I hope my reply can help you even if your post is a bit old now!
It happens the same to me. The USB connector did not work anymore and it charged only in that position.
I’ve opened the phone and discovered that the PCB tracks soldered to the three central USB pins were broken (but you can still have some contact pushing the pins downward pushing the connector like you did).
I solved this way (with the help of a professional microscope and the help of my solder-wizard Fabio M.:
We have:
removed the connector by unsoldering the remaining two lateral pins and the four ground pins.
Cleaned the PCB from soldering tin
I ordered a new USB connector from Farnell (the old one was probably usable but I preferred to buy a new one for less that 2 euros)
the old PCB tracks were not usable anymore so he has soldered three small wires on the central pins and then soldered them to the three resistors to the left of the connector (see picture).
remount everything and I got it! My Fairphone was back!
Hi Nicedears, excellent work. But as the previous poster has said, would be very usefull if you could post the code for the component on Farnell. They have a bewildering array of components on sale there. Thanks.
Nice, thanks, but unfortunately this is beyond my skills and two repair companies refused to do this as well. I guess new motherboard is the only option for me…
Maybe you find someone here on the forum, who lives near you and can help. If you want to try it, you can open a new thread (use the button “Reply as linked Topic” next to a post) in the Repair category of the forum.
I have done exactly this too Is very annoying to have to prop your phone just right to get it to charge Hurry up FP2… (and please have a stronger connector)
Well, in this case you should definitely qualify for a warranty repair. Contact Fairphone support and describe the problem, I think you will be offered a free repair immediately. Geht auch auf deutsch.
Has the part number that Peter_A posted ever been confirmed? A friend of mine needs to buy a usb connector for his FP1(U). A little stone got stuck into his connector and when he poked it out, he somehow damaged the connector. Now he gets a too high voltage warning whenever he turns his phone on and the battery doesn’t load anymore. In a repairshop they told him that they have to change the usb, but that they don’t have spare parts for chinese phones. So it would be great for him to buy the right connector and bring it to the repair shop, because a new mainboard would be too expensive…
I fear my USB-connector is also broken (but to check it by disassembling still stands at my plan)
My question: does anybody know, if FP itself does FIX broken USB-connectors or do they only replace the motherboard (which would not a very sustainable way to go) if FPs are sent in for repair?
What a pitty, that FP did not solve the quite early stated weak point (see quote below) of the USB connector strength…it was dedicated to break sooner or later…
Cheers, Robert
“In addition to this, we have identified another possible weak point in
the microUSB connector, which looks as if it is held just by the
soldering (there might be glue as well). The problem is that the stress
of the insertion/ejection of the USB connector will be dealt with
entirely with the soldering points, which could reduce its durability.
One alternative design for a future model could involve putting it on a
small cable and connector so it can be replaced and won’t damage the
main board if broken.”
Edit: Maybe @anon90052001 can provide us with an information about this?
For reasons of transparency you could also feed us with some numbers of infected / sent-in FP1 with a broken USB-connetor? (Although I know it would not count as advertisement for FP, but anyway all FP1s are already sold and you for sure included this for the FP2 in “lessons learned from developing two fairphones”, right?)
Hi urs_lesse, tride that - and nope, the only offer is to sell me a new mainboard. And as it is out of stock both for the FP1 and for the FP1U right now, I’m not even sure if that would be possible.
Anyway: I am NOT willing to spent more than 120 Euros (incl. shipping) for a new mainboard - with the perspective of having to do so again every other year! A part from the considerable costs, this is not really sustainable considering the raw materials a mainboard is made from…
I’m still trying to find someone here in my region who would dare to give soldering a try.
I am deeply dissappointed about Fairphone policies on dealing with this obviously well known predetermined breaking point. My FP experience will end here.
Tina, the FP1 is just a “normal China” phone build by the OEM who was ask to use fair solder during the process. I’m sad to say it, but it’s just a very normal phone, not designed to last very long. But it was the start for the FP project and they had to make a lot of compromises. And it … at least … partly, worked! The FP2 fixes a few of those issues by being more modular (and by being more expensive … and using a not so nice SoC …).
I’m sure someone with the right desolder station (expensive) and a bino can fix it. With a normal solder the SMD pins are too small to get this right
I wonder if a super glue coating of the usb part will help protecting the still intact FP1s? Or will that make things even worse? Any ideas?
In the Austrian Fairphoners Facebook group someone said, the repair of the USB connector was 39€, in a phone store in Vienna. I’m sure, wherever you are from, there are also phone stores, which can deal with these issues.
It seems like I would have a similiar / the same problem. Nearly all repair services in Munich regret to repair a fairphone, but they said, that not the “pins” of the USB port a broken, but the contact on (!) the motherboard. Therefore it is not possible to repair.
