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View Full Version : Will O2 let you unlock your iPhone?


t0p
March 19th, 2009, 11:26 AM
In the European Union, we have the right to unlock our cellphones to use with any mobile network. So, can anyone who's got an iPhone with O2 in the uk (or whatever carrier Apple's in cahoots with in other Euro states) confirm that the network will give you unlocking instructions on request?
bruno9779
March 19th, 2009, 11:30 AM
In the European Union, we have the right to unlock our cellphones to use with any mobile network.

Wrong.
That is only the UK and maybe germany. For sure this doesn'ty happen in Italy, Spain, France and Portugal (countries I have lived in)
t0p
March 19th, 2009, 12:04 PM
Wrong.
That is only the UK and maybe germany. For sure this doesn'ty happen in Italy, Spain, France and Portugal (countries I have lived in)

Yes, I was wrong. As Wikipedia says (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIM_lock):


[If/when Belgium changes its law on the matter] Singapore will be the only country in the world that outright forbids SIM locking and contract/phone bundling

However, that Wikipedia article also describes how most EU states have pro-consumer regulations concerning SIM-locking. So the mobile networks are at the very least encouraged to allow unlocking for a price or after 12 months or so. It is accurate to say that in the EU, networks are generally willing to allow unlocking. So my question stands: are Apple's European partner networks forthcoming with iPhone unlocking instructions?

My question was spawned by the appalling attitude of American companies when it comes to unlocking. Check out this video (https://media.defcon.org/dc-16/video/Defcon16-Alexander_Lash-Taking_Back_your_Cellphone.m4v) and you'll see what I mean. It seems that most US networks' view on handset ownership is similar to the proprietary software houses' attitude to their product: you may have paid for it, but you sure as hell don't own it. And Wikipedia tells us that AT&T will not unlock iPhones under any circumstances. I'm interested to learn if Apple has forced a similar mind-set on its European partners.
ELD
March 19th, 2009, 01:58 PM
In the UK we have shops that can do it for you for like £10, not bad really!
bruno9779
March 19th, 2009, 04:26 PM
The unlock for 10€ option doesn't quite work with i-phones.
An amount of my collegues did that (after buying cheap i-phones from a contact in Taiwan), just to lose completely functionality to wireless