> Supposedly, with Android you are free to install software from arbitrary sources ... Certainly. Go to Settings -> Security and tick "Unknown sources" option.

> Supposedly, with Android you are free to install software from arbitrary sources ... Certainly. Go to Settings -> Security and tick "Unknown sources" option. > With Android devices there is a distinction between “rooted” and “unrooted” devices, which sounds suspiciously similar to “jailbroken” and “unjailbroken”. Sounds like it, sure. But as majority of top Android manufacturers have an official page [1][2][3][4][5] describing how to unlock their bootloaders so arbitrary OS can be installed, that similarity disappears. > With a PC, I don't have to perform some arcane operation to actually have control of the device. Ask your average PC user how to install a different OS, or even how to re-install the same OS and you'll soon find, the process is "arcane" on all platforms. Also note that I found all the official links I listed, to unlocking various android phones, in 5 minutes. > Moreover, it seems to be common to discriminate against people who have the gall to “root” their device, or to disable some functionality of the device if such “rooting” is performed. Nothing stops a PC app developer to put in checks on what ISP you're connected to for example or whether your user has root access. I use Cyanogenmod on my phone and not one app so far has discriminated against me having root access. Point is that it's very uncommon. > I believe there are even online banking applications which reserve the right, in their terms, to detect if a device is “rooted” and refuse to operate on them. Yes, they are the developers and they set the terms. There are also banks whose websites simply reject a particular browser by name, not because it lacks a certain functionality. [1]: http://www.htcdev.com/bootloader http://www.htcdev.com/bootloader [2]: http://developer.sonymobile.com/unlockbootloader/unlock-yourboot-loader/ http://developer.sonymobile.com/unlockbootloader/unlock-your... [3]: http://developer.lge.com/resource/mobile/RetrieveBootloader.dev?categoryTypeCode=ANRS http://developer.lge.com/resource/mobile/RetrieveBootloader.... [4]: https://motorola-global-portal.custhelp.com/app/standalone/bootloader/unlock-your-device-a https://motorola-global-portal.custhelp.com/app/standalone/b...