It was... with a 'Verizon' SIM inside that you could just toss out. I have on of those here (and I got it at the shop as I don't have any account with Verizon...)
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SIM-Free iPhone 7 and iPhone 7 Plus Now Available From Apple Online Store
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It was... with a 'Verizon' SIM inside that you could just toss out. I have on of those here (and I got it at the shop as I don't have any account with Verizon...)
I tried ordering one online and could not because it required the Verizon account info to be entered.
How many people in the WHOLE world are doing this to make a company like Apple do this?
Seriously... this is not a valid reason because the number of people doing such business you describe are on the thousands not millions...
The reason is called marketing. Many people don't know what a SIM-free phone means, but they know what their mobile operator is called. And this applies for the simple reason that as of now Verizon's phones have to be fully unlocked. So you can call them Verizon, put a SIM of Verizon inside and they are simply SIM-free in the end.
There is also a possibility (that we don't know) where Apple makes some extra from each operator for every phone sold under their brand, or it could even be a deal between Apple and the operators to do such move in US...
I don't recall Apple doing this in any other country, and I do recall in other countries (mostly Europeans) people are more educated about what it means this thing of 'unlocked' vs 'locked' phones and so people demand a phone they can use with whichever carrier they want (because competition among them is actually a fact).
So whatever it is... I seriously doubt it is due to any thrid-party business. Even more when availability of the iPhone in US has been decent from day 1 (I got my iPhone 7 Silver 128 Gb on Verizon at the shop... in exchange for a T-Mobile version that I bought online... and I didn't need to wait any queue, just went with the box of the phone as soon as I got it and told them I wanted a Verizon one and 5 minutes after I was leaving with one).
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That's why I mention the 'shop' part... only at the shop you could get the phones that an account is required online. Obviously... you need a shop nearby...
Can anyone please tell me if this version of the phone will work with Virgin Mobile? I have been waiting for this to be released on Virgin's site. But they have only had the 7 not 7 plus. Thanks for any help.
oh god i remember now when back in the days people were selling iphone 2g's from the US at crazy prices on ebay, since they were still unavailable in my country (Italy).
it seemed like literally everyone who went to the US for work or holiday was coming back with an iphone to sell. not sure how they managed to do it, since there were no contract-free phones on sale at all!
You should visit Japan during new iPhone launches, and observe the Chinese tourists buying iPhones like hot cakes (and paying in cash).
Actually, the first iPhone was sold full price and you didn't have to verify your carrier to buy it. You just had to show up in a store with money.
Now, it only worked on AT&T, so you had to unlock it to get it to work anywhere else, but you never needed an AT&T account to buy one of the first gen phones.
What, are you buying computers by the pound now?
The phone can do much of what the laptop can do, but has to pull it all off in a much smaller space, plus it has a cellular radio (my understanding is the some of them have pretty hefty licensing fees), and... when was the last time you dunked your laptop in the bathtub, and how well did it work afterwards?
The 128GB iPhone 7 cost me £699 here in Britain. That's half a MacBook Pro.
The iPhone is a premium product, therefore carries a premium pricetag. The weak pound meant I paid £80 more than least years 6s.
Many of you'll think Apple releasing Sim-Free is some sort of company Strategy then you are completely wrong.
Being in US, you guys have no idea about the depth of Black Market in other countries, especially Asian Countries & South American Countries.
Apple has been a lot under pressure of scalping. And it's a HUGE business outside US.
Now here's the thing. When iPhone is launched in US, pepple in other countries want iPhone on that same day/week/month. Every time in Bombay, India iPhone is sold in the Black Market for USD1500 which is sold in US for USD649.
Understand the psychology of the buyers in these countries. They are ready to pay more than twice the amount just to get the iPhone before it's even launched in their countries. Reason? iPhone being a premium phone and holds tremendous value in the society culture. There are fanatics who are ready to line outside the store for 1-2 days before which happens in US also. iPhone is considered a luxury item and buyers feel alright to spend twice the amount.
Apple is doing the right thing. If they release Sim-Free in US, believe me, you guys will have to wait even more than what you all are already waiting for Jet Black.
Want to know something even more interesting? After this, you will never blame Apple for releasing Sim-Free option late.
I myself and many Indians from Bombay I know, who have ordered in US of T-Mobile iPhone 7 Plus with US address of their relatives. So it's not just you'll, it's all over the world people ordering iPhone 7 with Carrier, forget Sim-Free. (T-Mobile does not require any account or activation. Simply remove T-Mobile Sim-Card and insert your Sim-Card and you are good to go)
Thank Apple for releasing Sim-Free late.
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Edit: Also if Apple wanted to boost sales, they would easily got Sim-Free option on Day 1 since they know their sales are going to go on peak!
Being in US, you guys have no idea about the depth of Black Market in other countries, especially Asian Countries & South American Countries.
Apple has been a lot under pressure of scalping. And it's a HUGE business outside US.
Now here's the thing. When iPhone is launched in US, pepple in other countries want iPhone on that same day/week/month. Every time in Bombay, India iPhone is sold in the Black Market for USD1500 which is sold in US for USD649.
Understand the psychology of the buyers in these countries. They are ready to pay more than twice the amount just to get the iPhone before it's even launched in their countries. Reason? iPhone being a premium phone and holds tremendous value in the society culture. There are fanatics who are ready to line outside the store for 1-2 days before which happens in US also. iPhone is considered a luxury item and buyers feel alright to spend twice the amount.
Apple is doing the right thing. If they release Sim-Free in US, believe me, you guys will have to wait even more than what you all are already waiting for Jet Black.
Want to know something even more interesting? After this, you will never blame Apple for releasing Sim-Free option late.
I myself and many Indians from Bombay I know, who have ordered in US of T-Mobile iPhone 7 Plus with US address of their relatives. So it's not just you'll, it's all over the world people ordering iPhone 7 with Carrier, forget Sim-Free. (T-Mobile does not require any account or activation. Simply remove T-Mobile Sim-Card and insert your Sim-Card and you are good to go)
Thank Apple for releasing Sim-Free late.
--
Edit: Also if Apple wanted to boost sales, they would easily got Sim-Free option on Day 1 since they know their sales are going to go on peak!
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Was already possible in the UK. Ordered a black and a jet black.
Have the black one, 25 more days for jet black...
Have the black one, 25 more days for jet black...
I don't understand this... why would you go exclusively to US... when you can buy that SIM-free anywhere in any of the countries included in the first batch (European ones for example). If the sale price is as you say 1500 USD... still it is worth to go anywhere in Europe (which is probably closer to Asian markets than US) and get it there (and if you are not a citizen of the EU you get most of the VAT back).
Besides that... in US, at least for this one of this year... it was (and is) possible to just go to the shop and get as many iPhone Verizon (or T-Mobile) for that matter from the first day. These are fully unlocked (if you pay full price it is unlocked anyways).
So... in short... I just don't get this relief of delaying releasing a box with a phone and no-sim in it, when they were doing that but with a sim in it in US already and in Europe actually without it... and all these phones are unlocked.
There is indeed a black market but I seriously doubt it is an 'issue' for Apple. I will say this is just simply marketing. People are quite uneducated when it comes to... "Will the phone work with OPERATOR_NAME?", moreover, doing this may actually increase the revenue of such operators as people may change plans, etc (and this is what I think it is happening here... Apple gets some cash out of each deal that wouldn't get with the SIM-free naming)
I switched from ATT to T-Mobile and the note 5 my son used would not work with T-Mobile. Tried unlocking it with the unlock code they provided and it would not work. After about 3 days and a number of hours on the phone with anybody who would listen from ATT and Samsung they said it was a software issues and ATT said since I was no longer a ATT customer they would not honor the 1 year warranty. Never again will I buy a branded phone from a carrier. My son ended up having to get a Nexus phone and I have a note 5 that is useless unless I go back to ATT and that will never happen.
Does the program still require activation after your first phone? We just signed up for the IUP with Sprint but have since cancel sprint and gone back to our old GSM provider (US Cellular) without a contract. Next year, do I need to sign up with another carrier again to keep participating in IUP?
i have no idea where you iive, but you don't live in Asia.
apple needs to hurt people somewhere in order to make a good system world-wide
and this launch was well done, organized, and executed well.
making it orderly for global customers makes total wait times shorter globally.
lets hope they have learned how to do it, since iPhone 8 next year is going to be REALLY messy, managing demand.
Exactly. You can buy an iPhone unlocked from day one in every main country in Europe (France, Germany, etc.) and even Canada I think. So all these explanations about scalping are BS.
Apple probably have some sort of agreement with carriers in the US. I mean, would it be surprising? You guys in the US are already f*cked right in the *ss and without vaseline regarding the prices you pay each month for your mobile plans.
So I'm a little confused by this. I purchased the iPhone 7 Plus ATT (unlocked) paid in full up front. Now I already have an unlocked 6+. All I did was take the sim card out and put in the sim card from my 6+ into the 7+ and it activated and worked fine. Question is what is the difference between purchasing ATT (unlocked) paid in full vs. SIM-Free??
You do have a valid point but that's exactly why Apple doesn't want to introduce Sim-Free in USA first. They know the Black Market traffic will affect US customers which are more important to them. People can buy from anywhere but they will buy end up buying from everywhere too. Apple wants the Black Market supply to be done from outside USA and serve the Americans first.
Also Apple indirectly does give you unlocked phone with T-Mobile since you don't need an account.
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ATT is GSM and Sim-Free is GSM+CDMA. As simple as it can get!
