PSA: Unlocking Your Moto X Pure Will Void Your Warranty

[DroidModderX]

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There is a bit of confusion as to whether or not unlocking the Moto X Pure Bootloader will void your warranty. Motorola has a developer program. They will maintain the warranty on developer devices where the bootloader has been unlocked. The Moto X Pure is NOT a developer device. When you go to Motorola's website to unlock your bootloader you will have to chose to void your warranty twice. Once you have given Motorola your unique device ID and have received your bootloader unlock code you have officially voided your warranty.

Motorola adds a Warning boot screen to alert vendors that the warranty has been voided. Technically you can remove the boot screen, and you can revert to stock and relock your bootloader, but you still run the risk of Motorola not fixing a device even if the issue is hardware related and not software related. Remember that unlocking your bootloader makes it easy to install unapproved firmware to the phone which can permanently brick your device. If you have bootloader unlocked your device and checked the box to void your warranty Motorola may not fix your device no matter what the problem is. Just be careful folks!

 

[ruvy01]

Why I love my Oneplus 2, unlocked bootloader, rooted, twrp, and Xposed installed and still have my warranty!

 

[DroidModderX]

good point

 

[liftedplane]

kinda heavy handed though...

they release this device full well knowing that we will root and rom and unlock.. then slap the S out of us when we do.

I'd be willing to pay $30- $50 more to not void my warranty... and they'd probably make a killing with that

 

[SpeJ3435]

I'd be willing to pay $30- $50 more to not void my warranty... and they'd probably make a killing with that

They tried that with the developer edition devices and I don't believe they sold very well. That was also during the times of subsidized phones. Now that subsidies are gone, I think the program might be a little more successful. I love my Droid Maxx DE.

 

[kinfolk248]

They tried that with the developer edition devices and I don't believe they sold very well. That was also during the times of subsidized phones. Now that subsidies are gone, I think the program might be a little more successful. I love my Droid Maxx DE.

Don't start that developer edition crap!! With phones that came out 5 months After initial release date, 300% markup, and no real press release to let ppl know... Smh, that's why they failed...!

 

[Amagine]

Make a killing? Probably not. In all actuality the root and development community is pretty small. Most people aren't going to go after a phone purely because you can unlock it.
Case in point, my fiancée ( who is reasonably technically minded) prefers an iPhone But when she had an S-series still didn't root it or anything. There isn't a need to for the things she wanted to do. She hated Touch whiz, bit not enough to worry about bricking a device while testing a new rom.
That is how most people are.
Smart phones have become main stream, therefore the spec and flagship wars are over. The focus is on features now. And unlocked bootloaders don't appeal to the masses.

 

[liftedplane]

Make a killing? Probably not. In all actuality the root and development community is pretty small. Most people aren't going to go after a phone purely because you can unlock it.
Case in point, my fiancée ( who is reasonably technically minded) prefers an iPhone But when she had an S-series still didn't root it or anything. There isn't a need to for the things she wanted to do. She hated Touch whiz, bit not enough to worry about bricking a device while testing a new rom.
That is how most people are.
Smart phones have become main stream, therefore the spec and flagship wars are over. The focus is on features now. And unlocked bootloaders don't appeal to the masses.

think of it as an extended lifetime warranty instead of the basic one year warranty, not just for those of us who root but others who don't it would just extend the warranty. something like that.

 

[FoxKat]

Sort of what I was going to say. If you unlock, buy the third party warranty. It may be expensive but it's better than having to replace the entire phone out of pocket.

 

[tech_head]

That won't fly with a class action suit.
A true defect in hardware must be fixed. Same with a car. You install parts on a car during warranty. Something fails, they claim that since you had non factory parts the entire warranty is void. The car manufacturer needs to prove that the installed part caused a failure.

Magnuson–Moss Warranty Act - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

In Ca. you cannot waive rights you don't know you have.
Motorola/Lenovo might want to look at US Consumer Law and laws of various jurisdictions before they go claiming you void your warranty.

 

[tech_head]

Oh, also, maybe I'll buy the iPhone 6s instead of the Moto X Pure. At least I can jailbreak and take over the device.
Apple may be draconian but they don't void the hardware warranty of jailbroken devices.

 

[cr6]

I don't know why this is suddenly a concern, especially to those of us that have been rooting for years. Rooting your device has ALWAYS voided your warranty. (Except maybe an actual Nexus)
And we've always been able to return them to stock, which in turn restores said warranty. Why all the hubbub now over a voided warranty? [emoji15]

 

[FoxKat]

I think there's some confusion regarding being able to return the device to the stock and locked bootloader state. Thing is, if the phone is still operational it's not difficult to do however if the phone becomes inoperative, reverting is not an option and so the manufacturer MAY be able to tell is unlocked once they receive it under a warranty claim.

So it's hard to know for sure if this will ever actually become an issue for anyone. If you can revert and you do so before a warranty claim there should be no issues but this remains to be seen.

 

[tech_head]

Quite frankly it's a bunch of bull.
Would any of you tolerate this from Dell, Apple or Lenovo on a Laptop or PC?
If you don't run the software they say, your hardware warranty is void?

"Under the Magnuson-Moss warranty act; it is unlawful to void or deny a warranty, unless the modification or installation of aftermarket parts actually caused the problem being warranted.

It would be prohibited by the statute for a manufacturer to refuse to replace a screen that was found to have a hardware defect in the screen, because 3rd party equipment or replacement software was installed, or other modifications were made that do not relate to the defect.

Warrantors are disallowed from requiring that only branded components be used or added to a product to maintain the warranty, the anti-tie-in-sales provision."

As long as you do not damage the hardware while installing the software there is nothing they can do. Send a copy of the federal law with your warranty claim. No matter how many boxes you click through you cannot sign away a right that is written into law as a provision of consumer protection.

This is paramount to BMW saying, if you use a non-BMW shock absorber you void your warranty on your whole car and make you sign a form attesting to that. So if the engine fails, the fact that you signed that form means that you can't get warranty service? That form is not worth wiping your butt. It is up to them to prove that the non-standard part caused a failure in the other part.

Motorola/Lenovo would need to prove that unlocking the bootloader made the button fall off, the headphone jack fail, etc.
Now they can refuse software support and anything related to software. They cannot refuse support on a specific hardware issue.

I'm not a lawyer but I know enough about consumer law to know that they can try as they might and kick and scream if they want to but a complaint filed to the FTC and a letter to legal will get their attention.

You can't sign away your rights under consumer protection laws that relate to Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or other such laws.

I live in Ca. and this state explicitly indicates in the civil code that rights under consumer protection cannot be waived.

 

[FoxKat]

Quite frankly it's a bunch of bull.
Would any of you tolerate this from Dell, Apple or Lenovo on a Laptop or PC?
If you don't run the software they say, your hardware warranty is void?

"Under the Magnuson-Moss warranty act; it is unlawful to void or deny a warranty, unless the modification or installation of aftermarket parts actually caused the problem being warranted.

It would be prohibited by the statute for a manufacturer to refuse to replace a screen that was found to have a hardware defect in the screen, because 3rd party equipment or replacement software was installed, or other modifications were made that do not relate to the defect.

Warrantors are disallowed from requiring that only branded components be used or added to a product to maintain the warranty, the anti-tie-in-sales provision."

As long as you do not damage the hardware while installing the software there is nothing they can do. Send a copy of the federal law with your warranty claim. No matter how many boxes you click through you cannot sign away a right that is written into law as a provision of consumer protection.

This is paramount to BMW saying, if you use a non-BMW shock absorber you void your warranty on your whole car and make you sign a form attesting to that. So if the engine fails, the fact that you signed that form means that you can't get warranty service? That form is not worth wiping your butt. It is up to them to prove that the non-standard part caused a failure in the other part.

Motorola/Lenovo would need to prove that unlocking the bootloader made the button fall off, the headphone jack fail, etc.
Now they can refuse software support and anything related to software. They cannot refuse support on a specific hardware issue.

I'm not a lawyer but I know enough about consumer law to know that they can try as they might and kick and scream if they want to but a complaint filed to the FTC and a letter to legal will get their attention.

You can't sign away your rights under consumer protection laws that relate to Magnuson-Moss Warranty Act or other such laws.

I live in Ca. and this state explicitly indicates in the civil code that rights under consumer protection cannot be waived.

The Magnuson-Moss warranty act information you provided is excellent and I commend you for sharing it with us. I will support your recommendation to include a copy of the act in your warranty claim for any device with an unlocked bootloader. In light of your information I wonder why the manufacturers are able and allowed to make such misleading statements which completely contradict the law. It's like telling someone it's ok to commit a crime, then they do it. You become an accessory to the crime. Seems the manufacturer should be subject to some kind of sanctions or something for deliberately attempting to avoid honoring the warranty by attempting to mislead the public.