OnePlus 7T Guide

The OnePlus 7T is the third OnePlus phone I’ve used in the last year. When my OG Google Pixel required charging multiple times daily, I “upgraded” to a Moto Z2 Force. That was a terrible mistake. I appreciated the near stock experience but my particular model was the AT&T version. That meant no updates. Even when the Verizon version received them, AT&T didn’t. It was an annoying reminder of why I had purchased the Pixel or even the Nexus 6P before it. I wanted control over my phone.

I understand carriers trying to protect their networks. I understand that they cut prices on the phones to attract customers. They feel entitled to some control there. Maybe that’s even understandable. When they no longer support a phone though, the last act of grace for a dying phone should be a bootloader unlock. Allow customers the chance to obtain updates on their own. Until that happens, I will likely be sticking to OnePlus or a comparable open friendly company.

I purchased a used T-Mobile 7T with the goal of switching from the T-Mo software to the OnePlus global ROM. The instructions on seem pretty straightforward. , wait a week, download unlock bin, flash said unlock bin to phone. At this point, your phone will be reset. Flash the Ind

• Request a bootloader unlock token.
• Grab some coffee. Actually, finish that novel. Its going to be a week. Almost exactly. Mine was 12 hours shy of a full week.
• Download the unlock token. OnePlus will email you when its ready.
• I know that my focus is on Linux. I love Linux. But dang it. All of these tools are built for Windows. So decide here if you want the easy way or the Linux way.
• I hope you picked the easy way because I sure did. The Tool All In One (The Tool from now on) will let you flash the unlock bin as well as flash ROMs.
• Enable Developer Mode (tap the Build number over and over), enable USB Debugging. The Tool will recognize the phone and should show ADB.
• Alternatively, hold down the Volume and Power buttons together. The phone will reboot. The Tool will recognize your phone and tell the status.
• Use The Tool to unlock the bootloader. Follow the prompts to switch to Fast Boot, select the unlock bin, and flash it.

Boom. Your bootloader is unlocked. Good job.

Obviously, you didn’t do this just to unlock your bootloader. Now you can work switching the 7T from the T-Mobile ROM to the global ROM. The recommended path is to flash the Indian ROM before global. If you go straight to global, the camera and Wifi may not work. I missed that step and thought I broke my phone. Then I tried flashing global again. No cell service. I was sweating bullets. So don’t be like me. Flash it right the first time.

Download the appropriate ROMs. India may also be identified as HD1901 and global as HD1905. The Tool has an option to reboot into the recovery using TWRP. Do it. Just boot TWRP. Once inside TWRP, copy the ROMs over. And flash a ROM. Ideally, India first. Rinse and repeat. Flash global next. Now, in theory, you will have an unlocked global OnePlus 7T.