[Bishop_DrtyBrd]

I broke the mini-usb charging port on my BlackBerry PlayBook.
Here is my current situation: I am remotely located in Africa, with no mail service to order parts or the magnetic charger and no access to a store to try to buy anything. I have another USB charger that I no longer need. I have heard that you can cut the tip off of any USB type charger and CAREFULLY use it to charge the PlayBook via the magnetic charging port.
Is this true and if so, can someone please explain how to do this?
I have searched quite a bit for the last couple days with no luck.

[Superfly_FR]

Hi Bishop and welcome to the CrackBerry community !
I believe you'll find most of your answers here : http://forums.crackberry.com/blackbe...mation-667050/
Be sure to read/ask for more details in the thread above !

Hope it helps,
Cheers
SF

[Bishop_DrtyBrd]

Superfly...
Thanks for the hyperlink, it helped a little.
I guess at this point, the biggest question(s) I have are:
1) Do I simply cut the tip off the other USB charger I have, strip the shielding, and CAREFULLY tape it to the connectors for the magnetic charging port?
2) Assuming the above is a YES, does it matter which wire I connect to which connector (reading the string you sent, there is contradicting answers on which is positive and which is negative).
3) If the outside connectors are positive, should I splice another wire to the power (+) on the charger and use both outside connectors --OR-- If the outside connectors are negative, should I splice another wire to the ground (-) on the charger and use both outside connectors?
Thanks again.

[jpash549]

Superfly...
Thanks for the hyperlink, it helped a little.
I guess at this point, the biggest question(s) I have are:
1) Do I simply cut the tip off the other USB charger I have, strip the shielding, and CAREFULLY tape it to the connectors for the magnetic charging port?
2) Assuming the above is a YES, does it matter which wire I connect to which connector (reading the string you sent, there is contradicting answers on which is positive and which is negative).
3) If the outside connectors are positive, should I splice another wire to the power (+) on the charger and use both outside connectors --OR-- If the outside connectors are negative, should I splice another wire to the ground (-) on the charger and use both outside connectors?
Thanks again.

Remember the magnetic charging port is a 12 volt port.

[Superfly_FR]

Well, I must say unless we can find a diagram, I cannot give a valuable answer here.
Hopefully some guys may help better, sorry.

[GV2012]

This is not of any help to you today but you need to order the magnetic charger like now and get it sent to a post office box or somewhere where someone can pickup for you. This usb charging problem will only get worse. Just curious, .If you have no access to anything how did you get the Playbook in first place.

[drinkmorejava]

Hi, I did this when I originally got a playbook and had not yet received my magnetic charger.

To start, you need a 12V charger. Cut off the end and strip 1/4" from the positive and ground wires.

1) Cut out a cardboard (or something pretty thin but strong) outline of the magnetic port
2) Put one small hole in the middle and one small hole on the right or left side. These should align with the charging pins.
3) Put the wires through the holes and fold them over the side of the cardboard. Make sure they don't touch.
4) Tape the back side of the cardboard so the wires don't fall out
5) Place the cardboard and wires into the port, and secure with a rubber band around the makeshift charger and playbook.
6) I FORGET WHICH PIN IS POSITIVE AND WHICH IS GROUND/NEGATIVE. I THINK I SCREWED THIS UP, SO YOU MIGHT BE OKAY IF YOU CHECK QUICKLY. ODDS ARE THEY'RE PROTECTED ANYWAY. YOU MIGHT WANT TO SEE IF YOU CAN GOOGLE THE PIN VOLTAGES FIRST TO VERIFY.

[Superfly_FR]

Ok, found some more here : http://forums.crackberry.com/blackbe...nments-749469/
Additionally, here are the magnetic fast charger specs.

[Dominic Hagan]

it might be as easy to split the casing and file the tip of a soldering iron to a fine point. often when usb ports fail it's down to the outer negative breaking which is a easy fix. had plenty of usb failures on devices in the past and its rarer for the smaller connections to break in my experience.

I split one on monday to fix the depressed power button and it isn't so tough as long as you have a strong thumbnail to start it off.

[drinkmorejava]

"Ok, found some more here : Fast charger pin assignments??"
Your link says the pins are G/V/G. I guess that solves it.

You only need to connect to one of the Grounds.

[Superfly_FR]

If I read Peter's post I see 12v - G - 12V...
Then another poster says G-12V-G
Sorry if this adds to confusion.

Posted via CB10

[califlefty]

Find the rapid charger that uses the magnetic port and have it airmailed to you in Africa if necessary, problem solved. Forget about fixing the USB port.