A friend of mine bought another PDA when her Zire 22 wouldn’t charge. I asked her why didn’t she tell me as the solution could be an easy one. Nonetheless, I told her to try a soft reset and then a hard reset. She said she was charging the new one and then was going to put the new one into the old one’s cradle to see if it charges. Good idea, but I’d try the reset first.
Info on resets: Before doing any kind of reset, backup the device, if possible. A soft reset compares to rebooting a computer. Doing a reset doesn’t erase the data.
Most devices come with a small hole on the back. The tip of your stylus might be able to press it. If not, get a paperclip and straighten it. This works most, if not all, the time. Just insert the clip or stylus into the hole until you see the welcome screen appear. Some devices don’t have the reset button in an obvious place like the Tungsten T3 requires sliding it open to access the hole or the Treo 650 that has its reset button behind the battery door.
A hard reset erases all the data and returns the device to the way it was when you two first met. Again (can’t remind folks too many times), back up your data before doing a hard reset. Put the paper clip or stylus into the hole on the back of the device and hold it down while you press the power button until you see the screen appear with either a message asking if you want to erase the data, or the device’s default welcome screen. Also, check your device’s documentation because the hard reset process could be different — but this one is common.
After doing a hard reset, sync your device with the computer to restore the data. Before doing this, check the device’s documentation on restoring data. For instance, Palm OS users need to open HotSync and select Custom. Select the Conduit and click Change to “change the action to Desktop overwrites handheld.” Windows Mobile users open ActiveSync, click on Tools and then Backup/Restore. Select the Restore tab and click on the Restore Now button.
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If your friend’s Palm isn’t holding a charge, she should try the “in-cradle/charger” reset, which will reset the battery level mechanism in the Palm.
To do the in cradle/charger reset, simply plug the Palm into the charger and have it charge up. While it’s charging, do a soft reset which is poking a pin or bent up paperclip in the reset hole (usually located at the back of the Palm) and leave it for 3 – 4 hours. Don’t touch any buttons, turn off the Palm, touch the screen or do anything once you do the soft reset or it will ruin the whole process. If you do, simply do it again and make sure to not touch anything and let it stay turned on for the 3 – 4 hour charge. Most times, you will notice that the Palm is retaining a better charge. Doing it a few times in succession if it doesn’t work usually will make it work.
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