Can I Get My In-car Sat Nav Repaired?

Recently, i noticed the battery in my Garmin Nuvi 610 sat nav was dying, or almost dead. Information technology had a life of virtually thirty seconds if it wasn't plugged in to the motorcar charger…

I've had information technology for iii years now, and so that's non surprising, the battery should simply concluding about 2 years before dying. I rarely use the sabbatum nav outside of the car but i do observe it very frustrating when i demand to programme a trip and i have to physically leave to the car and charge the sat nav to figure out trip details. So i needed a new battery…

Officially, Garmin say;

The nuvi 600 series do not take user replaceable batteries. These units must be sent in to a Garmin canonical repair facilities if a battery consequence arises.

But i see that as a claiming 😉 My sat nav 'must' be sent to Garmin for a new battery… "we'll see about that" i said to myself and off i went googling 'how to replace a Garmin Nuvi 610 battery'. Garmin charge $99 to modify a battery plus you'll exist without your device for a while and then it's not an ideal 'solution'.

Within minutes i came across this video, watched information technology and said to myself "i can do that". Then i saved the video, went to ebay and ordered a higher capacity battery from Hong Kong for €7 including delivery.

It arrived yesterday and i gear up most installing information technology.

Dismantling a sat nav

Underneath the fancy outside it'southward rather disappointing when you go a peak inside of a saturday nav… just a excursion lath with a few wires and stuff. Later on i prised the thing open and had everything the way i wanted information technology, i discovered that i couldn't become the original battery out – information technology was most welded in place. Eventually i discovered it was glued in place with viscous stuff on the back of the battery… one time i got the former bombardment out i was eager to connect the new one upward and see if it worked.

Then i connected the new battery to the 'motherboard' and pressed the 'on' push button – with the device nonetheless split in to several pieces (i didn't want to put it all dorsum together only to find the new battery didn't piece of work.) Sure plenty, the power came on and the device stayed powered on for longer than thirty seconds…. happy days – or and so i thought. I put everything back together (loads of screws and a spring or ii combined with animate being forcefulness) and happened to affect the screen to modify some settings….

No response. Information technology was powered on, but the bear upon screen wasn't responding. Houston, we had a problem. I had been fairly careful taking everything apart – i knew i hadn't snapped any wires or done any damage to the circuit board so it was a bit of a mystery.

Upon taking the thing apart, again, i spent a good hour or more than looking at what was connected to what – making certain everything was in order. Information technology turned out the wire which connected the touch screen to the motherboard was a scrap loose and sure plenty after a bit of fiddling effectually, i got it secured and the bear upon screen started working. Success.

I trounce Garmin

Start of all, ALL batteries in any device should be easy to bandy & replace. It'southward one of the bug with iphones too – when your battery dies (and it will if you're a hardcore user), it's hassle to get it changed. It tin can't simply be swapped out for some other one similar sim menu. Lets confront it, all batteries suck and they deteriorate the more than we use them. It'due south all downhill with battery life from the moment you ability upwards your device for the first time.

Companies like Garmin probably deliberately brand batteries non 'user replaceable' to (a) make money from installing new batteries themselves (b) discourage users from getting old stuff replaced / fixed and instead encourage them to buy newer models… Garmin don't want me hanging on to a sat nav for 10 years, they want me upgrading every bit much as possible.

Conviction the fundamental to DIY

Up until i seen a video on youtube about how to replace a battery in a sat nav, i hadn't a clue what was involved. I was as clueless are you lot are. However, i had the confidence to DIY. I felt all i had to do was unscrew a few screws, lift a few things up and replace the old battery with the new ane, and then screw stuff back together – like shooting fish in a barrel.

photo credit: Skoropada

Now it was a little harder than that and i did run in to a trouble with the impact screen not working but in a nutshell that's all i did – unscrew stuff and pop things in / out of place. Y'all don't demand to be an electrician or a Garmin approved battery changer to exercise this stuff – whatever idiot tin do information technology. Follow a few steps in a video tutorial, buy the right battery on ebay and yous've merely saved yourself (a) about $xc (b) having to send your unit away for repair for days/weeks.

The same tin be applied to nearly any It device out there… if it's broke, you can probably prepare it yourself if you know how to use a screwdriver and what part to supercede… the only affair stopping y'all is a lack of fourth dimension, patience, or ignorance. A combination of all three perhaps. I suppose it boils down to attitude – if y'all believe you tin can do something, you're more likely to endeavor & ultimately succeed at it. Don't think you tin can practise something and y'all're not even going to effort.

Source: https://seanmacentee.com/changing-a-sat-nav-battery/

Posted by: stackthspolies.blogspot.com

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