How to root damaged LelikTek/ All Winner tablet, and reinstall Android - an able beginner's guide?

[almightymat]

Hello all,

Something has gone terribly wrong with my tablet and I need to root it and re-install Android somehow as otherwise its something of a brick. I'm totally PC-able and literate, and so am fine with following instructions regarding downloading, installing, and running whatever files and software are necessary, I just need a layman's step-by-step guide as I'm not that Android-literate yet? Thanks!

What went wrong:

• Dropped tablet a few inches onto work counter, edge-down. Crack /chip/splinter of plastic left sticking out, no operational issues. Obviously irritating, so needs repair/smoothing!
• Unscrewed case to press splinter back into place, superglue it down
• Accidentally left micro-SD in place when reassembling, broke it in half inside casing. This may have damaged its slot, not sure yet
• Replaced with a smaller capacity spare micro-sd, tried to transfer files from my PC
• After a few seconds of copy pasting into external sd, connection is lost. Always. If external microSD is removed, can successfully copy and paste into internal SD, no problem
• After messing around with factory resets etc I now have DEMO in big red letters across my screen. All seems lost...

I should point out that after I lose USB connection to the ext. micro SD the option to connect is no longer there in the tablet's 'taskbar', even after removing and reinserting cable a few times and restarting a few times. Eventually it comes back, before failing again the next time I try to use it...



It's a cheap trashy tablet, but I'd rather fix it than throw it away - is reinstalling Android my best option here? If so, can somebody provide me with easy-to-follow instructions? I'm windows-literate, but not so much Android-literate, and haven't been able to google anything straightforward...

Best, and thanks in advance,

Mat

 

[almightymat]

I've actually established that the tablet is already rooted (using Kingo Root) but any help in reinstalling OS would be much appreciated - or any other solution!

 

[almightymat]

Cough, cough.

 

[lunatic59]

Hi Mat,

Sorry no one jumped on this right away, so let me bring you up to speed on a few things about Android and off-brand devices. There is no universal installation for Android as there is for a desktop OS like Windows or OS X (or linux ... don't want to leave anyone out). Each "rom" is specifically assembled for the device's hardware making it very important that any firmware is the correct version for your device. With brand name and popular devices, manufacturers provide decent support and make the firmware readily available. In addition, many have a large development community that provide alternate firmware that works just fine.

The problem you're facing is that with the off-brand imports, just figuring out who made the thing can be a problem, let alone trying to get any kind of support. You should probably take a read through this thread: http://androidforums.com/android-lounge/631594-off-brand-phones-tablets-worth-low-cost.html

Assuming that you are able to get a copy of the stock firmware (sometimes if there are a good number of these devices around, someone will figure it out and post the files) then there's the process of flashing the firmware to the device. It's not the same for every device so unless someone else has the instructions posted somewhere, you're on your own. Many android devices have some common steps, but there's no standard and your's could require special steps. The only people who will now are the manufacturers or someone who's already figured it out.

The fact that you got a red "demo" on the display makes me think that in the process of resetting it you triggered something that puts it in a mode for in-store displays. I've seen TV's with a "showroom" mode and it's many times as simple as a reset button or a key combination when you boot it up. Again, your problem is going to be what that exactly might be. Documentation is notoriously vague, if it exists at all.

Finally, your biggest problem might be that the device has sustained physical damage. A shorted or loose USB connection could have triggered that demo mode where two pins are connected that wouldn't normally. I'm just guessing at this point, but without the manufacturer's support, that's pretty much all anybody can do.

Sorry if that's not much help.