Help Radio Noise in headphones when charging?

[KSC7]

I just received my Nexus 10. Everything about it is great except when I use headphone with it. If the tablet is plugged in/charging, and I am listening with headphones there is a lot of radio interference or something.

The sounds seem to be related to the wifi radio, as they change in pitch and volume when the tablet is doing something. Although, the noise is there when no audio is playing and the tablet is idle. I have tried different headphones, tried moving the tablet to different outlets, and I tried a different charger. The noise is almost inaudible when the tablet is not plugged in/charging.

Does anyone have any experience with this problem? I am thinking about returning the tablet, but I wanted to get some feedback from other users.

 

[ov3rdriv3]

It's a known issue and unlikely to get solved even with your replacement tablet. From what I gather, it's a grounding issue. Have you tried using ground loop isolator?

 

[KSC7]

No, I don't know a lot about electronics. I will have to look into it.

 

[ov3rdriv3]

NP. You might get one for 3 or 4$ at eBay.

 

[atg284]

do not settle for that omg!

you should not need a "ground loop isolator" just to enjoy a $400-500 tablet!

RETURN IT! I cant believe all the apologetic people with this tablet just taking it up the 'you know what' and just accepting a faulty product. Unbelievable.

 

[KSC7]

That's how I feel. I will be returning it on Monday.

 

[KSC7]

Just to update...I just got off the phone with Google. The tech support person said that they have been getting a few reports of this issue. The tech support person seemed confident that a replacement would solve the issue.
I am a bit surprised that Google is shipping me a new one, and is allowing me to continue using the tablet I currently have until the replacement arrives.
I will update again when the new one arrives in a couple of days. Hopefully the problem will be solved.

 

[KSC7]

OK...update...I received the replacement from Google and it has a similar problem as my first tablet. Oddly the sound is a bit different with this tablet compared with my original. This tablet makes a buzzing sound, much like electrical interference, that varies in intensity with the level of screen brightness (brighter the screen=less buzzing sound). The sound is also present when I touch the screen with my fingers while it is plugged into the charger. As others have reported, the sound is present but not as loud under the conditions I described, when the battery is not fully charged. The problem is most severe with the screen brightness turned down to a watchable level, a fully charged battery and the tablet connected to the charger.

I don't think that this tablet is quite as bad as my original as far as the noise issue goes, but the new tablet has a good bit more light bleed around the edges of the screen. So it seems that if I keep one of the two, I have a choice between less buzzing sounds when charging or less light bleed around the edges of the screen.

The issue with the buzzing sound is kind of trivial since the battery lasts for 6-9 hours depending on use. Although it is a bit disappointing that a $400 tablet with seemingly the best hardware available seems to suffer from some design flaws. What concerns me more is a thread in another forum about this same issue, in which a person describes this annoying hum when using an external drive connected to the tablet. I don't have a way to test my tablet while connected to an external drive...

Light bleed is such an annoying defect. Once you notice it, it becomes soo obvious. I have never owned an Apple product, but this situation has made me consider spending the extra money. Ipads seem to have similar issues. So if I were to abandon the Nexus 10, I cant find anything comparable that doesn't suffer from design/manufacturing issues.

Are my expectations too high? A $400 tablet with HD display and 6-9 hours of battery life, but I have to put up with intermittent buzzing and light bleed?

Not sure what I am going to do yet, but thanks to all who have replied to this thread. :hello:

 

[atg284]

Your expectations are NOT too high. A $400-500 tablet should not have the problems that this thing has. I was going to hold out to see if the quality control improved but sadly I don't think it ever will with this. Maybe the next iteration will be better. One can only hope.

I will never own an apple product but I have read that the ipad 2 & 3 had light bleed issues (especially 2) but the ipad 4 is pretty good (in regards to light bleed)..looks like they worked it out.

I just hope google/samsung/next manufacture has better quality control on the next 10 inch tablet they come out with. I will be waiting.

I would say ...you get what you pay for so if you pay $400-500 for a tablet it should be damn near perfect...For a comparison you can get a really decent laptop for $500.

Its my opinion but I would not be putting up with the buzzing or light bleed. I will warn you it seems very hard to get a good one of these. Also, my refund through google play took almost 30 days to get back to my account after many calls.

If you are returning just make sure they know it is NOT buyers remorse. I called once a week about the status of my returned and kept getting the runaround but it eventually came back to me. I will not be buying anything physical on the play store ever again.

Its a shame because I really wanted this tablet but I'm not going to lie to myself.

 

[KSC7]

Thanks, I agree with you atg284...I think it should be near perfect for the price...and I too have been looking forward to owning this tablet. I guess I am still struggling to accept the truth about this product. It isn't quite what it should be.