I have a Pixel 8 Pro that the carrier (Spectrum) and Google both say is unlocked. The phone is definitely not unlocked. OEM unlocking is greyed out and says, "unavailable on carrier-locked devices."

One of the rude managers I talked to at Spectrum told me that spectrum doesn't lock devices. I talked to several rude people at Spectrum that all said that they did not see any lock on the device.

(Did I mention that they were all extremely rude. And I have been an internet customer with them for years.)

I chatted with Google for over an hour and they said the device appears to be unlocked and that they didn't find any problems with the phone. They said that the issue is most likely on the carriers end.

I tried with a physical sim from Cricket but it is an older sim so not sure if it would work correctly even if everything was running optimally.

With the physical sim I get the message, "Sim card isn't supported. Ask Spectrum Mobile if the device can be unlocked"

I tried two esims from different carriers and I get the message, "Can't connect to network Your device is locked. Contact your carrier to see if the device can be unlocked.

I told the people at Spectrum what the message said, and they act like I'm crazy, "The device is not locked." I felt like I was in the twilight zone.

My ultimate goal is to install Graphene OS, but at the moment the phone is not cooperating.

I hope someone out there has a solution.

  • de0u replied to this.

    bamspay Internet rumor suggests Spectrum Mobile is a Verizon Wireless MVNO. Verizon Wireless devices absolutely can't be OEM-unlocked ever, so maybe this device can't. In general, in the U.S., acquiring a Pixel device from a carrier is very risky in terms of OEM unlocking.

    If you enter your IMEI into Google's "Warranty Helper", how does it describe the device? Does it say it's locked? Does it mention Verizon?

      Below is the info on received from the Warranty Helper.

      It says "Your device is under warranty"

      There is a green circle with a green checkmark.

      Looks like you've got 5 more months of coverage.

      Name
      Pixel 8 Pro Bay 128GB (unlocked)

      Is this the info you wanted? Thanks for the reply.

      • de0u replied to this.

        bamspay Pixel 8 Pro Bay 128GB (unlocked)

        That sounds as if it should be unlocked!

        Maybe collect some pictures -- that screen from Google, also the error messages you get when inserting SIM cards -- and return the device as defective.

        For your next device, I would strongly recommend not purchasing it from a carrier (in the U.S.).

          There was a "factory unlocked" Pixel 8 Pro for sale on Ebay. I contacted her and asked her to make sure the OEM and bootloader was unlocked. She said, "I bought unlocked straight from google, so it should be unlocked."

          I had her check anyways since she doesn't accept returns. Come to find out it was actually locked. Now maybe that one can actually be unlocked but she did not seem savvy at all. I had to give her directions on how to check the bootloader.

          If even some Google unlocked phones won't work, I don't know how I am going to find a phone that will for sure work.

          • de0u replied to this.

            bamspay There was a "factory unlocked" Pixel 8 Pro for sale on Ebay. [...] "I bought unlocked straight from google" [...]

            If you buy an unlocked phone from the Google store, and you can't unlock it, you can return it to Google. If you buy a phone from somebody who claims to have bought a phone from Google, and you can't unlock it, you can't return it to Google.

            bamspay If even some Google unlocked phones won't work, I don't know how I am going to find a phone that will for sure work.

            I am unaware of evidence that any substantial fraction of "unlocked" phones purchased directly from Google can't be OEM-unlocked. It is always possible for something to go wrong for any individual device, but if you purchased the device from Google then you can return it to Google. That will not be the case for multi-step purchasing chains.

            I believe the GrapheneOS project estimates that well over 100,000 people are using GrapheneOS on Pixel devices they were able to OEM-unlock. I suspect the odds are at least 99% in your favor that an "unlocked" device will actually OEM-unlock, assuming it is purchased directly from Google or from some other high-reliability source (many people here report being able to OEM-unlock "unlocked" devices purchased from Best Buy). I am unaware of evidence that the success rate when buying phones on eBay is 99%.

                A few people, myself included, had this issue as well. It seemed to resolve itself after about 24 hours (or a couple days for some) with the phones connected to the internet. How long have you had the device? My phone was listed as "Pixel 8 Obsidian 256GB (Unlocked)" on the Google warranty checker. I just started configuring and using the phone normally, with SIM and WiFi enabled, and checked in on OEM Unlocking every few hours. Eventually it allowed me to toggle the setting. Sounds like you have the same issue I had.

                  entreri A few people, myself included, had this issue as well. It seemed to resolve itself after about 24 hours (or a couple days for some) with the phones connected to the internet.

                  This report seems to have both similarities and differences from the symptoms reported in "Purchased Unlocked Pixel 8a but the OEM unlocking option is disabled":

                  1. Similar to the reports in that thread, this device isn't allowing something that it apparently should, but
                  2. I don't think those reports were about a device rejecting SIM cards, and also
                  3. It seemed as if a bunch of devices in that thread suddenly became unlockable at the same time after Google got enough complaints, but apparently this device has not recovered.

                  @bamspay, if the issue is that your device got a bad answer from Google's configuration servers and Google has fixed things so that a good answer is "out there", you might try a factory reset, then "calling" *#*#CHECKIN#*#* and leaving the device connected to the Internet for a while. But if that doesn't fix the device then something different may be wrong, in which case returning it as defective may be necessary.

                    Yeah it might be a different issue now that I think of it. I didn't see any error on my device about it being carrier locked. My error was "Please connect to the internet or contact your carrier", not "Unavailable on carrier-locked devices."

                    FYI, I was able to bypass the sim lock using a firewall app. I found the directions on YouTube. This allowed me to use a physical sim and the esim with different carriers. I was hoping this might trick the phone into unlocking the OEM but no luck so far.

                    I am not sure how secure it would be to rely on this app.

                    Here is the YouTube video if anyone is interested.

                    https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=clEz67523Mk

                    An option perhaps.
                    Buy a phone from the UK. Unless it is still under contract, then phones cannot be sold with the network locked.
                    I bought this 8 Pro from a UK eBay seller as "opened, not used". Mind you, I did pay about £500.
                    The result was a network neutral phone that was boot unlockable, and so Grapheneos on it within 10 mins of unboxing it.
                    If you buy a phone that was under contract, but is now out of the minimum period, then the network will unlock it. EE, for example, has an online unlocker that just needs the IMEI.