Glo Kobo Glo HD sleep button wont work?

[terry6784]

Hey,

Just got a refurbished Kobo Glo HD and it seems to be working fine aside from the fact that a quick press of the power button doesn't make the device go to sleep or wake it up. If I hold the button for 15-20 seconds it powers on and off, but the sleep/wake function of the button doesn't seem to work. The device will still go to sleep after a certain amount of time by itself.

I've tried factory resetting and updating to the latest firmware to no avail. Anyone got any suggestions?

[terry6784]

Is anyone able to help me out here? first-time ebook owner, desperate to iron this out so I can get some reading done

[davidfor]

Sorry, I can't think of a reason for this to happen. If the button didn't work at all, that would be different. And the only other thing I could think of (a config file option to use the button for screenshots) would have been reset when you did the factory reset.

Does turning it on need the 15+ seconds? It should turn on after only a few seconds.

[terry6784]

Originally Posted by davidfor

Does turning it on need the 15+ seconds? It should turn on after only a few seconds.

oops- yeah, turning it on only takes 3 seconds. Turning it off is what takes 15 seconds +.

[meeera]

If dealing with it is easier than returning it, getting a sleep cover could do the trick. Check with a magnet first, maybe, to check if that side of things is working.

[mathil]

Originally Posted by meeera

If dealing with it is easier than returning it, getting a sleep cover could do the trick. Check with a magnet first, maybe, to check if that side of things is working.

Butting in to add that before doing that you need to enable the feature in the Settings, under 'Energy saving and privacy' (translating from my own language, so not sure if this is correct).

[terry6784]

Originally Posted by meeera

If dealing with it is easier than returning it, getting a sleep cover could do the trick. Check with a magnet first, maybe, to check if that side of things is working.

A magnet seems to do the trick, I'll probably pick up a sleep cover anyway just 'cause it's likely id get another Glo HD even if I returned this one.

Still, I'm really curious what the issue could be here. I opened up the back just to check if the button was aligned and everything seems to be perfect.

[robko]

Something is definitely wrong with the device/switch. If you're having to hold it for 15 seconds to turn it off that suggests that you're actually forcing a shutdown rather than turning it off (basically killing the running processes, rather than properly shut them down).

[terry6784]

Originally Posted by robko

Something is definitely wrong with the device/switch. If you're having to hold it for 15 seconds to turn it off that suggests that you're actually forcing a shutdown rather than turning it off (basically killing the running processes, rather than properly shut them down).

Would replacing the button mechanism be something a layman could accomplish? Returning it would be incredibly inconvenient and would probably end up costing more than its worth.

[DNSB]

Originally Posted by terry6784

Would replacing the button mechanism be something a layman could accomplish? Returning it would be incredibly inconvenient and would probably end up costing more than its worth.

Locating a replacement switch would likely be an issue. The last time I was looking for one, the minimum quantity was 1000. A sleep cover would be cheaper.

Since you did a factory reset, it should have removed the setting that Davidfor was mentioning (Screenshots=true under the [FeatureSettings] header) which is about the only other item I can think of that would cause the issue you are seeing.

[tiagoncalves]

Hello! I just had the exact same problem: the button of my Glo HD stop working to put the device to sleep. I can use it to force a reboot if I press it for more then 15/20 seconds, and if I setup the e-book to shut down after some time automaticaly, to turn it on just takes the 3 seconds. So, the buttom seems to be good, but a single click doens't put it to sleep.
I never set the option for the screenshots, and also I've already made a factory reset and I install another SD card with a factory image that a user kindly sent me. The same happens.
So, could it be a physical problem, maybe the button works for the long press, but doens't work for the quick press? Or could be a software problem?
If someone know how to help, it would be nice. Thanks!!

[pmwt]

In practice, even though my Glo HD button still works for sleep, having the sleep cover, I never ever use the power button to put the device to sleep.

[tiagoncalves]

Yes, I attached an magnet to my cover, and I'm able to use it to put it sleeping. But something is strange, because when I have the light on and close the cover, it enters the sleeping mode but the light remains on. And, if I turn the light off, when it enters sleep it's ok, but when I open the cover again the light turns on.
It's not a physical problem because I can turn it off an on, and I removed the board and tested the button with a multimeter - is has continuity when I press the button with just a single click. So, I'm really curious about it... I tried everything, and the problem remains. Could it be something fried inside?

[robko]

What firmware version are you on? The light not turning off issue was a problem for some with one of the recent firmware versions (fixed in the latest version).