NW-E40x/50x Dust Under Screen

[imagine_]

Hey, I've had my NW-E407 since august and I am very happy with its performance and looks. However, a couple of things are starting to annoy me:

1. Scratches/Fingerprints

This is a very minor annoyance but I thought I should mention it anyway. There are microscratches all over the screen from normal daily use, which are invisible unless viewed under very bright light at a certain angle. This is not really a big deal, as all clear surfaces must experience this, especially things that are carried around a lot.

2. Dust/Sand/Etc. Under the Clear Material

There seems to very very minimal openings in the area joining the glass to the play/stop/jog dial side of the device. Because of this, there is a very noticeable concentration of dust for about a 1cm distance from right underneath the up and down volume buttons, on the sides of the device. Also, there is dust coming in from the top side of the device, from the left side of the play button, but this is less dense than the dust on the sides. There are even a 5-6 specs of dust that have made their way onto the display area, and are blocking a couple of pixels! I am afraid that eventually this will start to be an eyesore when trying to read the display.

So what can I do about this? If I contact Sony about it, it will take me a while to get a response. If finally they allow me to, and I send it to them for repairs it will take me a month or more to get the device back, and they might not even fix the problem, they might just clean the dust out and the problem could occur again later. For people who have had experience with Sony support, do they ever send new units?

Judging from http://www.siliconpopculture.com/comments/121_0_1_5_C/ , sony support may either send me a refurb or fix the problem (would it be possible to fix?). Would I expect the refurb to be like new? Or would it contain microscratches, etc... that come from normal use of the device?

Lastly, is anyone else experiencing these problems, and would there be a safe DIY solution to clean out dust, etc. without voiding the warranty?

Thanks.

[Ishiyoshi]

You can try and disassemble your NW-E407 using the NW-50x's service manual as a reference. But of course, there are risks to DIY attempts.

[imagine_]

Yeah, that doesn't seem to hard, I am only interested in the lid and that is held by two screws. Would that void my warranty?

The only risks I can think of is shorting it out, or cracking the glass. I can't think of a way that I could drain the charge completely... is there a way to do that? Or could I still open the lid without risk of a short circuit?

Is there a material I could put around the edges of the clear cover to seal it for the future?

EDIT:

Oh no, I just noticed something! There is a layer separating the clear material from the circuit board:

http://www.pcpop.com/doc/App/ImageShow.asp...le&sn=000060275

So I guess there is no way to remove that dust!

Edited October 23, 2005 by imagine

[Ishiyoshi]

Yeah, that doesn't seem to hard, I am only interested in the lid and that is held by two screws. Would that void my warranty?

The only risks I can think of is shorting it out, or cracking the glass. I can't think of a way that I could drain the charge completely... is there a way to do that? Or could I still open the lid without risk of a short circuit?

Is there a material I could put around the edges of the clear cover to seal it for the future?

EDIT:

Oh no, I just noticed something! There is a layer separating the clear material from the circuit board:

http://www.pcpop.com/doc/App/ImageShow.asp...le&sn=000060275

So I guess there is no way to remove that dust!

←

In that case, the best route would be to call Sony Service Center and enquire about cleaning service.

[bleh2k5]

I noticed a brown coloured piece of dirt under the screen, gave it a few taps and it's gone.

[Guest Stuge]

HI atrac members never open ur unit until or unless ur really confident of doing so.I did that with my E505 to remove some dust particles but instead of removing that i ending up creating more scratches on the inner side of the transparent lid & i was unable to remove any tiny particles at all as these are very hard to remove (i have tried it with blower or brush with blower but to no use) therefore i will strongly suggest u to give that back to ur sony service centre rather then opening it ur self

Note:I have opened every sony product i own whether it is walkman , t.v,discman or stereo but this product gave me a real hard time.

Edited October 27, 2005 by Stuge

[MrBoom]

Hmm i've been thinking about also opening mine, i've got dust under there aswell, and...where the DISP.FM button is, theres a dried up water mark on the inside! (a drop of rain must of entered through while i was out one night. im not to sure tho, i think cleanign and handlign things liek this shud be done with care, and a microfibre cloth to clean the inside of the lid.

my display screen all seems bent to a slight angle? it was like that when i bought the player...its not a major thing, but is der anyway i cud level out the screen?

[Ascariss]

How would dust get under the screen in the first place? Isn't the interior sealed off to the outside?

[Guest Stuge]

How would dust get under the screen in the first place? Isn't the interior sealed off to the outside?

←

Basically in every Sony model, whether it is HDD series or E400 or E500 or a600.There is small space b/w the silver buttons & the lid(so the buttons can move freely) from which minute dust particles or even if there is drop of water fell on the button it can easily can easily go through .

Unlike in HDD series it not so visible due to its built -up but incase of E400 or E500 or a600 series it is easily seen due to its glossy transparent screen

[katakonik]

imagine, did you take apart your 407 yet? Was it easy to remove? I noticed that mine has 7-8 small dried up water droplets, which I have no idea how they got in there, since I just got my 407 2 days ago. I'm definitely sure that it's just under the glass and can be wiped off easily.

[Guest Stuge]

imagine, did you take apart your 407 yet? Was it easy to remove? I noticed that mine has 7-8 small dried up water droplets, which I have no idea how they got in there, since I just got my 407 2 days ago. I'm definitely sure that it's just under the glass and can be wiped off easily.

←

I fyou want to wipe out those water mark with a good soft cloth & Wipe it gently.Ohter wise it will leave scratches under the cover

See my E505 photos (with scratches)

* Fancy NW-E505 Review+ Real Pictures

[imagine_]

imagine, did you take apart your 407 yet? Was it easy to remove? I noticed that mine has 7-8 small dried up water droplets, which I have no idea how they got in there, since I just got my 407 2 days ago. I'm definitely sure that it's just under the glass and can be wiped off easily.

←

I decided against opening it up, since unscrewing it might make the screws looser after I put it back together. Also, I don't want to scratch the inside or make it worse than it already is.

[katakonik]

I fyou want to wipe out those water mark with a good soft cloth & Wipe it gently.Ohter wise it will leave scratches under the cover

See my E505 photos (with scratches)

* Fancy NW-E505 Review+ Real Pictures

←

Quick question when you took yours apart. When you unscrewed the two screws, did the cover come off easily? Or you had to yank at it? Just to make sure, once you take out the two screws, only the cover comes off, correct? No internal components come off as well? Lastly, was it hard to get the cover back on?

Edited January 1, 2006 by katakonik

[katakonik]

Ignore my previous post. I took the plunge and took apart my two day old 407. The dried up water droplets were pissing me off. I'll be posting a thread reviewing the device and my process of taking it apart. I'll post a link in this message after I finish writing it up.

check the bottom of:

http://www.atraclife.com/forums/index.php?showtopic=792

Edited January 2, 2006 by katakonik

[sdfzz_]

I'm having same problem too

There are dusts inside my e405....i had same problem in my e75 as well..

So i just took it apart and clean the dust up....it's not that hard job to do i think.

Does A1000 has same kind of problem? Hope Sony to do something about it..

[imagine_]

Hey, sorry for the late reply, but I finally took my nw-e407 apart and it really wasn't that hard. I followed kataonik's instructions, and I should add that you have to be very careful not to scratch the inner plastic layer - use a microfibre cloth. (I used the cloth that I use to clean my glasses, it is very soft and I thought it would be okay, but now when you tilt it you can see horizontal scratches just like in stuge's picture! )

Also, a warning for cleaning - do not use alcohol! I used rubbing alcohol for the outermost layer of plastic back in october, and now I realize that it has sort of worn off, and become matte in some areas... so whatever you do, don't use any alcohol or anything like that to clean these parts!!

Edited March 18, 2006 by imagine

[bryue]

It's actually not that hard to open the lid and clean the dust out. You do need to be careful is not to lose the 2 tiny buttons for Display/FM and Search/Menu.

You can separate the glass and the color plastic lid easily too; this is where the dust is stuck inbetween. I didn't use any liquid to clean, I just used a soft cloth to wipe the surface lightly. Now, my NW-E507 looks better like new (with minor scratches from daily use).

Here's a tip: try to wear a disposable latex glove for this operation; you do not want to leave your fingerprints on the back of the lid after you assemble it back in one peice.