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Who would buy a legally unlocked iphone from Australia for US $1000+?
- Thread starter tcmacintosh
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What is Austalia? 
To the general question, no I would not. That's almost twice as much as purchasing a subsidized one from AT&T for us Americans, and then paying the full ETF. And unlocking phones is legal here, anyway.
To the general question, no I would not. That's almost twice as much as purchasing a subsidized one from AT&T for us Americans, and then paying the full ETF. And unlocking phones is legal here, anyway.
Never heard of 'Austalia', nether has google. Don't think we can buy anything from a non-existent location.
On a side note, US $1k is what we can buy almost 2 non-contracted phones for. OR we can cancel 3 contracts and pay the ETF on all 3 and still be just over US $1k
So no I can't see my self paying US $1k for a single phone.
Besides,
has shown they are willing to tune the phone to 1 carriers 3g freq. in the US, why not world wide?
On a side note, US $1k is what we can buy almost 2 non-contracted phones for. OR we can cancel 3 contracts and pay the ETF on all 3 and still be just over US $1k
So no I can't see my self paying US $1k for a single phone.
Besides,
has shown they are willing to tune the phone to 1 carriers 3g freq. in the US, why not world wide?
Since the phone will not work on T-Mobile (3G anyway) what would be the point? I'm still waiting to see someone from AU post a link saying the iPhone can/will be unlocked in AU.
Its already been established the phones will be sold locked to their carriers, then there are people that have said they phones will be unlocked if you pay an additional 80.00 fee. Then others saying its against the law to lock a phone in AU (I know this is not true because I have a locked AU phone).
So I would not bet the farm you will be able to buy an unlocked phone at all in AU...
Its already been established the phones will be sold locked to their carriers, then there are people that have said they phones will be unlocked if you pay an additional 80.00 fee. Then others saying its against the law to lock a phone in AU (I know this is not true because I have a locked AU phone).
So I would not bet the farm you will be able to buy an unlocked phone at all in AU...
It is not illegal to sell a locked phone - you cannot however sell a phone without the option of having it unlocked.
If you buy the phone pre-pay from Optus there is the option of having it fully unlocked for a fee - it's stated in their terms and conditions.
Unlocked may however mean that the phone is carrier unlocked but still locked to carriers within the country of origin.
Sorry, what I meant about the price comparison to buying one from AT&T and paying the full ETF was not so much for the purpose of using it here in the US as it is for purposes of understanding what the international market for unlocked iPhones might look like. Someone in the US can buy one for $200 and spend about $350 more in activation fees, ETF, etc, and then sell it for $800, a gross margin of about 31% ($250), including the cost of the time you spend unlocking it with Pwnage or whatever, once it can be jailbreaked.
That should be a fairly lucrative proposition for an American while still being a much better deal for the customer than paying the Australian company $1000USD. So although the market for used 3G iPhones probably won't be as hopping as it was for EDGE iPhones, I suspect that those unlocked iPhones from Australia would be undercut by unlocked grey market iPhones from the US.
$1,000 is quite steep for a phone that is sold for much cheaper when subsidized.
I would gladly pay $800 for an unlocked phone, but I would like it to be sold by Apple themselves instead of having to go through Australia. I would also not mind paying $1,000 for an unlocked Pro version, front camera, and aluminum back with 32 gig flash.
I would gladly pay $800 for an unlocked phone, but I would like it to be sold by Apple themselves instead of having to go through Australia. I would also not mind paying $1,000 for an unlocked Pro version, front camera, and aluminum back with 32 gig flash.
Well, the price (AFAIK) is $880 ($Aus), not $1k.
I was thinking about it, but at that price, I can't justify it.
As for the T-Mobile issue, I'm not seeing anything out there that says that an iPhone 3G on their network. Any four-band GSM phone should be usable on their network, from what I've been told (although it would be on an unsupported basis). Does anyone have any info that says otherwise?
I was thinking about it, but at that price, I can't justify it.
As for the T-Mobile issue, I'm not seeing anything out there that says that an iPhone 3G on their network. Any four-band GSM phone should be usable on their network, from what I've been told (although it would be on an unsupported basis). Does anyone have any info that says otherwise?
contact me
im looking into the "black market'' iPhone trade, the US did it ti us, aussies time to get some money back
For those in the UK on the look out and able to unlock the iPhones themselves, nationally, there is a couple dozen 8 and 16GB still knocking about. Might want to ask an O2 staff member now, before Friday ...
They might even be able to get them all shifted to your local branch. (The majority of units for both sizes seems to be in some undisclosed non-store location).
They might even be able to get them all shifted to your local branch. (The majority of units for both sizes seems to be in some undisclosed non-store location).
