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Revived SD cards from broken Windows Phone 7 device

So, the other week my old first generation Windows Phone 7 device (HTC HD7) finally bit the dust.  I had nursed it along for the past year.  It was slow, but still worked as a decent phone.  I like to think that I kept the device clean from extra photos and videos that I didn’t need by either deleting them or moving them from the phone to my home computer.  However, like all good devices it was dying slowly.  I thought that maybe if I increase the storage (memory) and install a custom ROM that would help.  So, after much research I decided to take the plunge and purchased a 32 GB SD card that was compatible with my device and then looked for custom built ROM’s that I could install.  After I got the items, I still debated and waited a bit.  Then I finally bit the bullet and pulled the trigger to update my phone…

I started off my watching (intensively) the tutorials and videos that were out there showing how to update the storage.  It seemed that with this particular model (as well as other model Windows Phones (WP)) that the storage was simply a SD card that was enclosed in the back case and wasn’t easily accessible with out minor surgery.  This actually sounded harder than it was and within about 30 minutes or so my phone now had 32 GB of storage instead of 16 GB.  Now the fun to put back the OS began.  Like I stated, I found a custom ROM (from Deepshining) that I liked, it was based on WP7.8, was stable, and seemed pretty popular with many users in the XDA Developers community.  I followed the directions to the tee and after short time later, my phone had new life breathed into it.  I was happy again.

Now, about a year later and after a few more drops the hardware started to fail and I found it necessary to get a new phone, since I like the WP OS, I went with a Nokia Lumia 925 with WP8 installed, and haven’t been disappointed, a great phone.  But now I had 2 good SD cards just sitting here not being used.  I decided that it was time to reclaim these cards.  Well, I put the 16 GB card in my computer to check it out, nothing…  I think that I know this card worked, what is the matter.  I try other systems and still get nothing.  I then pull the 32 GB card from the HD7 and try it as well.  Again, nothing.  I immediately start Googling and Binging looking for solutions to try to revive these cards.  I was on a mission and had a plan.

A few days go by, I see a lot of sites discussing this same situation, how to revive or recover the SD card after it was in WP device.  Lots of the sites just didn’t work.  I even consulted with an acquaintance from Microsoft and he indicated that the card is no longer usable.  WP7 uses the Secure lock in the Secure Digital card by locking the card to the hardware.  I felt defeat, I had two cards that were good and I couldn’t use either one…  I then found that if you could find some older Nokia devices that were running the Symbian OS, they could unlock the card and reformat it.  I tried a few times to see if any one had theses devices.  I was willing to ship to Europe to try it out.  No answer from anyone in regards to this.  Well, I didn’t give up and after a few more days I found a great forum post in the XDA Developers forms.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1337781&page=5

This post had a step by step instructions on how to use your phone to unlock the SD card.  I downloaded all the items (needed several little programs and a new blank ROM).  After putting the blank ROM on the phone and running the other listed steps, my original 16 GB card now is usable again.  So, I immediately did the same with the 32 GB card.  Now, I have 2 good cards that I can use for storage.  The 16 GB card is going to my wife’s Samsung Galaxy S4 for her storage, she fills up her 8 GB with apps, pics, and videos very fast.  With the 16GB card she should be good for a while longer.  The 32 GB card is going to my Microsoft Surface RT device, while I got the 32 GB device and haven’t ran into issues with drive space, I have some videos and files that I don’t need on the main storage and will move them off to the SD card.  While I primarily use the cloud for different devices, the ability to have the SD card in the tablet is invaluable.

So, now I am yet again a happy camper… I have a new WP8 phone that is a wonderful device, my wife will have more storage in her Android phone, and my Surface RT tablet will be boosted a bit for storage.

Signing off for now

The Denster.

  • Posted by denzone
  • on Aug 14th, 2013
  • at 11:33 pm
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