<![CDATA[PINE64 - General Discussion on Pinebook Pro]]>

<![CDATA[PINE64 - General Discussion on Pinebook Pro]]> https://forum.pine64.org/ Thu, 23 Jul 2026 10:41:09 +0000 MyBB <![CDATA[PineNote v1.2 - Charges Never Enter "Charging" State (Factory OS, RK817 Below Minimum]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20311 Thu, 02 Jul 2026 08:52:51 +0000 ttsp]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20311 Hardware

PineNote v1.2 (Community Edition)
Original factory-installed OS (never replaced or reinstalled)
Current kernel:

Code:
6.12.11-pinenote-202501281646-00249-g211ba27556cc
Installed kernel package:

Code:
linux-image-pinenote-stable 1.7

Timeline
The device arrived with approximately 40% battery.
I never installed an alternate operating system. The charging problem occurred on the factory-installed OS within the first day after unboxing.
The device operated normally from its initial battery charge but never successfully charged from any charger.
Eventually the battery discharged to 0%.
The interesting part is that the PineNote still boots and runs normally when external USB power is connected. I can SSH into it and run diagnostics. The only failure appears to be that the battery never actually charges.
Chargers Tested
I tested all of the following:

OEM USB-A ↔ USB-C cable
USB-A wall charger
USB-A laptop port
65 W USB-C PD laptop charger

Behavior is identical with every charger.
When powered off and connected to power, the charging animation appears on the display.
I also left it connected overnight while powered off.
Battery level remained at 0%.
USB Issue
Initially the device was affected by the USB issue described in PNDeb Issue #106.
After applying the recommended fix:

Code:
lsusb

works normally.
USB connectivity appears completely functional now.
Charging behavior did not change.
This makes me think the USB problem and the charging problem are unrelated.
Diagnostics
Battery state:

Code:
cat /sys/class/power_supply/rk-bat/uevent

Relevant output:

Code:
POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS=Discharging

POWER_SUPPLY_CAPACITY=0

POWER_SUPPLY_CURRENT_AVG=-168560

POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=346xxxx

The important point is that the battery never transitions to:

Code:
POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS=Charging

even while external power is connected.

Charger state:

Code:
cat /sys/class/power_supply/usb/uevent

Relevant output:

Code:
POWER_SUPPLY_ONLINE=1

POWER_SUPPLY_USB_TYPE=Unknown [DCP]

POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=452xxxx

So Linux clearly detects external power.

Kernel messages:

Code:
dmesg | grep -i rk817

produces repeated messages similar to:

Code:
rk817-charger: Battery voltage 3465880 below minimum voltage 3500000

rk817-charger: Battery voltage 3477640 below minimum voltage 3500000

rk817-charger: Battery voltage 3483240 below minimum voltage 3500000

I do not see any other charger-related or battery-related errors.
Package Status
Kernel package is already current:

Code:
apt update

apt list --upgradable

apt policy linux-image-pinenote-stable

No newer PineNote kernel is available.
What Seems to Be Happening
From everything I've observed:

USB is functioning.
External power is detected.
Charger is detected (

Code:
ONLINE=1
).
Battery is detected.
The device boots and runs on external power.
The battery never enters the

Code:
Charging
state.
Battery voltage remains below the RK817 minimum threshold (~3.5 V).
The battery never recovers, even after being connected overnight.

Questions

Has anyone seen the RK817 refuse to perform pre-charge when the battery falls below approximately 3.5 V?
Is there a known device-tree or kernel configuration issue that could prevent pre-charging?
Is there a way to determine from software whether the battery protection circuit has tripped?
Are there any additional diagnostics I should collect (debugfs, I2C register dumps, RK817 register reads, etc.)?
Does this behavior point more toward a failed battery or charging hardware than a software problem?

Any guidance from people familiar with the RK817 charger implementation or PineNote power management would be greatly appreciated.

Here are various diagnostic commands and their return values:

===== DATE =====
$ date
Thu Jul 2 08:50:52 UTC 2026

===== KERNEL =====
$ uname -a
Linux pinenote 6.12.11-pinenote-202501281646-00249-g211ba27556cc #1 SMP Tue Jan 28 17:04:28 CST 2025 aarch64 GNU/Linux

===== OS RELEASE =====
$ cat /etc/os-release
PRETTY_NAME="Debian GNU/Linux trixie/sid"
NAME="Debian GNU/Linux"
VERSION_CODENAME=trixie
ID=debian
HOME_URL="https://www.debian.org/"
SUPPORT_URL="https://www.debian.org/support"
BUG_REPORT_URL="https://bugs.debian.org/"

===== KERNEL PACKAGE =====
$ dpkg -l | grep linux-image-pinenote || true
ii linux-image-pinenote-stable 1.7 all Linux for the PineNote (meta-package)

===== POWER SUPPLY DEVICES =====
$ ls -l /sys/class/power_supply/
total 0
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 0 Jul 12 2026 rk817-battery -> ../../devices/platform/fdd40000.i2c/i2c-0/0-0020/rk817-charger.7.auto/power_supply/rk817-battery
lrwxrwxrwx 1 root root 0 Jul 12 2026 rk817-charger -> ../../devices/platform/fdd40000.i2c/i2c-0/0-0020/rk817-charger.7.auto/power_supply/rk817-charger

===== BATTERY SUMMARY =====
$ grep -E 'POWER_SUPPLY_(PRESENT|STATUS|CAPACITY|VOLTAGE_AVG|CURRENT_AVG|VOLTAGE_MIN_DESIGN|VOLTAGE_MAX_DESIGN|CHARGE_NOW|CHARGE_FULL|CHARGE_TYPE)' /sys/class/power_supply/rk817-battery/uevent
POWER_SUPPLY_PRESENT=1
POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS=Discharging
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_TYPE=Standard
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_FULL=4000000
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_FULL_DESIGN=4000000
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_NOW=1237024
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=3750360
POWER_SUPPLY_CURRENT_AVG=-179912
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MIN_DESIGN=3500000
POWER_SUPPLY_CAPACITY=31
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MAX_DESIGN=4200000

===== CHARGER SUMMARY =====
$ grep -E 'POWER_SUPPLY_(ONLINE|USB_TYPE|VOLTAGE_AVG|VOLTAGE_MIN_DESIGN|VOLTAGE_MAX_DESIGN)' /sys/class/power_supply/rk817-charger/uevent
POWER_SUPPLY_ONLINE=1
POWER_SUPPLY_USB_TYPE=Unknown [DCP]
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MAX_DESIGN=5500000
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MIN_DESIGN=3800000
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=4516000

===== FULL BATTERY UEVENT =====
$ cat /sys/class/power_supply/rk817-battery/uevent
DEVTYPE=power_supply
OF_NAME=charger
OF_FULLNAME=/i2c@fdd40000/pmic@20/charger
OF_COMPATIBLE_N=0
POWER_SUPPLY_NAME=rk817-battery
POWER_SUPPLY_TYPE=Battery
POWER_SUPPLY_PRESENT=1
POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS=Discharging
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_TYPE=Standard
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_FULL=4000000
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_FULL_DESIGN=4000000
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_EMPTY_DESIGN=0
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_NOW=1237024
POWER_SUPPLY_CONSTANT_CHARGE_VOLTAGE_MAX=4200000
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=3750360
POWER_SUPPLY_CONSTANT_CHARGE_CURRENT_MAX=2000000
POWER_SUPPLY_CURRENT_AVG=-179912
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MIN_DESIGN=3500000
POWER_SUPPLY_CAPACITY=31
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MAX_DESIGN=4200000
POWER_SUPPLY_CHARGE_TERM_CURRENT=300000

===== FULL CHARGER UEVENT =====
$ cat /sys/class/power_supply/rk817-charger/uevent
DEVTYPE=power_supply
OF_NAME=charger
OF_FULLNAME=/i2c@fdd40000/pmic@20/charger
OF_COMPATIBLE_N=0
POWER_SUPPLY_NAME=rk817-charger
POWER_SUPPLY_TYPE=USB
POWER_SUPPLY_ONLINE=1
POWER_SUPPLY_USB_TYPE=Unknown [DCP]
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MAX_DESIGN=5500000
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_MIN_DESIGN=3800000
POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=4516000

===== POWER-RELATED DMESG =====
$ dmesg | grep -Ei 'rk817|battery|charger|charge|power_supply' || true]]> Hardware

PineNote v1.2 (Community Edition)
Original factory-installed OS (never replaced or reinstalled)
Current kernel:

Code:
6.12.11-pinenote-202501281646-00249-g211ba27556cc
Installed kernel package:

Code:
linux-image-pinenote-stable 1.7

OEM USB-A ↔ USB-C cable
USB-A wall charger
USB-A laptop port
65 W USB-C PD laptop charger

Code:
lsusb

Code:
cat /sys/class/power_supply/rk-bat/uevent

Relevant output:

Code:
POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS=Discharging

POWER_SUPPLY_CAPACITY=0

POWER_SUPPLY_CURRENT_AVG=-168560

POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=346xxxx

The important point is that the battery never transitions to:

Code:
POWER_SUPPLY_STATUS=Charging

even while external power is connected.

Charger state:

Code:
cat /sys/class/power_supply/usb/uevent

Relevant output:

Code:
POWER_SUPPLY_ONLINE=1

POWER_SUPPLY_USB_TYPE=Unknown [DCP]

POWER_SUPPLY_VOLTAGE_AVG=452xxxx

So Linux clearly detects external power.

Kernel messages:

Code:
dmesg | grep -i rk817

produces repeated messages similar to:

Code:
rk817-charger: Battery voltage 3465880 below minimum voltage 3500000

rk817-charger: Battery voltage 3477640 below minimum voltage 3500000

rk817-charger: Battery voltage 3483240 below minimum voltage 3500000

I do not see any other charger-related or battery-related errors.
Package Status
Kernel package is already current:

Code:
apt update

apt list --upgradable

apt policy linux-image-pinenote-stable

No newer PineNote kernel is available.
What Seems to Be Happening
From everything I've observed:

USB is functioning.
External power is detected.
Charger is detected (

Code:
ONLINE=1
).
Battery is detected.
The device boots and runs on external power.
The battery never enters the

Code:
Charging
state.
Battery voltage remains below the RK817 minimum threshold (~3.5 V).
The battery never recovers, even after being connected overnight.

Questions

Has anyone seen the RK817 refuse to perform pre-charge when the battery falls below approximately 3.5 V?
Is there a known device-tree or kernel configuration issue that could prevent pre-charging?
Is there a way to determine from software whether the battery protection circuit has tripped?
Are there any additional diagnostics I should collect (debugfs, I2C register dumps, RK817 register reads, etc.)?
Does this behavior point more toward a failed battery or charging hardware than a software problem?

]]>
I am a happy and daily Pinebook Pro user since may 2021. The last years, I broke the USB-C port, then the keyboard panel at the left hinge.
I decided to replace the motherboard and keyboard panel, ordered the pieces and received them3 days after.

Then I had some free hours yesterday to fix my loved laptop. And I was really pleased by the well written documentation. I followed the section describing the different steps with very clear illustrations.
And in some minutes, I have a almost new shiny laptop.

Everything was immediately working except wifi and bluetooth, because the chips changed (BCM43456 to BCm43455) the new chip is supported by official linux firnware and same for bluetooth.

Very happy user Cool

]]> <![CDATA[Updated Pinebook Pro?]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20266 Thu, 07 May 2026 14:51:18 +0000 tantamount]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20266 I know there's a RAM crisis ongoing but is there ever going to be a new Pinebook Pro2 with more RAM?
Some chips are easier to get than others, for instance the 1.5GB chips are easier to get than 1/2/4 GB.
Therefore maybe a Pinebook with 6GB or 12GB RAM would be doable.
Cheers.]]> I know there's a RAM crisis ongoing but is there ever going to be a new Pinebook Pro2 with more RAM?
Some chips are easier to get than others, for instance the 1.5GB chips are easier to get than 1/2/4 GB.
Therefore maybe a Pinebook with 6GB or 12GB RAM would be doable.
Cheers.]]> <![CDATA[Finally got Kali working on my Pinebook Pro!]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20244 Sat, 04 Apr 2026 14:00:51 +0000 qingss0]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20244 I bought a crashed second-hand Pinebook Pro for a rock-bottom price.After some thinking and several attempts, I finally managed to get Kali Linux up and running properly on my Pinebook Pro.

What worked for me:

Switched to USTC (University of Science and Technology of China) mirrors
Used a command to bypass the command-not-found hook error.

Feels great to see apt-update complete without segmentation faults or decompression errors. The Pinebook Pro is finally usable with Kali!]]> I bought a crashed second-hand Pinebook Pro for a rock-bottom price.After some thinking and several attempts, I finally managed to get Kali Linux up and running properly on my Pinebook Pro.

What worked for me:

Switched to USTC (University of Science and Technology of China) mirrors
Used a command to bypass the command-not-found hook error.

Feels great to see apt-update complete without segmentation faults or decompression errors. The Pinebook Pro is finally usable with Kali!]]> <![CDATA[Charging problem]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20243 Sat, 04 Apr 2026 13:30:31 +0000 RicTor]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20243
I have been investigating and think I have found what is happening - hence how to trigger charging. But I don't know why!

Anyone else have the problem?

Are there any experts here who know the power / charging system? I can use help understanding the schematic...]]>
I have been investigating and think I have found what is happening - hence how to trigger charging. But I don't know why!

Anyone else have the problem?

Are there any experts here who know the power / charging system? I can use help understanding the schematic...]]> <![CDATA[dead Pinebook - help please]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20201 Wed, 25 Feb 2026 14:49:09 +0000 RicTor]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20201
But the PBP now will not switch on. I have checked all connections, ribbons etc. All look OK.

Can anyone help me with tests to find the problem? Email would be very useful.]]>
But the PBP now will not switch on. I have checked all connections, ribbons etc. All look OK.

Can anyone help me with tests to find the problem? Email would be very useful.]]> <![CDATA[What to can't boot from TF card, EMMC system broken - any advice?do guys?]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20124 Thu, 18 Dec 2025 05:55:59 +0000 qingss0]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20124 I’ve been having a bit of a struggle with my Pinebook Pro and could really use some advice. Here’s what happened:

When I got the device here in China, the previous owner had already messed up the system on the EMMC. I downloaded a Kali image, booted from the TF card, and tried to write it to the EMMC—but the process kept freezing with a blinking red light.

A friend here suggested ditching Kali for Debian, so I DD’d Armbian straight to the EMMC. That didn’t boot either, and later even my TF card with Kali wouldn’t boot. I realized I was locked out.

After some searching, I tried DietPi. It actually worked! I got in that night. But the next day, while trying to install xfce4, a package failed and broke apt. I managed a rough fix with some help (thanks DeepSeek), but on the next try, another package failed.

With no spare TF card around, I tried to manually fix apt… and ended up breaking glibc. Now the screen stays blank on boot.

I thought making a new TF card would save me, but the Pinebook won’t boot from it anymore—it just goes to the broken EMMC. I’m pretty stuck at this point.

Has anyone dealt with something like this? Any way to force TF card boot or recover the EMMC? I’d really appreciate any tips!]]> I’ve been having a bit of a struggle with my Pinebook Pro and could really use some advice. Here’s what happened:

When I got the device here in China, the previous owner had already messed up the system on the EMMC. I downloaded a Kali image, booted from the TF card, and tried to write it to the EMMC—but the process kept freezing with a blinking red light.

A friend here suggested ditching Kali for Debian, so I DD’d Armbian straight to the EMMC. That didn’t boot either, and later even my TF card with Kali wouldn’t boot. I realized I was locked out.

After some searching, I tried DietPi. It actually worked! I got in that night. But the next day, while trying to install xfce4, a package failed and broke apt. I managed a rough fix with some help (thanks DeepSeek), but on the next try, another package failed.

With no spare TF card around, I tried to manually fix apt… and ended up breaking glibc. Now the screen stays blank on boot.

I thought making a new TF card would save me, but the Pinebook won’t boot from it anymore—it just goes to the broken EMMC. I’m pretty stuck at this point.

Has anyone dealt with something like this? Any way to force TF card boot or recover the EMMC? I’d really appreciate any tips!]]> <![CDATA[Pinebook Pro for sale]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20071 Sat, 08 Nov 2025 15:22:19 +0000 rfm83]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20071 For anybody in Southern California, local pick up in Thousand Oaks, CA.
Send me a direct message if you are interested.
Thanks.]]> For anybody in Southern California, local pick up in Thousand Oaks, CA.
Send me a direct message if you are interested.
Thanks.]]> <![CDATA[I think you can try compiling the PC version image of OpenHarmonyOS 5 or 5.1]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20064 Wed, 05 Nov 2025 08:25:14 +0000 wangyukunshan]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20064 <![CDATA[swap eMMC advice]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20055 Thu, 23 Oct 2025 15:42:53 +0000 jceaser]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20055
Any problems I should look out for or other friendly advice anyone wants to give?

(I also got the audio-serial adapter to debug things when it DOES go wrong)]]>
Any problems I should look out for or other friendly advice anyone wants to give?

(I also got the audio-serial adapter to debug things when it DOES go wrong)]]> <![CDATA[Bonk to boot]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20023 Wed, 01 Oct 2025 08:17:51 +0000 biketool]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=20023 Now though the regular from fully off boot activators (USB power or power button) but a good smack on my hand and the boot process starts. I have to guess there is a loose ribbon cable somewhere, any ideas what the issue is?]]> Now though the regular from fully off boot activators (USB power or power button) but a good smack on my hand and the boot process starts. I have to guess there is a loose ribbon cable somewhere, any ideas what the issue is?]]> <![CDATA[Pinebook problem]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19921 Thu, 24 Jul 2025 09:37:13 +0000 meghancordo]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19921 I bought the new Pinebook Pro back in August. A few days ago, while browsing the internet with Firefox on the standard Manjaro installation (no recent updates), I closed the lid to say goodbye to someone and forgot to charge it.

The next day, it wouldn’t turn on at all. I tried various key combinations in case it was a screen brightness issue, but I figured the battery must be drained. I charged it with the supplied charger all day, and the blinking red light indicated it was charging, but it never turned steady. Still, the laptop wouldn’t power on.

The following day, I charged it all day using USB-C, thinking the charger might not be working properly, but the same blinking red light persisted. The laptop remains unresponsive. I even tried USB booting with Tails, but nothing happened.

Today, I'm planning to open it up to check if anything has come loose.

Any suggestion is appreciated!]]> I bought the new Pinebook Pro back in August. A few days ago, while browsing the internet with Firefox on the standard Manjaro installation (no recent updates), I closed the lid to say goodbye to someone and forgot to charge it.

The next day, it wouldn’t turn on at all. I tried various key combinations in case it was a screen brightness issue, but I figured the battery must be drained. I charged it with the supplied charger all day, and the blinking red light indicated it was charging, but it never turned steady. Still, the laptop wouldn’t power on.

The following day, I charged it all day using USB-C, thinking the charger might not be working properly, but the same blinking red light persisted. The laptop remains unresponsive. I even tried USB booting with Tails, but nothing happened.

Today, I'm planning to open it up to check if anything has come loose.

Any suggestion is appreciated!]]> <![CDATA[Need new eMMC]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19916 Tue, 22 Jul 2025 11:27:25 +0000 Karsten1]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19916 I got my Pinebook Pro out of the cupboard again after a few years. Since the updates didn't go through, I decided to update it with a current Manjaro via the SSD card and then wanted to write the system to the eMMC.
It seemed as if everything had been transferred cleanly to the eMMC. Finally I entered "sync" and wanted to reboot.

Since then nothing works anymore. Pressing the start button shows no reaction. Even flipping the internal switch to start manually via the SD card was unsuccessful.

The system is completely dead.

A question for you: Is there anyone here who can reflash the eMMC for me? Or can I order an eMMC including operating system somewhere?

best regards
Karsten]]> I got my Pinebook Pro out of the cupboard again after a few years. Since the updates didn't go through, I decided to update it with a current Manjaro via the SSD card and then wanted to write the system to the eMMC.
It seemed as if everything had been transferred cleanly to the eMMC. Finally I entered "sync" and wanted to reboot.

Since then nothing works anymore. Pressing the start button shows no reaction. Even flipping the internal switch to start manually via the SD card was unsuccessful.

The system is completely dead.

A question for you: Is there anyone here who can reflash the eMMC for me? Or can I order an eMMC including operating system somewhere?

best regards
Karsten]]> <![CDATA[Older Versions of the PBP]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19901 Sun, 13 Jul 2025 09:23:30 +0000 Atton]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19901 <![CDATA[Printing and scanning documents with pinebook?]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19877 Sat, 28 Jun 2025 07:25:01 +0000 Www]]> https://forum.pine64.org/showthread.php?tid=19877
I want to use the pinebook or tab to print to printer, but also looking at bulk scanning with features like paperport. I know they are linux machines, but can they handel this? I have epson and brother gear.

I don't want to connect through the network and Internet, but through usb or wifi direct.

Thanks.]]>
I want to use the pinebook or tab to print to printer, but also looking at bulk scanning with features like paperport. I know they are linux machines, but can they handel this? I have epson and brother gear.

I don't want to connect through the network and Internet, but through usb or wifi direct.

Thanks.]]>