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LTE 7: Europe vs. America

2600 MHz isn't exactly the ideal spectrum for cell service, I can understand why EE and Vodaphone are implementing other bands first.

Ironic that in Canada Bell/Rogers seem to be introducing the 2600MHz (LTE 7) band which the iPhones sold in Northern America will not be able to use but the ones from Europe would. Ofcourse (as per that article) it seems like that band works better for more stationary connections (like LTE "sticks"). Still it should work OK in mobile phones too (after all the European iPhone has support for it)...
 
I don't get this...

Either its the same people change their tune, or what, but when phones are locked in the U.S .... it sounds like a better deal, cos people are used to be....

When it's unlocked, less people probably buy, because its too expensive, little to they know its more on a contact anyway, since the carrier wack you an extra $200 on the contact period anyway... They don't tell you, just do the maths, you'll see.
 
Why pay for the phone --- full price, when you can buy the phone from ATT or who ever and pay someone to unlock the phone for you? You'll end up with money in your pocket.

My iPhone 5 was unlocked by a 3rd party last year without any issue. And the 5S can be unlocked by 3rd parties as well.

For anyone that DOES buy this unlocked phone, please post your photo on Reddit so the whole world can laugh at you.

An, for the record, Apple makes GREAT products but their Marketing is even better than the products they sell.

Signed,
PT "there's a sucker born every minute" Barnum

Yes you're right, why would somebody pay full price then pick up a $60-70 plan from AIO, straight talk or t-mobile instead of getting the phone subsidized and being locked in a contract for 2 years. It's not like you'd be saving $30-50 per month by doing this which over the course of 2 years would actually be cheaper. You're right, what a sucker!

Edit: After further review, Straight talk plans start at $45 per month which is even more savings than I previously thought. But yes, total suckers to do something like this.
 
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Why pay for the phone --- full price, when you can buy the phone from ATT or who ever and pay someone to unlock the phone for you? You'll end up with money in your pocket.

My iPhone 5 was unlocked by a 3rd party last year without any issue. And the 5S can be unlocked by 3rd parties as well.

For anyone that DOES buy this unlocked phone, please post your photo on Reddit so the whole world can laugh at you.

An, for the record, Apple makes GREAT products but their Marketing is even better than the products they sell.

Signed,
PT "there's a sucker born every minute" Barnum

To get a $199 iPhone 5S you have to sign up for 2-year plan (including an ID check, credit check, etc.) They won't let the phone out of the store without signing you up and activating it. Besides the phone itself, you'll pay for the first month of service, activation fees, any unlock fees, and an early termination fee. Welcome to the real world.
 
Apple was rather coy at first about the unlocked-ness (new word!) of the T-Mobile version. T-Mobile wanted a launch phone without contract, so leaving it unlocked was pretty much the only way to go, but Apple didn't want those floating around at launch (scalping and whatnot). So, I think a lot of people were afraid to buy the T-Mobile phone, just in case it was locked somehow.

exactly!
 
Edit: After further review, Straight talk plans start at $45 per month which is even more savings than I previously thought. But yes, total suckers to do something like this.

My wife is on a $30/month T-Mobile plan for her 32GB 5S. Total cost is less than $1500 for two years and $360/year thereafter if she keeps the phone.

I still use a cheap phone. Costs me $30/year after the first year ($100 for the first year). AFAIC the people who are on contracts are the suckers!
 
Ironic that in Canada Bell/Rogers seem to be introducing the 2600MHz (LTE 7) band which the iPhones sold in Northern America will not be able to use but the ones from Europe would. Ofcourse (as per that article) it seems like that band works better for more stationary connections (like LTE "sticks"). Still it should work OK in mobile phones too (after all the European iPhone has support for it)...

2600 MHz is simply not going to have the same throughput indoors as 700 MHz. Because physics.

Bell and Rogers are using that 2600 MHz spectrum to backfill any additional bandwidth needs, not as their primary spectrum. Same as EE and Vodaphone in the UK.
 
What I have in mind is buying the unlocked model, putting it on a Verizon family plan, and putting a SIM in there when traveling to UK or AUS.

If I understand correctly, that would work. No?

I think my existing locked Verizon 4S can do that as well.

Rocketman

You need a Verizon CDMA phone to work on Verizon. But Verizon iPhones are unlocked. You can pay full price if you want and then do whatever you want with it, or even the subsidized price.
 
Not according to the 4 Geniuses that I have asked in the 2 stores where I visited along with the 2 chat sessions...:(
All of them told me the same thing that the phone is locked to T-mobile and I have to go ask them to unlock it.
I asked them isn't contract free = unlocked? Meaning I can just toss the SIM and be on my way?
Every single one of them said it is locked......

On the other hand, if they are indeed unlocked, why do they have to wait til now to offer this option? It makes little to no logical sense...

Let anyone say anything. When I was at an apple store, the lady said tmobile versions are unlocked if you buy them out. I got it for my wife and she is travelling and the phone is working perfectly fine. Its just the way apple likes to market their products.

here is the proof

IMEI: xxx
Serial: xxx
Model: iPhone 5S

Warranty: Applecare Protection Plan (727 days left)
Warranty Start Date: 2013-11-08
Warranty End Date: 2015-11-07

Activation Status: Yes
Locked By Carrier: Retail Unlock
Find My iPhone: OFF
Sim Lock: Unlocked
 
Doesn't work… Don't use…

I typed in my unlocked 5c and it said Unlock Status "unknown"… and of course asked me if I wanted to unlock the phone for a fee.
I typed in my locked Sprint 5 and it said Unlock Status "unknown" too.

Stop posting links to shady companies...

Here is what my iPhone 5S comes up as when I use that web site:

http://www.theverge.com/2013/9/20/4753498/conflicting-info-on-if-t-mobile-iphone-5s-comes-unlocked

I'm not sure why yours is coming up as unknown, but I assure you that it has worked with every iPhone I have tried without spamming me. I suspect you probably need someone younger than yourself to help you with your technology needs.
 
Let anyone say anything. When I was at an apple store, the lady said tmobile versions are unlocked if you buy them out. I got it for my wife and she is travelling and the phone is working perfectly fine. Its just the way apple likes to market their products.

here is the proof

IMEI: xxx
Serial: xxx
Model: iPhone 5S

Warranty: Applecare Protection Plan (727 days left)
Warranty Start Date: 2013-11-08
Warranty End Date: 2015-11-07

Activation Status: Yes
Locked By Carrier: Retail Unlock
Find My iPhone: OFF
Sim Lock: Unlocked

Are you trying to prove that my phone is supposed to be unlocked when it was not?
It is unlocked now, after all the painful phone calls to at&t. The reason I got the at&t version is that I have no intention to bet on and buy a $900 paperweight that potentially does not work with my carrier.
 
Are you trying to prove that my phone is supposed to be unlocked when it was not?
It is unlocked now, after all the painful phone calls to at&t. The reason I got the at&t version is that I have no intention to bet on and buy a $900 paperweight that potentially does not work with my carrier.
So you bought a subsidized iPhone? Or you bought it full priced from AT&T? Of course both will be locked.

If you purchased it from the Apple store device only it was already unlocked.
 
So you bought a subsidized iPhone? Or you bought it full priced from AT&T? Of course both will be locked.

If you purchased it from the Apple store device only it was already unlocked.

One from each of who? Of course it's locked! You didn't buy it from the Apple Store!

1 from apple store and 1 from at&t. Those exclamation marks are not helping to explain why you "know" where I bought my stuffs.

Ironic that I have already kind of replied the same inquiry from the same person...
Just to clarify. Both full retail price. Any other questions?
I am amazed that you can tell my phone is supposed to be unlocked when you have not seen it, have not used it and do not have it in your hands ever while on the other hand, I do and the darn thing was LOCKED!!
 
Ironic that I have already kind of replied the same inquiry from the same person...
Just to clarify. Both full retail price. Any other questions?
I am amazed that you can tell my phone is supposed to be unlocked when you have not seen it, have not used it and do not have it in your hands ever while on the other hand, I do and the darn thing was LOCKED!!

Any iPhone purchased directly from AT&T full priced or on contract will be locked. That's a given. If you wanted unlocked, you bought from the wrong place.

As far as unlocked from Apple we have thousands posts on here with proof that if purchased from Apple "device only" it is unlocked.

If you some how managed to buy a locked "device only" iPhone 5s from the Apple retail store why haven't you returned it? Buy another device only. It will be unlocked.
 
How many people can remember that Apple--when the iPhone first came out--was offering the iPhone for sale outright. I bought one. It was AT&T that convinced Apple to allow subsidized sales. They started to fly off the shelves. It's not what it cost to buy; it's what it cost to keep. You will pay many times what the phone is worth with a subsidized plan. To add insult to injury AT&T threatens Apple, "that they won't support a 'World iPhone' with synthesized SIM card / chip."--we would be able to change providers at will.

I vote for Apple to buy a phone company and provide their own pipe.
 
Any iPhone purchased directly from AT&T full priced or on contract will be locked. That's a given. If you wanted unlocked, you bought from the wrong place.

As far as unlocked from Apple we have thousands posts on here with proof that if purchased from Apple "device only" it is unlocked.

If you some how managed to buy a locked "device only" iPhone 5s from the Apple retail store why haven't you returned it? Buy another device only. It will be unlocked.

Then feel free to enlighten me on how come my darn phone was locked!?
And feel free to tell me how I am supposed to buy my own stuffs and I shall return it. Thank you, big brother.

You are sounding like I am gaining anything by stating the fact that my phone bought outright was supposed to be unlocked...when in fact, I was the one suffering this mishap fiasco. I don't get it...
 
From that $80 it is 5c/minute to talk, 10c/MB for data and 5c/text. Which fits with my usage (I do not text, use wifi nearly exclusively for data and do not use more than 20-30 minutes a month to talk, if even that). But of course would someone need more, they can always "refill" their balance at $10 increments...
You only talk to people for around 30 minutes a month and don't text? :eek: Why bother with an iPhone, why not a cheap mobile instead?
 
Then feel free to enlighten me on how come my darn phone was locked!?
And feel free to tell me how I am supposed to buy my own stuffs and I shall return it. Thank you, big brother.

You are sounding like I am gaining anything by stating the fact that my phone bought outright was supposed to be unlocked...when in fact, I was the one suffering this mishap fiasco. I don't get it...
Umm... Instead of just complaining on a forum about your "mishap," again, why haven't you returned it?
 
I don't know why people were waiting for the "official" unlocked iPhone when the AT&T, Verizon and T-Mobile versions purchased device only from Apple retail are all unlocked. A waste of time waiting if you ask me.

Incorrect. That is a common misunderstanding. It is a waste of money to spend the exact same amount on an officially carrier-specific phone (whose IMEI number is tied to the carrier) that, according to AppleCare representatives, is locked at the time of purchase and the carrier has future locking jurisdiction over (whether the carrier chooses to exercise that jurisdiction or not, it still has it). It is much better to spend that exact same amount of money on a clearly and unambiguously officially factory unlocked iPhone 5S, and the SIM-free version is only model that will, without any doubt, always be unlocked (both domestically and internationally), work with literally every GSM carrier in the world for voice, and never need a specific American carrier's SIM card to be activated.

UPDATE: At this very moment, I'm on the phone with an AT&T representative who is very familiar with the iPhone unlocking process (she's done it several times for herself, family, and friends). She tells me the contract-free full-priced carrier-specific versions are locked when purchased. She said that, since such phones are not on contract, a customer can send a request to AT&T to unlock the phone, but it is definitely locked when purchased. So, my point is valid: It is a waste of time and money to buy a carrier-specific iPhone 5S and go through the hassle of unlocking it when you can buy an officially factory unlocked SIM-free version for the exact same price. Also, due to the fact that the carrier-specific iPhones have an IMEI number connect to a carrier, it can cause confusion and lower the phone's resale value.
 
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Incorrect. That is a common misunderstanding. It is a waste of money to spend the exact same amount on an officially carrier-specific phone (whose IMEI number is tied to the carrier) that, according to AppleCare representatives, is locked at the time of purchase and the carrier has future locking jurisdiction over (whether the carrier chooses to exercise that jurisdiction or not, it still has it). It is much better to spend that exact same amount of money on a clearly and unambiguously officially factory unlocked iPhone 5S, and the SIM-free version is only model that will, without any doubt, always be unlocked (both domestically and internationally), work with literally every GSM carrier in the world for voice, and never need a specific American carrier's SIM card to be activated.

Unlocked is unlocked. Period. If you buy a device only iPhone 5s directly from Apple it is in their unlock database and it will never change. I have returned an iPhone for warranty repair. They gave me a replacement. They looked up the unlock status, and gave me an unlocked replacement.

Also, if you buy an AT&T, Verizon or T-Mobile device only iPhone from Apple. YOU DO NOT NEED A CARRIER SPECIFIC SIM CARD FOR ACTIVATION. I bought an AT&T device only iPhone for a friend in Brasil. In Brasil we opened the iPhone threw out the AT&T SIM and activated it with a local SIM card from Brasil out of the box.

UPDATE: At this very moment, I'm on the phone with an AT&T representative who is very familiar with the iPhone unlocking process (she's done it several times for herself, family, and friends). She tells me the contract-free full-priced carrier-specific versions are locked when purchased. She said that, since such phones are not on contract, a customer can send a request to AT&T to unlock the phone, but it is definitely locked when purchased. So, my point is valid: It is a waste of time and money to buy a carrier-specific iPhone 5S and go through the hassle of unlocking it when you can buy an officially factory unlocked SIM-free version for the exact same price. Also, due to the fact that the carrier-specific iPhones have an IMEI number connect to a carrier, it can cause confusion and lower the phone's resale value.
Yes they are locked if purchased directly from the carrier or from a 3rd party store. (BestBuy, Walmart, Radio Shack, Target.) The AT&T rep told you AT&T's policy and locked status of iPhones sold at AT&T's stores. Not device only purchases sold by Apple.

If purchased directly from Apple full price "device only" they are unlocked. I have purchased several iPhone 5 and iPhone 5s device only and shipped them to friends who live in foreign counties and they activated their iPhones just fine using their foreign SIM. BECAUSE THEY ARE UNLOCKED!

And before you respond with "they are locked in the U.S. and unlocked for international" that is also not true. You can buy a device only AT&T iPhone 5s and use it with T-Mobile and vice versus. Because they are unlocked.
 
If I'm a US user and don't travel internationally, it doesn't seem to make economic sense to spend $650 for an unlocked phone. Am I missing something?
 
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