I am having the same problems many people seem to have had with their FP1s:
The USB charging socket is dodgy and only chargers when the cable is held at a certain angle.
The battery goes flat incredibly quickly - from say 60% to 15% in a matter of minutes.
Even when my phone is on charge, with the red charging light - it does not charge. It stays on (for example) 35% for the time the charger is plugged in, and as soon as i take it out it immediately falls to (for example) 18%.
This wouldnāt be too much of a problem if i could easily get hold of a new battery and replace the USB connector, but as this forum tells us, this is increasingly impossible. The motherboard is unavailable to buy, and somewhat unbelievably, Fairphone donāt have batteries available.
This is slightly mind-boggling to me - how are we supposed to extend the life of our phones when we canār replace the battery? I donāt really know what to do nowā¦ if it gets any worse, my phone will just be unusable.
It seems like my only option is to find a phone repair shop who is willing to do difficult soldering to replace the USB - I assume at a high cost (thatās if I can even find a shop to do it, which a lot of people seems to be struggling to do). And even then, I still have a pretty duff battery, which I am struggling to replace.
I love Fairphone, and everything about them - I think this is a great project and want to support it. My phone is nearly 3 years old, and I canāt afford to buy a FP2 atm. At the least, I would have hoped that my phone would be as easy as possible to repair when broken, and that Fariphone would make it as easy as possible by having all the parts I need in stock.
Anyone have any brilliant ideas that have not been talked about previously?
I think a new battery wonāt help you. I have the same problem and bought one of the last available batteries to solve it. Unfortunately it did not. So I am open for more suggestions as well
I too share your frustration at the lack of replacement batteries. I have been trying to get a replacement as my battery is bloating. The advice on one page is to buy a new battery, Out of stock on another page, and references to a letter in 2016 that I never saw saying that they are withdrawing supportā¦an this for a phone whoās USP is its repair-ability. Looks like its time to go back to a manufacture with a better business modelā¦
I just sent them an email asking how to get a new battery. Does anybody know if they will have extra batteries available??.. I meanā¦I bought this mobile phone because of the long-life possibility (spare parts, etc)ā¦ if they cannot offer that service after just 4 years then this mobile is no different from the other onesā¦ that would be very very disappointing and I would feel certainly scammed.
Wellā¦ for other phones you quite often get third party batteries for a good price on eBay for quite a few years. So there is a differenceā¦
We have a FP1 from the very first batch in our household and it works without any issues on the second battery. Not being able to replace the battery when it is required the next time would be a showstopper.
That brings me to this question: Wouldnāt it be possible for future FPs to work on a battery that has the same format as some well known other phones? How āfairā is the battery of the FP? If it isnāt fairer than any other battery, in that way FP could relax a little and rely on the third-party spare parts for other phones. The user benefit would be cheaper spare parts with better availability.
I know that this would put another constraint into the design of the phone but it would also be another aspect of modularity and interchangeability.
Everybody knows the main problem with all mobile phone and wireless devices in the world: the battery. On my battery it is written: āTHIS IS YOUR BATTERY. It provides the power to keep you connected. But in case it ever does run out of energy, you can always replace itā¦ā. So now I need to replace itā¦ if they cannot provide a solution then we all (FP users) have a problem (and the phone is only 3.5 yo).
@yofaka: Iāve had my USB connector resolderes twice already. Charging works like before again. Itās worth to find a #localrepairshop that does the job for you!
What a joke! What is the āofficial constructive solutionā of Fairphone? This sounds to me like, ok, we got your money, that is all we needed.
Here is one solution: why donāt you guys (Fairphone) ask all FP1 users if they would like a spare battery? I am pretty sure that we all would buy 1-2 batteries knowing that there will no longer be batteries available. We can organize a battery batch amongst all FP1 users. Of course, this should be a non-profitable solution for Fairphone (they have the right contacts, we have the needs and the money to pay for it).
@EnricPu Youāll have to contact Fairphone at support(@)fairphone.com to address Fairphone directly. You generally canāt expect an official answer hereā¦
Glad that you have read the fp1openletter. I will move this topic to #fairphone-road-map as it hasnāt developed into a helpful topic that fits into #fairphone-help.
@all If the future posts turn around themselves and donāt give any constructive proposals, Iāll close this topic. Remember that you can click if you agree with some other personās post.
A ādodgyā USB-connector will be a result of rough handling.
I have always had charging issues when using the original (version 1, 2000mAh) battery. Since using a new version (version 2, 2100mAh) I never had any issue any more.
I donāt feel scammed. I understand that Fairphone were trying something very ambitious and worthwhile. FP1 served me well for a couple of years. I did manage to get a replacement battery when they had them in stock. They have learnt about the fragile USB connection and it is replaceable in the second model FP2.
The problems stem I think from economies of scale, or the lack of them. It was probably a mistake to have a bespoke battery when the volumes required as replacements were so unpredictable and small.
I quite understand that Fairphone wanted to move on to FP2 learning the lessons of FP1. I suppose my only disappointment was that the pioneers like us with FP1 who wanted to keep them going as long as possible are left high and dry now. Perhaps FP2s should have been reserved for us rather than allowing them to sell out to new buyers.
I would go a step further - Iād buy a spare battery and a new motherboard if I could. My FP1 will only charge from one (partly broken) HTC cable. No other USB cable will work, because of the faulty USB socket. But without a new stock of motherboards, Iām stuck. Make me a motherboard and Iāll buy it
Yeah, unfortunately the list at #localrepairshop is very incomplete. Basically any mobile phone shop that does soldering can do it, though you should be able to trust them. If you are not comfortable with leaving your Fairphone with one shop, try another one.
In London I have only heard of TFix. They are a professional repair center. I wonder if they would accept a Fairphone 1 repair order. If you ask, please tell us here on the forum!