Apple now taking orders for unlocked, contract-free iPhone 4S

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Comments

  • Reply 21 of 59
    nasseraenasserae Posts: 3,167member
    I am wondering if AT&T still excludes the iPhone from their unlock policy.



    Quote:
    Originally Posted by johnnash View Post


    Am I being overly cheap by thinking that's way to expensive for a phone I'll use for maybe 2 years tops before I upgrade to the next best thing that they put out? I think they could make a good amount of money if they sell them at price points that are more aligned with their cost plus a price point, not a (guessing) 300 - 400% markup.



    I just sold two out of warranty unlocked 16GB iPhone 4 (bought from Canada more than a year ago) for $530 each on ebay. Beside, in the US most people will pay $200 + contract.
  • Reply 22 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by surendar View Post


    When I am not travelling and using a sim card, can I use it as a glorified iPod touch? I like the hardware (A5, camera, Siri etc.) unavailable in a touch)



    as long as a sim card is in the slot (my understanding) than it will work, even without a plan of some sort for that card.



    Otherwise, you would need to jailbreak it, and no untethered ones are out yet.
  • Reply 23 of 59
    nasseraenasserae Posts: 3,167member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SailorPaul View Post


    Yes you are. The cost of all these units is the unsubsidized price, which is then discounted by a multi-hundred dollar subsidy from the carrier. That's why you see a 199 or $299 price point in the stores, with phones locked to a particular carrier. You are walking around with several hundred dollars of the carrier's money in your pocket when you buy one. That's also why your sales tax on the unit is NOT based on the $199 or $299 price, but on the higher unsubsidized cost,



    That's only true in few states as mentioned in the footnote:



    Quote:

    In CA and RI, sales tax is collected on the unbundled price of iPhone.



  • Reply 24 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mstone View Post


    Sweet. I was waiting for this. I think I be getting a 16 GB. Sad part about my traveling situation is that I will still be carrying 2 phones. I will keep my on contract iPhone 4. When I travel abroad, I will buy a local sim for the 4S. When I return I'll swap out the AT&T sim into the i4S and put the i4 in a drawer until the next trip. I need both a local and my regular US number roaming when I travel.



    Why ? As long as AT&T is your US carrier, you can pop a new SIM card from AT&T in your unlocked phone just fine. No discounts (yet), but you may find them willing to suspend svc on the SIM if you are gone overseas for more than a month. After all, you represent an almost completely free revenue stream for AT&T.



    Or did you mean you have X number of months remaining on your subsidized phone?



    Actually the biggest difficulty for the USA is the FCC practice of allowing carriers to buy unrelated frequency spectrum -- which the carriers then turn around and operate as independent fiefdoms. And we all know what happens to the poor peasants every time the Lord rides through on his huge horse demanding money to support his extravagant lifestyle ( that would be AT&T executives for the terminally slow)
  • Reply 25 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by DrDoppio View Post


    Why would a credit check be necessary upon upfront payment?



    Because they dont want to sell one to someone that can't get service. Also some folks do buy them activated
  • Reply 26 of 59
    ivladivlad Posts: 742member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by johnnash View Post


    Am I being overly cheap by thinking that's way to expensive for a phone I'll use for maybe 2 years tops before I upgrade to the next best thing that they put out? I think they could make a good amount of money if they sell them at price points that are more aligned with their cost plus a price point, not a (guessing) 300 - 400% markup.



    You pay the same amount of even more through the 2 years that a carrier has you locked. You just paying it off by month, instead of up-front. It's how carriers make ton of money.
  • Reply 27 of 59
    mstonemstone Posts: 11,510member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by SailorPaul View Post


    Why ? As long as AT&T is your US carrier, you can pop a new SIM card from AT&T in your unlocked phone just fine. No discounts (yet), but you may find them willing to suspend svc on the SIM if you are gone overseas for more than a month. After all, you represent an almost completely free revenue stream for AT&T.



    Or did you mean you have X number of months remaining on your subsidized phone?



    I need the US number to ring even when I'm roaming abroad, but I also need an in country number to facilitate communication locally in the foreign country. Ideally I would like to have only one phone but since I need both sims to work simultaneously I have to carry two phones.



    I suppose I could sell my i4 and buy a cheap unlocked dumb phone and an unlocked i4S and just use the dumb phone to receive US calls when abroad. Then switch the sim back to the i4S when I return. But I think I would rather have two iPhones.
  • Reply 28 of 59
    Hi wanted, to know if it would be, now, possible to carry the unlocked iPhone 4S to a different country, buy a SIM card there and use it in that country, legally...



    A reply would be much appreciated.



    Thanks
  • Reply 29 of 59
    Can you use these on the ATT Go Phone service? Just curious, we keep our daughter on a go phone to limit her spending. Even though they have a data package, the phones are not very good quality.
  • Reply 30 of 59
    drdoppiodrdoppio Posts: 1,132member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by charlituna View Post


    Because they dont want to sell one to someone that can't get service. Also some folks do buy them activated



    Bollocks, anyone can get service without a credit check.



    My question was already answered to my satisfaction, why don't you next time read the thread before posting, alright?
  • Reply 31 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by semoredhawks View Post


    Can you use these on the ATT Go Phone service? Just curious, we keep our daughter on a go phone to limit her spending. Even though they have a data package, the phones are not very good quality.



    No. No modern iPhone may be used on AT&T without a data plan. You will be found and the data plan will be added to your account.
  • Reply 32 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by semoredhawks View Post


    Can you use these on the ATT Go Phone service? Just curious, we keep our daughter on a go phone to limit her spending. Even though they have a data package, the phones are not very good quality.



    There are tens of thousands of iPhones with AT&T GoPhone SIMs right now. People have been doing this since the very first iPhone (2007).
  • Reply 33 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by NasserAE View Post


    I think this is just a required legal warning. If you try to buy one it is not going to ask you for your SSN.



    I seriously doubt such a statement is required by law.
  • Reply 34 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by charlituna View Post


    Because they dont want to sell one to someone that can't get service.



  • Reply 35 of 59
    focherfocher Posts: 687member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by Tallest Skil View Post


    No. No modern iPhone may be used on AT&T without a data plan. You will be found and the data plan will be added to your account.



    This is not (entirely) true. My wife and I each have factory unlocked iPhone 4s. We have a non-contract month-to-month Family Plan account with AT&T. Only I have data on my phone. She does not. AT&T is fine with it. This could be because I have data on my iPhone, but I don't really see why AT&T would care. If you don't buy a data plan ... you just don't have data. The Go Plan is a bit different, as I understand it always has a data portion. AT&T will not let you use an iPhone with the Go Plan.
  • Reply 36 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by lilgto64 View Post


    I guess I don't understand something.



    how do you get service without a contract? and if you are paying the same per month for a contract why not get the subsidized phone? unless you are doing some sort of pre-paid or pay-as-you go sim card or something.



    Pay as you go plans. In the UK for example, you can get excellent deals and pay for just the service you use. You get a SIM card prepaid with data and minutes, and top up when you need more.
  • Reply 37 of 59
    [QUOTE=mstone;1986050]I need the US number to ring even when I'm roaming abroad, but I also need an in country number to facilitate communication locally in the foreign country. Ideally I would like to have only one phone but since I need both sims to work simultaneously I have to carry two phones.



    Try getting your SIM from Tru Global Network. That would work.
  • Reply 38 of 59
    noirdesirnoirdesir Posts: 1,027member
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by mstone View Post


    Sweet. I was waiting for this. I think I be getting a 16 GB. Sad part about my traveling situation is that I will still be carrying 2 phones. I will keep my on contract iPhone 4. When I travel abroad, I will buy a local sim for the 4S. When I return I'll swap out the AT&T sim into the i4S and put the i4 in a drawer until the next trip. I need both a local and my regular US number roaming when I travel.



    One way to deal with that is to get a MiFi-type of device and put a local, data-only SIM in there. This will mean no data roaming charges and if the data connection is good enough for Skype, low calling costs as well. Biggest problem I have with such a setup is the appallingly low battery life of these devices. My iPhone lasts about a factor of five to ten longer than my MiFi clone.
  • Reply 39 of 59
    Whats really angering me is that my 3GS whose contract is now up,will not be unlocked by AT&T.My contract is up I met my obligation any other phone they'll unlock it except iPhone.Hopefully this will change and/or forced to do so by the FCC.
  • Reply 40 of 59
    Quote:
    Originally Posted by focher View Post


    Only I have data on my phone. She does not. AT&T is fine with it.



    Lucky dog.



    The day after every iPhone release since 2007, I have walked into an AT&T store and told them that I will buy three iPhones RIGHT NOW if I can have a family plan with no data and with data blocked to and from each of the devices.



    I have been turned down every time.



    They want to lose my money, that's fine. I've yet to ask Verizon about the iPhone 4 or 4S, and there's no Sprint coverage at all where I live, so they're out of the question. And I'm also not too partial to hitching my wagon to a company that'll be bankrupt soon.
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