Database Users

Possible fix (or at least temporary bandaid) for faulty Atrix 4G digitizers.

I found a simple solution to fixing a digitizer that's starting to go bad, after having replaced the digitizer on my phone TWICE. The first digitizer started having the typical symptoms, where about a 1cm bar about a third of the way down the screen just wouldn't register touches. And if it did, it normally ended up with spontaneous, erratic behavior. I ordered a replacement, which turned out to be worse than the original digitizer. Sent that one back, got another digitizer, and it worked great for about a month. Then I started having same issues all over again. (And if anybody here has replaced a digitizer on this phone already, you probably understand how painful it can be.)
So, for those of you who haven't ordered a replacement yet, and are having the issues I've described above, try this test first. When you start experiencing erratic behavior and dead spots, squeeze the upper portion of the phone, where the camera, speaker, and Motorola logo is, moving in left to right. Don't be afraid to use a good amount of pressure, but don't squeeze to where you might crack something. If the problem disappears, the thin cable underneath that area is starting to separate away from the connections. (Don't know the correct terminology here.) Now, I'm not sure if it's just glue or really thin amount of solder holding these connections together, but I do know that they break pretty easily. I ended up using a heat gun, and heating up the upper portion of the phone till it was a little too hot to touch (be careful, though, too hot, and you might cause some damage to the LCD screen.) and used a rag and squeezed from the center, moving outwards, maintaining as much constant pressure as I could, till the phone was about normal temperature.
It's been roughly an hour since I've tried this, and I haven't had any issues thus far, except for a couple hiccups. I may end up doubling up on the double sided tape on the bottom, to create more of an incline to prevent the ribbon from further separating. But this may help squeeze some more life out of the digitizer. Hopefully this helps a few of you!

Well, turns out the fix really didn't work. Still trying to figure out what causes the digitizers to go bad. I have noticed, though, that squeezing the upper left corner (where the camera is) gets rid of the problem, but it reappears usually a few moments later.

Fingerprint scanner
Sent from my MB860 using XDA Premium App

Awesome. I wish I had known that, I would've disconnected that shiz. Appreciate the response though.

stevendeb25 said:
Fingerprint scanner
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How do you know its the FP scanner?
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djluis48 said:
How do you know its the FP scanner?
Sent from my MB860 using XDA
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i dont for defo, but thats the area that i posted about, http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1719653
you use that piece thin of metal, to push against the fingerprint area, then screen display is good
working for me over a week now.

I got caught in the same problem,i have read a thread about how to fix this problem the other day (which is to insert a small stuff between the battery and fingerprint scanner)
then i tried to pull the scanner upwards a little,then it seems working!
but this issue comes back after i placed the back cover
finally i found that my problem would disappear once the back cover taken out!and appear once covered!

I think the problems starts when you push a lot of times the finger print to wake up the phone.
Sent from my MB860 using XDA

Multiple bumps on chrome bezel and loose rubber edge

Hi
I was just wondering if I was the only one with several fairly noticeable bumps on the chrome bezel.
Also, I think my rubber edging is loose as it can easily be made to click loudly if pressed gently anywhere near the bottom. Also, when a cable is plugged into the port it moves a fair bit and the slowest and gentlest movement upward creates a loud click. I think it is the metal on the male part touching the female part but it sounds louder than it should be, sort of like static.
So, should I be worried enough to contact Google?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

ORStoner said:
Hi
I was just wondering if I was the only one with several fairly noticeable bumps on the chrome bezel.
Also, I think my rubber edging is loose as it can easily be made to click loudly if pressed gently anywhere near the bottom. Also, when a cable is plugged into the port it moves a fair bit and the slowest and gentlest movement upward creates a loud click. I think it is the metal on the male part touching the female part but it sounds louder than it should be, sort of like static.
So, should I be worried enough to contact Google?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
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I have a few of those little bumps on my chrome bezel as well. My first N4 (now on my replacement due to signal issues) didn't have them. At first they bothered me, but the rest of my phone works fine so I'm happy. I don't want to replace it and get a phone with a problem that I can't live with.
As for the creaking/click sound. My first phone did it and my second one does it as well, though not as bad. I think on my first one I actually made it worse because when I realized it made that click sound. I would often recreate it by pressing on that same spot. Not sure why. Maybe I hoped it would fix itself and suddenly go away. I'm sure you could replace it, but you may get another phone with a worse defect. If the only thing wrong with your N4 is that click sound, I'd just enjoy the device as is. If at some point in the future something more severe takes place, then I'd look in to getting a replacement. Over all the years of using cell phone. I realized there's no perfect device and I'm OK with that.

That sounds exactly like my phone and what I do yo recreate the sound. I try not to so it but I do sometimes hoping it has gone since last time. Maybe I should send Google an email letting them know and if it gets worse they can't blame me.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

ORStoner said:
That sounds exactly like my phone and what I do yo recreate the sound. I try not to so it but I do sometimes hoping it has gone since last time. Maybe I should send Google an email letting them know and if it gets worse they can't blame me.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium
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I suppose you could try that. It couldn't hurt to call them and relay your experience.

The USB port clicking when plugged in, is caused by the port not correctly installed into the phones housing. I had the same issue and to fix it I opened and disassembled the phone and moved the port lower into the opening so the port stays in place. The noise is caused by the port clipping the edge of the opening in the housing.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

PDP///M said:
The USB port clicking when plugged in, is caused by the port not correctly installed into the phones housing. I had the same issue and to fix it I opened and disassembled the phone and moved the port lower into the opening so the port stays in place. The noise is caused by the port clipping the edge of the opening in the housing.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app
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Thanks it helps to know what is causing the problem but to be honest I'd rather see if it gets worse and if it does get Google to sort it out than inevitably break it if I try and take it into my own hands. It doesn't inflict functionality at the moment and I'm going to start using wireless charging soon.
I'm glad you managed to sort yours out though!
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda premium

I have like two bumps on my top left corner. Do you have lines running down all corners? Is that possibly from molding?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

Hey guys, I've been searching for this problem.
I also got a bump on the top left of my phone, just right of the headphone jack. Tried to "push" it back with force, but it would not give.
Also, I got the clicky bottom, which is weird.
So, anyone knows how to fix these bumps?

[Q] Display won't turn on

I had some rain droplets get into my phone which got it wet on the inside of course.. I did the whole rice thing, took it apart, bathed the motherboard in isopropyl alcohol.. basically for about three weeks I let it dry and cleaned it..
Last night I put it back together, connected to power, and let it sit. Turn it on this morning, it gives the vibe, system boots up, makes the proper sounds, responds to touch (I feel the haptic feedback when unlocking the phone).. BUT.. the screen doesn't turn on at all. I did some testing like trying to enter the wrong unlock code and cerberus did take and email a photo to me, so it seems like everything else works. Connecting it to the PC shows all my files as it should.
Question: could the battery be damaged so that it does not have the power to turn on the display but can turn on the rest of the phone's functions? Or did I somehow screw up the display connector? Does anyone know the inner workings of the phone that can help? Are there any diagnostic tools I can run having the phone connected to my PC that would show me if there's something not connected or fried?
Oh, also, if I restart the phone by holding the power button, the LED blinks red a few times.

Maybe the screen cannot access the power due to a wet or damaged component making it partially not working correctly like the screen cannot display what the main board is outputting.
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andyabc said:
Maybe the screen cannot access the power due to a wet or damaged component making it partially not working correctly like the screen cannot display what the main board is outputting.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app
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Hmm could be.. not wet though.. the phone was disassembled for at least 3 weeks on my desk...only thing i saw that could have been damaged was the sim card connector though, and i cleaned it up a bit with alcohol.. the display connector and everything in its vicinity looked good

stenzor said:
Hmm could be.. not wet though.. the phone was disassembled for at least 3 weeks on my desk...only thing i saw that could have been damaged was the sim card connector though, and i cleaned it up a bit with alcohol.. the display connector and everything in its vicinity looked good
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Digitizer damaged in anyway?
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andyabc said:
Digitizer damaged in anyway?
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Doesn't look like it.. and when I took it apart it didn't seem like there was any way water would have gotten under there.

stenzor said:
Doesn't look like it.. and when I took it apart it didn't seem like there was any way water would have gotten under there.
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Try to look really carefully for any damage, maybe there is some damage which you cannot see at all.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

It is most likely the power supply built-in to the Nexus 4 which had a malfunction due to the water causing one part of the connector not to pass power to the screen BUT it allows the rest to do so the only thing you need to replace is the power supply inside.
Sent from my Sony Tablet S using xda premium

andyabc said:
It is most likely the power supply built-in to the Nexus 4 which had a malfunction due to the water causing one part of the connector not to pass power to the screen BUT it allows the rest to do so the only thing you need to replace is the power supply inside.
Sent from my Sony Tablet S using xda premium
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My friend's phone also got wet in the rain. Left it in a bag of rice for 2 days. Tried powering on got the same result. Can feel the vibrate when phone powers on but display not working. Mostly we are gonna give it a service centre.

[Q] replaced screen on xt912, wont power on

yeah its a first time question for me and I'm sorry if it has been covered, I did try to find it. So i replacdd a display on the the deivce and it will not power on or give any sign of life. I checked with my meter and its got roughly 3.5 volts which is good enough to power. any one have an experience with this and know the correct method of getting it to power on? tried volume down and power for ten seconds didnt work. I've got it on the oem charger now even though it has a charge.

Wrong forum... But maybe your digitizer isn't plugged in correctly? Our the digitizer was crack in the process of replacing it
Sent from my XT907 using xda app-developers app

Yea, I have replaced several on the xt910/912 may be an issue with the install check the ribbons for tears... ensure that there both seated correctly.. replace the metal cover over the connectors... did you replace the full housing or just the digitizer/ screen? Or Item may be defective... when plugged in you should still see the led flash green if all is well with the battery ( the ones I have done did)...
Sent from my XT907 using xda app-developers app

re: answers
yes, i should have seen some sign of life is what i was thinking as well. i replaced the whole bezel. no flash no green light and no idea. I do apologize for wrong forumn.only thing i can think of is that when taking the motherboard off the back of the display is maybe something above got damaged. i thank you both for your answers. is there a heat rip sensor on this model that would cause it to go into protected mode even though it was totally disassembled? i had used my separater to warm the adhesive to make removal of the baord easier

I'm unsure about the sensor... but I use a heat gun as well and never had issues with the Motorola's... i have 3 here one still on GB and the other two on jb.. if you know of a way to get me a shipping label I could send ya one if you think its the logic board or battery (screens are broken)...
Sent from my XT907 using xda app-developers app

ezknives said:
I'm unsure about the sensor... but I use a heat gun as well and never had issues with the Motorola's... i have 3 here one still on GB and the other two on jb.. if you know of a way to get me a shipping label I could send ya one if you think its the logic board or battery (screens are broken)...
Sent from my XT907 using xda app-developers app
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Very appreciative man, but the riddle has solved itself. I have changed charging voltages every few hours from different usb sources to wall and to computer. it finally flashed n and i got life. I had a very distraught customer.(not to mention the guy who said sure gimme an hour) xda is a common answer to my google queries.I'm glad that i did finally join. :good:
awesome bunch of guys

Touch screen unresponsive after dropping phone in hot tub

So I was in the hot tub at the Y when I accidentally dropped the phone for probably like 5-10 seconds it was fully submerged. I had an otterbox commuter on it. Didn't think anything of it because I've gotten it wet plenty of times. I kept the case on and it was working just fine after.
Then on the drive home, about 15 minutes later. The touch screen just started going crazy like 50 fingers were going at the screen. None of my touches responded and then eventually it just became unresponsive completely. Everything else works except that.
I currently have the phone in a bag with rice and I'm praying that the touch screen will work again. I also checked the seal for water damage and the sticker did not change color. I was wondering if i should just try for a warranty replacement and not state any water damage?
Sent from my XT1254 using XDA Free mobile app

If it isn't working by now then you probably ****ed up kid.

Should have turned the phone off immediately if it was submerged and waited for it to dry out before turning it on again.
Sent from my DROID Turbo 2

I know, I'm so mad at myself. I've dropped it in water plenty of times without issues. Plus it started working right away after I didn't think anything of it. Never again though.
Sent from my XT1254 using XDA Free mobile app

graymonkey44 said:
I know, I'm so mad at myself. I've dropped it in water plenty of times without issues. Plus it started working right away after I didn't think anything of it. Never again though.
Sent from my XT1254 using XDA Free mobile app
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If you want to backup your phone or do stuff before you send it in, it is possible to connect a mouse with an USB OTG cable if the touch screen doesn't work.

Actually I bet the rice works. It's pretty twisted how effective that can be.

Yes it will. I dropped mine from about 30 feet landed on bottom left corner the only thing that broke was the touch portion. Everything else works. I'm using a off cable with a wireless mouse for know. Works flawlessly.
savahu said:
If you want to backup your phone or do stuff before you send it in, it is possible to connect a mouse with an USB OTG cable if the touch screen doesn't work.
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I have the same problem!!! What happened with yours?