[wellwellwell]

Hi, I hope you guys can help me out. I've been using my Curve 8320 on T-mobile for a couple months. Just today the trackball started acting strange. Now it will scroll up and sideways but not down, making it impossible to use.

Has anybody encountered this problem before and have a fix? I'm hoping there might be something short of sending it back in. I have pulled the battery and restarted a couple times without success.

I'm heading out of country in morning and had counted on using this device overseas. Terrible timing for it to fail on me.

Thanks for any help.

[vinmontRD]

Originally Posted by wellwellwell

Hi, I hope you guys can help me out. I've been using my Curve 8320 on T-mobile for a couple months. Just today the trackball started acting strange. Now it will scroll up and sideways but not down, making it impossible to use.

Has anybody encountered this problem before and have a fix? I'm hoping there might be something short of sending it back in. I have pulled the battery and restarted a couple times without success.

I'm heading out of country in morning and had counted on using this device overseas. Terrible timing for it to fail on me.

Thanks for any help.

Think I just ran into, and survived, what you're experiencing:

I've had a Curve for several months (8300). Worked flawlessly - until 2 days ago, when the trackball started acting funky. I could scroll up, down and left -- but not right. It would roll - but apparently not send the info to the BB, and right rolling translated into no movement on screen.

I played around with it a bit, and noticed that if I pressed down slightly while rolling right, I could feel a bit of a bumpy "grinding" feeling, and the on-screen selection would scroll right. I then read in another post that somebody had experienced dust in their trackball - and described the feeling very much like what I just described with my trackball.

Their solution was to force some high pressure air right into the keyboard / trackball area and blast the dust out. I was thinking of a canister of pressurized air, but the poster claimed to simply blow with his mouth, and clear up the dust problem.

I have at least 2 or 3 compressed air cannisters in the house, but, naturally, couldn't find any of them when my trackball started weirding out on me. So I took a deep breath, pursed my lips - and blasted away at the trackball while depressing it slightly and rolling it in all directions.

After about half a dozen such blasts, I tested it again - and all the perfect scrolling I had for the past several months was back. After two days of being crippled, it now works again like new.

All I can think is that some kind of dust or lint became lodged in the trackball mechanism, and that I was lucky enough to be able to blast it out as described above.

If you have a can of compressed air, that might work better.

I also suggest depressing (slightly) the ball and rolling it around while you blast air at it.

Good luck!

- Jon

BTW: if it's damaged, you can order a new trackball assembly at Cellular Accessories - Nokia, Samsung, Dopod/O2, HTC, Motorola, Apple, BenQ-Siemens, BlackBerry, Alcate

[JSanders]

Yes, the RIM knowledge-base recommended fix--press and roll firmly in the direction it does not want to move.

For people who carry their BB in their pocket, such issues with the trackball are more common.

[wellwellwell]

Thanks for such great, quick info. I have tried both and can get it to work a little -- not perfectly yet but I'll keep at it. And yes, I do carry it in my pocket so that could be a cause.

[Dubdub]

Actually, I have found that if you turn off the device and then press and roll the ball in all directions, t seems to dislodge whatever it is that keeps it from tracking. Also dip a q-tip in some alcohol and clean the ball. And last, but certainly not least, DO NOT carry it in your pocket. That is how it gets that way.

[sgtdisturbed47]

If using a can of compressed air doesn't work, you may have to pop out the trackball to clean it. Not recommended, but it's an option.

[vinmontRD]

Originally Posted by sgtdisturbed47

If using a can of compressed air doesn't work, you may have to pop out the trackball to clean it. Not recommended, but it's an option.

I had been prepared to do that if necessary...but was hoping that a blast of air would do the trick. Happy that merely blowing (no air can) combined with "press and roll" was sufficient. Will have to find my lost cans of compressed air to have handy in case this happens again...

[Belize2004]

I got a replacement trackball for mine at blackberry8100parts.com
hope this helps

[jbabybub]

HEEEELLLLPPPP.... Im having the same problem, I tried cleaning the trackball like ever1 says. But what I find strange is my trackball doesnt seem to get stuck, on the contrary it feels pretty loose. Ne1 have any suggestions or tips????

[The BlackBerry Kid]

battery pull???

[Tangocore]

Had the same 2 months ago while at a friend house with no aircan or anything. Just took the ring out with my nail, took the ball in and out, reput the ring and then was working brand new.

[axel2078]

Originally Posted by Tangocore

Had the same 2 months ago while at a friend house with no aircan or anything. Just took the ring out with my nail, took the ball in and out, reput the ring and then was working brand new.

How do you get the ball out? Does that ring twist off just like the ring on a wired wheel mouse?

[zarooo]

just tried this now, with my mouth, blew as hard as i could (thats what she said, lo, sry i had to) and it works fine now.

[tuscanphoneco]

I've had this problem a million times. Its a major design flaw but if you replace the trackball its good as new. I order replacement trackballs for my users from BlackBerryTrackballs.com. They come fast and they include instructions so my users can install them in seconds.

[syntaxut]

thx for the 2nd reply.. mine wont go right and i put some air on it. .and is working fine :D

[scottishlassie]

A hair blow dryer on cool setting works wonders too.

[wmflyfisher]

Originally Posted by zarooo

just tried this now, with my mouth, blew as hard as i could (thats what she said, lo, sry i had to) and it works fine now.

HA!!! YES!!

[hominid7]

Using a small (very small) amount of hand sanitizer on a kleenex and rolling the ball around will help clean oils, makeup, other assorted junk that naturally build up on the ball from your face.

If it's an actual piece of crud thats stuck down in there removal will be required for proper cleaning.

[Frisco]

I don't understand. What is holding you folks back from just prying up the little ring that holds the trackball in place, removing the trackball and cleaning the crud that collects in there under the trackball?

I do it using my fingernail to gently pop the chrome ring off, then just turn the device over and usually the trackball just falls out into my hand, sometimes "slap" the back gently a bit.

Then use a q-tip cotton swab with a bit of alcohol on it (not booze, "rubbing alcohol" ), then compressed air to blow out the rest thoroughly.

Be very very careful putting the trackball back in.. has to be in the right position (rectangle pointing up toward the screen) and even more careful putting the chrome ring back; do not force anything, just align the snaps together and *gently* snap it back on.

I do it once a week, the same day I do my weekly battery pull.

How to clean your BlackBerry trackball | BB Geeks

[guruka]

Originally Posted by Frisco

...<snip>...I do it once a week, the same day I do my weekly battery pull.

Er... weekly battery pull? Why? Why not just do a cold boot? <Alt+RightShift+Del>

.....G