Help! Fried ROM on 8100?

[Surreal.]

Hello all!

Before you ask, yes I have searched for weeks through a multitude of different sites, including this one, for a fix to my problem.

I have had this phone for about 2 years now and was bought new through AT&T at the time. It's worked fine whenever needed and up until 6-7 months ago has been my primary phone. I now use a different phone but decided to dig this phone up and give it to a friend or family member who can put it to better use than I can. But I wan't to give them something in perfect working order if I am to give them anything at all.

On to the problem. After digging the phone up I plugged it into my wall outlet and gave it a full charge overnight. When trying to boot it up that morning all that was occurring was a constant blink---blink-blink-blink red light pattern (1-3). It seemed the phone was completely dead aside from the blink code. I obviously googled this and found thousands of hits to people having the same problem or a variation of this. After attempting everything at my own pace without result I have decided to just post my own, specific problem on he forum for all things Blackberry.

Steps I have taken:

All the common sense fixes.
I've downloaded the latest version of Desktop Manager.
I've downloaded the Handheld Software provided by BB for AT&T as well as T-Mobile (my current provider.)
From there I've tried all different combinations of makeshift solutions thought up by users on forums with people having the same problem.
(i.e battery in, battery out, plugged in prior, plugged in after, trying to beat the application loader while it is searching for device, SIM card in and out, etc.)
I've also tried the JL_Cmder recommendation.
And a few more that I've stumbled on in Yahoo answers, etc.

The problem with 90% of the possible solutions is that they assume you have a working, established connection with your device. That's my main problem. My PC and the Desktop Manager do not detect the 8100, at all. I'm also using a different computer from when I used to actively use the phone. So there is no record, back-up, or signs that this device was ever linked to the Desktop Manager. If that even matters. Any ways around this to get my PC to recognize the phone? I've seen Command Prompt techniques but none have worked.

So without being able to reload or upgrade the OS, is my device just dead?

I really want to not lose this since it's in really great condition besides the not working part haha.

Any ideas, links, advice, etc. will be greatly appreciated.

Thanks in advance!

[blueis300]

Have you tried this software?

BlackBerry Master Control Program (MCP): Downloads or

BBSAK 1.7 Released (10/25/09

blackberry master control recognized my phone when others didnt.

[Surreal.]

Thanks for the suggestion.

Unfortunately it has also failed to detect the device. It's more because since there is no OS at all there is nothing to link the connection. I need to reload or upgrade the OS but I have no idea how to do this if I can't make a connection in the first place. Like when a computer has no OS it just sits there and is basically a blank slate.

Anyone else have an idea?

Thanks.

[blueis300]

I had a similar problem this morning trying to install a hybrid. My software wouldnt recognize the phone. It was because I belive that the blackberry device driver wasnt installed on the comoputer so the usb cable to the blackberry device wasnt seen. You dont need an os on the blackberry. What I did was reinstall the bb desktop software. Then uninstall the os which is in the program fills/commmon files/ research in motion/shared/loader i think or something close. Reinstalling that software install the blackberry driver. Then the bbsak or mcp software will recognize the blackberry and you can wipe or reinstall the os.

[Surreal.]

Well I uninstalled->installed the newest version of the Desktop Software again. As well as the newest version of the OS. I then went to the Program Files -> Common Files -> RIM -> Shared -> Loader Files and removed the OS (again?) then installed it again. Even after the Desktop Software has been installed the device is yet to be detected be either Desktop Manager, MCP or BBSAK.

Are you sure there is no need for an OS to make a connection or get detected?

[blueis300]

My wifes tour went wacky and had just a black screen and I got it back up. Ive wiped my phone many times and had a white screen with several different errors and always got it back up. Maybe go to blackberry's website and directly download a device driver. Im just throwing things out there,\. What about going into c:\program files\common files\ research in motion and using apploader directly? Just spoke with someone else and they suggested and earlier version of dm and it worked for them.

[blueis300]

Ok some other ideas. Did you try a different cable, different usb port. Was told to pull the battery from the phone, hook it up to the computer restart and then install the battery. Again not sure if anything will work just trying to help out.

[Surreal.]

Yeah, I hear you. The thing is that if it wasn't for the blinking red light the phone is completely dead. No errors, screens, colors, sounds, nothing.

I borrowed a friends 8100 and plugged it into my PC (Win 7 64) and installed the device drivers for the "BlackBerry Smartphone." Then I tried plugging the dead one back in to see if it would detect and no luck. I tried finding the drivers and the device in the Device Manager and tracked the serial port, baud, etc. and tried a connection that way but also no luck.

Also when you say try the App Loader directly I don't understand what you mean. I've tried launching the Loader but it prompts up the wizard and asks to securely connect the device in order to begin updating application programs, etc. So I can't even pass the wizard without some form of device detection.

I've tried a different battery, different ports, etc.

I'll try using a different cable and earlier version of DM in a bit or later on today.

Anyone else have any ideas on how to revive or recover an almost dead/dead 8100? I've seen fixes for the (2-3 red light code) but this 1-3 code I've yet to read a fix for.

Thanks.