diff --git a/base b/base
index a3deaf03a..84d7b7a06 160000
--- a/base
+++ b/base
@@ -1 +1 @@
-Subproject commit a3deaf03addb8703fae618eca8b1aab12fe1579f
+Subproject commit 84d7b7a064a6c70a069366b3eb3eb5d9cf4721b9
diff --git a/frontend/apps/reader/modules/readerfrontlight.lua b/frontend/apps/reader/modules/readerfrontlight.lua
index ee5ee71e2..d19d1c153 100644
--- a/frontend/apps/reader/modules/readerfrontlight.lua
+++ b/frontend/apps/reader/modules/readerfrontlight.lua
@@ -40,17 +40,17 @@ end
 
 function ReaderFrontLight:onAdjust(arg, ges)
     local powerd = Device:getPowerDevice()
-    if powerd.flIntensity ~= nil then
-        DEBUG("frontlight intensity", powerd.flIntensity)
+    if powerd.fl_intensity ~= nil then
+        DEBUG("frontlight intensity", powerd.fl_intensity)
         local step = math.ceil(#self.steps * ges.distance / self.gestureScale)
         DEBUG("step = ", step)
         local delta_int = self.steps[step] or self.steps[#self.steps]
         DEBUG("delta_int = ", delta_int)
         local new_intensity
         if ges.direction == "north" then
-            new_intensity = powerd.flIntensity + delta_int
+            new_intensity = powerd.fl_intensity + delta_int
         elseif ges.direction == "south" then
-            new_intensity = powerd.flIntensity - delta_int
+            new_intensity = powerd.fl_intensity - delta_int
         end
         if new_intensity ~= nil then
             powerd:setIntensity(new_intensity)
@@ -61,9 +61,9 @@ end
 
 function ReaderFrontLight:onShowIntensity()
     local powerd = Device:getPowerDevice()
-    if powerd.flIntensity ~= nil then
+    if powerd.fl_intensity ~= nil then
         UIManager:show(Notification:new{
-            text = T( _("Frontlight intensity is set to %1."), powerd.flIntensity),
+            text = T(_("Frontlight intensity is set to %1."), powerd.fl_intensity),
             timeout = 1.0,
         })
     end
diff --git a/frontend/device/generic/powerd.lua b/frontend/device/generic/powerd.lua
index 9fb44ea76..c0dae784e 100644
--- a/frontend/device/generic/powerd.lua
+++ b/frontend/device/generic/powerd.lua
@@ -1,9 +1,9 @@
 local BasePowerD = {
-    fl_min = 0,      -- min frontlight intensity
-    fl_max = 10,     -- max frontlight intensity
-    flIntensity = nil,   -- frontlight intensity
+    fl_min = 0,          -- min frontlight intensity
+    fl_max = 10,         -- max frontlight intensity
+    fl_intensity = nil,  -- frontlight intensity
     battCapacity = nil,  -- battery capacity
-    device = nil,    -- device object
+    device = nil,        -- device object
 
     capacity_pulled_count = 0,
     capacity_cached_count = 10,
@@ -57,7 +57,8 @@ function BasePowerD:normalizeIntensity(intensity)
 end
 
 function BasePowerD:setIntensity(intensity)
-    self.flIntensity = self:normalizeIntensity(intensity)
+    if intensity == self.fl_intensity then return end
+    self.fl_intensity = self:normalizeIntensity(intensity)
     self:setIntensityHW()
 end
 
diff --git a/frontend/device/kindle/powerd.lua b/frontend/device/kindle/powerd.lua
index 6d025d5bb..de1e80213 100644
--- a/frontend/device/kindle/powerd.lua
+++ b/frontend/device/kindle/powerd.lua
@@ -4,7 +4,7 @@ local BasePowerD = require("device/generic/powerd")
 local KindlePowerD = BasePowerD:new{
     fl_min = 0, fl_max = 24,
 
-    flIntensity = nil,
+    fl_intensity = nil,
     battCapacity = nil,
     is_charging = nil,
     lipc_handle = nil,
@@ -17,9 +17,9 @@ function KindlePowerD:init()
     end
     if self.device.hasFrontlight() then
         if self.lipc_handle ~= nil then
-            self.flIntensity = self.lipc_handle:get_int_property("com.lab126.powerd", "flIntensity")
+            self.fl_intensity = self.lipc_handle:get_int_property("com.lab126.powerd", "flIntensity")
         else
-            self.flIntensity = self:read_int_file(self.fl_intensity_file)
+            self.fl_intensity = self:read_int_file(self.fl_intensity_file)
         end
     end
 end
@@ -27,7 +27,7 @@ end
 function KindlePowerD:toggleFrontlight()
     local sysint = self:read_int_file(self.fl_intensity_file)
     if sysint == 0 then
-        self:setIntensity(self.flIntensity)
+        self:setIntensity(self.fl_intensity)
     else
         os.execute("echo -n 0 > " .. self.fl_intensity_file)
     end
@@ -35,9 +35,9 @@ end
 
 function KindlePowerD:setIntensityHW()
     if self.lipc_handle ~= nil then
-        self.lipc_handle:set_int_property("com.lab126.powerd", "flIntensity", self.flIntensity)
+        self.lipc_handle:set_int_property("com.lab126.powerd", "flIntensity", self.fl_intensity)
     else
-        os.execute("echo -n ".. self.flIntensity .." > " .. self.fl_intensity_file)
+        os.execute("echo -n ".. self.fl_intensity .." > " .. self.fl_intensity_file)
     end
 end
 
diff --git a/frontend/device/kobo/device.lua b/frontend/device/kobo/device.lua
index 7a1ec8571..0007509dc 100644
--- a/frontend/device/kobo/device.lua
+++ b/frontend/device/kobo/device.lua
@@ -143,6 +143,14 @@ end
 
 function Kobo:resume()
     os.execute("echo 0 > /sys/power/state-extended")
+    -- cf. #1862, I can reliably break IR touch input on resume...
+    if os.getenv("FROM_NICKEL") == "true" then
+        local f = io.open("/sys/devices/virtual/input/input1/neocmd", "r")
+        if f ~= nil then
+            io.close(f)
+            os.execute("echo 'a' > /sys/devices/virtual/input/input1/neocmd")
+        end
+    end
 end
 
 -------------- device probe ------------
diff --git a/frontend/device/kobo/nickel_conf.lua b/frontend/device/kobo/nickel_conf.lua
index 9248f994d..bfdb23334 100644
--- a/frontend/device/kobo/nickel_conf.lua
+++ b/frontend/device/kobo/nickel_conf.lua
@@ -57,9 +57,9 @@ function NickelConf.frontLightLevel.get()
     if new_intensity then
         return powerd:normalizeIntensity(new_intensity)
     else
-        local fallback_FrontLightLevel = powerd.flIntensity or 1
-        assert(NickelConf.frontLightLevel.set(fallback_FrontLightLevel))
-        return fallback_FrontLightLevel
+        local fallback_fl_level = powerd.fl_intensity or 1
+        assert(NickelConf.frontLightLevel.set(fallback_fl_level))
+        return fallback_fl_level
     end
 end
 
@@ -68,16 +68,12 @@ function NickelConf.frontLightState.get()
     if new_state then
         new_state = (new_state == "true") or false
     end
-
-    if new_state == nil then
-        assert(NickelConf.frontLightState.set(false))
-        return false
-    end
-
+    -- for devices that do not have toggle button, the entry will be missing
+    -- and we return nil in this case.
     return new_state
 end
 
-function NickelConf._write_kobo_conf(re_Match, key, value)
+function NickelConf._write_kobo_conf(re_Match, key, value, dont_create)
     local kobo_conf = io.open(kobo_conf_path, "r")
     local lines = {}
     local found = false
@@ -112,7 +108,7 @@ function NickelConf._write_kobo_conf(re_Match, key, value)
         kobo_conf:close()
     end
 
-    if not found then
+    if not found and dont_create ~= true then
         if not correct_section then
             lines[#lines + 1] = "[PowerOptions]"
         end
@@ -134,6 +130,9 @@ end
 function NickelConf.frontLightLevel.set(new_intensity)
     assert(new_intensity >= 0 and new_intensity <= 100,
            "Wrong brightness value given!")
+    -- Make sure we're in sync with KOReader on the config level, too
+    G_reader_settings:saveSetting("frontlight_intensity",
+                                              new_intensity)
     return NickelConf._write_kobo_conf(re_FrontLightLevel,
                                        front_light_level_str,
                                        new_intensity)
@@ -144,7 +143,9 @@ function NickelConf.frontLightState.set(new_state)
            "Wrong front light state value type (expect boolean)!")
     return NickelConf._write_kobo_conf(re_FrontLightState,
                                        front_light_state_str,
-                                       new_state)
+                                       new_state,
+                                       -- do not create this entry is missing
+                                       true)
 end
 
 return NickelConf
diff --git a/frontend/device/kobo/powerd.lua b/frontend/device/kobo/powerd.lua
index 19376d3ca..1a2f311b2 100644
--- a/frontend/device/kobo/powerd.lua
+++ b/frontend/device/kobo/powerd.lua
@@ -8,11 +8,15 @@ local KoboPowerD = BasePowerD:new{
     -- Do not actively set front light to 0, it may confuse users -- pressing
     -- hardware button won't take any effect.
     fl_min = 1, fl_max = 100,
-    flIntensity = 20,
+    fl_intensity = 20,
     restore_settings = true,
     fl = nil,
 
-    flState = false,
+    -- We will set this value for all kobo models. but it will only be synced
+    -- with nickel's FrontLightState config if the current nickel firmware
+    -- supports this config.
+    is_fl_on = false,
+
     batt_capacity_file = batt_state_folder .. "capacity",
     is_charging_file = batt_state_folder .. "status",
     battCapacity = nil,
@@ -23,29 +27,49 @@ function KoboPowerD:init()
     if self.device.hasFrontlight() then
         local kobolight = require("ffi/kobolight")
         local ok, light = pcall(kobolight.open)
-        if ok then self.fl = light end
+        if ok then
+            self.fl = light
+            if NickelConf.frontLightState.get() ~= nil then
+                self.has_fl_state_cfg = true
+            else
+                self.has_fl_state_cfg = false
+            end
+        end
     end
 end
 
 function KoboPowerD:toggleFrontlight()
     if self.fl ~= nil then
-        if self.flState then
+        if self.is_fl_on then
             self.fl:setBrightness(0)
         else
-            self.fl:setBrightness(self.flIntensity)
+            self.fl:setBrightness(self.fl_intensity)
         end
-        self.flState = not self.flState
-        if KOBO_SYNC_BRIGHTNESS_WITH_NICKEL then
-            NickelConf.frontLightState.set(self.flState)
+        self.is_fl_on = not self.is_fl_on
+        if self.has_fl_state_cfg and KOBO_SYNC_BRIGHTNESS_WITH_NICKEL then
+            NickelConf.frontLightState.set(self.is_fl_on)
         end
     end
 end
 
 function KoboPowerD:setIntensityHW()
     if self.fl ~= nil then
-        self.fl:setBrightness(self.flIntensity)
+        self.fl:setBrightness(self.fl_intensity)
         if KOBO_SYNC_BRIGHTNESS_WITH_NICKEL then
-            NickelConf.frontLightLevel.set(self.flIntensity)
+            NickelConf.frontLightLevel.set(self.fl_intensity)
+        end
+        -- also keep self.is_fl_on in sync with intensity if needed
+        local is_fl_on
+        if self.fl_intensity > 0 then
+            is_fl_on = true
+        else
+            is_fl_on = false
+        end
+        if self.is_fl_on ~= is_fl_on then
+            self.is_fl_on = is_fl_on
+            if self.has_fl_state_cfg and KOBO_SYNC_BRIGHTNESS_WITH_NICKEL then
+                NickelConf.frontLightState.set(self.is_fl_on)
+            end
         end
     end
 end
@@ -62,19 +86,19 @@ end
 
 -- Turn off front light before suspend.
 function KoboPowerD:beforeSuspend()
-    if self.flState then
-        assert(self.fl ~= nil)
+    if self.fl ~= nil then
         self.fl:setBrightness(0)
     end
 end
 
 -- Restore front light state after resume.
 function KoboPowerD:afterResume()
-    if KOBO_LIGHT_ON_START and tonumber(KOBO_LIGHT_ON_START) > -1 then
-        self:setIntensity(math.min(KOBO_LIGHT_ON_START, 100))
-    elseif self.flState then
-        assert(self.fl ~= nil)
-        self.fl:setBrightness(self.flIntensity)
+    if self.fl ~= nil then
+        if KOBO_LIGHT_ON_START and tonumber(KOBO_LIGHT_ON_START) > -1 then
+            self:setIntensity(math.min(KOBO_LIGHT_ON_START, 100))
+        elseif self.is_fl_on then
+            self.fl:setBrightness(self.fl_intensity)
+        end
     end
 end
 
diff --git a/frontend/ui/uimanager.lua b/frontend/ui/uimanager.lua
index 7576d5c87..1e145ddd6 100644
--- a/frontend/ui/uimanager.lua
+++ b/frontend/ui/uimanager.lua
@@ -64,24 +64,33 @@ function UIManager:init()
         local kobo_light_on_start = tonumber(KOBO_LIGHT_ON_START)
         if kobo_light_on_start then
             local new_intensity
-            local new_state
+            local is_frontlight_on
             if kobo_light_on_start > 0 then
                 new_intensity = math.min(kobo_light_on_start, 100)
-                new_state = true
+                is_frontlight_on = true
             elseif kobo_light_on_start == 0 then
-                new_state = false
+                is_frontlight_on = false
             elseif kobo_light_on_start == -2 then
                 local NickelConf = require("device/kobo/nickel_conf")
                 new_intensity = NickelConf.frontLightLevel.get()
-                new_state = NickelConf.frontLightState:get()
+                is_frontlight_on = NickelConf.frontLightState:get()
+                if is_frontlight_on == nil then
+                    -- this device does not support frontlight toggle,
+                    -- we set the value based on frontlight intensity.
+                    if new_intensity > 0 then
+                        is_frontlight_on = true
+                    else
+                        is_frontlight_on = false
+                    end
+                end
             end
+            -- Since this kobo-specific, we save all values in settings here
+            -- and let the code (reader.lua) pick it up later during bootstrap.
             if new_intensity then
-                -- Since this kobo-specific, we save here and let the code pick
-                -- it up later from the reader settings.
-                G_reader_settings:saveSetting(
-                    "frontlight_intensity", new_intensity)
+                G_reader_settings:saveSetting("frontlight_intensity",
+                                              new_intensity)
             end
-            G_reader_settings:saveSetting("frontlight_state", new_state)
+            G_reader_settings:saveSetting("is_frontlight_on", is_frontlight_on)
         end
     elseif Device:isKindle() then
         self.event_handlers["IntoSS"] = function()
diff --git a/kodev b/kodev
index 45fc377b2..cbdc21a35 100755
--- a/kodev
+++ b/kodev
@@ -130,7 +130,7 @@ ${SUPPORTED_TARGETS}"
             ;;
         android)
             make TARGET=android clean
-            rm *.apk
+            rm -f *.apk
             ;;
         pocketbook)
             make TARGET=pocketbook clean
diff --git a/platform/kobo/koreader.sh b/platform/kobo/koreader.sh
index 0a55964c1..c9ba7c21d 100755
--- a/platform/kobo/koreader.sh
+++ b/platform/kobo/koreader.sh
@@ -29,12 +29,12 @@ export EXT_FONT_DIR="/mnt/onboard/fonts"
 
 # fast and dirty way of check if we are called from nickel
 # through fmon, or from another launcher (KSM or advboot)
-from_nickel="false"
+export FROM_NICKEL="false"
 if pkill -0 nickel ; then
-	from_nickel="true"
+	FROM_NICKEL="true"
 fi
 
-if [ "${from_nickel}" == "true" ] ; then
+if [ "${FROM_NICKEL}" == "true" ] ; then
 	# Siphon a few things from nickel's env...
 	eval "$(xargs -n 1 -0 < /proc/$(pidof nickel)/environ | grep -e DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS -e WIFI_MODULE -e PLATFORM -e WIFI_MODULE_PATH -e INTERFACE -e PRODUCT 2>/dev/null)"
 	export DBUS_SESSION_BUS_ADDRESS WIFI_MODULE PLATFORM WIFI_MODULE_PATH INTERFACE PRODUCT
@@ -80,16 +80,14 @@ if [ ! -n "${PLATFORM}" ] ; then
 fi
 # end of value check of PLATFORM
 
-grep ' /mnt/sd ' /proc/mounts | grep 'ro'
-# Remount SD to RW if it's RO
-if [ $? -eq 0 ]
-then
-    mount -o remount,rw /mnt/sd
+# Remount the SD card RW if it's inserted and currently RO
+if awk '$4~/(^|,)ro($|,)/' /proc/mounts | grep ' /mnt/sd ' ; then
+	mount -o remount,rw /mnt/sd
 fi
 
 ./reader.lua "${args}" 2> crash.log
 
-if [ "${from_nickel}" == "true" ] ; then
+if [ "${FROM_NICKEL}" == "true" ] ; then
 	# start kobo software because it was running before koreader
 	./nickel.sh &
 else
diff --git a/platform/kobo/nickel_suspend_strace.txt b/platform/kobo/nickel_suspend_strace.txt
new file mode 100644
index 000000000..184bdf695
--- /dev/null
+++ b/platform/kobo/nickel_suspend_strace.txt
@@ -0,0 +1,91 @@
+## On the other hand, nickel doesn't seem to fare any better... when the suspend to ram fails, it spends its time doing this over and over:
+# strace -fitv -P /sys/power/state -P /sys/power/state-extended -P /sys/power/wakeup_count -p $(pidof nickel)
+
+strace: Process 4474 attached
+strace: Process 4475 attached
+[pid  4475] 19:38:43 [????????] +++ exited with 0 +++
+[pid  4474] 19:38:43 [2ab4c276] --- SIGCHLD {si_signo=SIGCHLD, si_code=CLD_EXITED, si_pid=4475, si_uid=0, si_status=0, si_utime=1, si_stime=0} ---
+[pid  4474] 19:38:43 [????????] +++ exited with 0 +++
+[pid  3681] 19:38:43 [2f0d8386] --- SIGCHLD {si_signo=SIGCHLD, si_code=CLD_EXITED, si_pid=4474, si_uid=0, si_status=0, si_utime=0, si_stime=2} ---
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/wakeup_count", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC) = 24
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(24, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d63a4] read(24, "3183\n", 16384) = 5
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d63a4] read(24, "", 16379) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d63a4] read(24, "", 4091) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d6454] close(24) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state-extended", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 26
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(26, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f232276] fstat64(26, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=38, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:38:46.129858648, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:38:46.129858648}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d62f4] write(26, "1", 1) = 1
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d6454] close(26) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 26
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(26, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f232276] fstat64(26, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=33, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:38:46.129858648, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:38:46.129858648}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d62f4] write(26, "mem", 3) = -1 EBUSY (Device or resource busy)
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d6454] close(26) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state-extended", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 26
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(26, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f232276] fstat64(26, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=38, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:38:46.449974712, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:38:46.449974712}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d62f4] write(26, "0", 1) = 1
+[pid  3681] 19:38:46 [2f0d6454] close(26) = 0
+strace: Process 4478 attached
+strace: Process 4479 attached
+[pid  4479] 19:38:47 [????????] +++ exited with 0 +++
+[pid  4478] 19:38:47 [2ab4c276] --- SIGCHLD {si_signo=SIGCHLD, si_code=CLD_EXITED, si_pid=4479, si_uid=0, si_status=0, si_utime=1, si_stime=0} ---
+[pid  4478] 19:38:47 [????????] +++ exited with 0 +++
+[pid  3681] 19:38:47 [2f0d8386] --- SIGCHLD {si_signo=SIGCHLD, si_code=CLD_EXITED, si_pid=4478, si_uid=0, si_status=0, si_utime=1, si_stime=0} ---
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/wakeup_count", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC) = 24
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(24, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:08:22.880008624}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d63a4] read(24, "3185\n", 16384) = 5
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d63a4] read(24, "", 16379) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d63a4] read(24, "", 4091) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d6454] close(24) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state-extended", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 26
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(26, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f232276] fstat64(26, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=38, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:38:50.129984109, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:38:50.129984109}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d62f4] write(26, "1", 1) = 1
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d6454] close(26) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 26
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(26, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f232276] fstat64(26, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=33, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:38:50.129984109, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:38:50.129984109}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d62f4] write(26, "mem", 3) = -1 EBUSY (Device or resource busy)
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d6454] close(26) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state-extended", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 26
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(26, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f232276] fstat64(26, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=38, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/02/29-18:18:37.514794262, st_mtime=2016/02/29-19:38:50.440016287, st_ctime=2016/02/29-19:38:50.440016287}) = 0
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d62f4] write(26, "0", 1) = 1
+[pid  3681] 19:38:50 [2f0d6454] close(26) = 0
+
+
+## Compared to a successful suspend/wakeup cycle:
+522   00:59:53 [2f0d8386] --- SIGCHLD {si_signo=SIGCHLD, si_code=CLD_EXITED, si_pid=1291, si_uid=0, si_status=0, si_utime=0, si_stime=1} ---
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/wakeup_count", O_RDONLY|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC) = 21
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(21, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f232276] fstat64(21, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029, st_mtime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029, st_ctime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029}) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f232276] fstat64(21, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029, st_mtime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029, st_ctime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029}) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f232276] fstat64(21, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=36, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029, st_mtime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029, st_ctime=2016/03/01-00:52:55.478751029}) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d63a4] read(21, "93\n", 16384) = 3
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d63a4] read(21, "", 16381) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d63a4] read(21, "", 4093) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d6454] close(21)     = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state-extended", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 24
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(24, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=38, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/03/01-00:59:54.358750902, st_mtime=2016/03/01-00:59:54.358750902, st_ctime=2016/03/01-00:59:54.358750902}) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d62f4] write(24, "1", 1) = 1
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d6454] close(24)     = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 24
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(24, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=33, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/03/01-00:59:54.358750902, st_mtime=2016/03/01-00:59:54.358750902, st_ctime=2016/03/01-00:59:54.358750902}) = 0
+522   00:59:54 [2f0d62f4] write(24, "mem", 3) = 3
+522   01:00:27 [2f0d6454] close(24)     = 0
+522   01:00:27 [2f0d8386] open("/sys/power/state-extended", O_WRONLY|O_CREAT|O_TRUNC|O_LARGEFILE|O_CLOEXEC, 0666) = 24
+522   01:00:27 [2f0d8386] fcntl64(24, F_SETFD, FD_CLOEXEC) = 0
+522   01:00:27 [2f232276] fstat64(24, {st_dev=makedev(0, 14), st_ino=38, st_mode=S_IFREG|0644, st_nlink=1, st_uid=0, st_gid=0, st_blksize=4096, st_blocks=0, st_size=4096, st_atime=2016/03/01-00:59:54.358750902, st_mtime=2016/03/01-01:00:27.398750985, st_ctime=2016/03/01-01:00:27.398750985}) = 0
+522   01:00:27 [2f0d62f4] write(24, "0", 1) = 1
+522   01:00:27 [2f0d6454] close(24)     = 0
diff --git a/platform/kobo/suspend.sh b/platform/kobo/suspend.sh
index f4d605adc..5f275a4f3 100755
--- a/platform/kobo/suspend.sh
+++ b/platform/kobo/suspend.sh
@@ -1,16 +1,36 @@
 #!/bin/sh
 export PATH="${PATH}:/sbin:/usr/sbin"
 
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: BEGIN!"
 # Disable wifi
 if lsmod | grep -q sdio_wifi_pwr ; then
 	wlarm_le -i eth0 down
 	ifconfig eth0 down
 	rmmod -r dhd
 	rmmod -r sdio_wifi_pwr
+	echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: Killed WiFi"
 fi
 
 # Go to sleep
-sync
+current_wakeup_count="$(cat /sys/power/wakeup_count)"
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: Current WakeUp count: ${current_wakeup_count}"
 echo 1 > /sys/power/state-extended
-sleep 2	# Because reasons?
+# NOTE: Sets gSleep_Mode_Suspend to 1. Used as a flag throughout the kernel to suspend/resume various subsystems
+#       cf. kernel/power/main.c @ L#207
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: Asked the kernel to put subsystems to sleep"
+sleep 2
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: Waited for 2s because of reasons..."
+sync
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: Synced FS"
+echo ${current_wakeup_count} > /sys/power/wakeup_count
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: Wrote WakeUp count: ${current_wakeup_count} ($?)"
 echo mem > /sys/power/state
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: Asked to suspend to RAM... ZzZ ZzZ ZzZ? ($?)"
+## NOTE: Ideally, we'd need a way to warn the user that suspending gloriously failed at this point...
+##       We can safely assume that just from a non-zero return code, without looking at the detailed stderr message
+##       (most of the failures we'll see are -EBUSY anyway)
+## For reference, when that happens to nickel, it appears to keep retrying to wakeup & sleep ad nauseam,
+## which is where the non-sensical 1 -> mem -> 0 loop idea comes from...
+## cf. nickel_suspend_strace.txt for more details.
+
+echo "[$(date +'%x @ %X')] Kobo Suspend: END! (WakeUp count: $(cat /sys/power/wakeup_count))"
diff --git a/reader.lua b/reader.lua
index c014e02b6..ea258569d 100755
--- a/reader.lua
+++ b/reader.lua
@@ -120,12 +120,20 @@ end
 if Device:isKobo() then
     local powerd = Device:getPowerDevice()
     if powerd and powerd.restore_settings then
+        -- UIManager:init() should have sanely set up the frontlight_stuff by this point
         local intensity = G_reader_settings:readSetting("frontlight_intensity")
-        powerd.flIntensity = intensity or powerd.flIntensity
-        local state = G_reader_settings:readSetting("frontlight_state")
-        if state then
-            -- Default state is off
+        powerd.fl_intensity = intensity or powerd.fl_intensity
+        local is_frontlight_on = G_reader_settings:readSetting("is_frontlight_on")
+        if is_frontlight_on then
+            -- default powerd.is_fl_on is false, turn it on
             powerd:toggleFrontlight()
+        else
+            -- the light can still be turned on manually outside of koreader
+            -- or nickel. so we always set the intensity to 0 here to keep it
+            -- in sync with powerd.is_fl_on (false by default)
+            -- NOTE: we cant use setIntensity method here because for kobo the
+            -- min intensity is 1 :(
+            powerd.fl:setBrightness(0)
         end
     end
     if Device:getCodeName() == "trilogy" then
diff --git a/spec/unit/nickel_conf_spec.lua b/spec/unit/nickel_conf_spec.lua
index 44beba96b..3e9f648f4 100644
--- a/spec/unit/nickel_conf_spec.lua
+++ b/spec/unit/nickel_conf_spec.lua
@@ -59,7 +59,7 @@ bar=baz
 
             NickelConf._set_kobo_conf_path(fn)
             assert.Equals(NickelConf.frontLightLevel.get(), 20)
-            assert.Equals(NickelConf.frontLightState.get(), false)
+            assert.Equals(NickelConf.frontLightState.get(), nil)
 
             os.remove(fn)
         end)
@@ -83,7 +83,6 @@ FrontLightLevel=6
 FrontLightLevel=6
 [PowerOptions]
 FrontLightLevel=100
-FrontLightState=true
 ]])
             fd:close()
             os.remove(fn)
@@ -99,7 +98,6 @@ FrontLightState=true
             assert.Equals(fd:read("*a"), [[
 [PowerOptions]
 FrontLightLevel=20
-FrontLightState=false
 ]])
             fd:close()
             os.remove(fn)
@@ -153,14 +151,13 @@ bar=baz
             NickelConf.frontLightState.set(true)
 
             fd = io.open(fn, "r")
-            assert.Equals(fd:read("*a"), [[
+            assert.Equals([[
 [PowerOptions]
 foo=bar
 FrontLightLevel=1
-FrontLightState=true
 [OtherThing]
 bar=baz
-]])
+]], fd:read("*a"))
             fd:close()
             os.remove(fn)
         end)
@@ -178,7 +175,6 @@ bar=baz
             assert.Equals([[
 [PowerOptions]
 FrontLightLevel=15
-FrontLightState=false
 ]],
                           fd:read("*a"))
             fd:close()