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iPhone 6 with no carrier

M

MartyXB

macrumors member
Original poster
Apr 16, 2011
77
2
Simple question. Will I be able to buy, or is there such a thing as, an iPhone (6 Plus) not associated a carrier? I would like to be able to remain contract free and be able to move between carriers as better deals appear or as better service becomes available.

As an example someone may wish to join Sprint but find service weak, a few months down the line the area gets built up and Sprint becomes an option or T-Mobile comes up with a real killer deal say 50% less that what your current Verizon charges and you want to move over. Being contract free without having a phone that is not free to move between carriers is rather pointless especially if you are paying close to a grand for the phone.
 
I wonder if the Apple Store iPhone/iPad app will have the unlocked versions though.

When I checked last night they weren't' an option on there.
 
MartyXB said:
Just what does it mean "the tmobile version", will I be able to use it on Verizon? Sprint? ATT?
Click to expand...
It's the gsm only one that works on att and tmobile and world wide. Verizon and Sprint are Cdma and no gsm carrier phone will work on them.
 
617aircav said:
It's the gsm only one that works on att and tmobile and world wide. Verizon and Sprint are Cdma and no gsm carrier phone will work on them.
Click to expand...

Wrong.

Verizon phone is the best of all of them as it works on BOTH Verizon AND all the GSM carriers.

Check the specs sheet.
This was also true of the 5s.
 
turbineseaplane said:
Wrong.

Verizon phone is the best of all of them as it works on BOTH Verizon AND all the GSM carriers.

Check the specs sheet.
This was also true of the 5s.
Click to expand...

How does little old Sprint figure in on this? Having a FAST LTE on a plan that is not unlimited can be problematic so it would be nice to have Sprint as an option (of course assuming you are in a Sprint LTE service area).

As an aside would all carrier branded, unlocked phones (whatever than means) work without hassles on Straight Talk? I really want a phone that gives me complete freedom on all US plans.
 
MartyXB said:
How does little old Sprint figure in on this? Having a FAST LTE on a plan that is not unlimited can be problematic so it would be nice to have Sprint as an option (of course assuming you are in a Sprint LTE service area).

As an aside would all carrier branded, unlocked phones (whatever than means) work without hassles on Straight Talk? I really want a phone that gives me complete freedom on all US plans.
Click to expand...
Problem with Sprint is they don't unlock for US at the moment and they'll only be forced to unlock for devices manufactured after Jan/Feb 2015, iirc. There's a strong possibility that the Sprint iPhone 6(+) can only be used on Sprint in the US. Verizon's iPhone is your best bet as it can be used on AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon. That said, I've got my fingers crossed that VoLTE would make factory unlocked GSM iPhones usable on Verizon.
 
rui no onna said:
Problem with Sprint is they don't unlock for US at the moment and they'll only be forced to unlock for devices manufactured after Jan/Feb 2015, iirc. There's a strong possibility that the Sprint iPhone 6(+) can only be used on Sprint in the US. Verizon's iPhone is your best bet as it can be used on AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon. That said, I've got my fingers crossed that VoLTE would make factory unlocked GSM iPhones usable on Verizon.
Click to expand...

I see what you are saying about Sprint not relinquishing the lock on "Sprint Branded" iPhones, but would Sprint be able to activate an unlocked iPhone 6 from another carrier, say, TMobile, Verizon or AT&T?
 
turbineseaplane said:
Verizon phone is the best of all of them as it works on BOTH Verizon AND all the GSM carriers.
Click to expand...

But can you buy a Verizon one at full price on launch day and not sign up for their service? That is the real question.

People are saying Verizon is the best, but if people don't already have Verizon service or don't want to switch to Verizon, they won't be able to get it on launch day.
 
appledes7 said:
But can you buy a Verizon one at full price on launch day and not sign up for their service? That is the real question.



People are saying Verizon is the best, but if people don't already have Verizon service or don't want to switch to Verizon, they won't be able to get it on launch day.
Click to expand...


This is what I wanna know
 
appledes7 said:
But can you buy a Verizon one at full price on launch day and not sign up for their service? That is the real question. People are saying Verizon is the best, but if people don't already have Verizon service or don't want to switch to Verizon, they won't be able to get it on launch day.
Click to expand...

Never had a problem before. Try Best Buy or even Verizon stores. Stock can thin out quickly (especially) away from Apple stores but if you miss the first batch and can be patient, new stock will come in.

On the other hand, if you desperately need to be "first", you'll probably need to take what you can get instead of getting what you might actually want.
 
HobeSoundDarryl said:
Never had a problem before. Try Best Buy or even Verizon stores. Stock can thin out quickly (especially) away from Apple stores but if you miss the first batch and can be patient, new stock will come in.

On the other hand, if you desperately need to be "first", you'll probably need to take what you can get instead of getting what you might actually want.
Click to expand...

A majority of people on here are looking at pre ordering or waiting in line at an Apple Store. They won't want to take the risk of going to a Best Buy.

----------

So it sounds like the Verizon one will support GSM carriers. But getting a Verizon one for intended use on a GSM carrier from Apple on launch day probably will not happen.

I don't plan on going to Verizon. I am moving from AT&T to T-Mobile so I will be buying the T-Mobile one, put my AT&T SIM card in for a couple weeks, then switch.
 
appledes7 said:
A majority of people on here are looking at pre ordering or waiting in line at an Apple Store. They won't want to take the risk of going to a Best Buy.
Click to expand...

I understand. But your question was about where to get the Verizon version with no contract. That's very unlikely at an Apple Store. It is more likely at Best Buy and/or a Verizon store.

If you want to buy one at Apple, it appears the Tmobile version is the one that will be able to be purchased with no contract.
 
MartyXB said:
I see what you are saying about Sprint not relinquishing the lock on "Sprint Branded" iPhones, but would Sprint be able to activate an unlocked iPhone 6 from another carrier, say, TMobile, Verizon or AT&T?
Click to expand...
Nope. They only accept white-listed devices meaning Sprint-branded phones only. Unfortunately, even if a phone exists with the necessary technology, Verizon and Sprint are just too bullheaded to allow the device on their network if it didn't come from them. I think part of the FCC ruling on Verizon's spectrum purchase was they can't block compatible devices on their network so you might be able to use a non-Verizon iPhone on Verizon's network using LTE (and VoLTE) eventually which is good news for everyone.

The Verizon iPhone is the most flexible as it can be used on the 3 major networks in the US (since they're forced by the FCC to unlock their devices). The Sprint iPhone is the least flexible until they become forced to unlock next year.
 
Ok, lets try this differently. Does Apple manufacture different iPhone 6s for each of the carriers?

If not then is the whole concept of locking just an issue some database somewhere in the cloud?

Looks like most people have no hard yes or no answers just some vague "I think" or "I heard" or "I think I read". With carriers and people weening off the subsidized phone and people paying big bucks for "their own" phones you would think some hard answers are in order. No contract plans are intimately tied into unlocked/unsubsidized phones and the whole point in being out of contract both plan and phone wise is to be able to move over to another carrier with your own fully paid for phone. Then again if Apple cannot make a universal USA phone then state so (and let us know why this is so).
 
HobeSoundDarryl said:
I understand. But your question was about where to get the Verizon version with no contract. That's very unlikely at an Apple Store. It is more likely at Best Buy and/or a Verizon store.

If you want to buy one at Apple, it appears the Tmobile version is the one that will be able to be purchased with no contract.
Click to expand...

It does appear that way for the time being. I'm still super excited!
 
For the last several years, Apple's website eventually allowed a non carrier (SIM-free) iPhone purchase about 1-2 months after the initial flood of upgrades, etc. The phone was always the GSM version which was good for AT&T or T-Mobile. You can see that in the store under the 5s. It says, "Requires a GSM-compatible SIM".

With the new larger-number-of-LTE-bands iPhone 6, I don't know if this would apply.
 
MartyXB said:
Ok, lets try this differently. Does Apple manufacture different iPhone 6s for each of the carriers?
Click to expand...
They kinda do but with the 6/6+, it's unnecessary.

MartyXB said:
If not then is the whole concept of locking just an issue some database somewhere in the cloud?
Click to expand...
Pretty much, yes. :rolleyes:

MartyXB said:
Then again if Apple cannot make a universal USA phone then state so (and let us know why this is so).
Click to expand...
Apple can make a universal USA phone. They've already proven that with the iPhone 4S and iPad Air. The problem is Verizon and Sprint won't allow you to use said universal phone on their networks. I think it's kinda stupid of Verizon and Sprint to reject customers but hey, that's just me. :rolleyes:
 
Sprint just announced a $50 unlimited everything plan just for the iPhone 6s. You can understand the need to be not carrier locked with this "war" between the carriers in full swing and the release of the iPhone days away!
 
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