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Do you know this stubborn I - will - find - the - reason - even - if - this - is - the - last - thing - I - do - in - my - life feeling? Well, this feeling hasn’t left me since the Newton MessagePad 130 was introduced. Until recently, that is...

There are a few hardware problems nearly every Newton 130 seems to develop sooner or later. By far the most frequent one is a severe problem with powering up. Either the Newton shuts off as soon as you touch it, twist it or simply look at it a little less than friendly, or it doesn’t power up at all.

Recently David Watson, to many Newton fans also known as Dr. Newton, told me where to look when trying to fix this annoying defect. While he was at it, he also pointed out the reason for another very frequent defect the Newton 130’s are prone to develop: A backlight that is flickering or not working at all.
This page would not have been possible without David’s help. Apart from being - quite obviously - a helpful guy, Dr. Newton is also known as someone who provides fast and professional Newton repairs and upgrades. To the best of my knowledge he is currently the only one who offers MessagePad 2000 upgrades, apart from that he is also doing screen replacements and other repairs for older Newton models. You can reach him by email at .

From now on we will assume that you have taken apart your Newton MessagePad
130 as described in my disassembly instructions. You should also be aware of the basic precautions (outlined on the same page) required when handling and soldering delicate electronic components.
And, as I never get tired of pointing out, it’s not without reason that I went to so much trouble phrasing my disclaimer...

Click on the images to get a larger image in a new browser window.

The fellow you see here, known by the name of U43, appears to be the most frequent cause of the MP130’s reluctance to power up. This IC is pushed loose over time. You will find it next to the battery compartment on the side of the main logic board that faces towards the display. In other words, you must remove the main logic board to have a look at it.
If U43 looks like what you see in the picture, you are very lucky. Lucky because all you have to do is carefully resolder all of its eight legs. If you are less lucky, you won’t see U43 at all because it has not been pushed loose, but pushed off. If this is the case, it is high time for an immediate don’t - even - think - of - using - our - vacuum - cleaner edict. If you are lucky, you will find U43 after no more than eight hours of intensive search somewhere where it can’t possibly be. Children under three years of age can be extremely helpful in situations like this because they usually develop their frenzied fits much later than the average adult. Provided they are promised a generous reward for finding a tiny, black and obviously utterly unimportant item.
If I were you, I wouldn’t try to realign U43 unless you can’t solder it back on otherwise. Realigning it might tear a pin off or destroy its respective pad on the main logic board.

You might be wondering what has pushed U43 loose in the first place. After all, getting inside a Newton 130 that has never before been disassembled isn’t exactly easy even for gremlins who are doing this for a living.
The culprit is a stupid little plastic support that is located on top of U43 when the Newton is assembled. If you trim the edge marked by the arrow back about 1 millimeter, you are unlikely to see this particular defect ever again.

I would now like to introduce you to four resistors that were very poorly manufactured. All four are 4.64 kOhm. Not only were their ends very poorly plated, they also have an annoying tendency to crack inside. Do not assume they are ok if you can measure their resistance with a multimeter, it might well be that they are only behaving well as long as they are touched by your multimeter’s test tips. Resoldering these resistors is a temporary fix at best. While you have the Newton open anyway, your best bet is to replace them even if they do not cause you any problems yet. Of the four resistors described here, the problem is almost always with R73 and R79. You will find them next to the switching regulator IC U4 on the side of the main logic board that faces towards the back of the unit, i. e. you  needn’t remove the main logic board to replace them.

The next resistor is R61. You will find it next to IC U22 at the edge where the power switch is. As with the other two resistors, you needn’t remove the main logic board to replace this resistor.

Finally, replace R52. You will find it next to a drilling in the main logic board. Unfortunately you will have to remove the main logic board to get at this fellow because it lives on the side of the main logic board that faces towards the display.

By now you might be wondering where on earth you are supposed to find 4.64 kOhm resistors. This value is fairly uncommon and quite hard to come by.
The good news is that I have always used 4.7 kOhm resistors without any problems. Your mileage may vary, but I strongly doubt it.

Well, that takes care of the power-up problems.
If your problem is a flickering or dead backlight, you might have a look at resistor R112. It can be found right next to where the backlight wires are soldered to the main logic board.
It is a 1.5 kOhm resistor that was just as poorly manufactured as the four I mentioned above. While your Newton is open and your soldering iron is hot, don’t hesitate to replace it even if you do not yet have any problems with your Newton’s backlight. You needn’t remove the main logic board to replace it.