iPhone 3G Sold From Apple Online Store Hong Kong (Unlocked)

[nikiski]

Hey all,

Just a quick tip regarding iPhone 3G in Hong Kong. I received a mail from Apple today noting that the iPhone 3G is available for purchase online from the Apple Store.

Look closely and you will find the phrase:

Simply buy your iPhone 3G at the Apple Online Store. Then use the carrier of your choice. And if you prefer, you can still visit any 3Shop to get an iPhone 3G with a contract.*

Although the iPhone 3Gs sold with contract are not SIM-locked as required by the laws here, I think it's worth noting that Apple is now selling completely unlocked iPhones without contract and subsidy.

The iPhone 3G are priced at 5,400 and 6,200 Hong Kong Dollars at Apple Online Store Hong Kong, which is located at: http://store.apple.com/hk_tmp_smb_e...hone/family/iphone?cid=AOS-HK-131766-C0007878

It's great news for those folks who would like a completely unlocked iPhone.

 

[Andrew K.]

Sheesh China gets everything!

 

[Kaushal]

damn.......

i bought my iphone 3G from india for INR 31000 .....whichis about USD 670

and i was planning a HK vacation for next jan

my earlier version of unlocked iphone conked off.......and i could not wait a single day to sell it off and get a new one

 

[Helianthus]

damn.......

i bought my iphone 3G from india for INR 31000 .....whichis about USD 670

and i was planning a HK vacation for next jan

my earlier version of unlocked iphone conked off.......and i could not wait a single day to sell it off and get a new one

Google says 6200 HK Dollars = 798 US Dollars, so I think you did fine.

 

[goosnarrggh]

Although the iPhone 3Gs sold with contract are not SIM-locked as required by the laws here...

It's worth noting that last time I checked, HK's law doesn't actually say that SIM locks are illegal. Conversely, I believe it says that SIM locks are ONLY permitted on phones sold with a contract, if the carrier so chooses, but that once the subsidy and other contractual obligations are repaid, it must be possible to remove the SIM lock on request.

It may be the case, however, that for convenience's sake, or as a result of competitive pressure, HK carriers might choose not to bother with the SIM lock in the first place.

 

[tinfai]

Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; U; CPU iPhone OS 2_1 like Mac OS X; en-us) AppleWebKit/525.18.1 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/3.1.1 Mobile/5F136 Safari/525.20)

Although the iPhone 3Gs sold with contract are not SIM-locked as required by the laws here...

It's worth noting that last time I checked, HK's law doesn't actually say that SIM locks are illegal. Conversely, I believe it says that SIM locks are ONLY permitted on phones sold with a contract, if the carrier so chooses, but that once the subsidy and other contractual obligations are repaid, it must be possible to remove the SIM lock on request.

It may be the case, however, that for convenience's sake, or as a result of competitive pressure, HK carriers might choose not to bother with the SIM lock in the first place.

while I'm not positive it doesn't happen here, I haven't heard of a single occurence of sim locking in hong kong.

 

[iphonecode]

Sheesh China gets everything!

Yes, I agree.

 

[Kaushal]

Google says 6200 HK Dollars = 798 US Dollars, so I think you did fine.

6200 HK$ is for the 16 gig version

for the 8 gig its 5400 is 694 USD

and 31000 INR = 667 USD

so not much of a diff

 

[amcan12]

1. Can it be activated with any carrier or with Hong Kong carrier only?

2. Once activated can it be used in any other country using SIM from such country or is it locked to the carrier who's SIM was used during activation?

Did anyone tried it yet? It is being sold in HK Apple Store since July, thus I hope someone has some experience to report on.

 

[nikiski]

It's worth noting that last time I checked, HK's law doesn't actually say that SIM locks are illegal. Conversely, I believe it says that SIM locks are ONLY permitted on phones sold with a contract, if the carrier so chooses, but that once the subsidy and other contractual obligations are repaid, it must be possible to remove the SIM lock on request.

It may be the case, however, that for convenience's sake, or as a result of competitive pressure, HK carriers might choose not to bother with the SIM lock in the first place.

I can't remember what the trade laws are, but, for one, DVD players in Hong Kong are sold non region locked as far as I know. =)

 

[Dreamer2go]

I'm from Hong Kong
and I must say
Hong Kong is the best =)

 

[markgamber]

Sheesh China gets everything!

China still has a functioning economy.

 

[nikiski]

China still has a functioning economy.

There is a saying that, while US economy is suffering from overspending, Chinese economy is suffering from underspending.