OnePlus introduced the OnePlus 7T Pro McLaren edition with improved specs. In the United States, it rolled out exclusively via T-Mobile. This makes us think the new OnePlus 8 McLaren variant may also be available through T-Mobile but then again, there was an earlier report that said the OnePlus 8 Pro would be coming to the US via Verizon. Then again those models are different. We just don’t know the status of OnePlus and T-Mobile’s partnership. We just know they both want to deliver great performance to mobile consumers.
Most OnePlus phones allow the bootloader to be unlocked but an XDA developer (Arol Wright) is suggesting you don’t especially on the T-Mobile OnePlus 7T Pro McLaren Edition. It is not recommended especially if you want those OxygenOS updates that are regularly released. Consider this is a public service announcement (PSA) if you own the said smartphone from the Chinese OEM.
The OnePlus 7T Pro McLaren Edition is a more premium version of the already powerful OnePlus 7 and 7T series. Since it’s exclusive to T-Mobile, some people may want to unlock its bootloader for the sole purpose of rooting. It should be okay for some mobile devices but if you prefer the OxygenOS updates, don’t do it.
When unlocked, the smartphone may wipe the data partition and the reserve.img file. Once such a file is removed, the device cannot mount it in the system partition which results in the phone not able to receive future updates. The only way to update the rooted OnePlus phone is by full system OTA zips that actually require all read-only partitions.
At the moment, it is not advisable to unlock the bootloader or root the OnePlus 7T Pro McLaren Edition from T-Mobile. Until a recovery or full ZIPs are provided, only it is recommended. OxygenOS updates are important but you can’t do that when the phone is rooted, at least, in this particular model.
