Droid got wet, still operates, but must be plugged in

[jesserdumas]

I dunked my Moto Droid as I fell into a pool this weekend. I probably tried to boot it too soon after that happened, but now a few days later it is operational. Theres a few flecks in the screen display but otherwise I cannot notice any serious deficiencies in the interface.

The one major problem I am having however is with the battery. Obviously, it got wet as well, and when the phone did become operational again, it indicated about 50% charge and went down from there as I used it. After it powered down though, when I plugged it in to charge the battery indicator showed a question mark and I can no longer charge it. The Droid will operate when plugged into a wall outlet only (not my computer).

Is it possible that replacing the battery is the only necessary fix?

 

[jree]

Trial and error

 

[jesserdumas]

Talked with Moto-support. They're sending me a replacement battery free of charge (!). Pretty impressive.

I also reset the device to factory settings, but to no avail. The battery icon still shows a question mark and it doesn't appear to be taking a charge.

Does this indicate clearly that it's a battery issue? I'm guessing not, but if anyone has any tangible experience here I'd like to know.

 

[Intervenient]

Very generous of Motorola. I like that kind of customer support.


From what you've told us so far, it does seem like a battery issue. Nothing you can do now but wait it out and see what happens

 

[jesserdumas]

In a strange twist I activated my old handset and left my droid plugged in without the memory card inserted over night. When I looked at it this morning the battery read a full charge and now charges somewhat normally after I plug it in to it's charger.

I reactivated the Droid and have been using it all morning. Aside from a few glitches (which went away after a reboot) the thing appears to be nearly back to normal. There are a few minor flaws in the display, likely due to moisture still being present when I booted it, but nothing too distracting or detrimental to the overall use of the handset.

Did I just dodge a bullet here? I suppose there's still a strong likelihood that corrosion could occur internally, but we'll have to wait and see.

I also filed a claim with my renter's insurance agency. They're going to get in touch with me shortly about it but at the very least, it could be another avenue of pursuit if your very expensive phone becomes water damaged and the insurance policy provided by the carrier doesn't cover you.

Keeping my fingers crossed and happy to have my baby back.

 

[bluenova]

I would leave it in a bag of rice or bet yet silica gel for a while just to be sure.

 

[jesserdumas]

After that last post, the Droid worked normally for most of the day, but I later noticed that the "?" had reappeared in my battery meter. When I attempted to charge it again, the symbol remained and the Droid drained the battery until it was running solely off the cord's power.

I received the replacement battery from Motorola today and when I replaced the old one, nothing changed in the display. So, this tells me that it's something wrong with the device itself and not the power source that is the battery.

Do you have any thoughts about where the problem lies and whether or not it's something that could potentially be repaired?

Appreciate your input.

 

[jesserdumas]

Not sure if anyone out there is listening anymore, but I thought it may be noteworthy that the only remaining problem with the Droid was that it wont charge the battery...sometimes.

Every so often, when I plug it in to the charger (stock moto charger) it will recognize the battery and begin charging. As of right now, the battery meter is engaged and reading the output of the battery but it isn't charging.

I'm considering just buying a separate charger and rotating a couple of batteries, which sounds kind of sucky, but better than being on my old blackberry which feels like a childs toy in my hands now and processes like old people f#ck, slow and ugly.

 

[smacky]

Have you tried putting your battery in another Droid? You're gonna need to narrow down the problem to either the battery or your Droid, and it could be both.

 

[faber78]

I would leave it in a bag of rice or bet yet silica gel for a while just to be sure.

^ive heard of this working.

Have you tried putting your battery in another Droid? You're gonna need to narrow down the problem to either the battery or your Droid, and it could be both.

^he put a new battery in old droid and didnt work; same thing.
-------------------------
motorola was nice. i would have just asked you; "what did you get it wet for?"

 

[jesserdumas]

I got it wet because I was drunk as sh!t and fell into the hotel hottub. Because I'm awesome like that.

So I think this may be the end of the story. I've found that the charger needs to be situated in the port just so in order for it to charge. Really, it's just a matter of plugging and unplugging the device until the power source is recognized. The question mark is gone, and it seems like the battery recognition (this time with the new replacement battery) is no longer an issue. It's just getting the thing to charge.

I've since reactivated the phone and I'm going to use it until something else comes up.

 

[dragonx117]

Well well. looks like your not the only person with the same problem. got drunk and dropped it in water also. stayed in water for probably 30 minutes. now after 2 days the phone is back to working normally with the annoying question mark as the battery indicator. my brother has the same phone and i have to charge the battery on his phone.. the battery works fine on his phone. charges well on his. runs all day. but the phone that my drunk ass dropped in water wont charge any battery or even recognized any of the chargers i have.

any updates you may have to solve my problem? i am tired of swapping battery's back and forth just to charge on his...

or will i have to suck it up and buy a new phone?

 

[takeshi]

Sounds like the charging circuitry was killed by the water. It's pretty much down to replacing the device.

 

[dragonx117]

Have any of you ever heard of other web sited that would help fix phones ?

for example this one i found...

iPhone Repair, Samsung Repair, iPhone Screen Repair, BlackBerry, HTC, Droid | iReVampElectronics.com

any of you guys heard of these kind of sites helping with my situation

 

[nivramj]

Yo. As often as I read forums, I never join them. Like... ever. So be glad I've come to save your day.

If your charging system isn't working, change your system. *duh*

Kick the chord to the curb, and buy a Duracell myGrid.
YouTube - ‪Duracell myGrid - Smart Power Simplified‬‏

Since it's not choice as to whether the phone will pass the charge along or not, this baby force-feeds your battery amperes.

This has been proven to work on BBs, Droids, and iCraps.

You're welcome.

 

[AngryHatter]

Yo. As often as I read forums, I never join them. Like... ever. So be glad I've come to save your day.

If your charging system isn't working, change your system. *duh*

Kick the chord to the curb, and buy a Duracell myGrid.
YouTube - ‪Duracell myGrid - Smart Power Simplified‬‏

Since it's not choice as to whether the phone will pass the charge along or not, this baby force-feeds your battery amperes.

This has been proven to work on BBs, Droids, and iCraps.

You're welcome.

The battery went bad and he should buy a recharge plate?
One that precludes using your phone while it is charging?
No thanks.
I can use my phone while it's plugged in...I can see someone putting their ear close to the recharge plate to talk.