Database Users

So... what really happened to my phone?

Hey,
I was camping a couple of weekends back and took mt T-Mobile Vario II with me. It was 50% battery when I went to sleep one night... the next morning it was powered off and wouldn't turn on.
So you know, I've always used ROMS from here, various ones, never any problems.
On getting it home it wouldn't charge - it was giving a red light which would just go off after a while. I searched the forums here and got the impression that it could be a battery issue. I called T-Mobile and they sent me a pre paid package to send the phone to their service centre. When I opened the phone I saw a little round sticker that said "VOID". Uh oh, I thought, but sent it off anyway.
Checked the forum again and decided the phone was water damaged, warrenty void.
The service centre got my phone and returned it the same day... just picked it up now, expecting a broken phone and a note to say the warrenty doesn't cover the damage. But....!
It's fixed! The repair details sheet doesn't say much... only "Software Update" (now got the bloated T-Mobile ROM on there) and "Screening" and that the battery has been tested.
Now, I thought I'd be screwed on two fronts... one for having installed a ROM (though maybe they didn't get that to load) and two, for the VOID sticker. Oddly, the VOID sticker has disappeared...
So, what do you think the issue was? I'm a bit worried it was a ROM issue but I can't really believe that to be true. I'm installing one again (will I need to reinstall olipro now the sevice centre have been at it?).
I can only think that it was some slight water damage and the service centre have been good enough to take a look anyway and find that they can repair it. But that would mean they actually care about doing a good job, beyond the call of duty... surely not!
I'd love to know what was really wrong with it so it doesn't happen again... though if it does, I'm happy knowing T-Mobile's service centre is quick and effective (I had been warned by T-Mobile customer services it could take up to 5 weeks to service a HTC).

Some of the info here may give some clues. It is not necessarily a a fault in the battery or even the phone but more of a lockup in the charging circuit. This is most common when the level of battery charge drops below 10% when the circuit fails to identify thr battery and start charging. Their are also noted cases where connecting the charger can drain the battery rather than charging it and other cases where the battery drains rapidly for no obvious reason. Interestingly this is a problem that occurs across many devices / makes and models. Often it is possible to "kick start" the charging process again::
http://michael-channon.spaces.live.com/Blog/cns!4472423472DCFC38!202.entry
Mike

Cheers. I wonder if perhaps the battery reading I was seeing was incorrect, or there was a sudden drop in power then.
Still odd that they removed the void sticker.
But hey, I'm back in action!

HTC Desire HD Screen Issue

This is my mates HTC Desire HD, he keeps it in an Official HTC case which covers the full screen and is very careful with it.
A mark has appeared on the middle of the screen which as you can see in the video is really annoying. He has not dropped it, nor hit it with anything.
Anyone got any ideas, or have had the same problem??
Here is a very small video which demonstrates the issue that I placed on YouTube.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gTtFHV2IdNA

Looks like he has either sat on it or had soemthing heavy pressing on the center of the screen. Either way it looks as if the LCD layer is sitting too close to the digitiser and even the slightest pressure on the screen causes that distortion.
I'm not aware of a fix other than a new digitiser maybe.

Contact the dealer. Maybe you're friend can get an replacement (Y)

Update... turns out over the weekend my mate took out the extended battery (he had to use tweezers to get it out!).
He had purchased from an Ebay seller from a UK seller (not an official HTC battery though). It was a 1600mah battery.
The issue went instantly.
Looking at the 1600mah battery, its curved!
So beware everyone, get an official battery! Or risk screwing up your touchscreen!

Thats interesting . First time I have heard a battery casuing screen problems.

stratplayer said:
Update... turns out over the weekend my mate took out the extended battery (he had to use tweezers to get it out!).
He had purchased from an Ebay seller from a UK seller (not an official HTC battery though). It was a 1600mah battery.
The issue went instantly.
Looking at the 1600mah battery, its curved!
So beware everyone, get an official battery! Or risk screwing up your touchscreen!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have yet to read a successful hi-cap battery story... makes me wonder whether HTC has ensured the H/W cant use anything beyond the specs.

mali019 said:
Thats interesting . First time I have heard a battery casuing screen problems.
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TS said that the battery was curved so it was prolly pushing against the inside of the phone onto the panel

Hi just joined as its my phone in question
The battery has bulged very slightly in the middle so that if you placed it on a flat surface either way up you can rock it in any direction. I reckon its approx 2mm thicker on either side in the middle than at the edge
Signs were there over the past few weeks as it wasn't lasting as long on each charge and no-where near as long as the original HTC HD battery which is now back in the phone.
As to the High capacity one its a generic battery i.e. no mfr markings on the black and white label
Details say
"Replacement for HTC Desire HD" on two lines in top left corner
"Li-on 3.7V" in top right
"3.7VDC 1600mAh" below that and CE logo next to that
You will find the battery sold at lots of places online (both UK and international) as the picture from the UK seller I bought it from was by no means unique.

You better buy a second original battery from HTC.

5 mins ago i read about buying a nonHTC battery with higher capacity and I nearly ordered it. Good thind I found this thread.
Thank you

Doctor.Who said:
You better buy a second original battery from HTC.
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safty more safty

Phone was stolen and I know now how to prevent it

So on Friday, i was out playing billiards, with my S4 in the pocket of my jacket, draped on the back of a bar stool about 20 feet away. As usual me and some friends were having a few bourbons, so not much thought was left to who was around my jacket. Toward the end of the night i went to put on my jacket, and immediately could tell the phone was gone.
I used another persons phone to call mine, straight to voicemail. I used their phone to open my Google account and Device Manager, nothing. Knowing i had at least 50% battery left, i knew whomever lifted it had pulled the battery. I also have the full version of Got Ya!, but received no email notifications of a shutdown or SIM change. Its been three days now, nothing. Location history has not shown anything since about an hour before i discovered it missing. It showed the phone going out to the parking lot, about 100ft away from where i left it, then nothing.
Ive already had the IMEI blacklisted. Though thats no real satisfaction, as a quick look on Craigslist will show you a handful of people that will use a jtag box to flash a new IMEI to any phone you happen to bring them for about $50.
During my frustration, i was thinking of how Republicans had stalled to pass a bill to nationally require better theft deterrents and kill switches in smartphones. Then i thought "i should just switch to an iPhone, i wouldn't be so easy to steal." Just six more months and i can upgrade to the iPhone 6, its the perfect size, not ridiculously huge like the S5, and i had much better software for theft prevention and recovery.
Though what makes the iphone better at theft deterrent than the S4?
Its the software firstly, Apple has mimicked many of the features found in apps such as Cerberus or Lookout. As well on the hardware size, the SIM is harder to remove, AND THERE IS NO REMOVABLE BATTERY.
I personally have never removed the battery or SIM card from my S4 since i purchased it, other than for cleaning. I have an external 10000mah battery pack i keep in my car in case i need charging, and besides i usually have the phone plugged in when im in the car or at my desk. So why do we need a removable battery? Why do we need a removable SIM card? So why not just superglue the battery in place inside the phone? The phones i have not lost to theft, i usually keep as spares (Im using an old Galaxy S2 at the moment), so i dont really care about resale value.
Gluing the battery in would make it more difficult to remove, preventing abrupt power loss that stopped the GotYa app from working, as well as preventing the SIM card from coming out. If they powered the phone up once before having the chance to clean the IMEI, i might be able to get a location, as well as send and SMS codes to wipe info.
Have any thoughts on this?

iphones are just as easy to steal, their battery is removable with just a tiny screw driver that fits on a key chain. their sim comes out with just a paper clip. don't glue your battery in there is a greater chance you will need a new battery than your phone getting stolen by the one person smart enough to pull the battery.

Cerberus is far better than Apple antitheft methods

coolloser said:
Cerberus is far better than Apple antitheft methods
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Though think of what is the one thing that would disable any attempt to recover your phone: the battery being pulled out. Why not just eliminate that variable. Hopefully by next year thanks to California's new law, well have better software controls across all phones.

Caligula36 said:
Though think of what is the one thing that would disable any attempt to recover your phone: the battery being pulled out. Why not just eliminate that variable. Hopefully by next year thanks to California's new law, well have better software controls across all phones.
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As it was said before... An iPhone battery can be pulled with little issue.
With Cerberus, I get a location as soon as the battery goes back in, even if they switch Sims or do a factory reset.

coolloser said:
As it was said before... An iPhone battery can be pulled with little issue.
With Cerberus, I get a location as soon as the battery goes back in, even if they switch Sims or do a factory reset.
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Click to collapse
I agree with you completely, its just less likely that a scumbag that steals a phone is going to have what i think is a T000 screwdriver handy. I should have done some more testing to make sure these apps i had were configured correctly, though at least i know now.

Caligula36 said:
Though think of what is the one thing that would disable any attempt to recover your phone: the battery being pulled out. Why not just eliminate that variable. Hopefully by next year thanks to California's new law, well have better software controls across all phones.
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Click to collapse
I hope they dont pass that law...already losing enough privacy everyday lol...just be responsible and keep your phone on you or in a safe place, it's not that hard
Sorry your phone got stolen tho :/ I hope you get really lucky and one of your apps give you an update and you some how manaage to get your phone back...
On a side note, my girlfriends sister got her iphone stolen at high school last year...her dad was able to track it to the kids house...he went there 3 days in a row and would knock and knock and no one would answer the door, not even the parents, school wouldn't do anything about it and he even tried to get the police involved...to this day they still havent gotten it back, they ended up just buying her a new iPhone. Moral of the story...sometimes all these apps and antitheft tracking and what not isnt even enough, I mean yeah it can lead you to the place...but if the police dont wanna get involved what can you do? You cant break in and steal it back lol

Screen + back stick out, blurry pictures... Problem thread

Hey guys,
it seems that every smartphone i own breaks after ~18 months... Now my Z3 is finally gone, i guess.
Problems:
Blurry Pictures, i guess a coating of the lens went off?
One "system UIDs inconsistent" error, since then, whatsapp had "damaged databases" for at least 20 times - factory resettet twice, no difference
REAL bad touchscreen response from time to time. It either doesn't detect inputs at all or thinks you already lifted your finger. Super annoying, especially when typing.
Glas on front AND back is getting loose. The adhesive doesn't hold the phone together anymore
I can shrug off the first two problems (that's something i could have lived with), but not with the bad adhesive tape (??) that doesn't hold the phone together properly. You can look under the screen, it's not that far out (yet!) on the backside of the phone. Has anyone had that problem before? The phone was looked after well, i haven't dropped it, it was ALWAYS in a case. It had a glass screen protector until the touchscreen response got too bad (it didn't get any better after i removed it though).
As for my bad luck, i dropped the phone for the first time ever about an hour ago, since then the power button can't be pushed in properly anymore. The screen survived it miraculously, even though it sticks out quite a bit. I wanted to send it in for repairs next week.

I have the back sticking out problem . I'm using a case now because the service centre says they need 15 days to repair it
Sent from my D6653 using Tapatalk

I had the same issue with the glass not glued to the chasis anymore. It wasn't sticking out so badly as urs but I took it to repair centre and they repaired it for me. I had also USB charger burn marks on my LCD, so they changed my screen to a new one. I'd recommend you to take it to repair centre. I tried to heat up the adhessive but it didn't work out quite as planed. After the repair it was ok. But then another story happened. WHich isn't connected to this one.
When the glass is lose, you lose the waterproof ability too. The phone can easily take damage from any kind of moisture.

Waterproof ability? Nah, USB seal is gone anyway. It went about a year ago, so i get why there are so many damaged Sony smartphones... They should include a magnetic charging cable in the box. Thanks for reminding me with the screen, the display also has irregular lighting with a corona just above the on screen buttons. Battery runtime also reduced by 50% (9hrs SOT when new; 4.75hrs now after factory reset, i guess they decreased their battery-saving modes with every new android version).
I still have my old red HTC One M7, so repair time won't be an issue. I guess i won't change back to the Z3 but sell it when it's repaired, because it feels too big in my hands and i never liked it quite as much. Funny; I bought the Z3 when i send in my One M7 for repairs (bad camera lens [purple tint], lens cover broke by itself (was not repaired), buttons far to wide inside housing (not repaired) and some other stuff). Every of my 4 smartphones broke after max. 18 months.

CentaXx said:
Waterproof ability? Nah, USB seal is gone anyway. It went about a year ago, so i get why there are so many damaged Sony smartphones... They should include a magnetic charging cable in the box. Thanks for reminding me with the screen, the display also has irregular lighting with a corona just above the on screen buttons. Battery runtime also reduced by 50% (9hrs SOT when new; 4.75hrs now after factory reset, i guess they decreased their battery-saving modes with every new android version).
I still have my old red HTC One M7, so repair time won't be an issue. I guess i won't change back to the Z3 but sell it when it's repaired, because it feels too big in my hands and i never liked it quite as much. Funny; I bought the Z3 when i send in my One M7 for repairs (bad camera lens [purple tint], lens cover broke by itself (was not repaired), buttons far to wide inside housing (not repaired) and some other stuff). Every of my 4 smartphones broke after max. 18 months.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, there are quite a lot broken Sony phones, especially in this area(Screen). I completely agree with you about the magnetic charging cable. I had an issue with that also. I've never reached 9hrs of SOT, I've got this phone for like 6 months or so. Never had it more than 6 hours.
About the updates- yeah. As i've heard, it has decreased by every update. The best battery was with KK, but when I bought it, I already had 5.1.1 preinstalled. It is a good phone, serves all my needs for sure. Doesn't lagg and so on. THere are few things I dislike about it, the camera is underperforming for such a lense and specs. But not terribly underperforming. Think my recent phone (LG G3 ) was taking better shots. It eventually breaks. I had my phone taken to warranty repair twice. Once for screen getting lose, and the LCD burn marks. And then I took it to warranty repair because my camera became blurry and the focus didn't work at all. I tought it was just a piece of dirt behind the lens. but as it turned out, they repaired the LCD again, the upper firing speaker, the camera module, the magnetic charging module and so on. I may have got a bad unit, but the problems are surreal. I paid so much for this phone, but I have never had so much problems with any phone than with this one... Quite dissapointing to be honest. And I'm thinking about the same as you are... Switching away from Sony. This experience is quite terrifying... :crying:

oSandmaNo said:
I have the back sticking out problem . I'm using a case now because the service centre says they need 15 days to repair it
Sent from my D6653 using Tapatalk
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Would you have to pay?

XxCyberHackerxX said:
Would you have to pay?
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I had it too, I didn't have to pay a cent. It is covered by warranty. And the adhesive might get lose by itself. As it did for me.
They should cover anything which isn't damage by your behavior. Like dropping the phone on the ground and so on

Madzix said:
I had it too, I didn't have to pay a cent. It is covered by warranty. And the adhesive might get lose by itself. As it did for me.
They should cover anything which isn't damage by your behavior. Like dropping the phone on the ground and so on
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I guess it depends on the repair center then. I'm shocked they would honor it since its out of warranty. Sony rules!

XxCyberHackerxX said:
I guess it depends on the repair center then. I'm shocked they would honor it since its out of warranty. Sony rules!
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Yeah, As I've heard, they don't act the same in any place. They mostly are very mean. And don't want to help at all. Either they say that you will have to pay for it or just live with the problem. I guess not everyone has like 200$ for a new LCD swap and so on.

Just to be fair, i'd only want to switch back to my One M7 because i loved that phone so much. Also because it still feels too big. The One M7 was even worse, quality-wise.
The Moto RAZR i i had before the HTC worked for a year, only the AUX port was broken and after sending it in, it was ruined (scratched, logo damaged) and i got my money back. Before the Moto, i had an Desire HD that held together pretty well, until the radio went bad. SIM wasn't recognized very often, battery was absolutely DEAD (jumped from 60% to 0% more than once).
What i think is so sad about it, is that you pay ~500€ for a piece of .... that doesn't even hold together for two years. I knew why i didn't sell the "repaired" One M7, you NEED a backup phone these days. Now it's in use for the second time after the Moto G of my girlfriend broke. Probably if they would spend just a LITTLE more on quality than on new features for the next high-end smartphone that has to be released after 6 months i'd be more exited to get a new phone.
I only bought the Z3 because of the battery life (gone with updates) and because i had several friends with Xperias of which none had a problem.

XxCyberHackerxX said:
Would you have to pay?
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Its out if it's warranty period. So yes they are charging me. But since they need 15 days, I'm not giving it to them
Sent from my D6653 using Tapatalk

My backcover became slightly undone (adhesive failing). I also had 2 bright spots (0,5cm diameter) on the left and right bottom part of the LED.
Everything was fixed free of charge, they also gave me a new battery (I asked for a replacement although the old battery was still going strong, but I plan on using this phone for quite a while and the old battery probably had way over 300 cycles)

Bäcker said:
My backcover became slightly undone (adhesive failing). I also had 2 bright spots (0,5cm diameter) on the left and right bottom part of the LED.
Everything was fixed free of charge, they also gave me a new battery (I asked for a replacement although the old battery was still going strong, but I plan on using this phone for quite a while and the old battery probably had way over 300 cycles)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in Florida so anytime I have a problem I have to call customer service and they keep saying they don't do out of warranty repairs anymore. I wish I had a repair center nearby

Bäcker said:
My backcover became slightly undone (adhesive failing). I also had 2 bright spots (0,5cm diameter) on the left and right bottom part of the LED.
Everything was fixed free of charge, they also gave me a new battery (I asked for a replacement although the old battery was still going strong, but I plan on using this phone for quite a while and the old battery probably had way over 300 cycles)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Damn you are lucky. No repair for me here as garanty period is over, but I have the exact same issues, forward facing glass is getting undone and I have at least 5-6 bright spots on my screen. Really, really annoying when reading. Any idea if I could get it fixed in some no-name shop?

Surprise... After sending in my Z3 on 18.08., i just got it back and i'm in a moral conflict. They sent me a new unit plus new screen protectors. Service-wise, i'm really stunned. It makes me consider buying a Sony again, just for the service... Unfortunately they don't sell a phone i'd want to have right now.
However, my mobile phone contract runs out in 2 months and i got used to my old HTC One m7 again... So i don't know whether i should (and also want to) use the Z3 again for a longer period of time or sell it in it's new condition and get a new phone in 1.5 months. I'd want to have an S7 or Note 7 - especially the S7 would be plain cheap if i'd get it with a contract. If i sold the Z3, the additional costs of getting the S7 would be covered for 18 months of a 24 months contract period. Hypothetical: If I'd use the Z3 for another two years (won't happen) i'd only save 60€ compared to getting an S7...
Well, i guess those are first world problems. Anyway, i'm really stunned by the service - worst experience yet was motorola when i got back a damaged phone, closely followed by HTC, they repaired half of what was broken on the phone...

Sell the Z3, especially if it's brand new, you could get a good price for it. Then invest that money into something new.

I had this problem too, service replaced my phone's screen and metal case for free because this is Sony's fault.

How are any of you guys out of warranty? Mine came with a 2 year warranty in the UK, and it hasn't even been out 2 years yet.
I had to send it to service centre twice. First time digitizer broke, second time replacement screen was peeling away and screen was getting discoloured. Both times also got the magnetic dock port fixed, but I think that was damaged because I was using the wrong insert in the magnetic dock (you need to use the tightest one). I'm a bit disappointed that such an expensive phone breaks this easily, but the service has been excellent.

battery change

Any oficial way to change the battery of a Nexus 6p? Mine is working horrible lately

The battery in this phone is a known issue. There is a way to do it and if you Google tutorials for it you'll find quite a few. If you have never disassembled a smart phone before I don't recommend doing it your self. I would recommend buying all of the spare parts and paying a cell phone repair store to complete the project for you.

I replaced mine. It wasn't too bad, however, the black plastic rim around the screen is SO fragile and chipped in a couple of places. Other than that, pretty easy to do.

I would take it to a shop. Atleast they have the correct tools and hopefully not damage the phone. I also have to replace my battery as it started to act up.

Thanks for the info. I live in Mexico so I don't really rely on any phone repairing store.. haha. I guess I will have to wait for the pixel 2.. and hope that the battery on that will be more durable

If you get yourself a really fine blade, some guitar picks and this site it's not too hard. Just test the new battery out before you close it back up. I did it flawless the first attempt but when the replacement battery was defective out of frustration I marked up the sides taking it out a second time. Also when prying on the battery just remember there is a important cable running through the middle underneath. Ultimately your decision of course maybe just selling it down the road and getting a newer model if you can hold out. ?