I received today my new fairphone, but I’m quite disapointed. I cannot use it : when I touch the screen, random locations seem to be pressed. It almost blocked my PIN code (adding other numbers and clicking on “enter” when I didn’t want to). I cannot select any single app, it launches 2 or 3 of them… I have to restard it a lot of time to hope it gonna work 5 or 10 minutes, before it happens again.
I happens if I click on the screen, or if I move the phone.
Of course I made the Fairphone update, it didn’t help.
I have an other problem (probably nor connected) : I cannot install an app wich is heavy (400Mo), the DL always stops at 40Mo.
I am totaly fan of the Fairphone concept and have no problem with the fact that it’s heavier, not having 4G etc, but I really cannot use it like that. Is this kind of thing common ? Do I have to give it back ?
If you search the forum, you’ll see you are not the only one having that problem. However, most people only have this behaviour while charging with an ungrounded charger. If you are not charging, and still experiencing the behaviour, try grounding yourself. Static electricity could be an issue.
Just FTR, I don’t think, anyone ever came back to the forum to tell how the problem got sorted out. If you find a solution (or get a replacement), please tell us.
Thank you Humorktitik, as the phone was brand new, I was charging it.
The problems seems to occur only in charge : I gonna explore the forum and try to find if there’s a solution (cleaning the screen was not a solution ^^). I have seen a solution was to use grounded chargers, but in France there’s no USB charger with ground plug, so I’ll keep looking…
Is everybody has the same problem with chargers without ground, or is my Fairphone as a default somewhere ?
Greg, apparently more Fairphones show that behaviour. Mine does, as well. I don’t know if all do, but I would think so.
I ended up with an old Motorola charger. When I think about it, it’s probably not a matter of grounding, even If I repeatedly said so in different threads. All chargers working for me also have a europlug, i.e. are without grounding conductor (fr: fil de protection). But all chargers not working for me have a plug-in USB cable. I searched the web for some minutes, and the explanations people offer are mostly ridiculous.
I suggest that it has to do with the USB standard. USB power supply is limited to 500 mA in case of the USB 2.0 standard. With the FP, you can use 1000 mA chargers. According to the German Wikipedia, the phones detect via the resistance between the data lines D+ and D- if a changer is capable of supplying more that 500 mA. If the data lines are not short-circuited (i.e. have a resistance value > 200 Ω), they will assume the power supply can only charge with 500 mA. Wikipedia says that this specifications are rarely met in practice.
I don’t know what is happening there, really, but a wild guess it that the chargers do not show full compliance with the USB specifications and cause the charging electronics in the FP to freakout, which in turn affects the function of the phone. And that it has to do with short-circuiting the data lines. Maybe it’s also a matter of using your own USB cable with a charger: if the cable would bring the overall resistance close to 200 Ω, the phone might switch between 500 and 1000 mA loading mode all the time and freak out.
I don’t know. That’s one for the engineers, or somene with a proper training in physics. I forgot most I knew about it…
To solve your problem: may I suggest you just try different chargers? Try some you probably have lying around (or can get from friends) with the charging cable fixed, i.e. not a current transformer where you plug in a USB cable. Maybe someone would want to trade your charger against one which is working with the FP.
You can also charge your FP with a USB cable via your computer - then, only 500 mA are drawn, and your phone should load fine, but slow.
