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

Wonder if Apple will ever sell Just an Unlocked iPhone

Wicked1

Wicked1

macrumors 68040
Original poster
Apr 13, 2009
3,283
14
New Jersey
It would be interesting and I think they would still sell a ton of them through all the carriers because having one unlocked version of the phone would be really well worth it. I think this could happen now that AT&T is not the only game in town, and in Europe all carriers are selling the iPhone 4 so there is no reason the USA couldn't get just an Unlocked iPhone outside of Verizon's CDMA.
 
Yeah, the iPhone is sold unlocked in Apple stores in the UK. I imagine that when/if there is a CDMA/GSM/whatever hybrid then there will most definitely be unlocked iPhones being sold in Apple stores.

I suppose it's how much ATT and Verizon can pay Apple to keep the handsets locked only...
 
Do you think ATT will allow NOW to unlock Iphone for those traveling abroad? I still have the old 3g.
 
gdlcjr said:
Do you think ATT will allow NOW to unlock Iphone for those traveling abroad? I still have the old 3g.
Click to expand...

This is outrageous. I cannot believe that AT&T is allowed to keep your phone locked even after your contract has expired. This ought to be outright illegal. When I lived in Europe, at the end of my contract the carrier unlocked my phone when I asked, end of story. In fact (well this was France, don't know of other countries) they would unlock your phone for a fee a few months before the contract expired if I recall correctly.

What is AT&T's excuse for not unlocking even after you have finalized your service contract and have fulfilled your end of the bargain (i.e paying them!)??
 
MarlboroLite said:
This is outrageous. I cannot believe that AT&T is allowed to keep your phone locked even after your contract has expired. This ought to be outright illegal. When I lived in Europe, at the end of my contract the carrier unlocked my phone when I asked, end of story. In fact (well this was France, don't know of other countries) they would unlock your phone for a fee a few months before the contract expired if I recall correctly.

What is AT&T's excuse for not unlocking even after you have finalized your service contract and have fulfilled your end of the bargain (i.e paying them!)??
Click to expand...

I hear you. It doesnt make any sense.
I think we're the only country that does this BS.
AT&T used to say due to exclusive agreements they can unlock any phone on their network but the iphone. And they just point the finger at Apple saying its their decision and other nonsense.
 
AT&T and other companies pay lots of money to Republicans and Democrats to keep from having to be subject to consumer-friendly practices.
For a long time, the iphone excuse was the exclusive contract. We'll see what happens after that contract expires.
MarlboroLite said:
This is outrageous. I cannot believe that AT&T is allowed to keep your phone locked even after your contract has expired. This ought to be outright illegal.
What is AT&T's excuse for not unlocking even after you have finalized your service contract and have fulfilled your end of the bargain (i.e paying them!)??
Click to expand...
 
Applejuiced said:
I doubt it.
Unless a new law is passed to make them unlock all cellphones once the agreement has expired.
Click to expand...

The telcos have way way too much power in Congress for this to ever happen. Election campaign contributions, lobbying groups, and plain old money under the table pretty much insure that Congress will not do anything to offend the telcos.
 
MarlboroLite said:
This is outrageous. I cannot believe that AT&T is allowed to keep your phone locked even after your contract has expired. This ought to be outright illegal. When I lived in Europe, at the end of my contract the carrier unlocked my phone when I asked, end of story. In fact (well this was France, don't know of other countries) they would unlock your phone for a fee a few months before the contract expired if I recall correctly.

What is AT&T's excuse for not unlocking even after you have finalized your service contract and have fulfilled your end of the bargain (i.e paying them!)??
Click to expand...

It is not just ATT. In the USA all networks lock their phones.
 
I'm in the US. When I was in Tmobile before, I had an old MOTO PHONE and when I travel aboad, they allow me to unlock the phone so I can use it outside the US.

If Verizon has the Iphone now does it mean ATT does not have the exclusive contract with Apple anymore? Should they allow to unlock the IPhone now when your contract expired? Or again Iphone is different from other phone?
 
gdlcjr said:
Or again Iphone is different from other phone?
Click to expand...

iPhone is in a different class of phones and always will be. I think for AT&T, the iPhone and pretty much any Droid/WinMo7 phone they sell are treated differently than all other phones.

I used to have T-Mob too (hated my T-Mobile Dash) and all I had to do was call them up and ask for the unlock code, end of story. Don't think we'll ever be able to to that with the iPhone. Only time I can imagine this happening is if the iPhone becomes yesterday's news and some new spiffy cell phone captures the eye of everyone.
 
gdlcjr said:
If Verizon has the Iphone now does it mean ATT does not have the exclusive contract with Apple anymore? Should they allow to unlock the IPhone now when your contract expired? Or again Iphone is different from other phone?
Click to expand...

ATT is no longer exclusive, but it has nothing to do with unlocking phones. ATT will not unlock your phone period; they do not want people on other carriers. Verizon phones will almost certainly be carrier locked as well.
 
It's funny because when a couple of lawyers got together on a saturday night and decided to sue ATT + Apple so that they could get unlock codes for our phones, everyone mistakingly got pretty pissed off that a company (ATT) and dear leader :)apple:) was getting sued because they didn't want Verizon to have the iPhone.

Even though, ya know, it had absolutely nothing to do with Verizon , but actually the fact that ATT gets to tell the customer what they can do with their hardware even though the phone could work world wide if it weren't for an artificial softLock.

But people are dumb so they kinda missed that part.
 
I don't think AT&T cares that the exclusive deal is up. They probably won't be unlocking the iPhone, and my assumption as to why is because their international plans are ridiculously high priced. If they refuse to unlock your iPhone, and you're traveling, you may have no other option but to pay them the money they ask for.
 
UK Carriers still lock all the iPhones sold under their network name. Apple does however sell the Phones Sim Free at an unsubsidised price.

For the US, sure, Verizon is there, but ATT is still the only GSM provider, they have no need to offer an unlock.
 
gdjsnyder said:
I don't think AT&T cares that the exclusive deal is up. They probably won't be unlocking the iPhone, and my assumption as to why is because their international plans are ridiculously high priced. If they refuse to unlock your iPhone, and you're traveling, you may have no other option but to pay them the money they ask for.
Click to expand...

I can understand (but not like) that AT&T would continue to lock the iPhones that they sell on contract.

However, it seems that there is no reason (now that exclusivity is over) that Apple can't sell unlocked iPhones at the Apple Store. One potential problem, though, is people purchasing them for re-sale in other countries where unlocked versions are very expensive (eg, mainland China, where an official factory unlocked 32GB iPhone 4 is around US$900, and getting more expensive in US dollar terms as the RMB continues to appreciate).

That said, I think US iPhone customers would appreciate the option of buying unlocked iPhones directly from US Apple stores.
 
nok123 said:
I can understand (but not like) that AT&T would continue to lock the iPhones that they sell on contract.

However, it seems that there is no reason (now that exclusivity is over) that Apple can't sell unlocked iPhones at the Apple Store. One potential problem, though, is people purchasing them for re-sale in other countries where unlocked versions are very expensive (eg, mainland China, where an official factory unlocked 32GB iPhone 4 is around US$900, and getting more expensive in US dollar terms as the RMB continues to appreciate).

That said, I think US iPhone customers would appreciate the option of buying unlocked iPhones directly from US Apple stores.
Click to expand...

I completely agree. I would totally buy all of my phones unlocked from Apple. Never have to deal with a contract for cell service again.
 
Willis said:
For the US, sure, Verizon is there, but ATT is still the only GSM provider, they have no need to offer an unlock.
Click to expand...

Which is why I unlocked my iP2/3G and used it on t-mobile (they even had their CSRs TRAINED on configuring it properly, and this is in the US).
 
AT&T will give you an unlock code for their other phones. I got an unlock for my old cingular motorola v400.
CDMA phones are naturally locked. The carrier has to allow the phone onto their network. Unless Sprint gets desperate, they're not going to allow the iphone on their network.
old-wiz said:
ATT is no longer exclusive, but it has nothing to do with unlocking phones. ATT will not unlock your phone period; they do not want people on other carriers. Verizon phones will almost certainly be carrier locked as well.
Click to expand...
 
kdarling said:
Oh it's not just the US that does it.

Check out Apple's world list of iPhone carriers.

It shows which ones come unlocked, and which ones will unlock or not. At first glance, about half are locked.
Click to expand...

Wow, thats alot of carriers:D
I dont think that list is up to date though cause I know a few Canadian carriers now offer official unlocking and that page shows none.
But you right, there is more than I thought.
 
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