Wrecked display and the USB host

[Thomas Sanladerer]

Hi,

i unintentionally cracked the NEO's display today... *sigh*
I then ripped it off the PCB (the LCD broke to pieces in the process)
and found the soldering points for the usb bluetooth module. Now here's
my idea:
- Pull off the bt module
- Mount a full usb host jack in the spot the bt module used to be
- Route power from the miniUSB to the fullUSB port
That way i should get a usb host that's powered through the internal
step-up or optionally any external usb power supply.
Before i completely destroy my phone, i just want to reassure this would
be possible in software and hardware.

Thanks,
Thomas Sanladerer


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[Joerg Reisenweber]

Am Do  30. April 2009 schrieb Thomas Sanladerer:
> - Pull off the bt module
> - Mount a full usb host jack in the spot the bt module used to be
> - Route power from the miniUSB to the fullUSB port
> That way i should get a usb host...

Probably a simple mini-USB->USB-AF adapter would accomplish the task to get a
USB-host much simpler and less invasive.
BTW: there are spare LCM available.

/j


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[Thomas Sanladerer]

Joerg Reisenweber schrieb:

> Am Do  30. April 2009 schrieb Thomas Sanladerer:
>  
>> - Pull off the bt module
>> - Mount a full usb host jack in the spot the bt module used to be
>> - Route power from the miniUSB to the fullUSB port
>> That way i should get a usb host...
>>    
>
> Probably a simple mini-USB->USB-AF adapter would accomplish the task to get a
> USB-host much simpler and less invasive.
> BTW: there are spare LCM available.
>
> /j
>  

Yes, i already built one of those adapters, which was three-headed
because it had a separate connector for external power.
With the extra usb port the mini port would remain unused and allow for
either charging in auto-detected fast charge mode or an additional host,
right?
I thought it would be more elegant if the neo itself would distribute
power from some extrernal supply to itself and the usb device;
additionally i usually dont't carry that adapter around, whereas the usb
jack would be built-in (now again, is this a standard usb host the bt
module is connected to?)
I believe pulster and trisoft carry spare displays here in germany, i'll
look into getting one from them.

Thanks,
Thomas Sanladerer


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[Thomas Sanladerer]

The 2442 has two usb host controllers, according to
http://www.samsung.com/global/system/business/semiconductor/product/2007/7/7/046670sc32442_msp.pdf 
, so is looks like that bluetooth module is using one of those.
I'll report back in on success!

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[Thomas Sanladerer]

Chris Syntichakis schrieb:
> So, that means that we can take off the BT module and connect
> (internal) a 3G usb dongle?
I guess that should work as well.
Two things you need to keep in mind though:
- The display is heavily taped to the pcb. It's very hard to get it off
in one piece.
- The 2442's hosts are usb 1.1 only, i.e. you can hope to get 1MB/s max.

I uploaded a pic of how the bt is connected:
http://dt-computer.de/neobt.jpg . The two connections marked should be
"data -" and "data +". As i belive you have already taken your neo apart
(who hasn't?) you'll know that the display entirely covers this
connection, so unless you've got a spare display, it would be quite hard
to get to.

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[Joerg Reisenweber]

Am Sa  2. Mai 2009 schrieb Thomas Sanladerer:

> Chris Syntichakis schrieb:
> > So, that means that we can take off the BT module and connect
> > (internal) a 3G usb dongle?
> I guess that should work as well.
> Two things you need to keep in mind though:
> - The display is heavily taped to the pcb. It's very hard to get it off
> in one piece.
> - The 2442's hosts are usb 1.1 only, i.e. you can hope to get 1MB/s max.
>
> I uploaded a pic of how the bt is connected:
> http://dt-computer.de/neobt.jpg . The two connections marked should be
> "data -" and "data +". As i belive you have already taken your neo apart
> (who hasn't?) you'll know that the display entirely covers this
> connection, so unless you've got a spare display, it would be quite hard
> to get to.

I suggest asking your friendly OM hw dept guy instead of spreading rumor.
The LCM is easily removable when done correctly.
You need to warm up the device to ~60° and then *slowly* (= >10min) peel off
the LCM. I removed quite some LCM now and not a single one broke. Other
community members successfully did this removal as well

/jOERG


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