Trying to resurrect an old Palm Vx

[oldpalmvx]

Hi, I'm new here. I've a bit of a problem that I hope the Brighthand community can help me with.

I got my Palm Vx a decade ago. It was working fine, until I lent it to my brother. I suspect he didn't use it for a long time. When he gave it back to me three years ago, it worked properly for a while and then the screen started to look funny. Only some parts of the screen were appearing. The screen got worse until it totally showed nothing. I tried resetting, to no avail. Since I was far too busy at that time, I decided to just declare the Palm Vx dead without really burying it. It sat in my drawer until yesterday. As I was cleaning today, I pulled it out and decided to give it a second chance.

I put it on the cradle and crossed my fingers. I had almost given up when I noticed that while nothing appeared on the screen, there's a faint green light, which seems to me like a faint backlight. At least I know that the power is flowing to the handheld. I've tried resetting (all kinds) and cleaning the contacting parts of the handheld and the cradle, but nothing works. The Vx is still sitting on the cradle right now, peaceful and faintly green.

Any idea how to resurrect my Palm?

Thanks in advance. It seems that we have a great community here

[BAB2000]

From your description when you first received the unit back from brother, it sounds as if the CONTRAST adjustment is turned down. IIRC the adjustment is the top of the unit opposite the on/off button.

The display with power on should have a greenish/gold color, and there is also a backlight feature for viewing the display in dark conditions. That is activated by pressing and holding the power button.

Welcome, and I am hopeful your unit is returned to function.

[oldpalmvx]

Thanks, BAB2000. I appreciate your suggestions.

1. I don't think the green light that I see is the ordinary backlight or the color of the screen itself. I know that the screen is really lit because it's a bright green when my room is pitch-black, and it doesn't turn off even if I hold the power button. The Palm Vx is still sitting on the cradle right now, faintly beaming green.

2. I've tried adjusting the contrast by holding the button at the top left and then pushing the up/down buttons or sliding my stylus along the top left part of the screen. None have shown any change.

[hal]

oldpalmvx, welcome to Brighthand!

If this device sat idle and unpowered for some time, I'd suggest you inspect the battery, or have it inspected. Some mobile devices with a dead battery may give some sign of life when connected to the wall charger, but it'll fade to dead again when you disconnect it. Besides, the worst thing may not be a simply dead battery, but a leaked one. Better have it inspected and if a battery replacement is due, I bet you would go for it, cause it's a good device.

[oldpalmvx]

Thanks for the suggestion, Hal! I'll see if there are stores in my area that service old Palms.

[BAB2000]

Most likely you will not a local repair service for Palm, and if so, they may not handle the older style units.

With a hair dryer and some patience you can open the case yourself and replace the battery. (after locating a battery of course.)

Or you can review the thread on service and repair options. Chris Short comes highly recommended and has been reported to be very reasonable with his charges.