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Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

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Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#251

Post by sbuk »

suavesito wrote: post #248
scarface74 wrote: post #175

Earlier quoted context omitted.

If you don’t want the carrier to lock your phone and give you a discount, then pay full price for it.

My viewpoint is not that it is fair or not for the carrier doing so. But that restricting freedom from a users device and software should not be allowed. This means that if the carrier decides to sell devices via some kind of credit it cannot take away the freedoms of the user (and future owner) of the device, but the carrier can decide simply to not sell devices via some credit.

Arguably, if it’s bought with credit, it’s not yet the user’s device. The ‘owner’, is the creditor.

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#252

Post by sundvor »

zzzeek wrote: post #197

Shrugs I have a pixel 7, have never used this option, I put the phone in airplane mode and was able to flip the "enable OEM unlocking " switch without issue. Granted this phone has had intenet access for months so not sure if it already has decided it's "not a carrier-locked phone ".

The whole point about the article was the ability to unlock without ever having been online.

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#253

Post by eidolon_93 »

_ea1k wrote: post #202
danuker wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Security, the classic excuse behind reducing freedom.

Sometimes its a valid reason. I love the idea of being able to unlock the bootloader. I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me.

> I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me.

So how do you feel about PCs then? Because most computers sold doesn't have these draconian protections and apparently that has never been an issue.

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#254

Post by HWR_14 »

eidolon_93 wrote: post #253
_ea1k wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sometimes its a valid reason. I love the idea of being able to unlock the bootloader. I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me.

> I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me. So how do you feel about PCs then? Because most computers sold doesn't have these draconian protections and apparently that has never been an issue.

I believe it has in fact been an issue with several areas of electronics, including PCs, in the past.

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#255

Post by HWR_14 »

dingledork69 wrote: post #86
pbasista wrote: post #38

> connect the device to the Internet before they are allowed to install the operating system they want Phoning home before undertaking such an activity takes away the ownership rights from the customers. They do not actually own these devices even after they have purchased them. The reason is that an important part of their ownership rights, i.e. the freedom to use the software of their choice, has been withheld from…

So google is going through all this effort and some guy in China will just bypass the bootloader lock for $30. There is absolutely no way that the intelligence agencies don't have this same capability, which makes all of this security posturing utterly pointless, other than to prevent regular users from owning their devices.

There are a wide range of threat models in between "no effort" and "state-level intelligence agencies".

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#256

Post by HWR_14 »

kristopolous wrote: post #208
pbasista wrote: post #38

> connect the device to the Internet before they are allowed to install the operating system they want Phoning home before undertaking such an activity takes away the ownership rights from the customers. They do not actually own these devices even after they have purchased them. The reason is that an important part of their ownership rights, i.e. the freedom to use the software of their choice, has been withheld from…

It's crazy how much Google has become just another dickish proprietary corporation. If they could have somehow stayed ~2003 Google...

This is pretty much where Google was obviously going in 2003.

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#257

Post by jeroenhd »

judge2020 wrote: post #116
MereInterest wrote: post #59

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Not allowing a bootloader to be unlocked on a company-owned device does sound like a desirable feature, but only for company-owned devices. Applying that setup to all phones assumes that the default phone is a company-owned device and is subject to external control.

A different SKU for enterprise managed devices would cripple IT departments that don't pay the big bucks to e.g. verizon to manage their device provisioning & MDM enrollment.

They already do these special locked SKUs for American carriers.

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#258

Post by _23sd »

eidolon_93 wrote: post #253
_ea1k wrote: post #202

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Sometimes its a valid reason. I love the idea of being able to unlock the bootloader. I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me.

> I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me. So how do you feel about PCs then? Because most computers sold doesn't have these draconian protections and apparently that has never been an issue.

Never been an issue? Just recently there was a LTT review of an Aliexpress laptop [1] where they found the Windows install had been tampered with (mostly because the Windows was pirated). PC or phone or anything, you buy stuff from shady sources it will not be trustworthy. If Xiaomi is/was locking down their phones to try and make purchasing from places like Aliexpress safer, I think that is a losing battle.

[1] https://youtube.com/watch?v=Um0l6ZSxfTE

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#259

Post by AnthonyMouse »

_ea1k wrote: post #202
danuker wrote: post #145

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Security, the classic excuse behind reducing freedom.

Sometimes its a valid reason. I love the idea of being able to unlock the bootloader. I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me.

> I love the idea of being able to unlock the bootloader.

> I don't love the idea of someone else being able to do it before the phone gets to me.

At the time it was their phone, and they can still do it by waiting 30 days.

But what does it matter if you're just going to flash your own system anyway? Let them put whatever they want on it as long as you can blow it away and replace it with yours.

And if you're not going to flash it yourself, make sure you buy it from a retailer you trust not to befoul it, or buy direct from the manufacturer. If you don't trust them then you have bigger problems.

Re: Pixel phones are sold with bootloader unlocking disabled

#260

Post by Vogtinator »

JeremyNT wrote: post #132
jacooper wrote: post #99

Honestly be glad that google still allows bootloader unlocking. And the WiFi requirement is very small, and the article is overblowing it.

Yeah, the state of affairs with Google is better than any other mainstream vendor. It seems lame that you have to phone home to unlock a new device, but it's nothing compared to what they could be doing.

If Sony counts as mainstream vendor, the bootloader is unlockable and they even provide instructions on how to build and flash your own Android! https://developer.sony.com/develop/open-devices
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