iPhone 4S 16GB White

[caroline]

Hi All

I've just bought a new iPhone 5 and now have my old iPhone spare, I've checked on zoomfish and they will give me £246 for my phone and I just watched the end of an auction on ebay and it went for £329 + postage. If anybody wants to buy mine - it's in perfect condition, no scratches and has always been kept in covers. I'm looking for £275 +£5 postage and I'll throw in the covers I have if you'd like them, one is a white 'Chanel' clip on cover bought from Amazon recently for about £9 and the other is a Michael Kors Wallet style red patent leather which cost about £80.

I can send photos if anybody would like them.

email me at cj@calabayparcvilla.com

Thanks!

[Katys Grandad]

Is it unlocked Caroline?

[florida4sun]

Assuming it is a UK model, which is. They are all unlocked as providers can no longer lock phones. The 4S came out after the legislation changes.


Is it unlocked Caroline?

[caroline]

Thanks Martin, I wasn't sure! I have it on o2.

[Katys Grandad]

Assuming it is a UK model, which is. They are all unlocked as providers can no longer lock phones. The 4S came out after the legislation changes.

I don't think it's quite that simple Martin.

I've spoken to O2 this morning and they tell me virtually all the iPhones they sell are locked into their network. What I think you're referring to is the right to be given a code (IMEI) at the end of a monthly contract to unlock it for use on another network. They will not give you the code until the contract ends or is paid up early and you have to ASK - they don't provide it automatically. If you have a PAYG phone, all the networks charge a fee for the unlock code. They also tell me that they will not currently unlock iPhone 5 because people are trying to sell them on for a profit. There seems to be a lot of dissatisfaction with the system because the providers are often reluctant to give the code or delay providing it, hoping to keep the customer with them. There are also lots of firms that will unlock your phone for a fee.

As a result, it's a slightly tricky business buying a second hand iPhone which has been purchased as part of a contract with any provider. I purchased mine directly from Apple and it isn't locked to any network so I've changed provider (and used local sims when I travel internationally) several times. You can't do that with a phone that's locked to a network until you unlock it. A certified unlocked phone is always worth more to a private buyer than one that's just come to end of the contract and the customer has upgraded.

It isn't absolutely clear but I think that Caroline's phone will probably still be locked to O2 although, of course, she can get the code to unlock it as it looks like her contract has ended. Hence my original question.

[florida4sun]

Your phone conversation is very different to what they have told and done for us. We have 5 iPhones all were with O2, we all switched to 3 mid contract (to good an offer to miss) and had no issues except with an old phone which was locked. We unlocked this for free via the o2 web site here http://service.o2.co.uk/IQ/SRVS/CGI-BIN/WEBCGI.EXE?New,Kb=Companion,question=ref(User):str (Mobile),CASE=17424




I don't think it's quite that simple Martin.

I've spoken to O2 this morning and they tell me virtually all the iPhones they sell are locked into their network. What I think you're referring to is the right to be given a code (IMEI) at the end of a monthly contract to unlock it for use on another network. They will not give you the code until the contract ends or is paid up early and you have to ASK - they don't provide it automatically. If you have a PAYG phone, all the networks charge a fee for the unlock code. They also tell me that they will not currently unlock iPhone 5 because people are trying to sell them on for a profit. There seems to be a lot of dissatisfaction with the system because the providers are often reluctant to give the code or delay providing it, hoping to keep the customer with them. There are also lots of firms that will unlock your phone for a fee.

As a result, it's a slightly tricky business buying a second hand iPhone which has been purchased as part of a contract with any provider. I purchased mine directly from Apple and it isn't locked to any network so I've changed provider (and used local sims when I travel internationally) several times. You can't do that with a phone that's locked to a network until you unlock it. A certified unlocked phone is always worth more to a private buyer than one that's just come to end of the contract and the customer has upgraded.

It isn't absolutely clear but I think that Caroline's phone will probably still be locked to O2 although, of course, she can get the code to unlock it as it looks like her contract has ended. Hence my original question.

[caroline]

Just to clarify - I've spoken to O2 this morning and they are 'unlatching' my phone - there was no charge to do this - they will send a text within 72 hours to say this has been done and then all I have to do is insert a non o2 sim in the phone and connect to itunes and follow the instructions.

Oh, and the phone has now been sold to a lovely lady in Nottingham! Thanks Lesley!

[Katys Grandad]

Your phone conversation is very different to what they have told and done for us. We have 5 iPhones all were with O2, we all switched to 3 mid contract (to good an offer to miss) and had no issues except with an old phone which was locked. We unlocked this for free via the o2 web site here http://service.o2.co.uk/IQ/SRVS/CGI-BIN/WEBCGI.EXE?New,Kb=Companion,question=ref(User):str (Mobile),CASE=17424

I think this quote from your link is the relevant one:

"If you're a Pay Monthly customer, then you can unlock your iPhone at anytime for free. This doesn’t affect your contract though – you’ll still need to see out the rest of it. This policy may vary according to the handset you have purchased". I'm told that the variation of their policy refers to iPhone 5 which they currently won't unlock.

There seems to be some flexibility but it's pretty clear they still lock phones (otherwise why have an unlocking provision?) and that Caroline's iPhone 4s is currently locked. Regardless of your personal experience, your statement that "they are all unlocked" above is inaccurate.

[florida4sun]

Fair enough, either way you can get a locked phone unlocked for free by the original supplier. Third party unlocking is cheap and if you have a bit of tech know how it can be done for free. So no problem either way.
I remember when we bought them at the O2 store and I checked that the phones need to be unlocked as we sometimes use them abroad with different sims (mostly for data). They simply said no problem and we never went through an unlocking procedure. So maybe it is a case of insisting before you buy.


your statement that "they are all unlocked" above is inaccurate.

[caroline]

Just an update incase anybody else wants to get their phone unlocked - I received this approx 6 hours after requesting it.


Hi,

Your iPhone unlatching request for IMEI XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX has been
completed. To use a non-O2 Sim, place the Sim into the iPhone and
connect to iTunes using a USB cable. iTunes will confirm that the
iPhone has been successfully unlocked. If you have any further
questions, please visit our online help page at http://www.o2.co.uk/unlockmyiphone

Thank you,

O2 Customer Service