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AT&T To Unlock Out-of-Contract iPhones
NicknamesAreStupid writes "Many outlets are reporting that AT&T will allow owners of iPhones whose contracts have expired to unlock their devices. One might think that a call or a quick trip to their local AT&T store would do the trick, and they do provide this service to people who are currently under contract with a newer phone and want to use their older one. However, AT&T has never made anything free to be easy, and this may not bode well for former customers who offer no profitable revenue. For example, when AT&T bought Bell South, they were ordered by the court as part of the acquisition to offer $10/month 'DSL lite' service. The maze in their website which led to this opportunity is now a story of legend. Will the key to this unlocking the iPhone be as byzantine for former customers?"
I've just called customer service, gave them the IMEI, they submitted a request to the manufacturer, and I got an unlock code about 3 days later. There wasn't anything painful other than taking the time to just call. Mind you - I did this as a former customer and this was maybe a couple months ago.
Some of us are current customers, just we have had our phone for more than 2 years.
Anyway, I find this ridiculous. Why does AT&T have to wait until the contract is up before unlocking? I already am under contract with an ETF penalty if I try to stop using their service.
So unlock it earlier, like Verizon does.
Hell, stop locking the dang things.
http://lkml.org/lkml/2005/8/20/95
I wish Telus in Canada would do the same thing. This whole unlocking thing should be mandated as soon as the contract paying for the phone is done.
I have a 3GS sitting in a shelf from 2010. Am I eligible for unlocking on this phone?
I'm going to guess no. :(
Non impediti ratione cogitationus.
T-Mobile will unlock a phone 40 days after it was bought, no need to wait 2 years for the end of the contract.
The real "Libtards" are the Libertarians!
I have a contract on a new phone, but id still like to unlock my old phone, 'just because its mine' ( and the subsidy has long since been paid off ). Wonder if they will do it. ( 3GS )
---- Booth was a patriot ----
Tsk. I was expecting something at least as maddening as spending an hour trying to cancel an AOL account, or involving disused lavatories filled with leopards.
"We're the phone company. We don't have to care."
You are a SEVERE minority. I envy you.
Maybe you are very young. Or have been lucky enough NOT to need to deal with at&t often.
Or you might be one of the lucky few who got what they paid for and never had a problem where you needed to talk to at&t.
The rest of us however... Despise at&t for how confusing, incompetent and evil they can be.
It's an old hate tho. And after this many decades the fury has changed to depressed resignation when we have to deal with them.
But just because we're all not still frothing with red hot rage at at&t... Don't believe they've gotten any better.
We've just gotten tired and worn out with their special brand of incompetent clueless.
In some countries there are laws prohibiting the provider from maintaining a perpetual lock.
The idea in Denmark for instance is that they can at most maintain a sim lock for the initial minimum contract period, which can not exceed 6 months for regular cell phones, and I think 1 year for the more expensive smart phones, and then only if you buy them at the providers' discount, after this they have to provide the unlock codes and assist the user in performing the unlock, free of charge.
Some providers here don't even lock the phones any longer, you are after all still legally obligated to maintain and pay for your initial contract period.
So can I get somebody's old unlocked iPhone and put my SIM card in it, without being forced to buy a data plan yet? Wifi-only would be just fine, and I see no reason to pay exorbitant fees for tiny amounts of bandwidth on 3G or 4G data.
Morphing Software
Funny, I've been an AT&T customer (wireless the whole time, intermittently DSL when cable wasn't available and currently U-verse because Comcast blows hard) since 2000 and, while service and device issues arise, AT&T has always been willing to work with me and resolve the issues. Maybe it's because I'm not a dick to the CSRs who are just trying to do their jobs? I treat them with some compassion, explain my expertise and how it relates to the problem at hand, what troubleshooting I've done, provide my suggestion for what the issue is and/or how to resolve it, then ask their opinion. If they ask me for information related to the problem, I provide it. I try to be generally pleasant towards them and, as a result, they spend more time with me, rather than trying to get me off the phone or out of their store. Try it sometime, it works.
APK quotes people (including myself) without context and should not be trusted. Just thought you should know.
The incompetence runs deep. From cellular to commercial T1 and data lines. They only hire techs that are color blind or morons. I have had to troubleshoot a smartjack for a tech before because the idiot did not understand how a T1 worked.
The incompetent runs deep in this one they call AT&T.
Do not look at laser with remaining good eye.
AT&T = All Trash & Turmoil
Anorexic Theater & Thumbscrews
A Tin-can & Tin-can
Awful Telephone & Typhoid
Angry Trump & Toupee
Ass Tube & Trajectory
More...?
*Repent!Quit Your Job!Slack Off!The World Ends Tomorrow and You May Die!