Hey there everyone!
Let me apologize in advance if these questions have been answered before but I'm so confused right now and I don't want to brick my new Xperia Play.
I had one a year ago but my little cousin trashed it. I finally got a new one today and want to venture into the custom rom world.
The one I bought is an R800a (Manufacturing Date: 12W33) from ebay.
I used to have an R800i, which I just unlocked with the original sony website.
Now a few things that confuse me:
1.
I want to unlock the bootloader, so I looked for the Rooting Status in the *#*#7378423#*#* but noticed that it was completely missing. Is this normal? Or does this mean that my bootloader is already unlocked?
If it's of importance, I can use my German T-Mobile Sim card without a problem.
Is there a way to check if my bootloader has been unlocked already?
2.
I've read about the test point method of unlocking the bootloader. Does this work on devices where the menu point Rooting Status is completely missing?
3.
I want to use it for gaming, are there any recommendations you can make for custom roms for a 800a?
I'm leaning towards the true ancestors 4.0.4.
Thanks in advance for your help! I'll try to provide any info you need.
Edit:
By the way, I do have a working R800i board.
The only problem is that the touch screen doesn't work.
Would it be an option to exchange the boards?
EDIT 2:
Nevermind! I just tried around and unlocked the bootloader just as I did for the old R800i after seeing the message: "Bootloader status: ROOTABLE" in flashtool.
After the unlocking I rooted my phone and just followed a youtube tutorial to install lupus + ancient ancestor.
Finally I flashed the 67 baseband because my sim wasn't working.
Everything works great now.
Just wanted to let you guys know x)
Related
i have a play, its android 2.3.4, build 4.0.2.A.0.42, baseband 8x55A-AAABQMAZM-203028D-56, model r800a, rogers is original provider, not unlocked, currently rooted, and service menu says i cannot unlock bootloader,
i want to use cm rom, thats it, dont care about anything else, might want to try the ics leak, but i am not sure at all if i can or where to start,
i started with root, and thats as far as i can figure out...
any advice will be awesome
Well you'd better start off by unlocking your bootloader. Can't have CM otherwise
i was under impression that there is no free method to bootloader unlock a branded, sim locked to rogers r800a on 2.3.4
im already rooted with cwm recovery installed,
but not bootloader unlock
Not free, no, but that's the only way you'd get CM. Sorry
whats currently the cheapest paid method, as im on very tight budget right now
Well you can do a "test point" unlock by contacting Alejandrissimo. He helps people do the unlock remotely, but the program that's used needs 20 or 25 bucks (I forget which) for the unlock credit.
ive tried pm'ing him, but no reply, is there anyone else that can do it for cheap ?
Try Jinx13, hes active and does it for 15GBP or $24US.
Check his profile for his email.
I'm gonna bump this thread, I'm on the same firmware and baseband as the OP. I did contact the first guy mentioned and its 24 USD. Is it not possible to flash to generic firmware with Flashtool and then continue to unlock the bootloader ? I have Root and Sim Unlocked. Thanks
Did you look at Sony's bootloader unlocking method? If you do the service menu check and it says Bootloader Unlock: No, then you'll have to pay. Flashing to any firmware won't make unlocking methods any different.
Okay thanks.
djowett said:
I'm gonna bump this thread, I'm on the same firmware and baseband as the OP. I did contact the first guy mentioned and its 24 USD. Is it not possible to flash to generic firmware with Flashtool and then continue to unlock the bootloader ? I have Root and Sim Unlocked. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can flash any firmware using flash tool. Download cwm from the market you will have more options. The only way to unlock the boot loader is to pay!!!
You could buy some Omnius credits and do the unlocking yourself without any remote assistance.
The price is probably around the same, maybe a bit less.
here's the site
That's what I used, but I got it for free during an Easter weekend promo.
Hello,
New to xda and the modding scene. Just got my Arc about a month ago and I LOVE it! Pretty keen on putting some mods on it but my qustion is, can I unlock the bootloader, root, etc on a simlocked phone? Mine is locked to Optus AU.
Thanks!!!
You need first to sim unlock your phone
From my sexy LT15i
Awesome thanks. Turns out that my phone is unlocked after all Time to load it up with mods
Aha, nice
From my sexy LT15i
Before going nuts on modifying your phone you need to ask yourself if you want to root+unlock bootloader or just root... Not all xperia phones can have their bootloaders unlocked (if your phone was sold by a carrier i.e. branded such as Rogers then you will NOT be able to unlock your bootloader... Technically there is a test point method but it is quite the procedure compared to simply unlocking it the simple way that Sony offers). In the newbie guide it explains if you root your xperia but not bootloader unlock it you can only install custom roms for stock kernels, although if you wanted say ICS beta rom that Sony released then you would NEED an ISC kernel which is only possible to get on your phone after bootloader unlocking...
LINKS:
-check if you can unlock your bootloader the easy way and instructions on how to: http://unlockbootloader.sonymobile.com/
-the ultimate NOOB guide behind rooting and unlocking bootloaders!! : http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1573266
-Video tutorial covering different methods to unlocking ur arc: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sn-Vubgka1M
Hello
I recently came into possession of a sony xperia lt15i which is currently on Virgin (UK) and I would like to unlock the device. Its currently charging so I cant advise the OS.
Can anyone offer some help please
the software version is 2.3.4
You can unlock the Bootloader by one of three ways and Sim unlock by one, which is to pay for it.
Hi mate,
Mine was locked to Virgin UK, I unlocked via the test point method. Below is a quick guide I made in a previous post:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=30011599&postcount=4
This method does unlock the Boot loader though, not sure if you want to do that yet.....
Hope you find it helpful
BTW: it doesn't matter which firmware your running.
Recently got an R800at from ebay that was unlocked (first ever smartphone, woo). I was able to use my dad's sim card no problem, and dialing the number for the settings window showed no column stating whether the bootloader was allowed to be unlocked or not - according to some threads I've read, users who had unlocked Plays also had the same experience, leading me to believe my bootloader was indeed unlocked.
After following the Gin2Jellybean guide, I managed to brick my phone today (stuck on sony ericsson text), but restored via downloading a stock rom off the internet and installing via flashboot (the SUS and pc companion were having issues - they said no software was available or I had the most up to date software).
Now it seems I goofed up a second time; I was following the Gin2Jellybean guide again when I realized I was following the version for locked bootloaders! I was already on step 4 to install CWM when I realized this, but I decided to just try to install doomlord kernel v14 as per normal and hope that the doomlord root toolbox from the locked bootloder tutorial that I had used wouldn't conflict with anything.
Upon reading the directions for doomlord kernal v14, I decided to double check that my bootloader was still the same as yesterday (before I had bricked my phone). As it turns out, I now have a column for bootloader, and it says unlocking is not allowed. So what's the deal, was my phone's bootloader actually unlocked in the first place, and if so, why is it not unlocked now? According to this thread (http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1720201), bootloader unlocking is permanent.
Here's the link to the guide I'm following: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1631144
Gonna go take the dog for a walk now and listen to some calm relaxing music... Hopefully I didn't screw myself over here.
So when you typed in that code, you got told that your bootloader can't be unlocked? If this is the case, you would have to pay to have it unlocked by someone such as Alejandrissimo. It may be that your bootloader was never able to be unlocked as i can't think of why that would change
Sent from my ASUS Transformer Pad TF300T using xda app-developers app
SIM unlock and bootloader unlock are two very different things, as you've probably found out by now; the r800at models can't be bootloader-unlocked with the free Sony method; you're going to have to pay someone, and it'll cost you at least $20. If you got one of the phones from the guy selling them for $105 on eBay, I'm pretty sure those are SIM-unlocked only.
If you don't want to pay extra, there's nothing wrong with keeping it locked; there're a few ROMs you won't be able to use, and you can't change your kernel, but for the most part you should have a good experience.
FEGuy said:
SIM unlock and bootloader unlock are two very different things, as you've probably found out by now; the r800at models can't be bootloader-unlocked with the free Sony method; you're going to have to pay someone, and it'll cost you at least $20. If you got one of the phones from the guy selling them for $105 on eBay, I'm pretty sure those are SIM-unlocked only.
If you don't want to pay extra, there's nothing wrong with keeping it locked; there're a few ROMs you won't be able to use, and you can't change your kernel, but for the most part you should have a good experience.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Everything you said seems to be spot on. The only thing that doesn't add up is why there wasn't anything saying one way or the other whether my bootloader was unlocked yesterday, but now today there is.
And ya, I probably won't end up paying the $20; basically I just wanted to remove bloatware and have a nice looking interface. Besides the question about why there was nothing on my bootloader yesterday, can you say offhand whether my sim should still be unlocked? I don't have one nearby to test.
Go to the dialer and enter *#*#7378423#*#* and go to Service Info -> SIM lock. The bottom line should say SIM 0 if it's unlocked. As for why it wasn't showing the bootloader status, I don't know. I was having the same problem yesterday, on multiple ROMs, so perhaps it was added in some specific update.
So I just got an Xperia M because I wanted a super-small device with 1 GB RAM and Sony firmware and community support (in a way, my Xperia Ray is the best smartphone I've ever had!). Turns out it's sim unlocked but bootlocker locked - it's a Bell Mobility device. I expected it to be fully unlocked so I was all excited and ready to flash 5.1 and mess around with mods. If I understand correctly, anything that requires flashing a new kernel (*.img file) is a no-go. So, I think I can get away with some 4.4 ROMs on the 4.3 kernel? What are your recommendations? Any crazy way to force unlock the BL? (there was a testpoint method on 2011 Xperias)...
I've looked in the forums and it's not really clear to me which ROMs are OK for locked bootloaders (LBL). I've seen one thread labeled LB, but I'm used to other forums where many threads are labeled LBL/UBL. It's OK if you need to moderate this question out (although I believe it might be helpful to newcomers), but can someone please answer it first or point me in the right direction?
As far as I know, you can only root it with TowelRoot (or Flashtool). Then you can tweak it with Xposed.
If your bl is unlockable, then you can unlock it via official method (google: how to unlock sony bootloader).