[Q] Nexus 7 Grouper Screen Constantly Turning Off - Nexus 7 Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

My Nexus 7 2012 Grouper running Android KitKat 4.4 stock is constantly locking/turning the screen off as soon as I unlock/wake it. I did some searching and after some troubleshooting I finally singled out the problem - it is the case.
Granted it is a cheap case and so is nothing fancy, just a hard plastic back with a flap to cover the front of the device which secures to the back via a magnetic strip. Unfortunately I do not have an extra case to test with and find out if it is exclusive to my case only. My question is, does anyone know if this an isolated incident or is it a common problem regardless of the brand of the case?
Also, I assume this has something to do with the magnetometer, accelerometer, and/or gyroscope and the case interacting with them in some way resulting in the device being sent back to sleep. So is there anyway around this, i.e. is there any way to turn this feature off so that the device cannot be put to sleep in this way?
Thanks in advance and appreciate the help troubleshooting.

[Solved] I figured out that it was the magnetic flap causing the issue. It is designed so that the flap shuts off the display when closed but since I was folding the front cover, which has the magnetic flap on it, around to the back when using it, it was triggering the screen off.

Related

Nexus 7's "smart cover" feature

I just received a cheap case for temporary use until I get an actual one, but the case claims to have the "smart cover" feature where the magnets put the tablet to sleep. However, the tablet doesn't go to sleep. I tried using a fridge magnet and running it along the screen as I've seen it done in videos before, but that doesn't even work. Is mine defective? Does anyone else have this problem?
Thanks
You're sure that you're putting the magnet on the right spot?
Well I ran a magnet all the way around the 4 sides and it doesn't shut off. It's "supposedly" on the left side right?
Yeah, it's on the bezel just left of the screen somewhat near the bottom. Make sure that you're placing the magnet exactly where they put it in the videos.
Okay I played around with it, a kitchen magnet does nothing. The case does nothing. Weird thing is, when the tablet is not in the case, I can use one of the magnets in the cover and it'll work. I've tried many other magnets and none work. The case itself seems messed up as the magnet is on the outside edge (right side) and not on the left. Does it only work with certain magnets?
As far as detecting magnetism goes, it's only the strength that matters, so maybe your non-working magnets aren't strong enough and therefore the sensor can't detect the presence of a magnet?
Yeah I considered that, but I tried several different ones but no go. Although the magnets on the case that holds the case closed does work. The thing is, those two magnets that hold the case closed are on the right side of the tablet, whereas the sleep is on the left side. I'm going to email the seller about this and hopefully it can be dealt with. At least I know that it works...

4.2.2 + magnetic cover = rebbot everytime i flip cover

Hey everyone,
So ever since I have updated to 4.2.2 CM nightlies, i began to get this weird and super annoying issue:
every time open or close my magnetic cover on my Nexus 7 which is supposed to turn on or off, but instead my tablet just reboot!
So does anyone have any similar issue?
Any ideas about how i can solve this wretched problem? :crying:
My nexus 7 used to reboot on its own all the time too. I thought it was my magnetic cover, but then I realized that my power button was stuck about halfway pushed in. That kept waking the screen all the time too. I ended up just taking off the back cover and fiddling with the power button. When I put the cover back on it worked great. So that may be the issue with yours possibly.
I would suggest taking your nexus 7 out of your magnetic cover for a day or two and see if you still experience the same problems. Also check in your battery settings to see if your screen turns off and on on its own a lot. And if the device keeps waking up more than you would anticipate.

[Q] Phantom touches/unresponsive touch screen - only when the back cover is on

So I've been using my N7 on and off since I bought it in January. I would've used it more if it wasn't for the fact that the touchscreen responded really bad to touch and freaked out every now and then. It even almost bought an app on its own in the play store once. As I bought it through a retailer in another country I figured I would try to fix the problem myself - and I did kind of.
I tried a lot of things that people suggested in other threads here on xda, reddit, youtube, etc. but the only thing that seemed to work somewhat was tightening the screws around the edges after opening it up. The problem still persisted to some degree and got worse again after a few weeks.
After opening it up again a few weeks ago to fiddle around with the screws again I realized something - the phantom touch problem was gone and the screen had perfect response whenever I was handling it with the back cover off. So I put it in a case without putting the cover on first and I've been using it like that ever since - this leaves the wifi/gps/etc. without a grounding connection though, and I also prefer to use it without a case so my question is this:
Has anyone had the back cover apply pressure/mess with the touch screen in any way?
I have no screen lift at all, but these are the methods I have tried:
Tightening screws(worked somewhat)
Loosening screws(didn't work)
Putting a small piece of paper between the black cable that apparently connects the touch screen and the circuit board in case it was causing a short there due to pressure or something(didn't work)
Additional info: Whenever I remove the back cover, the only place where I have to apply some extra pressure to get it loose is right around where the aforementioned black cable is.
erikkr said:
So I've been using my N7 on and off since I bought it in January. I would've used it more if it wasn't for the fact that the touchscreen responded really bad to touch and freaked out every now and then. It even almost bought an app on its own in the play store once. As I bought it through a retailer in another country I figured I would try to fix the problem myself - and I did kind of.
I tried a lot of things that people suggested in other threads here on xda, reddit, youtube, etc. but the only thing that seemed to work somewhat was tightening the screws around the edges after opening it up. The problem still persisted to some degree and got worse again after a few weeks.
After opening it up again a few weeks ago to fiddle around with the screws again I realized something - the phantom touch problem was gone and the screen had perfect response whenever I was handling it with the back cover off. So I put it in a case without putting the cover on first and I've been using it like that ever since - this leaves the wifi/gps/etc. without a grounding connection though, and I also prefer to use it without a case so my question is this:
Has anyone had the back cover apply pressure/mess with the touch screen in any way?
I have no screen lift at all, but these are the methods I have tried:
Tightening screws(worked somewhat)
Loosening screws(didn't work)
Putting a small piece of paper between the black cable that apparently connects the touch screen and the circuit board in case it was causing a short there due to pressure or something(didn't work)
Additional info: Whenever I remove the back cover, the only place where I have to apply some extra pressure to get it loose is right around where the aforementioned black cable is.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, have you checked the N7 under a florescent tube light? You should try to view the light's reflection on the n7's screen. It should be 'mirrored perfectly'. If the reflection of the light is crooked/bent, this means your screen is no longer flat. Ie. A flat mirror should show your reflection as it is. A curved mirror will distort the reflection.
If the screen is heavily distorted, this could mean the touch sensors are also 'bent' and touching the screen internals.
Check the reflection with cover on, and also cover off.
If with the cover off the n7, the screen seems to be 'flatter'. Then we could conclude the screen is fatigued by stress somehow by the attachment of the covers. If it somewhat same, then the problem is something else.
Since the cover provides ground points for the n7 circuit and it's antennas, maybe you should try cleaning the contact points on the cover side. There should be grooves made by the contact pins from the n7 on the cover, over time they might oxidize and cause a short circuit.
It is possible the touch mechanism is not being properly grounded somehow.
PLEASE BE EXTREMELY CAREFUL if you are going to clean the contact pins on the n7 side, they are small and very brittle.
Try to see if anything on the cover is touching the circuit board or creating a short circuit somewhere when installed.
These are the 2 causes i can think of. I had this problem too, i loosen some screws and re-check under a florescent light to see it's reflection, and i re-loosen or tighten until the reflection is nearly perfect (screen should be flat and reflecting like a mirror), if not it is bent by stress from screws being too tight or loose at some points.
Then i also cleaned the contact points and pressed the aluminum 'heatsinks' on the n7 side to make sure they dont contact anything else. I did both the same time, following by a switch in ROM and Kernel. So i'm not sure which actually helped. I'm sure i took some stress off the screen by the reflection thing. The grounding also makes sense as an intermittent ground causes stuff to f-up (my car) lol. But you may try n see how it goes. Cheers.

Case that turns screen on automatically

I have this case that somehow, when opened, turns the screen on automatically.
This is the case: STILGUT - ULTRASLIM CASE MADE FROM LEATHER FOR LG G2 (sorry, can't post links, new user restriction, Google it)
I thought it was an LG G2 feature but then I bought another cheaper case and with the new case the screen doesn't turn on and off automatically when the case is opened or closed.
I don't understand what it could be - how does this case work?
There's a small magnet on the inside of the flap of the case, this activates a sensor in the phone to shut the screen off when closed
meangreenie said:
There's a small magnet on the inside of the flap of the case, this activates a sensor in the phone to shut the screen off when closed
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? That's awesome.
I find it weird that I couldn't find this specification on their website. It was a huge surprise when I started using it and never knew why, and it was also a huge disappointment when the new one didn't work the same. Damn.
Anyone knows of any other cases that can do this? I think this feature is very, very helpful and again, like I said, I find it odd it's not one of the key selling points of the case on their website.

[Q] Black Screen w/ Time at top of screen?

more and more often my wife's S4 will turn into a black screen with the time at the top of screen...this will happen at random times she says, checking texts or looking at gallery pic's.
she has a generic phone case with a magnet to close the full cover (not a windowed cover.) BUT, like me, she leaves this full cover open (bent backwards and the magnet holds it that way) ALL of the time. i'm thinking the phone decides to go into Sview mode or something?? is there a way i can turn this feature off, or fix this problem another way??
BTW, she is running Android 4.4.4
thanks for any insight! --- art
bump?
Seems like you should be able to turn it off somehow. However, it might be a software issue in the case a data factory reset should fix it. If it's a hardware issue then I would take it to my provider or Best Buy to look at it.
i removed the case yesterday and it hasn't happened ... yet! hopefully that fixed it. thanks for the reply Stoney!

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