Palm IIIc battery

[zybch]

My palm IIIc has a dead battery. Won't charge up at all, even the charge light won't come on when its conncted to a cradle or USB charger.
Its only new, been charged perhaps 20 times, but its been ages since I used the thing.

Any ideas?

[Sterling_Aug]

It may be the charger.

[zybch]

Tried 3, each with the same result. 2 charger/sync docking stations and 1 mains powered charger cable.

[millwork]

Hello zybch,

Well, that sounds like an "open" somplace between the cells of the battery pack and the charger. Since both the cradle and wall chargers have same symptoms, the open may be closer to the battery pack, or the pack itself. Those LiIon cells will seldom open (NiMH can), but there's a possibility of a faulty connection within the pack.

As I recall, that battery pack is pretty much three AAA sized cells with heat shrink and two wires terminating in a two-pin plug. Assume you've already inspected the connection for that plug.

I suppose you could test the voltage of the pack first and if none is present, check the continuity. Zero plus zero = zero (open). Of course, don't check continuity if any voltage is present.

Part of the charging circuitry may be internal to the Palm itself and, I suppose, could be the problem. That's why I'd not recommend patching the battery pack directly to the wall charger as a test.

Best of luck.

John B.

[bruceb]

See this link about possibly having to do a Reset on your Palm:

http://kb.palmone.com/SRVS/CGI-BIN/W...case=obj(30029)

This next link describes the "In Cradle" Reset procedure itself (and others)

http://kb.palmone.com/SRVS/CGI-BIN/W...1,Case=obj(887)

[zybch]

Thanks, but neither of those links appear to work
Anyway, I'll just google for 'reset palmIII' or similar and see what turns up.

[dajogejr]

Yeah...if I let the main and reserve battery die on my IPaq...same thing.
I have to remove the battery, do a soft reset, install the battery and do a soft reset again.

Good luck...Z.

[bruceb]

http://kb.palmone.com/SRVS/CGI-BIN/W...,Case=obj(887))

This link works .. left off a parentheses

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Solution ID: 30029

Battery won't recharge

These troubleshooting steps apply only to devices with built-in rechargeable batteries. If your device uses AAA alkaline batteries, do not install rechargeable batteries.

Charging tips
Is the power adapter plugged in correctly? Make sure that it's hooked up to an active power outlet, and that all connections are secure.

Is your device securely connected? Very lightly wiggle the connection between your device and the charging cable/cradle. If it doesn't feel secure, try removing the device and connecting it again.

Does your device think it's charging?Verify that your device is charging: look at the battery meter at the top of the Applications Launcher screen. It displays a "lightning bolt" symbol over the battery when it's charging.

Have you tried a soft reset? If your device won't turn on, or if it's experiencing other problems, a soft reset may be in order.

Have you tried an in-cradle reset? You may need to do this to reset the charging circuitry. Learn about the in-cradle reset.

Are you ready for a hard reset? A hard reset will erase all the data on your handheld, but it might be necessary to alleviate problems caused by third-party applications or other causes.

If after trying the above your device still won't charge, contact Product Support.

My battery loses its charge very quickly
Like all Lithium Ion batteries, the battery in your device will eventually wear out. If you charge your device fully but it loses power after a few hours (or sooner), it may be time to replace the internal battery. Arrange for a repair.

For best results, don't let your battery fully drain before recharging. Lithium Ion batteries last longer if you "top them off" frequently.



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Article ID: 30029 Category(s): Troubleshooting
Date Created: Jan 29, 2004 Date Modified: Aug 26, 2005
Relevant products: Palm m130, Palm m500, Palm m505, Palm m515, Tungsten C, Tungsten E, Tungsten T, Tungsten T2, Tungsten T3, Tungsten T5, Tungsten W, Palm V, Palm Vx, Zire, Zire 21, Zire 31, Zire 71, Zire 72, Treo 300, Treo 600 (Bell Mobility), Treo 600 (GSM), Treo 600 (Sprint), Treo 600 (Verizon), Treo 650 (Sprint), Treo 650 (Cingular), Treo 180, Treo 180g, Treo 270, Visor Edge, Visor Neo, Visor Pro, Visor Platinum, Visor Prism, Visor Deluxe, Treo 90, Treo 650 (Earthlink), Treo 650 (Rogers), Treo 600 (Rogers)



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[zybch]

Thanks for that.

Still nothing, so I might get a friend who has experience with electronicy stuff to see if the batery has failed, at least that'll tell me if I need to replace the battery or just ditch the device.
An ericsson phone I once had developed a wierd battery problem. It just suddenly stopped turning on untill I 'blasted' a large ammount of current through it. After that it worked like a charm, might be a similar thing.

[MSM0603]

Some food for thought...

a dormant rechargeable battery normally does not fair well. Cells tend to leak, even in minute amounts, and corrode the wires/solder joints connecting the “battery pack” to the device. The same situation could result from the use of dissimilar metals between the wire and battery pack. Electrical current passing through dissimilar metals can also corrode. The overall result is the same: corrosion that is a high impedance/resistance that overloads the charging circuitry or a corroded wire that breaks causing an open circuit. A visual inspection would help to identify if this happened. Good luck!

[zybch]

Visually the battery looks perfect.

[MSM0603]

Thanks for the feedback. Internally, the rechargeable cells can fail. Can you disconnect the battery pack from the device and see if it acknowledges the power coming from the charger? You are trying to discern if the problem is the charger or the battery pack. Since you already tried several chargers, it is likely the battery pack that needs replacing.

[millwork]

Can you disconnect the battery pack from the device and see if it acknowledges the power coming from the charger?

This represents the connector from all the chargers for your Palm IIIc.
With LiIon Battery packs, some of the charging circuitry may be internal to the Palm and other charging circuitry is definitely within the battery pack.

For this reason, I'd Not recommend patching the pack directly to the wall charger.

If you don't have a VOM or are not familiar with its use (polarity etc.) perhaps you are better off going this route; "I might get a friend who has experience with electronicy stuff to see if the batery has failed, at least that'll tell me if I need to replace the battery or just ditch the device."

John B.

[zybch]

Thats the connector alright. You wouldn't believe how hard it was to get a pin-out diagram of it so I could run a multimeter over it to check the cradle/charger was okay.

[bruceb]

Both of these links detail the pinouts on your Palm III C cable / cradle

http://pinouts.ru/data/palm_pilot_pinout.shtml

http://pinouts.ru/data/palm_iii_pinout.shtml