[faithfullyclever]

BB 8820 trackball (for T-mobile) doesn't click and... on occasion acts like it is being clicked. When it clicks on its own, it drives me crazy because you can't do anything with it (like write an email or write in a note pad). One time I was trying to send an email and it was acting up like this and I sent out 3 or 4 incomplete emails because it would open up the small menu window and send in a split second.

The trackball actually got stuck a few times so I opened it up to clean out lint a few times, but it appears that the last time the roller ball clicked was before I went to clean out lint on one of the occasions that it needed to be cleaned. When I put the roller ball back in, it just would not click anymore, so it seemed. And then it started clicking on its own, like I mentioned above. Seems almost like it is stuck in the pushed mode or something every once in awhile. It appears to drain the battery quickly too when it is stuck. I can tell it is in the stuck mode too, because when I have not touched the phone for awhile and its screen is dark, the phone will light up like someone is trying to call, but in the end no one is calling. It is more like acting like I touched a button on the phone (though I did nothing).

Any help would be appreciated and thanks in advance!

Timothy

[The BlackBerry Kid]

check the FAQ section, it should help with cleaning it and then it might work.

[hjacker]

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

I have the exact same problem. I saw the problem when I woke up two hour later than I needed. The alarm didn't go off.it was clicking several times simultaneously and whenever I went to any menu it clicked all the way down to the last menu or function. I live in ukraine, but I bought an unlocked at&t from usa, and our provider doesn't service devices bought in any other places, so I have no warranty or whatever. I took a pen and got the trackball(BTW, not roll ball, use right definitions, because it helps others, when they search) out and used some vodka and cottonbud to clean the ball and the inner chamber. It lagged, then worked, then "autoclicked" again" then stopped working at all. I restarted the phone several times and noticed that the first very moment it works fine, but after 5 seconds it goes all mad again. So I believe it's more program error, not hardware. My friend said, that it works when you hold it just alittle bit longer(1-2 sec). Nowadays, it works 95% of time. So it must be some software error. If you find the certain cause of this problem, please let me know. Wow, I wrote kind of a novel)

[hjacker]

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

Originally Posted by The BlackBerry Kid

check the FAQ section, it should help with cleaning it and then it might work.

And might not.

[Thatzmister2u]

Originally Posted by faithfullyclever

BB 8820 trackball (for T-mobile) doesn't click and... on occasion acts like it is being clicked. When it clicks on its own, it drives me crazy because you can't do anything with it (like write an email or write in a note pad). One time I was trying to send an email and it was acting up like this and I sent out 3 or 4 incomplete emails because it would open up the small menu window and send in a split second.

The trackball actually got stuck a few times so I opened it up to clean out lint a few times, but it appears that the last time the roller ball clicked was before I went to clean out lint on one of the occasions that it needed to be cleaned. When I put the roller ball back in, it just would not click anymore, so it seemed. And then it started clicking on its own, like I mentioned above. Seems almost like it is stuck in the pushed mode or something every once in awhile. It appears to drain the battery quickly too when it is stuck. I can tell it is in the stuck mode too, because when I have not touched the phone for awhile and its screen is dark, the phone will light up like someone is trying to call, but in the end no one is calling. It is more like acting like I touched a button on the phone (though I did nothing).

Any help would be appreciated and thanks in advance!

Timothy

Timothy,

Has the device been exposed to Moisture in any way? Even a small amount of liquid can damage the circuits on the device.

E-

[hjacker]

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

Originally Posted by Thatzmister2u

Timothy,

Has the device been exposed to Moisture in any way? Even a small amount of liquid can damage the circuits on the device.

E-

Now it needs a tough press to function. Is it like..."Dead"?

[Thatzmister2u]

Originally Posted by hjacker

Wirelessly posted (katarax)



Now it needs a tough press to function. Is it like..."Dead"?

My guess is that your issue is with the contact underneath and not the ball itself. In the event of moisture it can cause corrosion between the contacts and they fail to work. No easy or sure way to clean them.

[hjacker]

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

Ahhh, I love my bb, I don't want a new bold/curve/javelin or whatever(((( seems like I'll have to buy a new one soon. A great pity( p.s. A moment ago droped my t-touch watch on the concrete floor... Hi-tech-bad-luck-time.

[Thatzmister2u]

Originally Posted by hjacker

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

Ahhh, I love my bb, I don't want a new bold/curve/javelin or whatever(((( seems like I'll have to buy a new one soon. A great pity( p.s. A moment ago droped my t-touch watch on the concrete floor... Hi-tech-bad-luck-time.

If you are prepared to replace it you might want to take a shot at cleaning the contacts. Start with pulling the battery and setting it aside. Then VERY carefully pry the contact up and if you see corrosion then using a very small blade scrap and see if you can remove it. PLEASE note this is at your own risk and might result in damage to the device. Also, you might consider seeing if a repair shop can do anything.

E-

[hjacker]

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

Hah, thbx a lot. I'll try it tomorrow. Contact is that green pimple the ball pushes underneath? We don't have any service shops I believe. The provider is yet unfamiliar with the stuff and ignore third-party-bought devices. But I'll try. Hah, your warning is cool, but it sounds extremely official. I believe everything I do beyond daily use is fully mine responsibility. Thnx again for your advice. I'll keep you focused on the revival process. But tomorrow)

[fullserviceuk]

That's happened with my 8820 more times than I care to mention... couldn't do anything, but the phone sent out dozens of blank text messages each time. I've had 4 replacement phones for that problem in the last 3 months. Even "cleaning" didn't help.

All down to poor design, as with all BBs!

[Thatzmister2u]

Originally Posted by hjacker

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

Hah, thbx a lot. I'll try it tomorrow. Contact is that green pimple the ball pushes underneath? We don't have any service shops I believe. The provider is yet unfamiliar with the stuff and ignore third-party-bought devices. But I'll try. Hah, your warning is cool, but it sounds extremely official. I believe everything I do beyond daily use is fully mine responsibility. Thnx again for your advice. I'll keep you focused on the revival process. But tomorrow)

Um, the green pimple is supposed to be copper color....green is corrosion....
You might try the vendor in my signature they do repairs and have a failry quick turnaround time. Of check the WTS section here and you might find a deal!

E-

[faithfullyclever]

Originally Posted by Thatzmister2u

Timothy,

Has the device been exposed to Moisture in any way? Even a small amount of liquid can damage the circuits on the device.

E-

Well, I am not to sure about that. The only thing that I can remember the last time I was trying to clean it, was that I was being a little rough (compared with the first time, as then it seemed like I was on pins and needles).

I think that it is interesting that you mentioned moister though. Just recently (like the other day, weeks after my phone started acting funny) I accidentally spilled a glass of water on my keyboard. The glass only had about a "cup" of water in it, but I could not believe that I tipped over the glass and the water all seemed to splash right on my keyboard (talk about waking you up!) So I immediately grabbed the phone to shake off any loose water, and then I started rapidly swinging it back and forth, took out the battery and again rapidly swung it back and forth to continue to force out any loose water. After a couple minutes of doing the above, I grabbed a hair dryer and blew hot air on the keyboard for about 5 minutes. Then I put the battery in when I did not see any tiny bit of moisture between the keys.

The phone started up fine and had no negative effect but still suffers from the trackball not clicking...

For some reason I think it has to do with the metal piece under the trackball, not working. I can hear it clicking, but the phone just does not respond. It is frustrating as I got the phone off of Ebay around June of this year (no warranty, but I got it at a good price of about $350). The phone worked perfectly when I got it, as it was practically brand new. I am not even sure if it was used once, so I am sure there was no problem with the phone when I got it...

...On a side note, I have been wondering about the "MemoPad 4.2.2" with this phone. With my previous BB (which was a 8700c with T-mobile software), the MemoPad had a "view" mode when you entered any notes in the notepad. However, with this new phone, there seems to be no "view" mode (which kind of is annoying). It is annoying because you can't just push "b" to jump to the bottom of the MemoPad and then push "edit" to pick up editing/writing in the notepad where you left off. Have you or anyone else noticed this nuisance and discovered away to just jump down to the bottom of the MemoPad, rather then using the trackball to scroll all the way down? Every time I do this, I feel like my thumbs are getting a workout (and it is often, as I use MemoPad for journaling... often).

Thanks again for any help/suggestions,

Timothy

[Rumble]

I have the same problem and I suspect it's moisture damage (I have mine in my pocket most of the time and yesterday sweated a lot during some warehouse work). I took out the trackball and cleaned it, but realized that it wasn't a contact issue. Under the trackball is a tiny pressure pad. It's really your trackball "Enter" button. I can execute the "Enter" command by using a Q-tip to press it, and it clicks with feedback. However, when I do this, I can replicate phantom clicks. Even though I only press it once, it will execute another press (or two) for me.

If I'm mistaken on how that works, someone please correct me.

Anyone have any clues how this can be fixed short of buying a new device?

Burton

[hjacker]

Originally Posted by Rumble

I have the same problem and I suspect it's moisture damage (I have mine in my pocket most of the time and yesterday sweated a lot during some warehouse work). I took out the trackball and cleaned it, but realized that it wasn't a contact issue. Under the trackball is a tiny pressure pad. It's really your trackball "Enter" button. I can execute the "Enter" command by using a Q-tip to press it, and it clicks with feedback. However, when I do this, I can replicate phantom clicks. Even though I only press it once, it will execute another press (or two) for me.

If I'm mistaken on how that works, someone please correct me.

Anyone have any clues how this can be fixed short of buying a new device?

Burton

Yep, this is a precise description. Damn, we are so alone with this matter

[faithfullyclever]

After playing with it for a couple hours and getting frustrated, I was able to pull off the tan tape that holds the clicker down. As I pulled up the tape, the clicker came up with it. I scraped it clean and shiny with a thumb tack and placed it back on to its original location. It seemed to be a little loose, but put it all back together. Now it seems to work fine, almost like lightening speed. My only thing is that the tape did not seem very secure. I wonder if in time it will move a bit. Maybe, maybe not, perhaps I can just deal with it when it does. I don't know if this will be a permanent solution either, however, like I said for the time being it seems to be like lightening.

Just a little bit of advice though, be careful!

It seems you can pull up the tape using a thumb tack. Once it is up, the clicker should be stuck to it. Scrape it clean, perhaps there is corrosion or something that is causing it not to click properly. I also scraped the bottom that was connected to the phone. If you notice, after you pull up the tape, and the clicker (the clicker is just a round mettle piece that goes in and out with pressure, kind of like a dent in a car if you had access to both sides, but it bounces back by itself), you should just be able to hit the "real" enter button that the ball would normally hit by way of the small mettle circle clicker. Sorry I don't know any of the tech. words, but I am sure they exist.

Seems to work perfect now.

It is a miracle, but once I read that you used a q-tip to push the button. I decided to see if I could do the same. Seemed sometimes I could. Then I just got frustrated and noticed eventually that I could pull up the tan tape and up came the clicker. No going back when that happened.

[hjacker]

Wirelessly posted (katarax)

Uhm, what's a q-tip?

[hjacker]

hahahahah
so simple) just another word for cottonbud. I imagined some kind of hi-tech thermalcarbonquadriplexkillermachine.

[iamwiz82]

My 8800 had the same issues for the longest time, but, oddly enough, upgrading to 4.5 fixed a lot of the sticking and oddities.