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AT&T Unlocked off Contract iPhones Question
- Thread starter Makaveli6103
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According to this article quotee by @MN they unlock comitment free purchased phones as well, which does makes sense.
http://9to5mac.com/2012/04/06/in-response-to-rising-number-of-complaints-att-is-unlocking-iphones/
I gave AT&T a call on their international number, the request is now with the tech department.....
http://9to5mac.com/2012/04/06/in-response-to-rising-number-of-complaints-att-is-unlocking-iphones/
I gave AT&T a call on their international number, the request is now with the tech department.....
what's their international number, I've googled it a few times and can't seem to find it...
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never mind, I've found it.
I explained to the woman that they were NOT my iPhones and that I purchased them from friends. She said she needed the phone number and the IMEI number, but that there systems were down until 6:30am EST time US.
She totally understood my situation and let me know that it wasn't a big deal.
I'll call back w/ that info in about 3 hours and report back here what I find.
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What kind of SIM did you have installed when you plugged in? ATT/T-Mobile/other/none?
This is exactly my configuration (3GS, new BootRom, stock 5.0.1 + redsn0w JB but not unlocked) and I want to make sure I retain my JB through the unlock.
Thanks.
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Just as an update.
I called the international number for AT&T, explained that I lived in China and that I purchased two iPhone 4's from friends of mine. I told the representative that I didn't have an active number because they were second hand purchases.
She said that it was no problem at all and that all I needed was the old phone number on the account(s) that these phones were originally tied to. After that I let her know the IMEI numbers and she said it would be unlocked soon.
When I pushed her about the unlock dates, she said that they would all be sent out on April 18th. I then kindly asked her what was the reason for the date - April 18th. She said that it was because they are having to get all of their unlocks from Apple and that "...because the iPhone 4's are newer, they are going to take a bit longer to get from Apple. Plus we are getting thousands of calls about this." Whether that reasoning is entirely true, I'm not really educated on the inner workings of this process.
Just as another fyi, I made four calls today - two to the American number and two to the international number, the international number was much easier, faster, and friendlier and they didn't seem to care about my location. If you run into issues, I'd suggest at least giving the int'l number a try.
Hope that helps someone, and here's hoping that come next Monday I actually have phones again!
Cheers.
B
I called the international number for AT&T, explained that I lived in China and that I purchased two iPhone 4's from friends of mine. I told the representative that I didn't have an active number because they were second hand purchases.
She said that it was no problem at all and that all I needed was the old phone number on the account(s) that these phones were originally tied to. After that I let her know the IMEI numbers and she said it would be unlocked soon.
When I pushed her about the unlock dates, she said that they would all be sent out on April 18th. I then kindly asked her what was the reason for the date - April 18th. She said that it was because they are having to get all of their unlocks from Apple and that "...because the iPhone 4's are newer, they are going to take a bit longer to get from Apple. Plus we are getting thousands of calls about this." Whether that reasoning is entirely true, I'm not really educated on the inner workings of this process.
Just as another fyi, I made four calls today - two to the American number and two to the international number, the international number was much easier, faster, and friendlier and they didn't seem to care about my location. If you run into issues, I'd suggest at least giving the int'l number a try.
Hope that helps someone, and here's hoping that come next Monday I actually have phones again!
Cheers.
B
FWIW the unlocks on my iPhone 4 and 4S were pushed through instantly when I talked to business tech support.
iPhone 4 was the phone on my line before upgrading to the 4S, so it's technically off contract. The 4S was a warranty replacement for an on-contract phone.
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Great that your unlocks got pushed immediately.
I have the same situation as you with iPhone4 replaced by 4S.
Mine did not get pushed immediately (and I have a business account also)
My initial attempts when calling them were not successful. With reference to the iPhone 4, they were saying that even though I upgraded, it was not yet eligible for an unlock since it was not used for 2 years.
Talked to the chat reps and they unlocked both phones with no problems (it did take some time for her to "research" the iPhone 4 eligibility though - almost an hour.. but by the time the representative told me she was sending me the email, I got the email and the phone was unlocked)
AT&T chat is not available to non-subscribers
Called the 1-800 tech nr today, got a case number, same story as others, april 18th D-Day .
Called the 1-800 tech nr today, got a case number, same story as others, april 18th D-Day .
Hey as long as they unlock them I can wait a week.
Im waiting on hold with AT&T chat to see if I can get my old i4 unlocked.
Lets see how it goes.
Im waiting on hold with AT&T chat to see if I can get my old i4 unlocked.
Lets see how it goes.
I don't know. I'm a business customer with a US government FAN (department of veteran affairs).
My 1st and 2nd calls got the same response-must be 2 yrs old to be unlocked.
On 3rd call, I got hold of a CSR who actually had gone to unlock training by AT&T, she verified it was eligible and sent the case # fairly quickly.
I totally agree with that. My representative didn't put up a fuss at all, and I just made sure to tell her the honest to God truth about buying second hand iPhones from friends.
Don't mind waiting a week, but would be curious to know why some are being pushed through immediately while others are on a week hold.
Good luck on chat!
Maybe because some are or have been AT&T subscribers, they would have a record of what phone they have and when they are out of contract.
They can't check secondhand phones or commitment-free phones. That has to go through apple i guess and might take a bit longer.
They can't check secondhand phones or commitment-free phones. That has to go through apple i guess and might take a bit longer.
Ok that was easy.
I just did it over chat.
It took about 5 minutes. I told her Im on contract with my current 4S and would like to unlock my old iphone 4 I have laying around. She asked for the IMEI number, asked if I had the phone replaced cause she couldnt find it since it wasnt the original one activated on my line. I told her yes I had it replaced with applecare that's probably why should couldnt find it in her system. she said it will take about 24 hours for the unlock to process and I already received an email from AT&T stating they issued an authorized unlock for my iphone.
I just did it over chat.
It took about 5 minutes. I told her Im on contract with my current 4S and would like to unlock my old iphone 4 I have laying around. She asked for the IMEI number, asked if I had the phone replaced cause she couldnt find it since it wasnt the original one activated on my line. I told her yes I had it replaced with applecare that's probably why should couldnt find it in her system. she said it will take about 24 hours for the unlock to process and I already received an email from AT&T stating they issued an authorized unlock for my iphone.
They ask for the last 4 of the account holders social security number.
They might ask to verify the name and adress too.
wow does that mean that anybody might be able to get there phone unlocked if they did exchanged it with Apple? seems like there are allot of loose ends with the new policy and allot of wiggle room depending on who you talk to at AT&T. I feel like calling and trying my IMEI from my 4S and telling them it's my I4.
Yes, I think many times it's up to the rep.
If you get a good one they will do it.
But I wouldn't try giving then false info cause then they won't try to help you at all. As soon as they punch in te imei they know what kind of phone is it and under what account it was originally purchased and activated and many more details.
So did you give her the 4S IMEI number or the iPhone 4 number?
No, they never asked for the 4S imei, I just gave them the i4 imei.
They would know either way though.
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probably the bad karma alone would stop me any way! it's just nice to see at&t finely lighting up. this is probably going to effect software unlocks future too.
No doubt.
With the exception of the impatient, this just made MuscleNerd's software unlock rather obsolete..
BL.