Nexus S gets its first OTA update

By Jerry Hildenbrand
last updated

Just six short days after its release, the Nexus S is getting its first over-the-air update, bringing the system to GRH78.  The update apparently "contains important bug fixes plus the latest version of Maps."

If you don't feel like waiting for the OTA (and who does?) here's the manual method.  Note you'll need to be using the stock recovery image if you want to go this route.

  • Download the file from Google right here
  • Rename it to update.zip, and place it on the root of your internal storage
  • Shut down your phone, and reboot into the bootloader by holding volume up and powering back on
  • Use the volume buttons to choose "recovery" from the list, and select it with the power button
  • When you see the triangle on your screen, press volume up and power once more and you'll have a list of options, choose to update

Now we get to tear it apart and try to find what has changed, discuss it all in the Nexus S forums. Thanks mojonation1487!

Jerry Hildenbrand
Jerry Hildenbrand
Senior Editor — Google Ecosystem

Jerry is an amateur woodworker and struggling shade tree mechanic. There's nothing he can't take apart, but many things he can't reassemble. You'll find him writing and speaking his loud opinion on Android Central and occasionally on Twitter.

19 Comments
  • Gingerbread Update Score
    Nexus S: 2
    Nexus One: 0
  • .............................................
  • Me and my wife actually got this update pushed to us a few hours before this was posted. I love having a phone updated by Google.
  • My wife and I. If your old enough to have a wife.....
  • *you're
  • I was actually posting a comment and not a high school paper. I am 22. Not to mention you failed and had to correct your own self.
  • Actually, someone else corrected the post. But to truly correct it, you'd need to just delete it.
  • I didn't even notice that. I was commenting back on my Nexus S. That is hilarious.
  • NOTE!!!! Does not fix MMS issues
  • Sadly...
  • I don't get a red triangle, help please...
  • just got my OTA. sweet. that was fast. normally i would have to wait like 5 days to get it pushed to me.
  • The triangle isn't red. Sorry guys, too many devices to keep track of. I've fixed the wording.
  • This update broke swype beta for me. I can no longer swype, though the keyboard works like a normal one.
  • Uninstall swype but don't uninstall the swype installer. Then run swype installer and it will install swype again and will work. I had to do this myself
  • Awesome, thanks. That did the trick.
  • I got the update and now I can not get a data connection on my phone once it restarted. All widgets say unavailable, no browser internet, no facebook, no twitter....I feel so disconnected right now. lol. Anyone else having this similar issue?
  • an update already??????
  • Sorry to be off-topic, but is the display's colour that far off in real life or is it just that the photo needs to be corrected? Everything I've seen with the mascot is pea green, not bright green.