Develop Bugs

[Q] Warranty

Could someone please help shed some light on this subject for me?
If I revert my phone back to stock using RUU and relock the bootloader will my warranty still work (even though it says relocked on bootloader?)
I ask because I rang HTC the other week as I have a dead pixel on my screen and they said my warranty was void as I had performed HTCDev Unlock on the phone.

Thats total crap. Unlocking the bootloader does not invalidate your warranty, HTC made the bootloader unlockable for it's customers.

Yes, depends on them.....btw... did you tell them about the htcdev unlock...or did they find it out themself ?
While unlocking...you accept that "It may viod your warranty "

I believe the warranty still covers hardware if it wasn't caused by software I could be wrong.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium

mathrania said:
Yes, depends on them.....btw... did you tell them about the htcdev unlock...or did they find it out themself ?
While unlocking...you accept that "It may viod your warranty "
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i stupidly mentioned it but the good thing is that they didnt get my name or any other details over the phone so am i still safe?

treebill said:
I believe the warranty still covers hardware if it wasn't caused by software I could be wrong.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium
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thats exactly what i said to her on the phone. she made me so angry.
next thing i heard from her was "sir if you continue swearing im going to have to end this call" lmao

They would have to show the software somehow caused a pixel to fail.
Frankly I don't fancy their chances.
They may wish to wash their hands of users who don't enjoy their buggy software, but if you choose to run Linux on your Toshiba laptop, Toshiba won't suddenly start telling you it's out of warranty when the screen breaks.
This will be tested over and over, and HTC will lose at every turn.
Stand your ground, submit it for warranty repair, and if they say it'll cost you go see a consumer rights group in your relevant country.

f4flake said:
They would have to show the software somehow caused a pixel to fail.
Frankly I don't fancy their chances.
They may wish to wash their hands of users who don't enjoy their buggy software, but if you choose to run Linux on your Toshiba laptop, Toshiba won't suddenly start telling you it's out of warranty when the screen breaks.
This will be tested over and over, and HTC will lose at every turn.
Stand your ground, submit it for warranty repair, and if they say it'll cost you go see a consumer rights group in your relevant country.
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i totally agree with you there buddy, perfect example with the laptop.
i mean seriously, on planet earth how the hell do they expect software to form a dead pixel. and besides the dead pixel was there before I unlocked through htc.
silly me as always impatient and couldnt wait to unbrand my phone and get all the laggyness off i unlocked and installed custom rom.

p2nv said:
thats exactly what i said to her on the phone. she made me so angry.
next thing i heard from her was "sir if you continue swearing im going to have to end this call" lmao
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Lol, you Australians love to swear..

TommUK said:
Lol, you Australians love to swear..
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When people don't even know their own policies its quite annoying lol
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium

In the UK at least the warranty is in addition to statutory consumer rights which says basically that the phone should be free from any defects caused by faulty materials or workmanship, it must be "fit for purpose" and for a "reasonable time". As contracts last for 2 years it is not unreasonable to expect a phone to last for 3-4 years. It is also illegal for a company to ask you to disclaim your statutory rights.
What all this basically means is that regardless of bootloader unlock you can sue HTC in a very easy small claims action (you can do it all online) if they refuse to repair your device for any reason and you can show the fault arose through no fault of your own. My bootloader is unlocked and this is exactly what I will be doing should the situation arise
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium

In australia they have to prove that unlock caused the fault. Same as generic printer inks - they cannot automatically void warranty if you use them, they actually have to prove the ink was the problem.
M.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium

[Q] Will they replace my phone?

My bootloader is unlocked. I live in the Philippines but there a defects like dust under my screen. I got it less than a week ago. Do you think they will replace it? I honestly doubt they would check if the bootloader is unlocked. You people that have gotten replacement and have unlocked bootloaders did they give you grief?

Euforeik said:
My bootloader is unlocked. I live in the Philippines but there a defects like dust under my screen. I got it less than a week ago. Do you think they will replace it? I honestly doubt they would check if the bootloader is unlocked. You people that have gotten replacement and have unlocked bootloaders did they give you grief?
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i would restore stock ROM, boot.img, recovery and re-lock it before sending it away, they have a habit of saying
"well it's got illegal software on it so we HAVE to replace the motherboard"
even if the problem doesn't require that.

Euforeik said:
My bootloader is unlocked. I live in the Philippines but there a defects like dust under my screen. I got it less than a week ago. Do you think they will replace it? I honestly doubt they would check if the bootloader is unlocked. You people that have gotten replacement and have unlocked bootloaders did they give you grief?
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Unlocking the bootloader will only void parts of the warranty which are software related.
As your issue is hardware related then your warranty will be honored. I would imagine they would just clean under the lcd screen rather than replacing the phone.

dr9722 said:
Unlocking the bootloader will only void parts of the warranty which are software related.
As your issue is hardware related then your warranty will be honored. I would imagine they would just clean under the lcd screen rather than replacing the phone.
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If you flash custom software they will replace your motherboard and they will charge you.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda premium

Coming from an iPhone I can say that Apple has a much better policy when it comes to replacements. Seems like HTC is like "they already spent money, let's milk them for more."
Sent from my HTC One X using XDA

Htcdev

I have my HOX from Orange Romania, and i was wondering if i root my HOX using HTCdev will i lose my warranty?

Yes

So there is no chance, if i go back to my stock rom and i unroot my phone that they will fix it if something hapend?

Marius95 said:
So there is no chance, if i go back to my stock rom and i unroot my phone that they will fix it if something hapend?
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They will still know that you unlocked it

It really does depend. It's tough to call most likely you will lose your warranty in some cases you may be lucky but at this stage just think you will lose it. You can read the failures and successes in the general forum when people have sent back their devices.
Usually you'll get charged for a new motherboard.
Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 2

nikzDHD said:
It really does depend. It's tough to call most likely you will lose your warranty in some cases you may be lucky but at this stage just think you will lose it. You can read the failures and successes in the general forum when people have sent back their devices.
Usually you'll get charged for a new motherboard.
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Losing your warranty isn't the end of the story though. Usually there is some form of consumer protection law in your country that overrides HTC warranty. It is probably with the retailer, not HTC.

So...
So if I had a warranty with Radioshack, then they would repair my phone regardless of whether or not it was rooted?

caskla said:
So if I had a warranty with Radioshack, then they would repair my phone regardless of whether or not it was rooted?
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It depends on the consumer laws in the country of purchase.

I do know that if you re-lock a HOX it'll say just that in the HBOOT, 'Re-Locked', that can affect your warranty.

You'll lose the warranty for things like the CPU or in general for things you can kill with kernels and ROMs
Sent from my iPad 2 using Tapatalk

Have a few questions about the HOX before I pull the trigger..

Guys,
I just need some clarification.
- Unlocking the bootloader through htcdev.com voids your warranty, correct?
- Can the HOX be rooted without going through htcdev.com?
I was trying to decide b/w the GS3 and the HOX and I think I'm gonna go with the
HOX. I hate touchwiz and the GS3 screen is not too hot.
Thank you!

c47v3779 said:
Guys,
I just need some clarification.
- Unlocking the bootloader through htcdev.com voids your warranty, correct?
- Can the HOX be rooted without going through htcdev.com?
I was trying to decide b/w the GS3 and the HOX and I think I'm gonna go with the
HOX. I hate touchwiz and the GS3 screen is not too hot.
Thank you!
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Click to collapse
Both yes and no. They claim that you woid you warranty but the warranty is still valid for hardware fault from factory. If you have to send the phone for warranty repair just install stock and relock the bootloader and just play dumb if the ask anything
Havent read ant other way of doing it? search in the development threads.

There's some uncertainty regarding warranty after unlocking bootloader. Some people get faults covered without question while others get it denied outright and have to pay to repair or pay a release fee for the phone to be returned to them un repaired. But to be safe I'd say yes... Unlocking the bootloader will void your warranty.
And no. There is no known way just yet. There are a lot of people waiting for S-Off which will provide us a way to unlock without voiding, but that's quite a long way off.
Hope I helped.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app

ThatNerdGuy said:
There's some uncertainty regarding warranty after unlocking bootloader. Some people get faults covered without question while others get it denied outright and have to pay to repair or pay a release fee for the phone to be returned to them un repaired. But to be safe I'd say yes... Unlocking the bootloader will void your warranty.
And no. There is no known way just yet. There are a lot of people waiting for S-Off which will provide us a way to unlock without voiding, but that's quite a long way off.
Hope I helped.
Sent from my HTC One X using xda app-developers app
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That may also depend in which country you live in. Some are maybe harder then others if its a genuine htc repair "place" or if its outsourced to another repairplace. Where im from the companies that repair the phones dont check anything about the software they just check what needs to ble replaced and replaces it. They dont ask any questions since they bill HTC or Samsung or whatev for the repair anyway

Someone try to S-off but it seems to hard to work.
If you wanna unlock without htc.dev.....just wait for a while.
Unlock will lose software warranty, but hardware warranty still keep.

Will S-off void warranty?

If we try to unlock bootloader and gain s-off, will it void warranty?
Can we get s-on back and lock bootloader before sending the device for warranty or selling the phone?

s-off does in fact void your warranty but, I would love to know if turning s back on and re locking the bootloader is possible.

Absolutely lol...
But at the same time you can relock and remove all evidence of S-Off and unlock with it as well.
The only way to keep the warranty is to gain S-Off WITHOUT having to unlock the bootloader first. Once S-Off is gained you can lock and relock with no issues. I believe the T-Mobile M7 had this option on 1.42 builds. Not sure about the M8 yet
Keep in mind the moment you request an unlock key from HTCDev your warranty is void regardless of if you use the code or not. Now I use Void because it is a generalization used in warranty's and insurance but typically if your speaker blows out or your screen dies and you are unlocked they won't void that part of your warranty seeing that your modifications did not directly impact the failing part.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk

altimax98 said:
Absolutely lol...
But at the same time you can relock and remove all evidence of S-Off and unlock with it as well.
The only way to keep the warranty is to gain S-Off WITHOUT having to unlock the bootloader first. Once S-Off is gained you can lock and relock with no issues. I believe the T-Mobile M7 had this option on 1.42 builds. Not sure about the M8 yet
Keep in mind the moment you request an unlock key from HTCDev your warranty is void regardless of if you use the code or not. Now I use Void because it is a generalization used in warranty's and insurance but typically if your speaker blows out or your screen dies and you are unlocked they won't void that part of your warranty seeing that your modifications did not directly impact the failing part.
Sent from my Nexus 5 using Tapatalk
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how would you go along and do this?

I don't see how S-OFF would void your warranty as some units were legitimately shipped S-OFF, just make sure the bootloader is locked
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk

I've returned the HTC One M7 a good few times for issues while S-off and with a custom ROM on and they were repaired and returned without issue , but I would recommend returning the phone to stock before sending it off if you can.
It'll come down to HTC as to whether something you have done will void your warranty or not when they receive your phone I guess.

s-off does in fact void your warranty but, I would love to know if turning s back on and re locking the bootloader is possible.

If I only want to root and flash custom roms then S-off is not necessary right?
What are benefits of S-Off?

most people will need to unlock thier device via HTC dev prior to s off which will leave a record unique to thier phone which means that waranty will be void so even if all trace of s off and unlocked bootloader is removed, HTC will still be able to cross reference and say no.
Some will be lucky enough to use the method for s off which avoids the need for HTC dev unlock so these people will be able to s off and keep thier warranty providing they retuirn to stock

So is there a way to get S-on?

exocetdj said:
most people will need to unlock thier device via HTC dev prior to s off which will leave a record unique to thier phone which means that waranty will be void so even if all trace of s off and unlocked bootloader is removed, HTC will still be able to cross reference and say no.
Some will be lucky enough to use the method for s off which avoids the need for HTC dev unlock so these people will be able to s off and keep thier warranty providing they retuirn to stock
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Not necessarily. Just because you've requested the token, who's to say you've used it? If the phone is 100% stock, locked and S-ON HTC can't prove anything - unless the unlock process itself sends something to HTC to say it's been unlocked, in which case they'll know

EddyOS said:
Not necessarily. Just because you've requested the token, who's to say you've used it? If the phone is 100% stock, locked and S-ON HTC can't prove anything - unless the unlock process itself sends something to HTC to say it's been unlocked, in which case they'll know
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Ok, thanks for the info!!! :good:

At least in the US, making a modification to a device does not immediately void a warranty no matter what the manufacturer says. This is most times encountered by car enthusiasts who might replace a part on their engine. Subsequently the engine has a problem and gets taken to a dealer for warranty repair. The dealer cannot unilaterally void the warranty because of a different part or other modification. They must prove that the part or modification directly contributed to the failure and then only that part of the warranty is void, not the entire car's warranty. Phones and other devices would be no different. For more info google the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnuson–Moss_Warranty_Act
Even with this, it would be rare for someone with a genuine warranty issue to have a problem getting it repaired or replaced regardless of the security status of the device.

l7777 said:
At least in the US, making a modification to a device does not immediately void a warranty no matter what the manufacturer says. This is most times encountered by car enthusiasts who might replace a part on their engine. Subsequently the engine has a problem and gets taken to a dealer for warranty repair. The dealer cannot unilaterally void the warranty because of a different part or other modification. They must prove that the part or modification directly contributed to the failure and then only that part of the warranty is void, not the entire car's warranty. Phones and other devices would be no different. For more info google the Magnuson Moss Warranty Act.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magnuson–Moss_Warranty_Act
Even with this, it would be rare for someone with a genuine warranty issue to have a problem getting it repaired or replaced regardless of the security status of the device.
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I'm not a lawyer, but I think that flashing the phone basically can be used to invalidate the warranty in many circumstances. When we flash a phone, we are changing the basic code that is being used to drive the device. That is a bit different that using an after market part in a car. I know that flashing a diesel pickup cpu chip, for example, voids the warranty on the engine. I can't imagine that a phone (which is basically all about the software code) does not have the same effect.
It is a different question as to if the vendor (TMO in my case, HTC for direct orders), would refuse to pay for warranty repairs. I think they would be more likely to pay for a failed screen or other hardware part, but less likely for a burned out motherboard. HTC has been very understanding in this regard, despite the warning when getting an unlock code.
I have flashed my phones before (not since the Amaze - the M7 and M8 are great stock IMHO), but I did so with the understanding that a warranty claim might be rejected.

Rageypeep said:
I don't see how S-OFF would void your warranty as some units were legitimately shipped S-OFF, just make sure the bootloader is locked
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using Tapatalk
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S off is not the same as an unlocked bootloader, my Dev Edition was bootloader unlocked out of the box with s on.
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app

I was talking to a guy in an electrostore yesterday about rooting phones and warranty.
He said the representative from Samsung Benelux (Belgium etc) said they will still fix phones that are rooted. They all know people do this.
But they will return them to stock when they send it back. Samsung decided this last week.
He didn't know about other company's but he thought they'll do the same.

The HTC Texas repair center refused to repair my M7 with S-Off. Wanted to charge me $180 to fix the purple camera. After arguing and elevating nothing happened, they sent it back, I re-locked/went completely back to stock and tried again. They sent it back no problem.

stevedebi said:
I'm not a lawyer, but I think that flashing the phone basically can be used to invalidate the warranty in many circumstances. When we flash a phone, we are changing the basic code that is being used to drive the device. That is a bit different that using an after market part in a car. I know that flashing a diesel pickup cpu chip, for example, voids the warranty on the engine. I can't imagine that a phone (which is basically all about the software code) does not have the same effect.
It is a different question as to if the vendor (TMO in my case, HTC for direct orders), would refuse to pay for warranty repairs. I think they would be more likely to pay for a failed screen or other hardware part, but less likely for a burned out motherboard. HTC has been very understanding in this regard, despite the warning when getting an unlock code.
I have flashed my phones before (not since the Amaze - the M7 and M8 are great stock IMHO), but I did so with the understanding that a warranty claim might be rejected.
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I think you're on the right track. Auto manufacturers can't void the warranty simply because of a modification, they have to prove that the modification caused the failure. For example, if someone changed the engine tuning to allow a 10,000 RPM redline and destroyed the engine the manufacturer would easily be able to say that the modified software caused the failure. Similarly a phone manufacturer could void the warranty on the cpu/mb/battery/etc... if they can prove that the different software caused the problem. They couldn't void the warranty on the camera, usb port, digitizer, headphone jack, speaker, etc... because you decided to go S-Off, root, and run custom software as the software couldn't have damaged those components. As with all things legal though, it would likely cost less to jump through hoops or just buy a new device than to get them to accept your warranty claim if they choose to be difficult about a claim.

yes there are many ways to S-off.

People think that unlocking phone in unauthorized way (S-Off) will be better for warranty rather than using htcdev, how is that?
altimax98 said:
Keep in mind the moment you request an unlock key from HTCDev your warranty is void regardless of if you use the code or not.
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Impossible, only if You unlock your bootloader then warranty may be void.