It’s been a while since we’ve heard anything about HTC’s revisions to locked bootloader policy, so [impatiently] we’ve waited for more news. We’ve gotten an update, what an update it is.
Having listened to their customer’s concerns, and knowing that locking a phone is out of the question, HTC has devised the perfect compromise. Phones will continue to ship locked, however, users can register with HTC for access to a web tool use to unlock the device. The process is more complex than that, requiring that the Android SDK be installed and a couple of command-line lines to be run, but should make a welcome change from the norm. Certainly not needing to wait for developers to “hack” it should expedite ROM development initially.
I see no problem with HTC requiring registration. HTC should not need to deal with a bricked phone because of user error; you knew what you were doing when you got started, and if something goes wrong, you voided the warranty. It shouldn’t be HTC’s responsibility to fix your phone should you break it. That said, it isn’t clear if ACTUAL faultiness will still be covered after running the tool, and to what extent. I have no reason to believe HTC will screw this up, but if they do, rest assured you guys will know about it.
[via facebook]