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Early Unlock? T-Mobile Compatible?

blairh

blairh

macrumors 603
Original poster
Dec 11, 2007
6,110
4,826
Just upgraded early from my iPhone 5 on AT&T (subsidized) to the Optimus G Pro. Three questions.

1. I purchased the G Pro at full price. Will AT&T unlock my iPhone 5 now?

2. I'm going to sell my iPhone on Craigslist. If someone wants to use it on T-Mobile can they? If so they can only get HSPA+ speeds, correct?

3. In case AT&T won't unlock my iPhone, is it safe to use an Ebay service to unlock it? I purchased my iPhone before the date where it became illegal. (I believe.)
 
PsstGreek said:
Skip the AT&T unlocking debacle and just do this https://www.swiftunlocks.com/unlock/at-t-iphone-12-24-hours

And, yes once unlocked it can be used on T-Mobile. A T-Mobile user will get the "full 4G experience" only if T-Mobile has refarmed their towers for unlocked iPhones. Otherwise you would need a dedicated T-Mobile iPhone to experience it.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the link. It appears from online research that Swiftunlocks has a solid track record. Is there anyway AT&T can either find out about my unlocking or if perhaps the iPhone becomes locked once again in the future after I've sold it? Do you think I should call AT&T and just ask if they'll unlock it before trying Swiftunlocks? Does AT&T log such a request?

From a little more research it appears my iPhone will support T-Mobile LTE once unlocked however it cannot access 42 Mbps HSPA+. Anybody can confirm this? Thank you.
 
blairh said:
Thanks for the link. It appears from online research that Swiftunlocks has a solid track record. Is there anyway AT&T can either find out about my unlocking or if perhaps the iPhone becomes locked once again in the future after I've sold it? Do you think I should call AT&T and just ask if they'll unlock it before trying Swiftunlocks? Does AT&T log such a request?

From a little more research it appears my iPhone will support T-Mobile LTE once unlocked however it cannot access 42 Mbps HSPA+. Anybody can confirm this? Thank you.
Click to expand...

Seems like you have the original iPhone 5, meaning bought well before April 12.
If so, your unlocked 5 will not have access to tmob 42 hspa+, but may have access to the unreliable and very spotty 21 Mbps hspa+ ONLY if the area has the refarmed 1900 band.


Here's a good summary:
http://www.tmonews.com/2013/03/taki...urrent-iphone-5-and-how-it-works-on-t-mobile/

Any unlocked GSM iPhone 5 will have access to TMob LTE if its avail in your area.
 
I had an exceedingly easy time with AT&T unlocking. They have a website (link here) where you give them your IMEI and they get back to you via email. I had a response within a few hours, myself.

I realize swiftunlocks is only a couple bucks, but I don't see a reason why one shouldn't at least try the official option first. It takes maybe a minute of your time, perhaps even less than the time it takes to get all of your info entered into swift unlocks.

Just a suggestion. Like I said, it went really smoothly for me.
 
lordofthereef said:
I had an exceedingly easy time with AT&T unlocking. They have a website (link here) where you give them your IMEI and they get back to you via email. I had a response within a few hours, myself.

I realize swiftunlocks is only a couple bucks, but I don't see a reason why one shouldn't at least try the official option first. It takes maybe a minute of your time, perhaps even less than the time it takes to get all of your info entered into swift unlocks.

Just a suggestion. Like I said, it went really smoothly for me.
Click to expand...

But I don't think I'm unlock eligible. I'm in a weird area. I purchased subsidized but have now upgraded off-contract. Also I submitted one of these for my iPhone 4 last fall and they never got back to me. I ended up having to call them to have the unlock done. Not saying it's not worth a shot but I have no clue if it would actually go through.

----------
Akack said:
Seems like you have the original iPhone 5, meaning bought well before April 12.
If so, your unlocked 5 will not have access to tmob 42 hspa+, but may have access to the unreliable and very spotty 21 Mbps hspa+ ONLY if the area has the refarmed 1900 band.


Here's a good summary:
http://www.tmonews.com/2013/03/taki...urrent-iphone-5-and-how-it-works-on-t-mobile/

Any unlocked GSM iPhone 5 will have access to TMob LTE if its avail in your area.
Click to expand...

Thank you very much for that link. Do you think it's fair if I advertise my iPhone as HSPA+ and LTE compatible with T-Mobile if and when I get it unlocked? Also do buyers ask/care if I had the unlock done by a third party or by AT&T?
 
You are not eligible for ATT to unlock since you are under the original iPhone 5 contract. Switching to a new phone that you bought outright doesn't change anything. Swiftunlocks is your best bet. :apple:
 
Givmeabrek said:
You are not eligible for ATT to unlock since you are under the original iPhone 5 contract. Switching to a new phone that you bought outright doesn't change anything. Swiftunlocks is your best bet. :apple:
Click to expand...

Thank you. I'm going to go that route. When listing on Craigslist do I need to specify that or can I simply list my iPhone as unlocked?
 
blairh said:
But I don't think I'm unlock eligible. I'm in a weird area. I purchased subsidized but have now upgraded off-contract. Also I submitted one of these for my iPhone 4 last fall and they never got back to me. I ended up having to call them to have the unlock done. Not saying it's not worth a shot but I have no clue if it would actually go through.
Click to expand...

Ah, sorry, I misread your post. You are right, they wouldn't unlock it for you in that case.

----------
blairh said:
Thank you. I'm going to go that route. When listing on Craigslist do I need to specify that or can I simply list my iPhone as unlocked?
Click to expand...

I would say list it as unlocked. There is no reason why you should have to go into detail as to what bands the phone uses. Frankly, most users/sellers I don't think would even have a clue what that means. Of course, if people inquire, I would be honest.
 
Givmeabrek said:
You are not eligible for ATT to unlock since you are under the original iPhone 5 contract. Switching to a new phone that you bought outright doesn't change anything. Swiftunlocks is your best bet. :apple:
Click to expand...

Because I purchased my G Pro full price, is it unlocked for international use? If not I believe AT&T will unlock it if requested, correct?

----------
lordofthereef said:
Ah, sorry, I misread your post. You are right, they wouldn't unlock it for you in that case.

----------



I would say list it as unlocked. There is no reason why you should have to go into detail as to what bands the phone uses. Frankly, most users/sellers I don't think would even have a clue what that means. Of course, if people inquire, I would be honest.
Click to expand...

It's important they know at least what carriers it can be used with and what speeds they'll get. When I sold my iPhone 4 on Craigslist the buyer was shocked when I told him it could not be used at Verizon. (I even said so in the ad.) Thankfully he was open to switching to AT&T. With Craigslist you need to be double sure when selling. Thanks for your link before, I'm just going to go the paid/definitive route.
 
Givmeabrek said:
You are not eligible for ATT to unlock since you are under the original iPhone 5 contract.
Click to expand...

Just not true. Several cases posted here where people still under contract (myself included) received unlocks from ATT. OP - no harm in trying. I used the form and got approval in a couple days. I don't know exactly what their criteria for approval is, although I've seen several speculative posts. If you don't get approved, no problem go to 3rd party unclocking as a plan B. People need to stop posting mis-information about carrier unlocking.
 
DEG1 said:
Just not true. Several cases posted here where people still under contract (myself included) received unlocks from ATT. OP - no harm in trying. I used the form and got approval in a couple days. I don't know exactly what their criteria for approval is, although I've seen several speculative posts. If you don't get approved, no problem go to 3rd party unclocking as a plan B. People need to stop posting mis-information about carrier unlocking.
Click to expand...

I think you are being too harsh here. While you are correct that there is no harm in trying, I don't fall under the guidelines set by AT&T (they can easily be found online). I also just had my phone unlocked via the link provided earlier in this thread. It's cheap and foolproof. (I hope.)

I have no idea why someone who isn't eligible would be approved online. My guess is that that is pretty rare.
 
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