HW mod the device to install a microsd holder
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Been watching this thread, great job getting the part installed! Does something in the kernel as well as the software need to be enabled to get it to work?
Sent from my GT-P7510 using xda premium
Sent from my GT-P7510 using xda premium
FWIW, I am not giving up hope 
I just needed to get to bed to get some rest before going into work a set of 12hr midnights. UPS dropped the connectors at 2:30pm EST, and I only spent an hour messing with it as I was supposed to already be in bed, so testing was limited but I knew I wouldn't be able to get any sleep if I didn't give it one try...
To answer as many questions as I can ATM:
Visually, solder flowed on all pins. There are no solder bridges. I did the work under 10x mag and verified under 40x. I did not electrically test the pins. I did not have the time for it today. I am as certain as I can be based on experience that the solder connections are good. I will check continuity as soon as I have some free time again. At the same time, I will try to determine if there are any signs of life at the connector itself.
I checked for the card to have mounted at mnt/sdcard/ at mnt/sdcard/storages and at mnt/usbdrives. Nothing anywhere and no signs that the tablet even tried to mount it. It could be a software thing, I am by no means a software guy, so if someone wants to investigate, either tell me what to look for and how to look for it, or search through the OS and tell us what you find.
As for physical access to the card if we ever get this going, it looks like there will be no issue slotting the case and getting the SD card out. With the card reader in position and the card ejected, it sits above the top of the tab by about .25", that is plenty to handle it and do what you need to do. As for mounting it physically, it might come down to double sided tape, but the shield that normally holds the sim card reader fits the other side perfectly as well, but there are no holes tapped in the heat sink below. I have the tools and skill to drill and tap them, but I have no desire to take the thing far enough apart to do it safely. I think for the amount of ejects it will see, dbl sided tape is probably going to be *my* solution.
I meant to include the part numbers earlier, but forgot. I apologize. I bought the connectors at Mouser.com, but they are Molex parts. The Mouser Part # is:538-503776-1010, the Molex Part # is:503776-1010. This is the "plug" half only. The receptacle half, which I also bought, is not identical to the others there, it uses a different lead method which likely would not be solderable with traditional means.
My gut tells me that the unpopulated area seen in the pictures is important and that this is going nowhere without it. My question for you all, is, is there a Samsung phone with similar hardware to the tabs, but with a external SD card slot? My thoughts are this-- my experience has been that when a manufacturer designs something like this, they will quite commonly use the same circuit through various different devices and models. Until it has outlived it's usefulness, they typically don't spend good money to redesign what they have already done. If this phone exists, we need high res pictures. Otherwise, I plan to try to do some research on what the exactly the electrical requirements are of the SDHC card, and see if we can do any REing from there.
On a side note, does anyone have a guestimate on how many times I can remove the tabs back before it starts to quit latching back together correctly?
Sorry for the long winded post. Hopefully I hit on all the questions.
Thanks,
Jason
I just needed to get to bed to get some rest before going into work a set of 12hr midnights. UPS dropped the connectors at 2:30pm EST, and I only spent an hour messing with it as I was supposed to already be in bed, so testing was limited but I knew I wouldn't be able to get any sleep if I didn't give it one try...To answer as many questions as I can ATM:
Visually, solder flowed on all pins. There are no solder bridges. I did the work under 10x mag and verified under 40x. I did not electrically test the pins. I did not have the time for it today. I am as certain as I can be based on experience that the solder connections are good. I will check continuity as soon as I have some free time again. At the same time, I will try to determine if there are any signs of life at the connector itself.
I checked for the card to have mounted at mnt/sdcard/ at mnt/sdcard/storages and at mnt/usbdrives. Nothing anywhere and no signs that the tablet even tried to mount it. It could be a software thing, I am by no means a software guy, so if someone wants to investigate, either tell me what to look for and how to look for it, or search through the OS and tell us what you find.
As for physical access to the card if we ever get this going, it looks like there will be no issue slotting the case and getting the SD card out. With the card reader in position and the card ejected, it sits above the top of the tab by about .25", that is plenty to handle it and do what you need to do. As for mounting it physically, it might come down to double sided tape, but the shield that normally holds the sim card reader fits the other side perfectly as well, but there are no holes tapped in the heat sink below. I have the tools and skill to drill and tap them, but I have no desire to take the thing far enough apart to do it safely. I think for the amount of ejects it will see, dbl sided tape is probably going to be *my* solution.
I meant to include the part numbers earlier, but forgot. I apologize. I bought the connectors at Mouser.com, but they are Molex parts. The Mouser Part # is:538-503776-1010, the Molex Part # is:503776-1010. This is the "plug" half only. The receptacle half, which I also bought, is not identical to the others there, it uses a different lead method which likely would not be solderable with traditional means.
My gut tells me that the unpopulated area seen in the pictures is important and that this is going nowhere without it. My question for you all, is, is there a Samsung phone with similar hardware to the tabs, but with a external SD card slot? My thoughts are this-- my experience has been that when a manufacturer designs something like this, they will quite commonly use the same circuit through various different devices and models. Until it has outlived it's usefulness, they typically don't spend good money to redesign what they have already done. If this phone exists, we need high res pictures. Otherwise, I plan to try to do some research on what the exactly the electrical requirements are of the SDHC card, and see if we can do any REing from there.
On a side note, does anyone have a guestimate on how many times I can remove the tabs back before it starts to quit latching back together correctly?
Sorry for the long winded post. Hopefully I hit on all the questions.
Thanks,
Jason
Below are the contents of last_kmsg, the kmsg file itself was empty. Where would i find the dmesg log?
Code:
[ 9.869961] [DBG] upload cause : UPLOAD_CAUSE_INIT
[ 9.869975] (kernel_sec_set_upload_cause) : upload_cause set 0
[ 9.869961] [DBG] upload cause : UPLOAD_CAUSE_INIT
[ 9.869975] (kernel_sec_set_upload_cause) : upload_cause set 0
[ 10.472205] i2c i2c-11: sendbytes: NAK bailout.
[ 10.556443] android_usb gadget: invalid number of LUNs: 0
[ 10.563031] rndis_pdata null in rndis_function_bind_config
[ 10.605011] mxt_config_settings
[ 11.178374] Failed to add route HPOUTL->Headset Jack
[ 11.209176] Tegra protected aperture disabled because nvmap is using system memory
[ 11.603710] init: /init.p3.rc: 280: ignored duplicate definition of service 'drm'
[ 11.611499] init: /init.p3.rc: 372: invalid command 'umount'
[ 11.712019] init: could not open /dev/keychord
[ 11.716876] init: cannot open '/initlogo.rle'
[ 12.075382] init: [disk_config] :::: fsck -> /dev/block/mmcblk0p8 (ext4):::::
[ 12.089964] init: [disk_config] ext_check -> /system/bin/e2fsck -v -y /dev/block/mmcblk0p8
[ 12.160766] init: [disk_config] e2fsck 1.41.11 (14-Mar-2010)
[ 12.170750] init: [disk_config] /dev/block/mmcblk0p8: recovering journal
[ 13.371558] init: [disk_config] /dev/block/mmcblk0p8: clean, 5749/884736 files, 1795137/3533436 blocks
[ 13.381668] init: [disk_config] /system/bin/e2fsck terminated by exit(0)
[ 13.388745] init: [disk_config] ext_check -> ok
[ 16.593165] init: sys_prop: permission denied uid:1013 name:audioflinger.bootsnd
[ 24.950995] accel_open_calibration: Can't open calibration file
[ 595.204719] acc_con_early_suspend
[ 598.458118] pm_op(): platform_pm_suspend+0x0/0x5c returns -16
[ 598.464441] PM: Device alarm failed to suspend: error -16
[ 598.470575] PM: Some devices failed to suspend
[ 600.028084] pm_op(): platform_pm_suspend+0x0/0x5c returns -16
[ 600.034735] PM: Device alarm failed to suspend: error -16
[ 600.040562] PM: Some devices failed to suspend
[ 619.295015] acc_con_late_resume
[ 757.605396] acc_con_early_suspend
[ 770.645778] acc_con_late_resume
[ 779.035990] acc_con_early_suspend
[ 780.493345] acc_con_late_resume
[ 784.327178] acc_con_early_suspend
[ 878.320883] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 1257.300156] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 1688.514856] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 1688.522811] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 1688.534195] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 1689.953238] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 1689.960815] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 1689.972587] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 3675.368616] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 3958.305975] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 4257.799203] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 4257.806863] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 4257.818555] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 4632.889460] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 4632.897410] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 4632.908760] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 4665.290857] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 4825.300390] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 4825.583616] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 4825.591209] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 4825.602877] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 5827.497042] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 5827.504908] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 5827.516377] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 7084.519149] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 7084.526776] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 7084.538527] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 7263.468731] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 7276.356436] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 7287.481223] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 7287.489074] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 7287.500657] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 7434.954452] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 7629.591050] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 7629.598982] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 7629.610337] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 7806.514232] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 7806.522130] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 7806.533985] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[ 7839.762525] acc_con_late_resume
[ 7850.074873] acc_con_early_suspend
[ 8427.378565] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 8883.489268] pm_op(): platform_pm_suspend+0x0/0x5c returns -16
[ 8883.495586] PM: Device alarm failed to suspend: error -16
[ 8883.501880] PM: Some devices failed to suspend
[ 8884.882554] Freezing of user space aborted
[ 9008.571094] pm_op(): platform_pm_suspend+0x0/0x5c returns -16
[ 9008.577423] PM: Device alarm failed to suspend: error -16
[ 9008.583559] PM: Some devices failed to suspend
[ 9010.014142] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[ 9010.022167] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[ 9010.033578] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[10864.541197] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[10864.548480] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[10864.560187] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[15515.374643] Freezing of tasks aborted
[15801.116573] acc_con_late_resume
[15807.260567] acc_con_early_suspend
[16085.387122] Freezing of tasks aborted
[17885.574222] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[17885.582274] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[17885.593968] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[18373.536190] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[18373.543785] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[18373.555383] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[18515.340423] Freezing of user space aborted
[18545.545419] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[18545.553024] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[18545.564786] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[19271.348994] acc_con_late_resume
[19828.948500] acc_con_early_suspend
[19832.276762] pm_op(): platform_pm_suspend+0x0/0x5c returns -16
[19832.283091] PM: Device alarm failed to suspend: error -16
[19832.289426] PM: Some devices failed to suspend
[19834.017698] pm_noirq_op(): platform_pm_suspend_noirq+0x0/0x40 returns -11
[19834.025564] PM: Device power.0 failed to suspend late: error -11
[19834.037119] PM: Some devices failed to power down
[19839.244413] acc_con_late_resume
[20741.444468] acc_con_early_suspend
[20779.838572] acc_con_late_resume
[21043.331494] acc_con_early_suspend
[22152.894330] pm_op(): platform_pm_suspend+0x0/0x5c returns -16
[22152.900984] PM: Device alarm failed to suspend: error -16
[22152.907012] PM: Some devices failed to suspend
[22292.162478] acc_con_late_resume
[22372.324341] acc_con_early_suspend
[22404.532611] pm_op(): platform_pm_suspend+0x0/0x5c returns -16
[22404.538954] PM: Device alarm failed to suspend: error -16
[22404.545095] PM: Some devices failed to suspend
[22673.313541] acc_con_late_resume
[22840.061097] acc_con_early_suspend
[22868.255400] acc_con_late_resume
[23185.891931] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.900168] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.908255] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.916252] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.924320] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.932589] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.940647] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.949279] binder: 7926: binder_alloc_buf failed to map pages in userspace, no vma
[23185.968635] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593966, not freed
[23185.975230] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593968, not freed
[23185.981895] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593979, not freed
[23185.988434] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593964, not freed
[23185.995063] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593956, not freed
[23186.001912] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593980, not freed
[23186.008508] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593981, not freed
[23186.015066] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593986, not freed
[23186.021580] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593987, not freed
[23186.028134] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593989, not freed
[23186.034679] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593992, not freed
[23186.041623] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593959, not freed
[23186.048216] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593965, not freed
[23186.054988] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593954, not freed
[23186.061571] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593958, not freed
[23186.068091] binder: release proc 7926, transaction 2593977, not freed
[23195.615821] binder: release proc 1383, transaction 2597067, not freed
[23195.622350] binder: release proc 1383, transaction 2597068, not freed
[23196.162378] binder: release proc 9688, transaction 2597357, not freed
[23196.168905] binder: release proc 9688, transaction 2597410, not freed
[23219.694021] init: Disabling service "ueventd[core]"
[23219.699245] init: Disabling service "servicemanager[core]"
[23219.706654] init: Disabling service "vold[core]"
[23219.711728] init: Disabling service "netd[main]"
[23219.716821] init: Disabling service "debuggerd[main]"
[23219.722376] init: Disabling service "surfaceflinger[main]"
[23219.728367] init: Disabling service "zygote[main]"
[23219.733604] init: Disabling service "drm[main]"
[23219.738575] init: Disabling service "media[main]"
[23219.745243] init: Disabling service "dbus[main]"
[23219.750218] init: Disabling service "installd[main]"
[23219.755635] init: Disabling service "keystore[main]"
[23219.761037] init: Disabling service "tvout[main]"
[23219.766253] init: Disabling service "gpsd[main]"
[23219.771360] init: Disabling service "ril-daemon[late_start]"
[23219.777506] init: Disabling service "DR-deamon[late_start]"
[23219.783603] init: Disabling service "mobex-daemon[late_start]"
[23219.789833] init: Disabling service "sdcard[late_start]"
[23219.795492] init: Disabling service "console[core]"
[23219.801214] init: untracked pid 1371 exited
[23219.806416] init: untracked pid 1395 exited
[23219.810988] init: untracked pid 1405 exited
[23219.815724] init: untracked pid 1530 exited
[23219.820361] init: untracked pid 7977 exited
[23219.824855] init: untracked pid 8081 exited
[23219.829389] init: untracked pid 8303 exited
[23219.833903] init: untracked pid 8335 exited
[23219.838360] init: untracked pid 8754 exited
[23219.842882] init: untracked pid 8906 exited
[23219.847343] init: untracked pid 9057 exited
[23219.851824] init: untracked pid 9177 exited
[23219.856351] init: untracked pid 9725 exited
[23219.860850] init: untracked pid 9926 exited
[23219.866186] init: untracked pid 9981 exited
[23219.870687] init: untracked pid 9994 exited
[23219.875222] init: untracked pid 10013 exited
[23219.879817] init: untracked pid 10029 exited
[23219.884422] init: untracked pid 10051 exited
[23219.888994] init: untracked pid 10071 exited
[23219.894156] init: untracked pid 10092 exited
[23219.898581] init: Umounting direcotry /efs
[23219.910875] init: Done!, 1th trial
[23219.914512] init: Umounting direcotry /data
[23219.918901] init: Umount is failed(Device or resource busy). Trying to remount RO...
[23219.969086] init: Target directory is busy. Remounting directory /data to RO
[23220.010696] init: untracked pid 1394 exited
[23221.478949] init: Error! umount failed [Device or resource busy]
[23221.485220] init: Umounting direcotry /cache
[23221.498234] init: Done!, 1th trial
[23221.501911] init: Umounting direcotry /system
[23221.506580] init: Umount is failed(Device or resource busy). Trying to remount RO...
[23221.516220] init: Done!, 1th trial
[23221.522176] Restarting Linux version 2.6.36.4-cyanogenmod+ (root@pershoot-ubuntu) (gcc version 4.5.1 (Sourcery G++ Lite 2010.09-51) ) #1 SMP PREEMPT Mon Jan 9 00:37:18 EST 2012
[23221.522194]
[23221.542210] VFS: Close: file count is 0
[23222.162913] Restarting system with command 'now'.
No errors detectedI managed to research my own answers-- I can ADB into the tab and get the dmesg log next time I try to mount a card. As for the last_kmsg, it looks like the tab might write that one at each boot, so they data in there is not likely to mean anything as I pulled it hours after I put the card in. Keep the ideas coming, whatever info/logs I can pull when I get back to testing, I am game for.
Later,
Jason
Later,
Jason
I think that there is already some version with sd slot. Here is a pic of that
If we could take a look at that mainboard maybe we could figure out if and what is missing to make that sd reader to work.
Anyway I noticed that the empty pads close to the microconnector of sd holder you soldered are very similar to the ones close to the microconnector of simholder.
If someone with a 3g P7500 with a stock simholder installed can take a pic of his mainboard, we can understand if on those pads close to sd holder should be soldered something like chips or capacitors or something.
If there is something close to simholder it has to be very similar to what is needed (if needed) close to the sd holder.
If we could take a look at that mainboard maybe we could figure out if and what is missing to make that sd reader to work.
Anyway I noticed that the empty pads close to the microconnector of sd holder you soldered are very similar to the ones close to the microconnector of simholder.
If someone with a 3g P7500 with a stock simholder installed can take a pic of his mainboard, we can understand if on those pads close to sd holder should be soldered something like chips or capacitors or something.
If there is something close to simholder it has to be very similar to what is needed (if needed) close to the sd holder.
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Ok guys, let's try to find a pic of the mainboard of a P7500. I'm quite confident there will be resistors and similar close to the microconnector of the simholder.
I've read the service manual of the P7500 and there are resistors pictured close to that connector.
I've read the service manual of the P7500 and there are resistors pictured close to that connector.
Well I do have the P7500 and want to help but I'm a little afraid of breaking my tab opening it. Is there a big risk of that?
I am use to do it to phones. I change lcd's and digitizers in my sparetime but have never opened a tablet.
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA
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Small question, is the sim holder usb too? Maybee its possible to connect the sd reader to the sim reader port and see whats happening? It seems they have the same connectors?
Sent from my GT-P7510 using XDA Premium HD app
Sent from my GT-P7510 using XDA Premium HD app
Maybe... Who has a P7500 and wants to help the project giving it a try...
The sd holder is quite cheap.
btw I do suspect that all those sd holders on sale on ebay are the ones built for early orders by samsung and after they changed plans about sd slot someone is trying to sell them to gain something from "unuseful" spare parts.
Who knows, maybe they can support us, they have all the interest
The sd holder is quite cheap.
btw I do suspect that all those sd holders on sale on ebay are the ones built for early orders by samsung and after they changed plans about sd slot someone is trying to sell them to gain something from "unuseful" spare parts.
Who knows, maybe they can support us, they have all the interest
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Does anyone here have a contact at Samsung? Maybe they would be willing to divulge the details of the circuit. After all we whom are willing to solder on our tabs are guaranteed to be such a slim minority that it can't possibly hurt their profit margins. I don't have the first idea who to start with, or even what department to try to reach out to.
<RANT>In all actuality, this particular design/production scenario really pisses me off. I know that in the long run, scrapping the SD card read saved them a lot of money, BUT, my guess is that the reason behind scrapping the slot was not cutting production cost. I think it was much more likely that when the decision was made to release a few version with various amounts of internal storage, and they saw that scrapping removable storage allowed them to push the more expensive tabs with more internal storage. After all, why would I buy a 32g tab for $100-$150 more, when I can drop a $30 card in the 16g tab and get more storage? Have any of you questioned why the USB OTG devices are so damned bulky? How about why the dock connector for them is on the bottom of the tab in nearly the worst position possible? I have, I want to say it was planned inconvenience, but I think more than likely it was not intentional, however, they have made no effort to respond to complaints of users and made the OTG more useful. Have you actually seen a tab with the official USB adapter and a thumb drive? Even upside down it is ridiculous. Even the Chinese OTG dongle on a cable is better than the official, and it still isn't by much. -- sorry, I had to get that off my chest... </RANT>
I saw that too, and it might be useful information. However, from the info I can find, SIM cards are 1 bit serial data and have a Vcc of 5Vdc. SD cards are compatible with 1 bit and 4 bit serial data (as well as SPI being optional), and have a Vcc of ~2.7-3.6Vdc. So, we can see with some certainty that you cannot just plug the SD reader into the SIM reader circuit. If you did, I think it is likely that you will see hardware damage to the SD card. At most, the 10 pin connector pinout for the SIM might be drastically different, reversing Vcc and ground, or applying voltage to the data or clock lines. Anyhow, without a lot of verification, I would not just try it out. At the very least, the higher voltage might destroy the card. I have found some evidence that the SD cards can take 5Vdc, but that was not within their specification.
Yes, and this is my plan once I have a few days off work to mess with it again. The layout of the pads and the traces we can seems it might be RC networks and possibly some voltage dividers. I am somewhat stumped on what that five pad device might be on the right hand side. I don't even know that I have come across that package before.
Any chance of getting a copy of this service manual? PM me if possible.
There is really no reason to assume any of these devices utilize USB. There is nothing at all to prevent the serial data from being read directly. As to swapping them and seeing what happens, I would advise against it. There are several components in here that have the same connector and would not even be remotely similar to the same device.
Long winded again, sorry.
Later,
Jason
<RANT>In all actuality, this particular design/production scenario really pisses me off. I know that in the long run, scrapping the SD card read saved them a lot of money, BUT, my guess is that the reason behind scrapping the slot was not cutting production cost. I think it was much more likely that when the decision was made to release a few version with various amounts of internal storage, and they saw that scrapping removable storage allowed them to push the more expensive tabs with more internal storage. After all, why would I buy a 32g tab for $100-$150 more, when I can drop a $30 card in the 16g tab and get more storage? Have any of you questioned why the USB OTG devices are so damned bulky? How about why the dock connector for them is on the bottom of the tab in nearly the worst position possible? I have, I want to say it was planned inconvenience, but I think more than likely it was not intentional, however, they have made no effort to respond to complaints of users and made the OTG more useful. Have you actually seen a tab with the official USB adapter and a thumb drive? Even upside down it is ridiculous. Even the Chinese OTG dongle on a cable is better than the official, and it still isn't by much. -- sorry, I had to get that off my chest... </RANT>
I saw that too, and it might be useful information. However, from the info I can find, SIM cards are 1 bit serial data and have a Vcc of 5Vdc. SD cards are compatible with 1 bit and 4 bit serial data (as well as SPI being optional), and have a Vcc of ~2.7-3.6Vdc. So, we can see with some certainty that you cannot just plug the SD reader into the SIM reader circuit. If you did, I think it is likely that you will see hardware damage to the SD card. At most, the 10 pin connector pinout for the SIM might be drastically different, reversing Vcc and ground, or applying voltage to the data or clock lines. Anyhow, without a lot of verification, I would not just try it out. At the very least, the higher voltage might destroy the card. I have found some evidence that the SD cards can take 5Vdc, but that was not within their specification.
Yes, and this is my plan once I have a few days off work to mess with it again. The layout of the pads and the traces we can seems it might be RC networks and possibly some voltage dividers. I am somewhat stumped on what that five pad device might be on the right hand side. I don't even know that I have come across that package before.
Any chance of getting a copy of this service manual? PM me if possible.
There is really no reason to assume any of these devices utilize USB. There is nothing at all to prevent the serial data from being read directly. As to swapping them and seeing what happens, I would advise against it. There are several components in here that have the same connector and would not even be remotely similar to the same device.
Long winded again, sorry.
Later,
Jason
Tim, that is exactly what I was talking about. The center pad is more than likely heat sink area like you say, but still no ideas on the package. I will try to spend a few minutes researching the package later tonight.
In other news, I did find a handful of pictures of the insides of the pre-release tab with SD card slot. You can find the article here: Clicky, I am not going to post copies of the pictures unless they give me permission. I emailed the site editor last night and asked if they had any higher resolution pictures they could provide, and if I could have permission to post their pictures here. I have yet to receive a reply, but you guys will be the first to know when I do. The area of interest in that particular tab is populated, but the pictures are poor enough quality that you can't really make much out except for being able to make a bit more educated guess as to which components are caps and which are resistors. Values are left to the imagination, and frankly, when you get bellow a 0805 package size for SMD resistors, sometimes you are left with components that are not labeled at all, so these pictures might be all the help we can get... Anyone have any of the fictional software from CSI that will sharpen those images into visibility
zooster, thanks for the PM, the link was dead (file missing) but if the service manual is out there, I will keep searching. If you have a copy saved, I am happy to give you my email address.
Thanks,
Jason
In other news, I did find a handful of pictures of the insides of the pre-release tab with SD card slot. You can find the article here: Clicky, I am not going to post copies of the pictures unless they give me permission. I emailed the site editor last night and asked if they had any higher resolution pictures they could provide, and if I could have permission to post their pictures here. I have yet to receive a reply, but you guys will be the first to know when I do. The area of interest in that particular tab is populated, but the pictures are poor enough quality that you can't really make much out except for being able to make a bit more educated guess as to which components are caps and which are resistors. Values are left to the imagination, and frankly, when you get bellow a 0805 package size for SMD resistors, sometimes you are left with components that are not labeled at all, so these pictures might be all the help we can get... Anyone have any of the fictional software from CSI that will sharpen those images into visibility
zooster, thanks for the PM, the link was dead (file missing) but if the service manual is out there, I will keep searching. If you have a copy saved, I am happy to give you my email address.
Thanks,
Jason
Hey guys. 2 things.
1. I'm getting a galaxy tab on the 28th, so i will be spying on you guys a lot more for the XDA Portal.
which brings me to
2. When this mod gets done, I'm so doing it and then writing the hell out of it
Just so you know, the Portal is keeping tabs on you...no pressure
1. I'm getting a galaxy tab on the 28th, so i will be spying on you guys a lot more for the XDA Portal.
which brings me to
2. When this mod gets done, I'm so doing it and then writing the hell out of it
Just so you know, the Portal is keeping tabs on you...no pressure
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