Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

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astro_rob's picture
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Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

I found an eMate to replace the ones I will never see again (with my ex-girlfriend, and she won't let me get) and the great one I let go of (it was a rough time breaking up). This one has the infamous missing lines, so the ribbon needs to be repaired. Yay.
That, and an Apple serial cable, and I should be set. It's like yesterday once more!

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

The eMate arrived ahead of its power supply (mine is not to question why...). I won't be able to test it out until then. However, externally, this thing is in mint shape. Not a scratch. No scuffs. No stylus either, and a dead battery, but that's besides the point. I've never seen one this new looking. Even my old one has marks.
I cannot wait to see how this thing functions.

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

I look forward to seeing some pictures of it!

I don't have any of my emates anymore. But I do get to see the one I donated to the local computer museum on occasion.

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

And now the real fun begins.
Power supply arrived, and the machine is not getting past the calibration screen. My guess? The screen ribbon.
I was expecting this.
Now, I get to open it up and take a looksie. Not like this is a surprise.

- Rob

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

Pulled the hinge. Not only is the ribbon punctured, it nearly went clean through.
Well, at least it's repairable.

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

I'm curious.
Has anyone simply tried repairing the cable by running jumper wires from one point to the other?
Just a thought; wonder if that is even possible...

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

Do you mean jumping the break in the ribbon cable, or jumping from board to board bypassing the cable?

I used strands from braided wire to do my repairs across the cable itself. I followed the guides that Doug-Doug posted based on his repair work.

The big problem is the ribbon cable - and whatever you use to repair it - is a moving part inside the emate. Every time the screen is raised or lowered, that cable flexes and moves. So anything that's used as a repair has to be free to move and rub against the hinges without catching or binding. The wire strands across the cable are small enough that the cable can still move around as intended.

Doug's repair posts (text only):
http://www.applefritter.com/node/5334

My repair work, with a couple photos:
http://www.applefritter.com/node/5515

(edit) Wow, the original repair guide that Doug and I based our repairs on is still up!
http://www.inventors-emporium.co.uk/pages/newton-emate-hinge.html

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

Doug-Doug furnished me with my first eMate.
I pulled the cable again, and got another look. I'm really opting to just order the replacement from Newtonsales. I have... issues... these days, and those traces just look like more work than I am willing to attempt. I'll just have to wait.
Anyone have any dealings with Newtonsales these days?

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Re: Another eMate Headed My Way... And I Get To Repair It!

The replacement cable arrived, was installed... and the eMate still does not work. Only the upper left of the digitizer is the only area that responds.
There is something else.
After the eMate was powered up with the new cable, I caught a brief smell of epoxy, but chose to disregard it. When I opened the machine this morning after last night's disappointment, I caught the same smell, only stronger. This suggested a possibility, so I looked at the original cable. Where it was punctured shows what looks like a burn mark at one point, complete with slightly melted plastic.
I suspect that it was running when the spring let go, and there was a short, which caused a chip to fail. When I installed the new cable, the power through the damaged chip was enough to cause the final failure.
Just a theory.
Regardless, I am giving up on the eMate. It will be sold off for parts at this point. Which is sad, as I was really looking forward to having another one.

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