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iPhone 5s Orders Begin in the United States and Canada

I guess Apple still treats us better in the US than the rest of the world. 2 hours into sales, and it's still 1-3 business days on most carriers (except T-Mobile/Unlocked) except for the gold version, which has slipped to "October." They clearly allocated a LOT more stock to the US than to other countries, where it instantly went to 7-10 business days.

Maybe they will sell 5-6 million this weekend, after all. I was worried about supply when I saw the Asian and European shipping times slip. But clearly it looks like it was an allocation issue. I guess giving a company 40% market share has some benefits. :)
 
Well I finally got some shipping information on my order from AT&T. Ordered 7 minutes before midnight (hooray!), a "space gray" 64GB. Estimated shipping... October 21st to October 31st. Oh well. I wasn't in a big rush anyway, but that'll teach me to use AT&T which no doubt is getting limited shipments compared to Apple's own online store.

On the plus side, my unlimited data plan grandfathered from 3G to my 4S is now called "Data Unlimited for iPhone 4G LTE" so that's nice.
 
Current ATT customer that doesn't want a contract...

From an online chat from apple.com support:

Me: hi, ordered iphone tonight... just wanted to check...


Her: Hi there! Welcome to the Apple Online Store. How can I help you today? 
Congratulations!

Me: 
i'm on ATT, but wanted an unlocked (no contract) iPhone, so ordered the Tmobile unlocked phone...
can you confirm this is the right one to order?


Her: No, there is no unlocked contract free iPhone 5s available at this time. 
Even the T-Mobile one you have to sign up with T-mobile. 
There just is no contract. 


Me: when i went through the purchasing process on apple.com, using the ATT option, under FAQ "is a new contract with ATT required" link, it states "Additionally, the Apple Online Store offers a no-commitment unlocked iPhone for the full retail price."
where would i find this phone?


Her: It has not been scheduled to be released yet. 
So at this time it is not available. 


Me: but since it uses the same nano SIM slot, and it isn't under contract, why wouldn't I be able to use it on my ATT line?


Her: Theoretically no reason. But officially there is no unlocked iPhone 5s available at this time. 


-----

Seems to me this is just marketing speak to sate T-Mobile's desire to not lose customers with the purchasing option on the apple site. The order says "T-Mobile, unlocked", so I'll just plug in my nanoSim when it gets here and let everyone know... :p:p
 
Last edited:
snowboarder said:
AT&T address doesn't match Apple address word for word, line for line, spacing for spacing - you're f@... No way to change it on either site.
I'm sure it's a recent "improvement", thanks Tim, you're great!
Click to expand...

Damn, Tim is pulling double duty as CEO of AT&T now too????!!

That man is AMAZING!!!!!

(or you're randomly tripping on people that have NOTHING to do with your issue)
 
timborama said:
Seems to be a store issue. 5C shows unlock and T-mobile options, but 5s as T-mobile only.
Click to expand...

I just had a nice, long chat with the Apple Store rep online. Apparently, the T-Mobile phone is actually only "unlocked" in the sense that it can be used OUTSIDE of the U.S. with other GSM carriers. In the U.S., it is still locked to T-Mobile, and is merely "contract free, not unlocked." The rep apologized for the confusion. So that purchase is down the drain....
 
Well after all the AT&T upgrade validation "errors" I finally got my reservation to go through. Thanks to someone here that said they went to the AT&T site and verified their eligibility there and then things worked for them. I don't know if that was the trick, but I was able to process my order afterwards. Kept my $30/month unlimited plan.

My shipping time says 1-3 days, estimated arrival September 30 - October 2. Was tempted to pay for the expedited shipping but then decided that I need to learn a little patience. I have a feeling they will beat the estimate.

Space Gray 64GB 5s is heading my way...Whew!
 
Just ordered a space grey 64 GB and a gold 64 GB, both with Applecare.

I figure within 6 months the Feds will require all phones to be unlocked, so that will be a bonus.
 
iamthat1guy said:
I just had a nice, long chat with the Apple Store rep online. Apparently, the T-Mobile phone is actually only "unlocked" in the sense that it can be used OUTSIDE of the U.S. with other GSM carriers. In the U.S., it is still locked to T-Mobile, and is merely "contract free, not unlocked." The rep apologized for the confusion. So that purchase is down the drain....
Click to expand...

I'm not sure of that. They are selling for full price, and they are clearly marketed on T-Mobile's site as non-contract. I think if you have an installment balance you need to pay it off in full, which makes sense.

http://www.tmonews.com/2013/05/t-mo...petition-to-enact-common-sense-unlock-policy/
 
craigcoffee said:
F...
Her: No, there is no unlocked contract free iPhone 5s available at this time. 
Even the T-Mobile one you have to sign up with T-mobile. 
There just is no contract. 

Click to expand...

Do not understand this statement... My order confirmation say "iPhone 5s 64GB Space Gray (GSM) T-Mobile, Unlocked" so it's not unlocked?
 
Zebulon76 said:
Do not understand this statement... My order confirmation say "iPhone 5s 64GB Space Gray (GSM) T-Mobile, Unlocked" so it's not unlocked?
Click to expand...

I think Apple is selling the unlocked version for T-Mobile at full price. The previous poster was talking about the phones that T-Mobile has through their website with the installment plan.

----------
craigcoffee said:
Me: but since it uses the same nano SIM slot, and it isn't under contract, why wouldn't I be able to use it on my ATT line?


Her: Theoretically no reason. But officially there is no unlocked iPhone 5s available at this time. 


-----

Seems to me this is just marketing speak to sate T-Mobile's desire to not lose customers with the purchasing option on the apple site. The order says "T-Mobile, unlocked", so I'll just plug in my nanoSim when it gets here and let everyone know... :p:p
Click to expand...

That is a bit annoying if true. That said, it's no different from previous years. I think it's part of the deal that Apple has with carriers here. We have historically gotten the true unlocked devices about a month after the initial launch.

That said, it looks like if you sign up for T-Mobile you can cancel after 40 days and pay the full price and get it unlocked. AT&T will unlock a device that you paid full price for, but unfortunately through Apple's site, if you are eligible for any subsidy, even the $200 minimum, you have to sign up for it to order through their website.
 
KPOM said:
I guess Apple still treats us better in the US than the rest of the world. 2 hours into sales, and it's still 1-3 business days on most carriers....
Click to expand...

Apple is certainly looking after the US, but your carriers ... Blimey Charlie those are expensive contracts... 80..90..100$ a month! Jeez... My 5s contract will be £10 (or $15) a month, for unlimited data. And that's a 12 month contract.
 
KPOM said:
I think Apple is selling the unlocked version for T-Mobile at full price. The previous poster was talking about the phones that T-Mobile has through their website with the installment plan.

----------



That is a bit annoying if true. That said, it's no different from previous years. I think it's part of the deal that Apple has with carriers here. We have historically gotten the true unlocked devices about a month after the initial launch.

That said, it looks like if you sign up for T-Mobile you can cancel after 40 days and pay the full price and get it unlocked. AT&T will unlock a device that you paid full price for, but unfortunately through Apple's site, if you are eligible for any subsidy, even the $200 minimum, you have to sign up for it to order through their website.
Click to expand...

This is the conversation I just had with an online apple rep this is the second one I have talk to. They both said that it is unlocked.
 

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KPOM said:
I guess Apple still treats us better in the US than the rest of the world. 2 hours into sales, and it's still 1-3 business days on most carriers (except T-Mobile/Unlocked) except for the gold version, which has slipped to "October." They clearly allocated a LOT more stock to the US than to other countries, where it instantly went to 7-10 business days.

Maybe they will sell 5-6 million this weekend, after all. I was worried about supply when I saw the Asian and European shipping times slip. But clearly it looks like it was an allocation issue. I guess giving a company 40% market share has some benefits. :)
Click to expand...

Totally. I just got back from the shops who all told me the 5S is an Apple exclusive. They'll get them eventually but they don't know when or how many.

That's a supremely poor customer experience, considering that there's no Apple store in my city.

@marvinkroell did wait in line all night at his local Apple store. He said they only had a couple (literally - he reckons there were only about 50 gold iPhones in the whole of Germany), while there were thousands of people in line. Lots and lots of people going home disappointed. In the end he got a ticket for a space-grey and sold his place in line to someone.

This is the kind of thing Tim Cook should issue an apology over.
 
springsup said:
@marvinkroell did wait in line all night at his local Apple store. He said they only had a couple (literally - he reckons there were only about 50 gold iPhones in the whole of Germany), while there were thousands of people in line. Lots and lots of people going home disappointed. In the end he got a ticket for a space-grey and sold his place in line to someone.

This is the kind of thing Tim Cook should issue an apology over.
Click to expand...

It's hard to say. Apple historically doesn't sell as well as Android in Germany. They are supply constrained so they will send product to wherever they think they'll sell more of it. There are some differences between the European and US models, as well. It's too bad it seems Apple underestimated relative demand in Germany, but we'll see on Monday how well they did in estimating worldwide demand and meeting it with their supply chain.

On the plus side for you, it might help to note that the unlocked/T-Mobile versions are shipping later here than the AT&T, Verizon, and Sprint versions.
 
mrxak said:
Well I finally got some shipping information on my order from AT&T. Ordered 7 minutes before midnight (hooray!), a "space gray" 64GB. Estimated shipping... October 21st to October 31st. Oh well. I wasn't in a big rush anyway, but that'll teach me to use AT&T which no doubt is getting limited shipments compared to Apple's own online store.

On the plus side, my unlimited data plan grandfathered from 3G to my 4S is now called "Data Unlimited for iPhone 4G LTE" so that's nice.
Click to expand...

A month wait for one ordered around midnight?! :eek: The carriers are not getting many phones, are they? At this point it might make more sense to order from Apple.
 
springsup said:
Totally. I just got back from the shops who all told me the 5S is an Apple exclusive. They'll get them eventually but they don't know when or how many.

That's a supremely poor customer experience, considering that there's no Apple store in my city.

@marvinkroell did wait in line all night at his local Apple store. He said they only had a couple (literally - he reckons there were only about 50 gold iPhones in the whole of Germany), while there were thousands of people in line. Lots and lots of people going home disappointed. In the end he got a ticket for a space-grey and sold his place in line to someone.

This is the kind of thing Tim Cook should issue an apology over.
Click to expand...

I kinda agree with that. It's not something Apple is trying to do, but it can't squeeze blood out of a rock.
 
ValSalva said:
A month wait for one ordered around midnight?! :eek: The carriers are not getting many phones, are they? At this point it might make more sense to order from Apple.
Click to expand...

I guess that's part of Apple's plan (per MacRumors a few months ago) to increase the percentage of iPhones sold through their own stores rather than carriers.
 
For international buyers (like me) quote from Apple store: "If you buy iPhone for T-Mobile, it will arrive with a nano-SIM card already installed that you can activate by visiting an Apple Retail Store or a T-Mobile store or by calling T-Mobile. When you travel internationally, you can use a nano-SIM card for iPhone 5s from a local GSM carrier."

By the way, i've ordered 2 phones at 00:10 (USA time) but have no charge on my credit card yet. I guess they charge money as phones will be shipped?

p.s. delivery October 8th-10th
 
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