[vsheth03]

Hello

I made a really stupid mistake, I had my playbook in my school bag and I had a few milliliters of coffee left in my mug, which I placed in my bag...of course it tipped over and spilt over the Playbook....luckily it wasnt too long before I opened my bag again....pulled the Playbook out and it had coffee in a few spots...I wiped it off immediately and continued using it....It worked...for about 35 minutes....and then it started to act funny and just turned off by itself. It's been about a week...I've tried the Rice trick, that didnt work...I've let it rest...and it still doesnt turn on.

Are there any suggestions to make this thing work again? Can I open it and clean it up? Any suggestions are welcome.

[homer1475]

More then likely some residue got left on the motherboard short circuiting it. I'm afraid its probably DOA. You could try to pull it apart and clean it, but I think at this point its a lost cause.

[TTBGF]

Hello

I made a really stupid mistake, I had my playbook in my school bag and I had a few milliliters of coffee left in my mug, which I placed in my bag...of course it tipped over and spilt over the Playbook....luckily it wasnt too long before I opened my bag again....pulled the Playbook out and it had coffee in a few spots...I wiped it off immediately and continued using it....It worked...for about 35 minutes....and then it started to act funny and just turned off by itself. It's been about a week...I've tried the Rice trick, that didnt work...I've let it rest...and it still doesnt turn on.

Are there any suggestions to make this thing work again? Can I open it and clean it up? Any suggestions are welcome.

I feel your pain, really sorry to hear that.

[gadgetier]

gotta agree with Homer, unfortunately coffee is an electronics killer.
as with any powered device when liquid comes into contact, sometimes if you can femove the power source quick enough then clean and dry you might be lucky but with the sealed design of the pb that is impossible.

coffee will short circuit then dry in a nasty sticky coating.
I used to work as an electronics engineer, repairing down to component level and Ive seen so many devices killed by coffee.

sad loss but it is almost certainly nothing more than an expensive paper weight.

[barkomatic]

You should not have continued using it after the coffee spilled on it. For future reference if this happens again you should power off the device or leave it off until it dries. You can put it in a bag of rice and let that sit for a few days. Sometimes, that can absorb the liquid before serious damage occurs--but it sounds like its too late.

You might want to call Blackberry and see what they say. Who knows? Maybe they'll wink and swap it out for you. Other than that, I think you'll need to buy a new one.

[Revord]

hmmm...seems like the addition of coffe would unlock more features than were previously unavailable

[rauldela]

You should not have continued using it after the coffee spilled on it. For future reference if this happens again you should power off the device or leave it off until it dries. You can put it in a bag of rice and let that sit for a few days. Sometimes, that can absorb the liquid before serious damage occurs--but it sounds like its too late.

You might want to call Blackberry and see what they say. Who knows? Maybe they'll wink and swap it out for you. Other than that, I think you'll need to buy a new one.

the bag of rice acrually works a blackberry fell on water we dry it then let it rest on rice. after several months that wasnt used. we try it and finally works !! still working ever since.

[buchacho]

There may be a chance of fixing it if you are willing to open up the unit.

I would say go to ifixit.com and find out how to open it. Then see if you can find where coffee has dried and clean those parts with something like rubbing alcohol and a cotton swab. If there is extensive residue on the mainboard, don't be afraid to soak it (by itself) in alcohol or even soapy water and rinse off. Most electronic boards/components are designed to be washable to remove flux residue after soldering. Let it dry for a couple days and then reassemble the unit.

[pallav_gupta]

I feel your pain i did almost the same with one of my bb phones.

[apengue1]

Coffee is a bad thing to get in there.. There does NOT seem to be a universal accepted way to revive, repair a water damaged (coffee damaged in this case) device. One trick I used once with an old Motorola that I had jumped in the POOL with while it was on.. and even swam around 5 minutes before I realized (yeah, i know LOL) is that first of all, I turned it off as soon as I could to prevent damage if there wasn't any already (which is what you should have done) then I checked the specs for the phones temperature limitations. In the case of the PB its 105*F. So I put it in the oven at 100-105*F until dry and it WORKED. I'm talking about my Motorola here. Not only did it work, but it was as if nothing happened, and I'm also assuming there was no damage done to the phone since I turned it off I guess on time.

In your case though, since its coffee.. its probably stuck in there and does not easily evaporate like water, so this oven trick of mine will not work. You probably will have to take off the back panel while the device is off and go in there with a damp q-tip or something, whatever you think is best, and really clean that stuff out, maybe with rubbing alcohol or whatever.

You are probably going to hear many options, I guess choose the one that suits you best. Good luck!

[cntrydncr223]

That's truly a bummer! I think I'd feel like a part of me was missing...
At least they're still on sale.

[travaz]

If the upper limitt tempature wise is 105 for the Moto, I guess we are screwed in Phoenix.

[dfaris]

I did that once to my laptop was not happy. I would say it is lost and get a new one. Even if it does work again it may not work the way it use to.

I have been looking to get one of these and would suggest you get one of these for your coffee from now on

Collapse-A-Cup Travel Mug

Good luck

[Chrysalis1156]

Just wanted to say how sorry I am this happened to you. I'd be crying.

[apengue1]

If the upper limitt tempature wise is 105 for the Moto, I guess we are screwed in Phoenix.

lol no this is actually the specs for the playbook that i retrieved from the user guide. I would like it to be higher IMO but hey, I live in Canada :P

I do not remember the specs for the moto, it was a long time ago!

[robtanz]

Sorry for your loss. I can just hear the trolls now..."PB....sheeesh...can't even spill coffee on it"

[pkcable]

RIM has been known to repair units for people. Might be worth looking in too. HOWEVER, not sure how cost effective it would be.

[anon(3896606)]

How long ago did you buy the Playbook, or how long until your warranty expires?

[vsheth03]

gee thanks for all the support and "condolences" hahaha

I bought it during the $199 black friday sale so its been about a month and half since i've owned it.

I contacted blackberry and they said they would see if they can fix it, but then they sent me this agreement form in my email that I need to agree with before I can send in my unit.

5. REPAIR SERVICES AND PROCESSING FEES. In the event Your BlackBerry PlayBook is determined by RIM not to be covered by the BlackBerry PlayBook Limited Warranty, You agree to pay to RIM fees with respect to the Repair Services provided to You by RIM or a RIM authorized service provider in accordance with this Agreement. The Repair Services fee(s) payable by You to RIM will be communicated to You by RIM upon receipt and diagnosis of Your BlackBerry PlayBook by RIM or a RIM authorized service provider.

It's an extremely long email of terms and conditions but that's the clause that caught my eye. I dont know how much they might charge if they find out that its coffee damage.

Has anyone had any experience with blackberry warranty service?

[justincase1911]

About a month ago I spilled a large amount of coffee (10 to 12 oz's) all over my PB. Because I had a towel handy, I was able to dry it off immediately. I truly expected it to be DOA. To my surprise, though, none of the coffee got inside. I even opened it up (which I don't recommend without the proper tools) to check it out. Sure nuff, it was dry as a bone and still works great.

I suppose the moral of the story is that if you spill something on your PB, time is of the essence. The quicker you dry it off, the better your chances. If it has time to seep in, the more the likelyhood that you'll be sad.

Anyway, sorry to hear what happened. I hope you'll be able to replace it. I can't imagine life without my PB.

[TinRobot]

That's a real bummer. Coffee is death to most electronics. Plain water might be survivable but not coffee in any amount.

[cntrydncr223]

Sorry for your loss. I can just hear the trolls now..."PB....sheeesh...can't even spill coffee on it"

OMG that's hilarious!!

[xKrNMBoYx]

Return it for a replacement and hope for the best?