Nook Simple Touch -- Touchscreen unresponsive

[apetit]

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glaeken wrote:

I too have had this issue (both a random failure and one caused after an "accidental word highlight".

I just had a frustrating, unproductive exchange with a chat agent that has to be read to be believed. 

Extra bonus points for trying to terminate the chat after ~10 second delay, during which I was struggling to quickly type a reply to her question. So sorry that I cannot type as quickly as you cut-n-paste from your prefab chat template, Marie.

Can't post the entire conversation due to limits, but it can be read here in its entireity:

http://shorttext.com/sNwB7B

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Wow...Surreal... I hope you enjoyed your brief visit to the Twilight Zone.  I've not been that deep down the rabbit hole as a customer.

[glaeken]

Oh, Rod Serling was rolling over in his grave...

Re-reading it I was almost convinced it was an AI program, but there's clearly a few instances where the reaction and tenor is clearly that of a human being.

What gave it away as human was that at first she states I should let it sit an hour because it needs to "cool down". After I state the device isn't overheating, she quickly clarified that it's the PROCESSES that need to cool down for an hour.

That would be like someone calling my office to complain that Internet Explorer keeps crashing on them, and me suggesting they should turn off their computer for an hour so that Internet Explorer can "get some rest". Oy vey.

This is in stark contrast to hardware related issues I had with the original Nook (the famed bevel crack). B&N Support was very easy to deal with, understood the issue, and the RMA was smooth as silk. Here I'm being given a false choice between silly advice and playing the lottery with the RMA. If there's an unknown HW or firmware issue, I could be charged $139 well before it gets uncovered. My mention of the fact that others are complaining in the forums about this glitche should have provided the support tech with a moment of pause.

[DeltaT]

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Poshie54 wrote:

I am experimenting the same problem the next day.My finger highlighted a word and lock the Nook up.I called the store they couldn't help me over the phone.I drove 50 miles to the store .The lady tried several times to turn the Nook off and if wouldn't turn off.Finally it turned off and when she turned it back on it had unlock the screen.I tried deleting books from the Nook they only way to do this is to delete password and e mail address and redo and that should not be that way.There has to be an easier way to delete books.I always have found if I wave over the screen not  touching it the pages will start flipping so this is not good.This Nook has alot of issues that need to be address before they sell this product,Don't you test this products first.I love my Nook the size is perfect and it is not heavy to hold.But this freezing and locking screen needs to be Fixed.

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I sent a PM to the Forum Moderator describing this problem last week.  I have had several occurences of the lockup-on-highlight, and it is nasty to recover from it.

It usually takes 4-5 tries to get it restart correctly, so when the guy at CS tells you to do that, he/she is not just making it up.  It is a known firmware issue.

Take a deep breath, and remember that some e-readers have unsolvable hardware issues.

[DeltaT]

That's why I only use voice tech support.  Each sense, such as hearing, that you take away from the interchange reduces the amount of information that is received by both sides.

[lopaka47]

The same thing has just happened with my new N2E, the one I received as replacement for the one I bought first on June 17. When I pressed the N symbol tonight I got as far as the lock screen and that was it. Swiping repeatedly across the unlock arrows does nothing. If I hold the Power button down for 25 seconds I get a screen asking if I want to power down/off completely. Then when I tap the power down/off button nothing happens there either. This is very frustrating, since I was assured my Nook came from a recent and supposedly "trouble-free" production run. I don't know what to do now, to be honest. I still have my N1E, looks like I may have to mothball my N2E and simply go back to the first reader afterall.

[brunson]

I've had this intermittent problem since I got my Nook back in June.  A power cycle always fixes it, but it's still annoying and happens fairly often.  I kept hoping a software upgrade would fix it, but I guess I'm going to have to exchange it.

Would you recommend I take it to a physical store or do it online?  Will they exchange it over the counter for me in the store?

[keriflur]

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brunson wrote:

I've had this intermittent problem since I got my Nook back in June.  A power cycle always fixes it, but it's still annoying and happens fairly often.  I kept hoping a software upgrade would fix it, but I guess I'm going to have to exchange it.

Would you recommend I take it to a physical store or do it online?  Will they exchange it over the counter for me in the store?

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As a general rule, no, they won't exchange in-store.  Sometimes they will, if you bought it in the store or if you bought it in the last two weeks (obviously you didn't), or if the manager is in a good mood and they have a lot of stock.  If you live near a store you could bring it in, but it it's out of your way, don't waste your time, just do it online.

[brunson]

Thanks for the advice.

[Mistress_K]

I recently purchased my own Nook Simple Touch, and received it today around 1 PM. Within 12 hours, the touch screen would not respond, and it remained locked for over an hour before I was able to get online from my laptop and find this discussion about the touch screen. I'm pleased that the hard reboot worked for me, but I'm not thrilled by the prospect of this problem continuing to happen on a regular basis.

I put a lot of time and effort into deciding whether I wanted to buy a Kindle or a Nook, and all the information on both items, including first hand reports, gave me the impression that the Nook was the more reliable reader to buy. I really do wish I had found this thread before I'd made my purchase, but unfortunately, this thread only popped up when I searched for information on the touch screen being unresponsive.

I'm also wary of the fact that this thread was started in JULY of this year, and it is now DECEMBER, and these faulty readers are still being sent out. I have no access to a BN store in my area (within a 75-100 mile radius of my location), and am now wary about sending my Nook in for a replacement during the holiday mail rush.

[geertm]

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Mistress_K wrote:

I recently purchased my own Nook Simple Touch, and received it today around 1 PM. Within 12 hours, the touch screen would not respond, and it remained locked for over an hour before I was able to get online from my laptop and find this discussion about the touch screen. I'm pleased that the hard reboot worked for me, but I'm not thrilled by the prospect of this problem continuing to happen on a regular basis.

I put a lot of time and effort into deciding whether I wanted to buy a Kindle or a Nook, and all the information on both items, including first hand reports, gave me the impression that the Nook was the more reliable reader to buy. I really do wish I had found this thread before I'd made my purchase, but unfortunately, this thread only popped up when I searched for information on the touch screen being unresponsive.

I'm also wary of the fact that this thread was started in JULY of this year, and it is now DECEMBER, and these faulty readers are still being sent out. I have no access to a BN store in my area (within a 75-100 mile radius of my location), and am now wary about sending my Nook in for a replacement during the holiday mail rush.

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Is your Nook running software version 1.1? As far as I know since the release of 1.1 there have been no new touch screen complaints.

[Mistress_K]

No. My Nook was running 1.0.1

Thank you for the advice! I've started the update to 1.1, and will see how that works for me. I'm hoping not to have any more screen responsiveness problems now that it's been updated.

*crosses fingers*

[K-Nook]

I've been having this issue intermittently and may have fixed it. 

I cleaned the screen with a Q-Tip around the edges and the problem seems to have gone away.  Just a simple dry Q-tip and I ran along the edge of the screen a few times. 

Maybe that's all it was?  My Nook has been good for two days now. 

[bobstro]

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K-Nook wrote:

I've been having this issue intermittently and may have fixed it. 

I cleaned the screen with a Q-Tip around the edges and the problem seems to have gone away.  Just a simple dry Q-tip and I ran along the edge of the screen a few times. 

Maybe that's all it was?  My Nook has been good for two days now. 

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According to the tech sources I've been reading, the NST screen touches are detected by IR sensors placed in the frame above the screen, so this would make perfect sense if anything had built up to block them. I'd just be careful of using anything that might push the cruft further into the frame. Maybe a pass with a very soft paintbrush to flick dust away from the frame first.

[TheFoundingFie…]

I just had this problem today after having my Nook for many months now. It's a great device and this is the first ever problem i've had with it... However after 3 (3!) hard reboots and just letting it sit for a bit, the lasers that read your finger placement have re-engaged and the device works like a charm again... for now... lol

Dave

[Pollitos_are_a…]

mine's suck on the screen when you turn it on. its been like that since i got it in the morning. and i wanna finsh my damn book !

[bobstro]

Have you power cycled it?

[Deenster]

PROBLEM SOLVED:  I had the the same problem, and was embarrassed by the simple solution when I called tech support.  I needed to CLEAN MY SCREEN with a micrfiber cleaning cloth.  I guess invisible finger grease in the location of the unlock slide made the screen unreposnsive.  After wiping the area with the cloth, the unlock feature immediately began working.

[beazyBC]

I started having the same problem a few weeks ago, but it is intermittent.  When I'm lucky and the swipe opens the book, the pages may or may not advance.  I've tried swiping and using the raised bar buttons to advance pages, but it won't work.  It's been stuck all day.  I've tried rebooting and charging the device several times, all to no avail.  Frustrating!!!  My Nook is 13 months old and I don't have the sales receipt anymore so am guessing any repairs will have to be paid by me.  I may make the hour trek to the closest Barnes and Noble to see if they can offer assistaance, but not holding out much hope.  This reader had great reviews and I have taken good care of it so I am very disappointed that this is happening. 

[bobstro]

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beazyBC wrote:

I started having the same problem a few weeks ago, but it is intermittent.  When I'm lucky and the swipe opens the book, the pages may or may not advance.  I've tried swiping and using the raised bar buttons to advance pages, but it won't work.  It's been stuck all day. 

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This sounds exactly like the "dirty screen" issue. I'd left my NST unused for 10 days and had the same sort of symptoms. I'd press the 'n' button to wake it, but it wouldn't respond to the finger swipe. Then I remembered: This thing uses sensors in the gap between the case and screen, so is sensitive to dust. I blew out the gap around the screen, gave it a wipe with a microfiber cloth, and lo and behold, it was fine.

The key is to clear out that gap as well as clean the screen. Just shoving dust into the gap if you use a normal cloth (or your shirt) probably won't fix it, and can make it worse. Give it a blow along each edge (ideally with an air cannister) and try again.

[Ohboy108]

Going to a BN store is useless.  They tell you they can't do anything and you have to call customer support who will authorize a replacement (maybe).