Sidebar Sidebar
Become a MacRumors Supporter for $50/year with no ads, ability to filter front page stories, and private forums.

Carrier iPhone 5S in USA: Which Models are Unlocked?

AT&T Unlock Servers Are Down !
Click to expand...

Is it actual only for users who bought Iphone 5S from AT&T and they want to make it unlock, but not for users who bought from Apple Store, right ?

If i bought straight from APPLE STORE for 649 + TAX - I dont care about what and for how long AT&T Unlock Servers Are Down, right ?
 
So unlocked Verizon iPhone 5S can work on Verizon, OR AT&T voice and LTE .. . if you have a nano SIM?
 
galaceuriel said:
Does this apply for international carriers as well? Like, can I just go into a Verizon store, buy a contract-free iPhone 5S at full price, then take it with me outside of the country and use nano-SIMs from international carriers?
Click to expand...

I am not sure if you can buy one at a Verizon store without having them activate it. I tried that and I was told that the phone has to be activated. They wouldn't just sell me a phone, even at full price.
 
DirkUSA said:
I am not sure if you can buy one at a Verizon store without having them activate it. I tried that and I was told that the phone has to be activated. They wouldn't just sell me a phone, even at full price.
Click to expand...

If you went in to a Verizon store, they would make you sign up for service. You could cancel service after one month, but still, that's an extra $70 or so easily, plus the hassle. Most Best Buys will let you buy the phone for full retail and unactivated but some will not. They also charge you $50 more but may price match. The easiest place to get it would be the Apple Store. Just ask for device only.
 
Verizon
Unlocked: No matter where purchased or at what price, ALL Verizon iPhone 5S are unlocked right out of the box. Even if they are bought from Verizon or 3rd party retailers at the subsidized price. Can never be carrier locked. The is due to an FCC requirement for Verizon LTE phones.[/QUOTE]

So with Verizon Phones through the Apple Store, if I have a phone waiting to be picked up at Apple Store via Store Pickup and it was originally supposed to be a new line on my Verizon account BUT I want it unlocked, how can I get that phone NOT tied to a carrier?

Apple has already charged my credit card for a Verizon phone when the order was placed online.
 
kapalua12 said:
Verizon
Unlocked: No matter where purchased or at what price, ALL Verizon iPhone 5S are unlocked right out of the box. Even if they are bought from Verizon or 3rd party retailers at the subsidized price. Can never be carrier locked. The is due to an FCC requirement for Verizon LTE phones.
Click to expand...

So with Verizon Phones through the Apple Store, if I have a phone waiting to be picked up at Apple Store via Store Pickup and it was originally supposed to be a new line on my Verizon account BUT I want it unlocked, how can I get that phone NOT tied to a carrier?

Apple has already charged my credit card for a Verizon phone when the order was placed online.[/QUOTE]

The Verizon iPhone 5S is unlocked, regardless of being bought as ' device only ' or via signing up for a new line/upgrade/add a line on VZW.

However, from what I understand it seems you already opened a line with VZW and now want just the device and use it on another network ?

If that is indeed the case, go to Apple and pick up the device. For best results [ unless the Apple Specialist selling you the device is super cool ] come back the next day or a few hours later and tell'em you'd like to cancel service [ VZW ] and :

Option 1 - Return and rebuy the iPhone as ' device only ' thereby paying the full retail price of the phone.

Or,

Option 2 - You'd like to keep said device, pay the difference between the contract price and retail.

There is an option 3. Walk in to the Apple store and ask to buy a VZW iPhone 5S as ' device only '. If the rep simply sells you the phone [ as was in my case and I'm with TMobile ], walk out and cancel the other phone pick-up and consequently the new line from VZW.

IMO, keep Option 3 as Plan A and the other as Plan B, and play it depending on the Apple rep's attitude and chemistry with you!

Hope that helps.
 
I bought an AT&T 64GB 5s at the subsidized price ($399) from the Apple store, and it is unlocked. I think I must have gotten lucky...
 
rtr1985 said:
Ok, thanks.

It would work 100% with AT&T voice/data/4G/LTE and simultaneous voice/internet?
Click to expand...

Yes. Simultaneous voice and data is at HSPA+, not LTE, though. That's true of the AT&T & T-Mobile iPhones, as well. The iPhone isn't capable of simultaneous voice and LTE.
 
I just picked up a Verizon 16GB iPhone 5S last night from the local Apple store and paid the full price of $649.

I went home and the first thing I did was insert my Straight Talk sim card and restored it. Works great.

Needless to say, it was UNLOCKED right out of the box.
 
KPOM said:
Yes. Simultaneous voice and data is at HSPA+, not LTE, though. That's true of the AT&T & T-Mobile iPhones, as well. The iPhone isn't capable of simultaneous voice and LTE.
Click to expand...

Oh ok, thanks for that clarification.

As y'all have said, it seems for the full retail price, the "Verizon" model is the better value since it has more flexibility on service plans
 
rtr1985 said:
Oh ok, thanks for that clarification.

As y'all have said, it seems for the full retail price, the "Verizon" model is the better value since it has more flexibility on service plans
Click to expand...

Yes, since they are all the same price, the Verizon iPhone has the advantage of being used on Verizon in addition to the GSM carriers.
 
Originally bought a AT&T but need to change to 64GB. I think I am going to try for a Verizon one, and put my At&T sim in it
 
Raibyn said:
If you went in to a Verizon store, they would make you sign up for service. You could cancel service after one month, but still, that's an extra $70 or so easily, plus the hassle. Most Best Buys will let you buy the phone for full retail and unactivated but some will not. They also charge you $50 more but may price match. The easiest place to get it would be the Apple Store. Just ask for device only.
Click to expand...

I am an existing verizon customer and it was cheaper to update my 4s and sign up for another 2 years than just buying it in full. $399 for the upgrade with 2 year contract plus $30 activation for a 64gb 5s. That makes it $429 plus tax. If I cancel it cost me $350 early cancelation fee but for every month I keep the service they take $10 off. If I cancel now my 5s would cost me $779 plus tax.
 
I'd love to know how the above poster was able to buy one at the Apple Store the other night. I have been told by a few stores in a couple cities that unless you are willing to wait in line for hours in advance prior to store opening you have no chance of getting one right now.

What is the next-best option for someone wanting an unlocked (16GB silver, if it matters :D) iPhone 5s? I would be planning to use it overseas - GSM.

Thank you.
 
Sprint really needs to change their unlock policy. It's ridiculous that they won't unlock for use on other US carriers. It makes me (and I'm sure many others) avoid Sprint iPhones like the plague.

Not to mention their substandard data network. It's like the worst of both worlds!

Meanwhile, by selling phones completely unlocked, people are buying Verizon iPhones full price even if they don't use Verizon. Then down the line when those phones get resold, people might buy them and use them on Verizon.

It's a win-win policy for a carrier to sell completely unlocked phones! They have nothing to use since you're in a contract anyway.
 
Coleman2010 said:
Yes
Click to expand...

Y'all were right on. One Apple Store guy didn't believe it works. He said Verizon version had "generic" AT&T antennas and therefore would be slower. So, the other employee set mine up, and then compared to an AT&T version on a speed test. Result was equal LTE speeds over several runs.
 
zorinlynx said:
Sprint really needs to change their unlock policy. It's ridiculous that they won't unlock for use on other US carriers. It makes me (and I'm sure many others) avoid Sprint iPhones like the plague.

Not to mention their substandard data network. It's like the worst of both worlds!

Meanwhile, by selling phones completely unlocked, people are buying Verizon iPhones full price even if they don't use Verizon. Then down the line when those phones get resold, people might buy them and use them on Verizon.

It's a win-win policy for a carrier to sell completely unlocked phones! They have nothing to use since you're in a contract anyway.
Click to expand...

I agree but from a business standpoint I understand their reasoning. T-Mobile is their nearest competitor in terms of price/coverage so unlocking their phones for people to run over to the competition could hurt them quite a bit. The porting ratio of Sprint to T-Mobile is already almost as high as it is for AT&T to T-Mobile despite Sprint devices not being able to be unlocked like AT&T. Imagine if they fully unlocked their devices. It could be disastrous.
 
rtr1985 said:
Y'all were right on. One Apple Store guy didn't believe it works. He said Verizon version had "generic" AT&T antennas and therefore would be slower. So, the other employee set mine up, and then compared to an AT&T version on a speed test. Result was equal LTE speeds over several runs.
Click to expand...
Congrats on getting one. Did you pay full price device only?
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Register on MacRumors! This sidebar will go away, and you'll see fewer ads.
Top Bottom
Back