How to make the pulse's screen more responsive

[Guest BigBearMDC]

Oh i didn't notice theres metal under the battery :)

Greetings,

BigBearMDC

[Guest phucte]

Been playing around with this and found too ways to make the screen more responsive even with the screen protector on. The test is to open up a keyboard and press the P key. This is always the one that fails for me sometimes as it is on the edge of the screen, but with both of my following methods it works every time it is pressed.

The first way is to get two strips of foil, one, the same size as the battery and one twice the size of the battery ( length wise). Power the phone down, take off the battery cover and take out the battery. Place the longest piece of foil, shiny side down under the battery. Replace battery and place the remaing length of the foil over the top of the battery. Trim as required. With the battery size piece of foil, place this shiny side down inside the battery cover. I then used a piece of gaffa tape to tape it in place. Replace the battery cover.

The second way was to create a length of foil same width as battery but over twice as long. Again, place it shiny side down under the battery and fold the rest of the top of the battery which leaves some sticking outside the phone. Replace the battery cover and then trin the foil right back to the edge of the case. Press it down into the grove of the cover. Now, when you hold the phone your fingers make contact with the foil thus improving the capactive screen. Not very attractive but very practical.

To be fair, it was a bit of fun experimenting, but it really does work.

lol i tried both of them before , the later one hmmmmm foil sticking out :)

The foil does work B) well i think it does ...........

I will post up what iv'e done when I have the time , with pics

................

Edited January 10, 2010 by phucte

[Guest Sengadog]

lol i tried both of them before , the later one hmmmmm foil sticking out :)

The foil does work B) well i think it does ...........

I will post up what iv'e done when I have the time , with pics

................

It definately works.

[Guest glossywhite]

Been playing around with this and found too ways to make the screen more responsive even with the screen protector on. The test is to open up a keyboard and press the P key. This is always the one that fails for me sometimes as it is on the edge of the screen, but with both of my following methods it works every time it is pressed.

The first way is to get two strips of foil, one, the same size as the battery and one twice the size of the battery ( length wise). Power the phone down, take off the battery cover and take out the battery. Place the longest piece of foil, shiny side down under the battery. Replace battery and place the remaing length of the foil over the top of the battery. Trim as required. With the battery size piece of foil, place this shiny side down inside the battery cover. I then used a piece of gaffa tape to tape it in place. Replace the battery cover.

The second way was to create a length of foil same width as battery but over twice as long. Again, place it shiny side down under the battery and fold the rest of the top of the battery which leaves some sticking outside the phone. Replace the battery cover and then trin the foil right back to the edge of the case. Press it down into the grove of the cover. Now, when you hold the phone your fingers make contact with the foil thus improving the capactive screen. Not very attractive but very practical.

To be fair, it was a bit of fun experimenting, but it really does work.

You really need to be insulating the exposed foil which is facing towards the phone... unless you'e happy with the idea of a Li-ion battery overheating/exploding/catching fire in your pocket?. As a qualified electronics technician, I am strongly urging you to do this. Also, DO NOT connect anything directly to the sprung gold contacts, or in the area where they make contact with the battery itself - you're just asking for trouble - short circuiting a battery with this much energy stored inside, is NOT wise.

A simple extra layer of gaffer tape to cover the exposed foil would suffice. I simply laid two strips of gaffer tape onto the matte side of the silver foil, pressed it down firmly so it adheres properly, and then trimmed the sheet from inside the edges of the gaffer tape. Then, simply use normal sticky tape to anchor the sheet, FOIL SIDE FACING THE BACK COVER. Also, your rather odd arrangement of using two foil sheets is not needed; the sheet of foil on the battery is simply redundant. You need to read up on EMI shielding practices & the Faraday cage.

PS: You could have made the trimming of the sheets a little neater; I'd never post such a messy piece of workmanship for the world to see, sorry!.

Edited January 10, 2010 by glossywhite

[Guest xangma]

You really need to be insulating the exposed foil which is facing towards the phone... unless you'e happy with the idea of a Li-ion battery overheating/exploding/catching fire in your pocket?. As a qualified electronics technician, I am strongly urging you to do this. Also, DO NOT connect anything directly to the sprung gold contacts, or in the area where they make contact with the battery itself - you're just asking for trouble - short circuiting a battery with this much energy stored inside, is NOT wise.

A simple extra layer of gaffer tape to cover the exposed foil would suffice. I simply laid two strips of gaffer tape onto the matte side of the silver foil, pressed it down firmly so it adheres properly, and then trimmed the sheet from inside the edges of the gaffer tape. Then, simply use normal sticky tape to anchor the sheet, FOIL SIDE FACING THE BACK COVER. Also, your rather odd arrangement of using two foil sheets is not needed; the sheet of foil on the battery is simply redundant. You need to read up on EMI shielding practices & the Faraday cage.

PS: You could have made the trimming of the sheets a little neater; I'd never post such a messy piece of workmanship for the world to see, sorry!.

You're alright.

[Guest Sengadog]

PS: You could have made the trimming of the sheets a little neater; I'd never post such a messy piece of workmanship for the world to see, sorry!.

This was only a quick experiment and it was easier to post a picture to explain what I meant. If people are happy that it works then they could take time in creating a neater solution. I'm dreadfully sorry that they have offended you and I have removed them.

Of course, if any one is 'messing' with electronics or electrical equipment then they are doing this at their own risk but at least you have pointed out the pitfalls.

Thanks :)

Edited January 11, 2010 by Sengadog

[Guest le_lutin]

This was only a quick experiment and it was easier to post a picture to explain what I meant. If people are happy that it works then they could take time in creating a neater solution. I'm dreadfully sorry that they have offended you and I have removed them.

Of course, if any one is 'messing' with electronics or electrical equipment then they are doing this at their own risk

Well I, for one, appreciated the effort Sengadog. Rough-and-ready pictures are better than no pictures at all.

[Guest Jason Patel]

This was only a quick experiment and it was easier to post a picture to explain what I meant. If people are happy that it works then they could take time in creating a neater solution. I'm dreadfully sorry that they have offended you and I have removed them.

Of course, if any one is 'messing' with electronics or electrical equipment then they are doing this at their own risk but at least you have pointed out the pitfalls.

Thanks :)

Put the pics back who cares if its messy, corrections have been pointed out by others to improve the safety of your mod.

People get on thier hight hourse about neatness, its up to the individual how neat or untidy they want to make things.

[Guest glossywhite]

Put the pics back who cares if its messy, corrections have been pointed out by others to improve the safety of your mod.

People get on thier hight hourse about neatness, its up to the individual how neat or untidy they want to make things.

I would like to apologise if it appeared I was on a "high horse" - I wasn't. If you can go to these lengths to test and innovate, then I am simply saying that one may as well finish the job off neatly for exhibition on the interwebnets, as often people will judge your expertise and integrity, from the information you provide them. It really doesn't take a second to trim the foil so it looks presentable; I have worked in electronics production lines, and we were taught to trim all lead-throughs flush to the PCB, wick off any solder blobbing, and to ensure ALL resistors were oriented on the same axis... and this is on electronic circuit boards that the end user would probably never even see.

It is fantastic that you took the time out of your life to take & upload this information, but it is always best to show off your solution, once it is refined and polished - that is all I was & am saying.

[Guest phucte]

I would like to apologise if it appeared I was on a "high horse" - I wasn't. If you can go to these lengths to test and innovate, then I am simply saying that one may as well finish the job off neatly for exhibition on the interwebnets, as often people will judge your expertise and integrity, from the information you provide them. It really doesn't take a second to trim the foil so it looks presentable; I have worked in electronics production lines, and we were taught to trim all lead-throughs flush to the PCB, wick off any solder blobbing, and to ensure ALL resistors were oriented on the same axis... and this is on electronic circuit boards that the end user would probably never even see.

It is fantastic that you took the time out of your life to take & upload this information, but it is always best to show off your solution, once it is refined and polished - that is all I was & am saying.

glossywhite I'am thinking abit OTT about this :)

If u read my 1st post I just wanted poeple to try out somethings e.g the foil to see if they get the same thing.

and someone tried it and posted some of there findings, doesn't mean you have to like photoshop the image to look sooooooo nice , just along people get the general idea B)

if u what to cut the foil super nice you can.......

[Guest glossywhite]

glossywhite I'am thinking abit OTT about this B)

If u read my 1st post I just wanted poeple to try out somethings e.g the foil to see if they get the same thing.

and someone tried it and posted some of there findings, doesn't mean you have to like photoshop the image to look sooooooo nice , just along people get the general idea ;)

if u what to cut the foil super nice you can.......

Perfect!. You do that!. :)

[Guest David Horvath]

I'm thinking if the next idea would work:

In electromotors, there is a very thin copper cable, would do that the work if we would create a circle out of that and connect one end to the usb grounding.

[Guest glossywhite]

I'm thinking if the next idea would work:

In electromotors, there is a very thin copper cable, would do that the work if we would create a circle out of that and connect one end to the usb grounding.

You're talking about enamelled copper wire, right?. That should work a treat, but it would look messy.

[Guest John Hamelink]

What I did, was to get a sheet of aluminium foil, and I then laid two strips of gaffer tape onto it, to make a foil/fabric sandwich, then cut a sheet out inside the edges of the gaffer tape, so no bare foil is exposed. You need some insulation between the foil and the electronics, as some foil shorting the battery or any other circuitry could be disastrous. So, imagine I have an oblong of foil & gaffer sandwich, with two notches cut out - one top, one bottom, for the speaker and camera. The shield is in an "H" shape.

Next, I got two tabs of normal adhesive tape, and used them to anchor the sheet to the inside of the back cover, to stop it slipping (unlikely). Do not use thick foil or multiple layers of tape, as this will cause excessive pressure between the inside back of the phone and the back cover - just one layer of gaffer tape will do fine.

MAKE SURE THAT THE FOIL SIDE OF THE SANDWICH IS AGAINST THE COVER, AND NOT FACING THE ELECTRONICS!

Seems more responsive, but I'll report back soon, as this could be a placebo.

I have used glossywhite's implementation to create my own implementation. The same basic principals are there, except:

• I used Packing tape instead of gaffer tape as I didn't have any gaffer tap to hand.
  
• I added some notches to fit round some pegs that fit the cover to the phone itsself.
  

I have made a template for you all to use on your own phones at the correct measurements:

[Guest le_lutin]

I have used glossywhite's implementation to create my own implementation. The same basic principals are there, except:

• I used Packing tape instead of gaffer tape as I didn't have any gaffer tap to hand.
  
• I added some notches to fit round some pegs that fit the cover to the phone itsself.
  

I have made a template for you all to use on your own phones at the correct measurements:

Thanks for the guide. Does this modification mean that the the phone works whilst placed flat on any surface?

[Guest John Hamelink]

Thanks for the guide. Does this modification mean that the the phone works whilst placed flat on any surface?

Yep :)

[Guest David Horvath]

Thats cool. Can i ask what material you've used and how it connects to the usb connector?

[Guest Sengadog]

Thanks for the guide. Does this modification mean that the the phone works whilst placed flat on any surface?

I tried this 'full' back foil option and it badly affected my GPS as you are covering up the antenna. The only way round this was to terminate the foil on the back just above the top of the battery.

[Guest John Hamelink]

I tried this 'full' back foil option and it badly affected my GPS as you are covering up the antenna. The only way round this was to terminate the foil on the back just above the top of the battery.

I have done some testing on the GPS and I have noticed a drop in connection. I have created a little drawing to demonstrate how the foil *I think* misses the antenna. There is another part of the phone that the foil covers that is potentially causing the GPS disruption, which i've labelled in the second image.

Could someone with a bit more expertise come into this discussion and tell us what the marked part of the phone body is?

Thats cool. Can i ask what material you've used and how it connects to the usb connector?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think it needs to touch the USB at all. Perhaps it is the placebo effect, but for me the screen seems more responsive, even though it's not touching the USB.

Edited February 1, 2010 by John Hamelink

[Guest le_lutin]

When I place my phone down flat on a wooden table and use only one finger (i.e. i'm not holding the phone with any hands at all), the screen will not respond to any touch.

Could you not just try it with and without the foil in the above scenario to see if it's making any difference?

Edited February 1, 2010 by le_lutin

[Guest John Hamelink]

When I place my phone down flat on a wooden table and use only one finger (i.e. i'm not holding the phone with any hands at all), the screen will not respond to any touch.

Could you not just try it with and without the foil in the above scenario to see if it's making any difference?

It does seem to make a difference, yes.

[Guest Sengadog]

Could someone with a bit more expertise come into this discussion and tell us what the marked part of the phone body is?

I think that is the GPS aerial. I seem to remember seeing an image on the fcc approval page for this phone and I think I remember it being there. I may be wrong.

[Guest John Hamelink]

I think that is the GPS aerial. I seem to remember seeing an image on the fcc approval page for this phone and I think I remember it being there. I may be wrong.

That would explain why it was blocking the signal then. :) Cutting off a square around it should suffice, I'll update the template later on today.

[Guest Spook Tooth]

Have you checked the info in this thread?

SAA090908 module?

[Guest phucte]

Yes when i did this foil thing, I found out that gps does in fact get afftected , and this can be reduced or avioded by get rid of some foil near the gps reciver (which BTW is near the top edge above the camera )

Thats cool. Can i ask what material you've used and how it connects to the usb connector?

Correct me if I'm wrong, but I don't think it needs to touch the USB at all. Perhaps it is the placebo effect, but for me the screen seems more responsive, even though it's not touching the USB.

Anything that coming in to contact with the usb plug like a usb cable or even your finger will make the pulse more responsive....

The foil thing does make the pulse more responsive even without plug/connecting the foil into the usb , however I have done this becuase the pulse is also becomes more resonsive if you plug anything into the usb port (e.g usb cable) (even without the foil) .

You can do a test lie the pulse down on a non metal suface (wood) draw something in a drawing app and how do it with the usb cable pluged in.. Iam sure that some people should note a diffrent.

Also the foil is most effeiveive when the pulse is in your hands and less so on the table , e.g your thoching the back cover .... I think most people wiill be using the phone in there hand so .... :D

The pulse screen also become more responsive when you lie it on a Metal suface B)

I will be posting picture of what I done soon :) , hope you found this useful

Edited February 2, 2010 by phucte