Note Pro and Nova Pro Upgrade to Android 9

Question Mark · 04-29-2021, 07:22 PM

Apparently, Boox has quietly released a flash tutorial and package which interested Note Pro and Nova Pro users can use to upgrade their devices to Android 9.

Here is the link to apply for the tutorial and update package:

https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...B_TmwXDWBIFVZ4

This information was made available on Boox FB page in the comments section to a post on April 20th:

https://www.facebook.com/boox.fans

I found out about this from a post from a user in the Boox Community Help forum:

https://help.boox.com/hc/en-us/commu...droid-9-guide-

Not sure if I will try it as I have never flashed any firmware before. However, I am currently in the process of downloading the package and tutorial.

Markismus · 04-29-2021, 07:29 PM

Very nice! Anyone successfully flashed their device to Android 9 using this tutorial?

Gibbo · 04-29-2021, 07:51 PM

Interesting I await further information.

Gibbo · 04-30-2021, 05:27 AM

Form submitted and files downloaded but not sure if I'll upgrade. The only reason I bought the Nova Pro was for the bigger screen and the Kindle app I'm not interested in note taking or anything else really, I use the KA1 for ePubs.

Gibbo · 05-01-2021, 04:35 AM

According to a user at https://help.boox.com/hc/en-us/commu...droid-9-guide- has successfully flashed Android 9.

Pajamaman · 05-01-2021, 10:49 AM

It's in French. He talks about a couple of delicate points where you have to carefully read the screen instructions.

Quote:

J'ai placé les dossiers décompressés dans le dossier racine de mon pc. Surprise : la boite de dialogue aux points 3/ à 6/ (The Rockchip Microdrive Assistant will uninstall related drivers of the current system.) est en fait en anglais ! La partie concernant l'installation du driver de flashing (Install Onyx device flashing driver)est un peu délicate. Il faut bien lire les instructions. Quand la boite de dialogue au point 8-3/ s'ouvre bien cliquer sur "device" puis sélectionner "Load Preset Device". De mémoire une fenêtre s'ouvre et il faut sélectionner "driver.cfg" qui se trouver dans le même dossier : "driver". J'espère que j'ai été assez clair. Bonne chance ! Nos amis anglophiles utiliseront Google traduction pour traduire nos propos

I'll translate when I have time. It sounds safe enough, just a tad convoluted and you must follow the instructions exactly. Apparently the upgrade is not a Beta. Android 9 is a finished upgrade on the Pro.

Much as I like to tinker with devices, my Nova Pro does all I need. If I bricked it, I would be pissed. But I d/led the files just in case I change my mind.

Question Mark · 05-01-2021, 02:48 PM

Well, I bit the bullet and... it works!! My Note Pro is now running Android 9. Had to repeat a couple of the steps a couple of times. Not sure why as I had been following the tutorial to the letter. But it all worked out in the end.

How and ever, I am now back to the Boox 3.0 firmware. Am hoping that it will eventually update to the V3.1 firmware.

Gibbo · 05-01-2021, 03:13 PM

Same here upgraded with no problems, read the instruction carefully and everything will be ok. Currently setting up device

.

BTW the instructions say The Rockchip Microdrive Assistant only provides the tool in Chinese but it's actually in English.

Pajamaman · 05-01-2021, 03:39 PM

Are there any significant differences? Does it run faster or slower? Is battery life affected? Is the UI different in any way (other than being FW 3.0)?

I guess my question is, is there any reason to upgrade if you don't need Android 9?

Gibbo · 05-01-2021, 04:28 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pajamaman

Are there any significant differences? Does it run faster or slower? Is battery life affected? Is the UI different in any way (other than being FW 3.0)?

I guess my question is, is there any reason to upgrade if you don't need Android 9?

Short answer No, long answer depends, I only use the Kindle app cos of the big screen don't know about the note taking side of it also it's early days yet for battery performance. I love tinkering with my devices.

Hrod · 05-01-2021, 06:18 PM

Onyx said on facebook that the 3.1 update for Android 9 will be available in the coming weeks.

If you're fine with 3.1 on Android 6, I wouldn't take the risk of updating to Android 9. Except if you love tinkering with your device of course.

I found my Nova Pro laggy on Android 6 since the 3.1 update. That's the main reason I updated it to Android 9.

Some internet sites won't be compatible with Android 6 or even Android 7 this year for security reasons. That's another reason to upgrade.

zzfeed · 05-02-2021, 02:25 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Hrod

Onyx said on facebook that the 3.1 update for Android 9 will be available in the coming weeks.

If you're fine with 3.1 on Android 6, I wouldn't take the risk of updating to Android 9. Except if you love tinkering with your device of course.

I found my Nova Pro laggy on Android 6 since the 3.1 update. That's the main reason I updated it to Android 9.

Some internet sites won't be compatible with Android 6 or even Android 7 this year for security reasons. That's another reason to upgrade.

can you extract neoreader,app market from upgraded machine? thanks

winstonma · 05-02-2021, 06:13 AM

Interesting... I would like to get my Nova to Android 9

If they can make rom for Nova Pro, Nova should not be a problem.

Question Mark · 05-02-2021, 01:41 PM

Apparently, one user has experienced difficulty restoring backed up notes after making the upgrade to Android 9. Not sure if there is an easy fix for the problem or not. Something to consider for those with extensive notes thinking of making the switch to Android 9.

Quote:

Seul problème détecté : impossible de restaurer mes notes depuis la sauvegarde locale effectuée hier. J'ai créé une note et j'ai pu la sauvegarder effacer et restaurer. Sinon, ça fonctionne mieux que sur Android 6.

Impossible to restore my Notes local backup done yesterday. Error message: "Failed to restore". The Notes backup/restore works on Android 9, but only with backups done with Android 9.

I wonder if the backup file can be read with a third-party software. These are old notes. They probably can be read on my Note Pro. I'll do a careful backup of my Note Pro notes before upgrading to Android 9.

Except for this bug, Nova Pro with Android 9 is snappier and Kindle works better.

https://help.boox.com/hc/en-us/commu...droid-9-guide-

Markismus · 05-03-2021, 07:04 AM

Yes. Not good. I've got at least 23pages of handwritten notes and about 30 typed notes in a work of Leibniz. So I'll have to finish those in a better format before I change.

I do remember them writing that you should at least update to firmware 3.0. I also remember someone reporting that after the change from Android 6 to 9 his firmware version devolved from 3.1 to 3.0. Lastly, I found that when I add a note to highlighted text in version 3.1, I get a tab with the annotated text. So there has been some reworking of the note apparatus between versions.
We also don't know whether the upcoming firmware upgrade for Android 9 to 3.1 will fix this import error.

So can anyone who has done the 6to9 update report on the state of their notes of 1) In text typed notes, 2) linked note pages and 3)linked note file. (i remember copy pasting linked note pages into a note file, because access to the linked note pages is rather iffy.)

04-29-2021, 07:22 PM	#1
Question Mark Wizard Posts: 1,419 Karma: 6513838 Join Date: Mar 2016 Device: More than I need, but not as many as I would like.	Note Pro and Nova Pro Upgrade to Android 9 Apparently, Boox has quietly released a flash tutorial and package which interested Note Pro and Nova Pro users can use to upgrade their devices to Android 9. Here is the link to apply for the tutorial and update package: https://docs.google.com/forms/d/e/1F...B_TmwXDWBIFVZ4 This information was made available on Boox FB page in the comments section to a post on April 20th: https://www.facebook.com/boox.fans I found out about this from a post from a user in the Boox Community Help forum: https://help.boox.com/hc/en-us/commu...droid-9-guide- Not sure if I will try it as I have never flashed any firmware before. However, I am currently in the process of downloading the package and tutorial.

Similar Threads
Thread	Thread Starter	Forum	Replies	Last Post
Choosing between Onyx Boox Poke Pro/Nova Pro or other	Iseabel	Which one should I buy?	4	01-25-2020 11:40 AM
Will Note Pro get Android 9?	Faeryink	Onyx Boox	1	12-02-2019 10:33 AM
Google Play store - Nova/Note Pro	Risto40	Onyx Boox	7	11-25-2019 09:39 AM
Onyx Boox Nova/Note Pro and Vitalsource Bookshelf	Risto40	Onyx Boox	0	09-12-2019 03:30 PM
Onyx Front Light Trick (Nova Pro/Note Pro)	Robert Bitzer	Onyx Boox	2	03-31-2019 11:35 AM

04-29-2021, 07:29 PM	#2
Markismus Guru Posts: 963 Karma: 149907 Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Rotterdam Device: HiSenseA5ProCC, OnyxNotePro, Note5, Kobo Glo, Aura	Very nice! Anyone successfully flashed their device to Android 9 using this tutorial?

04-29-2021, 07:51 PM	#3
Gibbo Guru Posts: 776 Karma: 2475053 Join Date: May 2007 Device: Galaxy Tab A (2019) - iPhone 11 - KA1 - Onyx Boox Nova Pro	Interesting I await further information.

04-30-2021, 05:27 AM	#4
Gibbo Guru Posts: 776 Karma: 2475053 Join Date: May 2007 Device: Galaxy Tab A (2019) - iPhone 11 - KA1 - Onyx Boox Nova Pro	Form submitted and files downloaded but not sure if I'll upgrade. The only reason I bought the Nova Pro was for the bigger screen and the Kindle app I'm not interested in note taking or anything else really, I use the KA1 for ePubs.

05-01-2021, 04:35 AM	#5
Gibbo Guru Posts: 776 Karma: 2475053 Join Date: May 2007 Device: Galaxy Tab A (2019) - iPhone 11 - KA1 - Onyx Boox Nova Pro	According to a user at https://help.boox.com/hc/en-us/commu...droid-9-guide- has successfully flashed Android 9.

05-01-2021, 02:48 PM	#7
Question Mark Wizard Posts: 1,419 Karma: 6513838 Join Date: Mar 2016 Device: More than I need, but not as many as I would like.	Well, I bit the bullet and... it works!! My Note Pro is now running Android 9. Had to repeat a couple of the steps a couple of times. Not sure why as I had been following the tutorial to the letter. But it all worked out in the end. How and ever, I am now back to the Boox 3.0 firmware. Am hoping that it will eventually update to the V3.1 firmware.

05-01-2021, 03:13 PM	#8
Gibbo Guru Posts: 776 Karma: 2475053 Join Date: May 2007 Device: Galaxy Tab A (2019) - iPhone 11 - KA1 - Onyx Boox Nova Pro	Same here upgraded with no problems, read the instruction carefully and everything will be ok. Currently setting up device . BTW the instructions say The Rockchip Microdrive Assistant only provides the tool in Chinese but it's actually in English.

05-01-2021, 03:39 PM	#9
Pajamaman Wizard Posts: 2,874 Karma: 10700629 Join Date: May 2016 Location: Canada Device: Onyx Nova	Are there any significant differences? Does it run faster or slower? Is battery life affected? Is the UI different in any way (other than being FW 3.0)? I guess my question is, is there any reason to upgrade if you don't need Android 9?

05-01-2021, 06:18 PM	#11
Hrod Enthusiast Posts: 29 Karma: 9646 Join Date: Apr 2019 Device: Boox Nova Pro & Kindle Scribe	Onyx said on facebook that the 3.1 update for Android 9 will be available in the coming weeks. If you're fine with 3.1 on Android 6, I wouldn't take the risk of updating to Android 9. Except if you love tinkering with your device of course. I found my Nova Pro laggy on Android 6 since the 3.1 update. That's the main reason I updated it to Android 9. Some internet sites won't be compatible with Android 6 or even Android 7 this year for security reasons. That's another reason to upgrade.

05-02-2021, 06:13 AM	#13
winstonma Zealot Posts: 111 Karma: 120918 Join Date: Nov 2013 Device: Onyx Boox Nova	Interesting... I would like to get my Nova to Android 9 If they can make rom for Nova Pro, Nova should not be a problem.

05-03-2021, 07:04 AM	#15
Markismus Guru Posts: 963 Karma: 149907 Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: Rotterdam Device: HiSenseA5ProCC, OnyxNotePro, Note5, Kobo Glo, Aura	Yes. Not good. I've got at least 23pages of handwritten notes and about 30 typed notes in a work of Leibniz. So I'll have to finish those in a better format before I change. I do remember them writing that you should at least update to firmware 3.0. I also remember someone reporting that after the change from Android 6 to 9 his firmware version devolved from 3.1 to 3.0. Lastly, I found that when I add a note to highlighted text in version 3.1, I get a tab with the annotated text. So there has been some reworking of the note apparatus between versions. We also don't know whether the upcoming firmware upgrade for Android 9 to 3.1 will fix this import error. So can anyone who has done the 6to9 update report on the state of their notes of 1) In text typed notes, 2) linked note pages and 3)linked note file. (i remember copy pasting linked note pages into a note file, because access to the linked note pages is rather iffy.)