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Nyy8

macrumors 6502a
Original poster
Jun 12, 2011
524
198
New England
So I got my 5s with Verizon Wireless last year, and got the iPhone 6 this year. If I were to sell my 5s on eBay, can I list this phone as "Factory Unlocked"?
 
So I got my 5s with Verizon Wireless last year, and got the iPhone 6 this year. If I were to sell my 5s on eBay, can I list this phone as "Factory Unlocked"?

Nothing you have said so far makes it "Factory Unlocked". Did Verizon unlock it for you? Did you buy it from Verizon unlocked? Did Apple unlock it? Did you pay someone to unlock it?
 
Nothing you have said so far makes it "Factory Unlocked". Did Verizon unlock it for you? Did you buy it from Verizon unlocked? Did Apple unlock it? Did you pay someone to unlock it?

It seems like Verizon is legally bound to sell their phone's unlocked. Based on my reading.
 
It seems like Verizon is legally bound to sell their phone's unlocked. Based on my reading.

Legally bound to sell their phones unlocked? There is no such law.

In 1998 DMCA made it illegal for consumers to unlock their phones. In 2014 SB 517 repealed that portion of DMCA, making it legal to do so.
 
Legally bound to sell their phones unlocked? There is no such law.

In 1998 DMCA made it illegal for consumers to unlock their phones. In 2014 SB 517 repealed that portion of DMCA, making it legal to do so.

It was part of their deal to purchase more LTE spectrum from the FCC. The SIM slot on Verizon iPhone 5 + (not sure about Androids?!?) is GSM unlocked not only abroad but also in the United States.
 
Legally bound to sell their phones unlocked? There is no such law.

In 1998 DMCA made it illegal for consumers to unlock their phones. In 2014 SB 517 repealed that portion of DMCA, making it legal to do so.

When verizon bought the 700mhz spectrum from the government they had to agree to sell phones that run on it sim unlocked.
 
It was part of their deal to purchase more LTE spectrum from the FCC. The SIM slot on Verizon iPhone 5 + (not sure about Androids?!?) is GSM unlocked not only abroad but also in the United States.
I forgot about that. :eek:

Doubt the FCC has enforced it though.
 
Yes all Verizon LTE phones after 2011 or 2012 have to be unlocked. The iphone 5 and 5s are both unlocked.
 
Thanks Everyone.

I'll probably throw this up on eBay as "Unlocked" but not Factory unlocked.
 
Thanks Everyone.

I'll probably throw this up on eBay as "Unlocked" but not Factory unlocked.

Seriously, just list is as factory unlocked. People that are telling you otherwise simply don't know what they are talking about. Any phone sold as a Verizon phone with an LTE radio is FACTORY unlocked. Drop any sim in it and it will work, PERIOD.
 
It's factory unlocked for sure. If you want to hear it straight from the horse's mouth, it's on the second bullet point on this page:

http://www.verizonwireless.com/aboutus/commitment/safety-security/device-unlocking-policy.html
 
Not honest!

Seriously, just list is as factory unlocked. People that are telling you otherwise simply don't know what they are talking about. Any phone sold as a Verizon phone with an LTE radio is FACTORY unlocked. Drop any sim in it and it will work, PERIOD.

The "Official Factory Unlocked" vs Verizon's forced to sell unlocked iPhone, from iPhone 5 onwards, (700 deal) is about $400 and more, depending on the buyer!

Order a Verizon iPhone at the end of contract for $200, continue using the older phone, sell the "Unlocked" for iPhone more than $600!

The cost of an unlocked iPhone 6 from Apple direct, store or web, is about $800 after taxes!

Also, the spectrum use in GSM is compromised in Verizon's iPhones - I can't quote the detail, but any Mac savvy ATT or T-Mobile user knows this difference. Something about the 4G not fully supported!

eBay might catch-up with this twist sooner or later. Peculiar that they have yet to impose this MPN information rule to identify an exact model!

List the iPhone for sale with its MPN number: MPN ME302LL/A vs ME347LL/A for example.

Then your listing is complete. These numbers are the first nine characters on the top left corner of the sticker on the back of the box, and above its serial number on the same label.

The model numbers starting with A (for ex., Model A1533, is the same for GSM and CDMA models) do not accurately describe the iPhone.

Or just say Verizon factory unlocked in the description - it will get less response!
 
I list all my iPhone as factory unlocked after att unlocks them. There is no difference.

True - except ATT & T-Mobile are GSM unlocked by carrier, not Apple; Verizon is CDMA, and comes unlocked from the factory by law, and there is a GSM 4G issue!
 
True - except ATT & T-Mobile are GSM unlocked by carrier, not Apple; Verizon is CDMA, and comes unlocked from the factory by law, and there is a GSM 4G issue!

Yes, but ebay doesn't have a separate category for authorized-unlocked iPhones so we list them under factory unlocked. They're the same after being unlocked.
 
Thanks Everyone.

I'll probably throw this up on eBay as "Unlocked" but not Factory unlocked.

I'd list it as verizon factory unlocked or something similar.
This way anyone on any gsm carrier can use it and also verizon customers can also purchase it. As long as its not blacklisted and you paid all fees and etf if applicable.

I forgot about that. :eek:

Doubt the FCC has enforced it though.

Legally bound to sell their phones unlocked? There is no such law.

In 1998 DMCA made it illegal for consumers to unlock their phones. In 2014 SB 517 repealed that portion of DMCA, making it legal to do so.

So much fail in your posts.
Just because you didn't know or hear about something it didn't happen or is not enforced I guess:rolleyes:
Guess what? It is strictly enforced and follow by verizon on all their LTE devices and yes there is a government contract agreement that verizon entered when they purchased their LTE frequencies.
 
I see factory unlocked listed for Verizon iPhones on eBay, so you should be perfectly fine listing yours that way as well.
 
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