modded NX cradle to fit case

[rhart00]

I have successfully modded my NX cradle so that I can leave the NX in the vaja I-volution case while hotsyncing and charging. It turned out great. the case/pda fit in perfect and hotsyncing/charging is flawless. the whole process took about 30 minutes.i posted a few quick pics in the clie members gallery (http://www.cliesource.com/gallery/showgallery.php?thumb=1&stype=2&si=rhart00&cat=500&sort=1&ppuser=5142)

[n2ifp]

Very good! Nice Pics! The red is a hot color:).

[Importluva]

Looks good :)

[goyanian]

it is not the cradle, but the red case drew my attention.. a cool one!

[rhart00]

I uploaded a few more pics of the case since yall seemed to like it. I absolutely love it! see the link I posted at the top.

[KlondikeLip]

Great idea. I have to do that with mine. I have been using my old SJ30 cable for recharging and syncing so I don't have to pull my NX out of the Vaja. So what did you do to the cradle to make it work?
I see you got the Caterina leather. I've got the Caterina Sapphire (dark blue). I love the look and feel better than the floater leathers.

[rhart00]

yeah it is extremely nice leather. the caterina sapphire was my second choice. I think that or caterina red look so good with the gray NX. give me a couple minutes and I will post how exactly I modded the cradle. it is definitely worth it. never have to take the NX out of the case now.

[Ubik]

Cheers,I will try that whith my caterina jean case

[rhart00]

oh this is the short of it:

materials needed:
~metal saw or dremel tool
~eyeglasses screwdriver
~small screwdriver
~sander
~hot glue gun

procedure:

1) unscrew 4 screws holding metal backing on.
2) unscrew screws holding electronics (hotsync button, power input, plug, and circuit board)
3) remove electronics and place aside
4)pop out clear plastic panel that says "clie"
5)use either a saw (metal saw with small teeth works great) or dremel tool to cut the bottom portion of the plastic cradle off (where the hotsync button and plug is)
6)sand top of this piece flat until you get to the top of the screw holes (do this because otherwise the hotsync plug can't get close enough to the input in the clie)
7)reattach electronics and run wires exactly like they were originally
8)reattach the metal brace with only the 2 screws in the rear.
9)position bottom portion of hotsync cradle (where the hotsync button and plug are) so that the pda and case can sit on the cradle and still plug into the hotsync plug
10)use hotglue to clue bottom portion of cradle in place with a lot of glue (you can use some other sort of reinforcement also)

difficulty rating (1easiest-10hardest): 3

sorry it is pretty vague, I am doing this off memory and not too good at explaining things. ask questions or look at the pics if you need any more help. I will post some more so you can get a better idea. I am sure this same procedure will work for most cases. good luck

[Rick 098]

How much is the case?

[rhart00]

it was about $150 with options. vajacases.com

[franci miller]

I am curious about the case as well, is it still possible to put it in you pocket or is the belt clip att. protruding too much? Do you like it and is it protective? how is it in the tablet mode? I know a bunch of questions but the pictures on the vaja website are not telling enough.

[Submicron]

I took a look at the picture of the cradle and all I can say is "eeeeeek!" It's like cutting your lips off to make toothbrushing easier. You know, you could try putting some sort of 'schmooey' into the open areas, smoothing it out and painting it. Then you'd have a thing of beauty as well as functionality.

[rhart00]

Originally posted by Submicron
I took a look at the picture of the cradle and all I can say is "eeeeeek!" It's like cutting your lips off to make toothbrushing easier. You know, you could try putting some sort of 'schmooey' into the open areas, smoothing it out and painting it. Then you'd have a thing of beauty as well as functionality.


yah I am getting there. First step is to make it functional. then I can work on making it look good.

[rhart00]

Originally posted by franci miller
I am curious about the case as well, is it still possible to put it in you pocket or is the belt clip att. protruding too much? Do you like it and is it protective? how is it in the tablet mode? I know a bunch of questions but the pictures on the vaja website are not telling enough.


about the case. I absolutely love it. clie fits inside like a glove and isn't much thicker than the clie itself. it is very well padded though and the leather is extremely nice. there is an option to order it without the belt clip, and I wish i would have done this because I am never going to wearing this thing on my belt. but the metal attachment part isn't really that bad. it works perfect in tablet mode. I will post some pics of it so you can see. definitely worth every cent. if you have any more questions just ask.

[Submicron]

as posted by rhart00:
about the case. I absolutely love it. clie fits inside like a glove and isn't much thicker than the clie itself. it is very well padded though and the leather is extremely nice. there is an option to order it without the belt clip, and I wish i would have done this because I am never going to wearing this thing on my belt. but the metal attachment part isn't really that bad. it works perfect in tablet mode. I will post some pics of it so you can see. definitely worth every cent. if you have any more questions just ask.I looked at the I-Volution VAJA case as well and I also think it looks great. It's probably the least bulky of the case options (possible exception would be the aluminum cases). I ended up ordering a VAJA case as well, but opted for a less expensive model. The reason I went cheaper wasn't because of price, but because I wanted a case that would hold extra memory sticks. The I-Volution is beautiful and thin, but doesn't have any storage slots. I got the next level of case down from the I-Volution and with the options I chose, it came to $98 plus change and shipping. It should be here in a week. I had a VAJA case on my N710, and I believe that they are really the best PDA cases you can buy. If price is an issue, you can get a 'standard' VAJA case for the NX for as little as $55.00 plus shipping. This is still a very nice case.

[rhart00]

definitely agree that vaja cases are the best made.

posted more pics in the member's gallery of the NX w/ vaja case in tablet mode.