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italeki

macrumors regular
Original poster
Aug 15, 2010
112
0
I'm getting different information from people. I went to BestBuy today and was told that I can buy an iPhone 4 but ONLY WITH A CONTRACT! That I "could not" purchase the phone at retail price. Now I hear from people and over the internet that BestBuy does sell their iPhone 4 "without" a contract as well. What is the correct information? I appreciate your responses.
 
I will personally go again to BestBuy tomorrow, for no one picks up calls, and ask if I could purchase a iPhone 4 without a contract.
 
Yes...they will sell a white one without contract. I called several locations and they told me YES. If AT&T and Apple is doing it so will Best Buy...that's what the mobile rep told me.
 
Yes, but they will be locked to current providers. So you might as well buy directly from Apple.
 
Will Apple sell one without a contract?

Yes and no. You need to haver service (in the U.S.) with either Verizon or AT&T. They will check your eligibility and if you are not upgrade eligible, you can buy at full price. While some people can buy at full price without service from these two providers, most Apple stores will not just sell it to anyone full price no questions asked.
 
If you're going to pay full retail, you're probably better off buying from a country where you can get a factory unlocked phone. Even if you don't need the unlock, the resale would hold much better.
 
Does Best Buy care if you're on a prepaid plan? Meaning, will they still sell you the phone without a contract if you tell them you're on a prepaid plan on AT&T?

I just checked online at Bestbuy.com and it seems like you can buy an iPhone off contract if you select that you're a "current customer" and that you want to "replace your current phone," but since you have to select the pickup option, I'm wondering if they have to check your account and make sure you're on a contract and all that? Or will they just hand you the phone, unopened when you arrive at the store?
 
Or will they just hand you the phone, unopened when you arrive at the store?

Best Buy will certainly give your phone unopened if you ask them to. The old sim card for the line will be automatically disconnected when they make the sale, so you will need to activate the phone on a computer. It will be locked to AT&T. I don't know how they would handle a prepaid purchase.
 
So you mean that BestBuy will only sell iPhones that "cannot" be jailbroken and unlocked, even with the GSM ATT iphones? My intentions are to purchase one without contract and jailbreak/unlock so I can use a least expensive cell service.
 
So you mean that BestBuy will only sell iPhones that "cannot" be jailbroken and unlocked, even with the GSM ATT iphones? My intentions are to purchase one without contract and jailbreak/unlock so I can use a least expensive cell service.

You'll be able to jailbreak your ATT iPhone. Unlock is another story.
 
So you mean that BestBuy will only sell iPhones that "cannot" be jailbroken and unlocked, even with the GSM ATT iphones? My intentions are to purchase one without contract and jailbreak/unlock so I can use a least expensive cell service.

You could jb but won't be able to unlock it.
Unless you to with a gevey turbosim.
 
Yes and no. You need to haver service (in the U.S.) with either Verizon or AT&T. They will check your eligibility and if you are not upgrade eligible, you can buy at full price. While some people can buy at full price without service from these two providers, most Apple stores will not just sell it to anyone full price no questions asked.
That is not true! I purchased my iPhone 4 from an Apple store no contract. I walked in, told the sales person I want a no contract iPhone 4, he told me the price, I swiped my credit card and was out the door.
 
Which is a better sim Gevey Turbo Sim or Rebel Micro Sim? I will definitely need to purchase one, for my new iPhone 4 has the 04.10.01 baseband and no where on the internet is showing how to unlock with a current update of Ultrasn0w.

I finally got my WHITE iPhone 4 at BestBuy without a contract! I went to another location and was not given any problems. I guess they are not all on the same page.
 
Which is a better sim Gevey Turbo Sim or Rebel Micro Sim? I will definitely need to purchase one, for my new iPhone 4 has the 04.10.01 baseband and no where on the internet is showing how to unlock with a current update of Ultrasn0w.

I finally got my WHITE iPhone 4 at BestBuy without a contract! I went to another location and was not given any problems. I guess they are not all on the same page.

Its not showing how to unlock 04.10.01 cause ultrasnow cannot unlock it at the moment. Its not compatible with every baseband version.
I'd go with Gevey, many members use them with no probs.
 
Ok, I get that they'll sell you one without contract BUT the catch is you have to be an AT&T customer right? I was always uncertain about that. :confused:
 
That is not true! I purchased my iPhone 4 from an Apple store no contract. I walked in, told the sales person I want a no contract iPhone 4, he told me the price, I swiped my credit card and was out the door.

Exactly as I said, "most Apple stores". The rule is supposed to be only sell an iPhone to someone who has service or who is signing up for service. I guess if you say you're purchasing as a gift it could be a different story. I'm not saying all Apple stores follow this company wide (within the U.S.) rule, and I am sure they won't be discovered for doing so. But, they aren't supposed to cell to someone without service.
 
Exactly as I said, "most Apple stores". The rule is supposed to be only sell an iPhone to someone who has service or who is signing up for service. I guess if you say you're purchasing as a gift it could be a different story. I'm not saying all Apple stores follow this company wide (within the U.S.) rule, and I am sure they won't be discovered for doing so. But, they aren't supposed to cell to someone without service.
You said most apple stores will not sell you a no contract iPhone. Still not true. Call any Apple store and ask them the no contract price and they will tell you the price. Go in store and they will sell you one. Period.
 
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