooth it out!
WhO_KnOwS said:
After owning the Touch HD for a full month I just noticed that down the middle of the screen there is something which I can best describe as an oil stain.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just a long shot, but:
Sometimes a similar effect can be caused when some moisture has got between the layers of a display.
Have you used the phone anywhere damp or very humid ?
Keeping it somewhere warm and dry might be worth a try?
- Steve
Thanks for all the tips. The issue happened when I had the Touch HD in the pouch and in my pocket - so the idea that it was a fold in the pouch holds water.
The funny thing however is that before I saw all of your replies I was already out the door (with the Touch HD back in the pouch and pocket). 5 minutes later when I pulled it out the issue was gone. I am guessing that I reapplied the exact amount of pressure needed or something like that.
Thanks again for the tips and especially to chaosdefinesorder for the nice explanation.
Thx for helping explanation
5 minutes later when I pulled it out the issue was gone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
no, i don't think it was gone. check again under a fluorescent light....
i have this on my diamond. my HD is flawless (till now...)
i phoned to a technician and explain the phenomena and he invited me to replace the screen. when i got there, to my complete amazement and embarrassment the stain was gone. only later i discovered that the stain is visible under fluorescent light only.
chaosdefinesorder said:
Unfortunately, other than this I don't think there's a particular way to remove the effect totally if it doesn't work...
Hope you manage to smooth it out!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks m8, already tried this (on my diamond) and tried now again with both yr methods. no results. the stain is still there...i think only a replacement can solve it.
here u have the paralel thread in diamond forum:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=439410&highlight=oily+stain
you can not do it yourself. the best way will be to go to your seller or straight to HTC, because I think you HD still have warranty.
I repaired ones an Diamond and I can tell you, it wasn´t an easy way.
Related
This is my first phone with a capacitive screen, so perhaps it is a quirk of them, but I have noticed that if I am not holding the phone in such a way that I am touching the metal bezel, the screen does not recognise touches that are close to the edges of the screen. It seems that the screen requires a circuit to be made with other metal parts on the phone before recognising the touch.
For example, if I put the phone on my desk and touch the backspace key with a single finger, nothing happens. If I keep holding my finger on it, and touch the metal bezel, hey presto, the button clicks.
This reminds me of a watch a friend of mine had a long time ago, that had a capacitive "hair trigger" button that only worked for him (because it required a circuit to be made with the back face of the watch, meaning when he pressed the button it completed a circuit through his body)
Anyone else noticed this? It is slightly annoying because I have to hold the bezel when I want to use the phone..
Confirmed.
And you might very well be correct in the assumption about the circuit not closing in every part of the screen. I think it's the nature of any capacitive surface tbh. If you press in the middle of the screen then there is enough adjecent space to actually complete the circuit while on the edges there is simply not enough space around your fingertip to not close the circuit at all. That is why touching the bezel works.
But as I have been holding my little Hero in my hand while typing anything I simply didn't know this little odd thing. I have read about it though.
Yet another reason to hold your precious little Hero in your hand...
Wierd not like that on my samsung.. its all plastic tho
Mine is the same.. especially on the right hand side of the screen. If it's in a case it makes it really bad!!
Sounds like bad shileding and grounding to me
Didn't notice this until I put a screen protector on but now it's really bugging me.
On a related note (metal bezel related), I've noticed that in dim lighting the button backlight flickers. But if i touch the screen and bezel, it stops.
herman3101 said:
Didn't notice this until I put a screen protector on but now it's really bugging me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here. Could it be that the screen protector slightly touches the aluminium casing and thus grounding the screen (or creating a wrong potential)?
I noticed that when i touch (=ground) the outer aluminum frame with just one single finger then the touch screen works flawlessly.
(I'm using the offical HTC screen protector).
joemax said:
On a related note (metal bezel related), I've noticed that in dim lighting the button backlight flickers. But if i touch the screen and bezel, it stops.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm definatly bad grounding issue. Its either some pretty poor design or a defect.
i confrim, using hero without touch the metal edge result in less responsivity and difficult on multitouch operation
hope new firmware can solve this, too many errors using it like a normal keyboard on a table!
The main need for the lock screen is in the following situation:
Phone is in your pocket (or bag), a hard key is accidentally pressed, the device wakes up. This by itself is not a problem, since without anything else happening the device will go back to sleep, but, if another hard key is pressed while the device is active (screen press can not happen while in pocket, since it's capacitive), the device can start do annoying things.
Now, if the proximity sensor can be designed to switch on when device wakes up, and put it back to sleep (immediately) if device is in pocket/bag, this will kill the need for a lock screen. This is totally possible and just awaits the programmer who wants to make our lives easier...
hm. try pocketShield?
it locks and unlocks your device by use of the light sensor.
Interesting. I will use it for now.
The problem with using a light sensor is that if you use the phone in the dark it won't unlock. Proximity sensor won't have this problem hence it's a better sensor for the task.
Apparently this will happen even without the help of the XDA community...
I've just sent the following email to PocketShield:
Hi,
I would like to know if you are working to utilize the HD2's proximity sensor for unlock (like you did for Omnia). If so, when should we expect a version with this feature ?
Thank you very much.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is their answer:
That’s the idea, but can’t confirm that yet because we are not sure if hooking into the proximity sensor will be possible. Hope yes, as in Omnia2. Just received our new HD2 today and will start to dive into it next week.
Best Regards,
Jim
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
so has anyone tested this for the hd2?
http://www.pocketshield.net/
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpxY9t34TTI
Noam23 said:
The problem with using a light sensor is that if you use the phone in the dark it won't unlock. Proximity sensor won't have this problem hence it's a better sensor for the task.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use TouchLockPro. It has both light and proximity sensor and it is free.
kweiss10 said:
....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SpxY9t34TTI
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like the guy from the answering machine has found a new job
won't this increase battery drain dramaticly? i think it will becouse it will be constantly looking for light and using that proximity sensor..
Noam23 said:
The main need for the lock screen is in the following situation:
Phone is in your pocket (or bag), a hard key is accidentally pressed, the device wakes up. This by itself is not a problem, since without anything else happening the device will go back to sleep, but, if another hard key is pressed while the device is active (screen press can not happen while in pocket, since it's capacitive), the device can start do annoying things.
Now, if the proximity sensor can be designed to switch on when device wakes up, and put it back to sleep (immediately) if device is in pocket/bag, this will kill the need for a lock screen. This is totally possible and just awaits the programmer who wants to make our lives easier...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are wrong about one important detail though. The screen is very sensitive and can easily be pressed through the lining of your pocket, and even through fairly thick fabric like jeans.
it's a capacative screen...
capacative scree = no stylus/fingernail/penny/spoon
it wont be acvitating throught screen contact.
impossible. (unless you have rrrrrealy thin pants, and the current can pass throught them)
saintnickxiii said:
it's a capacative screen...
capacative scree = no stylus/fingernail/penny/spoon
it wont be acvitating throught screen contact.
impossible. (unless you have rrrrrealy thin pants, and the current can pass throught them)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hi, the pants didnt have to be that thin. i think the hd2 screens also vary a lot, in being more or less sensitive. another thing is that people are deifferent when it cames to electric fields. also sweating can affect the display. i startet programs and other touchscreen things already, when the device was in my pocket.
regards mad
jamieeeee said:
won't this increase battery drain dramaticly? i think it will becouse it will be constantly looking for light and using that proximity sensor..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In the case of Pocketshield, it won't. Because all sensors only turn on during a short period of time (seconds). Once you unlock or turn off, sensors go to sleep. This is one of the reasons why "auto lock" is not possible, because that will indeed involve a permanent monitoring on the sensors.
saintnickxiii said:
it's a capacative screen...
capacative scree = no stylus/fingernail/penny/spoon
it wont be acvitating throught screen contact.
impossible. (unless you have rrrrrealy thin pants, and the current can pass throught them)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't know what you're talking about. I didn't say it was sensitive to pressure, but rather that direct contact between skin and the screen is not necessary. Holding my finger on one side of the fabric, and the other side of the fabric touching the screen, this is registered by the screen as a touch EVERY TIME. There are maybe materials that completely isolates the screen, for other materials it probably depends on how thick they are. For me it is certainly possible to influence the screen even through pretty thick cotton fabric (maybe other types of fabric too, I wear mostly cotton), leather, and even paper. Just to test it, I just did a slide to unlock my HD2 through a pile of papers (granted it wasn't a very thick pile, only six sheets of paper thick), and through my leather shoes (this was a little trickier, I had to to make sure that my foot made good contact with the leather at the point where I was sliding my phone across the shoe). i can interact with the screen through normal denim jeans fabric without any problem, and the pocket lining of trousers are usually quite thin, so accidental interaction with the screen seems almost unavoidable if the screen is unlocked in the pocket.
I have actually had some problems a couple of times when the slide to unlock had been deactivated on my HD2. I once took my phone out of my pocket and it was at the confirmation screen for factory reset, and I have actually had the phone hard reset on me once which I suspect may have been caused by the slide to unlock being deactivated. I would never knowingly put an unlocked phone in my pocket, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, but you're welcome to do as you please.
X1-owner said:
You don't know what you're talking about. I didn't say it was sensitive to pressure, but rather that direct contact between skin and the screen is not necessary. Holding my finger on one side of the fabric, and the other side of the fabric touching the screen, this is registered by the screen as a touch EVERY TIME. There are maybe materials that completely isolates the screen, for other materials it probably depends on how thick they are. For me it is certainly possible to influence the screen even through pretty thick cotton fabric (maybe other types of fabric too, I wear mostly cotton), leather, and even paper. Just to test it, I just did a slide to unlock my HD2 through a pile of papers (granted it wasn't a very thick pile, only six sheets of paper thick), and through my leather shoes (this was a little trickier, I had to to make sure that my foot made good contact with the leather at the point where I was sliding my phone across the shoe). i can interact with the screen through normal denim jeans fabric without any problem, and the pocket lining of trousers are usually quite thin, so accidental interaction with the screen seems almost unavoidable if the screen is unlocked in the pocket.
I have actually had some problems a couple of times when the slide to unlock had been deactivated on my HD2. I once took my phone out of my pocket and it was at the confirmation screen for factory reset, and I have actually had the phone hard reset on me once which I suspect may have been caused by the slide to unlock being deactivated. I would never knowingly put an unlocked phone in my pocket, and I wouldn't recommend it to anyone, but you're welcome to do as you please.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oh, i didn't know it was that sensitive, then, i can really see a need for an apps like this.
but, what about just a normal case? slip it in and out? i mean, i think that COULD solve your problem in a 'no thrills' sorta way... but it wouldnt be as exciting now would it?
madbird said:
hi, the pants didnt have to be that thin. i think the hd2 screens also vary a lot, in being more or less sensitive. another thing is that people are deifferent when it cames to electric fields. also sweating can affect the display. i startet programs and other touchscreen things already, when the device was in my pocket.
regards mad
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this of course is also true.
taking this into account, i would suggest everybody ground themselves. lol, no... just kidding. i don't even think that would help.
i have applied the de-sensitive cab but when i use my finger to press down and drag selections, i can never be precise .. the screen starts to "shiver" around like Jack from the Titanic ...
hmmm is there any tweak to reduce this?
BTW, do i need to align the screen regularly?
thanks!!!
appreciate any help on this
I too have the same problem. I have read the other exhaustive thread on screen problems but couldn't come to a conclusion. Is this a software issue or hardware fault?
Do you mean the built in tactile feedback vibration where the screen buzzes to let you know it's been touched?
Settings/Personalise/Vibration/and then uncheck the box
Try the screen sensitivity reducing tips, or better still use BSBtweaks, it has a toggle to reduce sensitivity that works.
also, i found being too gentle with my fingertip makes it juddery. a firm press with the pad of teh finger works better for me than the tip.
I align my screen after any hard reset / rom flash.
i had this issue too, it appeared suddenly a few days after i upgraded the radio on my previous rom. with the current combination everything is in place now.
I would say it is a hardware fault. My first HD2 was perfect with no screen sensitivity issues. Unfortunately, it was accidentally damagaed and I had to replace it. The replacement unit did suffer from the sensitivity issue and although the sensitivity fix improved things substancially, it it still wasn't anywhere near as good as my original unit. So it went back to the store and they game me a replacement which I am happy to say doesn't have the sensitivity issue and is a joy to use again.
The new unit does however have an uneven backlight but I'll probably live with that as it's the lesser of two evils!
omg why cant they built it right one time!
Are you guys using a screen protector?
I used to have perfect screen behaviour. Recently, I saw the multitude of cheap 3 for $x screen protectors, and tested about 8 different brands.
Some were pure crap, didn't prevent fingerprints or oil...
The mirror ones and some clear ones killed sensitivity!!! Made my touches jump all over, my presses inaccurate.
Some matt screen protectors were too thin and were absolutely useless (and easy to scratch).
Only a few were good enough not to cause a problem.
Can only suggest you try remove the screen protector if you encounter the same issue.
Cheers
Unfortunately this is a known problem:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=595655
Getting the device changed has helped to reduce this in some cases.
leobox1 said:
i have applied the de-sensitive cab but when i use my finger to press down and drag selections, i can never be precise .. the screen starts to "shiver" around like Jack from the Titanic ...
hmmm is there any tweak to reduce this?
BTW, do i need to align the screen regularly?
thanks!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i was trying out the iphone, i noticed
iphone screen is matte.. no stickiness if sweat and swipe is smooth..
hd2 glossy if you sweat, you get friction... swipe depends on friction
if i were to put a matte screen protector, maybe it helps? anyone knows about this?
IPhone 3gs and HTC Hero both have an oleophobic coated screen which greatly reduces fingerprints and smudges. HD2 does not. Don't know why HTC don't use this tech on all of their capacitve screens.
ok i used a matte screen protector... result = smoother flicks and less finger prints.. but shivers is MORE...
hmmm what is wrong with our screen? * i tried iphone... NO ERRORS in typing..
could it be our software compensation for errors is screwed? u know as in the software is predicting the center of the finger wrongly
leobox1 said:
ok i used a matte screen protector... result = smoother flicks and less finger prints.. but shivers is MORE...
hmmm what is wrong with our screen? * i tried iphone... NO ERRORS in typing..
could it be our software compensation for errors is screwed? u know as in the software is predicting the center of the finger wrongly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
all people i know has this issue i think it is software htc is not a fool company to release all devices defected
and i wonder why they take so long to fix it..
could anyone share any experiences for a good working stylus for the hd2?
this phone is stupendous but alas i have to use it for work and the software we use requires very tiny touches and signature signing.
have tried the ones on e-bay (rubber topped pencil turned upside down)
which is crap...have now tried the htc and dagi ones with the tiny red dot and they are just not cutting it.
has anyone done any homemade experiments or come across a moe "pointy" stylus
toodle pip amigos
I got some, and they were crap...
davidcampbell said:
I got some, and they were crap...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately you are all too correct!
With the glass screen!
Put a protector on it and they work!
I have been using the dagi long slim one and it works ok, I do have a screen protector on though so maybe this helps... makes selecting text and writing Chinese characters much easier (I use my hd2 to study/translate Chinese so being able to use a stylus to do this is pretty great)... its a bit fiddly to start with as you need to learn how to use it properly, but once you get used to it everything is ok...
Most of the styli are crap, I need something with more of a point, but that's probably not possible. Still waiting for some sort of battery powered pen that offers pin point precision, a guy can dream right...
i'll try to put a screen protector on as suggested and try...
my problem is it's no good mastering the dagi myself as i have to get customers signatures and most people simply can't use it...
it deffo needs something more pointy.
i'm sure i read somewhere on the forum about a guy who was filing something to a point till it stopped working???
i'm so frustrated as this is the only phone in 8 years that uses my works software flawlessly...except stylii
I have ordered the official htc stylus 400.
arrives in 2 weeks and i'll post comments.
read a review after ordering that it actually scratches the screen!
I guess i should have waited for the 400/2 version!
look on the bright side, will probably misplace it by the second day anyway
I've tried using my DS stylus but that doesnt work, seems like it was made for bigger objects to come in contact with the screen (ie fingers).
ILLEATYAFACE said:
I've tried using my DS stylus but that doesnt work, seems like it was made for bigger objects to come in contact with the screen (ie fingers).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It`s not about the size of objects. HD2 has capacitive screen.
"A capacitive touchscreen panel consists of an insulator such as glass, coated with a transparent conductor such as indium tin oxide (ITO).[2][3] As the human body is also a conductor, touching the surface of the screen results in a distortion of the body's electrostatic field, measurable as a change in capacitance. Different technologies may be used to determine the location of the touch. The location can be passed to a computer running a software application which will calculate how the user's touch relates to the computer software."
Wikipedia
thanx for input guys..i least i know about capacitive screens now thanx to kregowski...although i sorta knew.
so if someone could come up with a small pointy thing that gives off some sort of electro staticy stuff...we in..
the search continues
Got the dagi (10 euro from Hong Kong). I am not amused... Touching the screen with the complete tip flat on the screen is annoying to get used to. Often only the side of the tip touches the screen.
When the tip is flat on the screen (which it should) it just does not feel OK. Not "delicate".
Which the screen responsiveness lowered and the tap-reaction time increased (which I did just to be able to get some decent fingertyping results) the dagi does not function adequate. I have to aim more accurate then with my fingers and have to press the dagi on the screen.
Putting the screensettings to default (which I did not try yet) reinstates all the drawbacks in the other functionalities.
Okay, so lately my screen's becoming more and more out of alignment. I've basically had to use the black frame on the right hand side of the phone to click anything on the right that needed to be clicked.
Then last night my phone froze while rebooting, wouldn't show the boot animation, just the welcomehead image and froze there. Needless to say I thought something's up. Long story short I checked everything that there is to check and ended up having to hard-reset.
While flipping my phone around through all possible dimensions, i noticed the oily looking stain that is the well-known Newtons Rings problem.
I wasn't willing to be without my beloved Blackstone for a warranty repair and was about to jump on eBay to look for a replacement screen and digitizer, when I remembered something that fixed the touch screen in my old Sony Ericsson P900. So here's what I did that has so far fixed my newtons rings and returned the more soft-touch feel of the screen.
WARNING do the following at your own risk!!! I will not be held responsible for you killing your already dead, Newton Ringed screen
* First, be sure you have a screen protector on. I have a feeling that not having the protector on will damage the screen further.
* Grab your trusty $2 Bic cigarette lighter.
* Hold your phone on such an angle that the oily-looking Newtons Rings are visible. The right amount of light, from the right angle will show them up like the dog's proverbials.
* Ignite the lighter and hold it so the flame is lightly touching the area that has the problem.
--You won't see the rings disappear, more like they will start moving--
* Move the ignited lighter until you have moved, or removed, the oily looking problem areas.
EDIT 29-07-2010:
* Try not to hold the lighter too close for too long, otherwise you may end up needing a new screen protector
NOTE: I do NOT guarantee this will work for you, however, in my particular case, the rings appear to have gone, the screen is now once again soft to touch and the alignment seems MUCH better. It has now been approximately 12 hours since I did this, and so far, so good. All problems are still gone, no visible rings, and the screen is still far more responsive, almost like new.
Newton Rings
So did it fix the issue permanently?
Well, it sort of has succeeded. While my screen still has a huge patch of Newtons Rings (approximately an inch and a half long, by about three quarters of an inch across, they came back after about a month or two) the screen is still functioning, the "soft touch" I mentioned in my first post has nearly dicipated, but it still works. Every now and then the screen will act as if it's stuck down towards the bottom of the screen, but simply rubbing it with a cloth and some mild pressure (just like when I clean it) is enough to bring the screen back to working.
At the very least, it has given me time to save up for a new screen. But I won't be replacing it until such time as the next big change pops up in WM6.5 builds and I cook a new ROM. At this point I'll be completely disassmbling the whole phone for a thorough cleaning. While I'm at it I might as well replace the screen and keep the N.R one for a backup.
To put it simply, the screen is still working and I have no need to replace it as yet.
P.S I'm no longer using a screen protector, I don't care if it gets scratched up now, because it will be replaced, but not until it 100% needs it. I will however put a new screen protector on, if I have to do the lighter trick again.
Thanks Swarvey, got newton rings and helped remove the with the lighter, however i will hav to replace the screen protector.
Cool, glad to hear it wasn't just a once-off that it worked.
I never burned/melted my protector by doing it, but you might have different results with the much higher temperature you subjected yours to.
Keep us posted as to how well it works for you.
In fact I know a less dangerous way to eliminate those rings. I was exactly in the same situation with my HTC Touch HD. I just used some Scotch tapes on the screen, pull the screen to me , and with a lot of patience, everything as desapeared.
It works again !!
Satyan said:
Thanks Swarvey, got newton rings and helped remove the with the lighter, however i will hav to replace the screen protector.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Satyan, can you be more specific on how to do it....i have tried duct tape method at least 10 times and it has not worked....
1. how far shud i hold the lighter
2. how do i know, if its working - will the oily patch disaapeear as the area is heated
3. Is it confirmed that oily patch is completely gone n doesn;t return within 1-2 days
~