My PS Vita OLED has a wonky charge port. It was flaky for a bit and has now stopped charging (like no light indicating connection to power, not a blinking light indicating failure to charge). The unit still has some battery life left so I know it can operate, so I strongly suspect the port. I have tried cleaning and stuff and am no longer interested in attempting DIY rehab. At this point I want to pay someone to diagnose and possibly repair.
Can anyone recommend someone who would be capable of this kind of work? I know these portables are much smaller, finer work than older retro consoles, possibly limiting what people can do. So I need someone knowledgeable about the Vita OLED models who can do the work.
@“marurun”#p147842 Cleveland-ish is a bit far from me. It doesn‘t sound like a difficult repair if it’s just loose joints where the port is mounted to the mobo. Have you tried looking for repair places near you?
@“connrrr”#p147852 Yes and no. I mean, I have, and I have one possible option, but otherwise I'm not even sure where to look. The local retro group has been quite literally no help.
I‘ve had success with 1up Restorations when it comes to unusual repairs, although I’m not sure that they'll be comfortable working on something as kind-of-modern as the Vita.
So my Vita has had this problem for a while, and it's the one real tough pill with that system for me because (once I modded it) I had tons of great stuff to play on it and good features and I just generally have a weird affection for the system. But it's like if I can't reliably keep it charged, the fun goes away. I've thought about getting in there and fixing the charge port, but like you, I'm not confident enough in my own electrical work to do it and I can't imagine there are many people who work on Vitas, so that leaves me kind of stuck.
My one pro tip that might help is this: my Vita no longer charges when plugged into regular outlets, but it does usually charge if I connect it to my computer via USB (though the charging only seems to work while the computer is actually on, not sleeping). I've also heard people online say that they'll use a portable power bank and that that sometimes works for stubborn Vitas, too, though I've yet to try this myself (because I don't have a power bank atm). Maybe you've already tried that and I know it's not you're asking for help with in this thread, but just passing along the Vita lore in case it helps.
Oh!! If it's a matter of charging the Vita over USB from a computer and it sometimes just not working, that happens with mine as well and I just take it as a quirk of the system lol. Normally I use the PCH-ZCL1 charging cradle, which is very expensive now but which has never given me problems.
@“rearnakedwindow”#p148068 @“connrrr”#p148071 I tried from my PC and it doesn‘t work there, either. When yours fails to charge, do you get a blinking light or anything or just no indication you’re plugged in?
@“marurun”#p148086 I just plugged mine into my laptop. It slowly blinks orange. From what I remember, it‘ll do this for a while and then stop charging. I don’t know why, so I just prefer to drop it into the cradle, which is plugged into an outlet.
The Vita acts really strange all around when plugged in. Have you ever noticed how the touchscreen doesn't work properly when the thing is charging?
@“connrrr”#p148087 I didn‘t notice that. My problem is that the unit doesn’t blink. It‘s not that it can’t charge, it doesn‘t even see a charger attached. That’s why I think a repair will be necessary.