iPhone 4 from US to Israel?

[rweiser]

Hi.

I currently live in Israel. I'd love to get an iPhone 4, but they cost a fortune here. Although I have an iPod Touch, it's not unlocked/jailbroken, and I don't really know much about that whole side of things. (I don't even know if unlocked and jailbroken are the same thing.)

Would it be possible for me to purchase an iPhone 4 in the US (I'm travelling there soon) and unlock it for use in Israel? I recall hearing that the microSIM was supposed to somehow make unlocking harder.

If so - what's the best way to do that? Where should I purchase it (Apple store or AT&T)? How do I get out of the contract? What software should I use to unlock? And how much will all that end up costing me?

Thanks,
Reuven

 

[nebo1ss]

Hi.

I currently live in Israel. I'd love to get an iPhone 4, but they cost a fortune here. Although I have an iPod Touch, it's not unlocked/jailbroken, and I don't really know much about that whole side of things. (I don't even know if unlocked and jailbroken are the same thing.)

Would it be possible for me to purchase an iPhone 4 in the US (I'm travelling there soon) and unlock it for use in Israel? I recall hearing that the microSIM was supposed to somehow make unlocking harder.

If so - what's the best way to do that? Where should I purchase it (Apple store or AT&T)? How do I get out of the contract? What software should I use to unlock? And how much will all that end up costing me?

Thanks,
Reuven

See if you can arrange your trip through Toronto Canada or London England and pick one up in the Apple store 'SIM FREE' or Factory unlocked.

The Iphone 4 in the US is locked to ATT. You will have to jailbreak and unlock and have restrictions on upgrading in the future to maintain the unlock. At this time the version of code on a newly purchased Iphone cannot be unlocked although the DEV team is working on a solution.

You are just letting yourself in for much frustration by purchasing in the US.

 

[bella92108]

Hi.

I currently live in Israel. I'd love to get an iPhone 4, but they cost a fortune here. Although I have an iPod Touch, it's not unlocked/jailbroken, and I don't really know much about that whole side of things. (I don't even know if unlocked and jailbroken are the same thing.)

Would it be possible for me to purchase an iPhone 4 in the US (I'm travelling there soon) and unlock it for use in Israel? I recall hearing that the microSIM was supposed to somehow make unlocking harder.

If so - what's the best way to do that? Where should I purchase it (Apple store or AT&T)? How do I get out of the contract? What software should I use to unlock? And how much will all that end up costing me?

Thanks,
Reuven

iPhone 4 costs a "fortune" everywhere... hehe... it's just that in most (Read: All EXCEPT the US) you give your cash directly to Apple. In the US you can buy them, fairly inexpensive without a contract, but then you're stuck with an AT&T-locked device. The present firmware they have is unable to be jailbroken\unlocked.

Best bet is always to buy unlocked. If you're connecting in the EU, plan your layover long enough to jump out of the airport and grab one at a local Apple store if you can. they're unlocked, and you never have to worry about them being relocked if you want to update the software.

With regards to micro-sim, yeah, they're small... if you can't find them in Israel there are some cheap sim cutters online or instructions how to do it can be found on here.

Good luck, and safe travels.

 

[hackthatphone]

Hi.

I currently live in Israel. I'd love to get an iPhone 4, but they cost a fortune here. Although I have an iPod Touch, it's not unlocked/jailbroken, and I don't really know much about that whole side of things. (I don't even know if unlocked and jailbroken are the same thing.)

Would it be possible for me to purchase an iPhone 4 in the US (I'm travelling there soon) and unlock it for use in Israel? I recall hearing that the microSIM was supposed to somehow make unlocking harder.

If so - what's the best way to do that? Where should I purchase it (Apple store or AT&T)? How do I get out of the contract? What software should I use to unlock? And how much will all that end up costing me?

Thanks,
Reuven

As someone who took their unlocked iphone from the us to israel on a trip this year this is very possible. As far as the microsim issue you have two options: hand cut it (there are templates online to do this), or purchase one of those sim cutting tools that acts like a hole puncher and will instantly cut the sim to the perfect size. I've used both methods. Then just purchase whatever local sim you'd like for air time. I used orange without an issue (and usually had up to 5 networks to roam to at any given time).

As far as where to purchase it - since there is no current unlock, try to purchase it private party and verify before purchase that it has unlockable modem firmware, etc.