Getting IPhone 4 or 4S from US to India

[cpsingh]

Hi all,

I am planning to buy an Iphone 4 or 4S for myself but cost is always a consideration.

In India, Iphone 4 or 4s >= Rs 40,000
In US, IPhone 4 or 4s( with contract) = 200-300$ ( approx) = Rs 15000-20000
In US, IPhone 4 or 4S (without contract) = 700$ = Rs 35000

This means for anyone,the only way to get cheap Iphone is WITH CONTRACT FROM US.

But following are my questions.
1) Will I be able to use it in india ? ( Jailbreak etc.)
--- What about contract ?
---How can we break contract ? (In a clear manner)
2) How can it be brought to India ? ( Any Taxes/Customs duty if couriered)
3) What all things will need to be taken care before bringing it to India ?
( Use it before before bringing it to India)
4) Will i be able to upgrade its software in india ?
5) Will I get any warranty for it in India ?

I have already read many threads but I want a very streamlined Answers for my thread so that when i finish this thread, I end up purchasing an IPhone which can actually work.


Please suggest my friends.

 

[grapes911]

I can't speak for the CDMA iPhones, but the GSM iPhones with a contract are locked to AT&T.

 

[Applejuiced]

How do you plan on getting an iphone with contract in the US?
You need to be a resident and have a social security number and decent credit history.
Not anyone can walk in and buy a subsidized iphone and then just go back to India or whatever country they came from.
And like mentioned above GSM iphones are locked to AT&T.
Verizon iphones can be unlocked by verizon but you have to pass some criteria before they allow that.

 

[cpsingh]

I dont want a CDMA. I want a one to be used with Airtel or something else.
I have my relatives & friends in US who have good history & everything & can buy for me.

I am still waiting for some expert advices.

 

[PharmDoc]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0_1 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A405 Safari/7534.48.3)

Buy it unlocked.

 

[SPEEDwithJJ]

IMHO, your best option will be to buy an unlocked iPhone 4/4S.

Good luck.

 

[Zcott]

Buying unlocked is considerably more expensive but considerably less hassle. And worth it.

 

[cyks]

You'll have to buy an unlocked phone which should work for you, but, for the minor savings and slight risk of it not working, you're probably better off just buying one in India.

If you buy one on contract, you will not be able to use it on any other carrier. It will be locked to US AT&T.

 

[cpsingh]

You'll have to buy an unlocked phone which should work for you, but, for the minor savings and slight risk of it not working, you're probably better off just buying one in India.

If you buy one on contract, you will not be able to use it on any other carrier. It will be locked to US AT&T.

cyks , Cant i break contract by any means & then get it.
Because i rad somewhr that breaking contract fees is only 175$... which means 200$+175$ = 375$ = Rs 20000 ( still cheap)

isnt it true ??

 

[grapes911]

AT&T iPhone early termination fee (ETF) is $325 minus $10 for each full month of your service commitment that you complete. And it would still be locked to AT&T.

 

[DankNugz]

cyks , Cant i break contract by any means & then get it.
Because i rad somewhr that breaking contract fees is only 175$... which means 200$+175$ = 375$ = Rs 20000 ( still cheap)

isnt it true ??

You can't get a subsidized phone because you arent a citizen. You would have to buy the unlocked phone, which is a lot more money. By the time you add up the cost of the trip and the unlocked phone price and all the hassle, it will barely be worth it. Just sack up, open your wallet, and buy the phone in your country.

 

[cpsingh]

U mean...
200$+325$ = 525$ or lets say 550$ = Rs 27500.

Still cheap.. what say .... How to go about it ?
& then what to do next...
More suggestions plss....

I see people posting with expert comments.... Am thankfull to all concerned.

Suggestions pls

----------

You can't get a subsidized phone because you arent a citizen. You would have to buy the unlocked phone, which is a lot more money. By the time you add up the cost of the trip and the unlocked phone price and all the hassle, it will barely be worth it. Just sack up, open your wallet, and buy the phone in your country.

@ Danknuzz : Just read above.. I told you that I have my relatives / friends who can it get it for me ... they are frequent travellers.

I only want the way how to do about technical grudges. ????

 

[nixforfun]

Do not buy the contract iphone. Even if you have friends/relatives who can buy it for you, they have to either live with an expensive contract to serve for 2 years or pay ETF. In either case, AT&T will NOT unlock the iphone for you and you will always rely on 3rd party software to unlock which may or may not be available all the time.

If you buy an unlocked phone from US, the difference if not huge if you are calculating the cost as INR 35k from US and 40K in India. Please remember, if you buy from US, you do NOT get warranty support in India. Additionally, Indian Operators are giving reverse subsidy which means for 40K you get an unlocked iPhone and Airtel will give you subsidy worth 20K (I think !), so it really makes sense to buy it from India and avoid all the hassle.

 

[harpyeagle]

I can only think of these options for your situation:

Assuming all logistics work out for breaking the contract and the latest JB allows unlocking:
1. AT&T 4s + jailbreak = Usability in india + NO Future S/W Updates

2. UNLOCKED 4s = Full usability claim in India + Future S/W Updates

 

[eastercat]

How many times do we have to tell you? The subsidized phone is locked. You can not unlock it with anything.

U mean...
200$+325$ = 525$ or lets say 550$ = Rs 27500.

Still cheap.. what say .... How to go about it ?
& then what to do next...
More suggestions plss....

I see people posting with expert comments.... Am thankfull to all concerned.

Suggestions pls

 

[lordofthereef]

Here's the deal. Your relative can get the phone and break the contract. He/she will need to buy the Verizon phone. IF your relative has good standing with Verizon they will unlock it for use overseas (yes, it has a GSM radio too) after their first month's bill has passed. They can then pay the early termination fee, which is likely around $300. At the end of the day, you MIGHT save yourself something like $50, if anything at all. I just don't see that being worth it, but to each his own I guess.

Your best bet is to have your relatives look for someone selling the verizon iPhone on craigslist or someplace and are able to have the GSM capabilities unlocked for you. Phones like this sell for $500 or so in my area.

EDIT: Google says the Verizon ETF is $350

 

[kalex]

Here's the deal. Your relative can get the phone and break the contract. He/she will need to buy the Verizon phone. IF your relative has good standing with Verizon they will unlock it for use overseas (yes, it has a GSM radio too) after their first month's bill has passed. They can then pay the early termination fee, which is likely around $300. At the end of the day, you MIGHT save yourself something like $50, if anything at all. I just don't see that being worth it, but to each his own I guess.

Your best bet is to have your relatives look for someone selling the verizon iPhone on craigslist or someplace and are able to have the GSM capabilities unlocked for you. Phones like this sell for $500 or so in my area.

EDIT: Google says the Verizon ETF is $350

Or sprint will work same way. ATT will be locked with 0 chance of unlocking it legit way. Also remember there is no unlock for jailbreak yet so your options are
1) Unlocked phone
2) Verizon phone
3) Sprint phone

With choices 2 and 3 your relatives will have to call either vzw or sprint and ask them to unlock the phone. They will need to have account in good standing on both carriers and certain number of months in contract. If they already have the service it will be faster if they don't then you will need to wait

 

[lordofthereef]

Or sprint will work same way. A

I have read that sprint wants something like 3-6 months of on-time payments before allowing this. Again, only what I read here, which we know is gospel truth.

 

[vsuri]

Hi all,

I am planning to buy an Iphone 4 or 4S for myself but cost is always a consideration.

In India, Iphone 4 or 4s >= Rs 40,000
In US, IPhone 4 or 4s( with contract) = 200-300$ ( approx) = Rs 15000-20000
In US, IPhone 4 or 4S (without contract) = 700$ = Rs 35000

This means for anyone,the only way to get cheap Iphone is WITH CONTRACT FROM US.

But following are my questions.
1) Will I be able to use it in india ? ( Jailbreak etc.)
--- What about contract ?
---How can we break contract ? (In a clear manner)
2) How can it be brought to India ? ( Any Taxes/Customs duty if couriered)
3) What all things will need to be taken care before bringing it to India ?
( Use it before before bringing it to India)
4) Will i be able to upgrade its software in india ?
5) Will I get any warranty for it in India ?

I have already read many threads but I want a very streamlined Answers for my thread so that when i finish this thread, I end up purchasing an IPhone which can actually work.


Please suggest my friends.

1. A subsidized phone is generally locked to a carrier and cannot be used on another carrier, unless you jailbreak and unlock. Not all versions of iOS/baseband can be unlocked.
Contracts cannot be cancelled within the first month. Therefore, the first cell phone service invoice must be paid. This bill will likely be between $110 - 205$ (initial invoices are for a period between 1-2 months + activation fees + taxes, which may be as high as 35%)
Therefore the contract will cost a minimum of $325 (or $350 on Verizon) + 110 = $435 (or $460 on Verizon). It may be as high as $530 (or $555 on Verizon)

2. If sent by FedEx and appropriately declared, shipping charges will be around $100 and customs duty will be around 30% of $650 (this is the full retail value of iPhone 4S). Therefore: $100 + $195 = $295

3. If hacktivation is not a possibility, use it once in the US.

4. You can upgrade the software but your iPhone will become inoperative unless jailbreak/unlock are available.

5. iPhones do not come with international warranty.

 

[kalex]

I have read that sprint wants something like 3-6 months of on-time payments before allowing this. Again, only what I read here, which we know is gospel truth.

Its possible. I unlocked mine same day i activated but i had sprint for a while

 

[lordofthereef]

Its possible. I unlocked mine same day i activated but i had sprint for a while

So that would mean you had at least 3-6 on-time payments before they unlocked it for you, right?

Side note: I also remember reading that Sprint was basicaly doing this for everyone for a couple weeks after launch and then the "rules" changed slightly. Again, I don't follow Sprint much. I couldn't stand the data when I had them. This is all I have picked up in passing, basically.

 

[Enjoylife1788]

Hi all,

I am planning to buy an Iphone 4 or 4S for myself but cost is always a consideration.

In India, Iphone 4 or 4s >= Rs 40,000
In US, IPhone 4 or 4s( with contract) = 200-300$ ( approx) = Rs 15000-20000
In US, IPhone 4 or 4S (without contract) = 700$ = Rs 35000

This means for anyone,the only way to get cheap Iphone is WITH CONTRACT FROM US.

But following are my questions.
1) Will I be able to use it in india ? ( Jailbreak etc.)
--- What about contract ?
---How can we break contract ? (In a clear manner)
2) How can it be brought to India ? ( Any Taxes/Customs duty if couriered)
3) What all things will need to be taken care before bringing it to India ?
( Use it before before bringing it to India)
4) Will i be able to upgrade its software in india ?
5) Will I get any warranty for it in India ?

I have already read many threads but I want a very streamlined Answers for my thread so that when i finish this thread, I end up purchasing an IPhone which can actually work.


Please suggest my friends.

Hi. I haven't read all the comments. But I will try to answer all of it. I too am from India and using unlocked iPhone 4.

1. No, as on today, there is no unlock available for iPhone 4s, they say it's coming but u Neber know. Also, even if it comes, it's coming for the iOS 5.0 baseband, which u won't be able to get as u will get an upgraded new iOS version model.

Note: jailbreaking is different from unlocking. For atnt iPhones to work in India, u need to unlock. Which is not possible as on right now.

2. Yes tere are duties if couriered. How much, i don't know. But I wouldn't take a risk couriering such an expensive gadget even if it weren't chargaeable. The best option is a person carrying it for u.

3. No such thing. Just get it here.

4. Yes u can always upgrade softwares from apple. There is no issue if u but unlocked.
In case, an unlock comes and then u buy a locked phone and get it unlocked, ten u have to see e careful in upgrading the baseband version.

5.no warranty for any iPhone outside the country it is bought in. Irrespective of locked or unlocked. iPhone's are the only apple products that have country specific warranty. Something apple implemented to keep users buying from other countries at cheaper rates.

If something goes wrong then u have to send it back to the country it was bought from..

I hope this answers all your questions.
My advice: don't go for the locked one. There are chances of u making it an iPod if u accidentally upgrade it, if the baseband after upgradation is not unlockable..

Best option is to get an unlocked one from there. Still cheaper by 10000 rupees. And hopefully u won't have any issues. If u do then u have to send it back to your relatives to get it replaced and then get that replacement here.

 

[Applejuiced]

U mean...
200$+325$ = 525$ or lets say 550$ = Rs 27500.

Still cheap.. what say .... How to go about it ?
& then what to do next...
More suggestions plss....

No, you will also have to pay for first month service, taxes when you purchase it etc...
Depending what state sales tax could be around $50, first month bill could range from $50-100, then $200 and $325 = around $625-675
A factory unlocked one is $650 plus tax and you wont have to sign a contract under anyones name and cancell or go thru all the hassle getting a number activated etc...
And a factory unlocked iphone is forever unlocked, if you buy one locked you will not be able to use it in India as a phone. Only as an ipod touch unless if and when an unlock is released and that could take long and if you accidentally upgrade or need a restore you might lose the unlock for good.
So always purchase one officially unlocked so you dont have to worry about it ever locking and it can be used on any GSM carrier in the world.

 

[sanke1]

Buy it unlocked in India.
/thread

 

[cpsingh]

I too am from India and using unlocked iPhone 4.

.

Friend can you please tell me in detail about unlocked IPhone 4s.

How can I use it India & what all things to be taken care ?

Can it be directly used in India ?
Ur contact number pls so that i can talk to you directly.

But more suggestions pls... if someone can still advice me cheaper one