Xperia Z - micro USB port weak point

[Becky]

The micro USB port on my z has stopped receiving charge and won't even allow the charger to be plugged into it any more.

The port is uniform in shape which doesn't allow you to know which way round to plug the charger, so you have to guess. Guessing places stress on the pins inside the port. In my case, they seem to have suffered because of this (imho) design fault. USBs can only be inserted one way round, so the user needs to know which way to insert it.

I am wondering if this will be a common weak spot on these phones once they have been in circulation a while?

[hayley_t]

To Whom it may concern,

I love my sony Xepria Z untill i went to charge it on Saturday.  the metal clip inside the charging port broke i was upset but i thought well I am sure its covered under warantee becuase sony products are high quality and a good company. So off i went to the phone store to be told pretty much physical damage not under our warantee too bad!! Well I was really upset as this is my second phone in 3 months of the same model and the first time it was a charging problem. I can assure you I did not physically damage my phone why would I have to pay my phone off for 24 months and being a stay at home mum i dont have the luxury to be able to afford to repair the phone or simply by a new one. I rang your call centre today thinking oh great you guys will help only to feel as if it wasnt important and too bad. I then mentioned i had seen this has happened to others (on the sony website) and Sony was a great company and replaced their phones, to be told oh thats not true i then mentioned that i saw this on a Sony website and he said cant be i then told him the web address and he said oh its only two people it happened too. I am absolutely gutted I have a Uni placement next week and have no  mobile to take to uni with me so if my children get sick or hurt i am uncontactable. I really loved my mobile but now i am stuck with a phone i cant use, but the upside is i can send it to NSW to get it assessed and if its not under warantee get charged a $38.50 fee to have them look at it, and even then I cant afford to get it repaired. So disheartened by the whole experience, and to feel like you can help others that have had the same thing happen and not me is.I loved my Sony products. Its a real shame     The people who got their phones replaced consider yourself lucky as I am stuck with a phone that i cant use and have to pay off for the next 24 months

[GeoffH]

this has been discussed here before - you should look at the existing thread and post there

The jury is out on this one - several of the usb ports have been damaged and I can see how this could happen as it is sometimes hard to get the interface the correct way - I used the label on the cable to remember the correct orientation after which I bought the dock

look for the other thread were some folks have had this repaired under wanranty - maybe even print it out and take it to the shop

Is there an issue with the USB interface ?   well hard to say and is not widely reported, I think 4 people on this forum

hope it works out

[hayley_t]

thnku i havbe taken screen shots from this forum i just cant see how they can choose to help others and not me   Really frustrating

[sleepyheadalk3]

It would seem it is different depending on where you are. Becky and I are in the UK so maybe they are a bit more lenient with this. I take their point that it could be physical damage however I felt the design was to blame for this. Obviously I am a lot more careful now and mainly use the dock but to be honest I've never had a phone in the past that required so much care when charging it as it was never possible for the cable to plug in the wrong way due to the shape of the port. Good luck in getting it sorted

[Becky]

Hayley, I really think it is a problem with the build of the phone. These ports should be robust enough to withstand 2 years of daily, sometimes more, charging. And a person should be able to easily tell which way round to put the cable in. It's a weak spot in the design, imho. The phone has only been out since March 2013 and I think this will be a more widely-reported issue as time goes on. I wonder how many other phones have succombed to this issue - people who haven't posted here?

I bought myself a charging dock, and I think you're going to have to do the same 😞 (more expense, I know). Not sure how you're going to connect your phone to your pc, though.

Let us know how you get on with Sony. They were nothing but helpful when I rang them.

The more folk that post this issue here, the more easily others will be able to show it to Sony when their's finally breaks............

[eemotion]

Same problem here:

my Xperia Z just suddenly stopped charging and I noticed the cable was loose in the socket.

I called my service provider EE here in the UK I got a new phone the next day.

Now the same problem has returned as with the new one, about ten days later.

Fortunately this one is still able to charge when the cable is in at an angle.

I will be seeking a second replacement, hopefully when a new version of this phone without this defect is available.

The short battery life implies frequent charging, for an intense user it won't last half a day and one charges as often as possible.

For the rest, I love my Xperia Z, but a chain is only ever as strong as it's weakest link.

[hippycat]

I have (had) exactly the same problem - not once, but twice. the charging port got so hot that it drained the battery (at that stage I had the Z for 2 days!). I actually burnt my finger when I removed the USB lead.  now, 10 weeks later, the same has happened again. I can put ithe data-cable in but nothing - absolutely nothing happens.

I agree with you, it's hard to see and I never forced it (way too scared, this is so expensive). my provider has now offered me either the Samsung Galaxy S3, the Sony Xperia T or the Z. I think the Z is by far the best but I don't want to go through this nightmare a third time, so really don't know what to do.

How did it end for you? did you have to pay and how much did it cost you?

I have been a Sony fan for ages and always had Sony mobiles - any advice appreciated.

[hippycat]

well, it's 3 people now. had the same problem - twice. I am lucky that I am getting it replaced (either that one or a Samsung galaxy s3 or Sony Xperia T) but am gutted that this can happen with such a great phone and generally good company. I would never force anything and to say to you 'your fault' is just unfair.

[chauhandeepak94]

hi Becky ,

Can u help me out ..??

Actualy i also bought Xperia-z 4 months before , and its charging USB port is also get damaged and phn is not charging anymore .

I also got confirmed from my nearst customer serivice center that it is physical damage and not comes under warranty , and i have to pay half the money of phone to get new one.

Please help me , where should i go to file up my report , and how can i sent my phn directly to sony center directly.

Thankx

Deepak

[chriotte]

Hello

My usb connector is also broken, I sent it into Sony the other day, and are looking forward to hear what they say. The norwegian law says that this will be covered by sony, therefore I hope I wont need to contact the Norwegian consumer council. I´m always careful with my phone, and of that reason I cant se why it has broken, it started a little while ago, when the connector loosened, and I occasionally had to straighten the plug up before plugging in the usb cord. The other day the connector joined the usb cord on its way out.. I think I will use the dock that came with the phone for charging in the future. Anyway, I just wanted to post here so that people know that another person have the same problem.