The
Dev Phone 1 is good for many things that the stock
G1 is not -- hardcore geek street cred, developing Android apps, exercising your 1337est hacking skills -- but one thing it's
not good for is buying and enjoying paid apps out of the Android Market. It seems Google has disabled access to paid apps from Dev Phone 1s, likely in response to the almost-immediate discovery by users that rooted devices had access to the hidden folders where the apps were stored, effectively making pirating them trivially easy. In all likelihood, the move doesn't actually have anything to do with whether your phone is radio unlocked -- it's the rooting that's the concern, and frankly, we're a bit shocked at Google's naivete at thinking these things were going to stay protected without at least a glancing effort at real DRM. You'd think that developers willing to shell out $400 for the device aren't going to take too kindly to being locked out of the goods -- which, ironically, could be their own -- so let's hope Google's planning on cleaning up the shop and opening back up sooner rather than later.
Update: Get a load of this -- we have an unlocked, rooted G1 on hand, and it still has access to paid apps. Same problem, essentially the same phone, but Google's glossing it right over. If we had an ADP1, we'd be fuming right about now.
posted Feb 25th 2009 8:45PM
you could always download the tmobile rc33 software downgrade to rc29 and get root access if you wanted to.
This was the "iPhone Killer"
AHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!
May it be left to Rest In Peace...
I was thinking about converting my RC33 Rooted and Modified phone over the ADP1.1 firmware, but having the paid apps is something that I might have use for in the future.
BTW Engadget, if you wanna see the functiionality of an ADP1.1 firmware on the G1 without having a Dev Phone 1, you can download the updater from this website and then test it out.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=442480
@iBricker
Ehh . . . some day I will learn to ignore trolls like you without excessive sweating, increased heart-rate and other common symptoms of nerd-rage, some day . . .
I love my ADP1, I think this phone is much better then the iPhone. My coworker has it, the internet on the iphone is slower then my phone, and being on AT&T I only have Edge so that's impressive...go 3g iphone!
are they going to block rooted g1s also?
update answered my question
whens the G2 going to come out?
when it feels like it ....! =]
Before Duke Nukem Forever...
Do you have a higher res picture of that photo KAIKAI?
No way. This is way to Applesque to be happening on the G1.
Well, it seems that so far they have only blocked access to phones running the Official ADP1.1 firmware which comes on the Dev Phone 1. I imagine that it is a server side check that checks the firmware version you're running. If you are running RC7, RC8, RC29, RC30, or RC33, the server will allow you to access paid apps. If it detects the ADP firmware, the paid apps will never show up. You could be running a non rooted version of RC33 or the rooted version of RC33. The reason they can't block rooted phones running RC33 is because the build number is identical, using ota-rel-keys and release-keys. The only thing that is modified on the phone is your kernel. On a rooted, modded phone, the Kernel Version is jesusfreke@AndroidDev #1. On the official firmware, the Kernel Version is starts with android-build. Right now for the time being, the server side check only checks your build number to qualify you for paid apps and my Rooted RC33 phone still shows them, for now anyways.
I love Google and everything, but you've got to admit that this is a pretty massive oversight. Say what you like, but there's no way Apple, Microsoft or RIM would screw up this badly.
Now Google, whose open everything policy is quite against DRM, are finding themselves in need of it now that they run the store. This is why experience is so highly valued - to make sure ironic disasters like this don't happen.
Shhhhhhhhhhhhhhh
Exactly! Be quiet Engadget... Don't make them realize.
I can't believe Google would overlook this. This is unacceptable. I was looking into developing Android apps but this is a major turnoff. There needs to be better protection for copyrighted apps and it's not okay just to disable it for developer phones, especially if rooted phones can still access the apps.
I've been a strong android fan, but this is something that is unacceptable.
A friend "in the inside" told me about this days ago. If your phone doesn't have an active T-Mobile account, you can't access the store because the billing is done through T-Mobile. So if you have a dev phone on T-Mobile, you could be okay, if you have your dev phone on AT&T or elsewhere, you don't get access.
That sounds logical. Can someone with a G1 dev version on T-Mobile confirm this?
Oh, I should mention also that if you have your G1 on T-Mobile, but just by putting in a SIM you have around instead of signing up for a G1 plan on T-Mo, it also will not show the Market.
Again, I have no way to verify any of this. I'd appreciate someone checking this and correcting my info if it is incorrect.
Update:
Nadiar below seems to pretty conclusively that my information was wrong.
yup. i have a dev phone 1 with a t-mobile sim and i see paid apps in the market.
I don't have a dev phone, but I'm using root g1 on AT&T and I can see paid app, so I'm not so sure about billing by T-mobile.
I have the Dev1 on Tmobile. No Paid apps. I got mine to eventually learn the code, but haven't had time. From my reading, you can't put RC33 on the Dev1 without messing it up.
"making pirating them trivially easy"
That's a very strange typo. I'm pretty sure you meant to write "sharing" instead of "pirating.
No, I'm pretty sure he meant PIRATING.
It's not possible he meant to write "pirating". Pirating is attacking ships, and a very bad thing to do. "Sharing" software with others is a good thing to do. I'm convinced it had to be a typo.
Billing is done through Google Checkout not T-Mobile.
I said the same thing to my friend. He again reiterated what he said to me. I agree it doesn't seem to make sense, but frankly, he is in a position to know. He has an app on the Market, among other things.
Personally, I have no way to verify it, I don't have a G1 or use T-Mobile.
I'm selling an app on the market and also have a dev phone. All my transactions appear in google checkout. I have yet to see anything about t-mobile on the selling end.
This "check" is just as sad as the Market's "DRM." It doesn't check whether you have root, it checks what kind of firmware you're running. I have a G1 flashed to ADP1 firmware and no DRMed apps are visible.
Meh.
Paid apps will appear as rapidshare links ready for your drag and drop enjoyment on the Dev Phone 1.
I have the ADP1 and I've been disappointed with the fact that the don't seem to be maintaining the platform very well. The only way I was able to get the 1.1 update was by looking for it on the internet and getting a "official" firmware given to employees, and now this market business.
Part of the problem is, IMO, google didn't intend for this phone to be your main phone. Although there are some of us that don't want just a phone for development, I want a phone for everything.
Oh well, I still think Google is still handling things better then Apple in most respects. Though I still see both of the phones 50% of the perfect phone. Now if I could just duct tape the two of them together...
Unlike on the iPhone, devs can sell apps directly for the G1, so if you can't see the Market perhaps you can still buy apps directly from the devs?
Ah, the wickedly sick irony. I put an order in for the Dev Phone in the morning.
/cancels
How did you order today? When I go to the ADP1 page, it says they're out of stock and won't have them until March 4.
how do you get a dev phone 1?
Sign up for the dev program. Then you can get one for the same price as a regular G1.
http://code.google.com/android/dev-devices.html
I don't really know what this is talking about.
First, the ADP1 (Android Dev Phone 1 instead of G1) runs firmware 1.0, and doesn't have updates for the Market App (its effectively the same as RC30 which TMobile users had previous to this month) That means it can't handle the Apps in the first place.
Second, if you're a developer, you're supposed to be able to figure it out "by yourself." Google sold it to basically be without support. That means you'll need to figure this stuff out on your own, and not just hope Google does an OTA update for your phone. One of the main features of the Dev Phone is that the bootloader is unlocked, and you can install images with no hassle.
And to verify this story was wrong, I double checked and was able to order an app with no problem. The billing is definitely not done through T-Mobile. I'm on a local carrier (I work for them, so service is basically free), and I'm using an ADP1 I purchased in December running a modified image.
Now with the HardSPL hack/update, you can install any images with the T-Mobile phone. Basically takes the SPL from the Dev 1 phone and installs it into your Retail G1
A lot of us ADP1 owners updated to the leaked 1.1 images, rc33 equivalent
i have a dev phone 1 with a t-mobile sim and i'm seeing paid apps in my market.
Now the question is, do you have FW version 1.0 or 1.1?
firmware 1.1, kernel 2.6.25-01845-g85d4f0d android-build@apa27 #27
That is very weird. I just flashed my phone with the Dev1.1 firmware, same kernel as you had, and i was unsuccessful in seeing paid apps.
Same here, running holiday_devphone-userdebug 1.1 UNLOCKED 130444 test-keys on my ADP1.
I see paid apps just fine, and have since I installed this firmware.
What gives?
I just got done flashing and reflashing my G1 over to the ADP1.1 firmware and it does not have paid apps in the store. When i came back to the RC33 modified image, my paid apps showed back up in the Market. It must only affect version 1.1 users and not the version 1.0 users.
I think the payment for the apps goes through Google Checkout. I think this whole issue is gonna be a continual tug of war between google and root users.
omfg all you have to do is update all of your apps. thats it. then you will see the paid apps, but if you dont update all of the apps you have now...you will never get to see the paid apps. bejewled ftw