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I'm about to buy an Android phone from someone in my area. He already told me the IMEI. How can I ensure that I can unlock the bootloader ("OEM Unlock") prior buying the phone?

I've heard that I might have to wait 7 days until I can unlock the OEM, so I need to know the phone will be unlocked eventually, to avoid wasting my money. I have no use for the phone if the bootloader stays locked.

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    Only a handful of phones can be bootloader unlocked these days... What specific model of phone? The IMEI really doesn't tell you anything in this case.
    – acejavelin
    Commented Aug 19, 2022 at 14:18
  • @acejavelin Pixel 6a. I've seen it locked with grayed out OEM unlock option right after purchase, but I think it has just a 7 day lock. I'm not sure.
    – Martin Braun
    Commented Aug 19, 2022 at 15:16
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    Kind of related: Bootloader wont unlock on Google Pixel 2 (G011A) where the answer mentioned refurbished Google Pixel 2 are intentionally bootloader locked. So, in the end, I guess there's no way to ensure until you get the device and try to unlock it.
    – Andrew T. ♦
    Commented Aug 19, 2022 at 16:17
  • if it is Samsung or Google phone, don't buy it
    – alecxs
    Commented Aug 19, 2022 at 16:57
  • The 6a had a bug when launched that OEM unlock was grayed out. The OTA update fixed it, or the Android 13 update. Mine was grayed out as well, but as soon as I got the first OTA it was fine.
    – acejavelin
    Commented Aug 19, 2022 at 21:12

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