'liquid' mark under the screen?

GMGQ · 01-12-04, 01:28 AM

My one month old X3i.

About a week ago I noticed a little dark spot in the middle of the screen. It kind of looks like a droplet of water under the screen protector. Then it got bigger. It's not about 1cm x 0.5cm (oval shape).

I thought it was water under the screen protector, so I finally decided to peel it off and reseat it. But the dark spot was still there!!! When I press around that area, I see the rainbow of colours you see when you press down on an LCD screen.

I'm going to call dell tomorrow (I've been on vacation), but I just wanted to see if anyone else here can tell me what this is so that I'm prepared? This is covered under warranty right??? The screen has never endured any hard impacts, and I've always put it back in the case after each use. It just suddenly appeared. TIA :S

deftech · 01-12-04, 01:36 AM

Have you had the Axim in an area that might have a lot of condensation? Such as bathroom (with hot water running), left in car overnight, etc.?

GMGQ · 01-12-04, 01:40 AM

Quote:

Originally posted by deftech
Have you had the Axim in an area that might have a lot of condensation? Such as bathroom (with hot water running), left in car overnight, etc.?

....nope, just regular indoor use, never used it in the rain or anything. Always put it in the cradle at night on my desk.

---

Speaking to a Dell tech support agent, gave him the express service code on the back of the X3i, but he came up with this weird info of some other company. Weird... argh, transferring me to customer care now to 'update my info' .

deftech · 01-12-04, 01:42 AM

That's definately an odd case then, especially since it was not between the screen and the screen protector. I can't think of any other option besides calling Dell tomorrow.

GMGQ · 01-12-04, 01:57 AM

YES. Finally got through to dell canadian tech support. Rep. pulled me up right away, I told him the problem, and he immediately said he'll dispatch a new unit to me. I'm on hold while he sets it up.

DONE, should get it shortly.

deftech · 01-12-04, 02:27 AM

Great. Glad to hear that you didn't have any complications.

Saile · 01-12-04, 09:14 PM

Just a quick note: the same thing happened to me, and they're mailing me a replacement that I should recieve tomorrow. As far as I can tell, it's the case the Axim is in.
If the screen is on the side of the clip, the weight of the clip will actually leave that mark on the screen. In one instance on these forums, the mark went away. Mine receded a little bit, but it's still there. I'd suggest getting a new case, or making sure to ALWAYS keep the screen side away from the clip.

I mentioned on here earlier, I'm an utter NERD about keeping my screen protected, that's why I was just as shocked to see that "pocket of water" under my screen. If you slip your Axim back in your case, I'm sure you'll see the "splotch" matches up with the clip.

Have fun with your new one!

GMGQ · 01-13-04, 02:14 AM

You mean the case that the Axim X3i comes with from Dell? Yes, I do keep mine in that case, but the screen faces OUT from the clip (so the battery side is to the clip).

Plus after the small blotch appeared, I actually went on holidays from work, so I didn't even keep it in the case that often. I just used it around the house.

Some have actually receded eh? I'll have to keep an eye on it. Thanks for your input!

Quote:

Originally posted by Saile
Just a quick note: the same thing happened to me, and they're mailing me a replacement that I should recieve tomorrow. As far as I can tell, it's the case the Axim is in.
If the screen is on the side of the clip, the weight of the clip will actually leave that mark on the screen. In one instance on these forums, the mark went away. Mine receded a little bit, but it's still there. I'd suggest getting a new case, or making sure to ALWAYS keep the screen side away from the clip.
I mentioned on here earlier, I'm an utter NERD about keeping my screen protected, that's why I was just as shocked to see that "pocket of water" under my screen. If you slip your Axim back in your case, I'm sure you'll see the "splotch" matches up with the clip.

Have fun with your new one!

TimSH · 01-13-04, 10:48 AM

I've seen similar problems on all manner of PDAs ranging from Palm to Handspring to Compaq to HP to Sony... it's just a defect in the LCD screen. It happens (unfortunately) more than you might think.

fujiinator · 01-13-04, 11:33 AM

My wife's Axim X5 400 MHz had the same problem. In talking to a technician friend, he told me that it was probably the LCD screen was delaminating. In other words the screen and the glue were separating and making the touch screen part unusable. My wife did not drop it or anything, it just seemed to have appeared suddenly without any explanation.

GMGQ · 01-14-04, 08:28 PM

Just got home and found the replacement unit here. It's a refurb, and and older revision (my old one was A02, this replacement one says A01 on the sticker under the battery, but A00 when I check the System Information).

I guess I can flash it, but it still sucks.

But the main thing is, it feels like the screen is puffed up. As if there's a non-adhesive screen protector on it? Is this how the older ones were?? Or is there really a screen protector on it? I've tried rubbing the screen and pulling whatever it is off, but it doesn't appear to budge. It's quite annoying, cuz my old one is solid to the tap.

Ideas? Thanks.

MrKlaatu · 01-14-04, 08:38 PM

It finally dawned on me what your "water mark" actually is.

Click HERE for pic.

Click HERE for information.

Your "watermark" isn't water at all, its a moire pattern (a visiual interference pattern) being generated between the two plastic layers of the digitizer. Between these two layers is a gel, when any kind of pressure is put upon the screen over a large area, this gel is displaced a bit and the two layers are forced closer together, allowing the creation of the moire pattern. On my Axim it looks a lot like an irregular "island" of a Mandelbrot Set, usually longer top to bottom, approximately in the center of the screen.

This happens to me occasionally when the foam lining of my PocketSolutions CoverUp is squeezed against my screen. It will normally clear itself up (you can actually see the pattern getting smaller).

If it is a bit more persistent, you can gently "massage" the screen with your thumbs from the outer edge towards the center, to redistribute the gel more quickly. Click the links above for more information.

MrKlaatu · 01-14-04, 08:42 PM

Mods.....Why is the [ img ] tag OFF in this Forum?

GMGQ · 01-14-04, 09:06 PM

Also, the thing is, the next day after I called in for a replacement, I noticed the mark was GONE from the screen! I'm looking at the screen now, and it's pretty much back to normal. I even took off my screen protector to check, and it basically looks as good as new.

Due to the 'puffy' screen and older revision of the replacement, I'm thinking about just keeping my original X3i now.... hmmerz... :S

Quote:

Originally posted by GMGQ
Just got home and found the replacement unit here. It's a refurb, and and older revision (my old one was A02, this replacement one says A01 on the sticker under the battery, but A00 when I check the System Information).

I guess I can flash it, but it still sucks.

But the main thing is, it feels like the screen is puffed up. As if there's a non-adhesive screen protector on it? Is this how the older ones were?? Or is there really a screen protector on it? I've tried rubbing the screen and pulling whatever it is off, but it doesn't appear to budge. It's quite annoying, cuz my old one is solid to the tap.

Ideas? Thanks.

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