I threw out my Freewrite Alpha

I pre-ordered an Alpha then didn’t end up using it as much as I expected. Life happened and it sat mostly unused for quite a while.

A couple weeks ago, I decided to dust it off with the goal of writing more. When I plugged it in, the device was completely unresponsive except for the white indicator light.

I tried troubleshooting-different cables, different power adapters, different outlets. When that didn't work I reached out to Freewrite, per their recommendation I tried leaving it plugged in for 48 hours and attempting a factory reset. Still no dice. I asked about a repair and was quoted roughly half the cost of a new Alpha.

In looking into the issue a bit more I came across multiple posts suggesting that these may be susceptible to damage if charged with higher-powered (<5 volt) adapters which can potentially damage the charging circuit or battery.

At that point, I decided to move on. I chose not to repair or replace the unit and ultimately threw it out.

Posting because a) the repair costs seemed excessive and b) I suspect this may be a known issue/vulnerability with higher power chargers.