Navigational problems on Nano clone

[Cognition]

I got a 2gb Nano clone from Ebay (ellieshang from the white list).

Navigation problem:
While playing music, I click the menu button, then menu button again to select "Local folder". Menu button to exit a directory if I am in one. But as soon as I am down to root level, where all my mp3 album directories are, I am unable to navigate. The fast forward and fast backwards buttons work fine in all menus so far, but as soon as I enter the root, they stop responding. I am automatically taken back to the music-playing screen within a couple og seconds, no matter what I press (or if I don't press anything).

So basically, I want to choose another directory to play, but I can't. The keys are responding fine in all other menus of the player, I just can't choose another directory to play.

I have around 20 directories in my root, and around 20 files in the root (jpgs, amvs & a couple of mp3s)

I could change directories yesterday, but it was really hard, I just managed to do it half of the times I tried. Today it doesn't work.

[Cognition]

Kind of solved:
After selecting "Local folder", if I start pressing the fast forward button while the screen is still showing "local folder", a second later when it shows me the root directory I wanted to navigate it starts to respond to the clicking I did a few seconds earlier.

[JWGDesign]

I have the same problem but to a lesser extent.

When I go to the root directory, it takes a few seconds to load the screen. Then there is less time for me to provide more input (forward/back buttons) before it times out and auto-exits the menu.

I wonder if the DarkMode setting (Settings > LCD Set > DarkMode) has anything to do with the time it takes to auto-exit a menu when you don't provide any more input. Perhaps upping the DarkMode time would provide more time to select a folder/song.

Just a thought.

Update: My assumption was wrong. I just tried changing the DarkMode setting on my Kudez Nano Clone, and it makes no difference for auto-exiting a menu. It seems to auto-exit in about 9-10 seconds no matter what. So if it takes 5 seconds to load the root directory, then I only have 4-5 seconds to hit another button before it exits. If yours takes10 seconds to load the root directory, then you probably won't have any time left over to select a folder. Does that sound legit?

Perhaps having less in your root directory might help loading times. For comparison, I have 22 music album folders, a handfull of JPEGs, five AMVs, three TXTs, one LRC as well as a bunch of recording files and one directory named RECORD for a total of 56 items. It takes my Kudez 5 seconds to load the root directory.

[Cognition]

I tried putting all my files from the root into directories. So in total I have around 20-25 directories, but it did not affect the load time of the "file browser". But it seems pushing Fast Forward once right after I click Menu is sufficient to be able to input more once I get to the root directory.

I click Menu and Fast Forward, wait 10 seconds, then I get to the root screen and see the player respond to the click, and I am free to navigate again.