[HARDWARE] Power button on MID X5A broken after 2 months! (fix)

Well, that's nice. I've had my MID X5A for about two months now, taking it with me absolutely everywhere I go. It's the one with the metal body that comes in a fake leather protective case. Apart from the battery being a bit crap, I've had no real problems with it until last night.

I was reading an ebook and wanted to enable airplane mode via the power button to save the battery. Annoyingly, the power button didn't respond. So I pushed it again with a little more force, this time managing to make the button DISAPPEAR ENTIRELY into the device!

So now I have a tablet that charges normally, it's in perfect working order except for the fact that I can't switch the damn thing on. The reset button does no good, and neither does connecting a USB keyboard that has a PC power button.

It turns out to be really easy to open the tablet. Just unscrew the case and you can take the back right off - probably voiding the warranty but I wasn't going to send it in for repair anyway. I'll ask a friend to fix it for me and maybe I'll write to the manufacturer for a replacement power button. Which is just a piece of plastic with metallic paint on it.

Has anyone else experienced such shoddy manufacturing and if so, what have you done about it?

 

Not a single reply in 24 hours.
Guess that gives me a good chance at Most Uninteresting Post of the Year!

 

Hi Houston.
Sorry to dissapoint you, it is for shure not the most uninteresting post of the year, it is quite informative.
But it seems that the button does not fail so often. Else i am shure some tortured soul would have joined in to get more advice.

Reading your Post i have no doubt that you can fix it, maybe you can even make it better then it was before.
These pads are produced with minimal quality control and the cheapes available pars so failure is allways an option =(
(certainly the g10 models are build much cheaper)

 

It's apparently only me that's unlucky with the power button on this device. Not that it would make me feel any better if other people's tablets were failing in the same way.
I will approach the manufacturer for a replacement button, just to see what happens and maybe to annoy them a little in return.

Whatever happens, I'll post it here. But I'm expecting it to take a while.

Thanks, Loonix!

 

sorry, you have no chance to get "Most Uninteresting Post of the Year!"

I broke power switch (exactly, tact switch behind silver plastic power switch) on X5A several weeks ago!
I re-soldered it. it seems ok but I'm always touching it softly now

 

Been experimenting a little. Opened the tablet, took out the system board and everything else that looked like it wouldn't break on first touch. The power button is the only moving part in the device, and it's the most fragile by far. So fragile in fact I'm not even going to try soldering it back together - it's only going to break again so I'll have to look around for a somewhat sturdier alternative that'll fit.

In the meantime, I've found that my tablet does switch itself on when I connect it to my laptop's USB port - as long as the battery is charged or charging. Which is ok for home use, but I'm going to look a right twat taking out my laptop in public just so I can switch on my tablet. It should also work with my mobile, though, which has USB host enabled. And maybe a case with battery-powered USB keyboard will also do the trick.

In all, I'm relieved that my tablet is sort of working again but still disappointed in the manufacturer's cheapness. Mostly relieved, though, and thanks for your helpful comments.

 

Ive only had mine a week and its already broke! I`m trying to contact supplier about it at the moment, but it seems they`re already on xmas hols. will leave it until new year and maybe try to dismantle to repair myself.
Does anyone have any pictures to help with dismantling?

 

Please, I need help. My father broke the power button last night on the x5a tablet I gave him for Christmas. I can still see the button, it's jammed in the device tilting upward. Any help on how to fix it or the manufacturer's address will be greatly appreciated.

 

Just a thought, radio shack sells switches that are threaded on the backside with a small retaining nut. I have used them on pc projects and in cars. Reset button replacement on an old tower and I fixed a buddies trunk release. It may work.... May not. How much room is in the case behind the switch?

Sent from my sdk using Android Tablet Forum App

 

I just messed up my power button similarly to the OP's on my generic Mid 7".

There's a PC repair place in San Diego that says they can work on tablets. I'll probably be talking to them soon.

 

yes this happened to me too. it really sucks. unfortunately i purchased it online and the website does not have replacement parts. so it looks like im screwed. actually i think im going to take it to a guy that fixes ipads. if anybody has suggestions please help.
thanks

 

If it wasn;t for your post I wouldn't have found this forum. A generic MID something - just says MID on the box. Same issue, button stuck in depressed position at an angle. It will pop up when a blade is inserted alongside but still doesn't switch the unit on. I'll open it over the weekend and see if it's idiot-fixable.

 

Houston, I think our name is bad luck, my 2nd names houston and the same thing happened to me with the same tablet. Still haven't found a solution.