The Samsung Galaxy S24
HappyBallz's profile

Teacher

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1 Message

Thursday, May 2nd, 2013 10:20 PM

Locked bootloader on Galaxy S4...DO NOT BUY IT!

I been with ATT for over 10 years and every year I see more and more anticonsumer behavior from you... I was planning on purchasing new Galaxy S4 and now I come to find out that it and the other high-end phone, HTC One, both have locked bootloaders!

 

Why are you crippling devices ATT? This is a slap in the face to any loyal customer and high-tech driven people. These phones were meant to be used with maximum cusomization in mind, Sprint and T-Mobile both released theirs totally unmolested.

 

Why are you driving your customers away?

Mentor

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69 Messages

11 years ago

I would bet on that majority of the people that buy the Galaxy s4 or other phones do not care about locked bootloaders or even flashing custom ROM's. I for one am happy enough with Touchwiz and while i would of liked a unlockd bootloader to try out custom rom's it is not a deal breaker and probably isn't a deal breaker fpr majority of consumers

Professor

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1.5K Messages

11 years ago


@Closingracer wrote:
I would bet on that majority of the people that buy the Galaxy S4 or other phones do not care about locked bootloaders or even flashing custom ROMs. I for one am happy enough with Touchwiz and while I would have liked a unlocked bootloader to try out custom ROMs it is not a deal breaker and probably isn't a deal breaker for a majority of consumers

While I'm glad that you personally don't feel insulted by AT&T's move, there is a rather large base of people that do, and to deny them is absurd.

Guru

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309 Messages

11 years ago


@jii wrote:

@Closingracer wrote:
I would bet on that majority of the people that buy the Galaxy S4 or other phones do not care about locked bootloaders or even flashing custom ROMs. I for one am happy enough with Touchwiz and while I would have liked a unlocked bootloader to try out custom ROMs it is not a deal breaker and probably isn't a deal breaker for a majority of consumers

While I'm glad that you personally don't feel insulted by AT&T's move, there is a rather large base of people that do, and to deny them is absurd.


AT&T's treatment of Android phones and customers who buy them is most certainly absurd and insulting. Not only does AT&T unreasonably delay software updates, but, by locking bootloaders, it also prevents customers who would rather seek out timely updates elsewhere (i.e., custom ROMs) from installing them. For these reasons, I got rid of my GS3 (sold it for $325 on Feebay) and bought the GS4 Google Edition. My new phone is already running Android 4.3, which it received a week after it was announced. I will never buy another carrier-branded phone.

Professor

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3.7K Messages

11 years ago


@kgbkny wrote:

@jii wrote:

@Closingracer wrote:
I would bet on that majority of the people that buy the Galaxy S4 or other phones do not care about locked bootloaders or even flashing custom ROMs. I for one am happy enough with Touchwiz and while I would have liked a unlocked bootloader to try out custom ROMs it is not a deal breaker and probably isn't a deal breaker for a majority of consumers

While I'm glad that you personally don't feel insulted by AT&T's move, there is a rather large base of people that do, and to deny them is absurd.


AT&T's treatment of Android phones and customers who buy them is most certainly absurd and insulting. Not only does AT&T unreasonably delay software updates, but, by locking bootloaders, it also prevents customers who would rather seek out timely updates elsewhere (i.e., custom ROMs) from installing them. For these reasons, I got rid of my GS3 (sold it for $325 on Feebay) and bought the GS4 Google Edition. My new phone is already running Android 4.3, which it received a week after it was announced. I will never buy another carrier-branded phone.


while some will state they know why ATT has gone this direction, only those sitting in the large ffices really know. Now having said that, there are always a path to get around a locked bootloader. The forum rules forbid me from explaining how, you can research this on some web sites such as xda developers. 

But, can anyone explain why ATT locking bootloaders is so upsetting to most?

Guru

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309 Messages

11 years ago


@Zombiehunter wrote:

 

while some will state they know why ATT has gone this direction, only those sitting in the large ffices really know. Now having said that, there are always a path to get around a locked bootloader. The forum rules forbid me from explaining how, you can research this on some web sites such as xda developers. 

But, can anyone explain why ATT locking bootloaders is so upsetting to most?


There certainly are ways around locked bootloaders. I've been with Android since day one (had my T-Mobile G1 on pre-order) and always liked the freedom that comes with this operating system. By locking bootloaders and blocking timely updates, AT&T has taken that freedom away. If I wanted the manufacturer/carrier to control how I use my own phone, I'd get an iPhone. Again, there's a good reason why I own a Google Edition device.

Professor

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1.5K Messages

11 years ago


@Zombiehunter wrote:
while some will state they know why ATT has gone this direction, only those sitting in the large ffices really know. Now having said that, there are always a path to get around a locked bootloader. The forum rules forbid me from explaining how, you can research this on some web sites such as xda developers. 

But, can anyone explain why ATT locking bootloaders is so upsetting to most?


Being able to rely on an individual (or group of individuals) to discover and release an exploit allowing end-users to circumvent a locked bootloader isn't the point. The point is that end-users shouldn't have to rely on such people, and said individual(s) shouldn't have to waste time cracking locked bootloaders. The whole appeal of Android is its open source / open platform approach to things, and locked bootloaders are a step backwards.

 

To reiterate a statement made earlier, if you went and bought a car only to learn somewhere down the road that your OEM had forbidden you from upgrading your stereo, tinting your windows, changing your wheels/tires, upgrading your suspension, building your engine, etc etc etc, I'm sure the first thing on your mind would be "Well who on earth do you think you are, Mr. OEM? This is MY CAR, NOT YOURS!" Regardless of pricepoint, the same principal applies.

 

If that doesn't get the point across, I don't know what will.

 

 

Mentor

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69 Messages

11 years ago

I don't disagree with it being insulting but while is a large community is still a small minority. I think I read about a year or 2 ago that Apple iPhone that are sold 79% are still sold on AT&T which means a lot more iPhone are on the network. Also there is plenty of people who have android phones who don't need a custom ROM and thus AT&T really won't do anything unless you guys make a ruckus publicly through a news outlet or some way proving if all you guys leave will hurt their bottomline

Professor

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3.7K Messages

11 years ago

Additionally, we are a small pixel in their big picture. We geeks are the 1%ers. And as stated by closingracer, ATT still sells most of the iPhone in the US. My wife and daughter both have iPhones and have no interest in jail breaking them, have no interest in crossing over to android either. I've met scores of Android users the get that deer in the headlights look when I start talking about bootloader, side loading apps and rooting.
So, if 99% of your customers that make you Billions are happy with the phone and only 1% want things changed or left the same....who do are you going to listen to....

Just saying

Guru

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309 Messages

11 years ago


@Zombiehunter wrote:
Additionally, we are a small pixel in their big picture. We geeks are the 1%ers. And as stated by closingracer, ATT still sells most of the iPhone in the US. My wife and daughter both have iPhones and have no interest in jail breaking them, have no interest in crossing over to android either. I've met scores of Android users the get that deer in the headlights look when I start talking about bootloader, side loading apps and rooting.
So, if 99% of your customers that make you Billions are happy with the phone and only 1% want things changed or left the same....who do are you going to listen to....

Just saying

I couldn't agree more, which is why I took matters into my own hands. Since I will no longer purchase carrier variants, I no longer have to worry about signing up for another two years to take advantage of subsidized pricing. In another 10 months, I'll be contract-free. I also no longer have to play the update waiting game. Am I going to leave AT&T? Probably not, as their coverage and data speeds are top notch. Will I let them dictate what I can do with my phone and when I will receive updates? Of course I won't.

Expert

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2.4K Messages

11 years ago

This has been an ongoing debate for many years. I have been hacking phones since the good 'ol Windows Mobile days and all I can say is "thank goodness for XDA!"
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