Hi guys!
My dock is dated 03/2014 or 04/2014 not remember now. Purchased the set into 12/2014.
I worry about a few things.
1. Dock battery real capacity.
2. High temperature when charging the tablet. *
3. Sounds a "clik clik clik" when charging the tablet. *
* This is accentuated with decreasing battery dock.
Anyone else happens?
Locked Bootloader ww_10.26.1.7
Pad EC version EC32T-0311
MobileDock version EC32T-0205
These problems are the reason that I did not unlock the bootloader.
My dock is dated 03/2014 or 04/2014 not remember now. Purchased the set into 12/2014.
I worry about a few things.
1. Dock battery real capacity.
2. High temperature when charging the tablet. *
3. Sounds a "clik clik clik" when charging the tablet. *
* This is accentuated with decreasing battery dock.
Anyone else happens?
Locked Bootloader ww_10.26.1.7
Pad EC version EC32T-0311
MobileDock version EC32T-0205
These problems are the reason that I did not unlock the bootloader.
Well, I didn't get a clicking noise, but I have occasionally gotten a high-pitched whine while the dock was charging the tablet. Hasn't happened much recently though. I was a bit concerned because it sounded a lot like a capacitor charging too much, but nothing appears to have blown up, so I guess that's something.
These problems are the reason that I did not unlock the bootloader.
Worried you won't be able to get warranty service? I would hope that it would be possible to get service on the dock even if the tablet is unlocked. Anyone tried this?
Since writing that post things got dramatically worse. I see dropouts in keyboard/mouse functionality almost every time I use it. I tried a lot of different ways of shimming the hinge area to get a firmer connection. All but one seemed to show promise at first but eventually ended up with the same issue after a bit of use.
My current method is performing best by far. I got a couple of days of use with no dropouts at all, even after closing and opening the tablet+dock repeatedly. That's WAY better than it does without any shimming. I do still occasionally see dropouts, but just pressing down on the tablet to reseat it seems to reconnect it.
What I did was to cut up a tissue box to get two strips of thin cardboard (a cereal box would probably do as well). One runs the entire length of the hinge and is sandwiched in the back between the tablet and the hinge. The other is just 2-3 inches long, sandwiched in between the hinge and the front of the tablet, centered. For whatever reason this particular combinatio seems to work the best for my tablet and dock. The wobble is eliminated, too. Not sure if this result will be universal or if the best strategy is going to depend on the particlar tablet and dock involved, but I figured I'd post my findings anyway.
I've had it this way for a few days now, and so far, I've only seen the occasional dropouts (1 or 2 per day of medium usage) and it hasn't been necessary to entirely undock and redock to get it to reconnect. I'm going to trace lines on the cardboard so that I know the exact position it goes in, trim it, and then tape it into the dock with double-sided scotch tape, in hopes that I can repeatably undock and redock this thing and still have it stay connected this well. Will post back with my findings.
It's worth noting that I think maybe the case I was using caused or hastened this problem. I was using one like the poetic case, where the docked tablet can't quite close all the way because there's material sandwiched in there. It seems to close mostly fine, but doing so now inevitably disconnects the keyboard and requires a redock. I think sandwiching it closed may have put some strain on the hinge and permanently loosened it.. DON'T use that kind of case with this tablet + dock. I did it because I'm very clumsy, and to be honest, I'm not too keen on using this thing without a case, but the risk of leaving it unprotected is way better than the connection troubles that the case seems to have caused.
Your post inspired me to revisit this annoyance which has gotten worse - again. Thanks for that.
I noticed that the felt tape on the inside of the hinge (may be from a "repair" Asus did on this dock) had gotten all bunched up and pushed down in places.
I removed it and put a thin strip of stiff cardboard on the inside of the hinge (the felt tape on the outside face of the hinge is still intact) except for a little strip above the locking mechanism. I don't entirely trust this "fix" - or for the double-sided tape to hold up to repeated removals/insertions of the tablet - and didn't want anything to get pushed down into the lock.
So far it holds up well and has improved on the disconnects. We'll see how it goes in few days.
I noticed that the felt tape on the inside of the hinge (may be from a "repair" Asus did on this dock) had gotten all bunched up and pushed down in places.
I removed it and put a thin strip of stiff cardboard on the inside of the hinge (the felt tape on the outside face of the hinge is still intact) except for a little strip above the locking mechanism. I don't entirely trust this "fix" - or for the double-sided tape to hold up to repeated removals/insertions of the tablet - and didn't want anything to get pushed down into the lock.
So far it holds up well and has improved on the disconnects. We'll see how it goes in few days.
When buying whole and not separately, in EU Asus requires sending the complete set. I will try RMA and see if it solves.
I know because my TF300T failed SD reader and USB dock, Asus was clear, you must send the whole.
I solved the problem of the hinge (swaying only) with an old plastic card, cut and paste with double-sided tape It works fine.
Good, glad I inspired you
I also saw the felt strips squishing down before I started any fix attempts. The felt strip seems so thin, though, that I doubt it sliding down was the cause of my issues... but who knows. I have no such fears about stuff getting in the way of the locking mechanism, because it looks simple and sturdy enough that I doubt I could damage it. Also, my double-sided tape seems to be holding up quite nicely.When buying whole and not separately, in EU Asus requires sending the complete set. I will try RMA and see if it solves.
I know because my TF300T failed SD reader and USB dock, Asus was clear, you must send the whole.
I solved the problem of the hinge (swaying only) with an old plastic card, cut and paste with double-sided tape It works fine.
Well, glad I bought mine separately, but I can't see how to even submit a warranty support request for just the dock. I bought mine (new) on ebay so I could totally see them not wanting to honor the warranty... ah well. I also tried an old credit card, but the final solution I arrived on with cardboard seems to be the best I've found.
Another update: Of course, shortly after posting that, it started to act up again
Slightly unseating and reseating seemed to help. I finally got around to going to buying double-sided tape and taped in the cardboard pieces, and that seems to have worked quite nicely. I do occasionally see disconnects, but either pressing down on the tablet to reseat or completely detaching and reattaching fixes the problem, so at least there's that. With this solution, at least currently, the tablet is usable docked. It remains to be seen if it continues to work well over time or if the hinge will stretch to "accomodate" the cardboard and loosen up again.best method so far
Just wanted to update with my latest method. I'm a tinkerer -- I just can't let things like this go And really, it's annoying as hell to redock my tablet 3 times just to type an email. This thing is so lightweight that even just typing shakes it enough to disconnect.
Not anymore, though! My latest technique starts off like before -- I've shimmed the dock with cardboard in the front and back. That stops the wobble, which is a pretty good start. The problem is that shimming by itself doesn't stop the tablet from slipping up just enough to disrupt the electrical connection, even though the docking hooks are still engaged.
I finally got desperate and lined the back of the dock with Scotch double-sided clear tape. It's actually incredibly sticky, and it holds the tablet in the dock perfectly. I got a solid week without a single disconnection, which is the best I've seen yet. It even stayed perfectly connected while I was using it in the passenger seat of a moving car!
Slight problem, of course: now I have a glorified laptop I was able to get the tablet out, but it took a lot of careful pulling, and I wouldn't want to do it regularly. And of course, the tape came out with the tablet, along with a bit of the cardboard shim. I generally only use this thing docked, but of course when you need a tablet, that's where the TF701 shines. If I have to put up with this being an excellent touchscreen laptop, I'll happily take that over the constant disconnections, but it's not ideal.
My next idea, which I haven't tried yet, involves 3M "command" adhesive. I picked some of the thin, clear kind up at the hardware store the other day and I'm going to give it a go when I'm feeling brave. I think two (maybe even one?) of these will hold the tablet well enough, and if I want to undock it, I can pull the tabs to remove the adhesive. If that works, that's probably the closest I'm going to get to a successful fix, and I'll be pretty happy with it.
I'll report back either way!
Just wanted to update with my latest method. I'm a tinkerer -- I just can't let things like this go
And really, it's annoying as hell to redock my tablet 3 times just to type an email. This thing is so lightweight that even just typing shakes it enough to disconnect.Not anymore, though! My latest technique starts off like before -- I've shimmed the dock with cardboard in the front and back. That stops the wobble, which is a pretty good start. The problem is that shimming by itself doesn't stop the tablet from slipping up just enough to disrupt the electrical connection, even though the docking hooks are still engaged.
I finally got desperate and lined the back of the dock with Scotch double-sided clear tape. It's actually incredibly sticky, and it holds the tablet in the dock perfectly. I got a solid week without a single disconnection, which is the best I've seen yet. It even stayed perfectly connected while I was using it in the passenger seat of a moving car!
Slight problem, of course: now I have a glorified laptop
I was able to get the tablet out, but it took a lot of careful pulling, and I wouldn't want to do it regularly. And of course, the tape came out with the tablet, along with a bit of the cardboard shim. I generally only use this thing docked, but of course when you need a tablet, that's where the TF701 shines. If I have to put up with this being an excellent touchscreen laptop, I'll happily take that over the constant disconnections, but it's not ideal.My next idea, which I haven't tried yet, involves 3M "command" adhesive. I picked some of the thin, clear kind up at the hardware store the other day and I'm going to give it a go when I'm feeling brave. I think two (maybe even one?) of these will hold the tablet well enough, and if I want to undock it, I can pull the tabs to remove the adhesive. If that works, that's probably the closest I'm going to get to a successful fix, and I'll be pretty happy with it.
I'll report back either way!
Okay, so. I nixed the double-sided tape because, of course, I do want to be able to ever undock my tablet. It was actually a bit nerve-wracking, because that tape REALLY held well and I almost couldn't get the tablet out without damaging it.
Next up, I tried those 3M tabs. They worked okay for awhile, but eventually, no matter how I placed them, they'd come loose and I'd get disconnects. It got so bad that I finally decided it was time to give up on the dock entirely.
I had a bluetooth keyboard/touchpad device lying around, so I got creative. The dock still has one thing that I like: the hinge and hook mechanism. I took the dock apart and ripped out all of the guts. I took my bluetooth keyboard/touchpad apart and reduced it to its bare essentials (control board, keyboard, touchpad, buttons, and battery). I carved out bits of the internal structural plastic and shoehorned the keyboard and touchpad in. Yeah, I went there.
Now I have a WORKING keyboard and touchpad in the dock. It still folds up nicely and of course I can dock and undock the tablet to my heart's content. The keyboard and touchpad actually fit surprisingly well in the case, and there are really only a few gaps through which you can see some wires and such. I might just leave it like that because it looks neat
Here's the best part: there's a magnet to the upper right of the touchpad in the dock. I was trying to figure out what it could be for, when it hit me. I moved the dock's bezel over the tablet and poof, the screen went out. Moved it away, and it came back. This is the magnet that triggers the tablet's magnetic switch that tells it that the dock is closed. In other words, despite removing all of the electronics in the dock, the tablet still turns off when it's closed. Epic win.
So, that's pretty much the end of my story here. Asus's dock is garbage, so I hacked it into something that works. I won't be buying an ASUS tablet again, and will probably avoid all of their other gear.
Oh, one more thing. I stopped using this bluetooth keyboard/touchpad because I'd get repeated keys and it'd kill wifi performance. I've since bought a new router with 5ghz, and I'm pretty much going to have to avoid 2.4ghz wifi from now on. Small price to pay, though, especially since I can tether to my phone at 5ghz.
Next up, I tried those 3M tabs. They worked okay for awhile, but eventually, no matter how I placed them, they'd come loose and I'd get disconnects. It got so bad that I finally decided it was time to give up on the dock entirely.
I had a bluetooth keyboard/touchpad device lying around, so I got creative. The dock still has one thing that I like: the hinge and hook mechanism. I took the dock apart and ripped out all of the guts. I took my bluetooth keyboard/touchpad apart and reduced it to its bare essentials (control board, keyboard, touchpad, buttons, and battery). I carved out bits of the internal structural plastic and shoehorned the keyboard and touchpad in. Yeah, I went there.
Now I have a WORKING keyboard and touchpad in the dock. It still folds up nicely and of course I can dock and undock the tablet to my heart's content. The keyboard and touchpad actually fit surprisingly well in the case, and there are really only a few gaps through which you can see some wires and such. I might just leave it like that because it looks neat
Here's the best part: there's a magnet to the upper right of the touchpad in the dock. I was trying to figure out what it could be for, when it hit me. I moved the dock's bezel over the tablet and poof, the screen went out. Moved it away, and it came back. This is the magnet that triggers the tablet's magnetic switch that tells it that the dock is closed. In other words, despite removing all of the electronics in the dock, the tablet still turns off when it's closed. Epic win.
So, that's pretty much the end of my story here. Asus's dock is garbage, so I hacked it into something that works. I won't be buying an ASUS tablet again, and will probably avoid all of their other gear.
Oh, one more thing. I stopped using this bluetooth keyboard/touchpad because I'd get repeated keys and it'd kill wifi performance. I've since bought a new router with 5ghz, and I'm pretty much going to have to avoid 2.4ghz wifi from now on. Small price to pay, though, especially since I can tether to my phone at 5ghz.
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I have the 2014.04 dock and it has no wobble, clicks in tight and no disconnect issues at all. I got it from B&H, New Egg and Tiger Direct are still selling the 2013.10 units.2best method so far
Just wanted to update with my latest method. I'm a tinkerer -- I just can't let things like this go And really, it's annoying as hell to redock my tablet 3 times just to type an email. This thing is so lightweight that even just typing shakes it enough to disconnect.
Not anymore, though! My latest technique starts off like before -- I've shimmed the dock with cardboard in the front and back. That stops the wobble, which is a pretty good start. The problem is that shimming by itself doesn't stop the tablet from slipping up just enough to disrupt the electrical connection, even though the docking hooks are still engaged.
I finally got desperate and lined the back of the dock with Scotch double-sided clear tape. It's actually incredibly sticky, and it holds the tablet in the dock perfectly. I got a solid week without a single disconnection, which is the best I've seen yet. It even stayed perfectly connected while I was using it in the passenger seat of a moving car!
Slight problem, of course: now I have a glorified laptop I was able to get the tablet out, but it took a lot of careful pulling, and I wouldn't want to do it regularly. And of course, the tape came out with the tablet, along with a bit of the cardboard shim. I generally only use this thing docked, but of course when you need a tablet, that's where the TF701 shines. If I have to put up with this being an excellent touchscreen laptop, I'll happily take that over the constant disconnections, but it's not ideal.
My next idea, which I haven't tried yet, involves 3M "command" adhesive. I picked some of the thin, clear kind up at the hardware store the other day and I'm going to give it a go when I'm feeling brave. I think two (maybe even one?) of these will hold the tablet well enough, and if I want to undock it, I can pull the tabs to remove the adhesive. If that works, that's probably the closest I'm going to get to a successful fix, and I'll be pretty happy with it.
I'll report back either way!2
Well, I didn't get a clicking noise, but I have occasionally gotten a high-pitched whine while the dock was charging the tablet. Hasn't happened much recently though. I was a bit concerned because it sounded a lot like a capacitor charging too much, but nothing appears to have blown up, so I guess that's something.
These problems are the reason that I did not unlock the bootloader.
Worried you won't be able to get warranty service? I would hope that it would be possible to get service on the dock even if the tablet is unlocked. Anyone tried this?
Since writing that post things got dramatically worse. I see dropouts in keyboard/mouse functionality almost every time I use it. I tried a lot of different ways of shimming the hinge area to get a firmer connection. All but one seemed to show promise at first but eventually ended up with the same issue after a bit of use.
My current method is performing best by far. I got a couple of days of use with no dropouts at all, even after closing and opening the tablet+dock repeatedly. That's WAY better than it does without any shimming. I do still occasionally see dropouts, but just pressing down on the tablet to reseat it seems to reconnect it.
What I did was to cut up a tissue box to get two strips of thin cardboard (a cereal box would probably do as well). One runs the entire length of the hinge and is sandwiched in the back between the tablet and the hinge. The other is just 2-3 inches long, sandwiched in between the hinge and the front of the tablet, centered. For whatever reason this particular combinatio seems to work the best for my tablet and dock. The wobble is eliminated, too. Not sure if this result will be universal or if the best strategy is going to depend on the particlar tablet and dock involved, but I figured I'd post my findings anyway.
I've had it this way for a few days now, and so far, I've only seen the occasional dropouts (1 or 2 per day of medium usage) and it hasn't been necessary to entirely undock and redock to get it to reconnect. I'm going to trace lines on the cardboard so that I know the exact position it goes in, trim it, and then tape it into the dock with double-sided scotch tape, in hopes that I can repeatably undock and redock this thing and still have it stay connected this well. Will post back with my findings.
It's worth noting that I think maybe the case I was using caused or hastened this problem. I was using one like the poetic case, where the docked tablet can't quite close all the way because there's material sandwiched in there. It seems to close mostly fine, but doing so now inevitably disconnects the keyboard and requires a redock. I think sandwiching it closed may have put some strain on the hinge and permanently loosened it.. DON'T use that kind of case with this tablet + dock. I did it because I'm very clumsy, and to be honest, I'm not too keen on using this thing without a case, but the risk of leaving it unprotected is way better than the connection troubles that the case seems to have caused.1
It's fine. Mine too was purchased in the UK and the box has two stickers (for both the dock and the tablet). Mine in this case was 2013.11...
