Database Users

Final solution: power-off while battery indicator at XX% problem

I started this thread because I lost lots of time to find the answer to my problem scattered over many, many threads. I hope this posting can save a lot of time for others.
The problem
The HTC Universal suffers from the problem that the device turns off while the battery indicator still shows juice left.
The cause
It's the battery or the way how the device interacts with the battery. It can have something to do with ROM upgrading while the battery is not at 100%.
Solution 1: Buy new battery
A lot of people will immediately tell you to buy another battery. That's a solution. Batteries are not that expensive anymore. See Ebay for example.
Solution 2: Recalibrate the battery
For me it wasn't a solution (it was a new device with a brand new battery! And yes, I upgraded to WM6 immediately after purchase)
Source: the greatest part of the solution for me was provided here by Jwrightmcps.
1. Charge the battery overnight with the supplied poweradapter, not with the USB cable, then:
2. Drain the battery without SD-card, powersaving off and backlight on full, then:
3. At some level, the device will turn off. Switch it on and go to the bootloader by backlight+power+reset button and drain the battery until it's really empty, then:
4. Charge the battery again with the supplied poweradapter
*** WARNING AT YOUR OWN RISK ***
You can also try to put your battery in the freezer overnight (wrap it in plastic) to drain it, as I once did with a laptop battery. Let it get back to room temperature before you insert it back into your device.
*** WARNING AT YOUR OWN RISK ***
Prevention
Always drain your battery before you charge it.
Charge the battery with the power adapter not with the USB cable or car adapter
My story
I bought the device new in store and charged it in the car when driving home (one hour). After that I hooked up the device to my PC and upgraded to WM6. In the evening, when the battery was arround 40% it shut down... Never got a battery low warning.
(please make this sticky)

Effects of Bootloader mode?
A simple (silly?) question: if I enter Bootloader Mode do I loose all my data? Can I enter bootloader mode and just restart with no more effects than a soft reset?

When to exit bootloader-mode (i.e. reboot the device normally)? Before charging (before step #4) or after it is fully charged (after step #4)?
Cheers,
-mARKUS

Well I don't want to invest in my universal as i'm changing it to another one, so I'd better fix my battery. I tried to do like this:
- discharge battery to 40% (device shut down)
- connected the + and - to a battery-powered speaker system and played music some time. This could discharge it more, what do you think about it? Well I can't say from my experience because I must wait for my device to discharge now

mbirth said:
When to exit bootloader-mode (i.e. reboot the device normally)? Before charging (before step #4) or after it is fully charged (after step #4)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The bootloader mode is used in this example to drain the battery. The bootloader is 'exited' when the battery is empty...
Draining the battery in the bootloader mode will take long, because backlight is not enabled.

bdm333 said:
A simple (silly?) question: if I enter Bootloader Mode do I loose all my data? Can I enter bootloader mode and just restart with no more effects than a soft reset?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, you don't will loose your date.
Yes, you can enter the bootloader and restart with no more effects than a soft reset.

kartam said:
Well I don't want to invest in my universal as i'm changing it to another one, so I'd better fix my battery. I tried to do like this:
- discharge battery to 40% (device shut down)
- connected the + and - to a battery-powered speaker system and played music some time. This could discharge it more, what do you think about it? Well I can't say from my experience because I must wait for my device to discharge now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is also a nice way to drain the battery. Be carefull that you don't shortcircuit the battery.

doesn't work for me, seem it is a software wm6 reason, so probably there is one solution:
ROLLBACK TO WM5
maybe try to change another part of rom? update bootloader? i don't know... i prefer wm6 over wm5 but this gives me no choice...

Added to the wiki: http://wiki.xda-developers.com/index.php?pagename=UniversalBatteryIssue
(with full credits to user888 and JWright, of course)

when i had this problem, i just bought a fat battery... and followed the prevention steps. I only charge when my battery warning notification appears (less than 10%) and I dont use the usb cable anymore. When I recall why I got the problem with the previous bat, i realize it was because i had been using wm5torage a lot which required plugging usb cable. So now, when I need to sync my phone, I just use my old bat. My new bat has never given me problems (had it for 6 months now) and Im happy with it (although it streeetched my case a bit).

Just a few question before I do all the steps:
1. why we should charge it overnight on 1st step? can we stop charging after greenlight?
2. why drain batt without SD card? Can we drain it with SD inserted?
3. after on bootloader mode, it's only it? just leave it like that untill batt really empty itself?
thanx for this solution.

When I entered bootloader mode at 50% battery remaining it turns off after a short while. I connected the battery to a small motor to drain it but after a short while that too stops. When I checked the battery with volt meter it still showed 45-50% charge. What should I do to drain it?

oqaab said:
When I entered bootloader mode at 50% battery remaining it turns off after a short while. I connected the battery to a small motor to drain it but after a short while that too stops. When I checked the battery with volt meter it still showed 45-50% charge. What should I do to drain it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same with me. 2 times bootlader mode, just luck on 25% left before really off. Never got drain until 0%.

Connect it to a Voltmeter and lavce it connected until the voltmeter read 0.0volts. But be warned this might take a WHOLE DAY OR TWO. Has anyone tried the freezer method? does it really drain the battery?

I'm going to try the freezer method.
Report here later
Tbaba said:
Connect it to a Voltmeter and lavce it connected until the voltmeter read 0.0volts. But be warned this might take a WHOLE DAY OR TWO. Has anyone tried the freezer method? does it really drain the battery?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

Tried freezer initially for 5 minutes and then for whole hour no harm came to battery but no gain as well! Charge didn't drop even one percent. Isn't there some fast way? Waiting with voltmeter for a couple of days is tiresome.

And now the agony has increased even though battery is fully charged if I remove the charger my device turns off. Trouble is that original batteries aren't available here in Pakistan, Rawalpindi to be precise. Now what to do?

Freezer method
I tried the freezer method for one night.
Next morning I took out the battery and let it come to roomtemp.
Took a long time charging (2,5 hours), but no result.

My device switch off randomly some time at 95% some time 50% etc.
i am using jw wm6.

yousaf2k said:
My device switch off randomly some time at 95% some time 50% etc.
i am using jw wm6.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you know what? I wonder if it isn't just a problem with jw rom... because most people encountering that problem use jw's rom... could anyone check it out? because my neww uni comes in few days...

Charging stuck at 70%,PLS HELP

Guys pls help..I have this problem,that when I'm charging my trinity,it couldn't reach 100% of charging (full charge) instead was stuck to 70%.eventhough i charge it overnight.I'm thinking if it is a battery prob or the charger. i am using the originally supplied charger & battery.
Thanks in advance...

Have you tried powering the unit off, removing the battery for, say, 15 seconds, then refitting it and rebooting?... Check the battery level after reboot?... Then retry charging again?...
Maybe a full discharge might help "reset" the above problem too?...
I'm not sure, but I think the Trinity battery management is quite dependant on so called "coulomb counting" and I reckon sometimes it goes a bit wrong.

LoopyLoo said:
Have you tried powering the unit off, removing the battery for, say, 15 seconds, then refitting it and rebooting?... Check the battery level after reboot?... Then retry charging again?...
Maybe a full discharge might help "reset" the above problem too?...
I'm not sure, but I think the Trinity battery management is quite dependant on so called "coulomb counting" and I reckon sometimes it goes a bit wrong.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i tried all your suggestion bro,after rebooting,the battery meter increased 10%,tried to recharge,but still can't reach full.i tried to turn off my device then charge it,this time it goes upto 90%.it's a good sign but,charging while my phone is turned on is better right?i have no computer around,maybe i'll try to charge thru USB later..if it went ok,maybe i'll buy a new charger..thanx loopyloo for that sound advice..

tranquil20 said:
i tried all your suggestion bro,after rebooting,the battery meter increased 10%,tried to recharge,but still can't reach full.i tried to turn off my device then charge it,this time it goes upto 90%.it's a good sign but,charging while my phone is turned on is better right?i have no computer around,maybe i'll try to charge thru USB later..if it went ok,maybe i'll buy a new charger..thanx loopyloo for that sound advice..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try battery callibration procedure!

The actual standalone charger (if that's what you're referring to) has no intelligence in it to speak of. Battery charge monitoring/status will be an integral function to the phone itself using dedicated h/w.
Something's not quite right with your kit somehow. Maybe the battery has gone a bit wrong (could be replaced - how much use has it had?)... Rather that than the phone itself, in which case it'll need repair.
You can try tnyynt's suggestion of Battery Calibration. Basically this requires you to totally discharge the battery (I suggest thru normal use of your phone!) then when it shuts down "cos battery is flat" reboot the phone into its bootloader screen (power down, then press and hold Power & Camera buttons until Tri-colour screen is displayed)... Then just leave the phone until it powers off of its own accord.
This may take a few hours (I did mine recently and it took @4hrs!) but the battery should be as discharged as its possible to get by that point...
And if you're lucky, it might just sort your problem out when you next recharge!
Good luck dude!!!
;-)
LL

tnyynt said:
Try battery callibration procedure!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i tried to use charging thru pc and it charged 100%,but again,as i tried to charge using a friend's htc charger,still stuck at 70% charging...will try this battery callibration procedure tnyynt,thanx 4 the suggestion..

LoopyLoo said:
The actual standalone charger (if that's what you're referring to) has no intelligence in it to speak of. Battery charge monitoring/status will be an integral function to the phone itself using dedicated h/w.
Something's not quite right with your kit somehow. Maybe the battery has gone a bit wrong (could be replaced - how much use has it had?)... Rather that than the phone itself, in which case it'll need repair.
You can try tnyynt's suggestion of Battery Calibration. Basically this requires you to totally discharge the battery (I suggest thru normal use of your phone!) then when it shuts down "cos battery is flat" reboot the phone into its bootloader screen (power down, then press and hold Power & Camera buttons until Tri-colour screen is displayed)... Then just leave the phone until it powers off of its own accord.
This may take a few hours (I did mine recently and it took @4hrs!) but the battery should be as discharged as its possible to get by that point...
And if you're lucky, it might just sort your problem out when you next recharge!
Good luck dude!!!
;-)
LL
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanx again LoopyLoo,you made this procedure (battery callibration) clear to me,on how to do it.will try this procedure and will report asap the result.hope it works (fingers crossed),and hope it's not an internal phone prob.
Thanx Bro!!:>

Let me know how you get on.
I'm a little baffled as to why you have problems with your friends charge too but not USB???...

battery callibration not worked...
I'm sorry to report that after 3 times of trying the battery callibration method,my trinity still doesn't reach its 100% capacity of charging thru the standalone charger..but mysteriously charge a 100% with USB charging..I'm still not really sure why this happened..maybe will try to see a mobile technician for PPC..anyways,thanx for all your suggestion..will report ASAP after going to a service center..

Wizard wont show charge.... Help

After 2 oem batteries and 2 extended batteries, Im very confused as to whats going on. It will turn on fine, and it will even charge the battery, but once it hits 100% the wizard will restart and it will show battery level as zero and shutdown. I thought mabey it wasnt charging but it will let me install roms and i can restart it as much as i want. Thanks for looking!!!!

One thing i forgot...
I can also get it running by running wires from it to another phone battery ( i was trying to use it to replace my blackjack2) and by taking the 3.3volt power adapter route, i can even get it to start charging. but it will either cut off at 99% and reboot saying dead battery or take the battery out adn put it in to get 0%.

Update.... Not that anyone is reading lol
Ok, Ive made a little more progress today. Using sketchy methods, 3.3v adapter wires between phone and battery, i got it to charge whil on usb with computer to 100% today without shutting off ( a first since before flashed). Once I removed it from usb thou, the battery bar went immediatly down to 50%. I charged it to 100% percent again, but once i dosconected it, the battery level would decrese almost as if the gague were a countdown clock. I tried doing the powersave registry edit posted in these forums, but the phone showed 0% charger after the soft reset and promptly died again.... I just put in the other extended battery i pulled from a nap in the freezer, and if i ever find a solution i will post it... thanks to whoever is looking for looking!!!

[email protected] said:
I can also get it running by running wires from it to another phone battery ( i was trying to use it to replace my blackjack2) and by taking the 3.3volt power adapter route, i can even get it to start charging. but it will either cut off at 99% and reboot saying dead battery or take the battery out adn put it in to get 0%.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
[email protected] said:
After 2 oem batteries and 2 extended batteries, Im very confused as to whats going on. It will turn on fine, and it will even charge the battery, but once it hits 100% the wizard will restart and it will show battery level as zero and shutdown. I thought mabey it wasnt charging but it will let me install roms and i can restart it as much as i want. Thanks for looking!!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
[email protected] said:
Ok, Ive made a little more progress today. Using sketchy methods, 3.3v adapter wires between phone and battery, i got it to charge whil on usb with computer to 100% today without shutting off ( a first since before flashed). Once I removed it from usb thou, the battery bar went immediatly down to 50%. I charged it to 100% percent again, but once i dosconected it, the battery level would decrese almost as if the gague were a countdown clock. I tried doing the powersave registry edit posted in these forums, but the phone showed 0% charger after the soft reset and promptly died again.... I just put in the other extended battery i pulled from a nap in the freezer, and if i ever find a solution i will post it... thanks to whoever is looking for looking!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
to me i looks like a short in the main bored hit me up on aim

Another update...
Ok. Still freezing battery and such. But today i finally got around to dissasembly and everything on the inside seemed fine to the unexperienced eye. the water sticker was ok, no clearly visable burn marks. It was a little dirty, but nothing that should cause this type of error. I did notice some weird things, but im not sure if thats just wizard guts or if its something to be concerned about. Hopefull I'll be able to get some guidance on this, i really hate missing calls on Crapjack2

This is getting expensive.....
So, I bought a battery charger and after rigging it with some wire to charge my extended battery(s), it shows the battery being charged and will run like normall... except i cant charge the batteries in phone..... so yeah... Im waiting on an oem wall charger in the mail, but im still open to the fried main board. I just need to know a little more before i start spending more money lol
edit: oh also, im only really charging it by usb whenever i attempt at internally charging the battery. Occasionally i borrow my cousin's kaiser wall charger, but i dont have mine yet

hero won't charge

i drained my hero completely now when i plug my charger into the amber light blinks and the device won't turn on or charge like i said the amber light is blinking not solid please help!

im guessing its blinking because its low. have you tried pluggin it into the pc usb slot? tried another cable? maybe its just your one charger
how did you drain it? were you tethering and it got hot?

98classic said:
im guessing its blinking because its low. have you tried pluggin it into the pc usb slot? tried another cable? maybe its just your one charger
how did you drain it? were you tethering and it got hot?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Try another charger, i had two chargers go bad on me.

i ran the battery down while i was talking on it.
and now it just does that.. im very depressed about it lol!

let it charge for a while until it has enough power to complete a boot cycle.

i tried this, it sat overngiht for 7 hours and stil ldoes the same thing..

Tried pulling the battery and putting it back in after a minute or two?

absolutely man i've tried everything i've known..

Just leave it plugged in with the blinking amber. It should charge up enough to turn solid amber within 15 minutes.

that's the thing i left it plugged u for 7 hours and still flashing amber

wow... don't know what to tell you. call sprint about that

Have you tried booting w/o the battery into recovery and resetting the battery stats?

I would definitely try what Biggz said above. I do recall hearing once that the type of battery the Hero uses isn't meant to be completely drained, and that's why it shuts off before it runs completely down to 0. You may have messed up your battery or something. I think the easiest thing to do would be to call Sprint.

Sounds like a problem ipods have lol..when the battery completely drains it,it sometimes doesnt charge up..n if it does it takes forever....try a different battery.if that dont work,take it to sprint..thats weird.keep us posted on what they tell u.....most likely the battery overheated.id probably take the battery out meanwhile i take it to sprint,just in case the battery leaks; it wont mess up the phone.

Yeah, Lithium-Ion batteries aren't meant to be deep cycled (completly draining them and then trying to charge them). It can shorten the batteries lifespan, or kill it altogether.

Mr. Biggz said:
Have you tried booting w/o the battery into recovery and resetting the battery stats?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't boot into HBoot, Fastboot, or recovery without the battery. Tried it on mine.

battery issue
I've run into this issue like 4 times. Its one of my biggest issues w the hero. I go to bed w a low battery warning plug it in then i wake up to a paper weight.
Has anyone found a good answer? my phone charged 7hrs and I've been pulling the battery on off plug unplug for about 2 hrs now. I've already ordered a new battery but that wont help me today.
Anyone find a fix? I'm up for any and all suggestions: eek:

[Q] [HELP] Motorola Battery Question Mark Workaround/ Hack?

I need help. I messed up my Droid 2 restoring a backup and the battery died during SBF. So I did the Macgiver trick where you connect an old stripped usb wire to the battery so that the phone can be tricked into booting up and being flashed. Since then I've had a question mark in my battery icon. It wont read that battery or the battery that I've just purchased and I get the "Invalid Battery" message and the battery wont charge in the phone. Both batteries are official Motorola. I can't send the phone back as its not under warranty. So I have a few questions.
Is the some sort of workaround/ fix for this? Motorola put software on the Droid 2 since Froyo that reads whether or not a battery is official Motorola product. Can the battery software be hacked/ deleted so that I can use my battery as normal?

Wow, we have this same exact situation like a month ago, and since then my fiancee still uses her broken phone . We did the Macgyver trick also and we got the battery with the question mark. We even bought a new battery and it still shows it, tried reflashing with a fully charged battery and nothing changed. We also tried clearing battery stats none of it is working. If anyone knows anything about this problem please let us know. If you get an answer that cures your phone please please please let us know about it. I actually posted your question on Yahoo! Answers since it was the same exact problem that we had and if anyone answers we will post the reply on here.
Thanks a lot and good luck!

I've got the exact same problem. All I did was purchase one of those external chargers so that one battery is always charged. It is annoying, yes, but its not too bad. I'm also looking forward to see if there is a solution, but I doubt it. We probably all fried the contacts on the phone, but we'll see.
Sent from my DROID2 using XDA App

hey, yeah we did the same thing, we bought the second battery yesterday but i have a question, did you try flashing it again with the new battery in? I was wondering if it would work but i want to see if it will before clearing one more time my fiancee's cellphone since theres a fish game that may be lost if we do that.
Thanks a lot.
Brandon

I've SBF'd multiple times since then, and the question mark is still there. I don't think theres a way around it, unfortunately. Personally, it's not really a big deal, but it may be for you.

I just really hate it because I have no clue when my battery dies.

Never had the issue, but one thing comes to mind..why not root, install clockwork recovery and then clear the battery cache?

jediman said:
Never had the issue, but one thing comes to mind..why not root, install clockwork recovery and then clear the battery cache?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They said they already tried that.
What exactly is this Macgiver trick? If you have a link, or some info on how it's I might be able to shed some light on this for you guys

The D2 battery is 3.7 volts; USB is 5. You probably blew out the A/D channel used to measure battery level.

Smartzkid said:
The D2 battery is 3.7 volts; USB is 5. You probably blew out the A/D channel used to measure battery level.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, I see so they're hooking up the USB straight to the phone...found it after a little searching...
But i'm curious, wouldn't that only happen if the wires ended up touching the other two terminals, and not just the outer (+) and (-) ones?

Will getting a new oem battery work?

No, replacing the battery will not work if you messed up when connecting the spliced USB charger + and - to the wrong terminals in the phone.

I have exactly same problem. I sliced the usb cable to revive my Droid X when the battery died during sbfing. Now my phone survived but Im stuck with question mark on battery icon. I flashed reflahsed and flashed again but no luck. wiped batt stat but no luck. Tried new OEM battery, no luck.. Put the batt in the freezer for 10min but no luck. I ran out of all the possible solution.
Now I just got the external stand along batt charger from ebay with 2 extra batts. I just carry extra battery since I dont know when the phone will go dead..
I would love to find out if someone can fix this issue. I still got 6 mo to go before I can upgrade.

I HAVE A SOLUTION (worked for me):
When doing the "Macgyver Hack", I jammed the USB wires into the battery. This pushed the metal spring terminals out. After that, the battery terminal springs don't all touch the connectors in the phone.
Take a needle, and carefully pull the battery's metal springs toward each other.
This worked for me.
Also, try this:
Remove battery and unplug phone. Plug phone in (without battery), then turn on (some phones will turn on without a battery). After the logo comes up, insert the battery. This made my phone recognize the battery and get into the OS.
Once the battery is recognized and you can boot to the OS, root the phone and get the battery calibration app (and use it).
I have a Motorola Defy, and used the Macgyver hack, then had the question mark problem for days before figuring this out.

jodaboda, Thank you a ton for that. I've been searching and trying out things to fix this and this is the closest I've come.
Although the Droid 2 doesn't boot up without a battery, I've had to the Macgyver Hack to get it to boot. The battery calibration app reads 100% charged when I am using the Macgyver Hack and is showing that the battery is charging. I'll tell you if it works once my battery is charged and I calibrate.
I wasn't able to get it to work. I think there is potential but my phone eventually died and it wasn't able to fix it. That app can measure the volts correctly tho, which means we should be able to get the battery working again somehow.

jodaboda said:
I HAVE A SOLUTION (worked for me):
When doing the "Macgyver Hack", I jammed the USB wires into the battery. This pushed the metal spring terminals out. After that, the battery terminal springs don't all touch the connectors in the phone.
Take a needle, and carefully pull the battery's metal springs toward each other.
This worked for me.
Also, try this:
Remove battery and unplug phone. Plug phone in (without battery), then turn on (some phones will turn on without a battery). After the logo comes up, insert the battery. This made my phone recognize the battery and get into the OS.
Once the battery is recognized and you can boot to the OS, root the phone and get the battery calibration app (and use it).
I have a Motorola Defy, and used the Macgyver hack, then had the question mark problem for days before figuring this out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have a nan back up from recovery but have read on another thread that you can also fix this by doing a restore of a back up through the recovery from a time before you have had the battery ? issue.. several people have also mentioned that it worked for them.. in my case I don't have a back up before this issue so I cannot confirm.

my phone died noooo

bumping in case anyone has a solution?
please. pretty please.
tried methods above, phone wont boot unless plugged in... i don't care i can't tell what % its at, but i do care it wont boot off battery power.

Tried 2 Ways with no Luck.
1. Power button + volume button down Long press less than a min. ?
2. Plug in for a day or more. ?
Gotto try jadaboda's tip.

Theheroitsme said:
Tried 2 Ways with no Luck.
1. Power button + volume button down Long press less than a min. ?
2. Plug in for a day or more. ?
Gotto try jadaboda's tip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
try a fastboot cable or a spare battery charger
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