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

"Off Contract" AT&T iPhone 4Ss Already Come Unlocked

This is probably a dumb question, but - is there a way to get the data from an existing full-sized sim over to the micro-sim format used in the 4S? I don't suppose they can do that at the Apple store... :D

I'm with AT&T, but I'm on pre-pay because I just don't make many calls in a month; and I'm not overly happy with my current Android phone.
 
Think smart.

You should have gotten another line through AT&T and do a Early Termination Fee on the other phone but that means you'll have to get a new number on the new line and will be eligable for the discounted price for the new iPhone 4S.
 
ann713 said:
I'm a bit confused, so basically ONLY phones that were purchased with contract will come unlocked? This means I can purchase one from a friend or family member who just renewed or opened contract with say, AT&T or Sprint? This has to be the explanation because I just called my local Apple Store and they said factory unlocked 4S won't be sold until November, date unknown.
Click to expand...
Did you read the article? Yes i agree you are confused, but no your assumption does not have to be the explanation either. Officially the unlocked iPhones in the U.S. aren't available for sale yet, however, If you are not eligible for upgrade and therefore aren't eligible for the reduced pricing on the phones, then you have an option to pay full cost cash price for a phone, and it seems that in this case you are being supplied a phone that is not locked to your carrier, which is as it should be. Again, its not Only phones that were purchased with contract that will "come unlocked" as you said. It's the opposite, only phones that don't have the option to extend or renew/upgrade and are being bought out right are not locked. Hope this clears things up.
 
Last edited:
Michael Scrip said:
I'm not following... but I'm in the US if that matters.

If you buy the full priced iPhone in other countries.... do you play less for service every month?

Let's say I pay $90 a month to use a smartphone... what does it matter if I'm locked in a 2 year contract or not? I'm gonna be paying a monthly fee for service those 2 years anyway.

$200 iPhone 4S + $90 a month

or

$650 iPhone 4S + $90 a month

Why not save a little money on the cost of the phone if you're gonna be paying the same monthly fee for service anyway?
Click to expand...
I'm planning on buying an unlocked iPhone because I did my calculations based on my own usage and it seems to make sense.

I take very few calls on my cellphone. Most of my work week is spent at work and home; both locations have very reliable WiFi. I only give out my Google Voice number, so I use that for the bulk of my calls. Even at home, where I have no landline, I use Talkatone for outgoing voice calls on my iPod touch/iPad. Texting is free with Google Voice.

I figure my monthly cellular costs will be about $15-18 per month using an AT&T GoPhone pay-as-you-go prepaid SIM. If I buy an unlocked iPhone, my calculations say that I will break even at 11 months (versus the cheapest AT&T plan at $55 per month). Over a two-year period, my total cost of ownership should be about $500 less than a subsidized iPhone; plus the unlocked iPhone is worth more in the used handset marketplace.
 
Yep, just tried it. Shows T-Mobile. I am good with ATT though but just wanted people to know.
 
Westside guy said:
This is probably a dumb question, but - is there a way to get the data from an existing full-sized sim over to the micro-sim format used in the 4S? I don't suppose they can do that at the Apple store... :D
Click to expand...
Yeah, you can get one of these.

You can also just use a pair of scissors (or utility knife).
 
As an Amazon Associate, MacRumors earns a commission from qualifying purchases made through links in this post.
Westside guy said:
This is probably a dumb question, but - is there a way to get the data from an existing full-sized sim over to the micro-sim format used in the 4S? I don't suppose they can do that at the Apple store... :D

I'm with AT&T, but I'm on pre-pay because I just don't make many calls in a month; and I'm not overly happy with my current Android phone.
Click to expand...
Not a dumb question at all. There is a few options, but it depends on what info you are trying to copy. I don't know about account options/carrier type crap. But as far as just copying raw data from one sim to another, when i used to work at ATT they had a machine that allowed you to do things like this. Fast forward to when i worked at radioshack, and they actually have little usb memory card readers that have a sim card slot (along with sd slot,MMC slot, Memory Stick etc.) and its that simple. They might have been 20 bucks at most.
Edit: Here are two examples. Ignore negative reviews, people are idiots, I know for a fact the Targus branded unit works, and the kodak is the same brand with a different paint job.
http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=10963283
pRS1-9096537w345.jpg

http://www.radioshack.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11179949
pRS1-9489998w345.jpg
 
Last edited:
Wirelessly posted (Mozilla/5.0 (iPhone; CPU iPhone OS 5_0 like Mac OS X) AppleWebKit/534.46 (KHTML, like Gecko) Version/5.1 Mobile/9A334 Safari/7534.48.3)

I got a question... Say that I get a iPhone 4s Verizon but my AT&T contract not over till feb.. Can I port my phone number after contract ends??
 
Wonder if you can get an unlocked GSM phone ATT model and actually get it to work with all the T-Mobile USA frequencies?

would love to buy one and switch from ATT to them ... save some $$ if possible in long run
 
mdntcallr said:
Wonder if you can get an unlocked GSM phone ATT model and actually get it to work with all the T-Mobile USA frequencies?

would love to buy one and switch from ATT to them ... save some $$ if possible in long run
Click to expand...

i think the full paid Unlocked iPhone 4S will work with T-mobile, except you would not get the 3G.

you can get the iPhone 3GS also for $375

once t-mobile said they had 1 million iPhones on their network so if you buy unlocked ipHone sure it is gonna work except 3G you are EDGE network, it is ok if you are on the wi-fi most of the time
 
I too was told over the phone and in store that the unlocked phones wouldn't be available until November 14.

I'm interested in purchasing one of these off contract phones - but only if they remain truly unlocked.

I currently have a 3GS with an unlimited data plan (contract finished a few months ago) and hope to keep the plan.

Do I need to contact AT&T about getting a new (micro) SIM?

Or am I better off trying to use a micro SIM cutter and leave AT&T no chance to mess up my talk/data plan?
 
anyone with an iPhone 4 they purchased at full retailed price willing to do a factory restore and see if they get anything?
 
Michael Scrip said:
I'm not following... but I'm in the US if that matters.

If you buy the full priced iPhone in other countries.... do you play less for service every month?

Let's say I pay $90 a month to use a smartphone... what does it matter if I'm locked in a 2 year contract or not? I'm gonna be paying a monthly fee for service those 2 years anyway.

$200 iPhone 4S + $90 a month

or

$650 iPhone 4S + $90 a month

Why not save a little money on the cost of the phone if you're gonna be paying the same monthly fee for service anyway?
Click to expand...

Well, a lot can change in those two years. One carrier can be bad, so you want to switch. Here where i live, Croatia, you can switch networks (there are three bigger ones and two which are virtual operators owned by the biggest two, cheaper) and still keep your whole number, including the network prefix.
If i buy unlocked, you pay around 600 euros, but i can go for one of those cheap operators (they use the same cell network as the two biggest ones, so it's the same quality), and save more than 50% on the monthly costs.

For 15 euros ($20), i get 500 minutes to all networks, 500 SMS and 500 MB.

I can get on a network with a modular contract, i choose each month what i want, which in the end saves me some money, but doesn't lock me into specific ammounts like the one i listed above. On average, it would be 15 euros a month as well.

If i want a contract phone, and want to buy an iphone 4 16 GB (the price will be the same for 4S 16 probably), i need to pay for example, 30 euros a month, and pay 220 euros for the phone. I do get 1 GB of data traffic and more minutes, but to just one operator i choose, unlimited calls to the home operator, and no SMS messages.

So lets calculate the total cost.

600 euros plus 24 months times 15 is 960 euros, lets round it up to a 1000.

220 euros plus 24 months times 30 is 940 euros. But remember, no minutes to all networks, and no SMS. So that would, over two years, certainly be more than 20 euros.

And i have my freedom, an unlocked phone and the ability (by law) to switch networks every three months, as new deals appear.

If i can't afford to pay 600 euros upfront, well, that's what credit cards are for :D
 
Michael Scrip said:
I'm not following... but I'm in the US if that matters.

Why not save a little money on the cost of the phone if you're gonna be paying the same monthly fee for service anyway?
Click to expand...

An unlocked phone is useful if you travel internationally. You can avoid roaming, which costs a fortune, and pop in a local SIM.
 
ouimetnick said:
those retail prices sure are expensive.. just get an iPad. If you need a new phone, wait for your contract, and get a new one, or pay Apple the $199 for the OOW fee. but $649-$849 is absurd.
Click to expand...

But everyone pays roughly the same prices, on contract or not. Contact phone prices just have the cost of the phone hidden in the cost of the mandatory plan.

----------
Michael Scrip said:
I'm not following... but I'm in the US if that matters.

If you buy the full priced iPhone in other countries.... do you play less for service every month?

Let's say I pay $90 a month to use a smartphone... what does it matter if I'm locked in a 2 year contract or not? I'm gonna be paying a monthly fee for service those 2 years anyway.

$200 iPhone 4S + $90 a month

or

$650 iPhone 4S + $90 a month

Why not save a little money on the cost of the phone if you're gonna be paying the same monthly fee for service anyway?
Click to expand...

Because you can choose not to pay the $90 per month. I pay $100 a year for my mobile calls. $100 < $1080.
 
frez said:
An unlocked phone is useful if you travel internationally. You can avoid roaming, which costs a fortune, and pop in a local SIM.
Click to expand...

For those who need an unlock for international use, it's probably best to sign a contract with Verizon or Sprint. Those phones can be unlocked for international use, but you can still get a subsidy if you want. I personally prefer to go with the subsidized price since the carrier doesn't cut us a break when buying a phone off contract. It's unlikely that I'll switch carriers any time soon, but even if I do so, the ETF isn't that bad (not any worse than paying full retail)
 
This just further supports my belief that the iPhone will be available on Virgin Mobile.
 
terraphantm said:
For those who need an unlock for international use, it's probably best to sign a contract with Verizon or Sprint. Those phones can be unlocked for international use, but you can still get a subsidy if you want. I personally prefer to go with the subsidized price since the carrier doesn't cut us a break when buying a phone off contract. It's unlikely that I'll switch carriers any time soon, but even if I do so, the ETF isn't that bad (not any worse than paying full retail)
Click to expand...

If one goes verizon/sprint - is it safe to assume an AT&T sim won't work in it?
 
lostngone said:
How does this work for CDMA networks? With GSM you just put in the SIM but how do you get the unlocked phone on a different CDMA network?
Click to expand...
You obviously don't understand much about cdma.
CDMA doesn't allow you to move from provider to provider. Only gsm has that kind of flexibility. Sprint will never add a verizon iphone to their network and vice versa; so get that ridiculous idea out of your head.

PigsOnTheWing said:
But jailbreaking and unlocking are easy to do on your own.
Click to expand...
You can jb easy. However, the dev team hasn't had a software unlock since bb 1.59 (ios 4.0.2) and gevey doesn't work with ios 5.
Don't count on a software/hardware unlock.
 
smash said:
That's why you eBay the contract device and buy the unlocked one for yourself if you travel. I wish it were easier, but AT&T is a PITA.
Click to expand...

Why would anyone pay any more on eBay than the subsidized price if the device is locked? I don't see how this ends up being a better deal for you than just buying the unlocked one in the first place.
 
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