Last Updated on June 13, 2022 by Dave Farquhar
If your Nook Simple Touch won’t power on, or is displaying a question mark (?) on its battery indicator, I have a four things to try. But before you go to the trouble of disassembly, try charging the device with a different charger. Some chargers fit more tightly than others, and as devices like these age, they can get picky about their chargers.
If a charger change doesn’t give you an easy fix, the next step is to disassemble it, unplug the battery, wait a good 30 seconds, then plug it back in and reassemble.
You’ll need a very small slotted screwdriver or another sharp and semi-flat object, and a T5 Torx screwdriver.
- If you have a Micro SD card in your Nook, remove it.
- Flip the Nook Simple Touch over and pry up the power button slowly and carefully with the small slotted screwdriver.
- Remove the anti-tamper sticker underneath, which will reveal a T5 Torx screw.
- Remove the small Torx screw.
- With the unit facing down on a table, push the cover down toward the table, then push in the direction of the Nook’s USB connector. The back cover slides off easily afterward.
- The battery is the component that has wires coming out of it and a white connector on the end.
To reset the Nook or reset the question mark on the indicator, unplug the white connector, wait 30 seconds, then plug the white connector back in. To replace the battery, remove the tape holding the original battery in, then place the new battery in where the old one was. Replacement Nook batteries are easy to find on Ebay.
To reassemble, make sure the battery is plugged back in, then slide the cover back into place, replace the Torx screw, then snap the power button back into place. The Nook will power on and behave much better now.
If your Nook Simple Touch won’t charge after following these steps, your charger is probably worn out. Any charger for an Android cell phone or tablet will work with a Nook Simple Touch as well.
David Farquhar is a computer security professional, entrepreneur, and author. He started his career as a part-time computer technician in 1994, worked his way up to system administrator by 1997, and has specialized in vulnerability management since 2013. He invests in real estate on the side and his hobbies include O gauge trains, baseball cards, and retro computers and video games. A University of Missouri graduate, he holds CISSP and Security+ certifications. He lives in St. Louis with his family.
This worked like a charm!
Thanks