[gbog]

Can't agree more with "The ability to have root from the factory on a device you own should be a consumer's right in the states, just like getting your carrier unlock code." but please remove "in the states".

When buying a computer, desktop or laptop, I would be extremely disappointed if I discover that I don't have the full ownership represented by "root access".

When buying a car, don't we get the keys of the doors and a way to open the front cover where the engine lies?

I don't understand why our expectations with mobile phones should be any different. People are letting go this ownership too easily. It worries me. I suspect there is some PR or FUD work behind the curtain.

We are told that full ownership is dangerous and unnecessary. Like any power given to the owners, it may be dangerous, yes: I can fill my car's gas tank with sugar and break the engine if I wish to do so. But I think this Carriergate shows well enough that full ownership of devices that are so deeply rooted in our private lives is of the utmost necessity.

[dchest]

> When buying a car, don't we get the keys of the doors and a way to open the front cover where the engine lies?

You don't get the "keys" for ECU, unfortunately.

[kylewpppd]

Cars to computers always seems to be a poor analogy. But you can replace the ECU with one of your choice. In fact, there is an industry designed specifically for getting better performance from your car by customizing the ECU.

Isn't this the same thing as the Cyanogen mod?

[fr0sty]

> But you can replace the ECU with one of your choice.

As a counterexample: There are certain maintenance procedures for late model Audis that can only be done at the dealership. The diagnostic tool is connected to the car and then phones home to a central system to get vehicle-specific codes required to perform some actions. One such action, oddly enough is getting the car to recognize a new ECU[a].

[a] you can circumvent this by reflashing another ECU with special firmware to become a 'clone' of the original but this would be very analogous to having to 'root' your phone to install different software.

[marshray]

there is an industry designed specifically for getting better performance from your car by customizing the ECU

From what I hear, the ECU tuning industry works hand-in-hand with the automakers and they cooperate on the DRM.

[Splines]

That's more like buying a different phone. You don't have access to the internals of the shipped device, so you decide to use a different one.

[untog]

I don't understand why our expectations with mobile phones should be any different.

The vast majority of people receive their cellphones under subsidy- signing up for a cellphone contract and getting a discounted price. In effect, you don't "own" the phone until the end of that contract, because they could (in theory?) take that phone away from you if you stopped paying every month.

Now, I'm not saying I agree with the line of thought but it's there. At the very least there should be the ability to root your phone after contract, or whenever you want if you buy the phone full price. Sadly, that doesn't happen often. But when I bought my Nexus One outright, it was very simple to root it.

[dangrossman]

No, you own the phone the day you sign the contract. The remedy for terminating the contract early is spelled out in that contract -- an early termination fee to cover that subsidy you didn't pay back by staying a subscriber.

[ck2]

I added "in the states" because I assumed Canada/Europe/etc. had far more sane laws about this already, but I admit I am ignorant as to if this is actually true or not.