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Is this true

H

hoosier1

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 26, 2012
6
0
Hi all,

I bought last week an ATT off-contract iPhone 5 to be used overseas in a few weeks. I started to use my phone with my current ATT account and checked it with a Tmobile sim to make sure it is unlocked.

However, a friend of mine says that the phone he bought last year from the Apple store was unlocked and worked fine with Tmobile in the US; BUT it would not work overseas after he left the US. He claims if the phone is activated/used (the first use) in the US, it is somehow locked to the US carriers. Can something like this be true? I am now a little bit worried. He said he had to return the phone to Apple ultimately.

Thank you for your comments.
 
VandyChem2009

VandyChem2009

macrumors 6502a
Oct 25, 2011
528
0
Houston, Texas
hoosier1 said:
Hi all,

I bought last week an ATT off-contract iPhone 5 to be used overseas in a few weeks. I started to use my phone with my current ATT account and checked it with a Tmobile sim to make sure it is unlocked.

However, a friend of mine says that the phone he bought last year from the Apple store was unlocked and worked fine with Tmobile in the US; BUT it would not work overseas after he left the US. He claims if the phone is activated/used (the first use) in the US, it is somehow locked to the US carriers. Can something like this be true? I am now a little bit worried. He said he had to return the phone to Apple ultimately.

Thank you for your comments.
Click to expand...

I know the Verizon iPhone 5 is unlocked for use overseas by default. I do not know however about the ATT iPhone 5.
 
mohsy90

mohsy90

macrumors 65816
Feb 4, 2011
1,332
2
New York
hoosier1 said:
Hi all,

I bought last week an ATT off-contract iPhone 5 to be used overseas in a few weeks. I started to use my phone with my current ATT account and checked it with a Tmobile sim to make sure it is unlocked.

However, a friend of mine says that the phone he bought last year from the Apple store was unlocked and worked fine with Tmobile in the US; BUT it would not work overseas after he left the US. He claims if the phone is activated/used (the first use) in the US, it is somehow locked to the US carriers. Can something like this be true? I am now a little bit worried. He said he had to return the phone to Apple ultimately.

Thank you for your comments.
Click to expand...

Yes, this is true. Just insert a foreign sim and restore and the phone will become unlocked again. This is assuming you paid full price for the phone.
 
H

hoosier1

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 26, 2012
6
0
mohsy90 said:
Yes, this is true. Just insert a foreign sim and restore and the phone will become unlocked again. This is assuming you paid full price for the phone.
Click to expand...

Thank you for your reply. Yes, I paid full price for the phone. So, I can keep the phone right (and it can be unlocked again with a computer)? I will restore (overseas) using iTunes with the foreign sim.

Thank you.

PS: Did anyone else on the forum experience something like this before?
 
mohsy90

mohsy90

macrumors 65816
Feb 4, 2011
1,332
2
New York
hoosier1 said:
Thank you for your reply. Yes, I paid full price for the phone. So, I can keep the phone right (and it can be unlocked again with a computer)? I will restore (overseas) using iTunes with the foreign sim.

Thank you.

PS: Did anyone else on the forum experience something like this before?
Click to expand...

Just to be safe, i would try to do the restore now using a tmobile sim. Your friends phone should not have locked to tmobile. That lock usually happens when using an At&T sim in a AT&T iphone 5 thats been unlocked.
 
H

hoosier1

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 26, 2012
6
0
mohsy90 said:
Just to be safe, i would try to do the restore now using a tmobile sim. Your friends phone should not have locked to tmobile. That lock usually happens when using an At&T sim in a AT&T iphone 5 thats been unlocked.
Click to expand...

Moshy thank you for your reply. What do you think: could it be more like a "country" lock? This is strange. The phone works fine in the US with Tmobile but won't work with an international sim card.

If I do restore now, can I put my data back from the backup? What will be the purpose of the restore in the US bc the phone works with Tmobile as well if you switch sim cards.
 
mohsy90

mohsy90

macrumors 65816
Feb 4, 2011
1,332
2
New York
hoosier1 said:
Moshy thank you for your reply. What do you think: could it be more like a "country" lock? This is strange. The phone works fine in the US with Tmobile but won't work with an international sim card.

If I do restore now, can I put my data back from the backup? What will be the purpose of the restore in the US bc the phone works with Tmobile as well if you switch sim cards.
Click to expand...

If it works for tmobile then it means that the phone is already unlocked and should work with any other sim. No such thing as a "country" lock. Double check the network provider you're using overseas and make sure the basebands are compatible.
 
Applejuiced

Applejuiced

macrumors Westmere
Apr 16, 2008
40,672
6,533
At the iPhone hacks section.
I think what your friend is telling you is full of bs.
You buy a full price unlocked iPhone it will work anywhere in the world with any gsm sim.
It will not lock in the US or anything like what he's telling you.
 
M

marcelo4527

macrumors member
Nov 23, 2012
95
0
He probably got the sprint iPhone 4s that was unlocked for a while and then it sprint locked them?
 
AlphaDogg

AlphaDogg

macrumors 68040
May 20, 2010
3,417
7
Ypsilanti, MI
My AT&T iPhone 5 is unlocked. For the past month+, I've been using solely AT&T, and I used a combination of AT&T and T-Mobile yesterday (I get unlimited data on a prepaid T-Mobile SIM for $3/day). I just tested it and it also works with my Orange Israel SIM card. So according to my experience, everything mohsy90 is saying is false.
 
H

hoosier1

macrumors newbie
Original poster
Nov 26, 2012
6
0
marcelo4527 said:
He probably got the sprint iPhone 4s that was unlocked for a while and then it sprint locked them?
Click to expand...

I know it is not BS because he returned a perfectly fine working phone.

What I assume is, like moshy indicated, it is possible; but have no idea how and why this happens.
 
M

marcelo4527

macrumors member
Nov 23, 2012
95
0
mohsy90

mohsy90

macrumors 65816
Feb 4, 2011
1,332
2
New York
AlphaDogg said:
My AT&T iPhone 5 is unlocked. For the past month+, I've been using solely AT&T, and I used a combination of AT&T and T-Mobile yesterday (I get unlimited data on a prepaid T-Mobile SIM for $3/day). I just tested it and it also works with my Orange Israel SIM card. So according to my experience, everything mohsy90 is saying is false.
Click to expand...

Maybe you should reread what I said. I have seen forums regarding unlocked At&t iPhone becoming relocked to AT&T after using AT&T sims. It happens, not often but it does. Thats what i assumed was the case with the OPs friend. Which is why I stated that if a tmobile sim is working then the phone is already unlocked.
 
J

Jtludwig

macrumors 6502
Mar 24, 2012
419
310
hoosier1 said:
Hi all,

I bought last week an ATT off-contract iPhone 5 to be used overseas in a few weeks. I started to use my phone with my current ATT account and checked it with a Tmobile sim to make sure it is unlocked.

However, a friend of mine says that the phone he bought last year from the Apple store was unlocked and worked fine with Tmobile in the US; BUT it would not work overseas after he left the US. He claims if the phone is activated/used (the first use) in the US, it is somehow locked to the US carriers. Can something like this be true? I am now a little bit worried. He said he had to return the phone to Apple ultimately.

Thank you for your comments.
Click to expand...

I love it when someone's friend's cousin's brother has some problem and he gets posted on this board without any substantiation.
 
LapsangSouchong

LapsangSouchong

macrumors 65816
Jul 15, 2010
1,349
0
the burrows
I bought an unlocked Iphone 4s. I activated it in the US on AT&T. I used it in Canada, Ireland, England, Portugal.... with no issues. Never had to restore it.
 
T

takeshi74

macrumors 601
Feb 9, 2011
4,974
68
hoosier1 said:
However, a friend of mine says that the phone he bought last year from the Apple store was unlocked and worked fine with Tmobile in the US; BUT it would not work overseas after he left the US. He claims if the phone is activated/used (the first use) in the US, it is somehow locked to the US carriers. Can something like this be true? I am now a little bit worried. He said he had to return the phone to Apple ultimately.
Click to expand...
Nope. Your friend probably didn't fully understand causality and the situation he was in. The details on the situation matter but I doubt we'll be able to get the full picture.
 
thewitt

thewitt

macrumors 68020
Sep 13, 2011
2,102
1,523
If you purchase a factory unlocked phone, it will remain factory unlocked forever.

If you purchased an AT&T phone that was unlocked because they had not yet locked it, you run the risk of it being locked automatically in the future.

Yes I've read the experts here state this will never happen, and I've seen it happen on our development phones several times after being used overseas, then having the phone restored with an AT&T SIM card.
 
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