Anyone who owns a mouse and uses it extensively will have encountered the same problem over the last 10+ years: at some point, a single click turns into a double click. Not always, but more and more often. It may sound harmless at first, but it’s not—you can no longer use your computer properly. Actions that require you to hold down the mouse button are particularly problematic. Impossible.

The reason is easy to find: manufacturers, especially of expensive gaming mice, use very cheap buttons that produce these double clicks as a final symptom of wear and tear. My partner and I have been using a Roccat Kone XTD and a Roccat Kone Pure gaming mouse for many years, respectively, which were not exactly cheap. We are also very happy with them; the sampling rate is good and the lighting is nice. If only it weren’t for the double clicks, which started to occur more and more frequently after 3-4 years of use. Later, this even happened with the right mouse button.

I have also experienced this problem with various models from Logitech (from $10 to high-end, it doesn’t matter), Microsoft, and Mad-Catz.

Repair?

Actually, the fix is very simple. Unfortunately, gaming mice are more often than not held together by plastic clips, which makes disassembly very difficult. Added to this are RGB lighting, cable routing, and adhesive. The process with the Roccat Kone XTD was anything but pleasant, but it was doable.

I have now repaired more than 20 mice in this way. One side effect is that the clicking sound is louder and you have to press a little harder to click. It has been over six years since I repaired the Kone XTD and Kone Pure, and they still click very well, despite even increased use. I think the plastic of the housing will wear through before the problem occurs again.

The following tools should be at hand:

• Soldering iron, preferably with medium power (no SMD!)
• Small flat-nose or needle-nose pliers
• Slotted screwdriver
• Small vise
• One or more sewing needles
• Bit set for disassembling the mouse

The only spare parts needed are new buttons, which are available in various quality grades. I can recommend the well-known manufacturer Omron, which also produces the often inferior originals. I used the D2FC-F-K model in the “50M” quality grade, which stands for 50 million possible clicks. The originals are often 1M, 2M, or 5M buttons. I bought these on AliExpress*; they are significantly more expensive on eBay or Amazon.

⧉ Omron

Let’s go…

First, the mouse must be disassembled until you are holding the actual circuit board with the buttons in your hands. Then, generously tin the three contacts of both buttons with new solder*, also so that the button is heated through.

Next, secure the button with either a small vise or pliers and pull on the circuit board while moving the soldering iron back and forth between all three contacts. After a short time, the button will slip out of the circuit board and can be discarded.

Once this has been done for both buttons, insert a suitable sewing needle into the circuit board hole from the underside (to prevent damage to the conductor tracks when lifting!) for each contact in turn and heat the solder residues. This reshapes the hole into a round shape, which makes it easier to insert the new button.

Now insert a new button through the holes in the circuit board (pay attention to the alignment!) and press it firmly against the circuit board. Then fix it in place with new solder, starting with the middle contact. Once you have done this with both buttons, you can solder the whole thing properly and reassemble it. Done!

Test

Over the years, this problem has occurred frequently with all kinds of mouse models. For testing purposes, I created a small program back in 2018 that can be used to test mice – Download (Windows x86, ZIP-Archive).

Der Beitrag The problem with low-quality switches in expensive mice (and how to fix it!) erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

After using several of these AA Li-ion batteries for some time, we needed a way to store them sensibly. At the same time, it should be possible to charge the batteries in the intended holder, among other things to prevent short circuits caused by dangling.

After several revisions, we now have a number of holders in use, printed in gray PLA with green or black sliders (to indicate the charge status, black because I didn’t have any red available):

Downloads

Here are the STL files needed for printing:

Der Beitrag USB-C Li-Ion battery replacement for alkaline – charging and storage holder erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

We’ve all been there: the moment you need a device, the batteries are dead. Or how often do we throw away alkaline AA or AAA batteries, especially in things like wall clocks, remote controls, or flashlights?

Far too often, unfortunately. The concept of disposable batteries has never been the best, especially from an environmental perspective. So how can we remedy this?

There are rechargeable batteries in the common AAA and AA sizes, based on nickel-cadmium (NiCd) or modern nickel-metal hydride (NiMH) technology. In the latter case, Panasonic’s Eneloop batteries* are worth mentioning, although they are now manufactured to a lower standard than before and have some side effects.

⧉ Panasonic

⧉ Panasonic

⧉ Panasonic

Both types of cell chemistry have the peculiarity of delivering only 1.2 volts when fully charged, instead of the 1.5 volts expected by many devices from a standard alkaline battery. If several batteries are required, the discrepancy naturally multiplies. In my case, the problem was most noticeable with our Brother PT-D600VP*, a label printer that can be powered either by a power supply or AA batteries. A total of six batteries are required, which, at 0.3 volts less per cell, amounts to a difference of 1.8 volts. So you could say that for this device, slightly more than one cell is already empty.

Of course, the label printer also works with NiMH AA batteries, but noticeably for a shorter time. The difference is not visible, as there is no charge level indicator. The situation is different with some flashlights or, for example, Nintendo’s GameBoy, which only show a charge level of 2/3 with full NiMH batteries from the outset, because the voltage is simply lower than expected and the batteries are therefore never completely discharged.

In addition, both NiCd and Ni-MH batteries require special chargers, and it is possible to charge or store these batteries incorrectly, causing damage. It is also worth mentioning that both of these battery types have a certain degree of self-discharge, meaning that they become emptier over time when charged but unused.

What to do?

For several years now, there have been new types of AAA or AA batteries that have a lithium-ion polymer battery inside, together with BMS and control electronics in the positive pole cover. This is not ideal from a technological point of view, as these batteries also have cycle limits and wear out. From an electronic point of view, this is a good solution, but not for every application.

These new batteries are usually charged via a USB-C socket built into each battery, using a standard USB-C cable. A status LED that either changes color or flashes provides information about the current status. In my case, it is a green LED that flashes when charging and stays lit when the battery is full.

The big advantage is that these cells deliver a constant 1.5 volts thanks to an integrated DC-DC step-down converter, which is also the biggest disadvantage of many of these new types of batteries—the device cannot detect the decreasing capacity and the devices suddenly switch off because the battery itself delivers 1.5 volts until the end and then switches itself off.

There are some models that circumvent this problem by slowly lowering the output voltage. I was fortunate, if you can call it that, and use models from Verico (Pollin) and Lumak Pro (Hornbach), both of which simulate this behavior. Such models are also available on Amazon, even from well-known manufacturers*.

⧉ Lumak

⧉ Lumak

⧉ Lumak

It is also important to note that the self-discharge rate of these Li-ion batteries is significantly lower than that of other battery types in AA and AAA formats.

Areas of application

There are areas of application where these new batteries are clearly superior to alkaline, NiCd, or NiMH batteries:

• Remote controls
• Controllers (Nintendo Wii, XBOX, PlayStation, etc.)
• Mobile consoles (GameBoy Pocket, Color, Advance)
• Wall clocks
• Temperature sensors and displays
• Smart heating thermostats
• Wireless mice and keyboards
• Flashlights
• Decorative lights
• Mobile BT speakers
• Various small power tools
• Instant photo or label printers

…basically anywhere where there are no thermal issues for Li-ion batteries and you can live with rapidly declining capacity towards the end.

Conclusion

These new batteries are great – but they’re usually also very expensive. To get started, I would recommend the very affordable AA batteries from Lumak Pro; you can’t go wrong with the price. However, the charging cable must be purchased separately. The price is due, among other things, to the relatively low capacity and the lack of accessories. We use several of these batteries everywhere and can highly recommend them.

There are also disadvantages. For example, these batteries are more susceptible to damage due to the integrated USB-C port, so you should handle them with care. Dirt can also cause problems. If the intended use is rather rough or wet, I would rather resort to Eneloop or alkaline batteries.

Only time will tell whether the specified charging cycles can be achieved.

Der Beitrag Adequate replacement for AA and AAA alkaline batteries erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.

After prolonged use and heavy wear, four of our six 8 Ah smart batteries gradually stopped charging. After a quick search, we discovered that this is a known problem that can fortunately be remedied quickly.

To do this, you need to make two jumper cables, preferably with flat plugs at the ends. Then take a fully charged battery and the “problem battery” and jumper + to + and – to – and leave it like this for one to two minutes.

Then carefully disconnect to avoid causing a short circuit and put the problematic battery into the charger, which should now start charging again and, in some cases, already start with 2 out of 3 bars. The reason for this is that at least one of the cells inside has fallen below the minimum voltage limit accepted by the charger and the battery therefore refuses to be charged. Bridging briefly raises the voltage of all cells inside to exceed the charger’s limit voltage, allowing it to charge again.

Unfortunately, this is only a temporary solution. After repeated use with our four batteries, they ultimately failed completely.

In addition, here is the YouTube video that helped me understand the problem and make the batteries usable again:

Der Beitrag Parkside X20V System – Battery no longer charging? erschien zuerst auf flohs blog.