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Asus Transformer Prime Locked Bootloader Incites Backlash

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It appears that Asus is in the midst of some serious backlash from Eee Pad Transformer Prime owners as the device has been discovered to have a locked and encrypted bootloader. Needless to say, this has greatly angered the development community, so much so, that owners have begun petitioning the company to unlock the bootloader on its first quad-core tablet.

This could not come at a worse time for Asus as the Transformer Prime has already been under fire for GPS issues that have been plaguing it since launch. And now, the bootloader issue should see those pitchforks raised even higher.

The device’s encrypted bootloader cripples customization of the tablet from the get-go by making it extremely difficult, if not impossible, to root the tablet. Obviously, this is not what many users envisioned when they purchased the first Tegra 3 tablet on the market.

Asus Transformer Prime

If you’re feeling frustrated, just know that you’re not alone. In fact, you can now join the growing number of voices yelling at Asus to reverse course. You have two routes to choose from. One, you can head here to post a message on Asus’ Facebook wall, many have done so already, or alternatively, you can also head here and add your signature to a petition.

Or if you’re really on the war path, make your voice heard on both.

While there are no guarantees that Asus will decide to unlock the bootloader, putting pressure on it to do so shouldn’t hurt. And hey, maybe the company will actually come around and make the change.

Via: The Next Web

7 Comments

7 Comments

  1. DonJulio

    01/02/2012 at 12:55 pm

    you could return it as defective…which would open their eyes A LOT quicker.

  2. Anonymous

    01/02/2012 at 2:40 pm

    ASUS deletes the Posts made on facebook, about this subject “Bootloader Locked”

    I posted again, lets see how long it takes for Asus delete comment for the 2nd time.
    It took less than a minute for Asus to remove user comments.

  3. d m

    01/02/2012 at 2:41 pm

    Well this sucks. I was really looking forward to getting a Transformer Prime this month. I really don’t know what direction to turn in now. I don’t want an iPad, and the other Android tablets on the market are not nearly as powerful and don’t have the same features. I didn’t want to get another Windows machine, but it looks like I might be picking up a laptop instead. Disappointing.

    • Anonymous

      01/03/2012 at 3:47 pm

      A locked bootloader means very little, Android is still a million times more open than Windows or iOS.

      Get a grip for gods sake..  Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.

  4. ol1bit

    01/02/2012 at 10:44 pm

    I guess I don’t understand why normal people need an unlocked boot loader?

    Do you think you can hack your car as easy?  in some cases it would not be safe.

    I hope this lowers the price of the Prime so i can buy one.  :-)

  5. Anonymous

    01/03/2012 at 3:46 pm

    All Tegra2 and Tegra3 devices have locked bootloaders. Don’t believe everything you read on the internet.

    If you want ANY Android Honeycomb tablet (including the current Transformer TF101), it will be locked with the same 128bit AES encryption, as it’s part of the NVidia Tegra2 and Tegra3 chipset spec.

    Are people really stupid enough to NOT buy a product because a handful of vocal voices on the internet say so? The current TF101 has a locked bootloader, and Asus have provided admirable level of support, better than ALL the other companies, so WHY are they being made out to be the bad guys by a handful of internet idiots?

  6. Shops County

    01/09/2012 at 4:56 am

    All Asus models at shopscounty.com. You can buy a ASUS Transformer at ShopsCounty.

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