Modded xoom dock (usb host)

**jbecerril** · 04-18-2011, 01:42 PM

so i just modded my xoom standard dock to include a usb otg cable what do you guys think
It wasnt hard it took about 30 minutes but i should mention the audio port on the stand doesnt work any more
Step by Step:

1. Pull off rubber bottom gently (save it)
2. Remove plastic liner covering screw holes (too sticky to re-use and not necessary)
3. 6 x Torx T6 gets the bottom off
4. Couple more screws get the USB holder off the inside (remove the metal bracket and pop the USB connector out from the other side)
5. Using a utility knife, remove the plastic sheeting around the microUSB side of your least-favorite cable (the one you're OK destroying to make this work). This was the hardest part, since mine had hot glue around where the wires are soldered to the microUSB port. But you need the wires to bend at a 90-degree angle right where the solder points are so you can fit the dock back together. Make sure it fits into the slot on the dock and goes in as far as the original. Leave the old wire and bracket inside for future use. I taped the 2 bracket screws together and left them inside as well so I don't lose them. There is room inside the dock for all this stuff if you put it together carefully.
6. Drill a hole in the back of the dock (I routed it out of the top edge so I could slip the USB cable through as it was going together and didn't have to cut the cable and re-splice later).
7. Dremel the metal prongs on the microUSB male connector so it slides in and out of the Xoom easily (both sides).
7b.This is how the new cable fits in the dock with the wires coming out at 90 degrees. Doesn't look pretty, but you don't see it from the outside and it works.
8. Put the dock back together carefully (test the cable first, then test again with only one T6 screw so you know everything works).
9. Carefully re-stick the rubber bottom.

Note: the audio connector does not work since the cable has been disconnected. I care more about USB connectivity than audio-out.

thanks for this step by step made by anotherhaus

**SquintySteam** · 04-18-2011, 02:05 PM

Nice. How difficult was it?

**2CupsWithString** · 04-18-2011, 02:10 PM

How'd you do that? ! ?

**jbecerril** · 04-18-2011, 02:39 PM

Originally Posted by thefredelement

How'd you do that? ! ?

I edited my post with simple instructions

**dhendriksen** · 04-18-2011, 04:32 PM

I'd like to see a couple of parts of the inside if you don't mind. How many strands of wire are in a USB cable?

**jbecerril** · 04-18-2011, 04:44 PM

Originally Posted by DanH

I'd like to see a couple of parts of the inside if you don't mind. How many strands of wire are in a USB cable?

theres only five cables all color coded. You can also just swap the cables without splicing just do a little trimming to make it fit

**dhendriksen** · 04-18-2011, 08:47 PM

Does that mean no pics of the inside?

**jbecerril** · 04-18-2011, 09:24 PM

pics of inside now up

**Sport6** · 04-19-2011, 07:30 AM

I was thinking about doing this just yesterday. Nice job!

**Live2ride883** · 04-19-2011, 07:35 AM

Can you post some inside pics that show how you wired it?

**R2TheN** · 04-22-2011, 02:33 PM

1) What did you use to cut the case with to make the out hole for the USB cable?

2) The USB extender cord you used -- did it terminate on the side connecting to the dock with the 5 wire flat plastic white connector (if so, where'd you get it?) .. or did you cut the extender cord to place the 5 wires into the flat plastic connector inside the unit?

3) Small point, but what'd you use to put the rubber pad back in place? Super Glue?

Just curious on the details, I'm more comfortable with software... not so great on hardware when it comes to replacing wires and such.

If you can provide more details, though, this would definitely be worth breaking out of my shell!

**huckfinn** · 04-22-2011, 02:44 PM

Personally I am fine with the audio out, I just wish it also had HDMI. I do not want to shell out $100+ for the speaker dock when all I really want is HDMI. If there was an easy way to mod the standard dock to add HDMI I would be all over it.

**jbecerril** · 04-22-2011, 07:58 PM

Originally Posted by huckfinn

Personally I am fine with the audio out, I just wish it also had HDMI. I do not want to shell out $100+ for the speaker dock when all I really want is HDMI. If there was an easy way to mod the standard dock to add HDMI I would be all over it.

yea my next project for it is adding hdmi out

**Smokexz** · 04-22-2011, 08:06 PM

I am not going to do this because I have no dock for my Xoom but... how did you break the audio port?

Sent from my Xoom

**jbecerril** · 04-22-2011, 09:22 PM

Originally Posted by Smokexz

I am not going to do this because I have no dock for my Xoom but... how did you break the audio port?
Sent from my Xoom

i didnt "Break it " but since the audio port works through the micro usb on the dock and i switched the usb, the audio port isnt connected so it doesnt work

**haus#WP** · 05-05-2011, 10:43 PM

Thought I'd add to this thread with my own pics. I took jbecerril's suggestion and didn't bother splicing the original wire; thought it would be better to leave everything intact in case the mod didn't work, etc. Also I didn't want USB host, so I just put in a plain USB cable so when the Xoom is docked, it is automatically connected to my PC.

In a nutshell:

1. Pull off rubber bottom gently (save it)
2. Remove plastic liner covering screw holes (too sticky to re-use and not necessary)
3. 6 x Torx T6 gets the bottom off
4. [pic 1] Couple more screws get the USB holder off the inside (remove the metal bracket and pop the USB connector out from the other side)
5. [pic 2] Using a utility knife, remove the plastic sheeting around the microUSB side of your least-favorite cable (the one you're OK destroying to make this work). This was the hardest part, since mine had hot glue around where the wires are soldered to the microUSB port. But you need the wires to bend at a 90-degree angle right where the solder points are so you can fit the dock back together. Make sure it fits into the slot on the dock and goes in as far as the original. Leave the old wire and bracket inside for future use. I taped the 2 bracket screws together and left them inside as well so I don't lose them. There is room inside the dock for all this stuff if you put it together carefully.
6. [pic 3] Drill a hole in the back of the dock (I routed it out of the top edge so I could slip the USB cable through as it was going together and didn't have to cut the cable and re-splice later).
7. Dremel the metal prongs on the microUSB male connector so it slides in and out of the Xoom easily (both sides).
7b. [pic 4] This is how the new cable fits in the dock with the wires coming out at 90 degrees. Doesn't look pretty, but you don't see it from the outside and it works.
8. Put the dock back together carefully (test the cable first, then test again with only one T6 screw so you know everything works).
9. [pic 5] Carefully re-stick the rubber bottom.

Note: the audio connector does not work since the cable has been disconnected. I care more about USB connectivity than audio-out.

**yeedog** · 05-12-2011, 01:53 PM

cool, I'm going to try this now. Thanks for the steps!

**dhendriksen** · 05-12-2011, 03:08 PM

Yeah, I've been meaning to do this.

**Nar#AC** · 05-12-2011, 03:45 PM

Nice. Thanks.

**saninocencioj** · 05-12-2011, 08:56 PM

Thanks for the instructions. I will be doing this to mine this weekend.

**bigdave240** · 05-15-2011, 01:00 PM

Originally Posted by jbecerril

so i just modded my xoom standard dock to include usb in what do you guys think
It wasnt hard it took about 30 minutes but i should mention the audio port on the stand doesnt work any more
all you have to do is open it up using by unscrewing it from under the grip pad on the bottom
then switch the usb cable with the micro usb cable already attatched to the dock make a hole on bottom half of dock
put everything back together and your done

Has anyone tried adding a hdmi connector as well?

**ShadowsRayne** · 05-15-2011, 01:43 PM

Thank you... Love it

**haus#WP** · 05-16-2011, 12:20 AM

Originally Posted by bigdave240

Has anyone tried adding a hdmi connector as well?

That would be hard, since there's no HDMI connector in the dock to begin with. You'd have to cut a hole, get the connector to stick through, and match it up exactly since it is so close to the USB connector. And at that point you'd be seriously crowding the inside of the dock (there isn't much room in there).

**Complex Pants** · 05-17-2011, 07:41 PM

Have you tried thus with a USB mouse yet?

**NewAge** · 05-17-2011, 08:35 PM

Thanks for this guide. It showed me how easy this is and I have been wanting this for awhile. I did screw my cable up when sperating the plastic trying to make it bend 90 degrees to fit, so it was no ones fault but mine. I ordered another 90 angle micro usb otg cable and a standard one from China. Should be here in a month! But once I get them it will be a breeze to get it done.

And to the poster above. Using a mouse is the primary reason I am doing this. All the BT mice seem to have a problem whith the BT keyboard. With the otg cable and root I can use a mouse, swap external thumb drives and hard drives and a ton of other stuff and not have to take the Xoom out of the cradle.