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Unlocked iphone 5s questions

M

makowb

macrumors member
Original poster
Jan 27, 2008
92
1
I want a full price iPhone 5s that will be unlocked.

1. Where is the easiest place to pick one up or have one ordered?

2. Do I have to pay an activation fee if I buy one from AT&T, Verizon, or T-mobile in order to use it on an already activated SIM?

3. I went to an AT&T store and they told me I can only buy one full price iPhone 5s per *account*, not per line. Is this true?

4. If I go to Best Buy and buy a verizon or at&t phone, does it have to be tied to an account to buy it full price?
 
Buy it from apple as device only purchase. No where else please


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk 2
 
Ordering from Apple the device isn't unlocked, it's locked to T-Mobile until the user has topped up 50$ or has used T-mobile service for 40 days, whichever comes first.

I can't buy a full price AT&T phone through apple.
 
makowb said:
Ordering from Apple the device isn't unlocked, it's locked to T-Mobile until the user has topped up 50$ or has used T-mobile service for 40 days, whichever comes first.

I can't buy a full price AT&T phone through apple.
Click to expand...

yes you can. i did it on sept 20th at 8:11AM at the apple store. Bought a 32GB Space Grey iPhone 5S AT&T model "Device Only." Connected to my macbook pro, iTunes popped up, clicked restore, congrats ur phone is unlocked.

There are about 50,000 threads also confirming that the Tmobile phone sold thru the apple store is unlocked. Please take the time to research everybody's elses experience.
 
makowb said:
Ordering from Apple the device isn't unlocked, it's locked to T-Mobile until the user has topped up 50$ or has used T-mobile service for 40 days, whichever comes first.

I can't buy a full price AT&T phone through apple.
Click to expand...

buy the T-Mobile full price through the website or buy anything except Sprint full price at the store. don't even need to restore, just put your SIM in.
 
Truth be told the easiest cheapest way anywhere is if you have ANY sort of an upgrade available be it 199 or early upgrade of 450 on att 16 gb model for example, buy that, go on ebay spend $2-3 dollars and have it FULL factory unlocked FOREVER, save the tons of money you would spend to buy at full price.

The phone and its functions are EXACTLY the same, this is what I do every year as I travel overseas a lot
 
makowb said:
Ordering from Apple the device isn't unlocked, it's locked to T-Mobile until the user has topped up 50$ or has used T-mobile service for 40 days, whichever comes first.

I can't buy a full price AT&T phone through apple.
Click to expand...

That is not true. T-Mobile iPhones purchased at Apple online or retail stores are unlocked.
 
makowb said:
Ordering from Apple the device isn't unlocked, it's locked to T-Mobile until the user has topped up 50$ or has used T-mobile service for 40 days, whichever comes first.

I can't buy a full price AT&T phone through apple.
Click to expand...

Not online, but you can at the store. The Verizon and T-Mobile versions will work as well.
 
In Canada if you buy via the Apple online store you have one option. Full pop, Unlocked. You decide what provider to go with. Providers tend to charge for SIM cards, but if you visit an Apple Store, they give you a chosen one for free. I got my SIM card for my provider a few weeks before the release. If only it had a phone to go in! (October 10-16 expected).

Once the phone arrives, I can transfer the service to the new phone online (via my carrier) and pay no fees.

I find the US version of all this a bit confusing with all the carrier specific options. I think the only way you can buy a "locked" phone from Apple up here is in the store or of course buying from a provider.

I always like unlocked phones because I have options, whether it be domestic or international. The providers actually cut you a discount on your plan now if you have a "BYOD" (i.e. unlocked) phone. I think they told me I'll get $20 off per month if I go month to month (my one year contract expires in a few months; I got other perks thrown at me when I signed).
 
Sorry, wasn't fully awake when posting.

You cannot buy an unlocked phone through apple.com, the T-mobile phone apparently requires a minimum usage first.

You also cannot buy a full price ATT or Verizon phone through apple.com. It simply isn't possible. The only way to buy a full price phone is through brick and mortar, which I'm not willing to stand in line for hours or call around incessantly to get a phone.

What is the easiest way to order a phone, I don't care about length of waiting, in order to get a full price, unlocked phone.
 
makowb said:
Sorry, wasn't fully awake when posting.

You cannot buy an unlocked phone through apple.com, the T-mobile phone apparently requires a minimum usage first.

You also cannot buy a full price ATT or Verizon phone through apple.com. It simply isn't possible. The only way to buy a full price phone is through brick and mortar, which I'm not willing to stand in line for hours or call around incessantly to get a phone.

What is the easiest way to order a phone, I don't care about length of waiting, in order to get a full price, unlocked phone.
Click to expand...

Dude, if you buy a T-Mobile contract free from either an Apple Retail Store or Apple Online Store, it's UNLOCKED out of the box. This has been proven many times on different threads.

https://forums.macrumors.com/threads/1640112/
 
makowb said:
What is the easiest way to order a phone, I don't care about length of waiting, in order to get a full price, unlocked phone.
Click to expand...

Order the T-Mobile phone from Apple.com if you want the easiest way. The quickest way of ordering may be to go to Verizon's website and order the phone with a month-to-month plan that you can cancel right away. However, if you are near a store and aren't picky, just stop by once in a while and see what they have.
 
makowb said:
Sorry, wasn't fully awake when posting.

You cannot buy an unlocked phone through apple.com, the T-mobile phone apparently requires a minimum usage first.
Click to expand...
The minimum usage is only true if you buy it locked, e.g. from a T-Mobile store.
 
makowb said:
Sorry, wasn't fully awake when posting.

You cannot buy an unlocked phone through apple.com, the T-mobile phone apparently requires a minimum usage first.

You also cannot buy a full price ATT or Verizon phone through apple.com. It simply isn't possible. The only way to buy a full price phone is through brick and mortar, which I'm not willing to stand in line for hours or call around incessantly to get a phone.

What is the easiest way to order a phone, I don't care about length of waiting, in order to get a full price, unlocked phone.
Click to expand...
Not true.
 
So that giant thread that has a bunch of people arguing back and forth, and that apple took the "unlocked" label away from the model when purchasing online (attached), people have found out that it's definitely unlocked?
 

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KPOM said:
Order the T-Mobile phone from Apple.com if you want the easiest way. The quickest way of ordering may be to go to Verizon's website and order the phone with a month-to-month plan that you can cancel right away. However, if you are near a store and aren't picky, just stop by once in a while and see what they have.
Click to expand...

If I do this, don't I still have to pay an activation fee to get the phone to start working?
 
Applejuiced said:
No.
You wont have to pay anything cause you don't have an account and not opening an account with tmobile.
Click to expand...

I was talking about ordering it from the Verizon site like he suggested. I was considering buying a verizon phone at a best buy, but I'm just unsure if I have to pay to get it activated or not.
 
makowb said:
I was talking about ordering it from the Verizon site like he suggested. I was considering buying a verizon phone at a best buy, but I'm just unsure if I have to pay to get it activated or not.
Click to expand...

If you buy it full price without an account you don't pay any activation fees.
Just the phone. Or find someone that has a Verizon account and have him purchase it for you for full price. He wont pay any fees either.
If you start a new account with Verizon you will pay the activation fee and many other fees.
 
makowb said:
So that giant thread that has a bunch of people arguing back and forth, and that apple took the "unlocked" label away from the model when purchasing online (attached), people have found out that it's definitely unlocked?
Click to expand...

Yes, sir!
 
makowb said:
So that giant thread that has a bunch of people arguing back and forth, and that apple took the "unlocked" label away from the model when purchasing online (attached), people have found out that it's definitely unlocked?
Click to expand...

It's unlocked.
 
Just repeating what others have said.

Buy from Apple at full price, unlocked, except for Sprint model.

I bought 64GB T-Mobile from Apple, unlocked.

To double check, had Genius Bar run the serial number and it states in their system, the Activation Policy is Unlocked. :)
 
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