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G1 ribbon/tape caught in its Hinge

Yesterday, I impulsively rooted my phone (my first time), successfully did it after several tries and installed jf 1.5. When everything was done and fully functional, I noticed some resistance when closing the keyboard. I tried closing it several times trying to investigate the cause.. until my screen just went black suddenly, w/ the resistance in closing it getting stronger! What I discovered was that the brown tape inside the screen, bottom part, ( the one you can only see w/ keyboard open) was caught in the hinge ripping it partially out of place. I dont have any idea what is the main finction of that tape/ ribbon but I believe it has something to do w/ the lcd. I ended up w/ a dead phone, won't power up anymore. i called the customer service but they don't have any idea what i'm talking about and suggested me to go to the nearest Tmobile store. I did and to my disappointment, nobody in the store also knows anything about G1, even though I'm pointing out to them the tape that was caught by the hinge! I called customer service and they seem not to understand about that hinge part of G1. Anyway, they will send a replacement in 3 days and I hope they wont discover that I rooted the phone. Well, it won't power up anymore and besides the problem is on the hardware and not on the software I installed.
I came across the same problem posted in one of the forums,a long time ago, coupled w/ some pictures I tried searching it again to no avail.
Anybody here have the same problem w/ G1? I do believe that HTC and Tmobile should be aware of this hardware flaw and do something about it. I love my G1, w/ its physical keyboard. But if all my G1 will end up this way, I may have to find a better phone.

Yep... had the same thing happen to me. Brought it into the store (30 days or less) and got a new one. If your's is older, it should still be under warranty. Contact T-Mobile and they should send you out a new phone.

That ribbon has several conductive traces in it. Basically, its a bunch of wires, and you moosed it out. I would say that it was your fault for forcing it when you should have investigated the problem BEFORE ripping it out.

Sounds like your screen just doesnt turn on, not that its bricked.
Thats the ribbon that connects the lcd and backlight to the ui module. It can be fixed most likely if you're not afraid to take it apart. What prob happened is the ribbon got bent up a bit, and one of the 2 connections for it got pulled out.
I disassembled one of my G1's completely, and there is a very specific way that ribbon has to fit into the hinge. Its not all that difficult, but you have to be very gentle and patient to get it back to where it needs to be.
You should go to the Dev forum, and do a search for G1 repair manual. You'll see what i mean. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions about it, although Im not an expert, just a tinkerer.

@lbcoder: you dont have to "investigate" anything, its made the way it should work, all he did is open and close screen, thats called a manufacturer defect, and falls under warranty.
@tr.slate: you are right, however that's exactly what OP put in his post. Nothing bout phone being bricked, but hardware flaw.
@jdc2006: yes, G1`s construction is not the most durable, as we can read around this forum, even i had squeking (or however oyu spell that word) but im guessing that it`s the price we pay for something new as this (though i would expect a bit more from HTC) but i dont think that all will have that problem. though Im on my second G1, first one got nasty case of stuck pixelitis.
now excuse me, i have to dispose a body from the trap.
G`nite.

This is going to be my 4th G1 and I hope the last..
The 1st one- brand new; has dead pixels- returned/replaced
The 2nd one, obviously a refurbished item, keyboard imperfectly fitted; home/call buttons replaced w/ cheap looking plastic, not the marble-like.
This 3rd one- almost perfect but ribbon/hinge flaw.
Good thing is I still have my old HTC Touch
tr.slate.. tnx, I like to tinker too but this beyond my capabilities.

I never had any problems with Tmobile fixing mine...When I first got mine in February 09 the ribbon stuck out a bit....they told me come back in 2 hours, i came back and they had it fixed, as others have said, it really needs to be in the right spot or something bad could happen to it...Its a cell phone, not much space to use.

Brand new SGS2, screen defect

I just took delivery of my SGS2 yesterday, and I gotta say I absolutely love this phone. Coming from an LG eXpo with WinMo 6.5 and never having used Android, it doesn't even feel like a phone. Plus with all the easy integration with my Google accounts, I've never had a smoother transition to a new device before. All this makes it all the more difficult for me to have to send it back...
I'm not sure if anyone else has encountered this problem, but it looks like my phone came pre-packaged with burn in or something in the form of a dark circle near the upper right side of my screen. I've attached some photos of what it looks like.
I noticed this abnormality in the first 10 minutes or so of using the phone while looking at some photos on my Picasa account. I almost feel like this phone could have been a refurb unit, or the screen was reused or something. In fact, there appears to be more substantial burn in than I can photograph, as there are several other places where I can see strange distortions. Most, if not all, only show up when the brightness is less than 100%. I'd thought maybe it was some widget that caused the burn in, but I haven't been able to figure out which one it could be.
Anywho, I've already arranged an RMA thru Expansys-USA, and they did so without even asking any questions after my email with photos of the problem. So far I've received amazing support from Expansys-USA and definitely recommend them. Also going to see if I can request a replacement sent before I send back this one so I won't be without a phone during the shipping time, something they mention is possible in the RMA email (though they do charge you for it, to be refunded once they get the defective unit back and inspect it).
Would be interesting to see if anyone else has this problem. If there's already another post on this subject, sorry about this new one... didn't see any when I searched tho.

I can see the same thing on mine if I put it on the lowest brightness setting and display a grey image. Nowhere near as pronounced as on yours though, have to really really look for it, so can't be arsed to do anything about it.
Interesting that it's a perfect circle though, could it be just above the CPU or something?

Nope, haven't got that circle on mine at all.

Maybe an assembly worker lost their wedding ring, lol...
You'll be fine, it's an RMA for sure!

Defo a faulty phone
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App

I believe that mark is from the vacuum suction cup on the assembly line from the automated machine that handles positioning the display component. It technically should disappear over time, but I don't know how long.

I don't think it's the CPU, though to be honest I'm not sure where it is under the screen. There is that odd gold-colored sensor or whatever under that area, I think.
If it's a wedding ring, maybe this phone's worth more than the sticker price! haha
Vacuum cup huh... that's pretty bad if it's damaging the screen while doing that. I don't want to wait and see if it will disappear. If I do wait and it doesn't go away I'll be out $725 on a phone with a screen that'll constantly bug me.
Kinda funny, as I was looking at the photos I attached, I saw two rings... one in the photo, and the real one. Startled me when I first saw it.

I didnt have the same problem as you but i had line banding or something on my one.. i had to replace it 4 times then noticed it overheated+smell coming from it.. so i just returned it and got my money back.
Just be aware that you might get another faulty phone.. If i was you i would wait till it comes out in the US.

That sucks, and it's not good that other people are having some issues as well. Good to hear that Expansys is honoring their agreements though

This is why I don't import anymore

RogerPodacter said:
I believe that mark is from the vacuum suction cup on the assembly line from the automated machine that handles positioning the display component. It technically should disappear over time, but I don't know how long.
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Could well be spot on. I don't know if I'm imagining this, but I'm having more and more trouble seeing this ring on my display heh (had the phone for 9 days now).

RedBlueGreen said:
I didnt have the same problem as you but i had line banding or something on my one.. i had to replace it 4 times then noticed it overheated+smell coming from it.. so i just returned it and got my money back.
Just be aware that you might get another faulty phone.. If i was you i would wait till it comes out in the US.
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Click to collapse
Man, that's really unlucky! Knock on wood, I hope I don't get another bad one. However I'm not sure waiting will do me much good. History has shown me that branded devices tend to have a lot of crap on them and lack certain features at times, and I don't have as much time as I used to to keep up with the scene to make the phone operate better all the time. Also, I'm contract-free with unlimited data on AT&T, and I don't like being locked into contracts. This isn't my first non-US phone, though. I'm happy to pay the extra money so long as it means I don't have to sign a contract.
drleospaceman said:
This is why I don't import anymore
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Click to collapse
From the Expansys-USA thread, sounds like they'll ship the phone back to the UK to have it serviced for you if it ever goes bad. This doesn't sound uncommon, either, as I've had a friend here ship his JP Xbox 360 back to Japan to have it serviced (with a another friend's JP address), and another friend in Japan had his laptop sent back here to have it serviced. Also, there's always the chance a non-import one will be bad, too. Luck of the draw, I guess, and perhaps early-adopter woes. lol

Got my replacement on Saturday, been playing with it ever since to see if I could find any further problems. Definitely no circle this time around, and some of the vertical banding I saw on my old phone in the notification screen is gone, but now has some very slight horizontal banding. Not a deal-breaker tho, so this one's staying with me. Also, hard to tell but I think the yellow/dark left screen problem is present, but so slight I can barely detect it if it's there and not a trick of the eye.
Gotta thank Expansys-USA for their great customer service. I'll definitely order from them again.

-Tj- said:
I just took delivery of my SGS2 yesterday, and I gotta say I absolutely love this phone. Coming from an LG eXpo with WinMo 6.5 and never having used Android, it doesn't even feel like a phone. Plus with all the easy integration with my Google accounts, I've never had a smoother transition to a new device before. All this makes it all the more difficult for me to have to send it back...
I'm not sure if anyone else has encountered this problem, but it looks like my phone came pre-packaged with burn in or something in the form of a dark circle near the upper right side of my screen. I've attached some photos of what it looks like.
I noticed this abnormality in the first 10 minutes or so of using the phone while looking at some photos on my Picasa account. I almost feel like this phone could have been a refurb unit, or the screen was reused or something. In fact, there appears to be more substantial burn in than I can photograph, as there are several other places where I can see strange distortions. Most, if not all, only show up when the brightness is less than 100%. I'd thought maybe it was some widget that caused the burn in, but I haven't been able to figure out which one it could be.
Anywho, I've already arranged an RMA thru Expansys-USA, and they did so without even asking any questions after my email with photos of the problem. So far I've received amazing support from Expansys-USA and definitely recommend them. Also going to see if I can request a replacement sent before I send back this one so I won't be without a phone during the shipping time, something they mention is possible in the RMA email (though they do charge you for it, to be refunded once they get the defective unit back and inspect it).
Would be interesting to see if anyone else has this problem. If there's already another post on this subject, sorry about this new one... didn't see any when I searched tho.
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Click to collapse
I too have this issue at the bottom left of my screen, But i donno how to go about it, should i go ahead and ask for a replacement?? what did u do
Hardly noticable though

Tj,
I too have this issue at the bottom left of my screen, But i donno how to go about it, should i go ahead and ask for a replacement?? what did u do
Hardly noticable though

I would have it exchanged for another if you can. I had mine exchanged, but since I went with the cheap option the whole ordeal took almost a month (slow shipping). My replacement doesn't have a defect, but it's possible I have the yellow tint problem others have been reporting. I don't see it tho, and if it's there it doesn't bother me.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App

What? Water damaged surround!?

Hello all,
Today has been quite a frustrating day. I got my surround back in november from BestBuy. Since then, i have had constant problems with the software, but nothing that rebooting it could not fix.
Then, in May, for the first time it got stuck on the HTC welcome screen. I took it in BestBuy, they did a restore to it. It took a while... but the phone worked.
Last night, it happened again. This time, to save time, I took it into the nearest AT&T store. There, they opened it up, took one look at it. Told me it was water damaged (WHAT!??) and that they could not do anything and I had to buy a new one for the cosmic price of over $400. No way in hell. I have never done anything to it. It was explained to me that that could happen even if I put it in my pocket and I have been sweating. Well, it was the indicator by the charger.
Quite discouraged, I got home and of course, on the internet. I found that the water damage indicators that actually they take more into account are the ones on the battery and another one right behind it, on the phone. I took it apart, and those were white.
SO, I went to BestBuy for second opinion. THERE, they tell me, no, it is not water damaged and you are under manufacturer warranty... Take it back to the store and they should replace it.
I go back to the store. This time, they agreed with the BestBuy people, after I had explained what they told me there (the people at AT&T remembered me). So, I was sent to an AT&T Device Repair place thing, to get a replacement.
The sweet young lady with mile long painted nails... opened the phone. Took one look at it and said water damaged. You are not covered under warranty. She was pretty much talking down to me.
SO, of course I got furious. She took the battery out and told me the same thing. The red little sticker by the charging spot says moisture got inside. After I asked her why the ones further inside the phone were white, she told me this one was the indicator. I repeated. She said those were indicators too. WELL, shouldnt those be red too!?? If the phone is somehow magically been damaged by my sweat or who knows what... freaking condensation from when talking on the phone. She said, we do not care what you do with your phone. It has been water damaged and I can issue you a phone for the full price only.
FURIOUS, I call at&t on the way home. They told me to look at the one in the battery compartment of the phone and since it was white... I should have gotten a replacement. AMEN! The representative I talked to, told me that the fact that i was in the store, was not even recorded on my record. He told me that sometimes AT&T hires people and they have no idea of what they are talking about. They suggested I got a third opinion at another place.
Needless to say, it is Sunday and those are closed.
So, i went back to the internet. I found that most times they do not even consider the one on the charging place, because it can turn red easily (exactly what they told me at BestBuy. I was told that even air humidity can turn it red but INSIDE it is not damaged). Also, apparently they have a way of looking at the deterioration of the phone. WELL, I guess that sweet sweet lady did not feel like doing her job today.
Not to mention the fact that she did not notice that my SIM card was not inside the phone, and proceeded to do a hard reset or whatever it is called... not just the holding the vol. up and down.
Anyway, I just want to hear your opinion on this. I see there are many competent people here, willing to listen to your story. I will not pay $400 for a new phone when the freaking indicator turn red even from air humidity.
So, which indicators mean what? What do you think I should do? I do not want to be a victim here of smart placing of indicators, so AT&T or HTC can say "oops... we cant replace it."
Thank you so much!! I am sorry my post turned out so long

I would go to a 3rd place if its close and see what they say and explain everything again.
I agree with you and I have read that even humidity can turn the charger one red.
They have indicators all over, which tells them how far water got in. So if you put it around a spin cycle in the washer, all of them will probably change.

[Q] So i finally got my Transformer, but somethings not right.

Ok, so i open it up, and whammo. Like a punch in the face:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlwzcB6_px0
What's wrong with my transformer? Defective? Do i have to return it?
Kind of dissapointed right now

I'd return it right away

catolh said:
Ok, so i open it up, and whammo. Like a punch in the face:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wlwzcB6_px0
What's wrong with my transformer? Defective? Do i have to return it?
Kind of dissapointed right now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i've never seen anything like that.
screen defect, i'd say.
RMA (unless somebody else knows better).

I have requested a return from the store, i hope it goes quickly. The lines seem to change after each boot. Sometimes the ones you see on the vid, and sometimes just extreme flickering lines.
It kind of reminds me of artifacts on a overheated graphics card
Here is another one showing extreme flicker:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WQaNDtpu3zc

looks like GPU is dying. Ive seen similar stripes on XPS M1330

TURNSKIN said:
looks like GPU is dying. Ive seen similar stripes on XPS M1330
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Crazy stuff, happening on a new, just opened device.
Pretty dissapointed at the moment

Looks the same as a partially broken laptop screen looks when its been dropped etc
Return it before they think you have had it long enough to have done it yourself

That is either the GPU or the video RAM failing, NOT a screen issue.

I would just exchange it at the store, make sure to tell them that it was like that when you opened it. Sometimes you'll get smartasses that will try to say you broke it, and that you're trying to get rid of it, even though it's obvious that you couldn't of done that. RMA would be too long of a wait, and they'd probably send you a new one anyways.

I'm no expert, but it looks like how my old laptops look when the flat ribbon connector to the LCD starts to break. Sometimes the wires will still make contact, sometimes they'll break in random patterns, so it could change depending on heat and just the right orientation of things.
Regardless, you should already be in line for a return/replacement. Stop reading this!

SilverZero said:
I'm no expert, but it looks like how my old laptops look when the flat ribbon connector to the LCD starts to break. Sometimes the wires will still make contact, sometimes they'll break in random patterns, so it could change depending on heat and just the right orientation of things.
Regardless, you should already be in line for a return/replacement. Stop reading this!
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Click to collapse
The thing is, i ordered it online. From a store that's usually pretty fast with these kind of things, so i hope it turns out ok.
I had to call an asus customer support centre at first though, and they were having technical difficulties, and had to call me back later on. I just hope they call today.

Wow my first transformer had that same thing but it was more in the middle. Sent it back to newegg immediately for a exchange. The
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using xda premium

Account removal
Deleted

Gutted for you! hope you get it swapped quicky. nothing worse than having brand new kit that is faulty.

Small update, Asus called me back with a reference number to a case they have made regarding the unit, now it is up to the store to give me a return code so i can ship the faulty unit back to them.
Hopefully they dont arse about, and send me a new one quickly.

Return right away! That's pretty messed up.

stcardinal said:
Return right away! That's pretty messed up.
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Click to collapse
I plan to, but i have to get a return code from the online site i bought it from. (legitimate site, one of the biggest online electronic stores in norway) so im pretty sure it will turn out ok.
*update*
Finally got a return number, and off it goes.

Today i received an e-mail about the status of my RMA.
A new replacement unit has been sent
It took a while, but they have been swamped in work lately it seems. (Not ASUS, but the store i bought it from)

glad you got that all squared away. I probably wouldnt even be able to articulate the anger I would have felt if that happened to me oh ya, expletives would have been said lol

Took it apart, put it back together. Somehow it works better just from doing that?

So, took apart my xplay today because my screen was having issues and I wanted to see if a cable was loose.
Couldn't tell what was wrong, so I put it back together.
After putting it back together, I noticed a few things.
1. The power button that had always been loose was suddenly tight and in one spot. I thought the phone was just made that way. Turns out mine was improperly assembled right from the time I opened it. Gotta say, that button is far less annoying now. Anyone else have a loose power button?
2. My battery. Before taking it apart, my battery was at 19%. After putting it back together, suddenly my battery said 43%!! Suddenly it's got more? The heck is going on here?
3. My screen hasn't glitched again so far. Even though I didn't actually do anything other than unplugging/screwing and replugging/screwing some parts.
4. Originally, the left trigger felt "mushy" now it clicks like the right one.
On a side note, after seeing how the slider works on the inside, I recommend ONLY opening the slider when you're actually about to play a game, and not just fiddling around with the phone. The way it's designed makes it very obvious to me that the ribbon connecting the screen to everything else is easily destroyed. It wouldn't surprise me if my screen was having problems because of that ribbon.
Edit: NOPE. It's totally screwed.
Edit again: When the screen is glitching, moving the slider makes it start working some of the time. I'm becoming more and more convinced the ribbon cable inside the slider is the problem.

captain67 said:
EDIT: NOPE. It's totally screwed.
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LOL

Trolololol .
Can't you find a replacement cable?

I found one online, but I'm flat broke and literally have 1 dollar to my name the next 2 weeks. And my phone company wants what's left over after rent of the next cheque..
I'm gonna try and see if Rogers is stupid enough to give me a new phone without noticing what I did.
Sent from Asgard

Good luck!

captain67 said:
I found one online, but I'm flat broke and literally have 1 dollar to my name the next 2 weeks. And my phone company wants what's left over after rent of the next cheque..
I'm gonna try and see if Rogers is stupid enough to give me a new phone without noticing what I did.
Sent from Asgard
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Click to collapse
Looks like it's ten bucks shipped from ebay:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SLIDE-SLIDE...572?pt=LH_DefaultDomain_0&hash=item20c4999f34
The only problem would be it'll likely take at least 2-3 weeks for it to come from Hong Kong!