Well, I might have recommended a Droid X for big-phone-lovin’ fandroids out there… but now that I’ve read about Motorola’s insane eFuse tampering-countermeasure system, I’m going to have to give this one a big fat DON’T BUY on principle. I won’t restate all my reasons for supporting the modding, hacking, jailbreaking, and so on of your legally-owned products here — if you’re interested in a user’s manifesto, read this — but suffice it to say that deliberately bricking a phone if the user fiddles with it does not fall under the “reasonable” category of precautions taken by manufacturers.
Really. If you want to make it difficult to hack, that’s fine. You think your software should be enough, that’s fine. But once I pay money for the item, it’s mine, and disabling my device because you don’t like what I’m doing with it falls under the category of sabotage.
Here’s what eFuse does. This information is a couple days old but it’s worth reading if you’re interested in Android, development, or open standards in general. Besides, I just found out about it, so you have to read my words whether you like it or not. or you could just stop reading. Either way. Anyway:
If the eFuse failes to verify this information then the eFuse receives a command to “blow the fuse” or “trip the fuse”. This results in the booting process becoming corrupted and resulting in a permanent bricking of the Phone. This FailSafe is activated anytime the bootloader is tampered with or any of the above three parts of the phone has been tampered with.
It requires a hardware fix, apparently, only available through Motorola, of course. This is the equivalent of a MacBook detonating some core component if you try to install an OS to dual boot.
Will many users run into this problem? Probably not, but Android is a platform that not only was founded on the idea of openness, but thrives because of it. The grey market of sideloaded apps and custom ROMs will only get more popular and more easily accessed as people realize that their phones are tiny computers waiting to be customized. That idea is anathema to Motorola and clearly they will continue to stoop to unreasonable means to “protect” their hardware — which you bought and paid for.
So here’s my official recommendation: don’t buy a Droid phone and don’t recommend them to your friends. There are too many good options out there that aren’t locked down by nefarious means. Look up a Galaxy phone or wait for the next awesome thing to come along. Vote with your wallet and tell Motorola “open or GTFO.”
[via Android Police and TG Daily]
Update: Woke up to 200 comments — hi Reddit and Slashdot and others! Come in. Stay a while. Also, two things. First, I don’t know where people got the idea this was a pro-Apple or pro-iPhone post. It’s not even related to Apple except perhaps tangentially. Second, it is true that this security feature or a similar one is implemented in some way in other Droid-branded phones, and has yet to be bypassed. It may or may not be implemented in the way the guy I quoted above describes, but the system is in place. I’d say don’t give up, but honestly, I’m going to go with please don’t waste your time unless you view it as a challenge to be overcome. There are a ton of amazing handsets out there worth using and hacking, and I’d rather we just threw Motorola out the window.
Update 2: Engadget asked Motorola and Motorola says:
In reference specifically to eFuse, the technology is not loaded with the purpose of preventing a consumer device from functioning, but rather ensuring for the user that the device only runs on updated and tested versions of software. If a device attempts to boot with unapproved software, it will go into recovery mode, and can re-boot once approved software is re-installed. Checking for a valid software configuration is a common practice within the industry to protect the user against potential malicious software threats.
Whether there’s a meaningful difference between bricking and being locked into recovery mode, I leave to people more experienced in hacking than myself to discuss. Obviously you don’t lose your data, but if you still have to have it restored by an authorized source, it amounts to almost the same thing.
I’m going to step in right now and smack this nonsense down.
The Droid X will be hacked into pieces.
It will have Custom Roms, Overclocked, Rooted, All the works.
heed my warning that this phone is AWESOME.
Did you even bother reading the article before posting?
This form of lock means that would-be developers will need to destroy several phones to even get close to custom roms, and it will most likely be a SIGNIFICANTLY harder process than any other rooting system we’ve seen yet, if it shows up at all.
This isn’t just something like an added layer of coding, this is something that will permakill phones with ONE mistake.
Not only that, but I’m afraid that hackers may avoid this phone on principle. And I wouldn’t blame them, why help out such a company?
I know the Cyanogen team swore it off.
I disagree, hackers/modders will be obtaining this phone for jail breaking purposes. We love challenges! If the Cyanogen team won’t do it others will step up.
Droid is betting on legit app designers to overtake the competetion. I Phone is the target, I think they have a winner here. Hacking and modding things that weren’t designed to be by the manufacturer does not benifit all. Not everyone is computer or device savy. Do things right and we all win.
damn hackers do exsist….ahhhhhhh!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
You people are so stupid. By this amazing phone and be done with it enjoying all that it has to offer. You overclock your computer and all that other buzz. lol you people are pathetic
And those of us who prefer stock android to any other options?
What about in a year or so when this phone doesn’t officially get OS updates anymore.
The G1 is officially stuck at 1.6
If you are rooted on your G1, you’re already rocking 2.2 before all other phones (but the N1) officially have it. Rooting extends the life of your existing hardware past when the manufacturer stops caring about you.
You made a great point rooting is not about tuning up ur phone with some colorful themes and stuff like that (but u certainly can do it anyway) it is about being able to install updates of the OS without waiting until certain manufactures do it. I mean I got the Droid and I was on of te one that waited for the stock 2.0.1 (and men took and awful time) but if I would have rooted I would be able fast.
Not to mention that we know that the droid is not going to officially get Gingerbread, well what the hell I’m rooted and I can get it even if motorola doesn’t like it.
Isn’t it funny that you called an entire community of technorati “stupid”, and then begin your next sentence with a preposition (by) when you meant to use a verb (buy).
Congratulations, you destroyed your credibility in spectacularly ironic fashion.
Your missing the point of this article completely.
I wouldn’t like my pc getting corrupted because i installed ubuntu. My PC is mine and i do whatever i want with it and i am responsible for my actions.
Droid X once bought is yours. Apple policies are long dead.
You guys are just feeding the troll. it’s best to ignore it.
@John- GRUB is the default bootloader for Ubuntu…
Jussayinn…
Oh look. The Motorola PR team shows up, and they can’t even spell.
Motorola is nothing but a bunch of douchebags and this little shenanigan proves it.
So let’s see…There’s Apple and Motorola with major epic failures and PR nightmares in the past month. Who’s going to be next? LG?
The problem arises when the vendor decides they don’t want to support your phone anymore. You’re left with no way to keep the software current. one of the most amazing aspects of Android to date has been the ability of the community of phone owners to keep on improving the software on their phones after the vendors abandon ship. This is actually part of the value proposition for any android phone. If Motorola kill this then they are reducing the value of their own product into the future. NO THANKS. Too many other good phones to buy that can be readily maintained and enhanced after the vendors lose interest.
You don’t even know what you’re talking about. Sure, stock is perfectly fine for the general novice to intermediate user. For people like myself though, it’s not enough. I’m a tinkerer and modder. I love pushing the limits of devices and technology.
Menno stressed the point well and really covers most of this. I myself own a G1 and according to T-Mobile, only 2% of their users are still on them. Since rooting, overclocking and modding my G1, it’s been much faster, supports Android operating systems that were said to be unsupported by it and it even beats out some of the newer phones in speed. Because of the modifications I was willing to make to the device, its life has been extended.
Is that stupid? Maybe I should abide by what the device manufacturers dictate to me and upgrade my device every 6 months instead.
Innovation > wasting money.
What’s with roll over and die mentality?
The damn thing is ultimately amounts to a feature coded into the system by corporate programmers. Not some ancient, encrypted hieroglyph from a lost civilization.
If anything, Motorola is just offering up a new challenge. Quit with the doomsaying.
If it were a phone like the iphone sure, maybe it’s another challenge. However, this is an android phone where there are many different options on models and hardware. It isn’t worth the effort to take on the unnecessary challenge when the hardware on the droid x isn’t way ahead of other leading android phones.
It’s one thing to protect your copyright. It’s another to sabotage a product that one of your clients has bought!
Why don’t you through your questions around instead? Why is Motorola doing this? A new challenge? Stop trolling. They put down extra efforts at blocking something that doesn’t have any effect on them whatsoever.
Do they have the right to do it? Absolutely, but then don’t expect that phone to be embraced by the modders/hackers community. Motoblur is a waste of bloat and it’s even more useless if you have to wait months to get the next Android update.
I wouldn’t be so sure. All someone has to do is instead of figuring out how to hack the rom, they have to figure out how to hack the fuse. Considering that someone would have the physical phone in their possession and that the “efuse” isn’t seriously encrypted, so you have nothing worry about.
I agree with you in principle, but the problem is that MOST people aren’t willing to hack a physical piece of the system. Anything that requires “opening up” your hardware, I can pretty much guarantee it will have a VASTLY smaller userbase/interest base, than a simple “usb your new ROM over” solution will.
I’m not saying that’s terrible, but it will put off some of the people who will work on the hack…
It likely won’t kill the phone, just wipe out the boot code that allows any further loading. There are still other ways into the thing.
HUH?? if you kill the boot code, the phone will not power up. Its a brick. The boot-loader loads the rest of the Android OS into the phone. Remember that today, most handsets require software to even function.
Burning a fuse is permanent. You could be nasty and do the equivalent of putting a burnable/fusable RAS line on the memory bus, and then burning that line should someone try to alter the booter-loader or OS. Just use a ‘deadman’/watchdog that has to be continually reset else it will fry the RAS line.. bricking the unit…
You clearly don’t understand what motivates ROM hackers. They love a challenge, and Moto just gave them one mean puzzel to solve. This will get rooted and unlocked, but maybe 1 week later because of this rediculousness.
Menno,
Who is the source of this information? If you are willing to just accept some anonymous author’s statement then I’ve got some ocean side property in Arizona to sell you; could probably even throw in a few flying pigs too.
Come on, silly people, when something sounds too far out there to be true, it probably isn’t.
Oh yeah, did you just hear? The IPhone doesn’t really have an antenna problem; it was just a software bug. Sheesh.
Sean
So, I guess you own Apple stock?
You trying to drive people to an iDiotPhone?
One that blames everyone else for the failure to properly test before release to market phone?
Guess what?
There are some of use that don’t want all the fancy junk that only complicates our lives!
An old phone and a laptop or PC at home is fine!
We don’t need to feel like a ‘fake’ important person too deal with what is real!
Remember, we all laugh at you having heart attacks over your busy fake schedules!
Why do use the term would-be. Legit ones wouldn’t have to destry a phone to design an app for it….. read my post. I read your article.
Droid X owners and app designers power on.
James – July 17th, 2010 at 8:31 am UTC
You are a COMPLETE IDIOT LOL
Screw off, you troll.
I’m an incomplete idiot. I need you to make me whole.
Fucking retard.
ok asshole, are you willing to fry 5 droid x’s before hopefully finding a way to hack the fuse?
gtfo and learn what the guy is even posting about
You dont get it. Low level hardware runs un modifiable code (Read in ROM) and if something isnt right it bricks the phone. Moto has done this on other phone and guess what in 7 months nobody has rooted it. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=723508
It would be significantly easy to put into hardware code to run a checksum using a hardware ID unique to a product line combined with a calculated checksum of the code in EEPROM/Flash and compare that to a simple text file with the comparison data/hash in it. If the phone fails this check then brick it. Period. If all of this was done at the bootloader level then there would literally be nothing you could do to root it without hardware hacking OR figuring out the encryption and keys they used to generate their check sums which could be nearly impossible. The only way around this whole thing would be to disassemble a phone and figure out exactly what it does to brick the phone by bricking one or more until the method is discovered and could be stopped through careful laboratory grade monitoring of the phone. Good luck.
And yet the Milestone is rooted:
http://www.redmondpie.com/how-to-root-motorola-milestone-on-android-2.0-9140366/
“rooted” is much different that controling the boot loader. Rooting is only half the battle (the easiest part), you can not install roms and such without bootloader control.
why is everyone on the internet fucking retarted now?
o, i know why, because they are all 15 year olds who jerk off to their mom and dads porn tapes….
@nick
Not everyone on the internet is a faggot script kiddie like you are. I’m sure you were thrilled with the chance to finally one-up someone after all your internets were stolen and your e-peen shrunk to the point of nonexistence due to your inability to use 3rd-grade grammar skills.
Oh, and thank you for enlightening us all of what you do with your irl peen when your parents aren’t home.
Actually, the Milestone isn’t half as bad. I believe it has root at least. No one will even try to root this phone. If you try to root a Milestone and fail, you have an Android 2.1 stock Milestone. If you try to root a DROID X and fail, you have a $569.99 brick. And BTW, the bump on the back is fugly. It looks like the Samsung Saga. I’m getting a Droid Incredible.
this is wrong. the efuse will not brick your phone.
the motorola droid has an efuse in it as well.
I don’t think so. My Motorola Droid with CyanogenMod 6 RC begs to differ.
Droid does have it but it’s not active like it is droid x
Here’s what Motorola is missing:
I will never modifying a phone. I have no interest in it.
However, the fact that they have in effect BOOBY TRAPPED this product gives me a sour taste and permanently poisons my attitude toward Motorola.
I want the psychological freedom, as a consumer, to know that what I have paid for is mine to do with as I choose.
Multiply me by millions of other people, and what do you have?
An EPIC fail, Motorola.
What economy are they operating in?
Goodbye and good riddance, Motorola. Forever.
The reason a phone is locked is one of cost. You take a chance at breaking/bricking when you mod which increases returns to the manufacturer. It not cheap for the OEM to add security, but its more expensive to take in broken units.
OK OK – But what does the EULA say? You just THOUGHT because you bought it it was yours.
No – forget the EULA question. My REAL QUESTION is, “Does ConsumerReports.org recommend this phone?”
I’ve heard you can make phone calls on this phone! I don’t want to get to excited, but bf the rumors are true, I’ll just have to ignore this article and buy one anyway!
If all you do is plan on making phone calls then why not buy a $20 flip phones instead of wasting so much money?
It’s astounding how much money people waste on shit they don’t intend on using to full potential simply because it’s the in-thing. We call these people financially immature.
I don’t plan on buying this phone, but If I were I’d not be using it simply to call other people.
*pssst* I think that was a bit of satire referring to the iPhone 4….
I think your humor detector is broken there, poindexter.
dude…the fact that you didn’t get that was a joke is incredibly depressing
EULA? That does not apply to something I bought. This is not software. I’m not licensing a Droid if I purchase it. I’m buying it. That means I can throw it off a roof if I please. The idea of locking down phones will eventually disappear since they are, in fact, computers. Remember, “jailbreaking” and “rooting” are words that are either new or unknown to the general public. As people hear them more and more and start to tinker a bit more with their “computers,” device will be less and less locked down. And for the record, hackers not buying this device will not in any way, shape or form affect Motorola’s bottom line. There simply aren’t enough people who mod, regardless of what you see in the modding community. Remember, you need to look at the modding community from the outside. Regular people haven’t the slightest clue what any of this stuff is and couldn’t care less if their bootloader (a word that may as well be made up as far as most are concerned) is locked down. I, for one, am saddened that a device with such great specs will not be a part of our awesome modding community.
I disagree. I don’t think that the general public will ever get much knowledge about rooting/jailbreaking. Best case scenario, a local news channel will run a piece about “modding” your phone, and that will be that. They won’t get into it, they won’t start doing the research, and they sure as hell won’t get the manufacturer to change the policy. If anything, the hardware will only get MORE locked down over time. Look back at the history of cell phones: It ain’t gettin’ any easier, son.
I think the point that needs to be hit on is that once you buy it, you own it. If you decide to fiddle with the innards, and you void the warranty, fine. There’s NO reason for them to intentionally brick the device. It’s like…On the Wii, installing and running Homebrew…Nintendo keeps coming out with updates to stop you from installing it, but this would be like an update that if it detects you trying to do it, it turns it into a paperweight.
Not cool.
I agree with you for the most part, however, you shouldn’t underestimate the power of word-of-mouth. It just may take a bit longer.
“Hey, how did you get your screen to look like that?”
“It’s jail-broken. Just go to ; it’s super easy.”
“Cool!”
BINGO, sir! Yes, this is typical of Verizon’s attitude toward its customers — I mean, why the f should it matter to them if I want to root my phone? Isn’t this customizing ability a big part of Android’s draw? I probably will never root my Evo, but I like knowing that I can if I ever get that ambitious. Verizon’s wish to shut that down should sound warning bells to any potential customers. My house and business lines are both finally FREE of their chokehold and I could not be happier.
Remember, that’s the company that’s giving away free mobile hotspot to all Pre+ and Pixi+ users, and who has five Android phones, three of which can be rooted.
What!!
Are they really that insane!!
Devin is MG’s pseudonym.
Devin what is you iPhone recommendation you fucking hypocrite? Don’t buy the phone for something 99percent of buyers won’t notice or use are you fucking kidding me.god damn you are stupid. Where does TC find you ass hats?
If a ton of people buy this phone, Motorola and Verizon will have no incentive to change this behavior in the future.
calm down, take an English class, and think for two seconds before you post.
He actually recommends phones based on webOS, which is still open and available for homebrew/modding. Even HP’s CTO is ecstatic about modders.
I’m pretty sure that this isn’t geared towards 99% of the people that will buy this phone. Pretty sure this article was written for the devs and tinkerers as a warning.
Most people interested in Android will try and mod it.
Actually, as noted above, very few people buy this phone with even a hint as to what modding/rooting is. They just buy the phone because it’s a nice phone and works.
The other reason is because it’s Droid – which in today’s market means “Cool”.
Great, I’m done with Motorola, and i wont let anyone (not even people who don’t want to mod it) to get any moto phone.
really? there wasnt a single mention of the iphone in that article and yet SOMEONE just HAD to bring it up.
“But once I pay money for the item, it’s mine, and disabling my device because you don’t like what I’m doing with it falls under the category of sabotage.”
Agreed!
That’s interesting that he says that, because more likely than not, its not true. Unless you pay full price for the phone(ie no contract) you do not fully own the phone. You enter an agreement to pay a reduced price for the phone while paying monthy for the service. The company- verizon in this case, subsidizes your phone and takes that money monthly for 2 years(usually). So unless you buy the phone outright, you don’t fully own it. That’s why they have early termination clauses. Because if they didn’t, they’d lose the money they put up for you so you could get an expensive phone. Don’t get me wrong, I think you should be able to do whatever your heart wishes to the phone. But the reality is, unless you’re paying the full price(no contract) then you don’t technically own the phone until your contract is up. I will be buying a Droid X and it should be on my doorstep tomorrow afternoon. And I think it will be hacked, just by more careful people before I try it. Worse case scenario, ill play dumb and say the phone stopped working.
That’s actually completely wrong. You own the phone, regardless of the price break. Verizon doesn’t have a lien on your Droid X. You proved this fact with your mention of the ETF. Further proof? If you break your contract, they can’t recover the device from you.
This is simply not true. The test: if you terminate the contract early, do you have to return the phone? No? Well then. The early termination fee covers the company’s “subsidy” to you buying the phone. The phone is your property regardless.
YOU FAIL IT
I can appreciate that line of logic. If that is the way that Verizon/Moto wants to approach it, then allow me to pay full retail and sign no service contract. That’s how most of the rest of the world operates, but the cell phone lobby is far too powerful for congress to ever force that kind of policy. Also, if you think that Verizon wasn’t involved with this process, you’re crazy. Verizon doesn’t let you THINK about your account without charging you so keeping the ROM as vanilla as possible rules out any way for you to get anything for free.
They do allow you to buy it at full price — NO contract. The problem is, they’ll ask you to pay $500 – $600…and then you’ll complain that they charge too much. Catch 22 really.
Maybe the problem is that people don’t ASK to just pay full price for no contract. It’s how I bought my phone…and all I had to do was ask.
The real issue with it all: The people are idiots.
dude you’re an idiot if you think these phones cost them more then $100 a unit in mass production… it’s all about greed and nothing more, if someone else can make a mod or a program and make money off it they want to insure they can take their cut nothing more nothing less.
Ok, why doesn’t my monthly service price get reduced at the end of my two-year contract? Or why couldn’t I buy a phone outright and pay a reduced monthly rate reflective of owning my own phone? And why, oh why, did Verizon mod the last good Nokia flip phone with their corrupted Verizon OS so that I couldn’t synch the phonebook to my computer? They told me it was for ‘customer convenience’. That’s not just vanilla bullshit… that’s plain lying. I’m picky whom I buy stuff from these days, and I use EFF as a guide to current events. I probably qualify as a user who doesn’t give a damn about modding, but I will definitely work to find a company that isn’t f#@*king its customers to buy a phone from… and that’s getting unfortunately hard to do these days.
Do they charge for the hardware fix? If this isn’t under warrantee, they getting sued over this.
The US has consumer protections and you can’t refuse to honor someone’s warrantee because of damage you (Motorola) have done.
I bet they will charge to repair it and consider it out of warranty. I can almost guarantee that somewhere in the fine print the warranty will state it only covers manufacturer defects, maybe if they’re nice accidental damage. Since hacking the phone is what broke it you (the hacker) did something on purpose to cause it to stop working you are SOL.
That being said, i think it’s pretty crappy that they put an autobrick device in the phone.
Just a side note on the technology of Efuses. (I design chips and have put such devices in them..)
An Efuse is a one way device. Once it is blown – it’s blown. No going back. So if they are going to replace it – what they really have to do is give your phone new guts. This won’t be a cheap repair.
Ummm… so why don’t you just hardware hack the Motorola hardware fix tool? Isn’t that the modders’ logical next step?
If it’s that easy, why don’t you do it? You take the fact that these hackers spend WEEKS and would brick dozens of phones just to get this to work.
No thanks. I’d rather spend my time working on phones and making them better, rather than losing tons of money and time to a phone that doesn’t want to be worked on in the first place.
Well clearly YOU’RE interested in the path of least resistance on this one. That’s fine, stand back and let the real hackers take care of this.
I’ll be waiting for your hack for this. Keep us posted.
Oh wait, your not going to try? then STFU.
see, no. Here’s the thing, custom ROMs and shit, it gets STALE. I’ve flashed countless ROMs on my Motorola DROID over the last 8 months-and after a few days or so, always revert back to Stock (be it 2.0, 2.1, or currently 2.2). the Droid X-like every other Android phone on the fucking planet will be ROOTED. I will be able to overclock the processor beyond the 1ghz it offers, and I will be able to go back to using Wireless Tether for Root Users. That’s fine with me. I dont NEED ROMs, thank you very much sir.
No, you won’t be able to overclock (this requires changing the kernal, which you can’t do because of the bootloader) you also will most likely be unable to wifi tether because again, you need to adjust the Kernal to get this running correctly.
the ONLY thing you’ll be able to do is us SetCPU to underclock kernal when you’re not using it.
Seriously guys… read the freaking article before you try and say it’s not a big deal.
Actually the Milestone (GSM Droid 1) has a method of overclock without touching the bootloader (it too has a locked bootloader), by changing the kernel in runtime. It’s possible this method will make its way onto the X.
it has to make it past the efuse. to my knowledge, this is something new to the droidx and it far nastier.
“I’ve flashed countless ROMs on my Motorola DROID over the last 8 months-and after a few days or so, always revert back to Stock (be it 2.0, 2.1, or currently 2.2).”
You wouldn’t have 2.2 if you couldn’t flash a build that wasn’t OTA, and you won’t have 2.2 on the Droid X for that reason. So why are you sitting here and telling us it doesn’t matter, when the ROM you “revert back to” can’t even be put on your phone without more customization than the Droid X will allow?
Hey, all I have to say is, look at the Q.
Phoxus: as noted elsewhere, the dx uses the same bootloader as the milestone which so far hasn’t been broken…its a good system, for that kind off thing. That they insist on something that is extraordinarily hard to work around says something…outside of what they have said verbatim.
Hmmm, this is on Verizon you say….. Where’s the surprise? This is why I refuse to go to this company. Why didn’t they get the iPhone? Those two control freaks belong together.
two control freaks doesn’t work.
It’s like two Dom’s in a BDSM meet.
Except this has got nothing to do with Verizon, it’s 100% Motorola. They encrypted the bootloader of the GSM version of the Droid 1, and the backlash from that is what triggered the press release saying it’s their principle.
A Motorola insider says it’s to “protect their assets”, whatever that means.
It is to protect their assets, to force people to buy new phones when this one can no longer be upgraded to the newest android.
Except Verizon is far worse. Both Apple and AT&T, whatever their failings, offer very good customer service. Verizon’s is dreadful. And to those who say this is a Motorola thing — sure they did the design, but Verizon is their client and they wouldn’t have included it without Verizon’s approval. Not letting Motorola off the hook, but the buck stops at Verizon.
Umm, Verizon’s costumer service is beast. Granted the Envy 2 i had broke three times over the two years i had it, i always got a new only if not free at high discount either at the desk or shipped to me in a timely manner.
Apple-YOU PAY TO TALK TO SOMEONE WHO TREATS YOU LIKE AN IDIOT!
Why would anyone want to modify the damn thing anyway? Is this some sort of super-nerdy, showy-offy, ‘Aren’t I a clever clogs’ BS, anyway?
If the good people at Motorola have gone to a lot of trouble to design and manufacture an excellent mobile device then just get on with it and enjoy it.
Jeez, some folk have too much time on their hands…
Because when Motorola decide to EOL, you won’t have the option of updating via Custom ROMS, forcing you to buy a new phone?
Because when Motorola and verizon decide they won’t bother updating the phone anymore, you still can.
The G1 is stuck at 1.6, unless you root. Then you can run 2.2 on it.
You non-nerds just need to get off the Internet in general and tech blogs in particular. You should like go to a discotheque or whatever it is you people do.
word!
I like a dance, I do. Get a few pints of lager in me an’ I’m John Bloomin’ Travolta. Now where’s me 8-track Beegees?
That would leave about 100,000 people left on the Android platform. #DieAndroidDieDieDie
I’m sure MobileCrunch would appreciate having just 100 readers then
The internet isn’t just for nerds, technoturd…there’s porn out there on the interweb.
All of the “Neonerd, technolonazi a-holes” out there that belive their opinion on the internet makes a huge differnce in corporate machine, go back to your Jolt and bag of Cheetos. Beat it to the newest processor or hack and leave the non-nerds alone. People are free to read and post wherever they want. It’s why the internet is here (that and porn).
I disagree that this piece of equipment will never be hacked/modded…too many benefits to finding “the way”. I’m not the one to do it, though.
People like you would have us all still seeing “KEYWORD: AOL” on commercials. The way you follow in the paths of geeks who have blazed a trail and then mock them speaks volumes of your ignorance.
You clearly have no idea the benefits one receives from rooting a phone and I’m surprised you took the time to post you ignorant thoughts and then have balls to say we have to much time on our hands. HaHaHa
You know what; you’re right my friend. Now where should I send the box of tissues in order that you may continue to enjoy your onanistic pleasures without mommy getting upset about the sheets….
Not taking sides, but this is probably the funniest response I’ve seen in a long time.
I agree with the above statement.
Droid, Droid Incredible, Droid Impossible (as in Mission Impossible…. phone will self-destruct….) Looks like the goose has quit laying golden eggs!
“Droid” Incredible is also known as HTC Incredible, as in not made by Motorola. As in HTC who love to support modders.
You knew that, right?
Yeah, the Incredible is rooted, has ClockWorkMod support and is on the CyanogenMod 6 list. As is each and every HTC Android (except the Droid Eris, and that’s old news. It has been rooted, but no CM6)
Yeah great point. That pretty much proves this is a Moto thing not a Verizon thing.
Yes, I knew that. I have a friend who has one. I was referring to the series of Droids and I can see how it sounds, now that it’s not 2:30 a.m.! I meant the Droids are marvelous phones in that they can be modded, with (supposedly) the exception of the X. Glad I got the Moto Droid as opposed to the Incredible, and was contemplating the X, until I read about the ‘efuse’. Anxious to hear the real scoop on this subject.
We had the same problem with the motorola milestone (the european droid).
The bootloader locked the possibility to flash custom roms.
But thanks to alot of hard-working hackers and developers. They brought us: root,overclocking,etc. without flashing a rom.
Actually Milestone (european Droid) have same problem. What will happen in one year when next Android is launched? We will have still a great hardware but an outdated software because of Motorola won’t update Milestone.
Same will happen with Droid X. And then Magic will be a better phone.
Well actually Magic is NOW a better phone and Milestone and Droid X. It has Froyo thanks to the free bootloader.
Are you joking? I do not believe ….it is absolutely impossible, they cvan not be so stupid.
Look, we have a right to protect our design and engineering investment. You have a right to tamper with & destroy your phone.
That’s doesn’t protect anything. In what way does protect it?
Taranowski- You’re right, here’s the only flaw in your argument though. If I broke my Nexus One by hacking it and messing something up, _I BROKE IT_, it’s my fault, no one else to blame. If the Droid X self destructs because of an attempted modification, that’s not ME breaking the phone, that’s YOU breaking my phone. Learn the difference between a user error and manufacturer sabotage you fucking communist.
“Communist”? really? you mean “extremist capitalist fuck”. Idiot. (PS: I always hated Motorola; but I also hate idiots who don’t know what communism means)
obviously you are mistaken, taking someones freedom to protect himself from his own actions is a perfect example of communism.
No, you’re thinking of fascism. Communism is the exact opposite. The USSR and China are/were not Communist, it just sounds better than fascism, and they didn’t want to associate themselves with Hitler.
Not Communist.
I believe the correct term is Fascist.
The flaw in YOUR arguement is now that you KNOW the phone has a fuse in it, and you STILL try to mod the phone, IT’S YOUR FAULT. You knew what would happen going in.
So Mike, you know walking up to my front door and knocking will get you shot in the head, let’s say I warn you ahead of time. So if you come and knock on my door, is it not murder when I shoot you?
Also: Communism – a system of social organization in which all economic and social activity is controlled by a totalitarian state dominated by a single and self-perpetuating political party.
@Tom:
You need to look at what communism is – not what Russia made it in to.
Communism is everyone works for the greater good.
Fascism is control of the populace by dictatorial means.
It’s totally to keep you from disabling data-colecting features, or something as deep. Even Apple doesn’t do this and they are nazis ;) This isn’t conspiracy talk, I implore you to read any Google privacy statements. They and Facebook battle for the number 1 spot of worst data mining practices. Don’t get me wrong I love the phone and the company but Im sure thats what this is about. And all you claiming that the phone “is yours:” You are correct, but remember there’s a complex OS on there and it does have a EULA and a Privacy Agreement. You are still using Google’s OS, not yours.
Actually this isn’t Google, this is Motorola. They locked the bootloader, which isn’t technically part of the OS. Google has absolutely nothing to do with this. Also, the EULA wouldn’t really apply, or it at least shouldn’t, because custom ROMs is like loading Linux on your Windows computer. Completely legal and necessary.
Sorry, by locking the bootloader, I meant that they booby trapped it. I know of no other manufacturer that currently does this. Locking it is one thing, but rigging it is a whole different story.
It could be an attempt to get around the GPL licensing required of the software that the Android OS was developed from. Place a little ‘watchdog-reset’ in the software, claim that GPL does not apply.
actually android uses apache not gpl….
actually what you said doesn’t only happen with moto
I dont think this is a big deal for most of the users, even it will just hurt a very little number of people. To examine my statement, take a look around and see how many rooted users are there for the current Droid and you will know that its not really a big deal for most of the common users.
This is very droidnoying.
not a good idea for motorola to snub modder and hacker community. Remember moto, these guys may be less than 5 percent of your consumer base, but they create positive buzz around a product that they like and this rubs off on general consumers as well which is never ever a bad thing.
5%? You wish… Sorry your logic is like saying Game Pirates should be respected since they bring business to the gaming industry. too funny
that freaking hell man , i was actually planning to get a Droid for my personal use , how would i customize it , Motorola you are awesome , but you dont need to prove that .
Is Motorola following something Apple did ….
its cheap its not customer satisfaction .
This would be a nice target for viruses and such.
Just imagine this: This phone s’gonna have full Flash support and the amount of security holes in flash is nothing new.
So let’s see.
Upload a virus to this phone that fiddles with any system component, it doesn’t even have to be anything important, would get it to self destruct. That’s just hilarious considering that the manufacturer will not replace the destroyed components for free, because you wont be able to proof to them that it was not you who messed with it!
yup. nail->head.
Thats it, I am buying a Jitterbug!
My thoughts exactly.
And so the tech world rocks itself from one fiasco to another.
I have never been so excited for a phone, and now so utterly PISSED. This will not stand. I will do everything I can to boycott motorola and verizon for the rest of my life.
Again… for the 100th time…. Verizon had no part in Motorola’s decision to lock down/encrypt THEIR bootloader. What do you guys not understand about this?
Verizon should publicly humiliate and insult Motorola for putting a timebomb in the phone.
I wouldn’t be so sure about that. I guarantee you VZW doesn’t want people avoiding the hefty Wifi hotspot fee by using rooted phones and custom ROM’s.
I agree with this. VZW has a reputation for shady dealings like this, therefore they do not get the benefit of the doubt in this case.
Actually, this might even have a different impact… from my point of view, this might encourage hackers to try to root it. Sure gives you a challenge ;)
yeah, a $600 one..
Doesn’t this just mean the SW Engineers at Motorola are smarter than you are? Maybe they even have geekier T-shirts than you guys have too – ouch.
Yet another reason the Nexus One is still the king of Android.
Too bad your beloved Google killed the Nexus Two.
Meaning what exactly? That we still get the latest and greatest FIRST from Google, and will continue to with Gingerbread and beyond? Or the fact that I own an amazingly great phone and I don’t see it in the hands of a dozen people around me, especially since it won’t be sold anymore soon?
Where is the con in this again??
Goodbye, Moto.
I’m glad I saw this article. I was about to drop myself into debt to pick one of these up. I would have been quite angry to find out I was stuck with a MotoBlur sporting standard load-out. Thanks for the article Devin.
IMO when the phone is EOL and Motorola is no longer supporting it, most of us will be wanting the next baddest phone out there. I havent held onto a phone for more than 2 years and now im ditching an Env Touch after a year. I understand the frustration over what Moto has done, but if you like the phone buy it and enjoy. If you want to boycott Moto thats your choice. They make a great phone, so if your on Verizon then your limiting your choices for smart phones.
The phone could be EoL within a year.
Remember, this thing has a custom skin on it, meaning updates will be slowed down considerably.
A rooted phone can have the latest software running on the device within days of a leaked port on any similar device.
Boycotting for this??? Really??? Only hackers care about this and moto already said if you want to hack a phone get a N1, seriously calm down its not the end of the world people get mad for such stupid reasons, i understand you worrying about updates but the comparison with the g1 is ridiculous, the g1 had horrible hardware, this doesnt, eventually it will not be upgradeable because of new components needed for newer android versions, your under contract for 2 years, just get the newer one then, im sure the DX will still get updates for a while, if your buying a DX your not poor and can afford a new phone later when the new best thing comes out, so stop whining, and if you are poor and are getting this phone your the kind of idiot that needs to set some priorities in life, come on people seriously theres an oil spill in the golf, theres more important things to make you blow your gasket in the world, stop having anxiety attacks over a phone that is great already without any modding(for the most part), so chill, really its a great phone, if you dont think so then dont buy it, simple… and get out more… not all of you, but some of you crazy angry flamers, get a better hobby that doesnt turn you into an angry moron, to the rest of you… your cool.
goddamn it, i couldnt agree more with this guy… Im still buying it. I like the default UI, and i dont care much about custom bootscreens since I rarely turn my phone off…
Evebody cares about this. Maybe only people with strong technical knowledge understand it but all users understand that they can’t get Froyo while Magic, G1, etc can get it.
And much more they will care about when in one year they will be still under contract and they cannot get Android 2.3 and cannot install many apps, even visit websites because their phone doesn’t support those features.
You are such a douchebag, with your 2nd grade spelling level…
I was going to comment and agree with you, until I saw what you had posted your name as. Douche.
Don’t you love internet narcissism? “I don’t care about this, so I don’t see why the internet has an article for people who do care about it. I hate you all. You’re stupid.”
Most of the ‘g33k’ flamers posting here would not know a bootloader from a kernel if it hit them in the forehead and stuck to it. They obviously don’t know that modifying the kernel’s behavior is done by just modifying specific memory locations. And, of course, you need to be root for that.
Wrt the encrypted bootloader, like any piece of hardware, there are commands that will bypass it. This will be made public with the passage of time.
The X appears to be cool enough with the apps loaded. Most of the people who can afford the extra $20 per month for the hotspot/wifi or extra cost apps will not have the time to moan about not being able to root it.
The X is fine as is.
this is like a huge billboard to every hacker i know, “please come and mod the f*&k out of me” the fact that it might brick it makes the challenge even better.
The orig DROID is fully customizable, so don’t say DON’T BUY A DROID, that’s BS
Sounds like a match made in heaven for Verizon. Now they can get back to their preferred business of wrecking your phone with their crappy software designed to rake in every last penny.
This reminds me of the car market. Most people buy a Toyota Camry and are happy with it. (Average Android phone) Others buy a Chevrolet Corvette (Droid X) and are satisfied. But there are people that get a Corvette that want to mod it, make it faster and handle better. (Modders) What if Chevrolet made the engine in a way that if you touched it, it would seize up and never work again, would you want that car? Its your car/phone, you should be able to whatever you want with it.
Well said!! :-)
be careful, guy, cars cost well more than cell phones and don’t offer the same function…the analogy is frail.
modders or hackers in this case might be interested in taking on this challenge of disabling the efuse (crazier things have happened and I am sure verizon phones “fall off of trucks” just as much as any other product).
the rest of yous complaining that this is the end of trust in motorola (should there ever have been in the first place? c’mon!) and a real betrayal blah blah blah are fair weather modders (or just journalists). Given the relatively recent eruption in the popularity in rooting phones, maybe it’s just time that some of the flakes get sloughed off.
Really? You want to split hairs on his analogy? A ‘Vette is more expensive than a phone and doesn’t offer the same function? Really?
Thanks for pointing out the obvious you fucking douche.
i dont think you understand what an analogy is.
Then here is a better analogy.
Dell, HP, etc. don’t “brick” your PC on purpose if you upgrade your OS from Windows to Linux.
This is just stupid. What about people that just want a phone and won’t mod it? Stupid article.
GET A CLUE. This article isn’t for the average brainless consumer who has to have the next big shiny thing. It was written specifically to inform people WHO CARE ABOUT MODDING to stay away from this phone. If that isn’t you, why did you bother to read it when you saw the title, much less comment on it?
Don’t you tell me what I can or cannot read, fascist!
Our parents fought a long and hard war to rid the world of people like you.
There will be no surrender. NO SURRENDER!
you parents didnt do shit. just filled you with blind ignorance
Boy am I glad I bought an HTC Android phone that doesn’t have any of the eFuse gunk in it. I’m all for recommending that people buy Android phones, I’m just recommending they don’t buy this silly locked down model.
What surprises is me is that it took Verizon this long to come up with a “ruined” Android phone. Their usual modus operandi when it comes to phones is to take a great phone and then go about disabling everything that was great about it.
I don’t know what scares me more;
the fact that people don’t care that freedom is being slowly stripped away (like millions of other Americans who don’t care about certain actions of their governments)
or that they insult people who DO like to have their freedom and who DO like to tinker with the world.
It’s because of those tinkering people that we have all the cool gadgets we have today. Limit their potential and we will be sorry in the future. (That is, if anyone really fucking cares about the future besides me.)
Radical-Atheist-Amen to that
well said.
Firing on all 8 cylinders there. Agreed. The world is ALL about invention. Badly conceived “solutions” that slow down (IMHO) the most important source of long-term productivity (and therefore sustainability and scalability) are a pathway to slow but inevitable decay.
I would like to offer a suggestion about “people don’t care that freedom is being slowly stripped away” commentary. It’s my observation that merely *discovering* this stripping away (which is agree totally is being done) is a lot of work and most people are struggling merely to keep up, much less exploring the unhappy realities of the forces of stasis arrayed against us.
I do not believe it’s a “conspiracy of elites” or any similar tinfoil-hat beliefs. I believe instead that once someone is in a position of influence, that person has strong inducement to not let that situation change.
It’s up to us to discover what’s really going on and to try to resolve the questions as effectively as possible.
While I am a simple user and very unlikely to use any mod, I value the freedom to potentially use one if I choose to, and the potential of other users to do the same.
The modding community may be a small fraction of the customer base, but they do have an influence on the behaviour of others.
I agree, if not for modders and tinkerers, the computer you are currently using would occupy one room of your house, and we wouldn’t be having this conversation because we would all be using land lines…
I agree with riffraff… very well said, Brian. :)
Do those Qualcomm SoC offer the same functionality as those from at91 concerning BootROM?
The at91 CPUs have an ability to disable NAND flash and boot into internal BootROM. In this mode you can flash your NAND via USB. See Atmel’s manuals for details.
So as long as your NAND hardware is functioning you can always reflash it. It would be great if all Android phones had this function.
Actually, I am currently developing bare-metal (boot, executive) both for the AT91SAM3U4C and a device based on a Freescale i.mx25.
You are correct, Atmel does have a feature that allows de-bricking their Flash-based embedded SoC’s: After ERASEing their flash (pulling the ERASE pin “high”), a built-in bootloader allows one to use the debug UART to initialize them. (Cool feaure: USB generic serial too, using straight bulk transfer endpoints!)
Recent Mot^H^H^HFreescale chips have the eFuse feature that is one component in a small group of components meant to protect the unit from “hacking”. This is specifically intended to prevent media players from being hacked to disable DRM, as well as the less-frustrating features of supporting hardware enforced security from malware (as long as the security design is complete, competent, etc etc etc).
Being a developer, it’s not my place to judge the “social value” of these techniques, but it does need to be said that sabotage comes from several places, only one of which is the developer wishing to mod a device to play protected media. Another source of difficulty is attackers with trojans, worms, and similar malware.
It would be *wonderful* if we could figure out a way to enable my freedom to use my hardware as I choose without being harshly and inappropriately overprotective.
I do support the idea of making a “drm qualified” device whose basic design allows modding, with the effect of requiring complete replacement of the original DRM_enabled media software with whatever code the modder wishes to place in the device but which does not contain the original manufacturer’s ability to decode DRMmed media.
You all think Motorola will be the only ones doing this? People, they sell products to CARRIERS who in turn sell it to YOU. ALL NEW ANDROID PHONES will be restricted like this since hacking the OS/Roms allows you to get pay-for features free.
Guess we’ll wait for the Nexus Two then right? Oh shucks, Google cancelled it.
I see your point, but it does not work like that all over the world. In fact, it’s more of an American thing.
Motorola sells their phones all over the world. Granted the Droid X is for Verizon, but it will be sold globally as well, just under a different name.
In Europe loads of people buy their phones without dealing with a carrier. They buy the phone at full price (from whichever retailer offers it for the best price) and are then free to pick and choose whichever carrier gives them the best deal at the moment, without getting tied up for years. If you’re not happy with the carrier because of poor coverage in your area or slow data, then just pick a different one and have your number ported. Win-win. The subsidization for getting tied up to one carrier for 24 months is not nearly good enough.
I don’t think this is Motorola’s choice, but rather Verizon’s. They’ve put that retarded eFuse in there because Verizon wanted them to. I don’t think they will put that crap in all their phones, just the ones tied to a specific carrier, if the carrier asks for it.
My take is this: If this were to catch on, the modders (just like the pirates have done) would then step up to the plate and insert themselves one leap ahead of “the man”. The common will always prevails.
“But once I pay money for the item, it’s mine,
and disabling my device because you don’t like
what I’m doing with it falls under the category
of sabotage.”
Agreed!
reply
—-
That’s interesting that he says that, because
more likely than not, its not true. Unless you
pay full price for the phone(ie no contract)
you do not fully own the phone. You enter an
agreement to pay a reduced price for the
phone while paying monthy for the service.
The company- verizon in this case, subsidizes
your phone and takes that money monthly
for 2 years(usually). So unless you buy the
phone outright, you don ’t fully own it. That’s
why they have early termination clauses.
Because if they didn ’t, they’d lose the money
they put up for you so you could get an
expensive phone. Don ’t get me wrong, I
think you should be able to do whatever your
heart wishes to the phone. But the reality is,
unless you ’re paying the full price(no
contract) then you don’t technically own the
phone until your contract is up. I will be
buying a Droid X and it should be on my
doorstep tomorrow afternoon. And I think it
will be hacked, just by more careful people
before I try it. Worse case scenario, ill play
dumb and say the phone stopped working.
Matt Fox, your post was incorrect the first time and it’s incorrect now. How do you figure that you don’t “technically” own the phone? Of course you do. You agree to purchase it for a reduced price in exchange for purchasing service from the carrier for typically two years. If you cancel your service, you pay the carrier a fee since they subsidized your phone. But how in the hell does this mean you don’t “technically” own the phone? Can the carrier demand that you return the phone? No. Does the phone just disappear? No. You own it, you have just entered an agreement to purchase service from them. It’s not the same as loaning a car that you must eventually return, and COULD be seized from you if you didn’t pay your monthly bills.
Only if you lease or rent the car does someone else own it. If you buy the car using credit you *still* own the car, the bank just has a lean against your property. That goes for houses too.
If everyone was leasing the phones, they’d sell a whole lot less and it wouldn’t be worth their investment since so many are lost and broken.
Maybe someone already posted a similar comment but to be honest I kind of got bored of reading them all. I’m replying to this post because I’m the guy on the other end of this transaction. Some person goes home and reads about this cool thing called rooting your phone. You know the cool thing that all the cool kids are doing. So he/she starts to follow what should be somewhat simple instructions…not being the uber nerd they think they are, they brick their phone. They come into my wireless store and play dumb that they just woke up and it wasn’t working. Yeah like I don’t know a bad hack job when I see it…so I let the person know that they voided the warranty when they tried (and failed) to root their device and they start an Oscar worthy performance about how much they paid for it, and I owe them a new one…So what should I do? Give this douchebag a new $600 phone for free? Which loses my company money (multiply that by x factor of idiots trying and failing to do the same around the country) and that’s a lot of money my company loses…people get laid off, benefits go away, not that any customer would care about that…so lets try this…we make less money we start doing shitty things like raising ETF’s, reducing rebates and bogo’s and free shitty phones that people come to expect. Does anyone not see that side of it?
Some guy: I absolutely agree. Yet at the same time, why not let people take that risk? HTC and Google covered it off by allowing people to unlock the bootloader on the Nexus One and *explicitly* acknowledge they are voiding their warranty by doing so. Ever after the phone boots up with a little white padlock (unlocked) on the boot screen.
For all the folks who are happy with stock phones: Lovely. Glad you’re happy.
But I’m not one of you and there are a lot of people like me all around the world. Literally hundreds of thousands.
Let me root my phone…and acknowledge I’ve voided my warranty. No problems for the vendor….in fact it may well end up being cheaper as any hardware issues with those unlocked phones aren’t their responsibility anymore.
This can be a win/win. No reason why not. Google already did it and I love my rooted (warranty-voided) Nexus One. It’s awesome.
there is no reason for a phone to be ‘brickable’, any more so than there is a reason to ‘brick’ someone’s PC. You *can* hornk your PC to some extent.. maybe to the point of having to pull out a mobo battery (do they still have those?)… but in general, it’s *extremely* difficult to trash your PC… because it’s an *open* platform.
There’s no good reason why it should be anything other than extremely difficult to brick your phone, Wii, Xbox, PS8, or anything electronic that boots up… It’s done by manufacturers retributively… so if a consumer trips up on it, they walked into the land mine your company planted there… and your company should fix it.
Maybe you don’t have to support their hackiness, but there’s no reason it shouldn’t be recoverable to a pristine state, unless it’s designed retributively.
so if i purchase said phone for full price, without contract, will it be e-fuse free?
well the answer is NO.
you fail in your argument.
What’s the point of lockdown. It should be owner’s choice. If Owner wants to mod it they understand the risk of bricking the phone. Why Mot is deciding for them?
Because Modding extends the life of abandoned products. This is not good for sales of new models.
Why buy the Droid X 2 in 6 months if you can update your “old” Droid to the same software and features as the new model.
I have a modded HTC Hero running 2.2 and its way faster and smoother than any other Hero running authorised HTC software… hence i see no need to buy a Desire any time soon.
Capitalism promotes fail.
There’s actually not a lot of truth to this. All OMAP processors have the eFuse, (including the original Droid) but no one has confirmed that it is actually turned on in the DroidX, and it is likely off. So yes, signed bootloader, but the eFuse is being somewhat overblown.
http://stevenbird.info/2010/07/15/droidx-today-is-the-day-more-security-info/
Thank you.
itt: nerds
Nerds that probably make 3x what you make working at Walmart.
I agree with this article. I love the original Motorola Droid, but this is a huge no-win for the Droid X. I will probably never buy a Motorola device again unless this is fixed on Motorola’s end, very soon.