Reverting back to GAPPs

Kevin719

I'm finally upgrading from my 3xl and wanted to give it to my nephew for his first phone and my sister wants it back to stock. I am trying to install using the android flash tool, OEM unlocking checked, USB debugging checked, latest drivers installed. When I try to run the flash tool it initially sees the 3xl and goes into the fast boot screen, then it asks me to reselect my device, but it doesn't show my or any device to select. I notice in the fastboot screen down by device status it shows "locked", don't know if that has something to do with it or not. Can anyone offer some advice to get google back on this phone.

zzz

Kevin719
I know this isn't what you're asking, but -

That Pixel 3XL is no longer supported by security updates by Google as of 2021-10-08.

https://support.google.com/pixelphone/answer/4457705?hl=en#zippy=%2Cpixel-a-xl-earlier

https://endoflife.date/pixel

I am curious -

When your nephew is old enough to drive a car, would you give him a $100 beater car with faulty brakes, no headlights, no airbags, and of a make and model that's recalled by the manufacturer and expect him to learn to drive safely and live a happy life in it?

Or to use another example, would you encourage him to walk onto a rickety wooden footbridge, with caution tape blocking the entrances and signs posted saying that the bridge is about to demolished?

Etc.

Perhaps there's room to disagree about the specifics of these comparisons.

But in general I would urge you to think hard about the digital wellbeing and safety of your family before setting them up for sorrow by teaching them to trust the critical aspects of their bodies, minds, or digital lives to a faulty device.

Just my 2¢, posted to you out of genuine concern for a young person.

Perhaps a fundraiser in your community to buy him a new Pixel -a model, or even an older supported model from a used goods marketplace, could be an alternative in this situation?

Kevin719

zzz Yes I am well aware, that is why I finally upgraded. Yes i would get him a $100 beater, then I'd show him how to fix it up and make it safe, my sister just wants to be able to call him and know where he is at, she will be supervising and monitoring the apps, there will not be any social media on it or any other than the essential apps she wants on it.

Blastoidea

How old is the nephew?

Kevin719

Blastoidea 12

brookie229

It's not like he is going to trade stocks or beat a margin call on it. It's fine for a 12 year old.

Kevin719

Got it figured out, had to download and install Google's usb driver from https://developer.android.com/studio/run/win-usb apparently after installing it using SDK tools doesn't mean it is actually installed. I had to open up device manager in windows and install the USB driver there

zzz

One thing to consider is that the phone will not receive security updates ever again, making the child's phone a piece of juicy "low-hanging fruit" for attacks that intend to ransom the data in the phone, hijack accounts, or facilitate identity theft / financial fraud.

I agree that any kind of stock trading or banking app is best kept off-limits for that phone forever.

Personally I would go far as to want to ban apps that that store credit / debit card info in order to work. This might include Uber, Lyft, Venmo, Paypal, Amazon, and any other kind of ecommerce platform logged in with an account. This might also include any other kind of app that has a "premium" feature paid for with a credit card with info accessible via the app (Spotify, Netflix, etc).

I would also be concerned about using any non-burner emails in an email app. If an email app counts as "essential" on the phone, it should be logged in with just a burner email specifically made just for sending files on / off that phone. The user's real, "primary" personal email account should not be logged in on the phone.

Same goes for any kind of "drive" cloud storage app with essential files on it (like say, all of his schoolwork stuff). Wouldn't want that to get hijacked and then ransomed.

Any pictures taken on the phone be treated as "low value". If there ends up being a high value photo/file archive building up in that phone (like sentimental old photos, academic work documentation, etc) they should be backed up elsewhere via a secure method that doesn't involve a login with "primary" credentials (the burner email, a burner Signal / non-Signal E2E messenger account, a USB-C flash drive, etc).

Speaking as someone with an old Pixel 3 still lying around, I still enjoy using it to play MP3's ipod style, navigate with mapping apps (offline or via another phone's mobile hotspot for traffic info), and occasionally search wikipedia. But that's about all that I trust it to do!

Glad you found the solution the original problem, and I appreciate everyone who's indulged my derailing tangent about the risks of Pixel 3s.

-z