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~erik~
Recovering Geocacher
Picture of ~erik~
Posted
The ON/OFF button on my Palm Tungsten E has had to be pushed harder and harder lately to turn the unit on and off. Tonight it wouldn't turn off, and after the PDA timed out and shut itself off it won't turn it back on.

How can I get the switch replaced?

I'm in Fort Lauderdale this week on business with 500 caches loaded in my GPS and PDA, but stuck with the PDA not really operational.

I can turn it on with the button that switches on the time display for five seconds, then quickly hitting the button to switch to the desktop. However then I can't turn it back off and have to let it just time out. Not real practical for geocaching...

~erik~
 
Posts: 2876 | Location: Suwanee, Ga. | Registered: October 30, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
Rebel
. . . without a cache.
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I did some Googling and found that your problem is a fairly common one. As I have the same device, all I can say is EEEK! I did find this fix although I've not tried it myself and the hardware fix you'll want to do at home.

quote:
Quick fix:
Use the other buttons to turn on the E. Any bottons will work.
To turn off. Go to Pref. then find button. Click on more and you can make E turn off and lock with a long stroke, from graffiti area to top of screen. Before it allows you to do that you have to set a password to your E. I suggest use use "1", being the quickest. So next time, just drag the stylist from the bottom to top and it will turn off and lock up.

To turn on directly to applications(or home) just press and hold the big center key. It will ask for the password. Key in and and click "ok" then you are at "home".

Real fix:
Use an T-5 Torx driver to remove the 4 screws and remove the bottom cover.
(refer to the other post/site for picture and direction.)
Once the cover and the internals are seperated, you will see that the power botton really is just a tiny little micro-switch attached to the motherboard with like 2 points. If yours is like mine, one of the 2 soldering point is broken. The micro-switch was dangling with only one of the 2 connection point intact. I connected a soldering pen and kept the tip pressed on the rear of the micro-switch where is was suppsed to connect to the board. When I felt the old solder melted I let up the pen, and the switch was attached rigidly. I then pressed the micro-switch and the screen lited up.


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Live Well, Harm None
 
Posts: 2896 | Location: 33 20.500N / 84 05.900W | Registered: November 09, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
Trekinldy59
Geocacher
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Palm handles the repairs on the Tungsten E so it would probably have to be sent to them...not much help for the immediate future. I would try calling a couple of local electronic repair shops and ask them if they can do an on-site repair or if they can recommend someone that does...
 
Posts: 53 | Location: Cartersville | Registered: July 28, 2006Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
~erik~
Recovering Geocacher
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Thanks for the suggestions.

I've set the preferences to autoshut off after only one minute of no activity, and the center button will turn it back on. When I get home I'll take the back off and look for the microswitch. I'm not sure my soldering iron will be precise enough to fix it, but I can hope... Smile

~erik~
 
Posts: 2876 | Location: Suwanee, Ga. | Registered: October 30, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
GRRRR8!
Geocacher
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erik, if you find yourself caching in Marietta anytime soon, I may be able to help you. I have the Torx T-5 and a micro tip on my soldering iron. Had to repair my old Tungsten T5 after I dropped it and the video kept cutting in and out... Email me first at Geocache (at) grrrr8 . com
 
Posts: 3 | Location: Marietta, GA | Registered: December 22, 2003Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
Joebids
Geocacher
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I've got a micro tip soldering station also. But where ya gonna get the micro nano switch!?


Don't say you can't, say you'll try.
 
Posts: 1137 | Location: Suwanee | Registered: May 21, 2004Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
Cymbaline
Rinocacher
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If the micro tips on the soldering irons dont work and you find youself going "s**t!", then head over to Grayson and borrow Dougs94's tig welder. Clown

Seriously, hope you get it working, though. I have one too, but no problems thus far.
 
Posts: 948 | Location: Marietta, GA | Registered: December 15, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
~erik~
Recovering Geocacher
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Ha! I fixed the sucker. I'll try to post some photos later. That is indeed a nano switch - only about 3 or 4 mm at it's widest point (maybe a tad over 1/8"), with four solder points.

Bought a little battery powered Weller soldering gun at Fry's Electronics and got it done. Smile

In the course of repairing the switch the PDA suffered amnesia and lost Cachemate and a few other applications. However doing a hotsync brought back most of it.

Now I've learned not to stab at the on/off button with the stylus, but to gently push it with my fingernail.

~erik~
 
Posts: 2876 | Location: Suwanee, Ga. | Registered: October 30, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
Rebel
. . . without a cache.
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quote:
Originally posted by ~erik~:
. . . got it done. Smile





Larry would be proud!


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Live Well, Harm None
 
Posts: 2896 | Location: 33 20.500N / 84 05.900W | Registered: November 09, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
AllenLacy
Neutiquam erro.
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quote:
Originally posted by ~erik~:
However doing a hotsync brought back most of it.
When I had a "real" palm, it lost power once and a hotsync brought everything back like it was when hotsync was done. My Clie having more memory and therefore more software has required cold boots a few times which clears the clie memory. However it has a program to backup and restore the clie memory using the memory stick. So a simple restore puts everything back. So I am surprised that the Palm Tungsten E only "brought back most of it"


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Posts: 2411 | Location: NE Corner of Georgia | Registered: November 09, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
~erik~
Recovering Geocacher
Picture of ~erik~
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quote:
I am surprised that the Palm Tungsten E only "brought back most of it"


I lost an excel spreadsheet, and I lost the "found" caches in Cachemate that I'd found since the last hotsync. Everything else was there.

Here's the PDA with the cover removed:



The circuit board seperated from the case and display ribbon cable:



And the switch on the back of the circuit board:



My soldering job is not real pretty, but servicable. Beauty is a function of how beautifully it functions.*

~erik~

*trivia question: what company used that phrase in their advertising in the 1970s?
 
Posts: 2876 | Location: Suwanee, Ga. | Registered: October 30, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
RobertLacy
Why would I change it?
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I have a Palm Tungsten E and I have had to hotsync it to get my stuff back, and I got it all my info back on it. Only thing I lost was some stuff I had put into it after the sync.

It also looks like I need to be carefull about how hard I mash the power button on it as well. But if I need to fix it I know how to do it now, or batter yet someone that knows how. Smile


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ph34r t3h cut3 ONes
 
Posts: 119 | Location: NE Corner of Georgia | Registered: November 09, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
Cymbaline
Rinocacher
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You jabbed at it with the stylus?

That's funny - more often than not, I turn the blasted thing off when I *remove* the stylus. AG says I have "fat fingers", but still.. never even thought of jabbing it with the stylus..
 
Posts: 948 | Location: Marietta, GA | Registered: December 15, 2002Reply With QuoteEdit or Delete MessageReport This Post
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