UK Vodafone Iphone 4s unlocking

[jimmyb5374]

Hi there , please be kind first post , just needing advice or experience from other users

I have purchased an i phone 4s , here in the uk it's locked on Vodafone, possibly the most unhelpful company in the world , as even though i have 2 contracts with them for my kids, because i didn't buy this iphone new they have stated they can't unlock it. OK so i got a bit shouty with them and they said they will ,but it will cost me £20 and take up to 14 days . When i asked if they could do anything quicker or anything they told me no and to be thankful they are doing it at all kind of.

Am I stupid or does no one else out there ever buy 2nd or 3rd user i phones and get them unlocked on Vodafone ????

Definitely leaving them when contracts up , hateful customer services !!

Any advice peeps ?

James

 

[Dlanod]

I went into a VF store and they did it for free and it took a couple of days.

 

[jacksam101]

I bought my 4S from Carphone Warehouse believing it to be unlocked - however their iPhone's lock to the first sim you put in them - so mine ended up locked to "3".

I only found this out nine months after buying when I found a better deal - but they wouldn't unlock it without a copy of the original receipt being faxed/emailed to them (plus £15.32)

Anyway - done now and on fantastic value virgin mobile deal!

 

[jimmyb5374]

Hi , really ??? maybe the shop where i am , and the customer services where just awful then ??

Were you the original owner ? because this is about 3rd or 4th hand, and thats why they took offence i think in case i had stolen it !

I did show then my existing 2 contracts and spend but they didnt seem to care about that !

 

[jimmyb5374]

aaaargh !!!!

Any uk 2nd or 3rd users of the i phones had a positive experience with Vodafone ???

The way i feel right now I am gonna chuck their sim cards in a draw and get connections to a network who's customer services actually WANT to assist the customers that pay their salaries.

Bear in mind we cannot track original user for validation etc , but come on how many of the around 35 million iphones sold in the uk are fully traceable now ???

Rant over, but seriously anyone got decent support out of voda

james

 

[Ninja Dom]

Lots of experience

Vodafone UK unlock ALL iPhones bought from them on contract for free, regardless of model. As long as the iPhone came from Vodafone UK, and is the correct unit on the contract that is being used by the customer requesting the unlock.

If the iPhone came from Vodafone UK on Pay As You Go OR the iPhone came from Vodafone UK but is not being used by the customer on the contract that the iPhone belongs to then there is a £20 charge to get the iPhone unlocked.

If the iPhone was NOT supplied by Vodafone UK at all, then the iPhone will not be unlocked - even if the sales adviser places a request to Vodafone Head Office to have the iPhone unlocked, the request will be refused.

Those are the official rules.

So yes, you should have been charged £20 for the unlock as Vodafone UK originally supplied the iPhone but you're not the person who the phone was contracted to and the phone isn't being used on the contract it's meant to be on.

 

[jimmyb5374]

Hi , so if i follow this correctly , voda request to apple that all iphones in the uk are sim locked when a voda sim is placed in them , unless it came from an apple store in which case they are " sim free" .. so i am told by voda anyway.

If i wish to place my voda sim in this handset it will work, even though its "not registered as my phone " , but if i want to place a different sim in it they can charge me to unlock or even refuse as i didnt buy the device originally ?

This is what gets me , surely under some law like used in different countries that network lock has to be illegal, unless voda or apple know exactly who is still using the phones they sold, or that they know and have proof of every user the handset were sold or gifted too , and that they still have them ???

I cannot understand how i can buy a 2nd hand galaxy s3 or another other brand , voda's words not mine , and i could request it unlocked without fee.

Someone is lying to me here , or their genuinely is a tax for buying 2nd and 3rd etc user iphones in the uk

james

Vodafone UK unlock ALL iPhones bought from them on contract for free, regardless of model. As long as the iPhone came from Vodafone UK, and is the correct unit on the contract that is being used by the customer requesting the unlock.

If the iPhone came from Vodafone UK on Pay As You Go OR the iPhone came from Vodafone UK but is not being used by the customer on the contract that the iPhone belongs to then there is a £20 charge to get the iPhone unlocked.

If the iPhone was NOT supplied by Vodafone UK at all, then the iPhone will not be unlocked - even if the sales adviser places a request to Vodafone Head Office to have the iPhone unlocked, the request will be refused.

Those are the official rules.

So yes, you should have been charged £20 for the unlock as Vodafone UK originally supplied the iPhone but you're not the person who the phone was contracted to and the phone isn't being used on the contract it's meant to be on.

 

[jimmyb5374]

Anyone else have any thoughts on this here in the uk ? or some people who have gotten through the system somehow to a rep who listens/cares and doesn't just read their customer flow chart on screen ???

cheers

james

 

[Ninja Dom]

Hi , so if i follow this correctly , voda request to apple that all iphones in the uk are sim locked when a voda sim is placed in them , unless it came from an apple store in which case they are " sim free" .. so i am told by voda anyway.

If i wish to place my voda sim in this handset it will work, even though its "not registered as my phone " , but if i want to place a different sim in it they can charge me to unlock or even refuse as i didnt buy the device originally ?

This is what gets me , surely under some law like used in different countries that network lock has to be illegal, unless voda or apple know exactly who is still using the phones they sold, or that they know and have proof of every user the handset were sold or gifted too , and that they still have them ???

I cannot understand how i can buy a 2nd hand galaxy s3 or another other brand , voda's words not mine , and i could request it unlocked without fee.

Someone is lying to me here , or their genuinely is a tax for buying 2nd and 3rd etc user iphones in the uk

james

OK, so the iPhone you have is a Vodafone locked handset. You can see this from the Carrier status in General ➡ Settings ➡ About. They won't refuse the unlock if Vodafone UK originally supplied the phone.

It's a free unlock if Vodafone UK originally supplied that handset to YOU (the account holder) on a contract. They can tell, not necessarily in store, but eventually.

It's a chargeable (£20) unlock if you bought it on Pay As You Go without a contract or inherited it/purchased it 2nd or 3rd hand.

 

[Daveoc64]

OK, so the iPhone you have is a Vodafone locked handset. You can see this from the Carrier status in General ➡ Settings ➡ About.

There is absolutely no link between those two things.

 

[Ninja Dom]

There is absolutely no link between those two things.

It's a Vodafone UK locked phone remember, so it can't have any other network's carrier information in it.

 

[Daveoc64]

It's a Vodafone UK locked phone remember, so it can't have any other network's carrier information in it.

If your phone is locked and you put another carrier's SIM in the phone, the field you describe will still change.

 

[jimmyb5374]

Hi guys i appreciate your inputs, the thing is i cant get into a menu to check this as i get to activating your phone and then it comes up with the menu stating you have put in an incorrect sim to activate insert a correct sim. !!

I hope Vodafone will actually come through and let me do this , if not basically i am left in the situation of a phone i cannot use and will be left with no form of recourse bar selling it to a voda user !

Strange how Vodafone told me the fee applied to iphones , so if i called up / filled in the form with a 2nd or 3rd user galaxy series their would be no fee ..

That is actually what voda told me , no sour grapes, no b.s. , but i wanted an iphone 4s that's why i waited till i could buy one !!!

James

 

[Ninja Dom]

If your phone is locked and you put another carrier's SIM in the phone, the field you describe will still change.

No, because the iPhone rejects the sim immediately. This prevents the sim from connecting to the network which then stop Carrier settings from being installed.

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Hi guys i appreciate your inputs, the thing is i cant get into a menu to check this as i get to activating your phone and then it comes up with the menu stating you have put in an incorrect sim to activate insert a correct sim. !!

I hope Vodafone will actually come through and let me do this , if not basically i am left in the situation of a phone i cannot use and will be left with no form of recourse bar selling it to a voda user !

Strange how Vodafone told me the fee applied to iphones , so if i called up / filled in the form with a 2nd or 3rd user galaxy series their would be no fee ..

That is actually what voda told me , no sour grapes, no b.s. , but i wanted an iphone 4s that's why i waited till i could buy one !!!

James

Samsung Galaxy's from Vodafone (contract versions) are not locked at all. They are permanently unlocked from the factory. Pay as you Go ones are locked and require a £20 fee to unlock, providing it is actual Pay As You Go stock the adviser is selling you. Not contract stock that is being "sold" to you as Pay As You Go.

Vodafone will unlock your phone. Go to a different store. Claim you bought it Pay As You Go and pay the £20.

 

[bomp]

No, because the iPhone rejects the sim immediately. This prevents the sim from connecting to the network which then stop Carrier settings from being installed.

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Samsung Galaxy's from Vodafone (contract versions) are not locked at all. They are permanently unlocked from the factory. Pay as you Go ones are locked and require a £20 fee to unlock, providing it is actual Pay As You Go stock the adviser is selling you. Not contract stock that is being "sold" to you as Pay As You Go.

Vodafone will unlock your phone. Go to a different store. Claim you bought it Pay As You Go and pay the £20.

I purchased my Iphone 5 via CPW and waited a few weeks. Then went onto line chat to Vodafone and firmly explained what I had done and that I couldnt visit a store.

They tried to fob me off but I just typed in capitals
Eventually they manually processed the request for me and 2 days later I got a text to advise it was complete and I then just had to restore my phone.

Tried it with 3 different operators and works a treat!

 

[Ninja Dom]

I purchased my Iphone 5 via CPW and waited a few weeks. Then went onto line chat to Vodafone and firmly explained what I had done and that I couldnt visit a store.

They tried to fob me off but I just typed in capitals
Eventually they manually processed the request for me and 2 days later I got a text to advise it was complete and I then just had to restore my phone.

Tried it with 3 different operators and works a treat!

Yes, to ensure there's no troubles the iPhone has to be provided by Vodafone UK themselves. Not CPW or Phones 4U. If it does come from elsewhere there is a chance that your unlock request will not be accepted.

 

[Daveoc64]

No, because the iPhone rejects the sim immediately. This prevents the sim from connecting to the network which then stop Carrier settings from being installed.

The Carrier Settings bundles are built in to the firmware, there's nothing to download!

I suggest you try it!

 

[jimmyb5374]

Well guys strange thing happened , plugged my 4s into iTunes out of desperation and it had a carrier update , works now on my tmobile sim I am posting off of now , but I have seen or heard nothing from vodafone!

Very odd , but hey the iPhone works now