How to fix the trackball on a Blackberry Curve

I love my Blackberry Curve and have had it several years now but the trackball has caused problems on more than one occasion. I even considered switching to the new Blackberry Bold that has an optical trackpad, but I actually like the physical ball because you can scroll it faster.

The first problem I had was the actual trackball and plastic casing around it popping out. This started to happen after I dropped the device and it turns out the plastic ring around the trackball only clicks in at three points instead of four. This means that at the top, where it just floats above the plastic and doesn’t clip in, there is more of a possibility for the ring popping out or getting loose.

To fix a worn out or broken trackball just go to your nearest dealer and have them inspect it. My cell phone dealer had a replacement part on hand (which tells me this must happen fairly often) and they installed it right there after dusting out the inside area where the trackball fits.

  1. go to your phone dealer’s store
  2. explain the trackball problem and loose ring
  3. they will fit a new ring and trackball in for you for free usually

The second problem is software related and has to do with the trackball freezing. So the ball itself moves but when you scroll it the cursor on the Blackberry doesn’t do anything, sometimes you can click but you usually can’t scroll left or right. This is a fairly easy problem to solve. Just shut your Blackberry curve down and then take take the battery out.

  1. shut your Blackberry down by holding the power button
  2. take the back cover off the phone, remove the battery inside
  3. keep the battery out for a few minutes, then put it back and power on
  4. wait for the device to boot up and the scroller should work

One comment

  1. Thanks for the tip on fixing the trackball. Check out blackberryplace.com for water damage repair services and other fixes.