
It’s official, over the next few weeks Android 2.3 (Gingerbread) will be making it’s way to a Nexus One near you. I am sure many of you out there have modified and tweaked your phone to run a custom rom, as well many of you would like to go back to stock in order to receive this tasty treat. So you ask how? Well, we here at AndroidSPIN have put a quick guide together in order to get you back to stock, and include the latest OTA update (FRG83D). If you follow these steps you should have your Nexus One back to the latest OTA and be in line to receive Android 2.3.
* As always we recommend performing a Nandroid backup of your current system before performing the steps in this guide. Also, please note AndroidSPIN is not responsible for your bricking your phone.*
This guide involves three step:
- Downgrade your device to FRG33
- Upgrade to FRG33D
- Apply the latest OTA (FRG83D)
Step One
- Download the Base version of FRG33 HERE.
- Make sure this file is called PASSIMG.zip, otherwise make sure you rename it.
- Copy the PASSIMG.zip file to the root of your SD card.
- Power off your Nexus One
- Power on your Nexus One while holding down the volume down.
Your phone will look for the PASSIMG.zip and then it will ask if you would like to install it - Press the volume up key to choose to install the file.
- Your Nexus One will now install the update
- Once the installation is complete, you phone should reboot.
End of Step One
Step two
- Connect to your phone from your computer.
- Delete the PASSIMG.zip file from your SD card
- Download official signed update to FRG83 HERE.
- Rename the file to update.zip.
- Copy the update.zip file to the root of your SD card.
- Power off your Nexus One
- Power on your Nexus One while holding down the volume down.
- Select the recovery option using the volume keys and then press the power button to select it.
- Your phone will reboot and you’ll see a warning triangle with the green robot.
- Hold the power button, and press the volume up button and you should see a menu with green text.
- Select the “Apply SD card: update.zip” option.
- Your phone will now install the FRG83 update.
- Your phone will reboot a couple of times during this process.
- Once the installation is finished, your phone should reboot back to the lockscreen.
End of Step Two
Step Three:
- At this point you should receive the latest OTA update to take your phone to FRG83D.
- If you don’t receive the update notification, don’t worry, we have the update for you and you can manually apply it.
- Download the update files HERE.
- Rename the file to update.zip.
- Copy the update.zip file to the root of your SD card.
- Power off your Nexus One
- Power on your Nexus One while holding down the volume down.
- Select the recovery option using the volume keys and then press the power button to select it.
- Your phone will reboot and you’ll see a warning triangle with the green robot.
- Hold the power button, and press the volume up button and you should see a menu with green text.
- Select the “Apply SD card: update.zip” option.
- Your phone will now install the FRG83D update.
End of Step Three
Your all done. Wasn’t that easy? Are you ready to get your tasty treat? Let us know how it went in the comment’s below.







I can’t go back. I can’t live without the improvements provided by the CM roms. It would be like downgrading from 2.2 back to 1.6.
Thats the point of doing a nandroid backup, you can restore and then update when CM updates to Gingerbread. I’m all about trying the new goodies. I will udpate to CM 6.1 stable and then do this about a week after Gingerbread is released for the N1!
my money is on rooted 2.3 coming to n1 before official
One of my test Nexus Ones is now unrooted and waiting for the Ginger bread. I’m sure we won’t see it till after the Nexus S launch though.
I’m not sure those files match what you’re suggesting.
Step 1 installs Passion-FRG33 : Nexus at FRG33
Step 2 installs FRG83D _from_ FRG83 : Nexus isn’t FRG83…
I think you have the files for steps 2 and 3 reversed.
You are correct.
Sorry about that.
Download links have been fixed.
I also couldn’t install Passion-FRG33 as a PASSIMG.zip image. I had to install using Fastboot. Interestingly, the radio.img included in the FRG33 is 5. something and the other two update images put 4. something back on it. I wonder what I should be running?
it wont work
i cant get it to work
[...] Link to original: http://androidspin.com/2010/12/07/prepare-your-nexus-one-for-android-2-3-gingerbread/ [...]
Ya, I can also wait till Cyanogenmod updates to 2.3.. But, who knows? may be tempted to know how stock 2.3 feels on the Nexus One and might just try it before Cyanogenmod updates to 2.3
Whenever i try to install the PASSIMG.zip on my phone it says
E:Can’t open /sdcard/PASSIMG.zip (bad)
Installation aborted
any ideas..?
I spent over a week trying to manually update my nexus one ,then I found this site and it worked for me ,thank you