Handy 1 No Longer Working (Green LED)

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1

I’ve owned theHandy 1 for over a year now so it’s out of warranty. Last month, it started acting up. When powered on, the LED would pulse a faint green, none of the buttons responded, and the automatic calibration sequence did not run. The device was unresponsive.

After several weeks of this behaviour, the issue appeared to resolve itself unexpectedly while I was recording a video for theHandy support team. The LED changed from the faint green pulse back to a purple/pink colour after being powered on for a few minutes, the calibration sequence ran, and the device functioned normally. I initially thought the problem had been resolved, and used it several times (with minor issues such as the odd disconnection and having to wait a while before it would connect, but it worked). Unfortunately that did not last long and now it’s back to not working again.

When powered on, theHandy 1 displays a strong flashing green LED. None of the buttons respond. The automatic calibration sequence does not start and the internal motor does not automatically move. The device does not connect to my phone either.

If I leave the device powered on for 10-20 minutes, it will sometimes recover by itself. When this happens, the LED changes to purple/pink, the calibration sequence runs, the motor moves on it’s own as normal, the buttons become responsive, and the device works fine. However, this recovery is completely inconsistent.

Now for the past 2 days, I cannot get it working at all. That strong flashing green LED that would eventually turn to purple/pink after a random amount of time no longer happens. It is now exhibating behaviour similar to how it was before. The LED is now a faint, dim green. Sometimes it flashes, sometimes its solid. When leaving the power on, sometimes, this LED goes out completely. Sometimes the green LED will get brighter, sometimes it will stay dim. One time (and one time only) it changed to red.

As I write this message, the device has been powered on for over 40 minutes and the LED is still flashing a faint green. The device is running the latest firmware. I can manually move the arm up and down.

I don’t really want to buy theHandy 2 because the Handy 1 is good enough for me but if I have to, I will do, however, it’s pretty expensive, not to mention the cost of some of the accessories. If I can get this fixed, this is my preferred method. I also hear there are issues with theHandy 2 and so it might be worth me waiting for things to stablise?

2

My first guess would be a power supply problem. Have you tried a different psu? Any 12 volt 3 amp wall wart with the right barrel connector will work.

3

I was having the same problem today. I agree, the power supply cord is probably going. I moved mine around until I got it to work and then duct taped it in place. This is the third power supply I’ve gone through and ALL have been due to the cord.

I’ve had the handy 1 for more than three years,so one a year isn’t bad…especially with daily use. You can find them on Amazon.

4
5

Thanks for the relies and apologies for forgetting to mention but I already bought a replacement power supply from Amazon last month and it initially didn’t make a difference but during that small period of working again, I was using it. This is the power supply I bought 12V 5A 60W Power Supply Adapter, AC100-240V to DC12V 60W Converter Adapter Charger Transformer 5.5mm x 2.1mm DC Plug for CCTV Camera, LED Strip Lights, LCD Monitors: Amazon.co.uk: Electronics & Photo surely that can’t go bad as well? In such a short time?

6

Can I assume you’ve tried wiggling the barrel connector at the handy while plugged in? If you have another power supply for something that’s 12v and even 1 or 2 amps it would work without a load to make sure it’s not the power supply. It doesn’t have to be one with the “brick” in the cord, it can be one that plugs directly into the wall just as long as the voltage is right. What you’re describing really sounds like a power problem. It could be a problem on the motherboard but I’d rule out the easy stuff first.

7

I’ve had a look around my house. I have a few power adapters but they are either too high voltage or the barrel doesn’t physically fit. The ones I have is the one from Amazon which I purchased a few weeks ago, 12V 5.0A. The original Handy is 12V 3.0A. I’m not sure what that extra 2.0A means.

I have plugged back in the original power adapter and the LED is mostly always out. It might flash green once or twice, but it’s incredibly faint and just returns to being out (unlit). When I use the Amazon adapter, the LED ranged from a weak green to sometimes stronger at times. A few days ago, it was a very bright and powerful green.

Yes, I have wiggled the barrel connectors in both adapters and also moved the cables around, positioning above and below the device. Nothing is working. I think the device may have kicked the bucket :frowning:

There appears to be issues with theHandy 2 at the moment and also there are no valid discount codes available so I am hesitant to spend so much on a replacement.

8

Been trying both power adapters and can’t even get a green light to show up anymore. The LED is not lighting up at all. I think the device is dead :frowning:

9

Very possible. It could just be a second bad psu but you would need a voltmeter to figure that out. The amps on the psu aren’t important as long as it’s the required or higher, the device just uses what it needs, the voltage is absolutely important. Turning it on and it calibrating without running it or being under a load pulls very little current which is why I said you could try less than the recommended 3 amps if you couldn’t find one higher. That 3 amps is the max the machine should ever theoretically draw under full load.

If you’re going to get another H1 I think I’d wait a few weeks and see if they put it on sale at 50% off again for the American July 4th holiday.

10

Thanks. I have no other power adapters here that I could try and I think it’s extremely unlikely that my replacement power adapter is already broken considering I only just bought it. I don’t have a voltmeter unfortunately. TheHandy now does not light up at all. If I move the arm up and down enough times, I do sometimes see a very faint green LED but that quickly fades into nothing. I have manipulated the cable and the barrel.

I think the company should stand by their products and offer a longer warranty. This has not been out of warranty for too long but is now useless. I didn’t see worth to replace theHandy 1 with theHandy 2 but since this now appears dead, I may as well suck up the cost and get theHandy 2 pro. It does have some benefits. The question is, do I order it now or wait? I’ll have to have a think about that. Again, 1 year warranty seems a bit rubbish considering the cost of this device, the pretty terrible launch with all the faults people have reported and the warnings I am reading about the device not lasting very long and will eventually break.

11

Yeah, the H2 pro has its problems and I’m pretty sure they’re not even near fixing them all.

I’ve had my original H1 for about 5 years and it still works well but it did break in the 2nd or 3rd year. I repaired it, fixed what I consider a design flaw, and it’s been going strong ever since. When they first ran the 50% off special I bought another H1 because I wanted to be able to run FW3 on one and FW4 on the other. Turns out FW4 was more trouble than it was worth so now I’ve just got a backup.

Good luck with whatever you decide.

12

Thanks Jason. Are there any repair video tutorials that I can watch? Since my Handy1 is dead, it won’t do any harm to open this up and try and repair it? What do you think?

13

There are a couple of videos on the Discord but it’s a pretty simple machine. On the bottom there is a sticker and if you peel it off you will find 3 metric allen key cap head screws. If you take them out the bottom cap comes off and then the top cap will slide out with the guide rods connected to it. From there you move the slider up and off the top of the lead screw and then the two middle shell pieces come apart.

You most likely will not find anything to fix since the female side of the barrel connector is attached directly to the motherboard. It certainly won’t hurt to take it apart and look though since it’s not working anyway. There’s no real tricks to taking it apart and putting it back together as long as you leave the motor attached to the lead screw. Even then, you just have to be careful putting that back together with the right spacing if you do disconnect it. I take mine apart 2-3 times a year to do a thorough cleaning and lube.

14

Thanks, you’ve been very supportive, so I appreciate that. I decided to order theHandy 2 in the meantime. Let’s hope if there is an issue with it, it will happen within the first year. It said pre-order so not sure when it will actually arrive.

15

oof

16

??? What do you mean?

17

All I can say is good luck I personally wouldn’t buy in to things that have issues.