Droid Stick A2 Firmware With Google Play Fix

If you have read my previous review of the Droid Stick A2, I was pretty upset about Google Play since I could not install most of the apps. This is now fixed, and Kimdecent has released a firmware upgrade.

Here’s how to upgrade:

  1. Download g02refDongle-ota-20130201.rar
  2. Extract it in your PC, and copy the files (g02refDongle-ota-20130201.zip and uImage_recovery) to the root of your microSD card (Formatted as FAT32)
  3. Insert the microSD into Droid Stick A2
  4. Boot the mini PC normally, and launch the “Upgrade” app
  5. Select Local Upgrade, then select g02refDongle-ota-20130201.zip and click on Reboot and Install Package
  6. Droid Stick A2 will reboot, and it should start upgrading Android.
  7. Done

Since I’ve been messing up with Android and broken something, “Reboot and Install Package” does nothing for me (some permissions issues with /cache/recovery/command), so I could not verify this works or not. Finally, I could install it on the first version of Droid Stick A2 and Google Play now works fine.

In the other, newer, stick I’ve bricked (or sort of bricked), I’ve tried to enter recovery mode by shorting the two large pads below TP14 (See pic), and it does seem to enter a special mode, but my TV does not detect any video signals.

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50 Replies to “Droid Stick A2 Firmware With Google Play Fix”

  1. @Naismith
    It looks like I’ve now bricked another device. I used “update_Superuser.zip”, it failed to create the symlink to su, and for some reasons I don’t have access to the mouse or keyboard on this device, and it has reverted to Android UI for phones.

    Edit: A reboot fixed that, and my second attempt at apply the root method succeeded. Not sure what caused that.

  2. Any one knows if multichannel audio 5.1 passthrough works on this device?
    I am not sure but i think Amlogic AML8726 are the only android devices capable of dts passthrough through HDMI?
    Can you confirm?

  3. In the other, newer, stick I’ve bricked (or sort of bricked), I’ve tried to enter recovery mode by shorting the two large pads below TP14

    Read more: http://www.cnx-software.com/2013/02/02/droid-stick-a2-firmware-with-google-play-fix/#ixzz2LvCcegkS

    Yes indeed, it put’s in to a forced SD boot mode. Unfortunately the firmware has no u-boot amlscript logic set!

    You can how ever put, factorymode=1 into the build.prop under the u-boot.env settings to force the device to boot into recovery mode – if the NAND is working OK?

    Mine had a borked NAND so had to get a usb to serial TTL card and connect to the TX,RX on the underneath. Then short the pins near TP14 to boot from an SDCARD – dd the bootloader.img to the SDCARD, then copy the uImage and uImage_recovery (use an hex editor and remove the first 20bytes IMGdiff2 header), boot from the SDCARD, run a serial console program like ckermit and hit a key, then nand erase to fix all the errors, boot the uImage to recreate the MTD partitions. Boot into recovery and away you go.

    Use this as a reference – http://openlinux.amlogic.com/wiki/index.php/Arm/Platform_Info/Information_for_8726M/Burn_system_for_8726M_Howto

    sudo dd if=./u-boot-aml.bin of=/dev/sdb bs=640b – to SDCARD bootloader, using fdisk create the partition on the SD card but start the cyclinder from the next number i.e. first cyclinder 1, use 2 instead.

  4. hi people i bricked this device my one is called mk810 8726-mx dongle. all i see is @9 picture and then the android picture and thats it nothing else happens if i burn the u-boot img to the micro sd card then format and copy over files and while pressing reset hole power on the device i see a green light from within the device but its the same boot iget @9 pic then the android pic. i think i bricked it can any one help me plzz

  5. @cnxsoft

    naaa no luck i tried it on 2 pc’s and a ibm laptop and my main pc the tool did not recognize device even though i installed the right usb driver (worldcup) and the second pc kept telling me to pull out the device and the laptop keeps stopping at 7% load uboot and the other port at around 80% saying cannot find device or something

  6. update
    i dont know what i did but in one of the ports i got 100% success but the other one stayed on 7% red box but still device not booting at all

  7. The update procedure is the same(with Amlogic Burning Tool), but the firmware is newer & I think there is a newer Amlogic Burning tool included. I will upload later the document & firmware.

  8. So here is the document in original & crude translation, firmware update tool & firmware.
    https://mega.co.nz/#F!BdsU2CpS!dCvv9jCpIOZ7Hb4ab_CyBw
    Maybe it’s compatible maybe it isn’t. I’m not responsible if you break your hdmi stick. Does your stick look like Kimdecent A2 or AM911(AM6086A)? Do you have a MK810 firmware from the manufacturer? What version was installed on your stick?

  9. on the pcb it says amedia_am6086_V1.3
    http://www.cnx-software.com/2013/01/29/kimdecent-droid-stick-a2-review/
    its the same stick as the cnx link above except it has a reset button on the pcb and it came with android 4.2 but play store hat apps missing
    are there devices not all the same also i think i really bricked the dongle i dont see any @9 or android picture all i see is screen not detecded
    also made quick video https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o8_j6pkMqLs

  10. ok i some how got it to boot thank you sooo much Gabe that last link you gave it worked after countless tries encase any one is having same problems make SURE you go in to your device manager and un tick the top box in power management on all usb hub’s and make sure you run the burning tool as admin also gabe how do i install playstore it does not seem to have it

  11. nope i tried above method and i put the zip file into a microsd and booted up the device and whent apps selected update then external drive then selected the zip file then clicked on reboot and install or rather something like that what happens is that the device reboot and boots back into the system and nothing has happend

  12. i went back and reflashed it with another older firmware that has the playstore with all apps going to try to update again a little later

  13. @adem
    I’m glad you managed to revive your device. Did you receive a firmware from the place you bought it? If yes can you share it, maybe I’ll try to root it & add google apps.

  14. hey Gabe the firmware i got does not work perhaps i need a different flash firmware like the one you gave me you see when i got the dongle it came with android 4.2 and the 2 flash firmware i got are android 4.1 including the one you gave me. at the moment i stuffed it up again i am trying to flash it and its giving the same problems. also when i flashed it with the firmware you gave me it wouldent let me update with the zip files from within the system update utility or from the recovery but when i flashed it with another firmware then it let me update so it really depends on what you flash it with i will keep this thread updated so far i used g02refDongle-ota-20130305-rooted.rar and did not like it because some apps were missing from the app store and the bottom task bar was missing. g02refDongle-ota-20130201.rar this was good it had everything working fine and thefirmware you gave me with the flash utility did not have a app store altogether but it helped me revive the stick

  15. You are trying to install an older firmware that’s why the update fails(they changed to ext4 filesystem from ubifs in newer firmware). You have to use Hardware Flash firmware posted by cnxsoft with the reset button & then update to 20130201 firmware.

  16. sorry Gabe i made a mistake the link u gave me is actually 4.2.2 but iam stuck on fixing play store and do i need to root it

  17. I have a rooted firmware based on 4.2.2 in which I’ve put google apps, but in playstore there are many incompatible apps & the browser app doesn’t work.

  18. @gabe you seem to be knowledgeable about this, I have an ATV120 stick by geniatech, the PCB looks exactly like the one on this stick, geniatech told me they will not be releasing 4.2.2 for the ATV120 🙁 so I was wondering if this FW could be made to work on my stick seeing as how similiar (or probably even the same) they look.

    dor starters I noticed this one says g02refDongle on the updater-script but my device is stvmx, no problem there, I just renamed g02refDongle to stvmx and resigned the zip, but the installation fails with no error.

    how do I connect it to my computer to try flashing it witl this tool? by using the full USB ? or the micro usb?

    any help on getting 4.2.2 on my stick will be greatly appreciated!

  19. Sorry, it seems like your device is not compatible with g02refdongle firmware. You can try replacing the boot.img and bootloader.img with yours.

  20. Old thread but worth a shot.
    @ db260179 or anyone else.

    My one am6086a stick is fine.
    The other froze and wouldn’t boot back up. I sent it back. Came back all was well.
    I played with the working stick while the other was fixed. I flashed these firmwares 100 times. Stick is still good.

    Now stick that came back froze again won’t boot and aml burn tool will not Go at all. Failed uboot.
    Bought myself a USB to ttl which came in the mail today.

    Instructions above are vag I can make a sd card using sd maker. But lost from there. I am on windows but can make a live USB Ubuntu if necessary.
    Any help as how to repair mtd / nand “uboot” would be greatly appreciated

  21. @XiS
    db260179 told me:
    “You have to connect TX and RX to the boards rx,tx pins.
    Once this is done you will be able to set the u-boot environment variables via a serial program – putty or minicom.”

  22. Yes I tried AML Burn Tool. As stated I used multiple times on still working a2 stick
    non working a2 stick will not flash.

    Thanks Gabe that is more of what I was looking for. But more or less specifics. there are other guides I just hope they work with this stick via SSH.

  23. guys if its not working then try different usb ports this flash tool did not work on both my pc’s but it worked on sum of the usb port on my laptop pc and even then it would not work on some usb ports its very choosy i dont know why

  24. Gabe :
    I have a rooted firmware based on 4.2.2 in which I’ve put google apps, but in playstore there are many incompatible apps & the browser app doesn’t work.

    The browser that does not work, is for internet or filesystem?

  25. @Joe Malone
    Do you have the firmware that comes with your device? If yes, then that can be turned into a rooted rom.
    Prometheus root method is for the UBIFS system partition. I think your firmware already has ext3 or ext4 system partition. You can check with Terminal Emulator & running mount command. You can modify the updater-script to mount ext4 system partition.

  26. @Gabe
    Thank you for the response.
    I don’t have the firmware. I’ll try asking the seller, but i don’t have high hopes.
    You are right. It is ext4. I replaced ubifs UBI with ext4 EMMC in the script, used supersu 2.01 and signed the file with signapk. But now my update is aborted after verifycation.

  27. @Gabe
    Ok i tried with the builder from the prometheus forums. I was able to produce valid updaters. But the errors remained the same. symlink failure for superuser zip and no errors but also no root for the supersu one.

  28. Look for /system/bin/su, is it there? If yes, then try to run it in terminal emulator. Then check for superuser(you can update su binary from there), if it is installed or not, if not install it or install supersu.

  29. @db260179
    I’ve inserted the line:
    “ubootenv.var.factorymode=1”
    into the build.prop but it still doesn’t boot into recovery. Is the syntax wrong? Is there something else you have to do to get into recovery?

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