NetBook HORROR!!

[legal]

Well, the unexpected happened.......
AND its NOT my fault!!

The new NetBook I bought from POS to replace my series 7 (accidentally killed by me) was working yesterday when I last used it, but when I went to take it out of my case for a meeting today it was as dead as the proverbial.

I thought at first that perhaps the screen had gone (again) but when I tried to connect on my PC to the Psion Icon so as to be able to backup the dreaded "No connection" error message appears s that it seems as if the machune is really dead.

What can have caused it? I don;t remember seeing any other instances of sudden death of a netBook on this forum.
The ntbook was purchased in August from POS and is treated very very carefully indeed, rarely leaving the security of my desk - and just a short bus ride to a meeting seemed too much for it.

Has anybody got any ideas?

H - E -L- P

Andrew

[NbookMC218]

Maybe the battery cover on the l/hand side has come undone & this in combination with a low or misfitting or poorly contacted back-up battery has caused all memry loss. I must say that when my netBoook is on a very 'grippy' desk I do find it incredibly annoying that the rubber foot on the left side is actully attached to the battery compartment cover (thus causing it to come open as I pull the netBook towards me without lifting it off the desk). Thankfully as I have a docking station (excellent if like me you got it £ USED) this is only a problem away from home.

* Check your auto shut off time is set to something sensible like 03:00 mins (not 30:00 mins as it seems to set itself to after a hard reset / OS upgrade)
* Disable auto-on when opening the screen up (as the screen catch is a bit weak)
* Always check backup battery voltage before & certainly after you have (by mistake) let main battery drain down too low / not charged it up before going on holiday without it. My experience is that it will almost always show ALL the bars (3.0v) in normall use .... if it is less than this then it will be not very fit to hold your precious RAM memory for long if main battery voltage becomes critical / detached.

Hope these tips may help, Andrew. :(

[netBookBabe]

legal

I've had an instance once when my netBook seemed totally dead - it was in fact just a totally drained battery due to a similar circumstance described by Andrew Cook above. I hope his advice may help - check all connections and give it a good charge. It took a while for mine to come back to life.

By the way, I'm intrigued - POS don't sell netBooks, they never have. :confused:

Julie

[Ed_Ca22]

Unfortunately this has happened before. My netBook is completely dead, and I have had reports of other dead netbooks. It is a great shame but until I get the cash together to buy myself a new motherboard (which I believe to be the problem) that's the way it will be.

If anyone has any series 7/netBook/mBook parts spare (particularly motherboard) or damaged units that they would be interested in selling, please pm me or reply here, it would be greatly appreciated.

I really dont know what to suggest to you, I've tried everything with mine. Here are a few relevant posts you might want to check out on the subject:

My report of my broken netbook:
http://www.pdastreet.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=32698&highlight=dead+netbook

Some stuff people said about my dead netbook (Check page 1 and 2):
http://www.pdastreet.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=32801&perpage=15&pagenumber=1

stolkjos report of his dead netbook:
http://www.pdastreet.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=26674&highlight=dead+netbook

Please tell me what happens with yours, it would be interesting and hopefully helpful to know. Goodluck,

Ed.

[legal]

Thank you Lady and Gentlemen for your response.

If you give me your fax no., Julie, I'll fax you a copy of the receipt from POS.

As regards battery loss, I don't think this is the case as I only charged up the machine at the beginning of last week.

It seems to me more likely that the machine has gone the way of Eds machine!!

If anybody thinks it is worth sending to Psion for repair and how much this is likely to cost, please advise.

I must be honest - this sudden death coming so soon after my S7's demise has unnerved me completely, and I am seriously considering replacing the netBook with a WinCE or Pocket Book device if they are proven more reliable.

Sorry folks, but thats the score - after more than 10 years of Psion.

Andrew

[netBookBabe]

Originally posted by legal
As regards battery loss, I don't think this is the case as I only charged up the machine at the beginning of last week. legal

I was hoping that it WAS only a battery problem, so I'm sorry to hear that it appears to be more serious.

I think the point being made though was that the battery could have run down in only a few hours if for some reason the netBook was not switching off. I think that's what happened in my case.

A great shame if this means you will be leaving the ranks of Psion users, but needs must, I know. :(

I've sent you a PM.

Julie