Brand New iPhone Question

[google]

So I have a brand new iPhone 4s Sprint Model. It has never been active, does it mean during set up I can have it work for ATT? Thought I read some where you can pick which carrier you want as they are all the same models.

 

[lordofthereef]

So I have a brand new iPhone 4s Sprint Model. It has never been active, does it mean during set up I can have it work for ATT? Thought I read some where you can pick which carrier you want as they are all the same models.

No.

 

[TWO2SEVEN]

It will be locked to Sprint. The internal cellular components will not allow it to be used on AT&T.

You can always sell that one and get one directly from AT&T or an AT&T model from Apple.

 

[miles01110]

Thought I read some where you can pick which carrier you want as they are all the same models.

In theory you could... if the carriers allowed it. Which they don't.

 

[Stealthipad]

In theory you could... if the carriers allowed it. Which they don't.

What theory would allow the Sprint Radio to work on AT&T's bands.

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So I have a brand new iPhone 4s Sprint Model. It has never been active, does it mean during set up I can have it work for ATT? Thought I read some where you can pick which carrier you want as they are all the same models.

It is possible if it IS new that you can take it to the Apple store and they will exchange it for a AT&T model.

 

[cynics]

What theory would allow the Sprint Radio to work on AT&T's bands.

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It is possible if it IS new that you can take it to the Apple store and they will exchange it for a AT&T model.

4s has a dual band radio that can work on gsm and CDMA.

This is why you can have Verizon unlock their 4s and you can use a foreign gsm sim card.

Problem is restrictions from the carrier that will prevent you using a different local carrier.

 

[google]

It will be locked to Sprint. The internal cellular components will not allow it to be used on AT&T.

You can always sell that one and get one directly from AT&T or an AT&T model from Apple.

Not sure if you know but it has both GSM and CDMA modem.

 

[scaredpoet]

The problem isn't the hardware, but the fact that Sprint SIM locks the 4S phones they sell. They will unlock on request, but ONLY for non-US carriers. Even with an "unlocked" Sprint 4S, there are still restrictions in place that prevent those models from working on Verizon, or AT&T, or any other US carriers.

The restriction is software only, not hardware. And yes, it's a Sprint decision.

Also: the fact that iPhone was never activated doesn't mean anything. It'll still have to be activated and that means going through Apple's servers. When Apple sees your 4S trying to activate, it will note that the MEID is allocated to Sprint and try to activate through them.

You could give Gevey SIM and similar options a try, though that's at your own risk.

 

[likethesoup2]

Not sure if you know but it has both GSM and CDMA modem.

Weird question: if you wanted to use it on AT&T, why did you get a Sprint iphone?

 

[google]

Weird question: if you wanted to use it on AT&T, why did you get a Sprint iphone?

I thought I read somewhere that when activating the device it is when its determined where it will be used as all of them are same, so I was trying to confirm before I open it.

Prob end up selling it.

 

[TWO2SEVEN]

Not sure if you know but it has both GSM and CDMA modem.

Did not know that, thanks!