Apple Newton Charging Station

Apple Newton Charging Station
MessagePad Charging Station with the spare-pack bay empty (photo: Frank Gründel)
Manufacturer	Apple Computer, Inc.
Type	Battery charger and desk stand
Compatible	Apple Newton MessagePad 110, 120 and 130
Power	Newton power adapter
Part number	H0073LL/A (order number)

The Apple Newton Charging Station, sold as the MessagePad Charging Station or MessagePad Battery Charging Station (order number H0073LL/A), is a desk stand for the Apple Newton MessagePad 110, 120 and 130. With a MessagePad sitting on it, the station runs the MessagePad from the adapter and charges the NiCd pack inside it, and it charges a second pack in its own bay at the same time, in two to three hours. It came with a NiCd pack, an adapter and a pen. The MessagePad makes contact with the station through the contacts on the back of its case. The earlier Original MessagePad and MessagePad 100 used a different charger, the Battery Pack Recharger, described on Apple Newton NiCd Battery Pack.

Testing

Frank Gründel's bench test, done before opening the station, uses the labels on his photographs: LED A for the MessagePad, LED B for the spare bay, switches SW1 (pressed through a rubber part by a pack in the spare bay) and SW2, and the test points C1 and C2, where C2 is the outermost pair of contacts in the spare bay.

1. Plug in the adapter with no MessagePad or pack fitted. The voltage across C1 should be about 7.5 V.
2. Press SW2. LED A should turn amber.
3. Measure across the outermost contacts of the spare bay (C2). It should read 0 V.
4. Press SW1. LED B should turn amber, and while SW1 is held the voltage across C2 should be about 7.5 V.
5. Fit an Apple NiCd pack in the spare bay. LED B should turn amber, then green when the pack is charged, after about two to three hours. Four ordinary NiCd AA cells can be tested the same way with a piece of card wedged under them to hold SW1 down.
6. Put a 110, 120 or 130 with an Apple pack on the station. LED A should turn amber, then green when charged.

If the MessagePad charges but a pack in the spare bay does not, check the fuse between the two bottom-left contacts of the bay: it should read 0 Ω. Frank Gründel describes it as a 5 A type, most likely slow-blow.

Opening the station

1. Turn the station face down and peel off the four round rubber feet to reach screws S1 to S4. S3 and S4 are longer than S1 and S2.
2. A fifth screw is under the label. Either peel back the right-hand end of the label, or cut a hole 5 to 6 mm across centred 18 mm below and 6 mm left of the label's top right corner.
3. Separate the top and bottom halves. The three stacked steel plates in the bottom half are there only for weight.
4. Remove screws S6 and S7 (S7 is the thinner) and lift the board at the left side.
5. Take out the spring inside the temperature sensor and the small rubber part next to it that presses SW1 before they fall out.
6. On reassembly, refit the spring and the rubber part, and turn each screw backwards until it clicks into its thread before tightening it.

The one component failure Frank Gründel reports is the electrolytic capacitor directly below the adapter socket, which was visibly dead on his station. See Capacitor Failure Symptoms for what to look for.

Related pages

• Apple Newton NiCd Battery Pack
• Apple Newton MessagePad General Maintenance
• Apple Newton accessories
• Battery Refurbishment