I am looking at acquiring my first Android phone and came across this used Nexus S offering: "The Phone is in great shape and there are no scratches on the screen. The phone comes with a case, screen cleaner, charger, and original box plus manual. Reason I am selling the phone is because my friend tried to root the phone, and now it doesn't connect to WiFi anymore. It seem to be a software problem(easily fixable). Everything else in the phone works fine it can still connect to 3G make phone calls go on the internet." Does this device sound fixable? Since it is a Google phone and turns on, can I connect it to PC and download/install updates directly from Google to make it stock again? Or should I avoid this device altogether? I do not know what ROM was installed. Thanks in advance!
Should be, but hard to know for certain. For the right price, probably worth a shot. See the video below for how to unroot/unbrick/put the phone back to stock. Good news about Samsung phones is they're very hard to truly brick the device. If you have more questions, QBKing77 on youtube would be the best person to ask, he's great with helping people like this How to unroot the Nexus S 4G back to stock Android 2.3.5 - YouTube
It actually should be quite easy. I'm betting they just flashed an unstable rom, there are a few that will break WiFi. As long as you can flash a custom recovery and boots up just fine. You can easily just download a new rom and flash it in recovery. The only thing I would worry about is buying a defective device. You won't know if it will be the device or the software until you try flashing a new rom, and possibly radio. I wouldn't suggest paying for it unless you have a way to return it, if it is the device.
Thank you! I just watched the video. I'm not (yet) sure how to contact QBKing77, as I normally don't do Twitter. Should this technique work for any North American Nexus S or just the Sprint version?
I'm not sure, honestly don't know too much about the Nexus. If you have a Google/youtube account, you can click on his name and go to his channel, then click where it says "send message" and you should be able to contact him on youtube. One thing to make sure you do, contact the carrier and make sure the ESN is clean and clear before buying the device.
Thank you B2L. Makes sense. I'll have to ascertain if WIFI was working before the ROM flash - if it was, then its reasonably safe to assume that was the cause. Breaking the WIFI? Do you mean "permanently"? Now I'm getting scared As this would be a private sale, I'm skeptical about being able to return it especially since I won't know for sure until AFTER I attempt to restore the stock ROM using QBKing77's method. Seller wants $200 firm for this device-- I think that's reasonable assuming WIFI works. I've sent him an email and awaiting a reply. Any additional advice is warmly appreciated!
Yes the hardware could simply be broken. So you should be skeptical dealing with a private seller. I believe the warranty is no longer valid if it's resold. That is a very reasonable price for it, but if the WiFi is broken you may end up spending quite a bit just to fix it. The tutorial that was posted will only work for the Nexus S 4G. It's pretty similar to the instructions for the i9020 or i9023, Although it would be extremely confusing since they use different radios. But I would be happy to find you one that will work for another version. Edit: here's a good one. www.theunlockr.com/2011/01/20/how-to-unroot-the-nexus-s/
Is there any way to tell if WIFI is actually broken? Thank you. I've just heard from the seller: It is an I9020A and the ROM is "clear mod" no version or other data provided. I went there and d/l the stock ROM; its dated 12/22/10. One thing missing from these videos is the all important preparations before rooting, such as setting up Clockwork and any other backup/recovery procedures. I won't have any apps or data to backup. It is ROM or crucial system data I am most concerned. But in this situation I don't think I will be returning to the currently rooted ROM. Still not sure about this deal but the price is so tempting. Thanks again!
The tutorial will still work even though they are a little old. You don't need to worry about backing anything up. You could wipe data + sd card and be fine. As long as you can still place a rom on your sd card afterwards. If they say it's a "clear mod" and can't give you any details on the specific rom they probably shouldn't even have rooted the device in the first place. Lol. It's not possible to tell if the WiFi is broken without flashing a new rom or restoring to stock. Since the ROM they flashed could have disabled the WiFi, or something is causing it to not work. But if you were to flash a stable rom you could instantly tell if it's the hardware or software. If you do end up making the purchase, feel free to send me a PM with any help/rooting questions. I switch roms and kernels pretty frequently on my Nexus S. If you aren't very familiar with rooting this may be more of a hassle than it's worth. But it sounds like you are pretty knowledgeable, and might be able to handle it pretty well.
HaHa; Yes, that was evident from their ad. That makes sense. It would be challenging if not impossible to do whats necessary (re-flash) at time of purchase, especially since I've never done any of this previously. Thanks B2L
