How often are you guys having to replace your trackball? My 8900 seems to be going through bout 2 a month lately.. I don't see how they can gum up so damn fast! Anyone have some insight on this?
try a little rubbing alcohol on a Q tip to keep it clean
yeah the last 2 times it gummed up i took the track ball assembly apart and cleaned the rollers.. just gets annoying to have to take my phone apart all the time..
You got oily/sweaty/greasy hands? I've had my original ball for about 6 months now and it's still just as good as new. It goes every which way without and weird behavior. I think a big trick is keeping your hands (your thumb specifically) clean/dry when you use your phone. My girlfriend has had her pearl for some time, she uses lotion n' all that, and her trackball is so hard to maneuver. I can barely get it to do anything! Her trackball is just so slippery.
A couple of times mine has gotten "stuck" in that it won't roll in one direction. When that happens I just grip the surface of the ball with my nail and move it in the direction it's stuck in. Once I get some movement I just wiggle it around in every direction really fast for a while to clear up the rollers and then I'm good to go.
Also, I had my old pearl for about 2.5 years and I never once had to replace the ball. It still rolls pretty good and is my backup phone should anything happen to my curve.
At first mine would get yucky a lot, but nothing a q-tip dipped ina alcohol couldn't fix. I'm going on 6 months now and it works great, haven't had to wipe it since October! I always have clean fingers when I use it and I keep it in its own pocket in my purse.
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I've had my 8900 a little over a year now and I still have the original track ball. I clean mine every couple of weeks with an alcohol pad. I'm a mechanic and it gets pretty dirty. But now that I've posted this I'm jinksed and its going to go bad on me.
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I had my 8900 for a little while, and the the trackball went bad, but then would work. Until it just went completely out. I ended up not replacing the trackpad, just got a new phone.
i had mine for about a year and 1 month now. and its done...it gets all stuck, moves slow and its frustrating, tried the q-tip with the alcohol on it...didnt help. it used to, but now it gets stuck..grrr. need helpp.... :-(
Keep your hands clean and you should have no issues. I had mine for a year. No probs, except the occasional piece of dirt, which I blow into the crack and it usually does the trick. I have never had to disassemble.
I've had my 8900 for about a year and I've only had to clean it twice. Best advice I can offer is to make sure you try to keep your hands clean when using the device.
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Mine still works perfectly already a year passed as my tour keeps touring! I clean it with alcohol from time to time and clean my hands before using it and blow particles with the air blower for electronic devices from time to time also!
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My first 8900, the ball started sticking about 2 weeks after I got it. I got a warrenty replacement when the trackball dome cratered and havent had a single issue yet, been about 6 months. I wonder if there were upgrades in processes or materials on the production line? I heard much more about trackball problems from early adopters.
I've had my 8900 since August and have been using the original trackball. The alcohol wipe method works really well for me as well. I also noticed when I upgraded to 5.0 that the trackball seemed be more predictable and smoother overall.
