T-Mobile Phone

thor

I want to purchase a Pixel 6a to install Graphene.
Can I buy it through T-Mobile through the 24 Month Payment Plan to Pay for the Phone and still install Graphene right away, before it’s paid off?

thor

Shendai

Dear Shendai,

       Thank you so much for taking the time for writing such a detailed answer🙏
        I called T-Mobile technical support and the representative told me he was sure that you can Root T-Mobile phones because he did it himself and that they were only looked as for the carrier one can use.
         I cannot confirm this since I bought my Pixel from the Google Store, during a sale they had.

Shendai

This might be a question best directed to T-Mobile directly.

Here's the link to their official policies, though this one is specifically for carrier unlock (so you can move service to a different company) instead of the all-important OEM unlock capability:

https://www.t-mobile.com/responsibility/consumer-info/policies/sim-unlock-policy

Again, I encourage you to check with T-Mobile directly to be sure, but my guess is that the phone will have the OEM unlock feature disabled, thus making it impossible to install GrapheneOS.

Here's the line in their policy that I believe they may default to, even regarding the OEM unlock feature: "If the device was financed or leased through T‑Mobile then all payments must be satisfied and the device must be paid in full."

I could very well be wrong, indeed I hope I am, but personally wouldn't risk buying the phone with the intent of installing GrapheneOS unless the OEM unlock ability is confirmed. Maybe try it physically in store and check? You'll need to be sure the phone is online, wifi is fine, as the device needs to reference its serial number against a list of them on Google's servers to confirm its OEM unlock status.

Lastly, I've seen some posts regarding OEM unlock bypass, using various SIM swapping tricks. These may work, they may not. I'd be very careful about relying on those, however. Exploits like that can work one day, and are closed when you go to try it. Good luck, and hope you find a definitive solution/answer.

54ysysw5y4s5n

I don't think carriers will generally unlock phones without them being paid off first. If you want to finance it, you'll probably have to do so through Google or a retailer.

thor

54ysysw5y4s5n

Dear One,

      Thank you so much for taking the time for writing such an answer🙏
        I called T-Mobile technical support and the representative told me he was sure that you can Root T-Mobile phones because he did it himself and that they were only looked as for the carrier one can use.
         I cannot confirm this since I bought my Pixel from the Google Store, during a sale they had

Shendai

thor Gaining root access is not the same thing as an OEM unlock, and in fact you should NOT attempt to gain root access on GrapheneOS as this introduces potential security vulnerabilities. That said, I defer to those more knowledgeable to weigh in on whether gaining root access confirms that specific phone has the OEM unlock toggle enabled. My initial thought is it doesn't, but I could easily be wrong here.

AlanTristar

I can confirm that I received a Pixel 8 Pro yesterday and "OEM Unlocking" is disabled. Two hours and six phone calls later revealed that they don't enable that until the phone is fully paid for. It was offered as a "free" [hone to handcuff you into a 2 year deal. I am returning it and will just activate with my unlocked Pixel 7 Pro I bought elsewhere.