Major Axim X3i problems

madhatter · 07-31-04, 10:48 AM

I've not had my Axim very long, and it worked fine until the other day I turned it on, and it wouldnt power up. I replaced the battery with another one which was still in the cradle, turned it on, and it seemed to power up. It was as if it had stopped responding though, It would not respond to any taps, or button presses. I noticed that every now and then it reboots itself. I installed some antivirus software [when I managed to get it to stay on long enough] in order to see if there were any viruses, but it found none. I did a hard reset thinking that this might fix the problem, but nothing. Thinking that my pc might be the problem (possibly virus infested) i did a hard reset and tried using it for a while without synchronising it with the pc, though I had the exact same problems. I'm going to contact dell next, though I wonder if there's something i'm overlooking. Hope someone can help and thanks in advance.

FallN · 07-31-04, 01:45 PM

Hi, Madhatter.

Sorry to read that your Axim is not behaving properly. A few questions to help try a figure out your problem:

1. Is this a refurbished X3/X3i? I get the feeling that it is... & if I'm right then send it back to Dell IMMEDIATELY because they only offer a 90day warranty so if you drag your feet you'll be stuck with a screwed up Axim.

2. What programs are installed on your Axim?? Some programs have a nssty tendency to lock up ypur handheld. Take your Axim out of the cradle/plug, do a hard reset and immediately start following the on screen prompts to set up screen alignment, etc. DO NOT INSTALL ANYTHING!! DO NOT SYNC YET!! Just open up a program or 2 to see if your Axim responds to screen taps. If it does, go into Start Menu -> Settings -> System -> Switcher Bar. This will put a little icon at the top of your screen. Clicking on the icon will display all your open programs and allows you to close the at will. You see, open programs drain vital resources. If too many programs are running or even a single pogram that saps too much RAM then you'll most definitely get a lock-up. Close all nonessentail running programs via the Switcher Bar-- the "X" botton, if you haven't noticed, only MINIMIZES the program. It doesn't truely close it!

3. Are you having problems without installing anything new on your Axim AFTER a Hard Reset?? If you don't have a ton of programs open and it just locks up, you probably have a faulty unit. Call Dell to get a replacement.

Tips:

Upon aligning the screen after a Hard Reset go into Start Menu -> Settings -> Memory -> Move the slider as far LEFT as you can leaving about 12 mb for storage. Doing this allows more programs to run simultaneously or RAM hungry apps including some Today Screen plug-ins that sap RAM from the moment you turn your axim on.

Install ALL programs onto a storage card!!! Only a few essential programs need be installed on your 12 MB of internal RAM that you designated in the Settings menu. Some include essential Today Screen plug-ins a few programs that specifically state that they HAVE to be installed in the main memory to work. Everthing else should be thrown on your memory card!

Today's PPC environment is still relatively clean and clear of viruses. The viruses that plauge normal PCs CANNOT migrate cross-platform!! Even if you open an effected email attachment from an infected PC, the script for that virus can't run on a PPC... and most virus scripts are not even written for the PPC platform!! No need to have a virus protection program that tend to zap resources, slow your Axim to a crawl scanning for viruses that don't even exisr yet and often LOCK-UP your handheld doing so!! If you are seriously that concerned about viruses simply set your Email client to NOT download attachments!! Plain and simple. Also, don't use anyone else's SD or MMC cards-- although chances of embedded malicious code being on the is slim to none, if you're paranoid that's another step to take.

Try not to burden you Axim with unnecessary Today Screen plug-ins. 2-3 maximum-- depending on the amount of RAM each on sucks up. Download a small system resource display program like BattMemTime. It will display your system's current usage of Battery and MEMORY letting you see, in real-time how much of your resources you have left and are using currently.

I hope this helped! :)

FallN · 07-31-04, 01:55 PM

Sory for the typos but I'm posting from my Axim. I can't edit posts either...

What i wanted to add was that you should alo consult the Great user gudes here on the forums. In particular, "What Can I Do With My Axim"-- amazing ammounts of knowledge and how-tos!!

Also do a search on these boards for people who've had similar issues and see what they did to resolve it.

Best of luck! :)

07-31-04, 01:56 PM

If you've done a hard reset, I really don't think its a software issue. Sounds like you've covered all your bases for troubleshooting. I would give them a call, sounds like something is on the outs . . . Memory, short in system board. One last thing, have you reproduced the issue with no SD card in the slot? I'm just grasping @ straws here, anyhow, hopefully Dell will get your issue straightened out!

madhatter · 07-31-04, 02:23 PM

my baby wasn't a refurbished model, it was bought new from the dell website.

i've tried it with no sd card, with sd card, and all kinds. there is absolutely nothing installed on it now.

is there some sort of ROM update, or update for pocketpc that i could install, perhaps solving some of these problems?

FallN · 07-31-04, 03:11 PM

Dell hasn't been selling Axim X3/X3i's for 3 months, approximately. So your X3i is atleast 3 months old. Exactly when did you start experiencing these problems?

Can you recreate the lock-ups? Are there a series of events/things that seem to lead more often than not to a system freeze or your screen taps to not register? Are you playing any PPC video games on it?

As for a ROM update, yes, there is a ROM update but if you can't keep your Axim "alive" long enough for the process to complete you'll wind up with a dead unit.

Tell me, is it just your screen freezing? Tr using the buttons to bring up your calander, notes, contact list, etc. Do the buttons respond??

If they do then it could be a wacky digitizer problem. If the buttons don't respond then you know it's probably a complete system lock-up... whcih could be caused by software, hardware or both.

Poke around and "play" with different senarios and see which one's seem to cause the problems. In the mean time, do not install any new programs or try to use ActiveSync. NO SYNCING! Active Sync, on an improperly functioning unit will cause MORE problems than anything-- crap, it causes a good deal of problems on even perfect units.

FallN · 07-31-04, 03:17 PM

Ummm... where's the edit button for posts on this board? Chris? LOL!

Anyway, to be more precise: Dell hasn't sold any NEW Axim X3/X3i's for about 3 months, so your until is at least 3 months old. Dell is still selling REFURBISHED X3/X31's, that's why I thought your's was refurbished.

Have you dropped, dinged, or otherwise physically "manhandled" your Axim? The more you tell me you've done a clean Hard Reset and not installed anything extra the more it's starting to look like a hardware problem... again, try to recreate the "lock-ups". If you can recreate it, then stay away from whatever is causing it. Otherwise, it's time to make a phone call to Dell and get a new working model sent to you...