[LG V30 Questions & Answers] ChazzMatt:
No, Sprint V30/V30+ models cannot be bootloader unlocked.

No V30/V30+ come "pre-unlocked" -- unless you are referring to SIM card unlock/network unlock. Some people confuse bootloader unlock with SIM card/carrier unlock/network unlock.

In addition to being bootloader locked, all new Sprint premium phones are notoriously SIM card locked/carrier locked/network locked to Sprint. Sprint will NOT unlock those phones to use on other carriers until the phones are

1) paid in full

2) have been used on Sprint's network for at least 50 days.

And sometimes "paid in full" is paying for all two years of the contract signed...

A lot of people are interested in SIM card unlocking/network unlocking Sprint phones like the V30/V30+ because a lot of eBay sellers go to Sprint, get 2 for 1 deals, etc, then immediately sell the phones online -- even though they are tied to financial commitments for Sprint. The sellers merely say "bad ESN". Sprint not only flags those phones here in the U.S., but they cannot be SIM card unlocked/network unlocked to use on other carriers even in Europe. Sprint controls that SIM card unlock/carrier unlock/network unlock.

Best just to stay away from Sprint phones. Some 3rd party "unlockers" CLAIM they can SIM card unlock/network unlock new Sprint phones like the V30/V30+ even with bad ESN -- but I've seen no real evidence of that. What I have seen are tons of complaints here in XDA forums against those people. The only way they could do it would be do something like changing the IMEI code -- which is against XDA forum policy to even discuss in detail. (One guy hilariously called it "editing" or "repairing" the IMEI. :rolleyes: Changing the IMEI is illegal in many countries, cannot be discussed on XDA. Or perhaps paying some Sprint employees on the side to unlock those phones for use on other carriers?

There are some LG V30/V30+ phones that come SIM card unlocked/carrier unlocked/network unlocked and SOME of those are also eligible for bootloader unlock. But none come already bootloader unlocked. And again, SIM card unlocked/carrier unlocked/network unlocked has nothing to do with bootloader unlock/rooting -- it's only SIM card unlock/carrier/network unlock to use on other carriers. Has nothing to do with "development".

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Back to bootloader unlocking...

Besides the H930G (V30+), the H930 (V30) can also be bootloader unlocked and rooted. Those are the two European models -- the H930 (V30) and H930G (V30+) which are eligible for bootloader unlock. But you have to get bootloader unlock code from the

LG Developer Bootloader Unlock website.

The only LG V30+ right now that can be bootloader unlocked AND has full flash commands so you can root, install TWRP is the Europe H930G. T-mobile H932 V30/V30+ has fake bootloader unlock, but nothing can be done. "Fake" because once the bootloader is unlocked most of the flash commands are stripped out.

The North America open market US998 V30 (64GB) can be bootloader unlocked and rooted, but the open market US998 V30+ (128GB) still does not have IMEI range added to the LG Bootloader Unlock list website yet. (It SHOULD, but it doesn't. We don't know why. Even the

US998 V30 is not "officially listed" on the website, but we found out you can change the dropdown menu and you can get the unlock code anyway

.)

Confusingly the U.S. Cellular model US998 has the exact same model number as the "open market" US998, so be careful buying from ebay sellers or Craigslist.

Those US998 are not eligible for bootloader unlock.

You should only buy from authorized retailers like B&H Photo to make sure you aren't buying the U.S. Cellular version.