OESF Portables Forum
Model Specific Forums => Astro Slide => Astro Slide - Android => Topic started by: RageVector on June 09, 2023, 01:08:28 pm
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Flash tool download - where?
I need to image off my astro slide, where do I get the tools from?
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Try https://androidmtk.com/download-mtk-droid-tool
Bye for now Fred
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Do NOT use Flash Tool with Astro right now. There is no scatter file officially available (although I have one, I cannot release it due to my NDA), and partitions vary from MTK device to another.
There is no multi-boot available, so I question why you need flash tool?
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I need to back (or attempt to) backup my astro slide before I send it off (really soon) for repair, the screen is borked.
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I don't think you'll be able to backup userdata, and restore it. You're best off using Google Backup for that
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Without a screen to see what I am doing I have zero chance of interacting with the phone in a useful manner
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Even if you had the scatter file, 'userdata' - i.e., your files - wouldn't be restorable when Planet fixes the phone. It's reliant on cryptography.
Your best best is to send it off to Planet, then restore it from Googe Backup, which automatically backs up the phone. You can use 'Activity Launcher' from F-Droid to trigger that.
Sorry to say this, but I think it's best to cut your losses with regards to data, and send it back for repair.
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Edit: Oh... I just found your Dead screen thread, in which you already thought of a (non Planet?) HDMI adapter. Sorry about the noise below then...
One somewhat costly and possibly slow to arrive approach, might be to get a Planet HDMI adapter. In spite of "Gemini" in the name, the same adapter works with the Cosmo and Astro as well.
https://store.planetcom.co.uk/collections/planet-accessories/products/gemini-hdmi-video-cable
On the Astro, it is a bit painful to use. On the other Planet devices, you could plug it in whenever (provided a certain setting was on). On the Astro, the only opportunity to activate external HDMI is during boot, which on the other hand, has the "advantage" of not requiring any settings beforehand.
When my V07 update went wrong (https://www.oesf.org/forum/index.php?topic=36924.0) and the screen in my Astro stopped working, I plugged in the adapter in the left side USB-C port, connected an HDMI cable to the living room TV and forced a reboot by holding the power button for close to ten seconds, until the Astro vibrated shortly. That gave me an external screen to work with. (I also tried a 24" Dell monitor, but it didn't like the HDMI signal).
While the previous Planet devices would output the same resolution as their internal screens, the Astro outputs a 720p picture at 60Hz, which isn't ideal but mostly workable, especially after tweaking the screen scaling and the fonts to the smallest possible.
As, in my case, touch doesn't work either, I used keyboard shortcuts to get into the settings, turned on bluetooth and paired a bluetooth mouse. While in flight mode (might not be necessary, but I don't know how the Astro would otherwise have reacted to me opening the SIM tray) I inserted a micro-SD card for file backup (which I preferred over online backups).
That left the right side USB port free to plug in power. That side does not support fast-charging but can keep the device powered. After adding a wired headset, I had myself a kind of "stationary mobile", allowing me to use whatever backup tools I want.