Realme X50 Pro launched as the company’s second 5G smartphone in February 2020. It packs all the important features in a value flagship device. The phone has been announced for a number of markets but it is currently on sale only in China due to COVID-19 lockdowns. Now, after two months from its launch, bootloader unlock for the Chinese version of the device is finally live along with kernel source code.

Almost all the smartphones sold in the world come with a locked bootloader. This avoids tampering of the device with unauthorized apps or firmware by resellers. But some OEMs like Realme offers official bootloader unlock method for power users to try aftermarket third-party firmware.

Realme X50 Pro, the brand’s newest device now supports bootloader unlock on the Chinese variant. The unlocking procedure is similar to the older devices. The users have to first enable OEM Unlock in the Developer options and then install an app to apply for unlocking. 

Once their application gets approved, they will have to click on the In-depth Test option which will boot the device into bootloader. Finally, they will have run a fastboot command ‘fastboot flashing unlock’ followed by confirming on the phone to unlock the bootloader.

Unlocking bootloader on Realme smartphones is much easier than Xiaomi. The users do not need to wait for weeks as it can be done within a few minutes. Once a device becomes eligible for the purpose, the company announces it on Realme Community with a step by step guide. Also, the kernel source code for the handset is made public at the same time.

UP NEXT: Bootloader Unlocking does not Void Warranty of Xiaomi and Redmi Devices

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Xiaomi smartphones are popular in the developer community, thanks to the company’s policy regarding warranty against unlocking of bootloader. But the brand has now updated its policy. Thankfully, bootloader unlocks still does not void warranty of Xiaomi and Redmi devices but with some caveats.

Recently, a tweet from Redmi India Support account mentioned that bootloader unlock will void the warranty confusing a whole lot of users. It all started when a YouTube video described the customer support team to make a similar statement.

As always, XDA Developers came to the rescue by contacting the company directly on this matter. To this, a Xiaomi India spokesperson gave the below statement.

“Unlocking of the bootloader is made available to make sure that MIUI developer ROMs can be tested by users and will be covered under warranty. Bootloader unlocking does not inherently void your hardware warranty. But a case where the unlocking results in a brick which cannot be fixed via software, the warranty will be void.”

According to the statement, bootloader unlock is made available for users to try MIUI developer ROMs. And thus, it will not void the warranty of any Xiaomi or Redmi smartphone. But if the device bricks after unlocking and could not be fixed via software, then the warranty will be void.

That means if a user installs some custom ROM or mod, which results in hard bricking of their smartphone which could be only fixed either via EDL pin-shorting or motherboard replacement, then they can bid adieu to their device’s warranty.

In such a case, the user will have to pay the whole amount required for any hardware replacement or EDL flashing service. Whereas, under warranty, the user has to just pay a nominal fee of ₹150 + taxes to fix their device in India.

Lastly, it is worth noting that this new policy is only applicable for Xiaomi and Redmi smartphones since POCO operates independently.

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Realme, in an interesting move, has unlocked the bootloader of all of its smartphones that are currently available in the Chinese market. A senior Realme executive went on Weibo, the Chinese microblogging website, to announce that all domestic smartphone models have been opened for bootloader unlocking. This allows for a much greater degree of control and freedom for Realme smartphone users.

For Android smartphone enthusiasts, complete control and customizability is everything. In other words, such users often tend to BL (Bootloader) unlock their smartphones to root their devices and flash new skin or custom UI. To achieve this, users had to download third-party tools which led to loss and voidance of official warranties. However, Realme has now officially unlocked its devices so users can flash custom, unique and even self-made ROMs. Furthermore, users are now also able to obtain the root permissions of the handest to tweak the performance of the device as well.

Editor’sPick: Realme X50 5G and X50 Lite (Youth Edition) 5G specifications leaked

Compatible Devices

Realme has officially provided its customers with an unlocking tool which supports the following devices.

• Realme X2
• Realme X2 Pro
• Realme X2 Pro Master Edition
• Realme Q
• Realme X
• Realme X Youth Edition

Notably, only the smartphones that have been bought through official channels in China are eligible for the tool.

Note To Readers

For those looking forward to unlocking their smartphones, keep certain points in mind regarding their unlocked devices.

• Any third party software and firmware used might cause some of the device’s functions to not operate optimally like certain camera functions.
• After unlocking, users might notice a slight difference in the everyday use of their smartphones.
• Unregulated software and firmware might cause private information being leaked or data being stolen. It is unlikely but users caution is advised.
• Once unlocked, users that flash new ROMs will no longer be able to receive the official Realme system updates in the future.
• Users are advised to back up their smartphone’s data as unlocking the device is similar to a factory reset.
• For security reasons, Realme will disable the fingerprint unlock function to prevent privacy leak of fingerprint data on their independently encrypted fingerprint chip.
• Users can contact Realme’s service centers for help after rooting to help in flashing their devices. Notably, if users return to the official ROM build of Realme, the warranties of the smartphone will still be available and not voided. However, the warranty does not cover damaged hardware after rooting.

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Earlier this year, in May, Huawei announced that the company will stop providing bootloader unlocking for Honor smartphones. The company’s decision upset many members of the community but a few of them were working to get the company to change its decision.

Now, in the latest development to that, XD Developers says that Honor has decided to re-open bootloader unlocking on an exclusive number of codes to the XDA Developer community. Currently, the unlock codes are available for download exclusively to XDA Developers on a first-come-first-served basis through this online form.

XDA users, who are interested in this, can apply for the codes using the form and all applicants will have the opportunity to share their feedback. Do keep in mind that it might take a few weeks to receive an unlock code after requesting one, but XDA Developers says that they’ll work with Honor to expedite the process.

The unlocked bootloaders make it easier for the developer to develop and create and to optimize the performance of the device. It also enables users to install a custom recovery, use a custom ROM and to get root access.

Read More: Upcoming Honor 8X Series To Come With Above 90% Screen-To-Body Ratio

The bootloader unlocking processor on Huawei or Honor devices isn’t as simple as on Google or OnePlus phones. For this, the user needs to acquire a bootloader unlock code. So, when the company announced that it’ll stop providing bootloader unlock codes, it was a huge blow to the community. At that time, when asked about the reason for not providing the codes, the Chinese manufacturer had said that its decision is to offer “better user experience and avoid issues caused by ROM flashing”.

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