Replace the battery or the phone?

Question

Nexus 5X

6th generation Android smartphone designed by Google and manufactured by LG. Model LG-H790. Released October 2015.

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sherlock.jessicalyn @jessicasherlock

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crwdns2931729:0crwdne2931729:0: Dzi 4, 2017

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Replace the battery or the phone?

So - long car ride - 'plug in the phone, dear, would ya'.

The phone is plugged in with a good cord to a questionable unbranded USB - Car adapter. I didn't know it wasn't going into my power brick....but no crying over spilt milk.

The adapter had a bit of an explosion, just a pop and a bit of smoke. My phone seemed fine, no immediate reaction. It lasts the rest of the day and I plug it in at night to the wall. I noticed in the morning that it hadn't charged. We theorized that maybe the cord had been affected by the little blow up.

I had it off for an hour or so still trying to charge and when I pulled it back up I noticed battery life was going down 1% a second. Thought I'd restart it, maybe it wasn't recognizing the charge, but it didn't have enough juice to kick back on.

I did later try another cord with no luck. To reiterate, the phone seemed to function perfectly well - other than charging capabilities - for probably the next 12 hours that it had a charge. At first if I plugged it into a power brick the light on the brick would come on, but now not even that much. I also left it on the wall today in (probably vain) hope, and the phone did get warm...but wouldn't turn on.

So my question is - is it likely only the battery that was affected, therefore able to be easily replaced for a relatively low price? Or should I just go for the new one?

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score 1 · Answer 1 · 2017-04-04T09:56:33-07:00

Scott @scott35006

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crwdns2931729:0crwdne2931729:0: Dzi 4, 2017

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the answer from @cam2363 seems to be correct, that there is a problem with your Charging circuit rather than your battery itself. However, the repair is a large amount of money less than buying a 350$ phone. you can easily have a repair shop fix it for around 80-100$ (All of my costs are in CAD)

If you have experience with SMT Soldering, it is a simple enough procedure to do yourself, but if you have not, then i would suggest hiring a professional.

To diagnose this issue, i would follow the steps below.

1) Boost the battery externally with an external power source. (Ensure it is to the proper Voltage and Amperage that the battery takes. Does it turn on, and does it charge?

-if it doesn't turn on, board failure.

-if it turns on, Proceed

2) Scan board for physical damage. should there be cany chips, scratches, or breaks in the device, then you will either need to replace these pieces (if you have the SMT Skill set)

if there is no damage visible, then proceed.

3) Plug in your charging cable. if it charges, all is good. if it does not, then replace the charging port. Re test the charging port.

-if it charges, then great, it fixed the issue

-if it doesnt charge, then board failure.

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Well yes, the port is easy, but whats to say it didnt fry other components? Or the battery charging circuit? If that is the case, a new phone wont be that much more.

crwdns2934271:0Dzi 4, 2017crwdnd2934271:0 Cameron crwdne2934271:0

i agree there are other possibilities, although at the stage of diagnostics they are at, it is rather foolhardy to just throw out the device in my opinion. but its the users call. i will edit my ticket to make it more acceptable to your reasoning

crwdns2934271:0Dzi 4, 2017crwdnd2934271:0 Scott crwdne2934271:0

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score 1 · Answer 2 · 2017-04-04T10:05:30-07:00

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L Pfaff @lpfaff1

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crwdns2931729:0crwdne2931729:0: Dzi 4, 2017

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@jessicasherlock , sherlock.jessicalyn, This is not really a cheap phone, I recommend you look in the charge port and blow/pick out(carefully) any dust/debri that may be causing an issue also look in the port for any bent pins and straighten very carefully with a tooth pick. Try a different compatible charger/cord again, to see if that is the issue. If different compatible charger/cord does not fix and port looks/test good, the battery or connection could be bad, if able to clean battery connections and reconnect/install battery, still not charging battery could be faulty(try another battery). If port is found to be bad/loose/damaged or signs of burnt/damaged components on the board, this is really not a repair for the inexperienced because the charge port for your device is soldered to the mother board and the heat generated could cause further damage if not very careful. I will post a link to a tear down guide to get you inside the tablet to check the charge port/battery connections and board. If not wanting to try the repair/diagnosing pop into a good local cell/computer repair shop and have them take a look, diagnose and estimate repair. Good luck. I hope this helped you out, if so let me know by pressing the helpful button.

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