iPhone Factory Unlock, Verizon & More

[proathlete03]

I have some thoughts and I see them discussed here, but they are very sporadic. Here are my thoughts...

1) If indeed Verizon gets the iPhone soon (which I doubt)... Wouldn't this mean any AT&T user who fulfills their contract obligations would then be able to get a full factory unlock for their current and previous iPhones?

It seems to me that Apple has no problem selling unlocked phones, just not in the US because of the contract with AT&T. I get that, but but if Verizon comes into the mix, then it might be a situation where Apple will start unlocking phones that have fulfilled their contracts.

2) If there is a Verizon iPhone, a big if, is there ANY chance it would be an all in one band phone that does GSM & CDMA world wide..? The verizon blackberry global devices are like this, but most of them don't let you use gsm in the US. However, I'm not sure about using an AT&T blackberry global phone with CDMA with Verizon...? Any ideas?

From Apples perspective, why in the world would they want to produce two lines of the same phone? It would be easier to do 1 phone that works with all carriers (including verizon, sprint, boost, etc). Also, Apple can play with the iPhone 5 (and use the 5 to represent the 5 big american telecom companies. ATT, Verizon, T-Mobile, Sprint, Virgin.) Why would they just do a verizon iPhone? That makes NO sense...

I think the real iPhone 5 will be able to handle all bands and all carriers like the blackberries out there and thus it would have to be re-designed to pack all that in there - which puts the hope of a Verizon Phone at June 2012 - perfect timing.

What are thoughts everyone???? I hate to say it , but I don't think Verizon will get an iPhone 4, if anything it will be an iPhone 4 CDMA & GSM phone that works with all carriers so Apple can sell it GLOBALLY - thats how Apple works / GLOBALLY...

 

[Gjeepguy]

The original iPhone, 3G, 3GS and 4 will not work on verizon. Its a hardware thing, not a software thing.

There are cdm/gsmc hipsets that could be used. Who knows what they will do.

 

[h1r0ll3r]

If any other carrier was to get the iPhone, it would be Verizon. T-Mob and Sprint are dead/dying and Virgin isn't even a blip on Apple's radar. While it would make sense that T-Mob would be next to get the iPhone, the sad state that their network is in, I doubt it. But, then again, who knows.

 

[draz]

It would be easy for Apple to add AWS frequency to the iPhone... But given that only US, Canada, and in the future South American countries will have it... It might not be something Apple will look into as it is not really a worldwide frequency.

A CDMA phone would be useful for mainly the US, but the other countries that have CDMA most likely have a carrier that has the iPhone on an already dominating carrier.

Canada has CDMA networks but nearly all of them have jumped ship to HSPA/UMTS to support the iPhone, so a CDMA iPhone would be useless up here.

 

[eastercat]

1)No. Verizon is on a different frequency altogether. That means that AT&T is still the only GSM carrier in the US with the iPhone. If the iphone went to T-Mobile, then maybe.
Also, it depends on Apple's contract with AT&T. Once the exclusivity ends, it's possible Apple may offer unlocks (for an extra fee) to any GSM user.

I have some thoughts and I see them discussed here, but they are very sporadic. Here are my thoughts...

1) If indeed Verizon gets the iPhone soon (which I doubt)... Wouldn't this mean any AT&T user who fulfills their contract obligations would then be able to get a full factory unlock for their current and previous iPhones?

It seems to me that Apple has no problem selling unlocked phones, just not in the US because of the contract with AT&T. I get that, but but if Verizon comes into the mix, then it might be a situation where Apple will start unlocking phones that have fulfilled their contracts.

 

[barkomatic]

If any other carrier was to get the iPhone, it would be Verizon. T-Mob and Sprint are dead/dying and Virgin isn't even a blip on Apple's radar. While it would make sense that T-Mob would be next to get the iPhone, the sad state that their network is in, I doubt it. But, then again, who knows.

Prior to the release of the EVO I would have agreed with you regarding Sprint. However, that one phone has greatly improved their outlook and there is a lot of buzz around the Epic 4G as well.

I think there is a chance there will be one iPhone for AT&T, Verizon and Sprint--but also possible separate versions if the additional hardware can't be accomodated. I think an iPhone running Sprint's 4G would be a HUGE seller. Especially when you consider that anyone with Sprint service can roam on Verizon (voice & data) for free. . .

 

[Bill Gates]

If Verizon carries the iPhone, meaning there is no more exclusivity agreement between Apple and AT&T, there's a good chance that AT&T will start unlocking iPhones. I think the exclusivity agreement is the reason why the don't currently do it.

 

[mysticalone]

this is all moot. You can't talk and surf at the same time.

 

[Small White Car]

this is all moot. You can't talk and surf at the same time.

Neither could the first iPhone and I don't know anyone who decided to not buy it for that reason.

In fact, I know quite a few people who are STILL using their first-gen iPhones to this day. Funny how I hear people on the internet complain about this all the time but I never hear actual owners bring it up.

(Not to mention the fact that Verizon's implimentation is better than that. A Verizon phone takes the call and stops the data. The EDGE iPhone just sends the call to voice mail. So, if anything, a Verizon iPhone would be better than a first-gen iPhone which, as I said, people seemed happy enough with already.)

 

[RonHC]

I have some thoughts and I see them discussed here...

Dont forget to wear your flame suit

 

[Meyvn]

Even assuming Apple suddenly started selling through EVERY carrier in January, i still doubt they'd be unlocking phones, because for starters they'd want that carrier subsidization due to being locked into contracts in order to move more units, but additionally, even carriers which share the same primary cellular signal tech don't necessarily use the same stuff for other services. AT&T and T-Mobile don't use the same 3G bands, for example, and their visual voicemail services aren't intercompatible either. And though Sprint and Verizon share CDMA tech, last I heard they have other differences too. Apple would NOT want the responsibility of dealing with customers who bought an AT&T iPhone complaining that they can't get 3G on T-Mobile. If they unlock, they become liable for that problem, and not only does it waste resources, but it makes them look sloppy and unprofessional.