10 replies to this topic

[zdiddy14]

The Nexus S was released a few days ago and thanks to the guys at and xda-developers.com and nexusoneforum.net I was able to successfully root my Nexus S. It was pretty easy but there were a few problems. So you want to know how? This guide is for educational uses only. I, nor this forum, will accept responsibility for damaged or bricked phones. Modify the software at your own risk. Also educate yourself on the topic. It's better to have more than one reference. This method worked for me, but it will not for everyone.

1. Download the files you will need
a) If you don't have the latest version of the SDK, dowload it

Please Login HERE or Register HERE to see this link!

b) Use the Android SDK and AVD manager to download the Google Inc. third party add ons, especially USB driver package, revision 4.
c) Also, my adb driver (Android 1.0 driver) didn't work so you might want to download pdaNet and install theirs by installing their software to your pc and following the instructions until you are asked to replace the driver.
d) Download the recovery image

Please Login HERE or Register HERE to see this link!

e) Download the superuser app

Please Login HERE or Register HERE to see this link!

2. Prepare the clockwork recovery
a) Place the recovery image into the tools folder of the sdk.
b) Fastboot the phone by turning it of and holding the volume + and power simultaneously.
c) Now connect the phone to your computer via the USB cable. Make sure there are no driver errors, if so reinstall the drivers.
d) Now its time to unlock the oem. Run the command prompt as administrator and navigate to the tools folder. i.e C:\Program Files\Android\android-sdk-windows\tools
Type the following commands to place the cursor. btw [Enter] means press enter, not type it in lol
cd..[Enter]
cd..[Enter]
cd..[Enter]
e) Now navigate to the tools folder, copy and paste the path from explorer window then [Enter]
f) Make sure the adb found your device by entering
fastboot devices[Enter]
You should see the serial number from your Nexus S. If not, the driver is wrong or you selected the wrong path.
g) Unlock the oem by entering
fastboot oem unlock[Enter]
You will be prompted to a "are you sure?" type of thing, press the volume + key to go to yes and power to accept. The locked status should change to Unlocked.
h) Now set the recovery image by entering
fastboot flash recovery recovery-clockwork-herring.img[Enter]
It should say complete
i) Now reboot the phone by using the volume and power keys

3. Now you have to install the superuser app.
a) Search for superuser in the android marked and download it.
b) Place the superuser apk file you downloaded to your sd card
c) Reboot into recovery
d) go to recovery, mounts and storage, and mount system.
e) now go back to install updates from sd and select the superuser apk file
f) reboot and enjoy your rooted Nexus S!!!

Edited by zdiddy14, 19 December 2010 - 01:05 AM.

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[BBCrackman]

What are your thoughts on the Nexus S

[zdiddy14]

BBCrackman said:

What are your thoughts on the Nexus S

Overall it is an amazing phone. Very fast!!! It feels very smooth in the hands and against the face. Also very light :) It reboots really quickly which helps when your rooting :) The two things that do bother me is 1) no micro SD slot, and 2) no LED notification reminder. Gingerbread is pretty sweet and I think the Google team has some amazing apps in the work using the NFC. Overall I'll give it a 8.5 out of 10.

[tweexter]

No micro SD slot huh? So the 16gb memory is 100% internal?

[zdiddy14]

Yup :( but it works a lot better faster mounting, writing, saving ect. But I would like to have SD in case I brick it

[R1Lover]

With that much internal there really is no need for an external imo....

[jlevy73]

R1Lover said:

With that much internal there really is no need for an external imo....

I guess people who wanted their entire iTunes music, movies etc wanted more storage. 16gb is more than enough for me but you know how it is, people always want more.

[jlevy73]

BBCrackman said:

What are your thoughts on the Nexus S

Coming from the Nexus One, here are my thoughts on the Nexus S:

1. IMO it's only marginally faster than the Nexus One (comparing stock Froyo on the Nexus One, to stock GB on the S) in terms of CPU. GPU feels smoother than Nexus One but no better than the G2.
2. Screen is WAY better on the S.
3. The Nexus S has fixed the touch screen sensitivity issue of the Nexus One (i.e multi-touch works flawlessly)
4. No LED notification is disappointing
5. Camera takes better pics on the S
6. Gingerbread is nice but not really an advantage persee as the Nexus One will be getting the OTA anytime now
7. Call quality and reception are both better than the Nexus One
8. Battery life is slightly improved, 16 hours of heavy use compared to 13 hours with N1.
9. On-screen keyboard has improved over the Nexus One (rounder keys and better spell prediction). However, my favorite is still the HTC IME
10. Build quality is not as good as the Nexus One. Like the Galaxy series, it feels cheap (but that's an opinion not fact)

Compared to the Nexus One, I give it a 7.5/10. If coming from a lower end phone I would give it an 8.5/10

[DrGadget]

The Nexus S works fine with the first ICS port from the SDK:

Google Nexus S GT-i9023, 4.0 [IRK40C] unlocked, rooted.
Google Nexus One, 2.3.6 [fireb33 GRK39F], unlocked, rooted.
NI Adam WiFi LCD, [blazingwolf's EdenX 2.7.1.NIA.WiFi]
[follow DrGadget on TabletRoms]

[DrGadget]

zdiddy14 said:

Yup :( but it works a lot better faster mounting, writing, saving ect. But I would like to have SD in case I brick it

... I don't think that is a good reason ... but an external SD card like the Motorola RAZR means lots of storage for music and videos.

[DrGadget]

jlevy73 wrote: Coming from the Nexus One, here are my thoughts on the Nexus S:

1. IMO it's only marginally faster than the Nexus One (comparing stock Froyo on the Nexus One, to stock GB on the S) in terms of CPU. GPU feels smoother than Nexus One but no better than the G2.
DrG: Much faster.

2. Screen is WAY better on the S.
+1

3. The Nexus S has fixed the touch screen sensitivity issue of the Nexus One (i.e multi-touch works flawlessly)
+1

4. No LED notification is disappointing
DrG: Use the NoLED app.

5. Camera takes better pics on the S
+1 But now there are two cameras

6. Gingerbread is nice but not really an advantage persee as the Nexus One will be getting the OTA anytime now
I am using Android 4.0 ICS and it is better than Gingerbread. Much faster WiFi and 3G

7. Call quality and reception are both better than the Nexus One
+1

8. Battery life is slightly improved, 16 hours of heavy use compared to 13 hours with N1.
+1

9. On-screen keyboard has improved over the Nexus One (rounder keys and better spell prediction). However, my favorite is still the HTC IME
DrG: Hacker's Keyboard is even better.

10. Build quality is not as good as the Nexus One. Like the Galaxy series, it feels cheap (but that's an opinion not fact)
DrG: Yes, Samsung phones have a very plastic feel. Much lighter than the N1 though.


Compared to the Nexus One, I give it a 7.5/10. If coming from a lower end phone I would give it an 8.5/10
+1