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One of the steps in my weekend BlackBerry saga was to wipe the device. I didn’t want to do it, but given how slow the device was running after I restored it, I had no choice. After the wipe, I finally decided to upgrade from OS 4.5.0.77 to 4.5.0.138. After doing this, I found something not quite right about the Berry. When the backlight was out, there was a noticeable delay between when I pressed the trackball and when the screen lit up. I thought this was a lingering problem from my weekend issues, but after some searching it appears this is a general problem for .138.
The issue is nothing more than an annoyance, and a relatively minor one at that. Still, I’d like to not be annoyed when working with my BlackBerry. I searched around the net for possible solutions, but found none. It’s just an issue with the OS build, and we probably won’t see a fix until RIM sends out another 4.5 upgrade. While that’s disappointing, there is one thing that can mitigate the problem.
(Bonus bug: If you let the screen go black while in the applications menu, when you click a button to turn on the backlight again, you’ll be at the home screen. I’m not sure how universal that problem is, but it’s something I noticed. For reference, I’m using a custom theme, but now that I’ve consciously noticed the issue, I have vague memories of the same issue cropping up with my standard Verizon theme.)
When I go to wake up my BlackBerry, I usually depress the trackball. That’s what seemingly causes the delay. If you instead hit another key — space bar seems to work as well as any — the delay is much shorter. In fact, it seems like when I press the space bar, the screen comes back just about normally. So this isn’t a huge problem with .138 in general, just a problem with the trackball function.
Again, it might seem like a minor issue, but it’s slightly annoying to press the trackball and have nothing happen. If you look closely, you can see the screen turn on after you depress the trackball — the real delay is in the backlight. So if you press the trackball to restore the backlight, but then press it again (because you think you missed the key), you’ll launch the application you’re hovering over. It’s a pain, and while minor I’ll be glad when RIM introduces a fix.
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5 Comments ↓
I noticed the same issue on my Curve after upgrading, though it doesn’t happen very often. Every now and then, there will be a delay when “waking” it from a black screen. I’ve learned to live with it.
The biggest annoyance with the upgrade that I noticed is that it is more difficult now to select text in a text field in the browser. For example, if you’ve entered some text in a text field (e.g. Google search field), then decide you want to delete or modify it, it takes several clicks of the trackball before it registers and allows you to select text.
Overall, I do not think the upgrade is worth it for most users. The main reason I did it was to make use of the new gmail plugin, but I did not find it very useful after all.
I did my upgrade on a Vista laptop, and it took a very long time to 1) install the upgrade package on the laptop then 2) install the upgrade onto the Blackberry. Throughout the process, I was very concerned that it was going correctly due to the number of manual steps I had to take and also lack of progress information. I *highly* recommend backing up your Blackberry thoroughly before attempting this upgrade.
The biggest upside with the upgrade is being able to view HTML emails more cleanly, but this is really not a big advantage.
I was intrigued by your “Bonus bug” and tried it on my 8900. First, let me say I have not updated the OS and, as a general principle, never upgrade any software, phone or computer, unless I have a good reason to do so (e.g. to deal with some bug).
If I enter the Applications menu and then leave the phone alone, after a while the home screen appears (without the screen first going black). When I then press the menu key, I go straight back into the Applications menu, and this is the case whether I press straightaway or first let the screen go dark.
Maybe what you are describing, then, is a “feature” and not a “bug”? What happens when, from the home screen, you press the menu key: does it display the general menu or go back into Applications?
I don’t recall either problem ever on my 8830.
And seriously Joe, you of all people should now that .138 is way out of date. You should at least get .169 from USCellular, or you can get .175 from Sprint with the browser bug fixed (if you have an 8330m not an 8330).
I think the issue, SilverTiger, is that we’re using different devices and therefore different OS versions. I haven’t noticed this on any OS I’ve run other than .138.
DavidB, I keep my main device, the 8330, with only official updates — though I suppose an update from another carrier should work well enough.
Well Joe, I understand the “only official updates” mantra makes sense for a “main device”, but you’re likely going to be waiting forever for Verizon to release an update for the 8330. 4.5.0.169 is an “official release” from a USA carrier (USCellular), and while I understand it’s not Verizon USCellular does use Verizon’s network where they don’t themselves offer service so I can’t see what harm could come of it. But hey, it’s your device, and I get the hesitation. I was like that for a long while on my 8830 but Verizon’s incomprehensible foot dragging to release updates for it and for my “toy” 9530 drove me to forget waiting on Verizon releases. I’m never going to be calling them for software support anyway, I’m pretty sure I know far more about BlackBerry software than any Verizon BlackBerry support rep.
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