Cobalt 1 help: What to do if your battery is dead

[RonR]

Good to know. So I don't damage the cobalt 2, do you think a good rule of thumb is to charge them every couple months?

Yes, ideally on some regular schedule, probably not over 4 months, just charge the battery some. We're seeing quite a few batteries that failed from long disuse over the last several years.

Ron

 

[Cromanin]

My Cobalt 1 is over 10 years old, and looks like the battery is coming to its end - stops charging at 53% and holds charge for 4-5 dives only.
Is there a way to get new battery in Europe now?

 

[RonR]

My Cobalt 1 is over 10 years old, and looks like the battery is coming to its end - stops charging at 53% and holds charge for 4-5 dives only.
Is there a way to get new battery in Europe now?

Unfortunately, from what I have heard, Huish Outdoors is no longer supporting the Cobalt computers in Europe. There are prohibitions on shipping lithium batteries when they aren't installed in electronics, so any solution probably involves sending your Cobalt back to the US. I'll send you a direct message with some ideas.

Ron

 

[RonR]

My Cobalt 1 is over 10 years old, and looks like the battery is coming to its end - stops charging at 53% and holds charge for 4-5 dives only.
Is there a way to get new battery in Europe now?

There may be- the issue had always been the fact that we included a built in thermistor that has to be connected for the Cobalt to recognize the battery.

A customer pointed out this battery to us- it has the same thermistor we use in the Cobalt and easily fits in the Cobalt case. We have tested it here and so far it looks like a good replacement- not precisely identical, but close enough in capacity that the battery fuel gauge still works properly.

The only trick would be to solder the battery leads onto the connector used in the Cobalt- a very easy soldering job. The battery thermistor connector in the Cobalt is the blue wire, and as per convention, the red wires are positive and the black ground, matching this battery. So the yellow wire on the battery would attach to the blue Cobalt position. As this battery is used in Logitech products, it should be available, probably from a variety of sources worldwide.

Here is a product description from Amazon, search for this:

WRUMI 2500mah 533-000132 for Logitech Battery G933, G933S, G533, G533S, G935 Headset Battery​

Hope this helps some of you with battery issues.

Ron

 

[wizbangdoodle]

Ron, great to see you're still actively supporting the Cobalt here on the forums.

I have a version 1 that will not power up. I had loaned it to a friend in Grand Cayman and they think it may have flooded. I have removed the battery and there is no evidence of flooding in that compartment and the battery measures 3.7vdc. Is there a way to get this working again?

 

[RonR]

Ron, great to see you're still actively supporting the Cobalt here on the forums.

I have a version 1 that will not power up. I had loaned it to a friend in Grand Cayman and they think it may have flooded. I have removed the battery and there is no evidence of flooding in that compartment and the battery measures 3.7vdc. Is there a way to get this working again?

If it has not flooded (do you see moisture or condensation behind the lens?) then most likely it can be brought back up. I assume you have tried removing and re-installing the battery?

It's hard to say without seeing the Cobalt, though. I'll message you with suggestions about getting the Cobalt to us so we can take a look.

-Ron

 

[tursiops]

Ron, my friend's Cobalt 1 is dead. The AC power supply shows voltage at the connector. But nothing shows coming through the dongle to plug into the computer. on the other side of the dongle The USB side does show voltage at the dongle sockets if the USB-A is plugged into a supply....but nothing on the AC side. Can the dongle simply be bad? The battery itself is dead as s doornail, no voltage at its terminals.

 

[RonR]

Ron, my friend's Cobalt 1 is dead. The AC power supply shows voltage at the connector. But nothing shows coming through the dongle to plug into the computer. on the other side of the dongle The USB side does show voltage at the dongle sockets if the USB-A is plugged into a supply....but nothing on the AC side. Can the dongle simply be bad? The battery itself is dead as s doornail, no voltage at its terminals.

Probably the adapter is damaged on the A/C side, this is electrically independent from the USB side. Impact or force can lift the connector off of the PCB.

If the battery is dead the Cobalt 1 won't restart just from a USB connection. But probably you can restart it by connecting USB to a computer and updating the firmware using the instructions for the Cobalt 1 on the Atomic website. Another alternative is to completely remove and reset the battery. Either path should get the Cobalt to restart.

If you have the battery out and it's dead, then try charging the Cobalt with USB. This will charge the battery fine, but won't generate a reset pulse to restart the Cobalt. For that you need to then remove and reset the battery. It should restart when the charged battery is reconnected.

I think adapters (dongle) are still available from Atomic, and replacing the adapter is the best solution.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Ron

 

[tursiops]

Probably the adapter is damaged on the A/C side, this is electrically independent from the USB side. Impact or force can lift the connector off of the PCB.

If the battery is dead the Cobalt 1 won't restart just from a USB connection. But probably you can restart it by connecting USB to a computer and updating the firmware using the instructions for the Cobalt 1 on the Atomic website. Another alternative is to completely remove and reset the battery. Either path should get the Cobalt to restart.

If you have the battery out and it's dead, then try charging the Cobalt with USB. This will charge the battery fine, but won't generate a reset pulse to restart the Cobalt. For that you need to then remove and reset the battery. It should restart when the charged battery is reconnected.

I think adapters (dongle) are still available from Atomic, and replacing the adapter is the best solution.

Let me know if you have any questions.

Ron

Thanks. Turns out she has another adapter...older...we'll see if that works. Appreciate your help.

 

[RonR]

Thanks. Turns out she has another adapter...older...we'll see if that works. Appreciate your help.

If the A/C side works on the old adapter that should reboot the Cobalt from a dead battery. Let me know if you need any more information.
Ron