Pixel buying concerns from a irritated Verizon customer.

[superhappyfun]

I would like to purchase a Pixel but i have some concerns. I'm on the Verizon network and some of the things I hate about Verizon are....

#1 They never update phones
#2 Locked Bootloader so I can't root my phone
#3 Loaded with Bloatware.

It seems like the Pixel solves most of these problems, right? I guess my questions are; if I buy a Pixel off ebay and bring it into Verizon for activation will they lock my phone and load it with bloatware? Will they make it impossible for me to root it? Will it be updated ever? I'd hate to purchase one of these only to have it turn out to be yet another typical Verizon bloatware/locked/never updated phone.

 

[TonikJDK]

As long as it is the Google version none of that will happen. Lots of us with the Google version on VZ and it is fine.

But you need to ne certain it is the Google version and not the VZ version. I would be very careful on Ebay. I wouldn't buy it unless I could get my hands on it and unlock it first.

 

[superhappyfun]

Oh wow. So the Verizon version cannot be unlocked at all? Even with depixel8? I was trying to find a way to distinguish between the Verizon and Google store versions and I stumbled onto this post where they break down the SKU meaning. One of the posts says...

What we're currently sure of is that the SKU is formatted as follows:
G-2PW[Model][Region]00-0[Country/Carrier][Storage]-[ColorCode]

Model:
4: Pixel
2: Pixel XL

Region:
1: North America
2: Rest of the World

Country/Carrier:
1: USA (non-carrier specific)
2: USA Verizon
3: Canada (?)
4: ? (Probably Europe)
5: India (probably rest of Asia as well)

Storage:
1: 32 GB
2: 128 GB

ColorCode:
A: Quite Black
B: Very Silver
C: Really Blue

So if I want a black 32 GB no-Verizon-bloatware-locked-version I would want SKU G-2PW4100-011-A, right?

 

[TonikJDK]

A VZ version beyond 7.1 cannot be depixel8'd. I don't know the details of the sku system.

 

[vahdyx]

I have the Verizon version and think it's fine. I'm getting updates fine. In fact I'm on the beta version of Android O

That said when browsing the file system I did notice a bunch of Verizon folders. Not sure what's in then but I don't think it's completely bloat free but someone else can comment.

Oh and fun fact, I'm using my Verizon Pixel on T-MOBILE'S network. So maybe that's why I'm getting updates. No idea.

Sent from my Pixel using Tapatalk

 

[JAYNO20]

Updates are available on Googles site the same day for Verizon as well as the Google version of the phone. Updates are not an issue with the Verizon version of the phone. Literally the ONLY difference is one has an unlockable bootloader and one does not (unless it was 7.1). It's that simple.

 

[superhappyfun]

So if the bootloader is locked I cannot root the phone, right?

 

[alluringreality]

The current root methods require an unlocked bootloader.