SMT5600, Red LED/Light, and charger problems

[Guest BigJimInDC]

Just figured I'd offer my two cents worth of help for other potential users of these phones in trying to figure out why plugging your phone in for a charge isn't charging it, and eventually renders the phone useless until it is re-charged.

Basically, I was experiencing what I thought was a low "re-charge" life span on my phone. Eventually, the battery was completely dead, and when I plugged it into the wall charger, the LED/light was solid, non-blinking red.

My first attempt at resolving the issue, after reading some posts on this site and others, was to swap out the battery. The Cingular/AT&T store here in DC was great and happily handed me a new battery. Too bad that didn't help anything, and within 24 hours, the phone was dead again.

So I went back in this morning, with the charger in hand too, and found out by way of swapping the phone from my charger to the one in the store, that my charger was hosed. Once again, the guy at the store was awesome and handed me a new charger. He said that the chargers a little finicky and that they could eventually end up in this mode (meaning worthless).

The phone is now happily charging (with the nice solid orange light on that I haven't seen in 5 days). I've also ordered a backup charger in the case that this one goes too.

For the record, I'm sort of curious as to what caused this issue with the charger. One theory of mine is that using BlueTooth while connected to the charger may have shorted something out in the charger. I certainly don't know if this is true, but am curious if anyone can definitively confirm or deny this being of issue.

[Guest jporch316]

Did this affect the charge from the mini usb lead as well ?

[Guest BigJimInDC]

Did this affect the charge from the mini usb lead as well ?

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Well, based on what I had read somewhere on this site, the phone will only get a charge off of the mini usb lead when connected to a computer when ActiveSync is also connected. Therefore, and confirmed when I was trying things, the phone does not charge off of a usb line unless the phone is powered on and connected via ActiveSync. Seems odd to me, but that was what I witnessed. Maybe it really was charging, and the led/light didn't light up, but I couldn't seem to get any kind of charge off of the usb line with the phone powered off.

[Guest mellomelsko]

Just figured I'd offer my two cents worth of help for other potential users of these phones in trying to figure out why plugging your phone in for a charge isn't charging it, and eventually renders the phone useless until it is re-charged.

Basically, I was experiencing what I thought was a low "re-charge" life span on my phone.  Eventually, the battery was completely dead, and when I plugged it into the wall charger, the LED/light was solid, non-blinking red.

My first attempt at resolving the issue, after reading some posts on this site and others, was to swap out the battery.  The Cingular/AT&T store here in DC was great and happily handed me a new battery.  Too bad that didn't help anything, and within 24 hours, the phone was dead again.

So I went back in this morning, with the charger in hand too, and found out by way of swapping the phone from my charger to the one in the store, that my charger was hosed.  Once again, the guy at the store was awesome and handed me a new charger.  He said that the chargers a little finicky and that they could eventually end up in this mode (meaning worthless).

The phone is now happily charging (with the nice solid orange light on that I haven't seen in 5 days).  I've also ordered a backup charger in the case that this one goes too.

For the record, I'm sort of curious as to what caused this issue with the charger.  One theory of mine is that using BlueTooth while connected to the charger may have shorted something out in the charger.  I certainly don't know if this is true, but am curious if anyone can definitively confirm or deny this being of issue.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

I have had the same problem with 2 phones. I have not used Bluetooth. I did put my phone in flight mode to do a Sprite Backup, don't know it that's something to look at. I also would like to know what is causing problems with the chargers. Replacing chargers is getting expensive!