Help LG / T-Mobile G2X P999 Charging Problem/Complaint - Screen goes nuts / crazy - UNRESOLVED

[christianN]

Unless I am using the charger that came with my TMobile G2x, after my phone has been charging for a long time, when I pick it up, the screen goes absolutely nuts. My phone even dialed 911!

This happens until I unplug it.

So far it has happened using a generic charger AS WELL AS JUST PLUGGED INTO MY LAPTOPS USB PORT! Jeeze! I should at least be able to charge it normally from my laptop!

Shouldn't charging from any USB port be OK? Only being able to charge from the supplied charger seems pretty ridiculous to me...

I'm afraid whatever is happening could be damaging my phone...

Anyhow, is anyone else having this problem?

If not, and you have a third party charger, please share as well.

 

[Member196159]

Can't say that I've experienced anything like that.

I haven't even used the official charger, only 3rd party USB cables purchased from monoprice.

I usually charge it through my dock or the computer at work.

Did you try a different 3rd party charger? Or is this happening with multiple?

 

[christianN]

I noticed that some chargers come with an "IC chip" that supposedly stops phones from over charging... Could it be that my phone's battery is overcharging because maybe my computer or 3rd party charger doesn't have this protection?

I would think a protection system would actually be built into present-day phones...

Seem like a pretty important detail to overlook....

Anyhow, if you are a similar issue, or know how to fix it, let me know...

 

[christianN]

Did you try a different 3rd party charger? Or is this happening with multiple?

Haven't tried another 3rd party charger yet, but it happened by just plugging into my laptop.

Right now, I'm in the process of draining my battery completely and starting over by just using my laptop to see what happens...

 

[defiantbeast]

Ive been using nothing but 3rd party chargers, such as the igo, no such problem. Could be a hardware issue, but before you exchange try a master wipe. Then if it keeps up get an exchange.

 

[Jew]

Am I missing something here? Why would you need a 3rd party charger? My phone came with a usb charger that plugs into a wall charger... Is there some benefit to using a 3rd party charger???

 

[defiantbeast]

No no advantage. Other than convenience. I have a few spare chargers so i keep one at work, one in my briefcase and one down stairs in my house. Any micro usb charger will work with the phone, i was just trying to adress the op's question.

 

[Jew]

No no advantage. Other than convenience. I have a few spare chargers so i keep one at work, one in my briefcase and one down stairs in my house. Any micro usb charger will work with the phone, i was just trying to adress the op's question.

Sorry, I didn't mean to direct that at you. I was actually addressing the op when he says "Unless I am using the charger that came with my TMobile G2x". I do understand now though. Sometimes, it is better to just leave one in the wall and take one with you.

 

[tiffoh3]

I charge my G2X on my laptop using my blackberry usb...it gets so screwed up! I can't use it while it's plugged in with that usb. The touchscreen sometimes won't work...things pop up that I didn't touch on...it lags a LOT....just now it got screwed up while I was trying to reply to a text message...then it basically froze and i couldn't even shut it down. I was about to pull the battery and then it suddenly responded to all the touches I made and started working again. This is incredibly bothersome and if a usb fits it, it should work fine...i shouldn't have to use the one it came with. I am still within the 14 days that i could try to return it...will they do a free exchange so i can get a new one 'cause maybe this one is a lemon??

 

[Kaizrsozay]

Haven't even had my G2X a week, and today it just went crazy at work. Started blinking and saying that it was charging when it wasn't on the charger! So I pulled out the battery B/C it wouldn't let me turn it off, and when i started the phone back up, my battery went from 65% to 15%(WTF!!!) in a matter of 2 minutes!!!

It has been doing it now every once in a while. Tmobile told me to just return the device to the store since I haven't had it 30 days, and they will give me a new handset.

FYI, like the original poster, I use OEM and 3rd party chargers B/C of convenience...I really don't know if its a charger or device issue, but something people should def be aware of!

I will update when I return the device tomorrow to Tmobile.

****UPDATE****
Today I went to the Tmobile store. The sales rep told me that they had received an email from their LG rep who said that LG knows about many of these problems, and that most of them can be attributed to running a stock Android 2.2.2.The wait for Gingerbread is estimated at 2 weeks or less. The rep himself bought a g2x, and now its completely crashed and not even working. So my options were one of 3 things...

1. Have them replace my phone that has only acted up a cpl times one day and never again...but I might end up with a phone that has completely crashed and unuseable until a replacement (Refurb) is sent to me (Rep only had his 5 days when it crashed and burned).

2. Exchange my G2x in for a Different phone (basically a Sidekick 4G or Samsung Galaxy S 4G)

3. Or roll the dice that my phone just had a spasm one day and that hopefully Gingerbread will be the solution to our prayers.

***Side note: I thought the return policy was 30 days....its 14 days.

So I'm gonna wait til day 14 and see if this thing barfs on me again. If it does, I think I might get the Samsung....Or get a Refund and wait for the HTC Sensation.

 

[christianN]

I think I figured it out...

The G2X doesn't like overcharging AT ALL. I'm pretty sure this is the case, because it only happens when at 100% charge, but when you unplug it, it seems to work ok...

UPDATE: NOT SURE IF THIS NEXT LINE ACTUALLY WORKS, BECAUSE IT DIDN'T WORK WITH MY CHARGER THAT I THOUGHT HAD THIS FEATURE (Griffin block charger), but if anyone previously having this problem finds a charger that this doesn't happen with, please let us know):
Now, if you use a charger, you need one that automatically shuts charging off when the battery is full....
MORE UPDATED INFO IN POST #15

For the PC, I think I fixed my problem by downloading the drivers for the phone. I bet the drivers regulate the power for you! This kind of stinks because you always need to install the stupid drivers when you are on the run... I figured this out because my wife runs vista and had to manually install the drivers because vista would not recognize the LG G2X P999 / T-MOBILE G2X P999 (<- for better Googling). After installing the drivers, she plugged in her phone and no problem... I tried mine and it didn't bug out even after charging overnight...

Anyhow, try getting the drivers from:
Drivers & Resources - LG Forum
Specifically this one:
http://s3.amazonaws.com/lgforum.com...Mobile_Android_USB_Driver_v2.2.zip?1303408893

These problems could eventually be damaging to the phone... WHAT A JOKE THAT LG DID NOT PUT THIS FEATURE INTO THE PHONE ITSELF!!!!

I SURE HOPE LG CAN FIX THIS THROUGH A SOFTWARE UPDATE!!!!!!!!!! UNLESS YOU WANT UNHAPPY CUSTOMERS EVERYWHERE!!!!

And guess what guys, the LG manual / paperwork says your warranty could be void if you use a 3rd party charger!!!!! WTH??? Please...

 

[christianN]

If my suggestion works for you or not, please let me know so we can really get to the bottom of this! I will continue testing my phone and post what I find too.

 

[christianN]

Sorry, I didn't mean to direct that at you. I was actually addressing the op when he says "Unless I am using the charger that came with my TMobile G2x". I do understand now though. Sometimes, it is better to just leave one in the wall and take one with you.

Yes... I have chargers everywhere, and sometimes, if I'm at someone else's house, I want to be able to use any generic USB charger as well.

like I said in another post, it is also very frustrating that you have to download the drivers everytime you want to charge the phone at a new computer (as per my recent discovery which has yet to be proved wrong).

This alone warrants a software update to fix this problem, if it is even possible to do so.

This isn't a small feature request problem. This is a major issue that affects all users, and in this day, I believe it is silly to require everyone to get the correct drivers every time and use only an LG charger, because many a time, it's just not possible to do so, and besides, hardly any USB charging device requires this anymore... Of course they say "only use our charger" probably so they can make their ROI and so they can skimp out on building protection into the phone, but really... Grrr.

 

[christianN]

Am I missing something here? Why would you need a 3rd party charger? My phone came with a usb charger that plugs into a wall charger... Is there some benefit to using a 3rd party charger???

The benefit is price, convenience, and convenience if you've lost your charger and need an emergency charger.

I don't really want to buy 10 overprice LG / T-Mobile chargers, one as a belt buckle, one as an earing, one as a doorstop, etc., etc... Just to have my bases covered.

Since there are so many different chargers and phone out there, it would make sense to make the phone responsible for basic power on/off regulation and minor voltage regulation.

Anyhow, this phone has been out in Asia for a bit, so this issue should have been addressed by now... And like I said, "Don't use the phone with any other charger," seems like a cop-out.

 

[christianN]

Update for G2X Charging Problems / G2X Screen Going Crazy :::::
My wife's G2X is having the same problem...
So now, it's two different phones, purchased at two different times, coming via two different shipments, and both have slightly different softwares installed, making the two phones most likely from 2 different batches entirely.

1) G2X phone charges normally with the original charger.
2) Phone charges normally when connected to a laptop ONLY WHEN THE PROPER DRIVERS ARE DOWNLOADED AND INSTALLED (see one of my previous posts in this topic for the link)
3) G2X Phone's screen freaks out a while after reaching 100% charge
4) G2X seems to return to normal after unplugging it (but this overall problem could still possibly damage the phone over time I'm guessing)
5) Problem happens using iPhone charger, and Griffin Block charger with red/green led (and this charger is supposed to notify you that the charge is complete, which makes me think that it supposedly senses when the charge is complete but still doesn't fix the problem.

Observation: LG G2X charger is 4.8 volts instead of 5. I don't know if this is the problem, but I think it's kind of moronish to make a device that charges off USB at a different than standard voltage, unless you are trying to cut a corner or force people into buying your chargers (which I think is moronish BTW too)).

I'm now leaning to the problem being voltage based, unless anyone else has any ideas. If there is a possible way to regulate the voltage internally coming through the usb by making an app (or better yet, if LG makes a software update to autoregulate the voltage within reasonable parameter!), that would be awesome (of course I don't know if that's possible at all since I'm not really that knowledgeable about the inner workings of the device)...

BTW, besides this major annoyance, I love this phone. BUT IT REALLY NEEDS A FIX!

 

[christianN]

Today I went to the Tmobile store. The sales rep told me that they had received an email from their LG rep who said that LG knows about many of these problems, and that most of them can be attributed to running a stock Android 2.2.2.The wait for Gingerbread is estimated at 2 weeks or less. The rep himself bought a g2x, and now its completely crashed and not even working. So my options were one of 3 things...

===/ /===

3. Or roll the dice that my phone just had a spasm one day and that hopefully Gingerbread will be the solution to our prayers.

Well it would be nice to officially know what the problem is... I'd hate to go past my 14 days return period... If the store is shady enough, they could just be telling you all this out of laziness, so you don't bother returning the phone and they don't have to bother doing your return.

Whatever the case, an official response or an extended warranty until this issue is resolved would be nice!

 

[christianN]

1. Have them replace my phone that has only acted up a cpl times one day and never again...but I might end up with a phone that has completely crashed and unuseable until a replacement (Refurb) is sent to me (Rep only had his 5 days when it crashed and burned).

If you get a replacement within your 14 days, how does that work? They take your phone and you remain without a phone until you get a refurbed one in the mail?

Also, do you only get one chance to return a defective phone?


Refurbished replacements are NOT excusable. I just got this thing. Even after extraneous testing, you don't always find all the problems, and besides, something used is something used.

 

[corbsr]

Anyone having an issue with an LG G2X P999 locking up and requiring battery removal to restart? And also is there a way to determine if it is s new or refurbished phone?