Fixing "SD card damaged. You may have to reformat it" issues on HTC Nexus One/Desire.

I've got today this issue after I transfered a file from my computer (Ubuntu) to my Nexus One (which runs the stock Android 2.2). After I clicked "Safe Remove Hardware" in Ubuntu, I got the following error on my Nexus One: "SD card damaged. You may have to reformat it". I've searched for more hours on many forums, and it seems that this is more a regular problem for HTC Desire, rather than for the Nexus One (only a few Nexus One users reported this problem).

To be more exactly, this problems seems to be caused by a poor quality of the microSD with which these devices come. I've tried fixing this by rebooting the phone with/without the microSD card inserted, or with apps from the Market, but neither of them worked. I was not at home and I didn't have a (external) card reader with me, so I got stuck there for the moment.

After I got home, it took me some tens of minutes after I got this fixed, so here is what I recommend you doing. Insert the microSD into a card reader, because in this case you have access to what's inside it. Copy all the files on your computer (for backup), and then, using a utility application which can deal with storage drives and partitions, try to completely format the microSD using FAT file system. 

I've done it using "Disk Utility",  a program which comes preinstalled with Ubuntu. I'm not sure, but the default Windows partitioner should be able to do do the same. I've also tried formatting the microSD directly from the phone but it didn't work.

After you finish formatting the microSD, copy back all your data to it (do not delete your data from the computer yet! keep that for backup), insert it in your phone, power it up, and wait. If everything is fine, the device will start, slowly, to display all data you copied back to the microSD. Music and pictures are going, for example, to be displayed gradually (it may take a few minutes to display all music and pictures). If this happens, you may now delete the data kept for backup in your computer. The only problem is that I don't have anymore all apps I had installed on the microSD. Excepting this, everything is back and working.

If you still have problems or you need help with formatting your microSD, don't hesitate to request help via a comment.

HTC has plans about launching an own OS, but how about Android and Windows Mobile?

HTC, which is the company that has about 30 mobile devices available at this moment, announced that it has plans about launching its own OS. I don't know what is in HTC's mind at this moment, because I think that this is a stupidity. It sold lots of devices, with both Windows Mobile and now mainly with Android (because they are migrating to Google's OS), and it wants its own OS.

If HTC will have its own OS, it will definitely compete with Google's Android, and this is something bad considering that HTC is making devices for Google (Nexus One). The relation between these two companies can get cold really fast if this is going to happen, considering that HTC is the main factor for Android's impressionable ascension on market.

I didn't even mention Windows Mobile because it is clearly going to...nowhere. Microsoft announced Windows Mobile 7 recently, which won't be having an unimportant feature (in Microsoft's vision), but one which everybody uses, "Copy & Paste". Additionally, Windows Mobile 7 won't have multi-tasking. And will be quite incompatible with earlier versions of Windows Mobile. So, in my opinion, Microsoft is going to destroy Windows Mobile....

HTC said that it thinks about its own OS because it want to reduce its dependence of outside developers. Wait a second...what dependence ?! What is HTC talking about ? Dependence on Android ? I don't think so. On Andoid, HTC can do what it wants. It implemented its Sense UI, and can implement many others, and even contribute to market.

I think that HTC should think again about this, because, Andoid is the best option for their devices (I don't think that they will be able to create something better, for the customers).

Nexus One, peeling off problems?

I've got my Nexus One two weeks ago in the U.S. and I noticed yesterday evening that at the bottom at the phone, the paint has some marks. Exactly like those which appear on devices after using them for a long time, except that my Nexus is only two weeks old.

It's a great phone, the hardware is very powerful, the software is excellent, and it looks great. So I hope that this problem is not caused by a defective painted part of the phone. I was keeping it always (when I wasn't using it, of course) inside that sleeve case that got inside the pack.

There are some threads on Google forum on which several users complained about the same problem, and I am sure that some of them (I don't know if all them) were keeping their Nexus One inside the sleeve case they received in the pack.

So, the problem may be (and I hope that is) that sleeve case. I'm now not using it anymore, and I hope that my Nexus won't peel off anymore. Even if I bought it in the U.S., I live in the eastern part of the Europe so if the peeling continues I will call HTC for support.

Do you have any problems like this? Please let me know if you do by leaving a comment!

Below is a photo, showing the marks I have on my phone (I have marks on the other side also, but they are not so observable):

Will Windows Mobile 7 come in September, with LG?

After the announcement of Windows Mobile 7 at MWC (Mobile World Congress), rumors about the first phone which is going to have Microsoft's new mobile OS are heading towards both LG and HTC. The phone from LG will be most probably called "Apollo", and it seems that HTC is going to name their phone "Obsession". Nothing is unusual with the expected performances of these phones, except that LG Apollo might have a new Qualcomm processor, which will run at 1.3 GHz.

About the OS, Microsoft tries to attract people with the interface from "Zune", but I think that Windows Mobile 7 is going to be quite similar to Windows Mobile 6. Considering this, even if Microsoft tried to do a great impression at MWC, the new OS will still be pretty buggy, compatible with a low number of applications, and stylus-designed. The only new thing that is probably good related to Windows Mobile 7 is flash support, which Adobe announced that is working on.

LG Apollo is expected to come in September, while HTC Obsession is expected in October. I'm really interested what are they going to be capable of, but they will surely NEVER beat Android with their Windows Mobile 7.

I can't understand why Google isn't selling Nexus One out of the U.S.

This is the question I've putted myself many times since Nexus One has been launched in the United States. It is currently unavailable (normally) anywhere else into the world, with the exception of the UK, Hong Kong, and Singapore, which are "test" countries. This is pretty disappointing. I'm from Romania and I can't really understand why I can't get it here.

Hmmm...Ok, I can. A company is selling it here, but at about $740. Because, it is the only one who is selling it here, and there is no competition. Google says that Nexus One will probably be available in the spring 2010 with other carriers than T-mobile, so it might be available even in Romania then.

And this happens while HTC Desire is about to come. Google is now loosing millions of clients in the whole world, and the situation can get as bad as it can, because Desire is going to be a Nexus One replacement for the regions where it isn't available.

Apple vs HTC: the war of the patents.

Apple is accusing HTC of infringing 20 iPhone patents, because of which, they are now "fighting" in the justice. These patents were granted in a range of years between 1995 and 2010 (February 2). These is another interesting conflict between two big companies, which follows after the latest problems with patents (again, patents) between Apple and Nokia.

It seems that HTC has recently responded to Apple's attack, on Twitter, thanking everyone who showed their support for them.

Below is the list of the patents for which Apple is accusing HTC of:

• Patent #7,362,331: Time-Based, Non-Constant Translation Of User Interface Objects Between States

This is an interface patent granted in 2008 -- it's not specifically related to phones. According to the claims, it's a method of moving a GUI object along a path with a non-constant velocity for a period of time -- one of the claims specifically covers minimizing windows with a scaling effect like OS X, and two others describe a row of icons that rearranges itself when icons are added or removed, just like the iPhone's app dock.

• Patent #7,479,949: Touch Screen Device, Method, And Graphical User Interface For Determining Commands By Applying Heuristics

We did this one at length after it was issued in January of last year -- check out our Palm discussion for more. The big one here is scroll behavior: starting a scroll in a single direction locks you in that direction, but starting it at an angle lets you pan around freely -- just like the Android browser.

• Patent #7,657,849: Unlocking A Device By Performing Gestures On An Unlock Image

This one's cute 'cause it's brand new -- seriously, it was just granted on February 2. It's almost exactly what it says on the tin: it covers unlocking a touchscreen device by moving an unlock image. It's broad enough for us to say that it covers virtually every unlock behavior we've seen on phones, not just the iPhone's slide-to-unlock implementation.

• Patent #7,469,381: List Scrolling And Document Translation, Scaling, And Rotation On A Touch-Screen Display

Yep, we covered this 2008 patent in our Palm piece too -- well remembered, friends. Jump back to that for the full details, but the executive summary is that it covers the iPhone's distinctive scroll-back-and-bounce behavior.

• Patent #5,920,726: System And Method For Managing Power Conditions Within A Digital Camera Device

Granted in 1999, this patent is surprisingly broad -- it flatly covers managing power in a digital camera device to a power manager that sends state information to a processor controlling the camera.

• Patent #7,633,076: Automated Response To And Sensing Of User Activity In Portable Devices

This was issued in October of 2009, and it's really quite specific: it covers a phone with multitouch input, a proximity sensor, and an ambient light sensor, which allows input when the sensors indicate one condition and doesn't allow input in others. In simple terms? It's how the iPhone shuts off the touchscreen when you hold it to your ear, a scenario that's specifically called out in the claims.

• Patent #5,848,105: GMSK Signal Processors For Improved Communications Capacity And Quality

The year was 1998, and times were lean in Cupertino. Steve Jobs had just returned to Apple, and although the company's fortunes were turning with the introduction of the iMac, it was clear that a true breakout was needed. "We have the answer!" cried William A. Garnder and Stephan V. Schell, two of the company's employees. "We'll develop an an apparatus for extracting a signal of interest from a plurality of spectrally and temporally overlapping input signals containing digital data having a bit rate!" Years later, this patent would thoroughly confuse a young lawyer simply trying to make sense of this mad, mad world.

• Patent #7,383,453: Conserving Power By Reducing Voltage Supplied To An Instruction-Processing Portion Of A Processor

Another deeply technical patent, granted in 2008. On reading the claims, we're going to hazard a guess and say it covers powering down a processor when told to sleep, but this sort of patent is exactly why this litigation will take years and require many hearing to determine exactly what's covered.

• Patent #5,455,599: Object-Oriented Graphic System

This is the oldest patent of the bunch, issued in 1995. (You can really get a sense for how Apple's counsel has changed the way it writes patents over time by reading all of these, by the way. The older ones are really quite terse.) Again, it's technical to the point where we don't feel comfortable saying exactly what it means, but it covers building graphics objects with a processor and outputting them through various means. Given the fact that this predates Steve Jobs' return to Apple, we'd say this one was thrown in because Apple's lawyers think it's particularly strong, not because it has something to do with phones specifically.

• Patent #6,424,354: Object-Oriented Event Notification System With Listener Registration Of Both Interests And Methods

This one is actually quite interesting: it's from 2002 and is illustrated with drawing from Mac OS 9, but it covers event notifications passed among objects -- a system specifically described in the abstract as presenting a context-sensitive menu on the screen. That's very much the core of the Android UI, if you think about it. We don't know exactly what Apple thinks HTC is infringing with this patent, but it's one to keep an eye on, since it could have huge implications.


Okay, that's it for the federal case. Ready for the patents claimed in the ITC complaint? They're even more dryly technical, it's going to be a blast.

• Patent #5,481,721: Method for providing automatic and dynamic translation of object oriented programming language-based message passing into operation system message passing using proxy objects

This one's fun -- it's actually an old NeXT patent from 1996. And we're talking old-school NeXT -- the inventors are listed at Betrand Serlet, Avie Tevanian, and Lee Boynton. Anyway, this one is large, broad, and technical: it covers passing objects in an OS between processes by way of a proxy object. Again, given that this is primarily an OS patent and that Apple claims all of HTC's Android phones infringe it, it's hard to shake the impression that this case is anything but a proxy for a larger fight to come.

• Patents #5,519,867 and #6,275,983: Object Oriented Multitasking System and Object-Oriented Operating System

Apple lumps these older OS patents together, so we are too. '867 is from 1996 and covers accessing OS level services in a multithreaded way; '983 is from 2001 and describes an OS in which apps can access native system services and those services can make use of data associated with an object. Again, dry, technical -- and totally aimed at Android, not HTC itself.

• Patent #5,566,337: Method and apparatus for distributing events in an operating system

Another OS patent from 1996, this time relating to passing event notifications between objects -- like changing app behavior based on battery status. If you're not getting that Apple is targeting Android with the ITC case in particular by including low-level patents like these, there's really nothing more we can do. Oh, wait -- we can drop another six patents on your head.

• Patent #5,929,852: Encapsulated network entity reference of a network component system

This one is also interesting because of it's age -- it's from 1999, and describes a way for users to get at remotely-stored resources more effectively by using software "components" that deal with different data types."

Source: Engadget; more here and here.

HTC Desire - an updated Nexus One?

HTC launched a kind of update to the Nexus One, named Desire. It's a very similar device, having the same capacitive touch-screen (3.7 inch), the same processor (Qualcomm Snapdragon at 1 GHz) and the same battery (1400 mAh). But what's weird is the difference between battery life on devices which is quite big.

HTC Desire also includes a 5 megapixel camera, which has face detection capability (I don't know if the 5 megapixel camera from Nexus has this option). Anyway, both devices have G-sensor, digital compass, proximity sensor and ambient light sensor. Desire has 576 MB RAM, while Nexus has 512 MB RAM (the difference is probably felt only on intensive tasks). Both devices runs Android 2.1 OS, but Desire also includes the Sense UI, which is not present at Nexus.

Nexus costs 529 $, but it is not available worldwide yet. Desire has been launched today, 16th February, and I didn't get an official price yet. If I found out a price, I will let you know.

Nexus One. Do you like it or not ? :)

Nexus One has been recently launched, being already very popular. The phone is very performant, having inside a "monster" Qualcomm QSD 8250 Snapdragon ARM processor which runs at 1 GHz, assisted by 510 MB of RAM, which makes the device one of the most powerful available on market. It has 512 MB storage memory, and a 4GB microSD card included, with the possibility to insert storage cards up to 32 GB.

The screen (capacitive one, of course) has 3,7 inches, and a resolution of 480 x 800 pixels, with 100,000:1 contrast ratio and 1 ms response rate. It has a battery which a capacity of 1400 mAh, which offers up to 290 hours on standby, 10 hours while talking, and 5 hours while browsing. The camera has 5.0 megapixels, with recording possibility, geotagging, auto focus, and flash LED.

What I don't like about it is the plastic it is made of, which gives a sensation of cheap phone. Users complained, so far, about problems with connection through 3G networks. The phone runs on 2.1 version of Android, and it is available without any contract (network free) for 529 dollars.

What do you think about the Nexus One? Do you like it or not? Do you have plans about buying one, or you have already got one?