One way to get the iPhone 3g without a contract

[alideman]

I was first planning on getting the iPhone 3G with a contract, and then cancelling the contract after 30 days, playing the ETF, and then using it with tmobile, but the problem is, I don't want to pay for that first month, so i was thinking, that I could cancel the contract after a week and say that my iPhone got stolen, could this work?

[calculus]

I was first planning on getting the iPhone 3G with a contract, and then cancelling the contract after 30 days, playing the ETF, and then using it with tmobile, but the problem is, I don't want to pay for that first month, so i was thinking, that I could cancel the contract after a week and say that my iPhone got stolen, could this work?

Short answer - "No"

[Tallest Skil]

No. Number one, that's lying. Even though it's AT&T, you shouldn't lie.
Second, they'd block the IMEI if you told them that it was stolen. You wouldn't be able to make calls with it after that anyway.

[mattpreston11]

Short answer - "No"


long answer - "Noooooooooooo"

[FarSeide]

They will make you file a police report and in your case, "False Police Report". That would be illegal.

Please do NOT do this...your only gonna make it more difficult for people down the road to buying the iPhone.

if people didnt jailbreak their phone, we wouldnt be in this mess to begin with.

[Tallest Skil]

if people didnt jailbreak their phone, we wouldnt be in this mess to begin with.

Jailbreaking has nothing to do with it. Unlocking does. Why does it matter for you if you're not going to unlock anyway? How have the unlockers ruined it for you? You get your contract, we get our cheaper contract. It's worked out so far.

[Chrysaor]

You can cancel your service, but they would want the phone back since 3G iPhone is subsidized, even if it is "stolen", it is under your responsibility, and you need to pay for it.

[djransom]

I was first planning on getting the iPhone 3G with a contract, and then cancelling the contract after 30 days, playing the ETF, and then using it with tmobile, but the problem is, I don't want to pay for that first month, so i was thinking, that I could cancel the contract after a week and say that my iPhone got stolen, could this work?

Does AT&T 3G operate on the same band as TMobile and also are you sure that the 3G iPhone will b unlocked that soon? Something to ponder

[Tallest Skil]

Does AT&T 3G operate on the same band as TMobile and also are you sure that the 3G iPhone will b unlocked that soon? Something to ponder

The 3G iPhone will be unlocked within two weeks of release. T-Mobile 3G service does NOT run on the same frequency as AT&T's. You wouldn't get 3G from them at all.

[IDANNY]

why not just say you lost it, that way there is no police report. Then you lost it in the first week, cancel the contract and you will be free

[Tallest Skil]

why not just say you lost it, that way there is no police report. Then you lost it in the first week, cancel the contract and you will be free

I'm sorry. You don't lose an iPhone. In ONE WEEK.

[calculus]

Why not just say there was nothing in the box when you got it home? That should work.:rolleyes:

[Van Wildonher]

Say you dropped it in the ocean... works even better if you live in the midwest.

[OllyW]

Why not just say there was nothing in the box when you got it home? That should work.:rolleyes:

Or the dog ate it? :rolleyes:

[flyfish29]

Just say you were at the beach and went for a walk. while on your walk the tide came in!!!

It happened to my brother-in-law with his Subaru Outback!!! :eek:

[cwheatley]

Forgive me if this has already been discussed, but has there been any news of the iPhone 3G being sold at non-subsidized prices as well?

If it were sold at full price, you theoretically wouldn't have to commit to a contract.

[IDANNY]

I'm sorry. You don't lose an iPhone. In ONE WEEK.

At&t cannot prove that the phone is not lost. I have gone through this before when I really lost a phone.

[richard4339]

Either way though, if AT&T locks the IMEI number because the phone is lost or stolen, TMobile still wouldn't be able to activate it, would they?

[ntrigue]

There will be options. You will simply have to 'pay to play.'

[slapguts]

Won't there be a couple countries where the 3G will be sold unlocked? Just buy one from there. If they refuse to ship to the US, open a mailbox in that country similar to services like Mailboxes Etc. and have your mail forwarded to your US address.

Won't be cheap, though.

[flyfish29]

Forgive me if this has already been discussed, but has there been any news of the iPhone 3G being sold at non-subsidized prices as well?

If it were sold at full price, you theoretically wouldn't have to commit to a contract.
Which is why they don't do this...they want you in a contract for two years. Not just to make back the money for the iPhone, but because cell companies have so many customers that go over on minutes and have other misc. charges that people would jump ship to another carrier each time that happened. They want you to be stuck with them for a while.

[jrbdmb]

Why not just say there was nothing in the box when you got it home? That should work.:rolleyes:Even better, stroll into the AT&T store, mosey up to the counter, ask to see a 3G, grab it, and run like hell. Presto, iPhone 3G with no contract. :eek:

Really, with all these threads on how to beat the system, no wonder Apple and AT&T are cracking down ...

[ascham87]

Either way though, if AT&T locks the IMEI number because the phone is lost or stolen, TMobile still wouldn't be able to activate it, would they?

Despite what people may believe, neither AT&T nor T-Mobile maintain an IMEI blacklist like there is in the UK/Europe/Rest of World. When you report a phone as stolen, they do...nothing. I don't mean to add fuel to this guy's argument of having it get "stolen", but the IMEI won't be locked.

[Super Intendo]

I really see no reason to unlock the new iPhone... the 3g wont work anywhere else...

[taylorwilsdon]

Either way though, if AT&T locks the IMEI number because the phone is lost or stolen, TMobile still wouldn't be able to activate it, would they?

You have no understanding of this and its a shame that its being regurgitated through the internet (thats twice in this thread so far!) You're confusing the ESN of CDMA carriers to the IEMI of GSM carriers.

With the ESN (electronic serial number) a carrier can lock a stolen phone and prevent it from being re-activated. No such thing is possible with GSM. An ESN is essentially the equivalent of a SIM card in a GSM phone - with GSM, you just dump a sim card in an unlocked phone and so long as the SIM is valid, a phone cannot be locked by the carrier. Tmobile does not have to activate the phone in any manner.

[hierobryan]

Why not just say there was nothing in the box when you got it home? That should work.:rolleyes:

That could actually work. One time I bought a Sony PDA and removed it from the underside of the box by carefully pulling apart the cardboard. Then I replaced it with some useless power cables of equal weight, glued the box together, and returned it. The store took it back because the seal sticker was unbroken. I got a full refund and a free PDA. I'm evil..I know. ;)

[alideman]

yeah i meant to say it got lost, someone stole it, either way, if there is no imei problem, then i should be able to get away with it, ill pay 200 bucks extra for the phone, and i don't care about the 3G i really want the GPS, so i guess it should work? maybe?

[j26]

You have no understanding of this and its a shame that its being regurgitated through the internet (thats twice in this thread so far!) You're confusing the ESN of CDMA carriers to the IEMI of GSM carriers.

With the ESN (electronic serial number) a carrier can lock a stolen phone and prevent it from being re-activated. No such thing is possible with GSM. An ESN is essentially the equivalent of a SIM card in a GSM phone - with GSM, you just dump a sim card in an unlocked phone and so long as the SIM is valid, a phone cannot be locked by the carrier. Tmobile does not have to activate the phone in any manner.

Actually that's not entirely correct - if you report your GSM phone as stolen, the operator adds your phone to a blacklist which most GSM operators check. If the phone is blacklisted it cannot connect to the network, no matter what SIM you put in.

[alideman]

same thing if i say its lost?

[OllyW]

same thing if i say its lost?

You need to get real.

You can cancel your contract in the first month, but you have to hand the phone back. If you have no phone to hand back because you have "lost" it, they are not just going to say "Oh that's a shame, never mind", they will want compensating for the loss of the phone.

So, on top of the $199 or $299 you have paid when you signed up, they will probably want the balance of the unsubsidised price of the phone and you will run the risk of having a blocked phone.

I you are so desperate to get the iPhone out of the contract, wait until the second month and pay the cancellation fee.

[friekunater]

so could I just get an iPhone 3G (or first-gen iPhone, doesn't make a difference to me) and say it was lost and get an iPod touch for an extra $200?I have a 16gb iPod touch but the lack of speakers just piss me off especially now that the games are coming out... it's a dumb reason, I know, but it's important to me! now I'm just not sure if I wanna pay $485 minus however much I sell my touch for ($85 = 1 mo of service) for half the memory.