No black out for me...

I like the black/chrome combo! My trackball was feeling worn so I ordered one up from cnn.cn and figured, while I was at, I'd pick up a few other things.
8900 Trackball
Keypad w/red numbers
Unbranded chin cover
Snake skin battery door
Battery door latch w/spring

Here's some pics, sorry about the quality.

Before



After



Pretty Sweet IMHO :D

I still wish RIM had left easy accessibility to the trackball as my old one had a bunch of dirt and lint in it and would have been fine, aside from the ridges being worn, if I could clean it once a week.

Old ball on the left



A note on installing the track ball, put in it the right way :rolleyes: Notice the tabs that fit into slots on the motherboard.

Incorrect


Correct


I never had a problem with my old battery door coming off or feeling loose, but it did squeak while I was typing. Not so with the new door, its super tight! I'm still using my old door latch and keeping the new one for a spare.

I highly recommend cnn.cn if you're looking for parts. Decent prices, fast shipping, and high quality for the parts I ordered! EDIT: Except for the trackball evidently. After testing for awhile it seems that one of the rollers has a kinda flat spot. I took it apart and used the rollers from my old ball. Everything else seems good though!

The easiet way to remember how to reinstall the trackball is that the keyslot points downward.

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Well, wap glitch, couldn't edit. Nice look, too, BTW. Pics aren't bad, either, so don't pick on yourself too badly.

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Yeah, I saw the slots and what I had done wrong as soon as I took her apart again :o I was too excited to get everything together the first time!

Thanks for the props on the look. I know its not a big change, but I like it :D

Originally Posted by BergerKing

The easiet way to remember how to reinstall the trackball is that the keyslot points downward.

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what do you mean keyslot? I ask because I am about to change my trackball...:D

Originally Posted by JasonBourne

what do you mean keyslot? I ask because I am about to change my trackball...:D

There are two tabs on either side of a notch on the top and bottom of the trackball housing. If you look at the last two pictures you can see I put it in with them facing the sides the first time which was incorrect. They're supposed to be facing up and down :o

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wow i really like the idea of the 8900 track ball i might give it a try ...that theme from the first pic looks awesome btw

Originally Posted by DevenD

wow i really like the idea of the 8900 track ball i might give it a try ...that theme from the first pic looks awesome btw

Thanks! Wallpaper is here http://forums.crackberry.com/f123/bold-wallpapers-480x320-209536/ and the theme is from me :D

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Looks good! I've been planning on doing something similar (everything you did, minus snakeskin) but I've just been lazy. I even have all the parts I ordered... Don't feel like doing it. Maybe this weekend I will... :o

Originally Posted by savioAMG

Looks good! I've been planning on doing something similar (everything you did, minus snakeskin) but I've just been lazy. I even have all the parts I ordered... Don't feel like doing it. Maybe this weekend I will... :o

Thanks! Break out the T5 and Get-R-Done! It only takes a couple minutes ;)

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i really like the look of the black trackball, is it smoother when scrolling? i know the 8900 has more of a gritty scroll

Damn thats exactly the combo I was going to get. Even the snakeskin back. I might keep the white keypad though, not sure. And maybe a red ball.

Originally Posted by trdtrung

i really like the look of the black trackball, is it smoother when scrolling? i know the 8900 has more of a gritty scroll

Actually I just finished taking it apart and I'm using the rollers from my old trackball. One of the new rollers isn't perfectly round so it felt like I had a flat spot. It does have a more "gritty" feel to it, a more ridged feel, which is better to me. But it doesn't feel quit like the 8900, at least as I recall. I don't have an 8900 anymore so direct comparison won't happen unless I pop into a store for a bit. My old ball was pretty smooth, from wear I think :D The new keypad is fantastic! Way easier to spot the numbers. Why AT&T felt the need to white out everything is beyond me.

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The white keyboard doesn't look that bad with the chrome bezel imo. But if you swap it for the black bezel, then the keys look really plain because it stands out so much...

Looking good maxiang...

Looks Nice! ;)

Thanks Iceman, HoonBerry :D

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Update: Sent an email to cnn.cn sunday morning about the flat roller and received a reply from Steve this morning. He suggested swapping for a G1 trackball, said it works better, and he's sending it out as a replacment.

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Looks really nice. Great job!