EDIT: DISREGARD THIS. GO TO POST #3 and #4
Hello guys,
this is my first post so if I'm posting in the wrong section please bear with me.
I recently bought a T5388++ HTC diamond 2 clone. Everything was fine except that I couldn't get a GPS fix. (In the Start -> Settings -> System -> GPS Settings [Satellite State] I only had *red* satellites)
I used the "aluminum foil in the back side" fix, which worked well and I could get a fix.
Being an uneasy person I open the back cover of the cell phone to take a look (beware the headphone cables).
Now here is the good part.
On the left side (near the sd card and where the stylus ends) is probably the GPS antenna.
In the inside, on the board's side, there are two metallic "pins" which (when the cover is closed) touch the back of the antenna. What I did was to add some foil on the back side of the antenna so the contact with the pins would be more tight.
This worked like a charm and the signal is very good. I can even get a decent fix (3-4 *blue* satellites) from inside the house.
Sorry for the lack of pics, if anyone tries it, post a couple pictures and I can show you what I did exactly.
EDIT: DISREGARD THIS. GO TO POST #3 and #4
Pics!!!!
Here are some pics.
First unscrew the four screws, one at each corner of the phone.
Then slice the phone with the help of small flat screwdriver or some other tool. (there are some appropriate notches for that purpose)
**Beware of falling parts**
In the forth and fifth pic you can see where I install the alu foil.
Now you can close the phone and enjoy your newly found GPS!
[I also tried some solder, but the results where almost the same]
Congrats.
However, I can assure you that is not the GPS antenna. Based on the antenna size and shape (its a small inverted F antenna, see the black sticker that is attached to in on top of the stylus case) I am assuming it is either the Bluetooth or WiFi antenna.
The GPS antenna is a bit higher, it is the small pink 'cube' thingy on top of the phone, connected by the micro coax connector.
I had reported before the micro coax is loose in some devices, and I suspect you 'accidentally' fitted it better while opening and closing the phone.
But congrats on your successful operation anyway, being able to open and close the phone and still have a working one is already good, and often, just doing that and ensuring all connectors are clean and properly fit solves a all sorts of problems.
Yeap you are right!
I have read you saying this about loose connectors, so when i first opened the phone I refitted the micro coax.
In my defense I tried to see if this was the antenna. I disconnected it and opened the GPS. Seeing many satellites on the screen (red ones) I concluded that this was not the GPS antenna. (I thought maybe WiFi since I've seen this type of connector on my laptop's wifi)
But having read your post now, I tried a new experiment and found out that the "red" satellites appear, due to the A-GPS (with neither "my" GPS and THE GPS antenna).
Damn...
So could someone change the title to "OLD GPS reception fix"
I had the same problem with GPS. I have risked and have changed orientation GPS of the antenna - GPS perfectly works. BUT now the speaker in which I hear the interlocutor doesn't work for me. At other person after the assembly has broken touch the panel. Therefore it is better not to recommend to open phone.
onde consigo a rom do htc t5388+ idioma PTG ?
magicwolf said:
I had the same problem with GPS. I have risked and have changed orientation GPS of the antenna - GPS perfectly works. BUT now the speaker in which I hear the interlocutor doesn't work for me. At other person after the assembly has broken touch the panel. Therefore it is better not to recommend to open phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You changed the orientation of the antenna. In which way?
When I opened the phone to see if the connector is set right one cable to the speaker was dispatched (very bad soldering). I had to remove the old cable and solder another one because it was not only loose it was broken, too...grrrr...that's very bad.
But I was lucky and did't burned my phone
So, I also recommend to be VERY careful when opening the phone.
BTW: It is much simplier to open the T5388++ than my ASUS P535.
MicAlter said:
You changed the orientation of the antenna. In which way?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In a picture it is visible as I oriented the antenna.
cybermaus said:
Congrats.
However, I can assure you that is not the GPS antenna. Based on the antenna size and shape (its a small inverted F antenna, see the black sticker that is attached to in on top of the stylus case) I am assuming it is either the Bluetooth or WiFi antenna.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you please identify Wifi antenna? Look in attachment:
"C" is GPS antenna.
What is "A" "B" "D" ?
"D" - I see little piece of aluminum foil, but nothing else. Under this foil is place for stylus only and above foil is contact + Vibration Motor.
Somewhere I reed a tip not to hold the hand on the bottom of this phone during the phone call in order not to shield located there GSM antenna, so it means B is probably GSM. Are you sure C is BT and not GPS?
You're right. "C" is 100% GPS antenna. My mistake. (I've changed it now in original post.)
Well, my guess is B (at the bottom) is GSM, based on the fact it is larger (lower frequency) and seems to have two (one for the 850/900 MHz and one for 1800/1900Mhz), which leaves A and D for Blue and WiFi.
PS: Or GSM has two because it has 2 radio's? I wonder if they would share antenna or not, since it is a dual-sim dual standby, I guess the could share)
serak_hd2 WiFi probl.
If you have opened your phone already you can easily discover which one is wifi and BT. Just put a peace of paper on one contact (blocking connection), reassemble (screws are not necessary) and try connect to BT devise (compare to previous performance(distance)) if it is gone (or big performance difference), you blocked BT if not, it was WiFi. After you know which is Wifi, just try to ensure good mechanical contact from antenna till the board (bending contactors little higher or putting allufoil (aluminum can oxidize quickly, so it is not the best solution)). Try not to touch the board, some of the components can be sensible to static discharges. If you have not opened it yet, try to consider ones more the possibility to change it by your seller for new one.
problem with touch screen
t5388 + + touch screen does not work, but the image looks perfectly fine.
How to fix this?
thanks
cybermaus said:
The GPS antenna is a bit higher, it is the small pink 'cube' thingy on top of the phone, connected by the micro coax connector.
I had reported before the micro coax is loose in some devices, and I suspect you 'accidentally' fitted it better while opening and closing the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I also had this problem, the connector was loose, now I have very good signal. No aluminium foil needed. Your post saved me!
My recommendation to other people trying to solve this problem: be VERY careful when you open your phone.
Related
Hi,
I recently had a Magician shipped which seemed fine the first day of use, but at the end of the day, the gsm radio icon showed me a no reception, or 'service unavailable' message...
Now, after upgrading the Rom's (several used) and Radio update to the latest one (1.13 as far as I can see), I don't have any reception or 'service' at all...
The gsm radio always shows the '!' marker...
Anyone any idea where to look?
Loose cable, loose or bad antenna, software/rom issue?
Any ideas are welcome!
This device will be my test-unit for xanadux, but I want to make sure it's functional before testing stuff and debugging things that will never work because of a hardware or firmware issue...
Thanks guys!
Great work, super forum!
this is clearly a hardare malfunction. your device may not be identifying the sim card.
thanks for the quick response, but I don't think it's the SIM-slot that is causing me troubles... The SIM card can be read without any problem, and the pin code is asked and aknowledged by the phone. Once in a while I get coverage, but it always looks like 1 bar maximum, while my Trinity is lying next to it, same operator, and all 5bars of coverage notification are there, so it's not that I'm in a dead zone or black spot where there's no cell coverage at all.
I checked the upper back part (after removing the plastic casing top) and checked where the antenna is connected. Once, while holding and pushing onto the metal part that looks like the antenna extension, I got (just for 5 seconds that is) a connection, and signal level of 1-2 bars, but that dropped and stopped after a few seconds already...
I think it's a connection issue of some kind, internal antenna or the connection to it, but I'm not that keen on taking the unit apart to find out it's not that easy to sort the issue out...
Any help, info, ... can help...
Thanks!
the metal plate just below the top-backside plastic panel acts like the antenna.On top side of it there are two legs which connect to the mainboard.try cleaning the two spots on mainboard and the contacts of antenna.
well, i can say this because i solved this problem once this way.
good luck.
Well, I tried what you mentioned: scratched and cleaned the squares on the pcb, straightened the connecting metal parts from the back plate, cleaned all contacts: no solution...
Any other ideas?
Possibly a sort of switch which makes the device choose between internal or external antenna? What external antenna might fit?
Thanks guys!
Well,
I got my hands on a 'broken' I-mate Jam (got stuck between the car door, screen is totally broken, pcb is fine) and replaced the antenna block: FULL RECEPTION...
at least, for half an hour.. after that: reception dropped, and again left me with the "!" mentioning "no service"
I tried switching the pcb's but for some odd reason, the screen didn't come up good... The backlight didn't turn on and the screen was all striped and smeared...
Is there a difference in pcb versions, connectors, screens?
I thought Magcian = Magician, but now I'm thinking there are different models around there...
Bon... so I'm looking for a pcb of a Qtek S100 now... to switch that one with mine, and see if that helps...
really strange the reception was 'perfect' for about an hour, I even succeeded in making calls with it! No jitter, no drops, perfect reception, and then: BONK, over with it... nothing left...
Any ideas on this one, or any ideas on how to get the I-mate's pcb working in my Qtek?
Thanks guys for the info and help!
Prying the frame open wasn't such a problem although you should be careful not to force anything, it actually clicks open nicely when handled carefully. I ran into problems with the little bridge of the GPS, it broke of when I looked at it. Well actually I did help a little with a screwdriver but it broke on touch so to speak.
So there I was with a broken GPS and my sight isn't everything either so what to do. Well I found a solution. Have a seat. This is shocking.
I folded a peace of alu foil a few times and fitted it in the little space on the speaker just left from the gps and covered the broken bridge with it. I wont have to tell how difficult this is considering you have to avoid all contacts in this area. So if you try it it's your choice.
Result. A blasting fast GPS that indeed gives me never seen before fixes. This just must be my lucky day. Geocaches here I come. Time to put my external GPS aside again. Nothing beats a mad hatter.
So you kind of inadvertently upgraded the GPS antennae!
Thanks for posting, don't suppose you could post a picture?
Been checking this GPS thing myself.
I actually wonder how people manage to break that contact. You only have to bring it up a notch.
When checking the back cover you can see that there are 2 places that are contacts. i've checked with the multimeter and both are connected to each other.
Now there is one thing that is strange to me. The contact that is not the one touching the metal 'spring', well on the circuitboard there is this what looks like a piece of conducting foam that would make contact with the other one on the back. Measuring that foam it indeed conducts. It conducts to ground (measured between the coax connector and foam = 0 Ohms).
Now I actually dont know if it really touches the antenna but it would be odd to create a contact when it would not be touching.
So maybe there are 2 places that should make contact to the antenna.
Does anyone have an actual clue, or even better pictures, of the changes that were made on the models after October?
Here is the Samsung Galaxy S3 (GT-I9300) Service Manual.
Please take a moment to read the notes and issues about this manual in this post.
For some reason Google didn't pick up that post, so I had to re-post here...
Now, if you are brave and happen to have a GT-I9300, you can still help us by posting some
internal pictures, to verify some issues in the manual. If they are good,
some of them will eventually become part of the SGS3 Hack-Pack.
Thanks and Enjoy!
I will be opening up the phone in the next few days due to me managing to damage the sim card holder section(not holding sim card) So at present i have got somthing putting pressure to keep sim card in place. I have a new sim card holder on order so when it arrives i will pull phone apart and take some pictures.
If you have any advice for me before attempting this please let me know via pm
Do you have any experience in this kind of electronics? I mean, are you planning to replace and solder the SIM card holder by yourself?
If you have not done this type of soldering before, I do not recommend it.
If you do decide to do it on your own, make sure:
You are working on a clean workspace
You are well grounded and not wearing wool clothes mixed with synthetic materials to avoid any ESD.
Have the right tools for the job.(Temp controlled SMD soldering iron + flux and acid-free lead-free SMD solder etc.)
A very steady hand with good eyes!
As for the pictures, keep the environment as bright as possible, preferably daylight. Try to keep your PCB on a bright or neutral background. (Bright cardboard is usually good.) Inspect your pictures and make sure you can read the text on the smallest chips. (The big ones we already know about, its the smaller ones that are difficult to navigate around.) Make sure the pictures are well focused.
Good Luck!
From looking at the pictures I was hoping I don't have to solder the sim card slot in. It looks easily replaceable as it looks like it's just a connector and not soldered
Replaced the sim holder. My camera wasn't good enough to get focus of the smaller chips however it is very very easy to take phone apart. And I guess Samsung are expecting issues with sim slot so they have fixed it using one screw and connected to board using a pull off connecter.
Just in case anyone else is interested the sim holder/sd holder cost me £20, delivered.
E:V:A said:
Here is the Samsung Galaxy S3 (GT-I9300) Service Manual.
Please take a moment to read the notes and issues about this manual in this post.
For some reason Google didn't pick up that post, so I had to re-post here...
Now, if you are brave and happen to have a GT-I9300, you can still help us by posting some
internal pictures, to verify some issues in the manual. If they are good,
some of them will eventually become part of the SGS3 Hack-Pack.
Thanks and Enjoy!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
amazing !!!
Hi guys,
Here is my contribution to da community, hope so it helps.
h t t p s : / / docs . google . com/open?id=0B9lrf7AWQW7ETjRZTkFXb1luN0E
On image 20120616_150200.jpg you can see the region jumpers. The images are of a live demo unit - everything works besides the GSM/3G data. Haven't tested to see if the NFC is working.
The real unit has some more antenna connector. The demo one does not have PBA /printed board antenna/ the ANT102 and ANT103 as well as the capacitors and the coils u may seen them market in red cycles (ANT102, ANT103, C102, C191, L103, L102) there is no room on the MOBO for C192 /or at least I can't find its place/.
Thanks.
^^ Here is the link for above! (Thanks!)
Hi again,
I can confirm that the NFC is working on the live demo unites. According to the original S3 user manual the NFC antennas are build into the battery back.
I still can't figure out what is the "W2" antenna connector for. The Live demo unit has no connector soldered to the motherboard and also lacks the small PCB antenna with the white coaxial cable. Some ppl claim that the W2 is for WiFi antenna, but it is not, because I got great WiFi connectivity tho the lack of such PCB antenna. I can only confirm the WiFi working fine, under "G" type of WiFi networks. The openWRT firmware of my current router has known bug and I can't bring up "N" standard in air, to check if the PCB antenna is for "N" type of WiFi networks.
I also did some testing to see if the PCB is for GLONASS or GPS, and it seams that this PCB antenna with the white coaxial cable is not for any of these services. That's why I think it might be for wifi "N" or 3G data/networks. Donno if the 802.11n requires a separate antenna.
^^ Please post a link to a specific image, that clearly show the connector(s) you're talking about.
Hi I have a live demo unit to, so I think I can help about this =).
I can't show you the mainboard back because I' m new user... xD
I don't really know what you mean with NFC (sorry, I'm not really good with english)
But
W1 is a GSM external antenna conection
W2 is a wifi external antenna conection
And the white wired antenna is for wifi to.
After thinking a lot, if you conect an antenna to the GSM antenna conection (external or the internal lacked in Demo unit) you probably can't use phone function.
That function probably was crippled by software or because demo units don´t have imei maybe o.o.
The only thing I need to try is to connect a microsim to the phone
No one has any insights ???
johnny21a said:
No one has any insights ???
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have sgs3, international version on my workbench right now.
Don´t have any clue what could I share, so - if there is anything specific -- let me know. I will do my best..
BR
Samsung galaxy S3 i747
i have a Galaxy S3 SGH-i747m that has been water damaged and given to me so i could try and fix it. I can take pretty much any pictures you want, have openned the phone a couple times now to try and clean it up.
My problem is that the works well, it starts up, unlock the screen, plays sound...but the screen is off. Now at first when i was "playing" with it the screen would flicker on and off to show me the battery charging logo when it was plugged in. I've cleaned the phone and all flex connectors with some products. the phone still turns on and works but my screen is off. It detects the touch since i can unlock the screen ( it plays the water sound when i slide my finger on the screen) and speaker works when i boot it up (little booting sounds).
I was thinking there might be a small fuse on board for the screen backlight and that could be blown. I was also thinking my battery might be damaged and is not giving the phone the right voltage to the right connectors or something so i have ordered a new battery on ebay (under 4$) and am waiting for it.
Anyone has an idea to some specific things i should be looking for ? only thing haven't disassemble is the digitizer from the framebecause doing so would surely break the glass. It bums me up a bit since there are some electronics behind the frame that could have been damaged by the water that i couldn't see.
Bigred065 said:
i have a Galaxy S3 SGH-i747m that has been water damaged and given to me so i could try and fix it. I can take pretty much any pictures you want, have openned the phone a couple times now to try and clean it up.
My problem is that the works well, it starts up, unlock the screen, plays sound...but the screen is off. Now at first when i was "playing" with it the screen would flicker on and off to show me the battery charging logo when it was plugged in. I've cleaned the phone and all flex connectors with some products. the phone still turns on and works but my screen is off. It detects the touch since i can unlock the screen ( it plays the water sound when i slide my finger on the screen) and speaker works when i boot it up (little booting sounds).
I was thinking there might be a small fuse on board for the screen backlight and that could be blown. I was also thinking my battery might be damaged and is not giving the phone the right voltage to the right connectors or something so i have ordered a new battery on ebay (under 4$) and am waiting for it.
Anyone has an idea to some specific things i should be looking for ? only thing haven't disassemble is the digitizer from the framebecause doing so would surely break the glass. It bums me up a bit since there are some electronics behind the frame that could have been damaged by the water that i couldn't see.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
check if you can see anything on the screen, use some extra light, torch for example.
if so - then its more likely that the LEDs in the display panel are damaged, since it flickered, as you said. also could be the driver circuit for backlight. Clean connectors for display panel, use magnifier, or better microscope to check for corrosion. use IPA to clean or scrape off the corrosion.
also - maybe this is not the right place to discuss this.
GL
Redrigon said:
Hi I have a live demo unit to, so I think I can help about this =).
I can't show you the mainboard back because I' m new user... xD
I don't really know what you mean with NFC (sorry, I'm not really good with english)
But
W1 is a GSM external antenna conection
W2 is a wifi external antenna conection
And the white wired antenna is for wifi to.
After thinking a lot, if you conect an antenna to the GSM antenna conection (external or the internal lacked in Demo unit) you probably can't use phone function.
That function probably was crippled by software or because demo units don´t have imei maybe o.o.
The only thing I need to try is to connect a microsim to the phone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have he white antenna coaxial cable neigh the PCB antenna board that this cable is connected to but I have WiFi.
Could it be for WiFi N(150Mbps)?
Watter damage, LCD working/not working?
Bigred065 said:
i have a Galaxy S3 SGH-i747m that has been water damaged and given to me so i could try and fix it. I can take pretty much any pictures you want, have openned the phone a couple times now to try and clean it up.
My problem is that the works well, it starts up, unlock the screen, plays sound...but the screen is off. Now at first when i was "playing" with it the screen would flicker on and off to show me the battery charging logo when it was plugged in. I've cleaned the phone and all flex connectors with some products. the phone still turns on and works but my screen is off. It detects the touch since i can unlock the screen ( it plays the water sound when i slide my finger on the screen) and speaker works when i boot it up (little booting sounds).
I was thinking there might be a small fuse on board for the screen backlight and that could be blown. I was also thinking my battery might be damaged and is not giving the phone the right voltage to the right connectors or something so i have ordered a new battery on ebay (under 4$) and am waiting for it.
Anyone has an idea to some specific things i should be looking for ? only thing haven't disassemble is the digitizer from the framebecause doing so would surely break the glass. It bums me up a bit since there are some electronics behind the frame that could have been damaged by the water that i couldn't see.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have identical symptoms with my i9300.
1. Water damaged
2. Dried in a can of rice etc over several days
3. Cleaned under sim card, lots of debris there, looked scorched, I cleaned with alcohol and a brush in an ESD protected environment.
4. Re assembled, the display briefly flashed on, and showed the expected "Battery is low, an d No Sim Card" then powered off.
5. Now after charging the battery and emplacing my sim card, I hear the proper musical tones when the phone boots but the screen doesn't light.
Where you able to get the screen working?
I am going to try a more throughal cleaning and I will try viewing the LCD under a more power full light.
I too worry that just getting the LCD screen replaced might not work; the screen may be fine but the mother board LCD power supply might be at fault...
I will keep you posted and keep an eye on this forum to find out how to fix this.
This thread has served its main purpose.
OT discussions are prevalent.
Thread Closed!
Check latest post for latest info!
Ignore post #2 since it's the answer to my past question.
I'm owner of HD2 EU, i got my screen broken.
I gave phone so that it would be repaired > after it was repaired flew away to other country.
Anyway few things don't work after they have changed the screen:
1) WIFI signal is really really low(need to hold phone ~10sm close to other phone/router in order to receive signal
2) GPS is not working(checked both android/wp7 with various tweaks(f.e. gps.conf/roms....)
3) Volume- button is not working(it was working, but it broke few weeks after the screen was changed), mb there's a way to just remove the volume rocker and click the buttons with something else f.e. small pencil or smth, since i'll need those buttons only when i rewrite software, atm i can't do that due to not working volume- button)
4) 5main buttons(call/home/win key/back/call drop) are "recessed"(hopefully google translated it the right way - incase it didn't: i mean they are slightly badly positioned: towards the one side(left) they're positioned fine, towards the right side they're slightly too deep into the screen).
Can i fix any of these issues at home myself and any thoughts what exactly needs to be checked/possibly/for sure replaced?
Fixing this phone by a repair man would cost way too much, i'd rather change the phone, anyway fully working hd2 = i'm really happy.
Between i checked tutorials on disassembly(f.e. pocketno*.***/hardware-1/official-htc-hd2-disassembly-assembly-training-videos-leaked ) - everything seems fine, but the thing is, that it shows full disassemply of all parts, not sure exactly what i need to do for checking f.e. the wifi/gps cable only.
Edited:
There are 2 brass clips on the top right of the motherboard which attach to the rear case antenna. Make sure these brass clips are correctly functioning and working. There are 2 for the gps at top left big ones from memory then there are 2 at bottom for radio antenna and two at top right for wifi.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what i found from a topic of guy with similar story and wifi not working - guys adviced to check these parts. Is it hard to reach em? Also what can be used instead of "flange plastic stick" and also what can be used a screw driver of those special hd2 screws?
Current thoughts:
Solutions:
1) WIFI - i bet the cable is not fully connected, just slightly so it results in low electric signal = low wifi signal received by motherboard. I saw where those 2 connectors go and seems easy to reach that spot
2) GPS - the cable is not connected at all, i saw one of 2 places where the connector goes, one on motherboard top, and 2nd - i don't know?
3) Not sure if can be fixed, mb replacement part is required, not sure about idea with pen or smth like that.
4) Seems easy to be fixed, anyway it seems also that it's the hardest place to be reached, since i need to disassemply the motherboard fully, mb any though of how to do this faster?
Extra: what if i'll use blunt table knife instead of "flange plastic stick"?
Edit2: forgot to mention, when i click the volume- button - i can't feel any click(as there should be).
Without the volume down rocker/having winmo installed, you can't get into the boot loader, and without being able to get into the boot loader, there is no way to flash a radio (or even anything else ).
Sent from my HTC HD2 using XDA Premium App
eXtremeLT said:
That's what i found from a topic of guy with similar story and wifi not working - guys adviced to check these parts. Is it hard to reach em? Also what can be used instead of "flange plastic stick" and also what can be used a screw driver of those special hd2 screws?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, its not hard to reach them. You can use a guitare plectrum http://www.amazon.com/Planet-Waves-...503326&sr=8-1-spell&keywords=guitare+plectrum instead of "flange plastic stick".
For HD2 screws you need a torx screwdriver T5.
eXtremeLT said:
Current thoughts:
Solutions:
1) WIFI - i bet the cable is not fully connected, just slightly so it results in low electric signal = low wifi signal received by motherboard. I saw where those 2 connectors go and seems easy to reach that spot
2) GPS - the cable is not connected at all, i saw one of 2 places where the connector goes, one on motherboard top, and 2nd - i don't know?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The second one goes on the little GPS board.
eXtremeLT said:
what if i'll use blunt table knife instead of "flange plastic stick"?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You will have a few scratch in backcover. I would only use plastic parts to open the phone.
eXtremeLT said:
Edit2: forgot to mention, when i click the volume- button - i can't feel any click(as there should be).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?p=28796701#post28796701
Wohoo! Fixed the volume- button myself, adjusted that little metal part in the spot where the volume- presses.
Anyway:
The black cable(pretty small compared to white1) i think so it's wifi/bluetooth - is ruined. One part of it is fine, but the other1 hasn't got the connector to the board, it's just tearn off(by awesome people who changed my screen). So i'll try to buy a new cable > change it > hopefully wifi will work(btw when the cable is fully disconnected, it works with that small ~10sm distance).
GPS(i guess it's the white cable):
the one side of the cable(on top of the gps antenna board) is connected fully, anyway i can't access the second end of the cable(on the backside of motherboard. Any suggestions of how to do that? I know how to do that with all phone disassembly, anyway maby some parts can be skipped?
UPDATE:
I've done something to my camera, after i fixed volume button, and removed the black cable(since it wasn't connected) - my camera is not working on any roms, camera apps just crash>quit, what cable/part do i need to check? :S i haven't disconnected any wires, only unscrewed first 4 screws near the battery > removed the backpart of the phone to access wires > removed black wire > fixed volume button :S
UPDATE2:
Disassembled and reassembled the phone - at magically the camera works I don't know what was the problem :S
I updated with possible permanent solution HERE
Hi, I'm opening this thread in hope to make some order with the GPS issues many of us are having.
There is a lot of misleading information as to the cause and solutions that have nothing to do with fixing the GPS (the 3 pins which are for the volume rocker, for example).
My phone is H850 version, but relevant to all variants.
I would like to thank Rick Jones for putting me on the right track, you can read some on iFixit here
What are the issues?
GPS reception getting worse over time.
Not getting a fix.
Getting a fix but losing signal sporadically.
OK, let's start:
All the "magic" is concentrated in the very top - right of the phone (viewing from the front).
Digging through FCC site for documents, I found this:
{
"lightbox_close": "Close",
"lightbox_next": "Next",
"lightbox_previous": "Previous",
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As you can see the GPS antenna is top left (view from the back).
It was thought that the antenna is on the metal back, but this is not the case.
In fact, it is on the plastic frame that holds the LCD, sandwiched between the LCD and it's frame.
Here is a photo of an LCD frame without the LCD:
The strip then goes to the other side and under the PCB:
And connects to the PCB here:
and here you can see with the PCB removed:
This is with the PCB in place:
Now, this is the metal back where the grounding mesh is:
Now, to elaborate, The Antenna for the GPS is of a "planar inverted-F antenna" type. (see Wikipedia here)
This is where the grounding part comes to light - It is part of the antenna plane, though not the antenna itself.
The pin(s) mentioned must make good contact between the antenna, PCB, mesh.
Problem is one or both pins do not make good connection to PCB/mesh. this can happen over time.
Adding some additional layer in the form of a conductive foil, yields better connection (see photos, they explain what to do).
I did this on my phone, and reception became very good, though not exceptional when I compared to other phones.
I usually get 5-10 meter accuracy outside. While certainly good, should be 3 meters or better with GPS+GLONASS+BeiDou.
And indoors close to a window, I get better accuracy and fix time with other phones.
A strange thing that might be software related, I get much better results both in fix time and accuracy, while using the diagnostic menu (*#546368#*850# on the dialer and "field test" then do "GNSS POS test")
when compared to apps like "GPS test"
Not satisfied with this, I decided to find a better solution for the pins, and found a suggestion to replace/solder on the pins a better connector in the form of a spring contact (similar to the springs on the vibration motor).
I salvaged from some faulty phone, (not G5), those springs an soldered on top of both pins, to make a hopefully long term solution. Also I removed the mesh, cleaned the glue residue as I suspect this is part of the problem.
While this did NOT improve the reception, it does work fine. However, it does have the risk that you can damage the pins/PCB, so unless you have good soldering skills, I suggest avoiding this and using the foil method.
Some extreme close-up photos of the springs soldered on the pins:
To summarize, the antenna is in 2 parts - 1. the flex strip to the LCD frame, 2. the ground plane to the metal back.
The pins, probably through stress, heat, lose good contact to their relevant mates.
The other solutions (such as the 3 pins which was PROVED to be the volume rocker) gives temporary, if at all, solution because all it does is lift the PCB and not even on the correct side - avoid THIS IS FALSE.
Yep. You're right.
I checked out the posts here where people where offering elaborate soldering of wires, or that volume rocker connection. I quickly found a post, or site, elsewhere that described the same as you and I knew that was correct almost immediately.
Actually it probably was that iFixit page you mention.
shloms said:
Hi, I'm opening this thread in hope to make some order with the GPS issues many of us are having.
There is a lot of misleading information as to the cause and solutions that have nothing to do with fixing the GPS (the 3 pins which are for the volume rocker, for example).
My phone is H850 version, but relevant to all variants.
I would like to thank Rick Jones for putting me on the right track, you can read some on iFixit here
What are the issues?
GPS reception getting worse over time.
Not getting a fix.
Getting a fix but losing signal sporadically.
OK, let's start:
All the "magic" is concentrated in the very top - right of the phone (viewing from the front).
Digging through FCC site for documents, I found this:
View attachment 4337847
As you can see the GPS antenna is top left (view from the back).
It was thought that the antenna is on the metal back, but this is not the case.
In fact, it is on the plastic frame that holds the LCD, sandwiched between the LCD and it's frame.
Here is a photo of an LCD frame without the LCD:
View attachment 4337810
The strip then goes to the other side and under the PCB:
View attachment 4337812
And connects to the PCB here:
View attachment 4337823
and here you can see with the PCB removed:
View attachment 4337822
This is with the PCB in place:
View attachment 4337821
Now, this is the metal back where the grounding mesh is:
View attachment 4337820
Now, to elaborate, The Antenna for the GPS is of a "planar inverted-F antenna" type. (see Wikipedia here)
This is where the grounding part comes to light - It is part of the antenna plane, though not the antenna itself.
The pin(s) mentioned must make good contact between the antenna, PCB, mesh.
Problem is one or both pins do not make good connection to PCB/mesh. this can happen over time.
Adding some additional layer in the form of a conductive foil, yields better connection (see photos, they explain what to do).
I did this on my phone, and reception became very good, though not exceptional when I compared to other phones.
I usually get 5-10 meter accuracy outside. While certainly good, should be 3 meters or better with GPS+GLONASS+BeiDou.
And indoors close to a window, I get better accuracy and fix time with other phones.
A strange thing that might be software related, I get much better results both in fix time and accuracy, while using the diagnostic menu (*#546368#*850# on the dialer and "field test" then do "GNSS POS test")
when compared to apps like "GPS test"
Not satisfied with this, I decided to find a better solution for the pins, and found a suggestion to replace/solder on the pins a better connector in the form of a spring contact (similar to the springs on the vibration motor).
I salvaged from some faulty phone, (not G5), those springs an soldered on top of both pins, to make a hopefully long term solution. Also I removed the mesh, cleaned the glue residue as I suspect this is part of the problem.
While this did NOT improve the reception, it does work fine. However, it does have the risk that you can damage the pins/PCB, so unless you have good soldering skills, I suggest avoiding this and using the foil method.
Some extreme close-up photos of the springs soldered on the pins:
View attachment 4337842
View attachment 4337843
View attachment 4337845
To summarize, the antenna is in 2 parts - 1. the flex strip to the LCD frame, 2. the ground plane to the metal back.
The pins, probably through stress, heat, lose good contact to their relevant mates.
The other solutions (such as the 3 pins which was PROVED to be the volume rocker) gives temporary, if at all, solution because all it does is lift the PCB and not even on the correct side - avoid THIS IS FALSE.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you look over to the Antenna3 (top middle) and help me with my Cell reception problem? The phone's reception is horrifyingly terrible.
You are right , this helped me. I got this images from some forum post.]I tried the three contact one but that was just a dumb idea and broke my volume up
Don't try the three pin (those are volume contact points)method anyone who come here please read this
ChristopherXI said:
Can you look over to the Antenna3 (top middle) and help me with my Cell reception problem? The phone's reception is horrifyingly terrible.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi, I opened this thread for GPS antenna, but I'll try to help
Which model of the G5 you have and which frequencies? Also is the reception bad on LTE, 3G, GSM, which?
Any how take a look at those photos, to see where the contacts for ANT3, should you check:
View attachment 4340158
Great thread thanks alot Shloms!
that will be helpful to many people.
prannoytambe said:
You are right , this helped me. I got this images from some forum post.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thats the wrong one!
it may work because it's the ground connection but the actual GPS antenna is the one above.
thetool said:
Great thread thanks alot Shloms!
that will be helpful to many people.
Thats the wrong one!
it may work because it's the ground connection but the actual GPS antenna is the one above.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
oh might be mine had ground issue, but will try the other one once i open it for the vol button fix.
Still please lets help boost this post , other are killing peoples vol button with no fix.
Hi, I'm using Rs988. I live in Ukraine and here the operators support only 2g and 3g. The phone does not catch the signal of all operators. I think that the problem is in the antenna. As I understand the antenna for wcdma, gsm is at the bottom of the phone. How to improve the signal?
Отправлено с моего RS988 через Tapatalk
spinoza_web said:
Hi, I'm using Rs988. I live in Ukraine and here the operators support only 2g and 3g. The phone does not catch the signal of all operators. I think that the problem is in the antenna. As I understand the antenna for wcdma, gsm is at the bottom of the phone. How to improve the signal?
Отправлено с моего RS988 через Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes for 2G, and some of the 3G it's the antennas on the removable battery "chin"
This is for your model.
However, as you can see some of the 3G are shared with Antenna 3 on the top.
You can check the Bottom removable part if the 2 contacts make good connection with PCB.
Do you get good signal with other phones?
shloms said:
Hi, I opened this thread for GPS antenna, but I'll try to help
Which model of the G5 you have and which frequencies? Also is the reception bad on LTE, 3G, GSM, which?
Any how take a look at those photos, to see where the contacts for ANT3, should you check:
View attachment 4340158
View attachment 4340159
View attachment 4340160
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Using the At&t version. the reception is bad on all LTE/3G/2G
Another post a while back used liquid nickel epoxy. Can be found on Amazon on the cheap to basically dab extra material which would harden creating a contact surface. This would be a lot more practical than soldering on new springs.
Genial hombre!
Enviado desde mi LG-H850 mediante Tapatalk
I have not yet managed to fix my gps permanently.
I took a copper solder-wick, cleaned it well with contact spray and put it at the gps contacts mentioned here.
At first it works well but after a few days gps intermittent again.
I removed the copper wire, and bent the gps pin so that it will have a good connection.
checked the connection between the board and the GPS pin (0.00 with multimeter = GREAT CONNECTION)
I suspect the problem is with the antenna inside the back-cover.
Bottom line: Maybe it's possible to improvise the gps antenna with thin wires?
thetool said:
I have not yet managed to fix my gps permanently.
I took a copper solder-wick, cleaned it well with contact spray and put it at the gps contacts mentioned here.
At first it works well but after a few days gps intermittent again.
I removed the copper wire, and bent the gps pin so that it will have a good connection.
checked the connection between the board and the GPS pin (0.00 with multimeter = GREAT CONNECTION)
I suspect the problem is with the antenna inside the back-cover.
Bottom line: Maybe it's possible to improvise the gps antenna with thin wires?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Inside the back cover? the antenna is the white flex and goes between the LCD and the main frame.
I doubt that the soft contact (I marked in green, because it was a response to some other post) is part of the GPS.
In theory, yes you could improvise an antenna, but I see 2 problems - 1. it would have to be a very specific length for the frequency (if I recall right 1750Mhz?) 2. the back cover is metal, and once it is closed, practically the inside is shielded to signals.
It is only the very top of the phone between the main frame and LCD that hosts the 3 antennas, including the one for the GPS.
I even thought about drilling a tiny hole in the back cover and connecting a GPS antenna (like you find in most other phones, can be bought as spare parts for many phones), through a thin shielded cable, and sticking it on the back cover from the outside, but so far the springs on the pins prove to be reliable.
What do you mean by "the antenna is the white flex and goes between the LCD and the main frame."?
I have managed to find a replacement Dead G5 to test it. (I'll need to buy it if I want to keep it)
I have replaced the back cover - Instant fix. (get 3m accuracy outside and 10m inside)
That was my thought - the back cover sometimes is the culprit.
Because I tried everything and nothing really works.
With my back cover (no mods) the signal is very bad.
thetool said:
what do you mean by "the antenna is the white flex and goes between the lcd and the main frame."?
I have managed to find a replacement dead g5 to test it. (i'll need to buy it if i want to keep it)
i have replaced the back cover - instant fix. (get 3m accuracy outside and 10m inside)
that was my thought - the back cover sometimes is the culprit.
Because i tried everything and nothing really works.
With my back cover (no mods) the signal is very bad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I mean this:
You can't access this part unless you heat the LCD/frame to separate them, the antenna is the grey flex strip/pcb that has the antenna trace etched on it. you won't see this part as it is between LCD/frame as I mentioned.
View attachment 4337810
Now, can you see the arrow? this is the remaining flex strip that has the connector that you are familiar with. And this connector, as you know, touches the metal mesh on the back case.
View attachment 4337812
What I did, if you read my original post, is solder springs on the connector, and removed the mesh because I suspected it was oxidized and/or the glue was not conducting well.
So far, so good.
My guess would be that your mesh has the same issue and the other case you tested has a good mesh.
If it's not too expensive maybe you should keep this back cover, although reading from other threads, some users bought a replacement cover with good results initially and the problem returned after a while.
From what I see, there is NO antennas on the back cover except the NFC antenna which is around the fingerprint sensor - this is even stated at the document LG submitted to the FCC .
The back cover is used as a ground plane for the antenna and is not in itself an antenna.
Thanks for your detailed reply.
My old back cover doen't have a mesh at all.
I played with it many times and put a cooper shim with a mesh beneath (exactly like you did here)
pulled the gps pin and cleaned every contact on the back with contact cleaner...
Sometimes it worked well for a day or 2... most of the time it was bad from the beginning.
You never know if it's really fixed, just after a few days. so annoying.
been working on it for way too many hours lol
(Picture of the original back and the copper I used, after cleaning well of course)
tried also using some silver wire I took from another phone... was very bad.
thetool said:
Thanks for your detailed reply.
My old back cover doen't have a mesh at all.
I played with it many times and put a cooper shim with a mesh beneath (exactly like you did here)
pulled the gps pin and cleaned every contact on the back with contact cleaner...
Sometimes it worked well for a day or 2... most of the time it was bad from the beginning.
You never know if it's really fixed, just after a few days. so annoying.
been working on it for way too many hours lol
(Picture of the original back and the copper I used, after cleaning well of course)
tried also using some silver wire I took from another phone... was very bad.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is interesting indeed.
Ever since the "springs" fix I get a consistent good signal even when driving for hours and never lost signal, what's weird though, I never get less than 5 meter accuracy on any of the testing apps, but with the hidden diagnostic menu I get better signal and accuracy. I don't know, my model is H850 maybe my firmware V20c-ISR-XX. has something to do with it... for one thing, it only supports Quick charge 2.0, I checked the voltages with various certified QC 3.0 chargers, but that's not relevant to the GPS.
BTW, did you get a good accuracy (better than 5 meters) when using the original cover?
Anyhow keep us updated if it turns out the new cover is good long term.
My phone is Korean (rootable :victory
I got accuracy of 3m when using the copper mesh, but again only for a few days.
I will update. even now accuracy doesn't seem too stable indoors, but outdoors I get 3m.
indoors far from window I get about 10m-12m after stabilized.
I tested with iphone 7 - got 4-6m accuracy indoors almost instantly when far from windows
shloms said:
I mean this:
You can't access this part unless you heat the LCD/frame to separate them, the antenna is the grey flex strip/pcb that has the antenna trace etched on it. you won't see this part as it is between LCD/frame as I mentioned.
View attachment 4337810
Now, can you see the arrow? this is the remaining flex strip that has the connector that you are familiar with. And this connector, as you know, touches the metal mesh on the back case.
View attachment 4337812
What I did, if you read my original post, is solder springs on the connector, and removed the mesh because I suspected it was oxidized and/or the glue was not conducting well.
So far, so good.
My guess would be that your mesh has the same issue and the other case you tested has a good mesh.
If it's not too expensive maybe you should keep this back cover, although reading from other threads, some users bought a replacement cover with good results initially and the problem returned after a while.
From what I see, there is NO antennas on the back cover except the NFC antenna which is around the fingerprint sensor - this is even stated at the document LG submitted to the FCC .
The back cover is used as a ground plane for the antenna and is not in itself an antenna.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Strange. My GPS and cell signal dips low when i Touch the glass , and more strange, When i touch the glass part that's close to the notification LED the Cell signal increases from -113 db to -99 db
This this caused by bad Grounding? Because you speculated that the Cover it's just a Grounding plane
should i get a new back cover to test?
The covers you guys shows there is a patch near the LCD cable and the corresponding place it touches there is a Mesh that goes under the LCD flex cable, My cover and Midframe has neither of those.
the mesh that goes under the lcd cable : https://i.imgur.com/XOzFfQe.jpg
the patch that make contacts with the mesh :
https://i.imgur.com/BNjjvEb.jpg
GPS strength: https://i.imgur.com/btT9xtT.png
Touching the glass : https://i.imgur.com/xQ9K0rC.png