Droid X self-destructs if you mod it
 

http://www.mobilecrunch.com/2010/07/...try-to-mod-it/

Motorola put a special fuse in the Droid X, which can be tripped by any tampering with the boot loader, the loaded software, or the phone hardware. Upon tripping, this mechanism permanently damages the phone, preventing it from ever booting again, by literally frying the hardware.

Wow... even Apple hadn't gone that far before.

For an inevitable car analogy, imagine if your car was rigged with thermite charges in the engine bay, which would melt through the engine if anyone other than a dealer opened the hood, or if you replaced any of the components with something non-OEM.

Brilliant.

I don´t see the problem,
If the manufacturer clearly states that it´s prohibited to mod their product, i don´t see why they shouldn´t setup some kind of security to actually reinforce their policy.
Don´t like it, don´t buy it

Or am i getting something wrong here ?

Nice, +1 reason to go for a galaxy s instead.

Sure, if the consumers KNOW about this it's no problem. Put a sticker on the box saying "if you mod this phone it will self destruct". However, taking the currently most open mobile platform and selling it with a phone that breaks when modded is an insult.

I bet it´s stated to in the manual.

The analogy with the car is flawed.

A better analogy would be DRM for games. It's like a games console melting its CPU if you try to play a pirated game or mod the console to bypass the DRM.

Harsh? Maybe. Fair? Perfectly.

I find that flawed too. You never owned a pirated game. I would own this phone and Android ROM's are free and very legal!

If its my damn phone, why cant I load my own software on it? Android is built on this idea (its super easy to do in the Nexus One). Of course warranties will be voided, but if a user wants to take the risk, why deny them?

Easy, because through purchasing the phone you agree to the manufacturers terms and conditions.

Sure, which is why on most everything else, tampering voids all your warranties. Even the nexus one goes void once you unlock the bootloader.

This is a step too far and is just wrong!

Then don´t buy the phone.
That´s all i can say tbh.

Because it could be used to obtain software illegally.

Granted it could also be used to obtain perfectly legal software, but you have to admit, it's a surefire way of stopping the pirates.

Hence why it's a little harsh. However, if you don't think it's fair then you can always vote with your wallet.

havent read the article yet, but cmon, if I PAID for it, I'll do whatever the **** I want with it.

Even download software for free that you would normally need to pay for?

You think you should be allowed to do that because you've paid for the phone?

Uhm, no. Getting pirated software for an android phone has nothing to do with rooting it.

The problem here is Android is FREE. Google gives the source code out for free!

I of course wont be buying this (and every Android dev I have seen says they wont either), but it doesnt change the fact that this goes against what Android is supposed to be. It's just... wrong. http://www.discussworldissues.com/fo...es/unsure1.gif

O.k, i´m not into this, but what exactly are the benefits of modding the phone ?

http://android-dls.com/wiki/index.php?title=Why_Root

Basically it gives you more control and customisation.

Freedom.

I have a Rogers HTC Magic. The latest official ROM for it is Android 1.5. As you may know, 2.2 is now out...

I have rooted and modded my phone and am now happily running 2.2. Rogers says they will release a 2.1 update soon, but that's probably the last update they will release (if they ever release it, was promised for June).

No being able to use a custom ROM means waiting for your manufacturer and carrier to release an update. They either take forever, or never come.

why's everyone on about pirating?

I thought this was about modding (ROOTING) the phone?

Actually no. It's more like your CPU melting in your PC if you tried to overclock it, this has nothing to do with piracy.