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iPhone Unlocks. iPhone Unlocks everywhere?

L

leftynaut

macrumors member
Original poster
Nov 10, 2009
66
85
so about a year ago i was overseas dealing with months and months of gevey ******** to unlock my iphone 4. then at&t announced they were unlocking iphones after contract. and now... now i see unlocking services on ebay and all over the web for $20-$40. how did this happen all of a sudden?

edit: i've always been on at&t
 
Last edited:
I don't know. But they seem to work.

People are figuring out how to do it and becoming resellers like crazy. I think the actual cost is like $4-$5.
 
I guess the carriers have realized it doesn't really matter, they still get their money. We still have to sign 2 year contracts and are subject to early termination fees regardless of the phone's lock status.
I got my 4S unlocked last week and my 5 done today (hopefully, I have to get home and restore in iTunes first). I used Unlock Fusion via eBay.
 
right but i'm just wondering how this is working. from a technical standpoint. like... how are people doing it now when they couldn't before... and why must i pay them? why can't i unlock my own phone?
 
After hearing about unlock fusion - I decided to give it a whirl on my iPhone 5. Figured what the hell. 10 bux.

Just ordered it. We shall see.
 
Had my 4S unlocked for $7 last week.
I had my i5 unlocked yesterday for $18.
Well worth it IMO.
I love those ebay sellers:)

mykelefty said:
right but i'm just wondering how this is working. from a technical standpoint. like... how are people doing it now when they couldn't before... and why must i pay them? why can't i unlock my own phone?
Click to expand...

Because you dont have access to enter an IMEI to Apple unlocked database.
Get a job working at a carrier that has the iphone and you can make some extra cash on the side:D
 
mykelefty said:
so about a year ago i was overseas dealing with months and months of gevey ******** to unlock my iphone 4. then at&t announced they were unlocking iphones after contract. and now... now i see unlocking services on ebay and all over the web for $20-$40. how did this happen all of a sudden?

edit: i've always been on at&t
Click to expand...

I was thinking this exact thing earlier today. Where were all these unlocks a year ago when I needed them?!?!

I'm wondering if one of two things might happen:

1) The carriers start locking their systems down and the cheap unlocks go away
2) Locking in general becomes a thing of the past

----------
Applejuiced said:
Had my 4S unlocked for $7 last week.
I had my i5 unlocked yesterday for $18.
Well worth it IMO.
I love those ebay sellers:)
Click to expand...

AT&T unlocked the 4S earlier today for free. Debating unlocking the 5 now just in case this all dries up.
 
Geckotek said:
AT&T unlocked the 4S earlier today for free. Debating unlocking the 5 now just in case this all dries up.
Click to expand...

I doubt it will dry up.
It will probably get cheaper a little down the road. But you never know, the prices are still very cheap so mind as well.
Its nice to have a factory unlocked iphone 5 for $199 under contract:)

AbSoluTc said:
After hearing about unlock fusion - I decided to give it a whirl on my iPhone 5. Figured what the hell. 10 bux.

Just ordered it. We shall see.
Click to expand...

He's legit bro.;)
 
Last edited by a moderator:
Yeah I feel the same way. The onslaught and amount of people making serious bank doing this is going to prompt some negative attention for sure.

Who knows. I know some people making $2000/day or more on this.
 
From the Cydia blog:
"All these guys have actual access to the Apple database (or) have a solid contact within AT&T who does have access to it. To permanently remove carrier restrictions, they simple add your iPhone IMEI number in a white-list database of unlocked iPhones."

I just wish I could pay someone $10 for a permanent jailbreak!
 
tys said:
From the Cydia blog:
"All these guys have actual access to the Apple database (or) have a solid contact within AT&T who does have access to it. To permanently remove carrier restrictions, they simple add your iPhone IMEI number in a white-list database of unlocked iPhones."

I just wish I could pay someone $10 for a permanent jailbreak!
Click to expand...

Unlock is not jail breaking

unlock means they can use any carrier.
Jailbreak means the user has gained root access and can install non signed code onto the device... In other words, apps that go around apples App Store n
 
tys said:
From the Cydia blog:
"All these guys have actual access to the Apple database (or) have a solid contact within AT&T who does have access to it. To permanently remove carrier restrictions, they simple add your iPhone IMEI number in a white-list database of unlocked iPhones."

I just wish I could pay someone $10 for a permanent jailbreak!
Click to expand...

this is what i was thinking. contacts at at&t who just add an imei number to the db and act like it was a regular customer request. i don't really need an unlock at the moment... but who knows... at&t could start to crack down on these employees making an extra profit off of them and put an end to this.

but knowing how much at&t likes money... maybe they're just doing it themselves :p
 
VPrime said:
Unlock is not jail breaking

unlock means they can use any carrier.
Jailbreak means the user has gained root access and can install non signed code onto the device... In other words, apps that go around apples App Store n
Click to expand...

They obviously know that, hence the wish.
 
VPrime said:
Unlock is not jail breaking

unlock means they can use any carrier.
Jailbreak means the user has gained root access and can install non signed code onto the device... In other words, apps that go around apples App Store n
Click to expand...

wooosh
 
Applejuiced said:
Had my 4S unlocked for $7 last week.
I had my i5 unlocked yesterday for $18.
Well worth it IMO.
I love those ebay sellers:)
-snip-
Click to expand...

Awesomesauce. I was wondering if this would work on the 5. I've used it on my 4 (duh) and a 4S. If only I could get a 5 without a contract maybe I would have considered it.

Geckotek said:
I was thinking this exact thing earlier today. Where were all these unlocks a year ago when I needed them?!?!

I'm wondering if one of two things might happen:

1) The carriers start locking their systems down and the cheap unlocks go away
2) Locking in general becomes a thing of the past

----------



AT&T unlocked the 4S earlier today for free. Debating unlocking the 5 now just in case this all dries up.
Click to expand...

I sincerely hope not. I hope AT&T gets their head out of the sand and offers this themselves. Hell, they could charge $36 (like the upgrade fee) for it and people would pay.
 
I put in a request to unlock mine cuz I was not under contract and got denied cuz of a technicality. I got a replacement iPhone 4 mid contract so they said you need to have the same iPhone for 2yrs. Dam B.S
 
The whole idea of locking subsidized phones baffles me. If they are worried about not recouping their investment, they need to structure the contract and ETF differently. Problem solved.
 
Applejuiced said:
Had my 4S unlocked for $7 last week.
I had my i5 unlocked yesterday for $18.
Well worth it IMO.
I love those ebay sellers:)



Because you dont have access to enter an IMEI to Apple unlocked database.
Get a job working at a carrier that has the iphone and you can make some extra cash on the side:D
Click to expand...

Do you run the risk of your phone been re-lock again? I'm very interested in doing this. TIA!
 
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