@idonthatevests Yes, I learned the hard way that the BE2028 model I bought, originally sold by T-Mobile, now carrier unlocked, was a mistake on my part.
Google AI answers suggest that BE2026 (USA version Factory unlocked ?) allows bootloader to be unlocked without going through Oneplus.
Since I have had 50% failure rate on Google (even some of the AI deep dive) answers factual accuracy recently, I don't know if BE2026 would really work.
And the only Ebay listing I could find that was BE2026 was listed around $180, whereas I paid about $75 for the (functional Android, but useless for UT) BE2028.
I really wish there were Pinned Notes, or similar solution, at top of UBPorts pages, to inform newbies such as myself of these critical details.
I wasted a lot of time and money.