Fr:Problèmes concernant la GP2X

From wiki.gp2x.org

Il y a eu une certaine préoccupation au sujet des défectuosités et des défauts de conception sur la GP2X et si ces problèmes peuvent être rêglés avec des patchs du firmware. Le but de cet article est d'éclairer ce que sont exactement ces problèmes et conclure quelles étapes doivent être prises pour les corriger.

Contents

Le jeu X ne démarre pas

Regardez Help for games.

Dois-je acheter une GP2X maintenant ou attendre?

Un système de développeur

The GP2X is currently not quite ready for the casual user even if all they want to do is use it as a portable video player, and it's certainly not ready if they want to use it as a portable gaming device. The firmware has some annoying bugs, and there are some very real questions about the build quality. This is not to say that the GP2X isn't a good piece of hardware, but that it was released a bit before it was ready for the general public. If you are interested in solely using the GP2X as a media player it is recommend that you wait to order the device until the firmware is patched to correct the battery usage problems. If you want to use the GP2X as a gaming device it is recommended that you wait until some games are available for it that you want to play. At this point the GP2X is really mostly a "developer's" system. This will change in time, but if you're not interested in the GP2X from a development perspective then the community as a whole would be better served by you waiting until the GP2X is ready for you, rather then you getting a unit only to complain about it constantly and loudly.
Conclusion: Only if you are interested in the GP2X from a development standpoint or are a cheerful early adaptor.

External References: [1] [2]

Problèmes de batterie

Power Consumption

The GP2X is currently chewing through batteries; even high-end NiMH batteries are only lasting 2-4 hours (with Ansmann 2600 mAh Photo-Accus 4 h 54 min has been confirmed). Currently there are two known issues contributing to this problem: The GP2X is powering both processor cores at full power at all times, and the TV-out chip is being powered even when not in use. When playing movies or music the device will not need both processor cores nor will it need to run one core at full speed. In subsequent firmware releases this will be addressed and battery life is expected to improve dramatically. Obviously when TV-Out is not in use the chips responsible for it do not need to be powered. It is estimated that this chip draws around ~80 milliamps so turning it off when it is not in use will further improve battery life.
Conclusion: Fixable in firmware

Life of Batteries that come with the GP2X

The batteries that come with the GP2X are standard alkaline batteries and these do not work well in a high drain device such as the GP2X. In fact many users are reporting these batteries as dying in as little as 45 minutes. Just as with a digital camera NiMH batteries will last much longer and they are rechargeable. It is a common misconception that rechargeable batteries are not as good as non-rechargeable batteries, but clearly this is not the case. NiMH batteries are rated in milliamp hours, with more being better. It is recommended that you use at least 2000mAH batteries with the GP2X to ensure several hours of use. These batteries are becoming increasingly common and can be found in many retail stores such as Target in the United States.
Conclusion: Use NiMH batteries


External References for Battery Problems: [3] [4]

Problèmes USB

Some GP2X users have had no problems at all connecting their GP2X's to their PC, however other users cannot get their PC to recognize the device. This is a fairly complicated problem with three known issues that, if any of which occur, the USB functionality will not work. If you are experiencing problems with getting your GP2X to connect to your computer, it is recommended that you evaluate each of these possibilities. Additionally, there are limitations to what can and cannot be done over USB at this time.

It is important to note that the GP2X must be on its USB connect screen and an SD card must be installed before it will communicate to the PC at all. Simply plugging it in is not enough. GP2X units may not even report themselves as devices on Windows XP machines in some cases unless they are flashed to at least 1.0.1r3.

Defective USB Cable

Some users have reported that the USB cable that comes with the GP2X is defective and that replacing this cable with a standard miniUSB cable fixed this problem. As this is a fairly easy to do, it is recommend that if your GP2X is not recognized by your computer that you first try using a different USB cable to verify that you are not suffering from this problem.
Conclusion: Replace the faulty USB cable

Client OS Software Problems

Versions of Microsoft Windows prior to Windows XP do not support the GP2X natively. It may be possible to add support to Windows 98 through the use of add-on drivers, however at this time this cannot be confirmed. MacOS X should have no problems recognizing the GP2X, nor should Linux as long as the proper support for USB storage devices and SD media has been compiled into the kernel. If the device is not recognized in Linux and you are running a "mainstream" distribution and you haven't rolled your own Kernel then you most likely have a hardware related problem. Windows XP users may be forced to go through "voodoo" like rituals in order to have their computers recognize the device. This is due to Microsoft's extremely poor implementation of USB that frequently results in resource assignment problems. This is not a problem with the GP2X in particular but a problem with Windows itself, although if the GP2X required fewer resources from the host system it would lessen the problem to an extent. There are three common methods for resolving USB software problems on Windows XP, each of which is described below.
  • Plug & Pray Method
    • Unplug all USB Devices from your computer
    • Reboot your computer
    • Plug the GP2X into your computer
    • If it is not recognized try a different USB port
    • If the device starts working plug your other USB devices in
  • Dijitao's Method:
    • Update Drivers for all your USB devices, and your Motherboard. Note that some devices might currently be using generic Microsoft drivers instead of vendor specific ones, i.e. your Logitech mouse – it's imperative that you switch to using the drivers from the vendor as these tend to cause a lot less problems.
    • Reboot computer and enter the bios. Disable in the bios all unused device. COM ports, Parallel port etc...
    • Disconnect all USB devices (use a PS/2 adapter for your mouse and keyboard if necessary)
    • Boot Computer into Windows
    • Remove System devices\PCI bus from Device Manager
    • Reboot Computer
    • Watch Device Manager add everything back in (hopefully with more intelligent resource assignment)
    • Connect GP2X, if it doesn't work now you might have a hardware problem
    • Connect all other USB Devices one at a time verifying they work
    • Reboot with all Devices connected
    • Verify everything still works
    • Disconnect the GP2X and reboot
    • Connect the GP2X and verify that it's now working, if not you will need to have your GP2X plugged in when you turn on your computer for it to work.
Conclusion: Microsoft's USB implementation is terrible

Solder bridges from usb connector body

A few GP2X users have noticed that the USB connector body is soldered to the PCB with a solder bridges connecting it to two separate components. Some units have small sections of wire along the length of the connector to facilitate easier soldering of the bridges. On other units the bridge is formed from a large blob of solder. Due to the presence of the wires and the difficulty of getting solder to bridge gaps it looks like the connections are intentional and not the result of poor soldering or quality control.
Conclusion: Probably nothing to worry about.

Onboard NAND memory not available through USB. Need SD card to copy any files to it.

You need to get an SD card to copy files through USB to your GP2X. Or a serial port. This may have been done as a precaution, as it is rumored that if the onboard NAND is filled up then the device will not boot. A future firmware update may set a little area aside (500k-1MB) for people to copy simple things on there.
Conclusion: This may be possible to update with firmware...?

USB 2.0 may not work

I found that I couldn't get my GP2X to work with my PowerBook G4 or another Mac with USB 2.0 ports. I saw it in System Profiler as a mass storage device, but it wouldn't mount on the desktop and there were a few error messages in the console. When I tried it on a Mac with USB 1.1 ports, it worked perfectly. I found that I could get it to work on my PowerBook by using a USB 1.1 hub, even an unpowered one.

Other hints and tips

Here are a few other hints and tips that may help:
  • Make sure your SD card is inserted and readable by the GP2X (make sure you can your see your files with the GP2X Explorer application). Unfortunately this may not be sufficient, and your SD card may have to have a very particular format.
  • Are you looking at the "USB Connected" screen (a sub-menu of the Settings screen)?
  • If you have USB 2 ports, try connecting the GP2X through a USB 1 hub. You can also try disabling USB 2 support in your OS so it uses USB 1 instead.

External References for USB Problems: [5] [6] [7] [8] [9] [10] [11] [12]

Problèmes avec les cartes SD

Les cartes de 2GB et plus ne marchent pas

Confirmé par GPH, ceci devrait être réglé dans une prochaine mise à jour.
Conclusion: mise à jour du firmware requise.

Les cartes en dessous de 128MB peuvent ne pas marcher sur les unités flashées en 1.0.1r3

Non confirmé, mais sous-entendu dans les notes de publication du firmware 1.0.1r3.
Conclusion: si confirmé, utilisez une carte SD avec plus de mémoire. De toutes façons une carte de moins de 128 n'aurait qu'un intérêt limité.

Compatibilité des cartes SD

Certains utilisateurs ont reporté des problèmes de lecture avec certaines marques de cartes SD. Ceci devrait pouvoir s'arranger dans un prochain firmware. En attendant voici une liste Fr:SD card compatibility qui devra être mise à jour par les utilisateurs.
Conclusion: mise à jour du firmware requise.


Références externes pour les problèmes de cartes SD: [13] [14] [15]

Mettre à jour le Firmware

Mettre à jour le firmware est pour l'instant problématique. Cela semble dépendre beaucoup de la façon dont la carte SD est configurée, et rate souvent.

Problèmes d'écran

Lignes diagonales

Des utilisateurs on dit avoir parfois vu des lignes diagonales sur l'écran. Le problème a été résolu par GPH et un patch du firmware est sorti.
Conclusion: Mettre à jour le firmware.

Télécharger

Une ligne blanche vers le bas de l'écran

Problème résolu par GPH.
Conclusion: Mettre à jour le firmware vers la version 1.0.1r3.

Light/Dark Spots

Some users have reported that their GP2X's have light or dark spots on the screen. Disassembly of the GP2X shows that this is most likely caused by a component touching the back of the LCD. Disassembling and Reassembling the GP2X while carefully ensuring that everything is neatly tucked in its place should resolve this problem, however at this time this cannot be confirmed.
Conclusion: Disassemble/Reassemble GP2X. Reported fixed in 1.0.1r3 firmware.

Half the Screen is Brighter then the other Half

A small minority of users have reported that half of the screen appears brighter then the other half. GPH have acknowledged this problem and claim that a firmware patch will correct this problem. Some people are skeptical that the firmware could correct this problem. The root of the problem may be the same as the Light/Dark spots problem, in which case Disassembly/Reassembly may fix it. It is worth noting that many users have commented that they have not observed this problem.
Conclusion: Only a small number of GP2X's seem defective in this manner. Reported fixed in 1.0.1r3 firmware.

The screen came with scratches in it

The GP2X ships with not one but two pieces of protective film over the screen to keep it from being scratched. Many people have believed their screen to be scratched when they get their unit but in fact they simply didn’t know to remove the second layer of protective film.
Conclusion: Make sure you remove both layers of protective film before concluding your screen is scratched

The screen flickers

In 1.0.1 firmware the screen flickers. It appears to be interlaced. In emulators it seems that all frames are not displayed.
Conclusion: Firmware upgrade needed. For now you can downgrade to older firmware than 1.0.1.

External References [16] [17]

Problèmes de son

Garbled Sound when headphones are plugged in

Some users have reported that they hear crackling or distorted sound while using head phones. In all but one documented case this turned out to be caused by the headphones not being plugged all the way in. The fit of the headphone jack has been described as quite snug by several users.
Conclusion: Verify headphones are plugged all the way in

Headphone Jack not connected tightly enough

Some users have reported that the headphone jack is not connected to the PCB tightly enough and therefore the external plug sinks in a little when the headphone jack is plugged in for the first time. This appears to be an issue widely blown out of proportion as it received much attention when fist noticed, but now no one seems to be complaining about it anymore. While the jack may move in a little when headphones are attached for the first time, this does not seam to be a problem. However one user has had his headphone jack snap completely off, but this seems to be an isolated incident.
Conclusion: Very Rare

Speakers are Mono

The two speakers on the GP2X seem to produce the same sounds, thus indicating that the GP2X's speakers are not stereo. This has been confirmed by multiple users now. It is important to note that this only applies for the internal speakers on the GP2X; headphones work fine with full stereo sound. Nk has created a program that corrects this problem in software.
Conclusion: Problem can be fixed in software, should be fixed in a firmware patch at a later time
'Update: Problem have been fixed by NK http://www.gp32x.com/board/index.php?showtopic=22369&hl=

Left/Right Stereo Channels are Reversed

The left and right stereo channels are reportedly reversed on some units. This should be easily fixable through a firmware update although GPH has yet to comment on this issue.
Conclusion: Fixable with firmware update


External References: [18] [19] [20]

Problèmes de joystick

Directions Not Registering

Some GP2X users have reported that the joystick is not properly registering all directions, and that left is particularly unresponsive. It has been reported numerous times that this can be easily fixed by loosening the joystick by unscrewing it a little. This can be done without taking the GP2X apart and is a very simple procedure.
  • Can somebody
    • Who's done this
    • To their GP2X
    • Please write down some simple
    • Steps here?
The above unscrewing does _not_ work. There is no thread. See below for another fix.
Another method to fix the joystick is to pull off the plastic cap, put a small bit of (black!) paper on the shaft then replace the cap. This lifts it slightly so it does not catch on the plastic of the case. It is much more responsive. I have not succeeded with the "unscrewing" technique, however much I rotated it nothing seemed to happen.
Conclusion: Easily Fixed by following steps above

Large Dead Zone

Some users have reported that the GP2X has a large deadzone – meaning that the stick has to be pushed quite far for a direction to be registered. This does seem to be the case however the problem should be fixable with a simple mod to the GP2X. This mod would involve take the GP2X apart. Others have stipulated that the dead zone is actually a software problem and maybe fixed via firmware. Evidence of this is how responsive the stick is in the menus and how unresponsive it is in homebrewed games. Since the stick is functionally the same as an 8 button directional pad, the confusion may come from the perception that it "looks" like an analog stick, and therefore should act like one, when in fact it does need to be pressed completely in any given direction to activate the sensors.
Conclusion: Dead Zone does exist, however its cause is disputed. May be fixed through hardware mod or new firmware depending.


External References: [21]

Problèmes de vidéo

Video playback drains the battery quickly

As discussed under the battery section, there is currently a bug in the firmware that is draining the battery while playing back videos, because the two ARM processors run at 200 MHz all the time.
Conclusion: Will be fixed in coming firmware update

Random Crashes

The video player is extremely buggy and many users are reporting frequent crashes.
Conclusion: Will be fixed in coming firmware update

Claimed Supported Codecs aren't actually supported

Some of the codecs claimed to be supported by marketing material aren't actually supported. It is reasonably safe to assume that support for these codecs will be added in later through firmware updates. Some people are skeptical that WMV support will happen as WMV support under Linux is naturally less then ideal, and WMV support on non-x86 versions of Linux is all but non-existent.
  • Claimed Supported Codecs
    • Divx
    • Xvid
    • Mpeg
    • WMV
  • Actual Supported Codecs
    • Divx4
      • (put exact settings needed to work here)
    • Divx6
    • Mpeg
    • Xvid
  • Claimed Supported Container Formats
    • Mpeg
    • Avi
    • WMV
  • Actual Supported Container Formats
    • Avi
Conclusion: Currently codec support is not what GPH claimed it would be; this should be resolved with firmware updates.


External References: [22] [23] [24] [25] [26]

Solutions logicielles

Comment installer des jeux

Lisez Installer des logiciels pour GP2X.

Comment mettre à jour le firmware

Lisez Mettre à jour le firmware de la GP2X.

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