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Radio Flashing Questions

Just a few questions on flashing a new radio on a Sprint Hero, as I'd like to be sure I won't brick my phone and there really don't seem to be many guides on this.

  • Are certain radios only compatible with certain ROMs?
  • If so, what do you do if you want to flash a new ROM afterwards?
  • In the event a radio flash fails, can you attempt to flash a different one or is your phone pretty much bricked at that point?

I'll probably have more questions later, as the thought of bricking my new Hero is... well, I'd really rather not have to go back to my old BlackBerry.
 
in theory the radio should work with all ROMs. If you HAD to go backward in ROMs and HAD to have the older radio, you should be able to flash the old radio. If not, then a RUU should work. I had the same thoughts before I upgraded my radio. For me, there has been no need to go back to a 1.5 ROM.. Fresh 2.0d works great.

Now for the big question you asked. The answer really depends on how bricked the phone gets. if you can reboot into recovery, you should be able to reflash. or even RUU. if you can't get into recovery, I would at least try to RUU. if the phone just flat won't power on or boot. then it's dead. At that point, you have 2 options. Own up to it and buy a new phone or use your old phone. Or lie to sprint (if you have insurance or it's within 30 days) and get a new one.
 
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in theory the radio should work with all ROMs. If you HAD to go backward in ROMs and HAD to have the older radio, you should be able to flash the old radio. If not, then a RUU should work. I had the same thoughts before I upgraded my radio. For me, there has been no need to go back to a 1.5 ROM.. Fresh 2.0d works great.

Now for the big question you asked. The answer really depends on how bricked the phone gets. if you can reboot into recovery, you should be able to reflash. or even RUU. if you can't get into recovery, I would at least try to RUU. if the phone just flat won't power on or boot. then it's dead. At that point, you have 2 options. Own up to it and buy a new phone or use your old phone. Or lie to sprint (if you have insurance or it's within 30 days) and get a new one.

Well yeah, if you have insurance you could just "lose" the phone and pay $50 for a new one. But that's good to know, I would hope I don't brick it to that point... but could you explain what RUU is? I've been looking all over the place, and a bunch of people reference it but nobody seems to actually say what it is.

One important thing I would add to this is make sure before you flash a radio that you flash one that is for your phone (Sprint Hero = CDMA). Do NOT Flash a GSM radio as it will 100% brick your phone.

Hehe, yep, that one's a bit obvious... but definitely a good thing to remember (and why flashing a radio late at night is a BAD idea). This is the one I plan to try out:

Download: Radio Baseband 2.32.40.11.09 for Sprint CDMA Hero Geek For Me – Android CDMA Sprint Hero

Or... actually, apparently one that was posted a bit earlier is actually newer. Now I'm not so sure which one to try... hmm.
 
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Well yeah, if you have insurance you could just "lose" the phone and pay $50 for a new one. But that's good to know, I would hope I don't brick it to that point... but could you explain what RUU is? I've been looking all over the place, and a bunch of people reference it but nobody seems to actually say what it is.


RUU is a program that you run from your PC. it will completely wipe and reload the phone to brand new out of the box condition. you can always find the latest RUU over at Geek For Me – Android CDMA Sprint Hero

use the latest Radio..
 
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