Instruction Manuel

[Poem58]

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?

Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO. I think there is an errata issue with the non battery mode (called CVM). It runs without a battery if the LCD and Wifi are off (power drain is low) but then it won't charge the battery properly (takes about 30 hours!). No CVM and everything runs fine but you can't yank the battery.

So your battery refuses to charge anymore. Does this mean until you get another battery, you cannot use the screen or Wifi? or does that mean that the charge circuit just doesn't get enough power if they are on? I thought I had read before that you could run it on adapter only ( think this was brought up during battery swapping issues for keeping clock setting)

Then again, I think there was a difference between the USB and adapter charging and USB wouldn't have enough juice, but the adapter would run everything fine without a battery.
This kind of information is REALLY necessary to have in the manual. As those who don't frequent the boards wouldn't understand otherwise. (Shoot I read the boards and now I'm confused LOL)

Also, I am one to play while the adapter is plugged in anytime I am close to an outlet, So will this cause an overcharge situation for the battery or will it be shut off when full? I would assume auto shutoff for the charge circuit or you would have to remove battery or use battery only for prolonged use on the mains.

Please clarify. Thanks.

 

[Tom`]

So your battery refuses to charge anymore. Does this mean until you get another battery, you cannot use the screen or Wifi? or does that mean that the charge circuit just doesn't get enough power if they are on? I thought I had read before that you could run it on adapter only ( think this was brought up during battery swapping issues for keeping clock setting)

I wouldn't make that assumption - I would imagine the device will work as long as the battery is physically present, but I could be wrong. I believe this is how it was originally, before one of the early board revisions that added the capability to run without the battery.

Then again, I think there was a difference between the USB and adapter charging and USB wouldn't have enough juice, but the adapter would run everything fine without a battery.
This kind of information is REALLY necessary to have in the manual. As those who don't frequent the boards wouldn't understand otherwise. (Shoot I read the boards and now I'm confused LOL)

Also, I am one to play while the adapter is plugged in anytime I am close to an outlet, So will this cause an overcharge situation for the battery or will it be shut off when full? I would assume auto shutoff for the charge circuit or you would have to remove battery or use battery only for prolonged use on the mains.

Please clarify. Thanks.

Yes, it's confusing, especially since things have changed between board revisions, so old information is likely to be outdated.

The battery will have the usual protection circuitry to prevent overcharging, shorts, explosions, and so forth.

 

[Vorporeal]

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?

Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO. I think there is an errata issue with the non battery mode (called CVM). It runs without a battery if the LCD and Wifi are off (power drain is low) but then it won't charge the battery properly (takes about 30 hours!). No CVM and everything runs fine but you can't yank the battery.

So your battery refuses to charge anymore. Does this mean until you get another battery, you cannot use the screen or Wifi? or does that mean that the charge circuit just doesn't get enough power if they are on? I thought I had read before that you could run it on adapter only ( think this was brought up during battery swapping issues for keeping clock setting)

Then again, I think there was a difference between the USB and adapter charging and USB wouldn't have enough juice, but the adapter would run everything fine without a battery.
This kind of information is REALLY necessary to have in the manual. As those who don't frequent the boards wouldn't understand otherwise. (Shoot I read the boards and now I'm confused LOL)

Also, I am one to play while the adapter is plugged in anytime I am close to an outlet, So will this cause an overcharge situation for the battery or will it be shut off when full? I would assume auto shutoff for the charge circuit or you would have to remove battery or use battery only for prolonged use on the mains.

Please clarify. Thanks.

From what I can tell, there are two modes - CVM and normal. In CVM, you can run it without a battery, but only as long as the WiFi and screen are turned off (so that the power drain is below a certain threshold). The other issue with CVM mode seems to be that charging is painfully slow. Because of this, MWeston just disabled CVM mode. This means that charging time is as it should be, but it also means that you can't run the Pandora sans-battery.

This is how I read it - makes sense to me. I'm sure MWeston'll jump in with clarification when he gets a chance.

EDIT: Also, the way I read it, the battery charging issue is only with CVM enabled. If he disables it, charging works perfectly fine. It doesn't create a permanent slow-charging condition.

 

[kagato]

An operations manual is required for FCC testing so we will definitely be making one.

I didn't know that; you learn something every day!

Some community support on the manual might be wonderful. ED is in charge of it because he is the pretty rendered picture guy but his time is limited.

Happy to help where I can. I've got plenty of experience with page layout & diagramming for this stuff, if you need someone at that level. Given a few renders from ED and the content outline (I can't write the whole thing of course), I could put a QSG together for you.

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?
Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO.

Oh well; fine by me. I don't think too many of my other battery-powered devices will run without a battery present either. But important info to know.

Im Really against Online Manuals even much less Reference for help on Forums.
maybe on the first batch of pandoras i can look away, but next batches its a MUST that manual goes phisical at least on a CD/DVD, but never online.

Agreed whatever "full" manual is produced should be provided with the device wherever possible; but there's actually a good reason a lot of products ship with digital manuals these days (aside from saving money). Many electronic devices are firmware-upgradeable these days, upon which a printed manual becomes obsolete -- sometimes even before the product ships! It becomes a support nightmare. Once you've got them in front of a computer anyway, giving them a link to the latest version first thing helps minimize that problem.

 

[LastPucho]

Wow... tons of narrow-minded people. I thought this device was called OpenPandora... :rolleyes:

This handheld won't be just for you or for me... but for (hopefully) tons of other people. And for them... well, some of them may need / want a manual.

Anyway, glad to know it will be done, one way or another, for whatever reason. Thumbs up for that .

 

[gruso]

So here's where we're at with offers of help.

Kagato - page layouts, diagrams <-- a good offer!
Gruso (English)
BackAssward (English)
Kuru (German/English)
DroneB Dev (Spanish/English)

 

[GuchaRU]

I can help translating manual into Russian.

 

[MDave]

Wow... tons of narrow-minded people. I thought this device was called OpenPandora... :rolleyes:

This handheld won't be just for you or for me... but for (hopefully) tons of other people. And for them... well, some of them may need / want a manual.

Anyway, glad to know it will be done, one way or another, for whatever reason. Thumbs up for that .

The device is actually called Pandora. OpenPandora is the company. Just pointing out a common mistake people make

 

[Asmo]

Is that IE5?

Eheheh

No, IE6. I have my reasons

 

[Asmo]

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?

Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO. I think there is an errata issue with the non battery mode (called CVM). It runs without a battery if the LCD and Wifi are off (power drain is low) but then it won't charge the battery properly (takes about 30 hours!). No CVM and everything runs fine but you can't yank the battery.

So when the battery expires the unit is basically bricked? Is there no way to provide adequate power without the battery, maybe by an AC adapter that connects to the battery terminals instead (a future accessory perhaps?). I must admit this bothers me a bit.

 

[WizardStan]

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?

Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO. I think there is an errata issue with the non battery mode (called CVM). It runs without a battery if the LCD and Wifi are off (power drain is low) but then it won't charge the battery properly (takes about 30 hours!). No CVM and everything runs fine but you can't yank the battery.

So when the battery expires the unit is basically bricked? Is there no way to provide adequate power without the battery, maybe by an AC adapter that connects to the battery terminals instead (a future accessory perhaps?). I must admit this bothers me a bit.

Not likely. If the battery is so toast that it doesn't hold a charge at all, it's still there. You shouldn't have to put it into CVM, which means it can still run off the AC.
I'm applying what I know about electronics (not as much as I'd like) to what MWeston has said in his post (not as much as others would like).
There are two ways of powering the Pandora: Regular mode, in which power comes from the battery; and CVM mode, in which power comes from the AC.
In Regular mode, if you plug in an AC adapter, the adapter charges the battery, and the Pandora then takes its power from the battery contacts. If the battery is hosed, it doesn't actually take a charge, but there is still "power" on the terminals because the AC adapter is supplying it.
In order to run without a battery at all, you put it into CVM mode (whatever that actually means) which redirects power directly from the AC into the system, rather than through the battery first. This is apparently very inefficient for some reason, to the point that the Wifi and screen need to be off. If you do have a battery installed, what little trickle of power that's left will slowly charge the battery as well.

tl;dr version: if your battery doesn't hold a charge anymore, you can still run it off AC, you just have to leave the bad battery in it. Assuming I've got my facts straight.

 

[Poem58]

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?

Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO. I think there is an errata issue with the non battery mode (called CVM). It runs without a battery if the LCD and Wifi are off (power drain is low) but then it won't charge the battery properly (takes about 30 hours!). No CVM and everything runs fine but you can't yank the battery.

So when the battery expires the unit is basically bricked? Is there no way to provide adequate power without the battery, maybe by an AC adapter that connects to the battery terminals instead (a future accessory perhaps?). I must admit this bothers me a bit.

Not likely. If the battery is so toast that it doesn't hold a charge at all, it's still there. You shouldn't have to put it into CVM, which means it can still run off the AC.
I'm applying what I know about electronics (not as much as I'd like) to what MWeston has said in his post (not as much as others would like).
There are two ways of powering the Pandora: Regular mode, in which power comes from the battery; and CVM mode, in which power comes from the AC.
In Regular mode, if you plug in an AC adapter, the adapter charges the battery, and the Pandora then takes its power from the battery contacts. If the battery is hosed, it doesn't actually take a charge, but there is still "power" on the terminals because the AC adapter is supplying it.
In order to run without a battery at all, you put it into CVM mode (whatever that actually means) which redirects power directly from the AC into the system, rather than through the battery first. This is apparently very inefficient for some reason, to the point that the Wifi and screen need to be off. If you do have a battery installed, what little trickle of power that's left will slowly charge the battery as well.

tl;dr version: if your battery doesn't hold a charge anymore, you can still run it off AC, you just have to leave the bad battery in it. Assuming I've got my facts straight.

However odd that may seem it makes sense, and clearly should be something explained in some way in a manual as NO ONE is going to guess that one.

 

[kagato]

So when the battery expires the unit is basically bricked? Is there no way to provide adequate power without the battery, maybe by an AC adapter that connects to the battery terminals instead (a future accessory perhaps?). I must admit this bothers me a bit.

Uh, buy another battery?
I'd say even if the battery died in the usual way (won't take any charge, flattens in minutes), it would probably still work fine as a pass-through for power. But what good is a portable device that only works when plugged in? Wouldn't you want a replacement battery regardless?

EDIT: whoops, other replies covered the same ground while I wrote this one.

 

[Poem58]

So when the battery expires the unit is basically bricked? Is there no way to provide adequate power without the battery, maybe by an AC adapter that connects to the battery terminals instead (a future accessory perhaps?). I must admit this bothers me a bit.

Uh, buy another battery?
I'd say even if the battery died in the usual way (won't take any charge, flattens in minutes), it would probably still work fine as a pass-through for power. But what good is a portable device that only works when plugged in? Wouldn't you want a replacement battery regardless?

EDIT: whoops, other replies covered the same ground while I wrote this one.

MY PSP Battery died, I had no money as I got laid off, I was able to still use my PSP with the adapter. If it wouldn't work without a new battery that could cause some distress to some of us as I used my PSP for months without a battery due to being financially strapped. Having to send off to the UK, pay the battery fee, the shipping and possibly a customs charge for a battery is not something any of us are looking forward to, but hopefully if that ever happens they will still have some available at an online distributor here for not too much. My current PDA battery is beginning to lose it charge capacity. It's about 6 years old, still works but probably won't in a year or two, there will be no replacement available I'm sure. so the device being reliant on the battery could affect it's usable lifespan. I'm sure it will be fine and I can pass Pandora 1 to my son when Pandora 2 arrives.

 

[Monk]

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?

Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO. I think there is an errata issue with the non battery mode (called CVM). It runs without a battery if the LCD and Wifi are off (power drain is low) but then it won't charge the battery properly (takes about 30 hours!). No CVM and everything runs fine but you can't yank the battery.

I'm confused, and as it is a proprietary battery that we cannot get from anyone but OpenPandora (or from OpenPandora if they go bust) I think it would be nice to be clear rather than even slightly confused. So if I re-quote the relevant lines in order to comment on them...?

Here's a good one: Can I run the system without a battery?

Unfortunately that answer has returned to a big fat NO.

Surprising as I thought we had previously been given the answer "Yes" (having earlier still been told "no"!)

I think there is an errata issue with the non battery mode (called CVM). It runs without a battery if the LCD and Wifi are off (power drain is low) but then it won't charge the battery properly (takes about 30 hours!).

This is what really confuses me. Why would a user expect to charge a battery if operating in non-battery mode? I have various bits of kit that you can run off of AC or battery, and will charge the battery if powered off AC and turned off OR will work (but not charge the battery) if powered off AC and turned on... is that what you mean? A manual might be REALLY useful as IMHO stating that a battery will not charge if you use your Pandora in non-battery mode might...confuse more than just me?

No CVM and everything runs fine but you can't yank the battery.

I think avoiding battery-circuit-designer termonology woould be a good thing in an end-user manual. i cannot help but think that not having a abttery in place (yanking the battery) would be a good thing to be able to do when operating in a "non battery" mode, personally, myself.

 

[MDave]

From what I understand from MWeston's post is:

You can't use it without the battery. Doesn't matter what state the battery is in when it's IN the Pandora, you can still use the AC adapter and use the device. That's all the end user really needs to know, if they don't want the technical reasons explained to them why it's like that.

 

[Asmo]

Uh, buy another battery?
I'd say even if the battery died in the usual way (won't take any charge, flattens in minutes), it would probably still work fine as a pass-through for power. But what good is a portable device that only works when plugged in? Wouldn't you want a replacement battery regardless?

This, of course, assumes that this Pandora specific battery is still on the market when that happens.
For when it's being used on a TV, AC power would be more sensible.
Also, from the standpoint of someone who keeps all their gadgets, it's nice to know they can still be fired up when I feel nostalgic, which almost never requires portability

What about a kind of 'artificial' battery to allow power-through for AC-only usage?

 

[Poem58]

I don't remember the thread or what to even search for to find it but there was discussion awhile back stating something to the point of removing the battery of the Pandora would clear the internal clock (as it had no backup battery) so it was discussed to the point that if you wanted to swap batteries (to have more than one for a trip or something) that you would have to power it via A/C adapter to change batteries so you wouldn't have to reset the clock every time. So now this information says that is not possible? Or is it just possible if the unit is off at the time the battery is changed? While I won't be upset whatever the truth turns out to be someone really needs to clarify this and the rules of this should most definitely be printed in a manual for those who don't happen to be reading the boards. The procedure is needed to be known to keep from people complaining about clock resets etc. I for one will only proably ever have one battery, but still we all should know. MWeston, could you please clear this up so we know?

Asmo, I'd like to think that the hackability of this device will have someone years from now addressing the building of an artificial battery by using a capacitor or some other battery to be used to in it's place. I don't think we'll have to worry about that I can't even conceive of the hacks that will probably be designed for this device. Many interesting days ahead for those of us who are not modders to be amazed by the ideas/inventions of others.

 

[WizardStan]

What about a kind of 'artificial' battery to allow power-through for AC-only usage?

Why not just leave the battery in? If you can't get a replacement, why throw away the old one?

 

[-Tj-]

What about a kind of 'artificial' battery to allow power-through for AC-only usage?

I was wondering about this, too. Wouldn't it be possible to create and sell some kind of fake "battery" that would make Pandora think there was a battery there? If the battery can no longer be used or you don't want to use it for some reason (always plugged in, battery exploded, saving the charge for a trip, etc.), you could plug that into the battery bay.

Edit: Or, in the case that said device is much lighter than a battery, you could use that instead of leaving the battery in. Pandora's not a light device... it's heavier than PSP-1000, and that used to be uncomfortable during long sessions of gaming.

Of course, leaving the battery in is fine to me. Just thinking about the "what if" scenarios. I didn't know about the inability to use the battery before I ordered, so it seems kinda strange that you can't use it without. Never had a device that worked that way and had a removable battery.