Water damage. Any experiences?

[fxtec-preorder-47xx 39]

Hallo F(x)tec Pro1 community,

it has been awhile since I last posted, and my Pro1 was lying somewhere in a box. Now I tried it again, but the issue remains. See below:

Well, I dropped the fully working phone into water. At the end, display is dark, but everything else is still working (as far as I can tell).
The phone is charging, switching on, LED is doing its LED thing, keyboard is backlit, phone is connecting, I can connect via computer and did download all my stuff. When I remember correctly, also wireless connection worked, but it's difficult to tell after all this time... but anyway. Display was dark. (Touch... hmm, I can't tell.)

What I tried:

• I switched the display/digitizer itself (aliexpress). I did that before (when screen once scattered, and back then: repair worked), but this time: still dark. So I disassembled the phone a bit more, and checked on the LCD connector correctly set on the main PCB etc...

What I did not try:

• I did not replace the small PCB inside the display half. This is merely some interface connecting the display to the cable that goes to the main PCB, I don't even know if something is on there, that can be hurt by water making the display fail. (Yes, the earpiece-speaker and front camera is also on there, but that's not the issue right now.)
• I did not swap out the flat ribbon cable, that goes from display-side PCB to main PCB. Sure, could have happened that I bend this to hard while replacing screen, but there's no visible issue.

What can it be?

• Perhaps the display side and the cable is fine. That would mean, the problem is on the main PCB. As the phone generally seems to work, perhaps the GPU or something graphics related fried due to water damage? 🤷‍♂️

Is that likely? Has anyone here experienced this? What do you recommend? My possibilities are limited... I may not be able to reliably check if all the lanes on the flat ribbon cable work, as they are damn small 🔬 Does anyone perhaps have a destroyed Pro1 where I can scavenge some of those parts/cables from?

I'll appreciate you comments... As for now, have a good time! 👋

[EskeRahn 5,399]

Just to be sure, Is it Pro1 or Pro1X?
If a Pro1, you could try to attach an external display through an usb-hdmi adapter.

It duplicates what is on the display, so you will be able to know if touch, front camera, proximity sensor etc etc works. IF it works, it is likely that a fairly simple replacement of the display will do the trick.

You can get displays from e.g. AliExpress just search for "Elephone U pro". You do NOT want to buy it with a frame, it will just be a waste (as it is different)

[CornholioGSM 268]

ok....soo on water smashed phones is it littlebit hard.

Can you post me some good pics of phone parts? At first all flex connectors - on mobo, on flex on both sides, on display pcb (all connectors - display connector too).

...then good photo of whole mainboard (both sides)

*fxtec ... and approx all other phones dont have separate gpu...it is all on SOC...soo inside processor.

...good question is - it is Pro1 or Pro1X?

Approx all can be repaired...and for 90% it will be problem on amoled vcc lines.

Sometime can help resolder water smashed lines...sometime will be needed some reballing...and sometime is needed to reballing whole qc soc...and this is very hard work.

 

 

[EskeRahn 5,399]

15 hours ago, CornholioGSM said:

ok....soo on water smashed phones is it littlebit hard.

Remember that he wrote that it can be accessed from a computer, so a good guess is that no 'vital' parts are damaged, though the display (or cables for it) is.

But obviously no guarantee, that no other parts have suffered.