[Q] Question regarding keyboard dock Power Saver mode - Eee Pad Transformer General

I recently purchased a new B60 dock to replace my B50 which had a bad battery (would not charge).
This B60 dock does not wake up the tablet when you hit the keyboard while the tablet is locked and asleep and the Power Saver mode is on, meaning it passes the "new hardware test" the Asus Representative posted about on this forum and therefore should not have the battery drain issue.
However, touching the touchpad or clicking one of the left/right click buttons wakes the tablet.
Should this be happening? This technically means that the dock must still be draining power since the touchpad is still being powered...
I've tested the dock and so far I'm losing 1% of battery per hour that passes by, which is so much better than the 5-10% loss per hour I was having on my old dock.
Thank you for your help.

Related

Is your Dock's "Battery Saving" mode working?

Mine works sometimes. This might be one of the sources of this mysterious dock battery draining during sleeping issue.
One the biggest questions of dock draining is ..if both the tablet and dock are fully charged and they are not attached togeather and OFF...not in standby there is very little battery drain ,,if any ...on either device.
But....if they are OFF...not in standby and attached...why is the battery draining on the dock?
DilloDroid said:
But....if they are OFF...not in standby and attached...why is the battery draining on the dock?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The tablet still charges when turned off. It appears that it doesn't distinguish between charging from the power cable, and charging from the dock.
I think also for the broken docks(early models), there is also no way to turn off the power to the keyboard when the tablet is attached. It doesn't distinguish between standby and off.
mine not working at all, i'm disspointed in a bad mood
look up cpu spy in the market and see if your tablet is going into deep sleep.
mine goes into deep sleep just fine. don't own the dock.
Mine dock and tablet are both B60, and the "Battery Saving" mode does not work.
My b40 does not work.
B60 - as far as I can tell it is going into deep-sleep every time it sould. I notice no battery drain while dock and pad is connected and untouched..

RMA request refused. RMA request form worst ever!

Dear customer,
We have received the RMA application form with the serial number: B5Oxxxxxx. The form has been rejected.
You have advised us of the below:
"Dock drain issue. Dock only to be returned to have issue fixed. Please advise if this is the case as I read elsewhere only the dock is required in order to resolve this."
Unfortunately nothing was mentioned on troubleshooting.
Therefore we have to advise you to attempt the below:
(1) Make sure your software is updated to 8.2.3.13 or later.
(2) Dock the Pad into the keyboard dock.
(3) Go to [Settings] and select [Screen]? [MobileDock Battery saving mode]
(4) Press power button on the Transformer Pad to make the unit go to sleep.
(5) With the option checked, if your unit does NOT wake up with the tap of a keyboard, the new battery saving mode is enabled and working.
(6) If your unit wakes up by a key press in both options (when the box is checked and unchecked), you have the earlier design.
(7) If #6 is the result and you also require the new feature, please resubmit the RMA application form on the link: http://uk.asus.com/rma
Best regards,
Asus UK
---
Well the problem with that RMA form is twofold. For one thing there is a 150 character limit and secondly if you enter any characters like ( or ! or url's it will reject the submission. It's complete crap! I wanted to point to their own url aknowledging the issue in the description but it won't even allow that. I already discussed the issue in my emails to them but the plebs who read the RMA are obviously not reading the support emails that go with it.
Terrible support.
BTW it meets the criteria of numbers 6 and 7. I tried quoting that but it would not accept the form with the ( and ) characters. I do not know if fixing that also fixes the battery drain issue also though.
(5) With the option checked, if your unit does NOT wake up with the tap of a keyboard, the new battery saving mode is enabled and working.
What's funny about that is that option does NOT work period, at least it doesn't for me, enabled or disabled I am able to wake mine up with any key press and there was a thread on this with others complaining awhile back of same issue.
So could this be causing the battery to drain too fast where both the dock and tab are not staying in sleep mode correctly?
deadman3000 said:
So could this be causing the battery to drain too fast where both the dock and tab are not staying in sleep mode correctly?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I imagine it's possible, and honestly I haven't seen alot of people complain of that battery saving option not working, only once actually. I'm now curious how many of you also find when this is enabled it's no different than disabled, it still lets you hit any key to wake it? I did get an email back from Asus just this morning from when I complained to them about the battery drain and a couple others, I replied back to them pointing out this problem as well.
Enabled or disabled, it's the same for me. Keyboard will always wake the tablet up.
I've just test it, and even with the "power save" option check, the tablet wake up from sleep mode !
edit : Can this option be fixed sy software update ?
Ditto for me, the checkbox makes no difference.
Well they have sent an email now saying they will pick it up tomorrow for RMA. However they did not answer my question as to whether I had to send back both the tab and dock so I am going to just send the dock back and hope for the best. If they ask me for the tab I will have to think about it. If they return the dock with no repair done then no loss there either really (I do not use the dock that much to worry about it. I would rather it was fixed though just in case).
deadman3000 said:
(1) Make sure your software is updated to 8.2.3.13 or later.
(2) Dock the Pad into the keyboard dock.
(3) Go to [Settings] and select [Screen]? [MobileDock Battery saving mode]
(4) Press power button on the Transformer Pad to make the unit go to sleep.
(5) With the option checked, if your unit does NOT wake up with the tap of a keyboard, the new battery saving mode is enabled and working.
(6) If your unit wakes up by a key press in both options (when the box is checked and unchecked), you have the earlier design.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Checked here, as per directions, TF will not wake up by pressing any keys on dock/keyboard with battery save selected. It will wake up if battery save deselected.
TF and Dock both B6 models
3.1 Build 8.4.4.11
Well that seems to be VERY telling. The B60 models appear to have fixed that issue which most likely means the battery drain issue is also fixed on B60 models. I wonder if I can get away with just sending back the dock though. We shall see.
I got the same reply to my rma. My tablet does not wake up pressing a key with that option on. It's a b50k dock. Yesterday though the battery level dropped by 25% in 5 hours with the tablet docked and WiFi off...today only by 2% over the same length of time, and in both cases with the battery saving option on.
Sent from my HTC Desire S using XDA App
I have a B50K dock, and this mode is working for me(when checked, doesn't wake up).
Hmm. That muddies the water somewhat then.
deadman3000 said:
Hmm. That muddies the water somewhat then.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe there will be some users with dock labeled B60 that actually have a B50 functioning dock. We have consistent reports from a couple users of this problem.
But, this is likely more of a problem of ASUS quality control.
I have a B50K dock and the battery saving mode works. I have not used the dock yet enough to know if that will ultimately improve the battery life.
Have you tried to monitor the dock battery:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1112391
undocked and redocked. Now the key presses on the dock doesn't turn on my transformer. But my battery still gets drained. I got a B40 dock and B40 tablet.
Nevermind. For some reason when powers plugged in to the dock keypresses on the dock doesn't wake it but does wake it when i'm not plugged in.
courghan said:
I got the same reply to my rma. My tablet does not wake up pressing a key with that option on. It's a b50k dock. Yesterday though the battery level dropped by 25% in 5 hours with the tablet docked and WiFi off...today only by 2% over the same length of time, and in both cases with the battery saving option on.
Sent from my HTC Desire S using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Were your tablet fully charged yesterday ...? 25% over 5 hours seems a bit much to me.
Bob Smith42 said:
I believe there will be some users with dock labeled B60 that actually have a B50 functioning dock. We have consistent reports from a couple users of this problem.
But, this is likely more of a problem of ASUS quality control.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think this is quality control issue,
from what I've gathered from the web and this forum,
it seems like there are 2 different kind of B50 out there,
the battery drain issue isn't really an "Issue",
I think they purposefully made some current go through the keyboard so the tablet is able to wake on key Press.
and maybe they change the design after people complain about the battery drain problem, so they change the design.
B40, B50, B60 doesn't mean anything, it just means the month the machine's manufactured...
andyxover said:
I don't think this is quality control issue,
from what I've gathered from the web and this forum,
it seems like there are 2 different kind of B50 out there,
the battery drain issue isn't really an "Issue",
I think they purposefully made some current go through the keyboard so the tablet is able to wake on key Press.
and maybe they change the design after people complain about the battery drain problem, so they change the design.
B40, B50, B60 doesn't mean anything, it just means the month the machine's manufactured...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That makes sense. B60 being June.

[Confirmed by Asus]Working MobileDock Battery saving mode = fixed dock battery drain

Just a crazy idea based on what I've been reading on the forums, and what Asus has said. If you have proof to prove me wrong, please provide it.
Asus said on facebook that they would be contacting people regarding the dock charging/drain problem. Asus just contacted a bunch of people about the MobileDock Battery savings mode. It is both a hardware fix (earlier versions of dock) an firmware update, which is exactly what people have been expecting to fix the dock drain issue.
Most B60 docks don't have the drain issue, from what I hear. They also can use the battery savings mode.
I've yet to see someone say they can use the battery savings mode and not have dock battery drain problems or vice versa. If I am wrong, please correct me.
My B60 dock can't use battery savings mode. When checked, tablet still wakes up from keyboard. I also have the dock drain problem.
The dock drain problem is related to a low power state for the dock, which is exactly what the MobileDock Battery savings mode is supposed to remove.
My guess is that the dock never exits the low power state. If the battery savings mode is used, the dock never enters the low power state, and thus the dock drain problem is fixed.
Maybe I'm crazy, but I don't think Asus is ever going to admit that there was a problem. They definitely don't want to issue a recall notice. Most people probably don't know they have battery drain issue, because you can not see the dock battery level on stock, without installing the dock battery app. I know I would have never noticed the battery drain problem until I went on a long trip, had I not found out about the battery app and the problem here on XDA.
However, Asus would do something like this MobileDock Battery savings mode fix, fixing the problem silently, and waiting for it to go away without making a fuss. Here is my proof, directly from the letter from Asus most of us got:
(7) If #6 is true and you also require the new feature, then please contact your local ASUS service center
I also think that the mystery dock firmware, which updates from 209 to 209, may play a part in it. People in the USA and Europe have been receiving this update. They also have MobileDock Battery savings mode working, and lower battery drain on the B60 docks. I've had 4 Chinese B60 docks, all of which had the exact same battery drain rate, MobileDock Battery savings mode didn't work, and in china we never got the mysterious dock update. I'm gong to flash my B60 TF101 to the WW firmware and see if I can get the mysterious update and get MobileDock Battery savings mode working.
If that doesn't work, I'm taking my TF101 to the Asus service center to get them to fix dock battery savings mode. I have a feeling it will also fix the dock drain.
UPDATE: I took my B60 tablet and dock to Asus service center, and was told specifically that fixing and enabling the MobileDock Battery saving mode would fix the dock battery drain problem. He also told me about which parts needed to be replaced and the software update. Will elaborate more when I have time.
i have a feeling that to test this energy saving mode, you have to wait a certain while before the dock actually goes into power saving.. when this mode enabled, i can wake my transformer instantly shortly after the screen went blank. however, if i wait several minutes i can only wake it by using the powerbutton. also when you close the unit, by putting the screen down on the dock, th screen goes dark immediately, and when opening it, also after an hour or so the screen goes on immediately, regardless of the powersaving mode. so the dock also has some kind of switch build in to sense the position of the tablet. so i think the powersaving mode actually works, but only kicks in after a while. i have b60 tablet and b70 dock, purchased yesterday seperately...
I originally thought the same thing. If you wait a while after putting the dock/tablet combo to sleep, when you wake up the tablet, it has to re-mount the external sd card on the dock. This would mean the the dock was effectively disconnected/powered off.
However, the instructions from Asus are:
(4) Press power button on the Transformer Pad to make the unit go to sleep.
(5) With the option checked, if your unit does NOT wake up with the tap of a keyboard, the new battery saving mode is enabled and working.
(6) With [MobileDock Battery saving mode] checked, if your unit still wakes up by a key press, you have the earlier design.
Since Asus provided these, I have to use it as my basis for testing.
glenner05 said:
i have b60 tablet and b70 dock, purchased yesterday seperately...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
B70!!?
asdfsafdsa
darkonex said:
B70!!?
asdfsafdsa
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I completely missed that! You have a B70 dock!?!?!?
It's pretty clear that the battery draining is directly related to the keyboard not powering off at all. The broken docks have no way to turn off the current to the keyboard, which is where the battery drain is going.
typci said:
I completely missed that! You have a B70 dock!?!?!?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup no doubt about that...my s/n nr starts with b70. Bought IT yesterday, i came in stock earlier this week and was completely sold out in a few houres
glenner05 said:
Yup no doubt about that...my s/n nr starts with b70. Bought IT yesterday, i came in stock earlier this week and was completely sold out in a few houres
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So the obvious question is: Do you have a dock battery drain issue? With the tablet powered off and connected to the dock, does your battery drain? You can use the dual battery widget to test.
typci said:
So the obvious question is: Do you have a dock battery drain issue? With the tablet powered off and connected to the dock, does your battery drain? You can use the dual battery widget to test.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i will tell you tommorrow, because both tablet and dock are almost empty, i'll charge them fully this night and will test it when i wake up. I leave the tablet powered off for two houres connected to the dock, is that enough to notice any drain?
How do i see the serial number for the dock? I have no sticker on the dock ...
mashedbymachines said:
How do i see the serial number for the dock? I have no sticker on the dock ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Check the box it came in, because the serial number should be on the box.
You should have a peace of tape with s/n on the dock, at least it is on the new device. Also s/n is on the tf's box.
glenner05 said:
i will tell you tommorrow, because both tablet and dock are almost empty, i'll charge them fully this night and will test it when i wake up. I leave the tablet powered off for two houres connected to the dock, is that enough to notice any drain?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2-3 hours should be good. If it drops more than a percent, you have a dock drain. If it only drops one percent, might just be the battery going from 100% to 99%, they tend to do that really quickly.
this is weird because my tablet and dock are b50s and i have NOT gotten any updates, and my setup works as asus explains it should, ith it checked, the kb doesnt wake the tablet.
however, mine does suffer serious lag, when typingin web forums like this...
ok i tested my tablet/dock combo for battery drain. when fully charched, in normal standby mode, i loose 2% per hour. when completely turned off dock battery went from 96 to 95 in 2,5 houres.the 1% drop could be explained by powering op the tablet ofcourse. so i think i'm safe with my b70 dock
Where do we enable the battery saving mode???!
Sent from my Transformer TF101 using XDA Premium App
glenner05 said:
ok i tested my tablet/dock combo for battery drain. when fully charched, in normal standby mode, i loose 2% per hour. when completely turned off dock battery went from 96 to 95 in 2,5 houres.the 1% drop could be explained by powering op the tablet ofcourse. so i think i'm safe with my b70 dock
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sounds like you are good to go. I think the 2% per hour is standard for standby mode with MobileDock Battery saving mode disabled. That's what I usually get on my B60. You might want to check to see if MobileDock Battery saving mode is enabled. If it isn't, enabling it will extend your battery time, and you only lose the ability to wake the tablet via keyboard.
moorie said:
Where do we enable the battery saving mode???!
The following is a step-by-step guide on how to verify if your unit can support the new optional battery saving mode:
(1) Make sure your software is updated to 8.2.3.13 or later; and your mobile dock is updated to 0209. ([Setting]>[About Tablet]>[Build Number] & [Mobile Dock version])
(2) Dock the Pad into the keyboard dock.
(3) Go to [Settings] > [Screen] and select [MobileDock Battery saving mode]
(4) Press power button on the Transformer Pad to make the unit go to sleep.
(5) With the option checked, if your unit does NOT wake up with the tap of a keyboard, the new battery saving mode is enabled and working.
(6) With [MobileDock Battery saving mode] checked,iIf your unit still wakes up by a key press, you have the earlier design.
(7) If #6 is true and you also require the new feature, then please contact your local ASUS service center “
Best Regards,
ASUSTek Computer Inc.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So to elaborate on my visit to the Asus service center. Also this conversation was in Chinese, so some details may be lost in translation and due to my poor chinese language skills.
I told him about the dock battery drain and non-functional MobileDock Battery saving mode on my B60 tablet & dock combo. I also showed him the letter from Kimi_Q in English. He was able to understand the important parts of it.
He verified what I told him on the TF101. He then went and read his Chinese version on the instructions regarding MobileDock Battery saving mode. He told me to fix it he would have to order parts to fix my TF101: one week for delivery, and 1 or 2 days to fix. Said he would call me when the parts came in and to bring back the dock.
Then he said (with a lot of gesturing to help with the language barrier) that fixing the MobileDock Battery saving mode would fix the dock drain as well.
I asked him about the parts. He said something about a part on each side of the dock's hinge, that feed electricity to the tablet. After looking at some pics on the inside of the dock, there is a cable running into the hinge on each side. So I think it these cables that need to be replaced. I asked about a firmware update. He said I already had the latest firmware (209), and that the fix was software related, not firmware.
I'm sure I could go back and ask some more specific questions, if people want all the little details. He seemed really eager to talk with me. Also there was were no other customers in the service center, which is quite common here.
The Asus customer service and repair center's in Xi'an are awesome. They usually test the computer right there on the spot, if not they get back to you in under 24 hours. Also, they will talk to you all day about your computer and problems with it. It is so much better than dealing service centers over the phone. As soon and I have a problem, I just drive down to the service center and they get right on it. Just awesome.
Oh, I also asked him about the mini HDMI-to-VGA adapters. He didn't know anything about them, so Asus must not be selling them yet.
link to what asus said on facebook?
My tf wakes from keyboard touch, but i have t battery saving mode on. dock is 50 version
I have also tested. gps off wifi off. battery save mode on.
completely charged. completely shutdown.
after one night of sleep. tablet 100% dock 81%. so there is definatelysomething wrong.

So what exactly is the news with the dock battery drain?

I didn't want to create another thread for this, but I couldn't find anything solidifying what exactly is going on with the dock and battery drain.
So apparently, according to asus, we should be able to enable a feature "MobileDock Battery Saving Mode" that is intended to fix the battery drain with the docks. If i'm not mistaken, when we enable this feature, the TF is only supposed to awaken from the press of the power button and not from just opening it or pressing a key. I have confirmed that mine does not do this. With the feature enabled, it still turns on whenever I open it or press a keyboard. This is were the confusion comes in (unless i'm wrong about everything else, then I'm just really completely oblivious), if my TF isn't doing what its supposed to in order to conserve battery life while in battery saving mode, then does that mean I am sol?
Is the only viable option to RMA it? (i'm well out of my return period)
If so, then does that mean that this is a hardware issue? or is there a possible software fix that may come along?
Also, one more thing, would something as simple as undocking the tablet when not in use remedy the issue? If so, then i'd much rather do that then go through the hassle of returning it and waiting god knows how long to get it back (although I do live in Texas and I heard there is a repair center down here) when the battery life is still relatively good.
Any updated info would be greatly appreciated. Again, sorry about creating yet another thread over the same beaten horse.
Thanks in advance.
Afaik if your tablet is waking up from a keyboard press with the option enabled you would have to RMA it if you would like the feature to "work."
Sent from my Captivate
I don't know where "if you open the lid and it turns on" got mixed up with the button press test. Asus never said anything about opening it and it shouldn't turn on. It turns back on because of the magnets.
Does yours pass the button test? If not, it will need to be RMA'ed or exchanged. (If you feel the need, don't fret, your dock is still perfectly good)
I have the battery drain problem. I am thinking about adding a physical on/off switch to the dock to disconnect the battery. Of course I would need to find a switch rated correctly for the power consumption of the dock and make sure what ever I do looks good.
My B70 wakes when I lift the lid up, but no battery drain. It was 100 when I went to bed and 100 when I woke up. No tablet or powercord on the dock.
Yes, the "MobileDock Battery Saving Mode" is the fix to the dock battery drain. If "MobileDock Battery Saving Mode" isn't working, you have to do a hardware upgrade via RMA. I have a B60 which is waiting on the parts.
The dock battery drain was caused by the dock having a low power state which never turned off. The "MobileDock Battery Saving Mode" turns off the low power state. I don't think it is anymore complicated than that. If you RMA, and don't turn on "MobileDock Battery Saving Mode", then you will probably still have the dock battery drain.
ok, thanks for clarifying that for me guys. My dock does need to be returned because it does turn on from a key press when battery saving mode is enabled, but I think i'm just gonna go ahead and keep it.
I undocked it last night and the dock only lost %1 battery in over 10 hours which is good enough for me. Ideally I don't wan to have to undock it as much, but it seems like a simple remedy to a over exaggerated problem.
thanks again guys.
My findings...in the main thread... http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1112835&page=87

[Q] broken battery summary

In trying not to be a noob, I searched the various subforums for the transformer looking for something similar and didn't find anything so here goes with my first new thread. Note there are plenty of battery drain ones, and while I do have that, that's not what my question is about.
I just recently sent my TF dock for repair of the mobiledock battery saving mode setting not working properly. A key press could always wake the device regardless of setting. Got it back from RMA, and sure enough the keyboard doesn't wake the device, and the touchpad wakes it only if touch it right away. So that's fixed.
But then I noticed that when I went into Applications->Battery use, the summary was wrong, and odd. After a bit of fooling around, what appears to be happening is that the graph only records when it is disconnected from the keyboard. It's been on for a few days now and the graph only shows 4 mins.
It's a B50 version of tablet and dock. It's running 8.6.5.9 and the mobileDock is EP101-0213.
Now, I know that the history/summary was working before I RMA'ed it, and I know that it wasn't working after I got it back, and it still isn't working after the update to 8.6.5.9.
As a side note, the battery drain is about 3.5%/hr when idle and docked. I have installed CPU spy and see that while it is indeed going to deep sleep, it isn't staying asleep. Some app is keeping it awake, I just don't know which app it is.

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