PRS-650 reinstalling firmware

cornishlee · 07-04-2011, 01:39 PM

Hi,

I just got my reader last week and it's working OK, apart from not recognising SD cards. I spoke to customer support today (tried emailing last week and got a very poor level of response - lies and evasion) and have been told that it needs to be repaired. I wonder if it's a firmware issue though, and would like to try reflashing the firmware before I'm deprived of my shiny new device for any length of time. Does anyone know how to do this? Whenever I try the official Sony installer it just tells me it's already up to date and won't give me an option to reinstall.

Lee.

elcreative · 07-04-2011, 01:53 PM

Unlikely to be firmware... do your SD cards work with other devices/computers... what format are they (should be FAT32)? Otherwise could very well be faulty...

cornishlee · 07-04-2011, 02:04 PM

Hi, yes, I bought a 32GB SDHC card to use with the device (one of the main reasons I bought it) which only provokes the response "This SD card may have been damages. Please try another SD card." The card works fine in my PC, but I formatted it just in case - no difference.

I also tried two other old cards I had lying around - an 8GB SDHC and a 256MB SD. The 256MB works, but the 8GB produces the same response as the 32.

Lee.

cornishlee · 07-04-2011, 02:07 PM

By the way - thanks for replying so quickly!

delphin · 07-04-2011, 07:35 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cornishlee

Hi, yes, I bought a 32GB SDHC card to use with the device (one of the main reasons I bought it) which only provokes the response "This SD card may have been damages. Please try another SD card." The card works fine in my PC, but I formatted it just in case - no difference.

I also tried two other old cards I had lying around - an 8GB SDHC and a 256MB SD. The 256MB works, but the 8GB produces the same response as the 32.

Lee.

Did you try using the 'Format Memory' option to initialize the card?

SD and SDHC cards can be fussy about working in mobile devices sometimes if they are not formatted in the device in which they will be used.

Formating the SD card will erase all data, so if the card is now readable on your PC and has data on it, you can use your PC to drag the data to a hard drive folder to back it up, then drag it back onto the card after it is formatted and working with the Sony.

You can find the SD card format option under ->

Settings -> Initialization -> Format Memory -> SD Card

Ashjuk · 07-05-2011, 02:38 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by delphin

SD and SDHC cards can be fussy about working in mobile devices sometimes if they are not formatted in the device in which they will be used.

True. I always format the SD cards I use with my DSLR in the camera itself.

Admittedly I have only ever had a problem once, but the general consensus of opinion is that you should always use the device itself to format the cards.

cornishlee · 07-05-2011, 03:53 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by delphin

You can find the SD card format option under ->

Settings -> Initialization -> Format Memory -> SD Card

Thanks, I wasn't aware of this option. I just tried it though and got the message "Memory card not supported".

azt33 · 07-05-2011, 04:19 AM

Does your reader actually support SDHC? I don't know which reader you have, but the issue may lie there.

elcreative · 07-05-2011, 07:02 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by azt33

Does your reader actually support SDHC? I don't know which reader you have, but the issue may lie there.

As the OP's device is described as PRS-650 this isn't a problem...

elcreative · 07-05-2011, 07:05 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cornishlee

Hi, yes, I bought a 32GB SDHC card to use with the device (one of the main reasons I bought it) which only provokes the response "This SD card may have been damages. Please try another SD card." The card works fine in my PC, but I formatted it just in case - no difference.

I also tried two other old cards I had lying around - an 8GB SDHC and a 256MB SD. The 256MB works, but the 8GB produces the same response as the 32.

Lee.

Did you specifically select and format as FAT32 rather than NTFS or other formats... current PCs have a habit of the default format being NTFS and none of the readers (or most other devices) like that...

cornishlee · 07-05-2011, 09:57 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by elcreative

Did you specifically select and format as FAT32 rather than NTFS or other formats... current PCs have a habit of the default format being NTFS and none of the readers (or most other devices) like that...

It is in FAT32. I just formatted it a second time to be double sure. Looking increasingly like I'm going to have to send it back. Very disappointing...

elcreative · 07-05-2011, 12:04 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by cornishlee

It is in FAT32. I just formatted it a second time to be double sure. Looking increasingly like I'm going to have to send it back. Very disappointing...

I think you have passed the point of "a problem" to "it's bust... please fix/replace it now!"

merrygoblin · 07-05-2011, 12:38 PM

I had a problems with a 32GB SD card I tried to use with my PRS-650, I couldn't get more than about 4GB of data to write to it (tried re-formatting the card several times, etc.). This was with 2 different SD card adapters (which I think were limited to 4GB cards themselves) _and_ when trying to write to the SD card through the reader.

After at least two lockups of the reader with the new SD card in (each requiring a reset), and after the card eventually became unusable (wouldn't register with the computer or reader at all, so couldn't be reformatted again), I gave up on that SD card.

I went back to using my old 4GB SD card (which still works fine with the reader, never had any problems with that one) and ended up putting the other data onto a more reliable 32GB USB drive instead.

I put it down to the new SD card being faulty, but perhaps the reader wouldn't work with more than 4GB also, I can't say for sure. I just know my old 4GB card still works fine, and the reader has never had any problem with that one.

Ashjuk · 07-05-2011, 01:08 PM

It does not just apply to SD cards.

I have a number of USB sticks that I use for mp3s with my car audio system. The first one I used would often not be found by the system it required the stick to be unplugged and plugged back in again before it would be read. Others I tried never did work, but the 8Gb one I'm currently using is found every time.

So it would appear that all flash memory is not the same, you have to find a card/stick that works for you.

But this only seems to apply to devices as I have never had a problem with any of them in a PC.

elcreative · 07-05-2011, 01:15 PM

Some of those problems sound like fake memory... cards/USB deliberately formatted to look much larger than they really are and then collapse when trying to use in real life... becoming increasingly common. Also many card readers, that are more than a few years old, simply don't work with SDHC cards... I've got at least three that are now retired...

07-04-2011, 01:39 PM	#1
cornishlee Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: PRS-650	reinstalling firmware Hi, I just got my reader last week and it's working OK, apart from not recognising SD cards. I spoke to customer support today (tried emailing last week and got a very poor level of response - lies and evasion) and have been told that it needs to be repaired. I wonder if it's a firmware issue though, and would like to try reflashing the firmware before I'm deprived of my shiny new device for any length of time. Does anyone know how to do this? Whenever I try the official Sony installer it just tells me it's already up to date and won't give me an option to reinstall. Lee.

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07-04-2011, 01:53 PM	#2
elcreative Wizard Posts: 2,888 Karma: 5875940 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: PRS505, 600, 350, 650, Nexus 7, Note III, iPad 4 etc	Unlikely to be firmware... do your SD cards work with other devices/computers... what format are they (should be FAT32)? Otherwise could very well be faulty...

07-04-2011, 02:04 PM	#3
cornishlee Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: PRS-650	Hi, yes, I bought a 32GB SDHC card to use with the device (one of the main reasons I bought it) which only provokes the response "This SD card may have been damages. Please try another SD card." The card works fine in my PC, but I formatted it just in case - no difference. I also tried two other old cards I had lying around - an 8GB SDHC and a 256MB SD. The 256MB works, but the 8GB produces the same response as the 32. Lee.

07-04-2011, 02:07 PM	#4
cornishlee Junior Member Posts: 7 Karma: 10 Join Date: Jul 2011 Device: PRS-650	By the way - thanks for replying so quickly!

07-05-2011, 04:19 AM	#8
azt33 Connoisseur Posts: 92 Karma: 2689022 Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Switzerland Device: Kindle PW SE 12	Does your reader actually support SDHC? I don't know which reader you have, but the issue may lie there.

07-05-2011, 12:38 PM	#13
merrygoblin Member Posts: 19 Karma: 17976 Join Date: Nov 2010 Location: UK Device: Sony PRS-650, HTC Desire	I had a problems with a 32GB SD card I tried to use with my PRS-650, I couldn't get more than about 4GB of data to write to it (tried re-formatting the card several times, etc.). This was with 2 different SD card adapters (which I think were limited to 4GB cards themselves) _and_ when trying to write to the SD card through the reader. After at least two lockups of the reader with the new SD card in (each requiring a reset), and after the card eventually became unusable (wouldn't register with the computer or reader at all, so couldn't be reformatted again), I gave up on that SD card. I went back to using my old 4GB SD card (which still works fine with the reader, never had any problems with that one) and ended up putting the other data onto a more reliable 32GB USB drive instead. I put it down to the new SD card being faulty, but perhaps the reader wouldn't work with more than 4GB also, I can't say for sure. I just know my old 4GB card still works fine, and the reader has never had any problem with that one.

07-05-2011, 01:08 PM	#14
Ashjuk Fanatic Posts: 500 Karma: 3498633 Join Date: May 2011 Location: Surrey, UK Device: Kobo Aura One, Sony PRS 600/650	It does not just apply to SD cards. I have a number of USB sticks that I use for mp3s with my car audio system. The first one I used would often not be found by the system it required the stick to be unplugged and plugged back in again before it would be read. Others I tried never did work, but the 8Gb one I'm currently using is found every time. So it would appear that all flash memory is not the same, you have to find a card/stick that works for you. But this only seems to apply to devices as I have never had a problem with any of them in a PC.

07-05-2011, 01:15 PM	#15
elcreative Wizard Posts: 2,888 Karma: 5875940 Join Date: Dec 2007 Device: PRS505, 600, 350, 650, Nexus 7, Note III, iPad 4 etc	Some of those problems sound like fake memory... cards/USB deliberately formatted to look much larger than they really are and then collapse when trying to use in real life... becoming increasingly common. Also many card readers, that are more than a few years old, simply don't work with SDHC cards... I've got at least three that are now retired...

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