Tonight I decided to reflash my N810 … I don’t normally decide to reflash a device too easily as the re-install process is always a pain. With the arrival of 2008, that process has gotten easier, but finally with Diablo dare I say it’s almost friendly.
I had to reflash in order to get video playback working again. Apparently either the rotate or Android hacks I’ve installed (no idea which) caused a glitch that made clear video impossible. Since I use my tablet for movie viewing on planes, this was a non-starter.
My process tonight was to remove the things I did not want restored (5 min), run a backup (5 min) and then reflash (< 1min). After setting the date and time, I followed the prompts on startup to restore from backup and choose the one I'd just made. The restore process too somewhere between 5-7 minutes and I would have been quicker if I'd just clicked "yes to all," but I prefer to watch what's going on a bit during these times. From there the tablet prompted me to restore my applications. I chose update all and it then proceeded to download everything and install in sequence. I was very pleasantly surprised to see that my custom folders from my prior build were ready to receive my freshly installed apps. This used to just add even more time to the process of rebuilding ...
My wireless connection failed at one point during the restore process which stopped the installations. The fail was on my router not the tablet and when it was ready for connections again, I simply choose, Tools / Restore Applications and the installation process resumed.
I’m back up running without worrying about anything for my trip tomorrow. No time wasted getting things back in order, just a fresh tablet yet familiar with all my apps, settings and prefs restored! This is great work by the Maemo Team!!
BTW - If you’ve been waiting to get an Nokia N810 Internet Tablet, Amazon (and others) have them as low as $299 which is a great price!