The touch screen controls on my GW-52 does not always function. On a number of occasions, I've been able to set the device up to record a session, by unlocking the screen by simultaneously pressing Start and Mode and then starting the session by simultaneously pressing Start and GPS. The unit has then records the session without incident. However after the session I am unable to unlock the screen by simultaneously repressing Start and Mode and hence i can't stop the unit from recording my trip home in the car. The only way I can unlock the screen is to allow the battery to run flat, recharge the unit, after which the touch screen begins to work again

Has anyone else had this problem and been able to solve it?

I've had lots of trouble unlocking after a session but it always works eventually. I've usually found that if I set it aside until I've fully derigged and dried my hands it responds better.

Select to expand quote

John340 said..
The touch screen controls on my GW-52 does not always function. On a number of occasions, I've been able to set the device up to record a session, by unlocking the screen by simultaneously pressing Start and Mode and then starting the session by simultaneously pressing Start and GPS. The unit has then records the session without incident. However after the session I am unable to unlock the screen by simultaneously repressing Start and Mode and hence i can't stop the unit from recording my trip home in the car. The only way I can unlock the screen is to allow the battery to run flat, recharge the unit, after which the touch screen begins to work again

Has anyone else had this problem and been able to solve it?

gotta be the worse design ever John, i was playing with couple on Sunday that guys were having troubles with and i had dry hands.

The touch screen definitely works better if the unit is resting on something solid rather than held in the hand. I've no idea why this should be, but it does help.
It also seemed to me that the touch screen improved with age, but that may have just been me getting used to it.

I've just started to have the same issues with my GW52. It was working fine up to 2 weeks ago and I have since contacted Locosys to see if it can be fixed. They've sent me a form to start the warranty process. I initially thought the issue might be the colder weather and hence a less sensitive touch interface. This may still be the case. The main issue seems to be unlocking the screen. I find that if I try multiple attempts to unlock the screen it eventually works, which is not good enough. Also another way to stop the session is once you are home, to connect to the software and exit from here. It just means you will need to edit out your tracks home.

Mike, thanks for the tip. I'Ve just re read some of the postings on the GW-52 topic and Mark Jordan said the same thing. I've tried it and it seems to work. The proof will be if it works after a sailing session.

I spoke to John about his problem and will have a look at his unit as I set it up for him and it worked fine this was at home however with dry hands and on a bench even my unit is fiddly with wet and cold fingers but it does work. Next time I'm sailing with John I will see if I can unlock it after a sail.

Putting the GPS on a hard flat surface, when operating the touch screen, really helps. This morning I turned on the GPS and recorded my trip to work. I then successfully turned the GPS off and subsequently downloaded my file onto my computer. I also managed to synchronise the GPS time so that the unit now reads Brisbane time. So far so good and am now ready for a sailing trial on Sunday.

I get the same problem with my old GT31..very hard to unlock if I've locked it so I don't

Select to expand quote

sboardcrazy said..
I get the same problem with my old GT31..very hard to unlock if I've locked it so I don't

In the bag or out? I don't bother trying to unlock mine until it's out of the bag, that toggle is very hard to press straight down when bag pressure is also involved.

Sue the trouble with the GW52, is you have no choice, it automatically locks as soon as you select the GPS function. And unlocking is the most problematic of all it's functions for some reason.

i used the gw52 yesterday and was able to unlock it and turn off after the session

I used gw52 and dried my hands and put in on a flat surface then gave up. Edited track in GPS results before posting. Seems to be an issue after sailing.

Ian, as Decrepit said, it seems to get better the more times you use it, probably from practice and muscle memory.

I had massive problems turning my GW-52 off yesterday it must be the moisture of the rainy day plus the cool air. It would not turn off so I had to get in the car turn the air on and try and dry the air out even that would not work but some how Shannon got it to work. This is the first time my unit has been this bad so it must be the weather conditions moist air plus cold fingers makes touch screen not work.

I had the same problem. I eventually turned it off after drying my hands with the heater in the car. This unit may be accurate when in use, however the basic operations, eg operating the touch screen and connecting them to the coms port to download results, are unreliable. This is not good enough for a $280 unit. Do other sailors have these problem or is mine just a dud unit?

John, unfortunately I think it's fairly typical, but some are better than others.
I had no trouble connecting with with mine until a very small amount of condensation appeared on the pouch window. A squirt of CRC seemed to help, but a few days after that it refused to connect to the computer no matter what I did. I had a go at fixing it myself, and may have caused more problems.
Locosys has had it for a few months now and I've had no word about what the problem may be.

If anybody is determined to follow my stupid example, if it's still under warranty DON'T, send to locosys. The more examples they see of faulty units the better chance we have of improved units. If it's out of warranty, make sure you can get a micro usb port that's designed for hand soldering like the one in there. All I could find were opnes designed for machine soldering and the gaps between the pins was much too close to do with my old shaky hands. Plus unlike me, disconnect the plug on the mother board before attempting anything.

Here is something I have noticed the last few days playing with my GW-52's:

They actually work better if I use very light finger pressure and just on the very edge of the screen. I have found myself getting frustrated in the past and applying ever increasing pressure when it fails to operate on the first and subsequent trys. This is perhaps a fairly natural reaction for many of us.

However, after calming down a bit, experimentation showed that trying harder was very counterproductive.

I use my GW yesterday the weather was warm and the air was dry when I went to turn it off it worked 1st time what a difference the weather makes.

Select to expand quote

Boombuster said..
I use my GW yesterday the weather was warm and the air was dry when I went to turn it off it worked 1st time what a difference the weather makes.

Glynn, It was just being nice to you on your birthday.

Seems there is practically no waterproofing of the touch screen.

I finally ran into trouble with my GW-52. Despite double-bagging, a few drops of water got onto the device. The touch screen became unresponsive. When I plugged it in as usual to download the data (using VMWare on the Mac), I ended up with a corrupted file where all points after the first couple of runs were invalid.

Downloading the data on a Windows computer worked and gave file with the entire tracks (including the drive home). But after disconnecting the GW-52, it kept beeping, and the screen would flash and change what it showed. That stopped after 5 or 10 minutes, but then the "Mode" touch screen key wa sunresponsive. All other touch screen keys worked, prompting me to unlock the device by pressing "Mode" and "Start" - funny!

After storing the GW-52 on it's side to a few minutes, the "Mode" button started working again. I then took a close look at the touch screen, and noticed a small (3-4 mm wide) darker area on the edge of the touch screen, just above the "L" in the image:



Looks like a bit of water got in there, which creates some problems with the touch screen electronics. Why they call it "Waterproof" on the Locosys web site is beyond me. Even the GP-102 is more waterproof than that (and the GP-102 "waterproofing" stinks).

For at least 60% of the sessions I cannot unlock the screen after a session. With the water issue that Boardsurfr has raised, I'm now not even going to try. I'll wait till I get home. It's much easier to operate the touch screen when my fingers are dry and warm. Its also easy to delete the trip home in GPS results before I upload the session to KA72.

Select to expand quote

boardsurfr said..
Seems there is practically no waterproofing of the touch screen.

I finally ran into trouble with my GW-52. Despite double-bagging, a few drops of water got onto the device. The touch screen became unresponsive. When I plugged it in as usual to download the data (using VMWare on the Mac), I ended up with a corrupted file where all points after the first couple of runs were invalid.

Downloading the data on a Windows computer worked and gave file with the entire tracks (including the drive home). But after disconnecting the GW-52, it kept beeping, and the screen would flash and change what it showed. That stopped after 5 or 10 minutes, but then the "Mode" touch screen key wa sunresponsive. All other touch screen keys worked, prompting me to unlock the device by pressing "Mode" and "Start" - funny!

After storing the GW-52 on it's side to a few minutes, the "Mode" button started working again. I then took a close look at the touch screen, and noticed a small (3-4 mm wide) darker area on the edge of the touch screen, just above the "L" in the image:

Looks like a bit of water got in there, which creates some problems with the touch screen electronics. Why they call it "Waterproof" on the Locosys web site is beyond me. Even the GP-102 is more waterproof than that (and the GP-102 "waterproofing" stinks).

That's unfortunate boardsurfr about the water ingress. I must have got lucky with my accident. Double bagged and a catapult so a double puncture which filled my acquapac with water which had a gw52 and Canmore inside. Both are working perfectly fine. I cant say I can recommend the gw52 because of various issues already mentioned. to remove the access water in the Gw52, a common trick with the iPhone's is to leave it sealed in a bag of rice for about 24 hrs. It does suck out the water quite successfully. Good luck.

The black spot is still at the same spot a day later. I would have expected it to move or disappear by now (although it is very humid here right now). So perhaps it's not water. But regardless of what that spot is, the touch screen is definitely very water sensitive. The "automatic presses" yesterday were definitely from a bit of water in there somewhere.