yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] mcdanishdk:
My Acer pusher has tried all he could, and says that the motherboard needs to be replaced. Something about the EPROM being wrongly flashed and if that is correct, I agree. Not much else to do, ADB or not. But I will let him know or have him send it to me, but if I have to send it back to him for MB replacement, that is just the mailservice that gets rich ;=)
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] pansenkoenig:
My sad story with ASUS RMA

So now the odyssey with ASUS RMA started for me.

I had my TF201 for nearly 2 years with 5 white pixels from the beginning. But i thought that will not be the problem and i lived with that. After a year i had 2 crakcs in the screen over night. Just like so many others reported here. I was a bit mad at it, but needed the prime for work, so i let the crakcs be crakcs and worked with it. 2 weeks ago, the dock won't charge my prime and so it was nearly impossible to work with it.

So finally the right moment for RMA was there. I checked my warranty and was a bit lucky because only 5 days were left. So i wrote a RMA ticket and the prime was delivered to arvato (germany, cause im a german ;) ). after 3 days i had an estimation of costs for the damages, which i declined, because none of these damages were induced by me. they also send me a picture of the crack, which i knew. I wrote them a mail in which i told them, that this was a problem by tensions in the glass and so on, and i also refered to the postings in this forum, where some of these damages got repaired.

Now, after that mail they sent me 2 additional photos with damages which wasn't there when i send it to rma. 1 damage was a problem, that the glas won't close or fit in the frame, which i think is because of the expension in reaction of the tension cracks. another picture showed a bump at a corner, which definitely wasn't there before.

So what now?

2 more damages which occured out of nothing 2 days after the original cost-estimation and which wasn't there before.

Any suggestions what i can do? i have no photos of the corner before i send it in, because there was no damage, for all other damages i have photos.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Aaronneal:
mine has also cracked identical to those in the first post, from left side middle to right handside of camera, cant feel it near left side but comes to the surface by camera.

Had never been dropped or mistreated and had been docked since new.

It occured 2 weeks after i had bought it (12th Jan) Asus have failed to respond since and this includes 4 emails, 3 phone calls and a recorded delivery letter to their complaints department. I have also not used the tablet since it broke in case i put a scratch on it, then they would clearly say that's what caused it. So far been 2 months without use and with no response from ASUS, absolutely shocking!

Where I originally bought it, PC world, have stated they cannot help me and its all with Asus!

I am booking a meeting with my local citizens advice bureau and have written a letter to send to the department of fair trade.

anyone had any luck with a response from ASUS?
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] chillaxx:
For the ones that read this thread and think the tablets glass is very fragile. After two days of owning the prime i put the tablet down(without dock) on my bed, screen side up. I than sat on the prime with my full weight on the device. All 100 KG of me on my beloved device.Result................................ nothing. Nothing happened. I was truly amazed. So it can take some "stress" ;-)

For the people that want to try this...........................it's your own risk
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] namebrandon:
I'm glad your prime is OK. Do you have the dock?

I don't think the issue here is pressure spread across the entire surface area.. It seems to be the pressure placed on the glass by the dock / hinge mechanism and the angle at which the prime is closed in the dock. It's much easier to crack something by applying force at a specific point or points, rather than the same amount of pressure spread evenly throughout the surface.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] pvdwaal:
Wow, lucky you. I almost sat on a kitten once and I really don't think that little pet was build for that :)

ontopic: I too think that the glass CAN take some stress. Just look at this photo from Erusman's "autopsy" topic :p The screen is curved quit a lot.

And when I opened my Prime I was amazed of how thin and flexibel is was.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] buxtahuda:
Good, the route you're going in I mean. It will continue to happen until they have no choice but to account for it. A recall seems more and more likely as design quirks are popping up left and right. The Prime is the prototype that they never gave out to employees apparently, and so here we are paying to put these things through their rounds and ASUS trying to drop responsibility for the thing left and right.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] danwic:
Firstly, i haven't gotten myself a prime or a normal TF yet. I plan on buying a transformer for school work (purely because of the keyboard, over all other tablets), but i don't know yet if i should wait for the TF700 / TF300, or just buy the TF201 when i have the money (gonna be around may).

However I can see the clear problem with the TF201 in the design of the dock, it is easily fixed, but I find it odd that Asus didn't think about this in the first place when they made this tablet.

In the attatched picture, I made a kind of diragram of what is going on, when the tablet is closed, and how some rubber dots or whatever, placed in the right place, will fix this problem. It is groilla glass afterall, but if the stress is put at the right place, it will break, that is inevitable.

About the colors in the picture I attatched:

Red lines are the current standart support the tablet will have when the tablet is closed and attached to the dock. They are not very structualy well placed, as they make stress on the screen around them.

Yellow areas are where the stress is applied when the lid is closed. It might not be a heavy tablet, but 0.5kg on that area will lead in it being weak at one point, and if you take a look at all the broken screens so far, they (almost) all start from that area, simply because it is very stressful when the lid is closed.

Green circles are for the fix, simply place some rubber pads or anything that will support the tablet while it is closed. This will take away all the stress is applied to that area, and it will also make the tablet easier to open while it's closed ;)

Purple circles are for abit of extra support if needed (it shouldn't really be, but if you want to be safe)

Ofcause i cannot guarantee that this will prevent any cracked tablets, but i did this on a friend's tablet after he read about this risk, and so far it's holding and supported really well on the dock.

For those who already have a broken display :( i feel for you, if asus wont help, that's bull**** in my opinion.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] ikdedinges:
My screen is not yet cracked, but after looking really close inside the dock i saw something interesting.

There are four screws holding the hinge together,and two of them are not screwed all the way in. I think that if you have the prime in the dock and close it(so it flexes a bit) it will put too much pressure on the glass.

here are my pictures:

maybe someone with a cracked screen can have a look inside the docking port.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] buster6070:
Wow, that's so helpful of you. I'm so glad you've cleared up this issue for everyone. Of course.............there is that little issue of mass production. See that's why they have quality control, because when they make things like this there are bound to be flaws. So just because your able to sit on yours (truly amazing), doesn't mean that there isn't a production flaw with others. Kinda like how some people get terrible WiFi, and others not so much.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] aznmode:
Preventative measure

Issue

http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=23340980&postcount=29

Posted this yesterday. Quick easy preventive maintenance. We'll see how it holds up.

http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=23345827&postcount=30

---------- Post added at 10:11 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:10 AM ----------

This is exactly my thoughts yesterday so I made the mod above!

---------- Post added at 10:36 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:11 AM ----------

Here's a picture of my laptop. It too has 2 rubber stops at the top and small ones on the bottom (no picture). Along with the center one.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] B-Mod:
Called and got a RMA number, and will be sending in my wife's Prime. Asus better stand behind their product when so many of us just on this site alone are having these issues.......
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Aaronneal:
At least your getting that, they wont even respond anymore and when they did they said it was my accidental damage and wont accept it through RMA at all.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] B-Mod:
I just told the guy I think it was caused by a issue with the dock, and that it had really bad light bleed. They will look at it and see what they think.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] anti09:
So I started getting SUPER paranoid about my screen cracking from being in the dock - and now that I think about it, it makes sense. Laptops have a plastic bezel that rests on the edge so they can withstand a bit of flex. Our bezel is covered in glass, so of course it will be more fragile. It seems so obvious now, it's sort of remarkable that Asus hadn't considered it when designing the dock.

I bought some silicon gel strips and placed them in the green circles as per your diagram, and I feel MUCH better about it. I also placed some in the upper corners (purple circles).

The one thing that concerns me about the purple location is that they are ever so slightly higher than the standard rubber bumpers (when squished they are the same). I'm just worried that the purple gel strips will raise the screen above the height of the dock hinge and it will force it into a constant "bend" that will cause stress over time. Do you think this is likely? I'm wondering if I shouldn't remove the back (purple) strips and just keep the front green ones.

Edit: Pics

This is how much it closes normally (because of being propped up by the ones in the back)

Thoughts? I'm worried that the screen is being pushed up unnaturally high by the back pads, but then again, I feel like silicon will give before glass does.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] aznmode:
I think they're too thick and probably have a lot of gap at the center now and might bend there too much if pressure is put in that area. Try to cut it down to the same size as the gap when its closed so it's supported naturally all the way around or make it same height as the ones that are already on there.

Here's a side view of mine. I'm also uploading a video.

[youtube]uuDCqkpH_7Q[/youtube]
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] newellj79:
Freaking crazy. I just looked at mine. Low and behold, both of the outer to screws aren't screwed all the way in. The inner two seem fine. I love this thing, but am finally starting to give way to frustration at the problems.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] namebrandon:
My screws are like that as well, I'm not sure sure that's a problem though.. I imagine they're all like that, and I can't really see how that would cause any cracking.. I don't think they actually touch the screen, do they?
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Jhosche:
I mentioned previously that mine was starting to crack just to the left of the hinge straight up - well I looked a bit closer tonight (I was going off memory before) and actually where I think the strain is on mine has to do with the left little dock hinge post (if you're looking at your hinge with your TFP out of your dock, there is the data port and then to the left and right of that are two little...posts is the best way I can describe it but they're probably there to take the strain off that data port itself). The crack lines up with where that sticks into my TFP and then it goes and slightly curves a little bit to the right instead of being a straight vertical crack.

At least in my case, I'm not having an issue with how the screen is closing...instead just the nature of having it docked and picking it up/putting it down seems to be what's causing extra stress on the little dock posts which in turn is affecting the glass on my TFP
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] danwic:
I can totally see your concern in what you did, here is why:

Obviously (in my opinion it is) the pads you apply to the corners, purple and green needs to be the same thickness as the already 3 places rubber pads (the red lines on my diagram) to not cause any stress at any points of the screen. By doing that you instead of having 3 (originally) or 4 (after your fix), you then have 7 points where the tablet is supported while it's closed. I think that's a pretty standard number on a laptop which is plastic, not metal.

Like already said, try cutting them down in the size of the original support pads, and it should be all fine.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] ikdedinges:
if you look close, at least one of the screws is sticking out as much or more out than the padding on the inside of the dock.

and i dont think its normal the screws arent all the way in
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] anti09:
Agreed. These were the thinnest I could find but I think they're too thick. They'll work for now but I'll try to find something more permanent this weekend.

@aznmode - you said you found your little rubber stoppers in your cubicle. I work in an office with cubicles, where did you find it?
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] luvsig:
where do they usually sell these rubber stops or silicone strips ?

anyone from malaysia here knows where to get them ?

thanks !
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] chefdave12118:
This tab has so much surface area and is so thin that none of this surprises me.

When I first held my prime I thought the whole dam thing was going to break in my hands. I have 2 other 10" tabs and now they feel like cinder blocks (Acer 500 and the Xoom) but they don't feel like I'm going to break them when I pick them up by a corner. Thinner is better I get it but if cracks are going to be a problem then maybe they need to reconsider the build. :beer:
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] aznmode:
They came from a D-link router I bought. They were made to go on the bottom of the router. Originally they were too thick so I cut them to match the size of the stock rubber stops on the dock. You can use a blade to cut yours as well.

Here's an image I found on the net so you can see what exactly they are.

http://techgage.com/reviews/dlink/655_router/dlink_655_router_12_thumb.jpg

Otherwise I'm sure hardware stores will have something similar than maybe used on cabinets and furnitures. Or ones used for the bottom of laptops or screen. I'll see if I can google some.

They were similar to these

http://compare.ebay.com/like/390381323327?var=lv&ltyp=AllFixedPriceItemTypes&var=sbar&_lwgsi=y&cbt=y
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] B-Mod:
Over 24 hrs passes and I still don't have a RMA number, is Asus really this badly run of a corporation? All these problems, and their support team sucks.....
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Aaronneal:
join the club im 2 months in and nothing!
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] litetaker:
So to clarify, is this a Dock problem or does this happen even without the dock? I want to know so that I may return it within the 14 day period before this becomes a big mistake!
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] B-Mod:
Best I can tell it is a problem with the dock and tablet, when the tablet is docked. My wife's tablet just about never leaves the dinning room table, and it just cracked on day. I think from reading posts here, the tablet is flexing too much while docked in the closed position. Hope this helps you decide. I am scared to leave my prime docked, a problem I would never have dreamed of having, I thought it would be safer to have it docked than not docked..........
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] aznmode:
Same here even though I did the mod I'm still scared its going to crack someday. So I leave it undocked. I'm thinking even going a step further and cut out a mouse pad so I can put it in between when I have it closed. Theres no point having the dock if I only use it 20% of the time because of this.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Ready2Mosh:
OK, I'm sitting here at the rush game, I looked at the bottom left of my screen and it appears that a crescent crack is starting. That's it I'm done, I'm going to be out the dock money, grrrr!
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Hawke84:
Hello all,

Im new to the prime just came this weekend so have been exploring the forums and this worrys me a lot.

I work at a pharmaceutical company manking injectable products in glass vials and have had a lot of analytical training on glass damage, fractures etc so i thought id give you my professional opinion on whats happening here. Please keep in mind that this is opinion still as i havent actually examined any damaged unit under a microscope to confirm this.

from what i can see from the design of the tablet the problem is the hinge stiffness coupled with the thinner design of the TF201. To open the tablet mose users will place a thumb / finger under the top of the screen, hold down the keyboard section and pull open. This will usually be done on a flat surface.

The issue is that in doing this you are placing stress on 3 main points on the front of the glass screen:

-roughly the centre (this depends on the structure of components under the glass)

-bottom right corner

-bottom left corner

The highest level of stress will be at the centre of the tablet where in effect you have the dock hinge pulling the bottom one way and you pulling the top the other, its basically the same s you picking it up and bending it, it will crack from the middle.

What is likely happening is that this is causing stress microfractures within the glass ion structure lattice (potassium replaced sodium if anyone is interested) which you cant see. As the device heats and cools eventually this can lead to a sudden erruption crack across the weakened microfracture area.

As there is a much thinner metal back on this device it offers less support against this problem.

I hope this helps people understand what i can see seems to be happening. But once again this is my opinion, most of my glass analysis work is on moulded and tubular glass not sheet glass. I offer this for information, please do not use it as an offical report or expert analysis in any argument with Asus. I havent reviewed any defective units and i could be wrong, its hard from a photo without all the evidence in front of me. I will retract this if it is used legally with Asus.

ok disclamer moaning out the way, i guess a fix for this would be to loosen the dock hinge,but then you would have a floppy TFP :(
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Aaronneal:
@Hawke84 Thank you very much for your informative post,

was kind what I was thinking but in a more caveman fashion.

Just to update I emailed and messaged some people in Asus and have now had a phone call from service director in the UK. They are going to collect the unit tomorrow ,hopefully, and get the unit under review.

its all starting to make sense as i never really used the device away from the keyboard, as that was one of the main reasons i purchased it, using as a note take during lectures.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] aznmode:
I can see this happening when closing but the theory doesn't make sense why some crack at the center and some on the top corners. This theory would point to cracks happening by the hinge however
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Hawke84:
Glass manufacture is kind of complex, especially Gorilla glass which undergoes a process of ion replacement to basically remove sodium ions and replace with potassium within the lattice structure. Working with glass, especially in a mould can leave areas of slightly different thickness. Let me give you an example from my work, slightly hard to see, but in the images below which are magnified 200x there is a small inclusion or weakness area in the glass which following a small impact has then caused cracks to propogate outwards, all due to this weakness.

Image 1 is zoomed out a bit showing cracks, image 2 is further magnification where you can see the glass inclusion or weakness.

For security reasons i cannot give any whole pictures of the vial or product name etc. Sure you understand..

Ok so lets relate this back to the transformer screen. I've done a very basic paint diagram of whats happening. basically there are stresses going in different directions which each time you do it will cause the lattice structure of the glass to break a little i.e. a microfracture. these build up if you keep doing it to eventually give out and crack. its like bending a piece of metal back and forth, same idea.

So here you can see the main points of oposing stress and where they come together. See if your tablet bends slightly when opening it in slow motion.

As for the corners. as the tablet is held in place at the bottom by the doc the areas of most stress are usually at the edges of holding (not always) and so again area likely to crack.

Once again i dont have a tablet yet, this is my informed opinion on whats happening...

hope this makes a bit more sense.

---------- Post added at 11:58 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:55 AM ----------

id be interested to know their output on it. I've emailed Gary as im considering sending my prime straight back without even opening it if this is basically a design fault they are not going to cover. Ive found i can get insurance for £50 a year so might take that out as another option..
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] namebrandon:
Thanks Hawke for putting words to what I think a lot of us had begun to understand recently, but weren't having much luck forming into a cohesive theory. I think this makes quite a bit of sense.

I'm curious as to what your opinion may be on screen protectors. From a micro perspective, are all the ion replacements happening internally within the glass structure (as opposed to on the surface)? Would a screen protector reinforce the glass structure at all during the open/close phase? I guess you could liken that to the impact of a label on one of your glass vials..
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Ready2Mosh:
I'm a jeweler, what he says is also true in the gem industry. Small bubbles inside of stones can become stressed and that's when chips and fractures occur. My prime has stayed crackling on the bottom left, right now it can only be seen if held at the right angle and shifting the prime back and forth, showing a reflection that looks kind of like a hairline rainbow only visible on the black edge. This is really sad, my screen and everything else is great but I'm not risking out, sending it back in the next coupler of days, makes me sad to say this product is full of faults and the risk is all on us, once it cracks fully Asus wipes its hands of any fault. TF700here I comes.
[Asus  Eee Pad Transformer Prime] Hawke84:
screen protectors wouldnt really help unless ridged i.e. enough to take the stress off the glass. It may help but only if its taking some of the force of opening the lid. honestly from a design point of view i dont know how this could be solved which is a shame as i love the idea of the dock. i may loosen the hinge screws on mine. undecided.

Best thing i can really suggest is when opening do it from as low down as possible.

The ion replacement only happens during the production process of glass manufacture. it isnt ongoing, it was just a bit of background of how the glass is produced and why its so hard.