Ever since its launch, it has been known that Xiaomi Redmi Note 3 has been shipping with a locked bootloader. It has then been revealed that an international version is set to follow suit. Xiaomi claimed that the locking of its bootloader is necessary in order to comply with Google's guidelines.

The discovery of the locked bootloader has been revealed through an MIUI forum announcement that Xiaomi made. The post says that the company has locked the bootloader for Redmi Note 3 since its launching to protect user data safety. This is also part of the changes that the Chinese phone manufacturer has announced before and will now also include locking bootloaders of Mi 4C and Mi Note Pro.

The announcement also detailed how Xiaomi came up with the decision. The Chinese tech company cites that the addition of malware by unofficial resellers, plus the loss of security associated with shipping all devices with an unlocked bootloader, is a factor.

An unlocked bootloader might pose a few security risks that may not be worth it to an average consumer. It is better to have a locked but unlockable bootloader than to ship all devices with an unlocked bootloader by default.

A bootloader is a code that runs first before the system's operating system runs. It is locked because most manufacturers would like the consumers to stick to the version that they have installed in their smartphone devices. Having locked bootloaders leaves consumers the option to either keep it locked and avoid risks or have it unlocked and open their smartphones to unlimited options but certain vulnerabilities.

Although Xiaomi devices will now come locked, the company has provided a way to unlock the bootloaders. As a matter of fact, the Chinese smartphone manufacturer has provided a detailed official unlocking tool, as well as a tutorial on its MIUI forum post. There is also a simplified English guide that has image instructions to help users through the procedure of unlocking.

However, the announcement has been met with protests and negative acceptance. Some users have complained that locking the bootloaders is actually not risk free. Some also complains about the complicated unlocking of the bootloaders, which might take as long as three weeks.

Plus, the instructions and tutorials on unlocking the bootloaders are only available to forum members of a certain status or rank. With these complications, the users are crying foul. Xiaomi has to either keep its devices unlocked or provide an easier way to unlock them. Or perhaps they can give access to their tutorials to a wider audience.