Google: carriers should give Android users freedom to unlock bootloader

In a statement on the official Android developer blog, Google security engineer Nick Kralevich highlighted the relative openness of Google's new Nexus S smartphone, confirming that it provides a simple and easy way to unlock the bootloader for the purpose of installing third-party firmware -- much like its predecessor, the Nexus One. More significantly, he contends that it is possible for Android to meet the security requirements of the mobile carriers without necessitating the kind of enthusiast-unfriendly lockdown mechanisms that are common on handsets that are sold at subsidized prices with contracts.