I have a 5-year-old Onn tablet with a USB-C port that's been acting up and not charging properly. A month ago, I took it to a repair shop, and the technician suggested it would be cheaper to just buy a new tablet since it's not a high-value model. He wanted to replace both the battery and the charging port, but the battery seems to hold a charge just fine. It was working well until it suddenly began having trouble making a good connection when plugged in. I cleaned the port with a toothpick and some isopropyl alcohol, which helped a little. I also bent the outer shell of the charging port slightly, improving the grip and charge a bit, but it's still slow. After we went shopping for a new tablet, I put the old one on the charger, and surprisingly, it was charging fine for a while. But now, it has started acting up again. I suspect it might just need to be resoldered because I'm worried about using it too much while it's low on charge. The charging times are inconsistent, and I've already tried different cables with no change. Could this be a simple fix?
7 Answers
Nowadays, most tech isn't designed to last long. It's often cheaper and more environmentally friendly to recycle your current tablet and invest in a new device. It’s a sad reality of our disposable society.
That’s not completely true! There are brands focusing on repairability now, like Nothing. I recently replaced the charging port on my phone, and it was super easy!
You might just be dealing with a bad cable, an old charger, or a failing battery. Sometimes these problems can stack up, especially in older devices.
If you have soldering tools, you could try repairing it yourself using online guides. Just know that you'll be working with an outdated device that might not get updates anymore. But for simple tasks like watching videos or listening to music, you should be fine.
Honestly, it's a 5-year-old tablet, so you've done well to get this much use out of it. You could shell out $100-$150 for repairs, but if it's not a high-end model, buying a new one might be more practical. Just keep that in mind!
I'm just trying to understand what might be wrong with it. It was functioning perfectly before, then just stopped charging well.
The USB-C ports on budget devices tend to wear out faster. Just a heads up, it might cost around $150 to get a new one. You could consider that as an option.
I faced a similar issue with my tablet. The new one was only $9 more than the repair quote, so I just went for the new tablet. No regrets!
Usually, a damaged port causes the inconsistency. You can use a stabilizing cable for temporary fixes, but ideally, you'd want a solid connection. If budget allows, consider sourcing parts from overseas and either repairing it yourself or going to a shop for help.
I hear you, but I’m tight on budget. That old tablet has survived stuff that should have destroyed it!