BlackBerry® Curve™

[BB4eyes]

I've had the same problem with my Curve 8320. I've had it for about 4 months, and it's recently started being very fussy about which charger it will work with. At first, it was the car charger (rated at 850mA), then a generic USB charger (rated at 1Amp). Now, even the original Blackberry charger stopped working. The symptoms seemed to be the same as those described above: the black charging icon appears for a couple of seconds, then vanishes.

It all suggested a dodgy connection in the USB port. The Curve USB port seems much more flimsy than the one on my old 8700 so I wondered whether it had changed shape slightly. So I tried something that will probably invalidate my warranty - try the following AT YOUR OWN RISK!!

The Mini-USB port is roughly trapezoid in shape, with a longer side and a shorter one. The actual contacts are seen inside the port as tracks next to a central (flimsy!) plastic plate, adjacent to the LONGER side of the port. What seems to happen is that, over time, the plastic plate starts to bend away from the longer side, causing one or more of the contacts not to make any more. So I took a small flat-blade screwdriver, inserted it between the plastic plate and the SHORTER side and VERY GENTLY eased the plate a bit nearer to the longer side.

BINGO!! It works again!

Definitely best to do this with the phone switched off, in case any shortcircuits occur with the contacts

I can't guarantee it will work, and it's entirely at your own risk, but it's worked for me this evening!

[kkmbol]

I ended up getting a 3rd Blackberry and so far so good.  I suspect USB Driver problems caused by downloading and installing Yahoo Mobile but that's just a suspicion without any valid basis.  My advice is if you have this problem and your BB is still under warranty, get it replaced until you get one that works right.

[anitad]

I had the same thing happen to me.  Finally after the third phone I have one that works. 

[kkmbol]

It took 3 tries for me to get one that works, too. I also chose not to download and install Yahoo Go! this time, just in case. I'm sure there's a bad lot of Blackberry Curves out there but nobody seems to be willing to fess up to it.

[JacoPas]

My initial Curve stopped charging after a couple of days. It was replaced (with a new battery included) and worked for three months then suddenly stopped taking a charge from any source. Today, we go for strike three.

[kktw2009]

You're a genius BB4eyes!

Thank you for being the only one to actually write something about the problem, rather than complain that you have the problem, too.

Well, you did state you had the problem, but it was quickly followed with a solution.

Message Edited by kktw2009 on 06-23-2009 02:14 PM

[StinkyPinky]

This may sound stupid but I think I may have found a solution..... My blackberry was also not charging. Im not sure if it was coincidence but as soon as I checked and deleted some 26 voice mails I had on my phone it accepted a charge once again. My problem was fixed. It sounds dumb, but if you have a lot of voice mails like I do I would advize clearing your mailbox out. Hope this helps

[kathyhughes22]

Thank you soooo much for this post!  This completely solved my problem.  I have about 5 chargers and all were "touchy".  So, I tried this (put a screwdriver in and pushed the pins closer to the longer side) and it worked!  Actually, I think I ended up pushing the black plastic piece up, away from the longer side, which gave more clearance and protrusion of the pins to make the contact.  This has solved a month of frustration!  Thanks a lot!

[nvrau]

I'm seeing many of the same issues others have posted, however, I'm completely certain the USB port on the phone nor a USB cable is my problem.

I can switch from my MAC or PC using any USB cable and have no trouble connecting and charging by 8310. As soon as I use the same USB cable to connect to an AC or DC adapter the charge indicator shows up and then disappears about a second later. It's definitely a voltage/amperage issue in my mind.

This is the second 8310 I've been issued, the first one did not have this issue (It had others) and I had half dozen apps installed on it. On this one I have none and the problem exists so I don't think it's an issue with the apps installed.

Anyone have an idea what the allowable charge range is or researched this area any?

TIA! 

[kkmbol]

If you've had a problem charging your 8310 with the USB since after the first charge, I believe the phone is bad and you need a 3rd phone to finally fix your problem.  My WAG at what's going on here is that there was a bad batch of 8310s, and rather than find and recall them all, they're letting us weed them out for them. Here's the scenario - Receive new phone, it's bad. AT&T replaces 1st phone with a second new phone.  2nd new phone arrives, and guess what?  It's also bad.  Call AT&T and step through all the troubleshooting steps AT&T tech support asks you to do.  When that doesn't work, AT&T will send you new "guts" for your blackberry--this time, they'll send you a phone they KNOW will work, and your problem will finally be fixed.  

That's my theory, anyway.  

In my case and that of at least one other person I know of, the 3rd time was a charm.  I bet it will be for you, too.