Can no longer connect to my bangle.js 2

Maybe even a hot water bottle could work. I have done one mine with a hot air gun and without setting it to 140°C I could not get it to budge. That was hot enough to let the display go blank. It recovered completely but that did not feel save.

Sadly my (previously working) Bangle 2 seems to have succumbed to the same issue - I can no longer connect to it via Bluetooth. In particular, it is no longer discoverable on any other device (tried 3 smart phones, a laptop and a desktop, all of which see my other 2 Bangles without issues; made sure it is programmable in settings, also performed a factor reset);
does not show up as Dfutarg in DFU mode, either; nor does the pinch trick mentioned above seem to have any effect. Curiously, this is the newest of 3 Bangle 2s I own (the first 2 were Kickstarters). It did not get wet (beyond wearing it regularly).
Any advise?

@user113695 thanks for trying all of that. It does sound a lot like a hardware failure then - although it's particularly strange to have one from a newer batch to have issues. How old is it?

I'll ask Christine to get in touch about a replacement

Thanks, I appreciate that.

Looks like I am also encountering this HW issue. I got 5 bangle.js 2 from the Kickstarter, and the one I ended up using cannot connect via BT anymore and also doesn't show up as DfuTarg when in the bootloader mode.

Argh, sorry to hear it's failed - unfortunately it's 18 months old now. I've been replacing Bangles if there's an issue within 12 months, but I can't afford to offer free replacements past then.

There is a possibility that it is just the connection to the aerial that's corroded in which case you might be able to resurrect it by repeatedly squeezing the top right of the watch, or worst case removing the LCD and then reseating the PCB, but I'm aware that's a step too far for most people.

What I have been saying is if you did want to buy a new Bangle then I can give you a code for the shop that will give you 50% off the price - while I can't afford to replace old devices free of charge, I also don't feel like I should be making money on the sale of a replacement.

Hey Gorden, i am suffering from the same problem. Please provide instructions for solving this properly. Maybe on ifixit?

Greetings

Dietmar

Hi - you mean you're suffering a bluetooth connection problem? How old is your Bangle?

There are some instructions for disassembly on http://www.espruino.com/Bangle.js2+Disassembly if that helps

Thanks Gordon - hard squezzing and some hard taps on the side brought it back to connect with bluetooth 😃

Glad to hear that solved it! Sorry you ended up having issues with it though.

The aerial is built into the case and a gold-plated connector on the PCB pushes onto it to make contact - I guess if it got corroded somehow then that could cause problems - hopefully what you did will have broken through the corrosion enough to fix it

Hi Gordon run into the same problems again so I will go for disassemble - what glue should be used to fix the display back in place afterwards? Cheers Gernot

Sorry to hear that - I'd say try and use "Neutral Cure" silicone sealant. It should be reasonably easily available - it's just you want neutral vs acetoxy silicone as acetoxy lets off acetic acid when it cures, and that can corrode the watch internals

I managed to disassemble using the heatbed on my 3D printer as recommended; how do I clean the contact as after reassembling I still get the bluetooth only connecting by hard squezzing. Thanks !

I loosened the screw above the bluetooth contact and that made the magic; could it me the cause Gordon that this was tightened to hard in production ?

What about using this glue B-7000 ? https://cdon.dk/mobile-phone-replacement-parts/b-7000-lim-multianvandning-glas-sten-tra-lcd-15ml-2-styck-c157130481

Glad you got it fixed! I'm not sure if being over-tight could really be the issue as the PCB should just be tightened down onto plastic standoffs in the case.

The bluetooth aerial is in the plastic case though, connected by that sprung plastic contact, and I wonder whether the contact can corrode slightly and lose contact. I think in a lot of cases just moving the PCB around and tightening up should be enough, but it's a pain that it's so difficult to do because of the LCD.

And yes, that BEST B-7000 glue looks like it'd be perfect! I'd never seen that stuff before

**Works again **

The B-7000 glue is easy to apply & has a good viscosity to stay in place - after placing LCD into position an elastic was used to keep it fixed for 12 h.
Lets see if loosening the screw helps - in case connection gets lost again - to move the PCB by the your instructions Gordon but without the need to remove LCD

That's great! Thanks for the update on the B-7000 glue as well - I'll add a note on https://www.espruino.com/Bangle.js2+Disassembly as the glue to use seems like a common question, and I wasn't aware there were glues designed specifically for sticking phone screens back on!