The smartphone market is largely divided into three major segments: high-end, mid-range, and low-end/budget devices. Some companies like Samsung, Huawei, and others have made their mark in the high-end Android market, while others, including Motorola and Xiaomi, have found more success in the low-end arena. OPPO recently created a new sub-brand called Realme to focus on that lower end market. Enthusiasts who have been interested in this new brand were curious about the ability to unlock the bootloader of these devices and now Realme 2 Pro users are able to do just that.

Realme 2 Pro XDA Forum

The company made the Realme 1 official in India back in May of last year and it only took them 40 days to sell 400,000 units. As brand awareness has grown we have seen a lot of people within the Android community wanting to unlock the bootloader of these devices. Two months ago it was announced that the company would allow the Realme 1 and Realme 2 bootloaders to be unlocked sometime within the first quarter of this year. It had been previously confirmed that they would allow owners of the Realme 2 Pro to unlock its bootloader.

However, they never gave a time estimate when that would be possible. Thanks to XDA Member faiso333, we now know that Realme 2 Pro owners are able to unlock the bootloader of their devices. Over in the Realme forums, an official staff member posted a thread that walks you through the process of how to unlock the bootloader of the Realme 2 Pro. It's not as simple as only executing a fastboot command as we see with Google devices (although it does require the traditional fastboot flashing unlock command to unlock it).

You first need to sideload an APK file and submit an application for the bootloader to be unlocked. The guide says that after submission, you should be able to proceed with the unlock process within "approximately 1 hour." Those interested should be aware of the full disclaimer posted by the official staff member of the forum:

Realme's Bootloader Unlock Disclaimer

  1. After unlocking your phone ALL OF YOUR DATA WILL BE ERASED! Backup before you proceed.
  2. The in-depth test may have unforeseeable impacts on your phone.
  3. Some functions may not operate properly because of third-party firmware, such as the photo-taking function of the camera. It may also cause device damage.
  4. Personal and confidential information on the phone may leak, and security compromised.
  5. The in-depth test may modify some of the system functions, and prevent you from updating the system version to enjoy the latest ColorOS.

Thanks go out to XDA Member faiso333 for the tip!

Source: Realme