Blue Angel still is a great device (especially regarding D-Two and his Android for BA-project:good with its large sized screen.
The only thing i always missed was GPS. Of course there are car cradles with GPS, but for hiking you always needed an extra device.
Unscrewing BAs i often wondered what this empty black box on top should be good for except carrying the antenna.
Took me some time for research till i found what i was looking for: Teleprovodnik Keychain Bluetooth GPS-Receiver.
The smallest one i could find, fits exactly to the backcover of Blue Angel. (eBay, € 19,--)
So i took a BA-Antenna (pic1,left/middle), peeled it off its carrier straight to the connectors and cut off the carrier right next to them (1/left/top).
Took Teleprovodnik, cut the battery cables and added some wire to connect the battery jack in the middle of the GPS-board with two flat brass contacts fixed to BA's backcover. These contacts are positioned into the outer gaps between those of BA Mainboard (pic4).
[Red is (+), black/blue is (-)]
Now the GPS device can drain its power as soon as BA has booted. If phone is off, the GPS receiver can't drain battery capacity.
Two lucky incidents: on/off switch of GPS is right next to top of backcover, so i mounted a BA volume switch that now serves the on/off of GPS.
(Another possibility would be replacing the IR-Screen by a microswitch (does anyone here still use infrared connection?) and let the one on GPS board turned on.)
And second the LEDs for bluetooth and satellite appear to sit right behind the camera hole. (Yes, i had to dismount the camera; maybe one day i'll find some smaller device, but as i still use a 30 years old analogue Praktika, i don't really miss it.) (both pic3)
Unfortunately Teleprovodnik doesn't have data output through his USB jack, so cable connection is useless and i have to use bluetooth.
But after all it works- after some fight against bluetooth&gps-settings on my BA , i now have a fully working GPS in my blue angel- just tap on wireless/bluetooth on my homescreen, turn the switch and start navigation
One small problem had to be solved- the level of network connection.
During my mounting experiments i didn't treat the antennafoil very well, cut off some parts...
...and lost about 15% of of network level compared to a second BA on same Network.
Now that the whole system is running, i'll work on optimizing the antenna.
If you put it in the wrong place, it shields the bluetoothconnectors or GPS-signal.
Maybe i'll add some ringantenna...
edit: 10.11.: took new antenna, now folded the parts i in former version had cut off, partly for giving place to switch inwards, and: excellent!
No difference to a non-modified phone any more.
The problem had been less disturbing if you used onboardnavigation; with google maps for example
you sometimes saw where you are on the map, but not the map itself until you reached an
area with better coverage. Tested on O2, which isn't this strong around here.
With Vodafone it's running better, but i keep O2 for testing.
Still sometimes occurs, but now only in areas where i know radio coverage is poor or worse.
I'll add some more detailed pics soon.
Mounting the switch:
First drill two holes, size and place as shown in pic below.
Use a file to remove the plastic between them.
Take a volume switch for Blue Angel, cut off the outer two silver parts.
After checking if the range it serves when placed into the longhole
fits to GPS' switch glue it into the Backcover of your BA.
You need to take two small right angled pieces of plastic, placed on the right side
and in front of the two vertical ribs on both sides of switchhole
(from the now useless antenna holder, has three different sizes) to
connect the switchholder to the upper side of the backcover and a
7x2mm strip roundet at one long edge to support the switch from underneath,
parallel to the horizontal line in backcover under the switchhole
(can be seen on the pic where the red switchholder is missing).
In first version this strip was broader, so i had to cut off a piece of antenna,
which came out to be no good idea. Obviously.
Now antenna fits under the horizontal part of switchholder.
The battery contacts:
Here i've taken some pieces of brass, 2x10mm bent to a hook at one side
so after installation they come parallel to the battery contacts on motherboard.
To place them two gaps have to be filed into the backcover.
The middle of each of these two gaps has to be 2,4mm from the side of the contact hole (a).
By this the GPS contacts sit right between the two outer contacts on each side of battery connector.
(For my proper version i've taken the two battery housing ground contacts from a dead BA, see (c). )
To fix the contacts a strip of black plastic (the thin material from antenna holder,
there's not enough room for the thick one) is glued over them.
At the same time you're doing this remove plastic at point (b) so GPS' board fits in.
Inbetween i found out CMOS backup battery CR2032 cable&plug is similar to the original of GPS receiver,
so i can replace the original one by one coming in one piece.
(some pics will follow)
Awesome work!
Thanks.
Sent from my GT-I9300 using Tapatalk 2
Don't just say thanks- klick it! (Of course i'm nevertheless glad 'bout it...)
Project is getting better and better, antenna problem solved.
Now working on a proper version for my own everyday-use.
Because of gsm-network-coverage, double-sim should be next project.
Together with D-Two we're heading for Blue Angel 2.0 !:highfive:
...of course i'm just providing a pearl on the icicle of D-Two's cake...
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BT-Mini-Key...0570828383?pt=GPS_Devices&hash=item1e66a0ba5f
Found this, in case anyone want to buy something less...russian. Just ordered one.
EDIT: Also, how's your battery life with this thing?
ares93 said:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/BT-Mini-Key...0570828383?pt=GPS_Devices&hash=item1e66a0ba5f
Found this, in case anyone want to buy something less...russian. Just ordered one.
EDIT: Also, how's your battery life with this thing?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's quite the same device. All come from Taiwan, and mine also looked different when i ordered it.
They just change the coverprint...
Came without any description or datasheet except a sticker on the back- good luck
password as always is 0000 (if not it for shure would be 1234).
"Teleprovodnik
Bluetooth GPS Receiver
Model Keychain GPS2000
FCC ID: OUP961300101
Serial N°: xxxxxxxxxxxxx
Made in Taiwan" That's all.
(Funny: There's a company called Teleprovodnik in Bremen/Germany.)
Just found this:
General
GPS Chipset: MTK GPS
Frequency: L1,1575.42 MHZ
C/A Code: 1.023MHz chip rate
Channels: 51 CH for tracking
Antenna: Built-in patch with LNA
Datum: WGS-84
Acquisition Rate
Cold Start: 36 sec, average
Warm Start: 33 sec, average
Hot Start: 1 sec, average
Reacquisition: <1sec
Accuracy (none DGPS)
Position: Without aid: 3.0m; 2D-RMS DGPS:2.5m,2D-RMS
Velocity: Without aid: 0.1m/s; DGPS:0.05m/s
Sensitivity: -158 dBm (tracking)
Dynamic
Altitude: < 18,000m
Velocity: < 515m/sec
Acceleration: 4g
Protocol
GPS Output: NMEA-0183(V3.01) - GGA, GSA, GSV, RMC (default)
Data bit : 8, stop bit : 1 (Default)
Interface
Bluetooth? Version 1.2 compliant
Output Power: Class 2 (10 meter in free space)
Frequency: 2.4 to 2.48 GHz
Power
Battery: Li-Ion
Operation Time: 10 hrs
Power Charge: Mini USB
Environmental
Operating: -10°C to +60°C
Storage: -20°C to +60°C
Charging: 0°C to +45°C
Humidity: 5% to 90% non-condensing
Physical
Dimension: 46(W) x 32(L) x 14.7(H) mm
Weight: 22g
Others
Certification: CE / FCC / C-tick
LED: Bluetooth / GPS / Battery / charger status
Battery life i can't tell exactly, but with standard 1450mAh battery it's at least more than two hours
(which is more than twice as long as my HTC Kaiser runs on GPS);
i didn't yet make a long run test with 100% charged battery.
Tomorrow.
Of course it's also a difference, if you have your maps on SD card and don't continuously connect to internet.
And as there are batteries with up to 3600 or 4200 mAh i yet don't worry much about it.
edit: found a small manual in german and french on PDF.
NavGear KeyMate MK-51.
Download here: http://www.mediafire.com/file/1b8c2yj0802q5s8/NavGearMK51_Manual.pdf
B-44 said:
It's quite the same device. All come from Taiwan, and mine also looked different when i ordered it.
They just change the coverprint...
I'll post all Data as soon as i find again the backcover of mine.
Came without any description or datasheet except a sticker on the back- good luck
password as always is 0000 (if not it for shure would be 1234).
Battery life i can't tell exactly, but with standard 1450mAh battery it's at least more than two hours
(which is more than twice as long as my HTC Kaiser runs on GPS);
i didn't yet make a long run test with 100% charged battery.
Tomorrow.
Of course it's also a difference, if you have your maps on SD card and don't continuously connect to internet.
And as there are batteries with up to 3600 or 4200 mAh i yet don't worry much about it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ta, mate. Any chance you could throw in some high res pics in the update tomorrow? Is a bit difficult to see which power pins you used.
Btw, this is one of the best mods i've seen. I stopped using my BA because my bluetooth GPS died. But this mod, combined with D-two's Android build and maybe an early series motherboard (high OC) will give new life to my BA.
ares93 said:
Ta, mate. Any chance you could throw in some high res pics in the update tomorrow? Is a bit difficult to see which power pins you used.
Btw, this is one of the best mods i've seen. I stopped using my BA because my bluetooth GPS died. But this mod, combined with D-two's Android build and maybe an early series motherboard (high OC) will give new life to my BA.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you mean the pins connecting to the battery- those are just flat pieces of brass (~3mm broad), which i bent to the same shape as the pins of the Mainboard. of course they shouldn't be fixed with tape but a piece of plastic glued over them. The tape solution i only chose for the pics.
And if you look at your battery: + and - each serve two of the mainboardpins.
As we're about it- on the Photo you see (a) where flat gaps have to be filed for the battery connectors, a piece of plastic with the same gaps should be taken as counterpart to fix the connectors (i'll upload a pic as soon as i've finished my version).
at (b) the vertical plastic has to be removed where indicated to give place to the GPS' board.
There's really no space to be spent
That's crazy what you just did
I'm not using GPS, but it still is a great piece of work from you! Did you test if it doesn't interferes with the Radio? I mean, for example making a call with GPS on.
ares93 said:
maybe an early series motherboard (high OC) .
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
??? i think i could learn something right now...
miki100 said:
That's crazy what you just did
I'm not using GPS, but it still is a great piece of work from you! Did you test if it doesn't interferes with the Radio? I mean, for example making a call with GPS on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good question. In first phase when i tested GPS hunchbacked, nothing special occured.
But since i've build it in - i'll do my homework and report.
(But i don't expect it, as GPS is no NFC, and the frequencies are far different enough.
You could imagine some strange interference.)
B-44 said:
??? i think i could learn something right now...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Early Blueangels overclocked better than the newer ones. I had one that ran on 600mhz (594 or something similar). My current BA, one of the last ones ever manufactured according to HTC, based on the serial number, only does 471mhz stable with the original board. Everything above that locks up the device. I bought a busted mid-series BA for cheap and transplanted the motherboard, stable at 530mhz.
EDIT: Its a hit or miss really. Its almost impossible to identify early models if they're in good nick. I look for the ugliest, most used BA when I'm parts hunting. Bigger chance of the being older. If you have a few spare boards, it might be worth checking which one clocks best and use that.
EDIT2: Might just be dodgy statistics since I only own seven of these things, but from my experience, branded devices clock better. Again, might just be accidental but still.
ares93 said:
Early Blueangels overclocked better than the newer ones. I had one that ran on 600mhz (594 or something similar). My current BA, one of the last ones ever manufactured according to HTC, based on the serial number, only does 471mhz stable with the original board. Everything above that locks up the device. I bought a busted mid-series BA for cheap and transplanted the motherboard, stable at 530mhz.
EDIT: Its a hit or miss really. Its almost impossible to identify early models if they're in good nick. I look for the ugliest, most used BA when I'm parts hunting. Bigger chance of the being older. If you have a few spare boards, it might be worth checking which one clocks best and use that.
EDIT2: Might just be dodgy statistics since I only own seven of these things, but from my experience, branded devices clock better. Again, might just be accidental but still.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You know there's some overclock-function in D-Two's ROM?
Aside from this- IMEI-Number should be a good indicator. Last number is checksum, and those i think eight before it should tell you if you've got an early model...
Tested yesterday. Took a 1490mAh Battery, unchecked Display Off after XX minutes and ran Googlemaps. After 2 1/4 hours battery was down to 45% and device turned off.
I'm now rebuilding the whole installation to rediscover little steps i may have forgotten in between, as i'm working on the whole thing cince early in july with several interruptions.
And think about antenna as in the place i've got it now it may shield GPS antenna a bit.
edit:now tested with 2400mAh battery. I couldn't believe it! Amazing! After last test - but now running and running; after three hours warning/battery low/ of course dismissed... BA keeps on running with lumid display for at least 5hours44 (no joke!)minutes. Imagine now 3xxc or 4xxx mAh! Power management and age of battery seem to be really important. Will countertest with Sundreams ROM, has got superb data management, but mean keyboard.
edit2: gps fix in new area ~5 minutes, re-log in less than 2.
B-44 said:
Don't just say thanks- klick it! (Of course i'm nevertheless glad 'bout it...)
Project is getting better and better, antenna problem solved.
Now working on a proper version for my own everyday-use.
Because of gsm-network-coverage, double-sim should be next project.
Together with D-Two we're heading for Blue Angel 2.0 !:highfive:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dual-sim adapter like this: http://www.ebay.de/itm/DUAL-SIM-Ada...94541452?pt=Handy_Zubehör&hash=item4abcc3ff8c should work.
I tested one in my xda flame. There are a lot of brands out there. Mine was a Magicsim 3G - no cut. Look for: dual sim adapter 3G on ebay. About 15 Euro used. I like the no cut version with the foil board in between, as it is more flexible to build in.
SpecTec SDG-810 2-in-1 SDIO GPS Receiver Card & Micro SD
It would be nice if this had a linux driver, wasn't $50+, and didn't stick so far out of the top. Link
notime2d8 said:
It would be nice if this had a linux driver, wasn't $50+, and didn't stick so far out of the top. Link
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've seen those devices but they are useless to us. First as you said they stick out totally uncomfortably, and second they would hinder us from using a 16GB storage card.
The ones i yet couldn't cope with are USB-sticks... maybe we could unshell them. Data connection will be the question.
muckelmaus said:
Dual-sim adapter like this: http://www.ebay.de/itm/DUAL-SIM-Ada...94541452?pt=Handy_Zubehör&hash=item4abcc3ff8c should work.
I tested one in my xda flame. There are a lot of brands out there. Mine was a Magicsim 3G - no cut. Look for: dual sim adapter 3G on ebay. About 15 Euro used. I like the no cut version with the foil board in between, as it is more flexible to build in.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Cool you're here. As i wrote- double sim is NEXT, i know different devices, but first i'll take a look at optimizing antenna. I often don't see a difference to normal BA, but just want to get a little trick more...
Related
Hey guys ive done a pretty quick review of this GPS receiver.
You can find it HERE
You cna buy these things dirt cheap on ebay.
Do not BUY this GPS on EBAY from ANY SELLERS!
This product is sold by several different companies on ebay that are all the same.
NOTE: IF you win it cheaply as I did, THE COMPANY WILL NOT MAIL THE ITEM TO YOU.
This happened to me, I had a very long and nasty process with them, including false feedback from them (They said I didn't pay etc?? thank God for Paypal receipts...)
etc.
I only resolved this by contacting a senior guys there and getting hastled.
TWO WEEKS LATER, another ebayer, who won his cheaply too had the same thing happen to him and asked for my help. SURPRISED?
SO Do not win this item item for 14.99 GBP+ 12.99GBP shipping, they will try not to send it to you. OVERPAY FOR IT. Then you will get it.
Also, The tracking is sensitive (works in my jeans etc) BUT INACCURATE in a City like London, it just jumps around too much, wrong streets. CONCLUSION: not great for urban corridors.
Mine will go back to Ebay. Soon.
If only
If only I had seen this thread a little earlier. Purchased mine today for around £18.50 plus the P&P.
Yeah they are quite obviously the same company etc hence the timing of the auctions, but not sure whether I am bothered about that.
Will have to wait and see if it turns up - as I did not pay the supplement I don't expect it for around two weeks.
Any other comments on performance ? - this will be my first bluetooth GPS. (If it shows up).
crazyC said:
If only I had seen this thread a little earlier. Purchased mine today for around £18.50 plus the P&P.
Yeah they are quite obviously the same company etc hence the timing of the auctions, but not sure whether I am bothered about that.
Will have to wait and see if it turns up - as I did not pay the supplement I don't expect it for around two weeks.
Any other comments on performance ? - this will be my first bluetooth GPS. (If it shows up).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HMM, after postage etc... it was around 25 quid i payed for it.
As for performance issues i havent had any complaints so far, first time i saw this unit was in Uni (Leeds) where a friend was using it on his Wizard, it was also a very built up area, indoors on the ground floor which is technically the basement but as it is on the side if a hill the room is exposed to the outside. He quickly got a fix etc....
I tested it out this weekend and it worked brilliantly! Hence why i wrote the review!?
It was due to the review that I went for it - total cost inc packaging for me was £31.
I will post as to (a) whether it shows up, and (b) what I make of it, in due course.
Have been emailed to say it is being dispatched.....
It has arrived.
The wife has put it on charge for me.
Could anyone who has one, confirm
(a) how long the first charge should be? and
(b) what lights should be on whilst charging.
It seems that she gets no lights, or all lights if she switches it on. It is currently on charge (I hope) with no lights showing.
crazyC said:
It has arrived.
The wife has put it on charge for me.
Could anyone who has one, confirm
(a) how long the first charge should be? and
(b) what lights should be on whilst charging.
It seems that she gets no lights, or all lights if she switches it on. It is currently on charge (I hope) with no lights showing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just leave it on charge... whilst charging you should have a red(ish) light on... which turns off when its finished charging!
Cheers,
How do you rate it?
crazyC said:
How do you rate it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very Good! I bought mine last year from ebay and compared to my previous GPS unit the Holox is fantastic! very fast satellite lock, easy to use, good battery life, works well in built up areas and can be kept anywhere inside car without the worry of loosing satellites!
My only negative is you can't use it whilst its being charged!
EDIT:: False alarm, Im confused, how come for the past few days the module has had problems getting a fix, then now it gets a fix no problem.
Turning the device back on later and it gets an instant fix.
Could somebody explain how the GPS works before/after it gets a fix?!
OK, keeping in mind I have nothing to compare with.
All seems to work well, seems to take a minute before TomTom settles down and communicates well with it, but once its up seems OK. reception when not under open sky not quite as good as I expected although ok.
the advertising all boasts about tracking 32 satellites but ....
Anyway, seems to do the job for me.
What I need now is a cheap air vent mount (passive as have charger etc) to clip my M3100 into. Seen some on ebay etc but they look as if they obstruct the USB socket.
Brodit one looks good but at at least twenty quid for the mount and vent attachment.....
Any suggestions?
crazyC said:
OK, keeping in mind I have nothing to compare with.
All seems to work well, seems to take a minute before TomTom settles down and communicates well with it, but once its up seems OK. reception when not under open sky not quite as good as I expected although ok.
the advertising all boasts about tracking 32 satellites but ....
Anyway, seems to do the job for me.
What I need now is a cheap air vent mount (passive as have charger etc) to clip my M3100 into. Seen some on ebay etc but they look as if they obstruct the USB socket.
Brodit one looks good but at at least twenty quid for the mount and vent attachment.....
Any suggestions?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL so you werent tempted by the non-slip mat?
My indoors performance is ok upstairs but is garbage downstairs. I wasnt expecting much indoors though. I tested it on the train yesterday and it was working great, even had the speed fairly well on VisualGPSce
Actually I was. Its fine for the Holux but because of the angle I could not see the screen very well at all.....
I'm having a problem connecting it to my TyTN. I don't have the GPS settings that you're talking about in the control panel. I cannot even connect it to my notebook.
hZSoul said:
I'm having a problem connecting it to my TyTN. I don't have the GPS settings that you're talking about in the control panel. I cannot even connect it to my notebook.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Notice in the review i say you need to unlock the applet first if you are using WM5?!?!
Download HTweakC and you can unlock it using that.
If you are running WM6 (which is not clear from your signature) it should be present in start>settings>system(tab)>external GPS.
I did see that however, I wasn't sure exactly what you were talking about. I couldn't remember the name of the app anyways. I remember downloading it not too long ago.
I just wanted to say that I used this with Google Maps for WM, and it worked like a charm. I had up to 10 sats at one point, with the average being 8. Even indoors right now I have 8. Works quite nice. I have the GPSlim 236 though, not the 231.
Now if I can just get this thing to work in XP I will be all set.
I would also like to note that I have an unlimited data plan, and even using edge the map updated itself very fast, while being locked into my position when driving. That is on the Edge network to!
Anyone tried various buad rate settings - does it have any impact upon usage?
Er Indoors already rations my messing around with the hermes time and I can't really get away with going and playing with it and the BT GPS in the car etc.
Holox Bt441
HI GUYS, AFTER READING ALL THE THREADS ALL I CAN SAY ITS ALL A BIT HIT AND MISS ! I PURCHASED MY BT GPS ON E-BAY FOR AROUND £25 INC PP IT ARRIVED IN 3 DAYS AND AFTER A LITTLE FUN AND GAMES CONNECTED IT TO MY XDA MINI WIN 5. I USE IT LONDON ALL THE TIME AND FIND IT VERY RELIABLE AND ACCURATE, A LOT OF THE PROBLEMS SEEM TO STEM FROM SLOW SD CARDS AND TOMTOM SOFTWARE WHICH NEEDS CONSIDERABLE RESOURCES. I HAVE NOW GOT A T-MOBILE HTC KAISER WITH WIN 6 AND LOTS OF MEMORY AND 400MHZ CHIP ! SHOULD BE INTERESTING !
What software do you recommend to use with this? I tend to lose my way a lot around London. Could you post a link, so I can get it at ~25-30 quid.
NB: My first post
Yes another one of these threads sorry, but I was wondering what the general opinion on the holux gpslim 236, 240 and the holux M-1000 as I can not decide which of the three I should get, if it impacts the decision I live in Australia.
They are all new breed of BT GPS and should have no problem for any PPC. Performance wise there are not much difference.
240 is the smallest but has not exernal antenna port. That is probably the idfference you have to consider and whether you require external antenna or you want small size.
Otherwise just get any one which is the easiest, meaning one that can be sent to your country at lowest cost.
ive had a 236 over a year or so now , no issues to report
Ive experience with all three and i can say with out any hesitation
DONT BUY THE 236!
OK. its a great little GPS reciever and when it came out it was the best on the market, (physical power button is a major plus for me) My housemate, My father and I all bought one, and out of those 3 we have had all three fail within 2 years.
This is a common problem and having re-searched it i have found a solution. it appears to be a bad build quality between the PCB layers leading to bluetooth part of the reciever not getting power to startup.
the fix is either re-solder, put in the freezer for 20 mins or pack the plastic case with cardboard. However knowing these problems it's not a good unit to get.
Secondly, the 236 does have an external antenna port however, AFAIK alot of the cheap ebay anntenna dont fit it as the 236 has a small plasic lip JUST above the anenna port.
Aditonaly on the antenna front. I have the 236 (warentee replacment) hardwired on an ignision (GPS battery removed) in my glove box and even in city i find i get pretty awsome reception and it is rarly much of an issue. quick finds from COLD start etc are within 30 seconds or so even when not removed from the glovebox.
SO!... (im draggin on arn't I.. sorry)
the question comes down to the M1000 (which i got for my dad when his 2nd GPS broke just out of warrenty and before i found the BT fix) or the 240.
IMHO i think the decision comes down to what you want it for. If you want the reciever for a lot of WALKING in citys then get the 240, its the size of a pack of gum and so can be put in a pocket and be that little bit smaller.
However for ANYTHING else get the M1000 - OK its new so its a somwhat un-prooven as far as reliability goes but it has one major advantage over the 240 for me and that is the removable battery. the batteries are cheap as anything to get of ebay as AFAIK they were used in several nokia models, so you can keep a spare battery charged up if you're not near power. But more importantly if after time you batter in the 240 starts to not hold power you're stuffed with an expensive fix or having to buy a new reciever, with the M1000 it's a simple ebay option to replace the battery for a new one.
The M1000 is almost exactly the same size as the 236, although it does claim to be more accurate i think its all just a bit of a conn. the 236 is extreamly good and had i not have so many die in the first 18 months id have no isues recomending it.
so unless size is EXTREAMLY important get the M1000 it seems as far as i've used my dads new one to be excerlent, and although its almost 2x the size of the 240 your talking about a unit that is either small or Very small so its not too much of an issue.
I use my 236 for tomtom, and moutain biking, and hill walking with digital ordiance survey maps, i've never considder the size to be an issue, and i walk with a spare battery for it as a kind of emergency backup so im happy.
I hear the M-1000 uses a different chipset? is that anything to worry about? Size or battery life doesn't matter to me as I'll probably keep it charging in the car the whole time. What is the start up time of the M-1000 for a cold start?
Thanks for the responses guys
Is it possible to power an HTC HD2 without a battery or the back cover? I found one about an hour ago in my downtown area, missing a SIM card and missing the microSD card. As noted it doesn't have a back cover or a battery, so my intention was to attach a "standard" 5V/1A cell phone battery charger. I figured out from a picture of the battery that if I've got the HD2 flat on the display and I'm looking at the back, the positive terminal will be the one on the left but, when I attach the power supply (which I tested before this attempt, it works) leads using micro-alligator clips and push the power button (front of display, button furthest on the right, I think, never used one of these HD2's before) I get no response.
Now, the question is either a) am I not getting any response at all because the HD2 can't be powered up in this manner because there's no back cover or b) it's more likely to be completely toast because of the damage it apparently suffered in the drop that shattered the glass. The only damage (aside from the glass) is a very tiny scrape/scuff mark on the top right corner of the bezel - obviously that's where it hit the ground.
I don't own any of these apparently micro-USB style connectors (or is it mini-USB, I can't figure out which is which I suppose). Bleh, I just looked at a pic I found with Google Images, apparently it IS a micro-USB connector.
All blabbering aside, even if I had such a connector or a power supply using such a connector, is the phone going to even power up without a back cover on it or battery inside? I know a lot of devices become totally disabled when the back cover is removed (as my Dell Axim X51v does; as soon as I even throw the lock switch to unlock the back cover that disables the device totally.
Anyone able to provide some tips or suggestions? I have no way of knowing who it belongs to so I'm claiming it, and if I can verify it might work or does still function I might be willing to put some money into getting the glass/digitizer replaced, a new battery, power adapter, etc.
Anything at all would probably be quite helpful.
Thanks...
The HD2 works without back cover!
The HD2 doesnt work without battery...!! I've never heard of a mod to enable switching it on through micro-usb.
Be carefull you could be scammed...buying a phone in that state, because of the hit some other components may be damaged!! It depends on the price and money you're willing to risk!
no problem with powering on without the backcover. did that many times before.
but i guess its not possible without a battery...
DN41
Ah, ok, so the fact that there's the two metal 'dots' on the HD2 that apparently become a connection when the metal battery cover is in place don't affect powering it up, but no battery keeps it dead? Hrmmm...
Ok, if someone that owns an HD2 can confirm that it becomes very useful info. Take the back cover off, take the battery out, and tell me if plugging in a micro-USB cable (either from a computer USB port or from the AC adapter) allows it to function at all, and then try the same thing with the cover on (don't put the battery in, however).
So there's 3 possibilities:
1) It'll work off the micro-USB power with no battery and no cover
2) It'll work off the micro-USB power with just the cover installed but no battery
3) It'll work off the micro-USB power with no cover but with a battery installed
and actually the fourth possibility which doesn't matter in my case:
4) It'll work off the micro-USB power with the cover and the battery installed
Dammit I hate it when I find stuff like this and can't get it functional.
Again, thanks for any suggestions - and I didn't buy this phone, I found it a few hours ago, on the ground as I was walking home. I wouldn't buy something in this cosmetic condition unless I knew it was working even in spite of the cracked glass. I've owned iPhones with horribly shattered glass on them but they still function, even all the multitouch functionality is still working - that's my hope here, that this device will still work just fine and if it does then I'll pay to replace the glass/digitizer.
Thanks
Edit:
I think I just realized that the metal contacts on the inside of the back cover and those 'dots' could be because the HD2 is using that battery cover as a Wi-Fi antenna, plate-style antenna.
I just tested it for you. Without the battery in there is no starting it, period.
Might I suggest though that you ask around and find a mate with a microUSB, (you must have someone that has one), and plug it in when the battery contacts are jumped. It will probably work that way. I'm not going to try it because I have a perfectly good phone and have always mistrusted elec-trickery...
those spring loaded studs have been the subject of much discussion, with no definitive answer,, stop the cover rattling, grounding plate for the antenna, remnants of an unreleased car kit,,, who knows. certainly signal doesn't appear diminished with the cover off, and on the inside of the cover there is no coating on the metal where they connect, indicating a signal being passed so who knows.
i suspect simply attaching power to two contacts isn't enough because the third contact is expecting a signal of some kind? perhaps a connection from the battery charge protection circuits?
you could always buy a cheap copy battery from ebay, and just resell it if it doesn't work, or run a scam on your insurance with it? (did i just say that out loud??)
I'll say this again: I found the phone on the ground on the side of the street while walking home a few hours ago.
I don't use T-Mobile service and I have no intentions of using it as a phone; I already have a phone so I was going to use it as a portable media player sorta like an iPod touch if I can verify it works 100% and just needs a battery/back cover/replacement glass and digitizer. That's my intention at this point.
And I was thinking that yes it won't work at all without a battery so, thanks again for the info. I'll head out this morning to a T-Mobile store (actual T-Mobile and not a reseller) and see what they can tell me. Surely they'll have a battery/back cover and potentially an AC adapter to verify if it's 100% dead of somewhat functional even in spite of the busted glass.
Let's hope it works...
what about searching the owner?
DN41
Well, let's see:
- I can't power it up
- It has no SIM card
- It has no microSD card
- The only way to track the owner would be using the IMEI and I'd have to go to a T-Mobile store to do that, when that's done and they get the number, if the phone was stolen and then dumped in the trash/on the street where I found it, they call the police and I get in a bit of trouble for no good reason
That pretty much covers it.
okay, you're right...
i cant imagine how it landed there...
who would throw it just away?
sure that its a real phone and not a dummy?
DN41
DN41 said:
okay, you're right...
i cant imagine how it landed there...
who would throw it just away?
sure that its a real phone and not a dummy?
DN41
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i was in a thread yesterday where some guy talked about how he dropped his phone by accident whilst 'driving along with it in his hand, with his arm out of teh window', so yea, some people are , , well, insert your own noun here
oh no...how can you hold your arm out of the windows with a 500€ phone in your hand?
i just cant understand some people...that doestn go in my mind...
DN41
samsamuel said:
i was in a thread yesterday where some guy talked about how he dropped his phone by accident whilst 'driving along with it in his hand, with his arm out of teh window', so yea, some people are , , well, insert your own noun here
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought the same!
br0adband said:
they call the police and I get in a bit of trouble for no good reason
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not really mate. I found an iphone 4 yesterday and managed to get it back to its rightful owner. Took a couple of hours out of my day but what else could i do?
sike222 said:
Not really mate. I found an iphone 4 yesterday and managed to get it back to its rightful owner. Took a couple of hours out of my day but what else could i do?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, Yeah, with an iPhone 4 what else WOULD you do if you don't want the surgery to be able to use it! LOL
Also think if it was your phone! I'd be absolutely gutted, and very glad to get it back. But maybe it's unregistered (through the IMEI) or not been reported as missing.
In the UK (don't know about elsewhere) if you report that you found something to the police (I found a £50 note) and no one can show that they own it then it's yours after about 28 days.
Unless you have really dumb cops then you shouldn't get into trouble if you take it in!
On the other hand you may find the battery and/or cover if you look carefully in the area where you found the phone.
Sam.
br0adband said:
Ah, ok, so the fact that there's the two metal 'dots' on the HD2 that apparently become a connection when the metal battery cover is in place don't affect powering it up, but no battery keeps it dead? Hrmmm...
Ok, if someone that owns an HD2 can confirm that it becomes very useful info. Take the back cover off, take the battery out, and tell me if plugging in a micro-USB cable (either from a computer USB port or from the AC adapter) allows it to function at all, and then try the same thing with the cover on (don't put the battery in, however).
So there's 3 possibilities:
1) It'll work off the micro-USB power with no battery and no cover
2) It'll work off the micro-USB power with just the cover installed but no battery
3) It'll work off the micro-USB power with no cover but with a battery installed
[snip]
Thanks
Edit:
I think I just realized that the metal contacts on the inside of the back cover and those 'dots' could be because the HD2 is using that battery cover as a Wi-Fi antenna, plate-style antenna.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think those contacts are just to ground the back cover to stop it causing interference. It doesn't seem to affect the phone if I don't have it on or am using the plastic cover with my big battery.
On a similar theme, does anyone know if it is possible to power the HD2 from the micro USB supply while I swap batteries. I don't want to have to do a soft reset which loses what you are doing. But I'm worried that without the battery to absorb the power there is a risk of damaging the circuits?
I don't want to just try it because I already blew my main board by powering the USB through a cheep adapter and a Nokia charger that supplied too much power and had I to get it repaired/replaced. I'm hoping someone already knows
Sam
samsamuel said:
i was in a thread yesterday where some guy talked about how he dropped his phone by accident whilst 'driving along with it in his hand, with his arm out of teh window', so yea, some people are , , well, insert your own noun here
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
did we ever get an answer as to why that, im going to select the noun "twat" was dangling his hd2 out of the window @ 40mph??
I need closure on that one.....
Hey guys,
I went out on a limb and bought the OWL car charger+dock for my DNA.
There is a bunch of discussion on the item here: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2029734 along with plenty of pictures.
I wanted to let you guys know some specifics for the DNA:
1. The phone fits perfectly into the clip. I don't have any cases, so I can't test that, but naked the phone fits like a glove and is very secure, even upside down.
2. Even the "second generation" of charger still does not put out enough juice for the DNA, even with the phone at idle.
I have emailed Moon and will update this thread when I hear back from him. I am thinking the problem might have something to do with the controller inside the charger. It switches to red (charging) momentarily when the phone is inserted, but then switches back to green (full).
bmyton said:
I have emailed Moon and will update this thread when I hear back from him.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Update 1: Moon has emailed back already to assure me that if the charger doesn't work, he will do what it takes to make it right.
I am hoping we can figure out a way to make the phone work in the charger, since I love the design and the convenience of Qi...
awesome! I have been wondering if it works for our phone since I saw the post you linked above about a week ago. I emailed moon about it, but he was unsure. I'm glad that someone confirmed what I have been wondering. Thanks again
I'm also looking forward to more info on this. Going through the website I couldn't quite follow if it worked or not.
Update 2:
The Qi charging coil built into the CarPad does work to charge the HTC DNA, unfortunately the coil is positioned about 0.5" too low for the phone.
Moon is working on an adjustment to the circuit board to re-position the charging coil.
Tonight I am going to take a look at temperatures during charging. With the screen turned on the battery did get 3-4°C warmer than normal on the Nokia Qi charger, but it was a pretty short charge. I am going to try leaving the screen turned on and the phone charging on the CarPad tonight for a couple of hours to see the charge rate and temperature change.
Other news:
There does not seem to be any scuffing, scratching, or denting of the phone's finish caused by inserting and removing from the clip. I had worried that the spring arms on the side might hurt the matte finish on the back of the phone, but so far I don't see any changes.
Thanks guys,
Ben
thanks for the update, keep us posted. in car qi charging is very interesting.
Sent from my HTC6435LVW using Tapatalk 2
Thanks, I got a reply from Moon that he thinks the "autopad" will be the option for the DNA and he'll let me know when it is available. I will post info here if I hear back.
http://owlpad.net/owl-autopad/
Update 3:
Good news tonight. First, I've done a temperature test using the phone at room temperature. With navigation, LTE, and the screen constantly on the CarPad provides moderage charge (+200mAh) and does not cause excessively high heat (under 45°C). This is comparable with the 43°C I saw with the Nokia Qi charger while watching a Netflix Stream.
With the screen off the temperature is also pretty normal (35°C) so I think the coil is good.
Moon at Owl Chargers tells me that he may add a little to the coil to make it more consistent on the charging, and he is going to create a new PCB that has the coil positioned 1/2" higher so that it will line up properly with the DNA.
It sounds like this change could happen pretty quickly, but I will let you know when I have the test board in hand.
Thanks guys,
Ben
Please keep the updates coming, thanks!
Hey everyone, sorry for a few days of delay.
I talked to Moon this morning and he thinks they should have the test board created by the beginning of next week. He is moving the charging coil up to line up better with both the DNA and the Galaxy S3, and he is upgrading to a bigger charging coil to presumably give better charging efficiency.
I have removed the standard charging coil from the phone holding base and have been using it as a standard desktop charger for the last few days (with the Owl-Pad supplied AC Adapter). It has been working well for that as long as I position the phone properly, so with any luck the new board should fix the problem in the car mount.
I will let you guys know when the new part ships, and will be sure to take pictures of the new versus old board.
Thanks,
Ben
Thanks for the updates.
Sudo make me a sandwich.
Good news from Moon at OWL Pad today, the new circuit board is complete, his testing looks good, and he is shipping it out to me to test on the DNA tomorrow.
I will update everyone here with pictures once I have the new board and have been able to try it out, but Moon posted some initial tests on the Galaxy S3 and Note 2 which both charge at the higher position. Those tests looked good so I have to think it will work on the DNA as well.
Thanks all,
Ben
(You can see my pictures and charging screenshots on the OwlPad site)
http://owlpad.net/2013/02/24/owl-carpad-for-htc-droid-dn/
AWESOME! thanks again. for the final product, he will make a new charger right? we wont have to buy the old one and replace the circuit board i hope.
thanks again.
bigjew92 said:
AWESOME! thanks again. for the final product, he will make a new charger right? we wont have to buy the old one and replace the circuit board i hope.
thanks again.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure how he would do that. I'm sure he has a bunch of the units already boxed up from the last production run. It might be that he has to ship the old unit and the new board separate. Honestly, changing the board was incredibly easy. There are four screws and then the old board just lifts out and the new one drops in.
When the new one comes in I had planned on putting up pictures showing how to remove the old one and install the new one.
bmyton said:
I'm not sure how he would do that. I'm sure he has a bunch of the units already boxed up from the last production run. It might be that he has to ship the old unit and the new board separate. Honestly, changing the board was incredibly easy. There are four screws and then the old board just lifts out and the new one drops in.
When the new one comes in I had planned on putting up pictures showing how to remove the old one and install the new one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think I'd love to get both boards since then I'd be prepared if my next phone requires the "other" position.
breeze94 said:
I think I'd love to get both boards since then I'd be prepared if my next phone requires the "other" position.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
f
Looks like the set is for sale for the DNA on the web page now. Still sounds like he's waiting for test results but you go through with an order now if you want.
Hey Guys,
I got the unit in the mail when I got home from work (30 minutes ago).
So far everything looks GREAT!
I am running temperature and charging tests now, but the new coil position looks perfect, and I'm getting as much or possibly more current out of the OWL charger than I was getting out of the Nokia.
Tonight I should have pictures and screen shots available from my early tests, but I have to say that everything looks great so far.
I also want to add that the level of customer service and responsiveness from Moon at OWL charging was incredible. If I got service half as good from the companies I do business with in the US I would be amazed, and these folks are having to deal with me from the other side of the world. I have absolutely no ties with their company, and hadn't even spoken to them to ask if the charger worked for my phone before I ordered, but they went above and beyond any expectations in getting this charger working.
Once I have a few hours charging I can fill in the remaining details (temperatures, approximate charge time, etc), but right now I would say the newest version is a huge success!
-Ben
bmyton said:
So far everything looks GREAT!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I forgot to mention, the +300 mah charging rate was with the screen locked on, LTE, GPS, Navigation, and Pandora all running.
Ben
bmyton said:
Hey Guys,
I got the unit in the mail when I got home from work (30 minutes ago).
So far everything looks GREAT!
I am running temperature and charging tests now, but the new coil position looks perfect, and I'm getting as much or possibly more current out of the OWL charger than I was getting out of the Nokia.
Tonight I should have pictures and screen shots available from my early tests, but I have to say that everything looks great so far.
I also want to add that the level of customer service and responsiveness from Moon at OWL charging was incredible. If I got service half as good from the companies I do business with in the US I would be amazed, and these folks are having to deal with me from the other side of the world. I have absolutely no ties with their company, and hadn't even spoken to them to ask if the charger worked for my phone before I ordered, but they went above and beyond any expectations in getting this charger working.
Once I have a few hours charging I can fill in the remaining details (temperatures, approximate charge time, etc), but right now I would say the newest version is a huge success!
-Ben
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
awesome! thanks for the feedback and being a Guinea pig for us all... i really appreciate it. so to make sure, you are now using the carpad/N2 right? if so, i'm gunna go ahead and place my order.
Thanks again
bmyton said:
I forgot to mention, the +300 mah charging rate was with the screen locked on, LTE, GPS, Navigation, and Pandora all running.
Ben
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! Placed my order. I'm willing to give it a shot at this point!
I don't post here much since I have no clue about programming a phone. However, I know having a qi charger for this phone has been a challenge... Imagine my joy when I found one that only costs $5, and is also a stand! These are at 5 Below. It's not a fast charger, but it does work since it is adjustable.
I actually have this one
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07P999H4J
Initially it wouldn't work unless I placed the phone up a little higher, but all I did was open up the charger and moved the charging coils down a bit to match the location on the phone. It doesn't require any kind of soldering or anything. Just unscrewing, removal of adhesive (razor blade/knife), moving the coil set down, and then contact cementing it back in place. That being said, it's still annoying that Razer put the coil low on the phone.
I bought one of these this week. Having a little trouble finding the sweet spot. I'll wake up with the battery sitting at 98-99% and not charging. Maybe that's how wireless works? Charging on/off.
Reznor7 said:
I bought one of these this week. Having a little trouble finding the sweet spot. I'll wake up with the battery sitting at 98-99% and not charging. Maybe that's how wireless works? Charging on/off.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just acquired a new to me RP2 so I have not checked this one yet, but all of my previous phones would qi charge up to 100% and then stop and sit slowly draining until the minimum battery percentage threshold would trigger it to charge again. Most were 90-95% when they would start charging again. I suspect it is to protect the battery from being damaged by too much charging, but that could be way off from the real reason for it.
Ravenmtx said:
I actually have this one
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07P999H4J
Initially it wouldn't work unless I placed the phone up a little higher, but all I did was open up the charger and moved the charging coils down a bit to match the location on the phone. It doesn't require any kind of soldering or anything. Just unscrewing, removal of adhesive (razor blade/knife), moving the coil set down, and then contact cementing it back in place. That being said, it's still annoying that Razer put the coil low on the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Made an account just to chime in but I can confirm this works. It took a bit of doing, especially since I don't really have any electrical knowledge or skills so this was uncharted territory for me but it just took a bit of time and patience.
The one detail I would add is that in order to get the coils low enough to register for me (or for at least the case I was using) I had to break some protruding plastic teeth from the inside of the case. At first glance they looked like they were used the clip the front to the back, but there was no female slot to take the clips. Once I removed them I could position the coils EXACTLY where I needed them.
I included a pic of what position works for me. Good luck everyone!