Android Phone Fans |
| Motorola Sholes’s Bootloader Key Leaked By Developer; Custom ROMs to Follow? Posted: 20 Mar 2011 04:41 PM PDT t The Motorola Droid is a fantastic phone. Hell, all of their high-end offerings are. The one and only gripe that power users seem to have with them, though, is MOTOBLUR. That gripe is multiplied by 10 when they learn they can’t install CyanogenMod or other “truly” custom ROMs because of the device’s locked bootloader. Thankfully, a breakthrough has finally been found. Famed developer P3Droid has posted on Twitter that he’s found a vulnerability within Motorola’s encryption system that allows him to bypass that dreaded bootloader. Trying to warn the manufacturer garnered no response – that is until he actually let word go that he has these treasured files and intends to distribute them to certain parties. Take a look at this hilarious timeline:
He definitely tried and had no other choice but to publish what he was able to do and how he was able to do it. He posted this explanation over at his site and has notified everyone that he’s no longer doing work on it. Instead, he’s transferred the reigns over to the folks at FreeMyDroid – I’m sure they’re going to take good care of this and will soon bring unlocked goodness to the MOTO-using masses. (They’ve unsurprisingly already responded and taken a huge interest.) This should be exciting news for all MOTOBLUR rooters. Even those of you on other Motorola phones with locked bootloaders should rejoice as it could mean the first breakthrough of many if the encryption systems are similar. We’ll definitely be keeping an eye on their progress. [via Android Forums]
|
| AT&T Buys T-Mobile (And Why It’s Bad) Posted: 20 Mar 2011 04:30 PM PDT AT&T has purchased T-Mobile for $39 Billion, immediately making them the largest carrier in the United States. The process could take 12 months to complete, but if and when it does, there could be some pretty crazy implications. If you take the statements from AT&T and Deutsche Telekom (parent company of T-Mobile) you’ll predictably get bullet points of the positive results stemming from the acquisition:
That last bullet point is the key: AT&T will immediately leapfrog Verizon as the largest mobile operator in the United States in what will become a two-horse race. Whereas Sprint and T-Mobile previously balanced out the competitive landscape, Sprint will become the odd-man out, the third wheel sitting in the shadow of industry giants. AT&T customers should enjoy increased coverage and reliability which cannot be ignored, but in my mind this is far outweighed by the potential pitfalls for customers:
The story could get worse. Verizon Wireless isn’t ever happy playing second fiddle and they could very likely make a buyout bid for Sprint, meaning most Americans would only have two choices: AT&T or Verizon. That would compound the problems of less innovation and fewer choices. And don’t be fooled by thinking Verizon acquiring Sprint is a pipe dream – it’s a very real possibility. Just to throw a pipe dream out there, the consolidation of the wireless industry could provide opportunities for third parties to offer pay-as-you-go solutions that license spectrum from AT&T and Verizon. In fact, in a two carrier America, the government could force liberal licensing policies as a requirement for these deals to go through. You know the “Google Phone” I’ve been wanting? Not the Nexus One. Not the Nexus S. I’m talking about buying a phone from Google that doesn’t include a 2-year contract. Turn it on and it works. While AT&T and Verizon would be fueling the voice and data connectivity, you’d never need a contract from either of them. Pay-as-you-go through a 3rd party. Balance restored (in my pipe dream). Will the United States allow AT&T to acquire T-Mobile USA? Would they also allow Verizon Wireless to buy Sprint? Where would they draw the line? If the government would allow the former but block the latter, I’d have to imagine Verizon could preemptively make an acquisition offer for Sprint in anticipation that the government would block both deals. That being said, I doubt Sprint would allow for a pubic disclosure of an acquisition if it assumed the deal would be blocked due to anti-competitive reasons – they wouldn’t want to take the blow to consumer confidence. In my opinion, Deutshce Telecom is the big winner here. They exit a market that hasn’t performed well against the competition yet keep an 8% interest in the new AT&T that, if nothing else, serves as an insurance policy and portfolio diversification. They can go back to the drawing board to pursue their core competencies of European service. Their press release indicates further “innovating” and I know it’s a buzz word, but one you won’t find in discussing the outcome on the AT&T side of things. If AT&T can import some of T-Mobile’s culture of innovation we may enjoy some unforeseen benefits, but I’m not optimistic. It’s a matter of opinion, but I don’t think AT&T purchasing T-Mobile USA is a good thing for consumers. I think it will stifle innovation, reduce consumer options, and put added pressure on Verizon to continue consolidation that could suffocate competition. If there is one thing Android has helped prove in the last few years it’s that healthy competition helps accomplish outstanding things. Android leveled the playing field and in 3 short years we’ve seen feature phones all but disappear and smartphones are now the status quo. The carriers each constantly outed new Android devices, pushing each other to raise the bar. If consumers don’t have enough options, carriers will be less motivated to continue progress, and I don’t think anyone wants to go back to the way things were a few years ago. [Via MobilizeEverything.com, thanks to everyone who sent this in!]
|
| You are subscribed to email updates from Android Phone Fans To stop receiving these emails, you may unsubscribe now. | Email delivery powered by Google |
| Google Inc., 20 West Kinzie, Chicago IL USA 60610 | |
No comments:
Post a Comment