This is about a choice presented as a checkbox that is checked by default during installation, not about a feature silently enabled by default you have to then opt out of.
Could you give a reference for that?
I found this with a couple of examples[0] but my understanding so far is that as long as it's a separate isolated step dedicated to that question with clearly worded language explaining the collection, followed by a very explicit "I agree" button or checkbox, then it's fine. The step itself (not the checkbox) constitutes wilful agreement, as it requires action for that dedicated step: it's definitely not "inactivity" nor "silent". Here I assume the button to move to the next step is not simply labeled "next step", nor is it actionable by simply pressing the enter or space key, possibly by mistake.
[0]: https://dma.org.uk/article/gdpr-in-practice-tick-box-consent...
I find your workflow reasonable, but it would fall short under 'free'. Negative and positive action are two different things and in this case the wording is quite clear ("clear affirmative act", "pre-ticked box [..] should not").
[0] http://eur-lex.europa.eu/legal-content/EN/TXT/PDF/?uri=CELEX...
I have no insight into their reasoning here, I just wanted to bring this fact up given I see people talking about consent all the time when that is not the only basis allowed under the law.
A safe bet in this case would be a "double opt-in" approach, in which they have a checkmark during the installer, and then send an interactive notification asking you to verify your decision after the installation. In such a case, tracking would need to be enabled only after the user has clicked "yes" on a notification.
The idea here is that the user has to do something explicitly to enable tracking. Clicking "next" on an installer isn't an explicit user action.