Today, my N900 started playing up - the backlight won't stay on.

It just goes off after a few seconds even when I am using the device (ie it hasn't timed out).

Even though the backlight is off, the touchscreen is still active. You can hear the "click" sound when you press the screen and items you click on while the screen is blank are running/selected when I get the screen back on (usually by using the lock slider to "lock the device" and then using the lock slider again to unlock the device, which brings the screen back on).

I have tried a reboot (several times).
I have set the backlight timer to 2mins.
Turned off Power Save (whatever that does) and back on again.
I have "Display stays lit when charging" as on, but the display still goes off even when charging.
I am not using the Simple Brightness widget

Strangely, if I am on a call, the problem does not occur - the screen will stay on for the entire duration of the call (but goes off, very soon after the call ends).

I also tried playing a video through the media player and again, the screen stayed on the entire time.

During the call, the proximity sensor works correctly, so I don't think it is a problem with the sensor.


Anyone else experienced this problem ?

Is there some setting I have missed ?

Haven't tried a re-flash yet - hoping there is some other fix I can try before that.

Any ideas ?

Mine is giving trouble this evening. the light will only come on if the keyboard is ever so slightly open or closed. ie its as if the contact's in the slider are worn/out of line. Has any one come across this before. It's like a physical wear issue???.

hey i have the same prob tooo!!!
like evrytime i make a call with th slide off, th display goes, and thn thrs a button at th bottom next to the stylus, which whn u slide it comes back . but i cant keep doin tht fr the rest of my life! do u have a solution??

i have the same problem, in reverse...i can't reduce my backlight and it doesnt go out after the time period is over, or when i lock the device

i also experience problems with the backlight. if i gently slide the keyboard open the light won't go on. the keyboard backlight does go on though and the screen is responding to clcks!

i noticed that when i press the screen on the right side to open the keyboard the backlight will go on. so this looks like a wear issue on the contact. the phone is just a couple of weeks old !

I have a similar problem -

talk.maemo.org/showthread.php?t=47810

phone is currently with Nokia for repair...for the third time.

I decided to open up the device because it just seemed to be a loose contact. It turned out that the connector of the screen to the main board was loose. Now it works like a charm again!

Oh, and only try this at home if you're handy with tiny connectors and screws!

To the people who's backlights keep turning off.. Are you near any strong magnetic fields / Does it happen in one location and not another? The phone seems to use a magnet and reed switch to tell if the keyboard is open.. Just a suggestion

People please help o! My backlight keeps flickering on and off non stop! I'v done flashed my device, no remedy! It kills my battery and make my device unusable!

Ok, one question for you all:

Have you blocked the sensors with protective screen?