[keith1000]

Hi all

I know this has been spoken of many times, but yesterday i exchanged my 32 gig for the 64 gig because of the new prices.
I know the power button has been a issue for everyone but this time around i'm a little concerned. I bought a 32 a couple months ago and the button is almost flush to the case and hard to press but works fine. I bought another last week for my girlfriend and the button stuck out what i would think is normal(1 mm) and worked really well. Just a soft press would send it into standbye and and a soft yet firm press would bring the shut down screen. like i said i believed it worked as it should.
Well thats the one i returned for the 64. Now i think i have problems.
The button is like FLUSH (moreso than the first one mentioned) with the case and really hard to press, it needs a FIRM push to send to standbye and and a really hard press (with finger nail) to bring up shut down screen.
Is this power button a problem were never going to get away from, or does this sound a little out of the ordinary and i should return?
I showed my concern to the sales guy before i even left the store ( i turned it on before i left to look for any pixel problems) and had a hard time shutting it down. I gave it to the sales guy he pushed it, the shut down screen came up and he shut it down, and said "its fine"
Any input would be appreciated. Thx
Keith



edit...
after i wrote this i tried it again, am i wrong? i just pushed and held hard on the power button and the shut down screen does not even come up it just goes into stand bye. Should the shut down screen come up with a button push? because i'm positive it came up when the guy did it. I'm wondering if he touched the battery icon? Although the button is hard to push it does go into stand by with a firm push.
Again should i be worried.
thx keith

[jafobabe]

I too have the 'flush' power button and I don't use it. Instead, I use the battery icon, and can shut it off, or put in standby, or reset.

Welcome to the forums!

Check out the Newbie Tips and Tricks for the Playbook, by clicking below my signature..
It was compiled by the knowledgeable posters from this forum.

Enjoy!

[dejanh]

Hey Keith,

Get the unit changed. Go to the store and ask for a unit with a serial number that starts with 13435 or higher to be certain you won't have problems. RIM started fixing this issue with units in the 13434 series, but not all units from 13434 are fine. I went through about 6 PlayBooks so far, every one that had a serial starting with 13435 or higher had a perfect button, 13434 was mixed, and below 13434 was not good.

[sk8er_tor]

I have a PB lower than 13434 serial number, my power button is flush, and it works every time. I actually prefer the flush button because I don't want it getting pressed accidentally. You do have to press it a bit firmly since it's flush and small. I actually like the original design. I guess it's a personal preference.

[shadydvh]

Hey Kieth, I had the same issue and people really started pissing me off, saying stuff like, "its normal and who cares? use the power off icon".....this annoyed me because thats not the point! If you pay for something and one of its compnents is the "old" style, then thats not right! You should get the new one, you paid for it, right?

Perfect example, you buy a Bold 9900 and the side convienence key is very low and hard to push. Would you say dont worry about it, I only use that button for the camera and for that I can just use the touch pad to take pics.....that is the stupidest thing I have ever heard! RETURN IT ! you paid 600 + for that BOLD!

I went through 4, first 2 the OS was "buggy" and the 3rd had the power button issue. Finally the last one i got everything worked and I am completely satisfied, and when you buy a product, no matter how expensive or not, IT SHOULD BE PERFECT!

For people to tell me that, suck it up, who cares, use the power off icon" I think is completely stupid on their part. I would have kept returning until i got one that is perfect!

So, yes Kieth, take back bro if you are worried about it, good luck bro

[blackjack93117]

It is important that it works or you won't be able to do resets if you have trouble - especially the three button reset. But that is all that is important, as in normal operation it is rarely used.

It's up to you if it bothers you or not - I have two - one flush and one not - as long as it works even with a hard press it doesn't bug me, just so long as it works. To me it wasn't worth the trouble of returning it and waiting for another, possibly risking another defect like a dead pixel.

I use the button maybe once a month, if even that. I keep a lollipop stick around for the occasion.

[keith1000]

Hey Keith,

Get the unit changed. Go to the store and ask for a unit with a serial number that starts with 13435 or higher to be certain you won't have problems. RIM started fixing this issue with units in the 13434 series, but not all units from 13434 are fine. I went through about 6 PlayBooks so far, every one that had a serial starting with 13435 or higher had a perfect button, 13434 was mixed, and below 13434 was not good.

hi. thx for this. I just checked my serial number and its really low 13431 with a date of Apr 12 2011

im thinking a return should happen.

thx keith

[dejanh]

hi. thx for this. I just checked my serial number and its really low 13431 with a date of Apr 12 2011

im thinking a return should happen.

thx keith

Yeah, that's like the first batch of units. I wish I could get my hands on a 13438...those would have been made in the last month or so.

[kennyliu]

The power button should be the least of your worries. As others pointed out, you only need it to turn on the Playbook. Then, everything else can be done using the on screen buttons and bezel swiping.

Re: your edit, it is possible you also have a software problem. The shut down icon does pop up when I long press the button.

[keith1000]

The power button should be the least of your worries. As others pointed out, you only need it to turn on the Playbook. Then, everything else can be done using the on screen buttons and bezel swiping.

Re: your edit, it is possible you also have a software problem. The shut down icon does pop up when I long press the button.

thx. After reading your last part about my edit i tried it on my 32 and sure enough with a firm hold the shut down screen appeared. So now i had to try it on this one (64) sure enough after a VERY firm hold the screen popped up. is this good? i'm not sure because the tip of my finger has pain from doing it. it actually hurts.
So then i tried a hard reset, with multiple attempts and 3 screen shots later and a even more soar finger tip it finally reset.
so with the responses being about 50/50 does this still sound like i should not be concerned?
thx Keith

[tharrison4815]

Yeah, that's like the first batch of units. I wish I could get my hands on a 13438...those would have been made in the last month or so.

I have a 13439 which I got on 3rd Jan 2012. Although the date on the box shows it as 240511. So I guess they can't be that new?

[alnamvet68]

[YT]youtube.com/watch?v=c2Y3Ps-F3tM[/YT]

[keith1000]

I have a PB lower than 13434 serial number, my power button is flush, and it works every time. I actually prefer the flush button because I don't want it getting pressed accidentally. You do have to press it a bit firmly since it's flush and small. I actually like the original design. I guess it's a personal preference.

hi all
thx for all the replies. i returned the playbook to futureshop, and sure enough the tech guy said "ya this is not right" and returned it no questions asked. so i mentioned to him about these serial numbers and we searched through a few boxes and found a 13436. i opened the box and it was perfect. you can actually feel the button "click" when you press it.
Thx again all
keith

[shadydvh]

wow mine must be real new 1344 3024..... serial number

[Kaenon]

wow mine must be real new 1344 3024..... serial number

I just received mine today and the date on the box is April 19, 2011.

[crunch27]

Weird....I have a 32Gb, which I bought in May and its serial number is 1343-1535......and was made 08/04/11. It has a flush on/off button and a flat back.

My wife has 32Gb, which I bought for her in September and its serial number is 1343-1249.....and was made 03/03/11, so it's older. It has a raised on/off button and the back is raised. It will spin on the table. Go figure!

[peter9477]

I just received mine today and the date on the box is April 19, 2011.

Big deal. We're not aware of any PlayBooks that were actually manufactured after that timeframe, so we're all in the same boat.

Yes, the label on the box apparently reads values as recently as early January (if I recall a post here correctly) or December. That means nothing yet, other than that the labels for the boxes weren't printed until then. Maybe the units weren't boxed until then.

I've seen no evidence yet to suggest that more units were actually manufactured any time after early last year.

[croanthony]

same exact problem but i cant return it. so frustrating so i try to not use it.

[Vector-SS]

wow mine must be real new 1344 3024..... serial number

Hey! Mine is a 1344-3023