Xiaomi ThePaper OS raises the BL lock threshold and is only open to enthusiasts

This year marks the beginning of a new stage for Xiaomi. It bids farewell to MIUI and welcomes Xiaomi ThePaper OS. The new Xiaomi Mi 14 series has achieved sales of one million units since its launch, bringing fame and fortune.

#But for this new Xiaomi Pengpai OS, many old "mi fans" are a little uneasy. As we all know, MIUI has always been a favorite among geeks since its first version was released. If nothing else, it’s because Xiaomi provides very simple and easy-to-use root tools and unlocking tools, with a high degree of freedom.

The biggest feature of Xiaomi ThePaper OS is that it attaches great importance to security. Does this mean that Xiaomi will completely cut off the "ration" of geek players?

that is not.

Just today, Xiaomi officially released an announcement about Xiaomi Pascal OS Bootloader unlocking permissions. The key point is: developers and mobile phone enthusiasts can still apply for unlocking.

(Photo source: Xiaomi Community)

But the bad news is , the difficulty of applying for unlocking is simply astronomical.

Unlocking becomes difficult, Xiaomi wants to abandon "enthusiasts"?

#First of all, to answer the question that “mi fans” are most concerned about, whether ThePaper OS can still unlock the bootloader lock, the answer is yes.

To apply for Bootloader unlocking, the required conditions include:

1. Xiaomi community level 5 or above You can apply for an account

2. Thermal OS users need to register in the official community and answer questions to get the opportunity to apply

3. Successful registration is not the same as successful application. The specific results shall be subject to official notification

In fact, the registration and answering modes were already like this in the previous MIUI era. It’s just that users of ThePaper OS devices need to have a Xiaomi community account level of 5. This requirement still has a certain threshold. According to the experience value bonus plan calculated by netizens, during the new product launch period, the experience value of posting, interacting, replying and other operations will increase faster, that is, it can reach level 5 within one month at the fastest.

But it is worth noting that meeting the conditions and successfully registering does not mean that the application has been completed. This is quite unexpected. Maybe Xiaomi does want to filter Find the "enthusiasts" who really need it.

## Of course, for many ordinary users, the "mi fans" may be struggling This Bootloader is confused, what is the use of this thing?

Bootloader is equivalent to the Bios boot program on Windows. Its main function is to initialize the hardware based on the baseband, enter the system kernel, and start the system program. After unlocking the bootloader, users can enter the unofficial system according to their own needs, or load various plug-ins that bypass official settings, such as temperature control.

When it comes to temperature control, Xiaomi just stumbled on this not long ago.

Xiaomi Mi 11 was exposed to the phenomenon of "burning the motherboard" some time ago. The official measures are to repair the damaged users free of charge and to provide all Xiaomi Mi 11 users with free repairs. Provides half-year extended warranty service. And many "wool gangsters" began to use it to unlock the bootloader and flash the temperature control plug-in, causing the fuselage to overheat and burn out the motherboard or Wi-Fi module, thereby defrauding official repairs. As a result, it caused considerable economic losses to Xiaomi.

Xiao Lei speculates that ThePaper OS has become more strict on bootloader unlocking, mainly to prevent such a thing from happening again. On the other hand, in the MIUI era, many novice users flashed their phones at will, resulting in hardware damage and data loss. Now the threshold has become higher, and it is not so easy for novice users to flash their phones.

Some "mi fans" who have played with bootloader unlocking in the MIUI era also want to ask, is there anything special about bootloader unlocking in ThePaper OS?

Obviously, there is no big difference in the unlocking methods between the two. As mentioned before, the application conditions of ThePaper OS are stricter and the threshold is higher. In addition, Thermal OS’s bootloader unlock is only valid for one year. If it expires, you need to re-apply.

The application requirements have been raised, which has blocked many novice users from the door, but there are also some Those who want to try it but are worried about a series of usage issues, such as installing apps and warranty services.

First of all, unlocking the Bootloader does not affect the use of normal security applications, such as the system's own wallet, fingerprint payment, and UnionPay security components. Some third-party systems are also very adaptable to system-related components, and there is basically no component failure caused by bootloader unlocking. However, the risk of swiping into third-party systems is still very high, especially modified systems developed by individual producers, which are likely to have backdoor implants. Users who are not familiar with third-party systems still need to be cautious.

Secondly, Xiaomi has always been very tolerant of Bootloader and Root permissions, which is also reflected in after-sales service providers. According to official after-sales information, as long as it is within the warranty period and has a purchase certificate, Xiaomi mobile phones can obtain the warranty normally regardless of whether they are unlocked or not. However, Root permissions and Bootloader will be re-locked after the repair is completed.

Last point, although Xiaomi's unlocking the bootloader does not affect the use or after-sales service, if the phone is lost, it will be easier for others to bypass Xiaomi's by flashing the phone. If the retrieval permission is lost, once the phone is flashed, the personal data will basically not be preserved.

Raise the bar, has Xiaomi done a good thing?

For old "mi fans", the greatest fun of MIUI is to obtain Root permissions, unlock the Bootloader, and flash their favorite systems and plug-ins. However, as MIUI functions become more and more complete, fewer and fewer users actually need to flash their phones, and MIUI has begun to tighten the unlocking permissions more and more.

As early as the launch of the Xiaomi 12S series, the cooperation between Xiaomi and Leica attracted great attention from "Mi fans". Not long after the new phone was released, they immediately By obtaining Root permissions and unlocking the Bootloader, some users made Leica watermarks and some algorithms into plug-ins and shared them with everyone "for free".

From Xiaomi's perspective, Leica is after all one of the selling points of the new flagship model. It would be beneficial to be cracked so easily and shared with users of other models. Also suffered losses.

On the other hand, flashing various plug-ins will inevitably affect the smoothness of the system. cause impact. Xiaomi also made it clear in its latest announcement that MIUI systems that have unlocked the bootloader on older Xiaomi phones will not be able to receive OTA updates for ThePaper OS. This very well illustrates Xiaomi’s attitude.

Of course, looking at the entire smartphone market, there are actually very few manufacturers that can maintain such an open attitude towards Root permissions and unlocking Bootloader like Xiaomi. Xiaomi decided to Further tightening policies on The Paper OS is a reasonable approach in terms of interests and development.

But for users who want to mess with their mobile phones, raising the application threshold is indeed not a good thing, and users of older models must re-lock the Bootloader Only in this way can we receive the OTA update of ThePaper OS. This approach will cause a lot of controversy.

Written at the end

In the MIUI era, the open and free features have attracted the attention of countless enthusiasts Highly concerned, but when it comes to ThePaper OS, Xiaomi needs to take more into account the actual needs of consumers, so Root permissions and Bootloader unlocking have once again become "niche needs."

#However, Xiaomi has not completely blocked bootloader unlocking and reserved space for enthusiasts and developers. This is also in line with current market rules. There are also many old "mi fans" who think that Xiaomi has forgotten its original intention and the original intention of Xiaomi's founding. But looking back, even in the early days of MIUI, those who were keen on tinkering with mobile phones were actually still enthusiasts. Since the service The object has not really changed, so it cannot be said that there is much wrong with Xiaomi's approach.

Currently, ThePaper OS is still in its infancy, and we don’t know how many variables there will be in the future. But in terms of the openness of the system, we still very much look forward to Xiaomi continuing to reserve more space for enthusiasts.

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