IPAQ h4150 odd symptoms. where should I look?

SOURCE: HP Ipaq rx 1955 screen problem

Hello, Sorry to hear that,and be the bearer of bad news, but it sounds like a bad screen or a screen going bad. Bob

Posted on Aug 10, 2007

SOURCE: Ipaq 4155 wont turn on, dont charge, dont anything, is totally death

Hello,

I had some similar experiences with these ipaq's when I was working in a specialised service center. I'll try to give some help or tips through the internet, altrough if i could have seen or diagnosticate these pda's myself it would have been more easier. First of all these problems have 2 main causes. Most of the pda's comply with one of them, it is very rare that a pda will develop this problem by having both causes.
The first cause is the hardware one. A component called the main voltage convertor is broken. It's a small chip that uses the voltage given by the main battery to convert it's value to various tensions required by some of the components on the pda's main board. If some sub-parts of this chip fails to work, the result will appear as the problem you face, In this case there isn't much to do. Most service centers will replace the whole mainboard because that particular chip is very hard to find as a replacement and difficult to desolder from the board.
The second cause could be a major firmware / ROM memory corruption. These things can happen out from nowhere. In my time working for service centers I've tried to isolate a pattern for this problem but without much succes. However it seems that most of these problem tend to appear durring charging cicles due to power spikes or drops on the main AC voltage supplied to the charger. This is only a supposition, I'm not sure yet on this cause. What to do here? Well this problems are fixable but first of all you must be sure that this is a software problem, not a hardware one. So let's diagnosticate some things.
Try to charge the pda. Ignore any lights or beeps or whatever your pda is showing on the screen. As long as the charger is connected the charging process is based on the most primary charging circuits on the pda's motherboard. If the pda is not charging or cannot hold any charge (when you unplug it the screen fades away or it simply doesn't do anything else) maybe that circuit is broken (this is a a sign of serious hardware problems ) or maybe the battery is to old/weak. Batteries don't die out of nowhere, if you remember your pda to work and have some 2-3 hours of standby time it's imposible that now, suddently the battery has drained out so much that even if charged it can't hold out at least 30 min.
So we will assume that you charged the pda for at least 2-3 hours and you see some sign that the battery is working. The next step is crucial. TRY TO PUT THE PDA IN BOOTLOADER MODE. You will achieve this by pressing (and keep them pressed!) the following buttons : power, the far left and right buttons near the control pad (joystick or whatever some people call it) and reset button. You may need another person to help you press these buttons. the order should be the following (first power, then the 2 keys, then reset button for as long as it takes to enter bootloader mode). YOU SHOULD SEE A WHITE SCREEN WITH THE HP LOGO.

If your pda fails to do that, there is nothing more you can do to restore it in a DIY fashion. Probably the bootloader is corrupted or you have a hardware fault. Only a specialised HP service center can help you now. In most cases this will end up with a motherboard replacement.
If your pda does that, then there is a chance to fix it. We will need to probe the bootloader for direct data acces. This is needed for having the ROM memory (and operating system) rewritten. A small program called Mtty will be required to access the bootloader via an usb link.

Please make this tests first and then reply with your results. If anyone of you is in situation #2 there may be a chance.

Posted on Feb 10, 2008

Shoaib Rais

• 1223 Answers

SOURCE: How do i do a hard reset on HP ipaq X11-21204?

u have given a wrong Model number this is not a model number infact a part number pls try to find the correct model number from HP site thru photo identification if u dont find ur model other wise i am providing u detail below to try the hard reset on various series of HP IPAQS kindly be sure that ur ALL DATA WILL BE ERASED pls rate me FIXYA if i fixed ur problem

How to Perform a Hard Reset on an HP iPAQ

Performing a hard reset on an HP iPAQ is relatively easy, but is a dramatic step in the management of your handheld organizer. A hard reset will completely clear the memory of your device and restore it to the state you received it in from the factory. A soft reset, on the other hand, simply closes running programs and restarts your pocket PC.

Instructions
Difficulty: Moderately Easy
Step1
Read the owner’s manual. If you don’t have to do a hard reset, you shouldn’t, and you definitely don’t want to do one by accident. So familiarize yourself with the hard reset protocol offered in the manual.
Step2
Make sure you want to clear all personal settings, saved data and personal files from your PDA. If there are files you wish to retain, save them to a removable disk, or send them to your computer’s hard drive to be retrieved at a later date before performing a hard reset.
Step3
For the HP iPAQ h1900 series, hold down the power button while you use your stylus to hold down the reset button (on the left side of the iPAQ). Hold these buttons for a few seconds until the screen fades to black.
Step4
For the HP iPAQ h2000 Series, press down on the far left and right buttons (calendar and iTask, respectively). While you do this, press and hold the reset button on the back of the iPAQ until the screen fades.
Step5
For the HP iPAQ h5000 Series and H3800 Series, the procedure is the same as the h2000 Series with the only difference being on some models the Today button is used instead of the iTask button.
Step6
For the hw6500 Mobile Messenger Series and hx2000 Series the procedure for the hard reset is precisely the same as for the devices in step 4.
Step7
For the rx3115 and rx3715 models, hold down the Mobile Media button (on the far left) and the iTask button. Then press down the reset button with the styles for a few seconds until the screen goes dark.
Step8
For the rz1710 and rz1715, follow the same procedure as the devices in step 7, with the difference of pressing the Today button (on the far right) instead of the iTask button.
Step9
To turn on your HP iPAQ after your hard reset, either press the reset button again, or plug it into an AC power source.

Tips & Warnings

* If you’re iPAQ is simply slowing down or having problems, try a soft reset (reboot) before resorting to a hard reset.
* Read your iPAQ’s instruction manual to familiarize yourself with how to do a hard reset, and the effects of performing one.
* Do not perform a hard reset unless you are okay with or intend to erase all non-factory installed data and settings from your HP iPAQ.

Posted on Mar 17, 2009

SOURCE: Hp ipaq rx5935 hangs at the end of the HP booting sequence

remove battery for 6 hr and reinstal and then hard reset.
bob.

Posted on Aug 26, 2009

SOURCE: Tried to update iPAQ ROM, iPAQ died in middle of Install. Help!!

Normal 0 false false false MicrosoftInternetExplorer4 /* Style Definitions */ table.MsoNormalTable {mso-style-name:"Table Normal"; mso-tstyle-rowband-size:0; mso-tstyle-colband-size:0; mso-style-noshow:yes; mso-style-parent:""; mso-padding-alt:0in 5.4pt 0in 5.4pt; mso-para-margin:0in; mso-para-margin-bottom:.0001pt; mso-pagination:widow-orphan; font-size:10.0pt; font-family:"Times New Roman"; mso-ansi-language:#0400; mso-fareast-language:#0400; mso-bidi-language:#0400;} 1.) Make sure battery is charged
2.) Locate the rom you want to use
3.) Remove machine fro cradle
4.) Press the POWER + iTASK + CONTACTS + RESET buttons at the same time so as to enter the FLASH Mode
5.) Make sure your USB connection to the Cradle is hooked-up.
6.) Place your PDA in the USB Cradle.
7.) Stop the MS ActiveSync session on your HOST PC: CTRL-ALT-DELETE > TASK MANAGER > PROCESSES.
8.) Highlight WESCOMM.EXE and select "End Process" button.
9.) Run the file you downloaded from your Vendor in step 3.
10.) The PDA should now begin Flashing the iPAQ's ROM BIOS.

Posted on Jan 22, 2010