#1 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
Problems with Secure Digital card. A while ago I obtained a Sandisk 128mb SD card for my camera and Compaq Ipaq 3950, It worked well for a very short time with the compaq and also with the camera. For some reason shortly after that it stopped being recognised altogether on the Ipaq. This may have been after I used it with the camera, I can’t remember exactly. Anyway, I’ve try hard reboots, putting it into my printers SD reader and formatting, formatting using the digital camera and even opening my Ipaq and taking a look at the reader. I can see nothing wrong with the card, reader or Ipaq. Possibly the Ipaqs SD slot isn’t as “springy” as it was but I honestly can’t tell. Is there anything I can do Could someone also take a look at a working SD card and give me the “name of the volume” I want to try making an exact replica of a working SD card and trying it in the Ipaq. Any help would be much appreciated |
#2 | ||
Registered User Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Hollister, CA Posts: 177 |
Does It Work In The Camera? Quote:
Does the card work in devices other than iPAQ? If not, the card is probably toast, in which case you’ll either have to send it back for repairs or get a new one. Steve __________________ Silicon Valley Pocket PC http://www.svpocketpc.com |
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#3 | |
Moderator
Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Ashburn, VA Posts: 11 |
pantherd90 check out these updates (there are two versions depending on your ROM version) … This one says it handles the “SD card not recognized by iPAQ problem”
iPAQ H3950/H3955 SD Card Driver Updates hope this helps, — Ed Y |
#4 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
The card works and is recognised/formattable in my digital camera and printer. I think I’ve tried those updates you’re mentioning but i’ll try again.
I’m certain that the Ipaq knows I’ve put the card in (screen lights up when a card is inserted) and I also believe the reader is ok, it certainly looks fine. |
#5 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
I did do the ROM Upgrade (to 1.11), thats a definate, I seem to have also done the memory upgrade, however I’m trying again just incase it installed wrong last time. |
#6 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
Ok I’ve done the upgrade and it still fails to read, but I have a question, where do I find my ROM version? I’m certain it is 1.11 but at the white and red startup screen I see in the bottom right hand corner in white letters, “1.00” Does this mean my ROM has not updated correctly? |
#7 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
Anyone got any answers? |
#8 | ||
Registered User Join Date: Jan 2002 Location: Hollister, CA Posts: 177 |
ROM Version Quote:
Look in the Asset Viewer settings applet and check the Version entry in the tree. It should show your ROM Revision. Steve __________________ Silicon Valley Pocket PC http://www.svpocketpc.com |
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#9 | |
Senior Editor Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Massachusetts & Maine Posts: 2,051 |
pantherd90 Pony has given you good advice to check what ROM you are using. If you did do the ROM upgrade correctly, it will show there for you. If the upgrade was done, did you do what Ed Yodis suggested? The SD driver updates are important.
Keep us informed on your progress…good luck! __________________ Jack Cook Senior Editor, Dave’s iPAQ Microsoft MVP-Windows Mobile Devices NEW Dont forget our Podcast hotline telephone number in the US: 1-425-738-9506 available 24 hours a day 7 days a week or leave us a SKYPE Voicemail by clicking here . Also dont forget to add us to your Podcast aggregator by clicking here. |
#10 | |
Moderator
Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Ashburn, VA Posts: 11 |
hey pantherd90, I spent a little time researching the SD probs this morning, and found out a few interesting things… (1) there are a lot of reports of SD problems on several PDA platforms (not just ipaqs) and in many cases there was no resolution reported. (2) In cases where people reported probs with the ipaq, sandisk and kingston were usually recommended as the brand with the least problems on ipaqs (other SD brands were better matched with other PDA brands, so it’s not just that sandisk are higher quality). (3) the 3800 series had a known problem that sounded just like yours… SD cards worked for a while then stopped working. As I mentioned earlier, there was a similar post for 3900 but only said cards not recognized along with the fix. Somewhere I came across a note that the SD driver updates only work with the latest ROM version. It will be interesting to see what you find when you check your ROM version as Pony99ca directed. If it’s the earlier ROM version, then you should install the ROM upgrade, followed by the SD driver update in that order. Realize that from the chatter on the net that I have come across this morning, it’s possible that you could do everything right and it still won’t work. Let’s hope for the best. I had a couple of other ideas to offer that occured to me in the shower this morning… (1) I know you have tried this SD card out on other devices, but have you tried using it on another ipaq ? A friend’s ipaq would be great, or else carry your SD card and ipaq into some store where you can play with display units and see if they can read the SD card okay. — If so, try reformatting the SD card on the store unit, then see if formatting on a different ipaq (as opposed to a foreign device) makes it usable on yours. — it might also be helpful if you were at a store and they had a SD card for display/demo to try plugging a different SD card into your ipaq and see what happens. (2) you said a couple of interesting things that we haven’t followed up on in your original post… — when you insert the SD card into the ipaq the screen lit up but the ipaq didn’t recognize the card… this might be a dumb question so please don’t feel insulted, but can you describe precisely how you knew it used to work and precisely what you have done to look at it when it did not work ? If the ipaq detected the SD card but could not read it, then it would likely ask if you wanted to format it. Since you didn’t mention that, then it sounds like it simply does not sense the card, or at least doesn’t recognize it as a memory card. — you mentioned something about your slot not being as springy as it was… do you notice that the SD card engages when you press it into the slot, and then when you press it again it disengages and pops out a little so you can grab it? one post somewhere mentioned that the person needed to press just a little more firmly to get his SD card recognized by the ipaq. — you also asked what a SD card volume looks like, so here’s what I can tell you from examining my own Sandisk SD card on my 5455… in all the utilities I have to look at it (file explorer, PocketExplorer, and settings/memory) my card is named “Storage Card”. Now, I suspect that is a generic name because all my CF cards are named “Storage Card2”, “Storage Card3”, etc. Bottom line at this point seems to be to verify that you are running latest ROM and latest SD card drivers for your ipaq model. To be absolutely certain, I would suggest a hard reset (which will erase everything and revert to the original ROM) then install the ROM upgrade, then install the SD card drivers. If you have any data you care about on the ipaq, then back it up first. This is a time-consuming process, but mebbe worth one verified walk thru so you are certain. And if it all starts to take too much time, you might consider getting it in the hands of a technician… a phone call to Sandisk would be a good start (HP might tell you since your media is not HP that it’s not their problem). In my experience if the unit serial number shows them a manufacture date that is clearly still in warrantee, then they may well issue an RMA for a replacement card without demanding a proof-of-purchase. It’s when you buy a unit that was sitting on the shelf somewhere and the warrantee is questionable that they start asking for receipts. And even then, I have a 1gb microdrive that has failed twice and been replaced twice by hitachi without question based on their ability to determine the warrantee status using only the serial number (and the first time they told me it was actually a little more than a month out of warrantee, but they graciously issued the RMA anyway). So there is reason to hope that Sandisk might work with you, especially since there is so much buzz around the net about unresolved problems with SD media cards. I also would not hesitate to call HP about it as well. First search their support site if you haven’t already… you might find something there that we have missed. Then call them up… worst they can do is send you away, but you won’t know if you don’t try. hope these ideas give you some steps that will prove fruitful. if all else fails, you might just go buy an HP/Compaq SD card. The brand will cost you a little more, but if that fails to work on your ipaq then HP can’t blow you off without trying to resolve it. Even if the ipaq is out of warrantee the SD card will still be in warrantee and get you to talk with a tech about it.
Oh, here’s one really off the wall suggestion… send an email to the person you purchased the ipaq from. Make sure you first acknowledge that the ipaq and SD card worked fine when you received them (otherwise they might think you are trying to get your money back and won’t respond in any way that is helpful) then ask them if they ever had this problem, and if so what did they do to fix it. Ya never know but that they might just have the answer for the asking. Last edited by edyodis : 07-03-2004 at 01:57 PM. Reason: typo |
#11 | |
Senior Editor Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Massachusetts & Maine Posts: 2,051 |
Incredible post Ed…..nice job! __________________ Jack Cook Senior Editor, Dave’s iPAQ Microsoft MVP-Windows Mobile Devices NEW Dont forget our Podcast hotline telephone number in the US: 1-425-738-9506 available 24 hours a day 7 days a week or leave us a SKYPE Voicemail by clicking here . Also dont forget to add us to your Podcast aggregator by clicking here. |
#12 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
Ok, an update on the situation. I have now check and done a full ROM upgrade. It turns out the installer wasn’t working properly and therefore it hadn’t upgraded the ROM, it had only installed the part that stays on my PC. Anyway, it now says 1.11 when I do a soft reset and I have also done the SD Card drivers upgrade. However, it still doesn’t work. To answer a few questions. – Yes is is harder to “click in”, It requires a good press down to engage and and the same to dis-engage. But it retains most of the same springyness if I remember. – The screen lights up only when it engages so I believe the Ipaq knows it is there, but it just isn’t reading. There is no question of it asking me to format the card. – I knew it used to work, because when i first got the card it was recognised and I believe I even put some data on it, though I can’t be sure as it was quite a long time a go. Once it stopped working I checked the card, updated the Ipaq, formatted the card renaming it’s volume label and formatting it in both fat32 and fat formats. I finally checked the inards of the Ipaq. By checked I mean took off the back cover, looking at the insides, deducted that everything looked as it should (no burns, leaks, bits falling off, rattling, etc) and then put the cover back on. I’m at a bit of a loss at what to do. I may be able to buy a new SD card soon but other than that there aren’t many stores I know with working display models of Ipaqs, etc and none of my friends have one as far as I know. I’ve talked to HPs online tech support and gave up as each reply took 10 minutes to reach me. Anyway I hope my experience can offer some help for someone, and if anyone has any further advice then please do reply. |
#13 | |
Moderator Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Atlanta, Ga. Posts: 1,163 |
A co-worker of mine has a 39XX series iPaq. (he has already left work for the day so I can not get the exact model number) A few months ago his SD card stopped being recognized by his iPaq as well. The card still worked in other devices that use the SD card so we knew the card was good. I was tinkering with the card and iPaq and found that when I inserted it into the slot if I used the tip of my finger to hold it in all the way and not let it come back out slightly as it normally does when the card was inserted, the iPaq would see the card and could read and write data. As soon as pressure was released it would stop working. It would not eject from the iPaq until you pushed it in a second time to release the card. His iPaq was still in warranty so we never took his unit apart to determine what was causing the problem. He called HP and they replaced it under warranty. Give this a try and see if it will work. If it does and you are in warranty call HP. If not, try adjusting the SD card slot yourself. Or, contact one of the iPaq repair companies and see what they will charge to fix it for you. There are a few that have been mentioned here in these forums. Do a search to find one of them. Good Luck,
Reidan |
#14 | ||
Moderator
Join Date: Nov 2002 Location: Ashburn, VA Posts: 11 |
Quote:
here’s a tip from BionicSniper from an earlier thread… get a program called flash format for handango.com (theres a trial) it allows you to format the card and and even change the FAT from fat16 to fat32 or fat8 (FAT= File Allocation Table). Somewhere out there a few minutes ago, I read a post about a similar problem someone was having (lost the URL, sorry bout that) in which it turned out the card was recognized by an ipaq but it had no partitions on it, so while the ipaq responded to the SD card being inserted (sorta like yours does), there was nothing to show for it and it seemed invisible. I realize you have formatted the card more than once using other devices, but mebbe you could grab a trial copy of the program mentioned above by BionicSniper and try to examine & reformat the SD card on the iPAQ. Might provide some additional insight. |
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#15 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
Already tried that one, among other odd ways of inserting the card. It still doesn’t read |
#16 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Jun 2004 Posts: 8 |
Ok, II’m going to work on getting another card to try in it, since I need one for my other camera anyway. If that one doesn’t work I might try the formatting option but I think it requires a new SD slot. I’ve seen one selling somewhere and all I need to do is solder it on and it’s sorted.
http://www.ipaqrepair.co.uk/view_pr…php?product=233 |
#17 | ||
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 3 |
Quote:
I had exactly the same problem with a 256MB Twinmos SD card. Upon insertion, screen was turning on but nothing happened. Tried with other memories (SD, MMC), same thing. Hard reseted Ipaq (3835 by the way),SD card worked perfect. Now comes the best part: after I have installed Win2003 on it, i have deleted from start-up folder (\windows\start-up or similar) all the shortcuts. After I have seen that SD card is working, deleted againg those shortcuts. Guess what: after soft reset, SD card dissapeared! I have traced the problem to a shortcut called CFMan in above named folder. Try this:check in \windows\start-up if there are any shortcuts. If not save all Your data, hard reset the PPC and see if SD card works. Check after the reset if the shortcuts are there. Good Luck |
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#18 | |
Moderator Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Atlanta, Ga. Posts: 1,163 |
Very interesting hypothisis you have. I have not had this particular problem but I just looked on my 5455 anyway to see if I have that file in my startup folder, which I do not. You say that you have upgraded to PPC2003 when you found this problem. I am still running PPC2002 so that may be a difference. The files that are running in my Startup folder are BioDetect (for finger print scanner driver for 5XXX series iPaqs only), BTTrayCE (for Bluetooth), DM_K (expansion sleeve driver), PIMAgent and POutlook (both for sync of PIM data and running alarms). None of these files are drivers for the SD slot that I can tell. I started to wonder if perhaps the DM_K drivers is a combo driver for expansion sleeve and SD cards. I removed it from my startup folder and did a softreset on my iPaq. SD card was still working fine.
Lets see if others can post their findings here as well. __________________ Reidan Moderator, Dave’s iPAQ Dave’s iPAQ is not affiliated with HP Members Only FAQ Section . Have news? Submit it . Want to contact me? Use the contact form to send me an email. Want to support the site? Shop in our iPAQ store. NEW Dont forget our Podcast hotline telephone number in the US: 1-425-738-9506 available 24 hours a day 7 days a week. Also dont forget to add us to your Podcast aggregator by clicking here. |
#19 | |
Registered User
Join Date: Aug 2004 Posts: 3 |
Reidan, I have verified again. Same thing happened. I have 4 shortcuts in start-up dir: aFlashman, cFlashman, ari_eng, hh_dm. I far as I know, hh_dm is about network cards. I do not know abot PPC2002 because when I have bought the Ipaq I have bought the WM2003 upgrade and installed on the first start. I have removed BTTrayCE because I don’t have Bluetooth and POutlook. ari_eng seems to have something to do with regional settings which leaves the last shortcuts in discussion (aFlashman and cFlashman). aFlasman is pointing to \windows\aflashman.exe and cFlashman to \windows\cflashman.exe. |
#20 | |
Senior Editor Join Date: Jun 2002 Location: Massachusetts & Maine Posts: 2,051 |
cFlashman backs up the contacts, while aFlashman backs up the appointments using the Permanent PIM applet. __________________ Jack Cook Senior Editor, Dave’s iPAQ Microsoft MVP-Windows Mobile Devices NEW Dont forget our Podcast hotline telephone number in the US: 1-425-738-9506 available 24 hours a day 7 days a week or leave us a SKYPE Voicemail by clicking here . Also dont forget to add us to your Podcast aggregator by clicking here. |