X50v frozen up on password screen

bwbddb · 07-24-09, 01:53 PM

My axim x50v is locked up on the password screen. Tapping the numbers or the OK or anything else gets no responce. However, if I wait for about 20 seconds the screen gets darker and if I touch the screen again, it brightens up again! That means the screen sensor is working. The power button works, and I have soft reset it successfully many times but it always comes back to the password screen. One time I was just holding down buttons and a calibration screen appeared where I touched a moving plus sign and it responded to my tapping. I know I can do a hard reset, but I'll lose a lot of valuable software that I don't know how to replace.

I very much appreciate any help. Any ideas?

kcallahan · 07-24-09, 02:08 PM

Have you checked the lock switch on the side?

And - Welcome to Mobilitysite.

chout · 07-25-09, 01:07 PM

I've got a x51v and it does the same thing. During this "unresponsive state", I would tap in the 4 digits code. Even though nothing is displayed on screen to indicate the numbers are entered, couple seconds later, the normal screen comes up. This happens half the time. Mostly, I would turn on the Axim, and come back to it after a minute or so. By that time, the device is fully responsive. Not positive, but I think the delay is caused by it trying to reload the Odyssey wi-fi manager.

bwbddb · 07-25-09, 05:41 PM

Thanks for the help
kcallahan
The lock mechanism is off. In fact, it both powers on and goes into standby when I press the power button when it is off and on, respectively. Any other ideas?

Chout,
I have tried just typing in the password and hitting OK, but that doesn't seem to work either. It's encouraging to hear someone else has this problem and it resolved without a hard reset. Does it show a change on the screen when you do this before just loading up the desktop?

bwbddb · 07-26-09, 12:39 PM

Here's another quick thought: maybe the screen is so far out of alignment that it isn't registering my clicks. How do I get to the "align screen" thing? I got there once before and clicked about 12 times before doing a soft reset.

johnhu_2005 · 07-26-09, 03:50 PM

The diagnostic mode has an align screen test.

To get into diagnostic mode:

1. Hold Power button + Record button
2. While holding the two, tap and release the reset hole
3. When a screen pops up, release the Power + Record button
4. Follow the direction as prompted

Box · 07-26-09, 03:54 PM

Take off any screen protectors, and clean around under the edge of the screen with a business card.

chout · 07-27-09, 09:14 AM

Ok, w/o Odyssey running, when I turned on the unit this morning, the keypad showed up on screen almost immediately. Whereas before, it took a little while for the complete keypad to display. Tapped the 4 digit code, the keypad screen went away and the normal screen is displayed. The wait time for the Axim become usable is definitely less. I'll have to try this couple more times to confirm but I'm fairly certain I will get the same results in the subsequent tests. BTW, I have WM5 on mine.

If Odyssey is not the issue on yours, perhaps you can try closing other programs before putting the Axim in standby mode.

Good luck.

bwbddb · 07-28-09, 07:59 PM

Sorry for the late reply. My charger broke and I'm waiting to get another. I'm excited about trying your suggestions once I can get my Axim charged again. I'll post as soon as I get the Axim charged.

bwbddb · 07-30-09, 01:06 PM

OK. Got the new charger. I've cleaned the screen and it hasn't changed anything. When I use dell activesync, the password lets me see the device on the activesync on the PC, but the password screen stays on the Axim device.

So, community, here's some questions:
If I go into diagnostic mode, will I lose my programs or not be able to run them? (they are loaded onto SD cards BUT I can't reinstall them into the device as I've lost the install files.) The diagnostic mode says it will clear the RAM.

Is there a way to back up everything before a hard reset when I cannot get past the password screen on the device?

More info: I purchased this device from someone and they installed all the programs. The programs are mostly on the SD cards, but he told me that if I do a hard reset, the device may not let me run the programs without reinstalling them and I don't have the reinstall files. Any advice?

johnhu_2005 · 07-31-09, 10:06 AM

Diagnostic mode only clears the RAM (The actively running programs), it does not make you lose any installed programs or data.

I'm curious, is it possible for you to sync with Activesync or WMDC while in the lock screen mode? If it is, you can manually copy off the data before a hard reset.

If a program is installed onto the SD card, most program utilize some registry files. Therefore the programs would NOT work after a hard reset. You would need to reinstall them via .cab or .exe setup files.

bwbddb · 07-31-09, 01:13 PM

I backed up all the files like you said johnhu_2005 and did a hard reset. Now it's in that horrible align screen loop, so ultimately it WAS a digitizer problem. So now I'm searching for good sellers. There's some for $30 and some for $9 on ebay. I've posted a new thread asking if anyone has found a good ebayer for x50v digitizers. But if you guys know of anyone, I'd appreciate it. Thanks for all the help!