i-Buddie 4 Desknote Review
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A929 power system problem
I am begining to find the ibuddie A929 desknotes with similar power system problems to the A928. The power jack is melted, the pin came out, and even unable to power on for some cases.
I've just repaired a couple of A929 desknotes shipped from USA. I found both cpu damaged after fixing the mainboard. So please be careful about this problem to ibuddie A929. The A929 use AMD Athron 1600 ~ 2100 CPU, they are hard to find in market now.
I repaired a lot of A928 with the power system problem shipped from USA, Europe and New Zealand etc. To non power system problem please tell me the detail by email before shipping to me, I have to do the diagnosis. Thanks.
David Cai
(e-mail address removed)
I am begining to find the ibuddie A929 desknotes with similar power system problems to the A928. The power jack is melted, the pin came out, and even unable to power on for some cases.
I've just repaired a couple of A929 desknotes shipped from USA. I found both cpu damaged after fixing the mainboard. So please be careful about this problem to ibuddie A929. The A929 use AMD Athron 1600 ~ 2100 CPU, they are hard to find in market now.
I repaired a lot of A928 with the power system problem shipped from USA, Europe and New Zealand etc. To non power system problem please tell me the detail by email before shipping to me, I have to do the diagnosis. Thanks.
David Cai
(e-mail address removed)
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Design Flaw
I have the same issues as you I wrote this review to day on another site but I am going to post it here so people can see. I think the i-buddie owners should band together and do something about this.
This is from dooyoo anther review site.
I bought the ecs i-buddie a928 a few years back. I at first got it with no hard drive, ram and processor so I could put in what I wanted.
So when I went to actually put in a 30 gig drive, 512mb ram and an amd 1800xp, it would not post, just the fan would go and lights on no lcd screen or bios beep. I battled with ecs to fix it they said it was the way I put the processor in, and I know how to put a processor in. I decided to suck it up and pay to fix it, it took over a year for me to get it back, somehow it was lost, and they failed to return my laptop case I sent it in.
So it's up in running, after a few months it started to reboot, and shut down when it felt like. I reseached the error and found hundreds of people with the same issue. It appears the power cord gets to hot and either melts, the ground wire seperates from the motherboard and a few other issues, of course all these customers tried to get ecs to fix it and they get the same answer, that it is from wear and tear not a defect. The fix is to get another lower gauge ground pin soldered on the motherboard which a lot of people have done for about $150usd.
I have backed up all my data as I am waiting for the day it will never turn back on and am wondering if it is worth the money or just take the drive, processor and ram and cut my losses.
Never by anything from ECS, the support is far from helpful and they just turn there back on there customers. I think someone should start a lawsuit for these desknotes.
Email me if you are intrested maybe we can get something started here.
katkanuck said:
I have the same issues as you I wrote this review to day on another site but I am going to post it here so people can see. I think the i-buddie owners should band together and do something about this.
This is from dooyoo anther review site.
I bought the ecs i-buddie a928 a few years back. I at first got it with no hard drive, ram and processor so I could put in what I wanted.
So when I went to actually put in a 30 gig drive, 512mb ram and an amd 1800xp, it would not post, just the fan would go and lights on no lcd screen or bios beep. I battled with ecs to fix it they said it was the way I put the processor in, and I know how to put a processor in. I decided to suck it up and pay to fix it, it took over a year for me to get it back, somehow it was lost, and they failed to return my laptop case I sent it in.
So it's up in running, after a few months it started to reboot, and shut down when it felt like. I reseached the error and found hundreds of people with the same issue. It appears the power cord gets to hot and either melts, the ground wire seperates from the motherboard and a few other issues, of course all these customers tried to get ecs to fix it and they get the same answer, that it is from wear and tear not a defect. The fix is to get another lower gauge ground pin soldered on the motherboard which a lot of people have done for about $150usd.
I have backed up all my data as I am waiting for the day it will never turn back on and am wondering if it is worth the money or just take the drive, processor and ram and cut my losses.
Never by anything from ECS, the support is far from helpful and they just turn there back on there customers. I think someone should start a lawsuit for these desknotes.
Email me if you are intrested maybe we can get something started here.
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display issue
Well just to add to this my fn+f12 doesn't work either, it works if I go throught the display properties on the desktop though. Which I had to update my driver to get to. I also tried the "mirror" or multi screen funtion so I could use my tv and lcd at the same time, there is an option but it does not work. I emaild ECS tech support but they just sent me in circles with different drivers and repeating steps, they just **** me off, cause when I read the emails they send I can already tell they have no idea, there just copy n paste some crap to punt me off to the next email tech.
Well just to add to this my fn+f12 doesn't work either, it works if I go throught the display properties on the desktop though. Which I had to update my driver to get to. I also tried the "mirror" or multi screen funtion so I could use my tv and lcd at the same time, there is an option but it does not work. I emaild ECS tech support but they just sent me in circles with different drivers and repeating steps, they just **** me off, cause when I read the emails they send I can already tell they have no idea, there just copy n paste some crap to punt me off to the next email tech.
Brechin said:
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cooling station.
I just forgot to mention that I did purchase a cooling station, basically a giant heat sink with 2 fans the desknote sits on, it did help with the heat issues and shutdowns, but they still happen about once or twice a day. Oh well better then 10 times eh....
I just forgot to mention that I did purchase a cooling station, basically a giant heat sink with 2 fans the desknote sits on, it did help with the heat issues and shutdowns, but they still happen about once or twice a day. Oh well better then 10 times eh....
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Black LCD
Jonquiere I had the exact same issue when I first got my a928, it would turn on, you can hear the fan but no screen or boot. They tried to tell me i damaged the socket but I knew it was bs, after a year I got it back but was never told what happened, I assumed they replaced the motherboard. I know have the burnt plug issue though. Email me and tell me what they did to fix this if you find out.
Later
Dave
jonquiere said:
Jonquiere I had the exact same issue when I first got my a928, it would turn on, you can hear the fan but no screen or boot. They tried to tell me i damaged the socket but I knew it was bs, after a year I got it back but was never told what happened, I assumed they replaced the motherboard. I know have the burnt plug issue though. Email me and tell me what they did to fix this if you find out.
Later
Dave
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Can you put a AMD CPU in a A928? I guess I mean if you do, will it work?
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albroswift said:
No, I believe the 928 is a pentium board and you cannot interchange pentium with amd well not since the 100mhz era anyways, I made a mistake on my previous post I have a a929 myself.
I checked on the fn+f12 funtion, it is designed to work with a monitor not a tv I believe, well that is wat the manual says anyways, maybe that's why my dual display never worked.
Just to add, my I-Buddie died 2 days ago, I was going to send it to david cai but, I decided to open it up and check the damage, opening it was not fun, u really need instructions as i found out, but thanks to this forum I found them.
My power cord was melted to the I-buddie, so I figured I needed a new power cord and connector on the board plus shipping and the repair, I figured it was not worth it.
I took my ram, processor and I got a portable usb drive enclosure for my laptop hard drive for 15 dollars and got an old system to put it all into, rather then dish out 200 or more dollars on a repair that was going to fail again eventually. It only cost me 200 to build a system anyways so all is good and I will never have to look at my ecs piece of #$^*.
Just to humor everyone the first board the computer shop gave me was an ecs k7s5a and it did not work, there were cmos errors at boot up, ecs does it again eh, I think it was there final kick at me, oh well it was replaced none the less.
Try this address, this was helpful for me !
Ciao Pax
ELITEGROUP COMPUTER SYSTEM EU
BU2(Notebook department)
Nieuweweg 271
6603 BN WIJCHEN
The Nederlands
Tel:+31 24 6486 185
Fax:+ 31 24 6486 199
E-mail for rma info:[email protected]
Ciao Pax
ELITEGROUP COMPUTER SYSTEM EU
BU2(Notebook department)
Nieuweweg 271
6603 BN WIJCHEN
The Nederlands
Tel:+31 24 6486 185
Fax:+ 31 24 6486 199
E-mail for rma info:[email protected]
I'm another extremely satisfied customer of David Cai. He did a great job repairing the problem, as mentioned by others elsewhere in this thread, of a burnt cord and missing pin on my A928. He really knows the Desknote and is very helpful and professional in the way he does business. He responds to e-mails very quickly and is nice person.
Before finding this site, I was getting very frustrated trying to find any info about this problem (Desknotes are such a small share of the portable PC market). I was relieved, after reading the stories about experiences that others had this design defect, that David Cai had a solution.
I was going to attempt this repair myself, but after seeing all the well-earned glowing reports about David Cai, I made the correct decision and left it to the experienced professional -- smart move!
Thanks to David Cai for the excellent repair, to PC Review for this excellent forum and to Google for leading me here.
Before finding this site, I was getting very frustrated trying to find any info about this problem (Desknotes are such a small share of the portable PC market). I was relieved, after reading the stories about experiences that others had this design defect, that David Cai had a solution.
I was going to attempt this repair myself, but after seeing all the well-earned glowing reports about David Cai, I made the correct decision and left it to the experienced professional -- smart move!
Thanks to David Cai for the excellent repair, to PC Review for this excellent forum and to Google for leading me here.
my ibuddie horror story
After reading such a long thread, I want to share my ECS Ibuddie 4 experience.
I bought the unit in June 2003 after five months of use, I notice a burning smell. I discovered a slight melting in the power cord (both on the AC adapter and battery). Then it just died and won't turn on anymore. Since it was under warranty, I returned it to the shop where i bought it from. I took about a month before I got the unit back from them.. It turned out that the motherboard was faulty and cause a lot of heat, so they replaced that. Even though the mobo was replace, it would still emit heat. The shop recommended I buy a laptop cooler, so I bought the Antec notebook cooler. For a while, the cooler helped, until mid-March of 2005, the smell and heat started. And like all the other stories in this thread, the cord for both ac adaptor and battery have melted to a state wherein I could not use the laptop anymore. To make matters more tragic, I didn't have time to back up files (stupid ole me).
I am skeptical of sending it back to the local distributor of ECS, for reason that: 1.) it would cost me an arm and leg to have it repaired though the machine is really CRAP from the very start. 2.) why should I hand over my money to those people and make them profit. When I read ECS' reply to the complaint sent by one of the forumer, I was amazed sissy these people are not to admit their fault.
Lesson learned! Don't buy ECS desknote again. I now know why they named it "desknote" and not a laptop or notebook...because you can never put it it your lap (like a notebook) or else you can get scalded by it. My ibuddie is now gathering dust in my office, hoping that it would miraculously heal itself (as if!)
After reading such a long thread, I want to share my ECS Ibuddie 4 experience.
I bought the unit in June 2003 after five months of use, I notice a burning smell. I discovered a slight melting in the power cord (both on the AC adapter and battery). Then it just died and won't turn on anymore. Since it was under warranty, I returned it to the shop where i bought it from. I took about a month before I got the unit back from them.. It turned out that the motherboard was faulty and cause a lot of heat, so they replaced that. Even though the mobo was replace, it would still emit heat. The shop recommended I buy a laptop cooler, so I bought the Antec notebook cooler. For a while, the cooler helped, until mid-March of 2005, the smell and heat started. And like all the other stories in this thread, the cord for both ac adaptor and battery have melted to a state wherein I could not use the laptop anymore. To make matters more tragic, I didn't have time to back up files (stupid ole me).
I am skeptical of sending it back to the local distributor of ECS, for reason that: 1.) it would cost me an arm and leg to have it repaired though the machine is really CRAP from the very start. 2.) why should I hand over my money to those people and make them profit. When I read ECS' reply to the complaint sent by one of the forumer, I was amazed sissy these people are not to admit their fault.
Lesson learned! Don't buy ECS desknote again. I now know why they named it "desknote" and not a laptop or notebook...because you can never put it it your lap (like a notebook) or else you can get scalded by it. My ibuddie is now gathering dust in my office, hoping that it would miraculously heal itself (as if!)
Another happy customer of David Cai!
I'm yet another extremely satisfied customer of David Cai. He did a great job repairing the problem, as mentioned by others elsewhere in this thread, of a burnt cord and missing pin on my A929. He really knows the Desknote and is very helpful and professional in the way he does business. He responds to e-mails very quickly and is nice person.
I had attempted this repair myself, but failed to do it correctly... and even ended up burning up my CPU -- after seeing all of the fantastic reports about David Cai, I made the correct decision and left it to the experienced professional -- he not only fixed the problem but correctly identified that the other problem was a burnt CPU, op-tested it with a known good CPU to validate it was functioning correctly, and returned it to me promptly!
I must say, shipping to him via standard postal mail without insurance made me nervous... he suggested it as a way to save money on taxes -- I am here to say that he is obviously an honest businessman who I am vouching for will not just gank your laptop once he gets it! You can trust him to help you *AND* help you save money!
Thanks to David Cai for the excellent repair, to PC Review for this excellent forum and to Google for leading me here.
(Yes, I plagiarized one of the earlier posters by using some of his well-worded post... I hope he doesn't mind and instead accepts it as a compliment!)
I'm yet another extremely satisfied customer of David Cai. He did a great job repairing the problem, as mentioned by others elsewhere in this thread, of a burnt cord and missing pin on my A929. He really knows the Desknote and is very helpful and professional in the way he does business. He responds to e-mails very quickly and is nice person.
I had attempted this repair myself, but failed to do it correctly... and even ended up burning up my CPU -- after seeing all of the fantastic reports about David Cai, I made the correct decision and left it to the experienced professional -- he not only fixed the problem but correctly identified that the other problem was a burnt CPU, op-tested it with a known good CPU to validate it was functioning correctly, and returned it to me promptly!
I must say, shipping to him via standard postal mail without insurance made me nervous... he suggested it as a way to save money on taxes -- I am here to say that he is obviously an honest businessman who I am vouching for will not just gank your laptop once he gets it! You can trust him to help you *AND* help you save money!
Thanks to David Cai for the excellent repair, to PC Review for this excellent forum and to Google for leading me here.
(Yes, I plagiarized one of the earlier posters by using some of his well-worded post... I hope he doesn't mind and instead accepts it as a compliment!)
Gah!!! I'm at my wits end with my A928. I found this site after googling for info as my power cord melted as well. So I ordered one off ebay and received it a few days ago. I had my i-buddie running for a few hours today when I started smelling something funky (no, it wasn't me). I thought maybe the components within the laptop were burning up, but it didn't seem any hotter than normal. Then I touched the power supply cord where it meets the laptop and felt a lot of heat. I turned off the laptop and now the cord is stuck in the computer. I can't pull it out. When I first put the new replacement cord in the laptop it was a comfortable fit. Do you think it's safe to turn it back on? I have a fire phobia and don't wish to have my house burn down.
TIA, and although I don't want others to have the same problem I'm having, it's still nice to know that I'm not alone in my melting-cord pain. I wonder if anyone's A928 has ever caught fire due to this flaw.
TIA, and although I don't want others to have the same problem I'm having, it's still nice to know that I'm not alone in my melting-cord pain. I wonder if anyone's A928 has ever caught fire due to this flaw.
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kewl_head said:
Well if it helps, when mine died, i went to the store and got a usb labtop enlcosure for 14 dollars and took out the drive from my ecs and now its a portable backup drive for my new pc and has all my old music and such.
PS Elite Computer Systems are terrible.
davehaddad: Excellent suggestion on usb enclosure for the HDD. I was thinking of tearing apart the da*n thing, and salvage parts that I can use. I know I can use the RAM and HDD, I don't know if I can use any other parts.
If I would have my Ibuddie repaired, what is the guarantee that the problem will not recur?
If I would have my Ibuddie repaired, what is the guarantee that the problem will not recur?
Hello,
Like many other people here, I have an A928 (more than 3.5 years now). Eventually, plug started to heat up, etc, even after treating the a928 with *EXTREME CARE*.
In my case, the problem was very simple : the connector (male part, inside the laptop)) loosened up after more than 3 years of very carefull use (it always seemed fragile to me), and started to create an electrical resistance... of course, the whole thing started to heat up, then melted, etc.
(By the way, as others have stated in this forum, I'm pretty sure that 90% of the time, this heating and melting problem has nothing to do with intensive cpu use, video or whatever; It's only the bad connection, resulting from a **super cheap** connector -- It usually doesn't happen with Macs, for instance -- that creates the problem).
Now, I event have a problem with my battery connector!
C'mon ECS guys! Is it that hard to build a strong plug! If I think for 5mins Ican come up with a better solution (and as cheap, just to preserve the tradition).
Anyway... Here in Montreal (Quebec, Canada) I managed to get my computer repaired for 30 bucks (after opening the laptop myself and diagnosing the problem properly, I just told the technician what the problem was)!
I'd love to replace this connector with a stronger one, but... Which one? I've also decided that the maximum amount of money I would invest on this laptop is 100$(can) this year. After that, I'll just buy another one (I can easily find a 850$CA Toshiba laptop that will fulfill my needs, or I could go for something like the Dell inspiron 6000 for a bit more). And **not an ECS one**
, unless they can prove that they can take care of their customers in a more civilized way. ECS will learn that they cannot just treat customers like ****. Nobody around me will, from now on, buy ECS stuff. That's called, boycott...
Like many other people here, I have an A928 (more than 3.5 years now). Eventually, plug started to heat up, etc, even after treating the a928 with *EXTREME CARE*.
In my case, the problem was very simple : the connector (male part, inside the laptop)) loosened up after more than 3 years of very carefull use (it always seemed fragile to me), and started to create an electrical resistance... of course, the whole thing started to heat up, then melted, etc.
(By the way, as others have stated in this forum, I'm pretty sure that 90% of the time, this heating and melting problem has nothing to do with intensive cpu use, video or whatever; It's only the bad connection, resulting from a **super cheap** connector -- It usually doesn't happen with Macs, for instance -- that creates the problem).
Now, I event have a problem with my battery connector!
C'mon ECS guys! Is it that hard to build a strong plug! If I think for 5mins Ican come up with a better solution (and as cheap, just to preserve the tradition). Anyway... Here in Montreal (Quebec, Canada) I managed to get my computer repaired for 30 bucks (after opening the laptop myself and diagnosing the problem properly, I just told the technician what the problem was)!
I'd love to replace this connector with a stronger one, but... Which one? I've also decided that the maximum amount of money I would invest on this laptop is 100$(can) this year. After that, I'll just buy another one (I can easily find a 850$CA Toshiba laptop that will fulfill my needs, or I could go for something like the Dell inspiron 6000 for a bit more). And **not an ECS one**
, unless they can prove that they can take care of their customers in a more civilized way. ECS will learn that they cannot just treat customers like ****. Nobody around me will, from now on, buy ECS stuff. That's called, boycott...I'd say that if your **very** careful about not pushing ot pulling the cord to hard (which is hard to do with these supercheap plugs), you shouldn't have any problems (and don't put any lubricant!). As somebody else suggested, you could also just leave it plugged and carry it like that. That's what I'm planning to do.
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Is anyone using / has anyone used the external monitor hookup? What kind of monitor?
Does (can) the A928 screen remain in use? (dual screen?)
PS David Cai fixed my POS melted plug problem over 2 years ago, so far so good.
A928 Purchased new 5 years ago
Upgrades:
5200 RPM 80 GB
1 GB RAM
2.8 CPU @ 107% 3 GHz reliable
David Cai POS MPP fix
Cooler pad powered externally!!!
Does (can) the A928 screen remain in use? (dual screen?)
PS David Cai fixed my POS melted plug problem over 2 years ago, so far so good.
A928 Purchased new 5 years ago
Upgrades:
5200 RPM 80 GB
1 GB RAM
2.8 CPU @ 107% 3 GHz reliable
David Cai POS MPP fix
Cooler pad powered externally!!!
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