how to buy iphone 3gs 16gb in USA

[abulrom]

hello

first of all .. this is my first thread here and i'm not from USA so plz forgive me if my English is not that good ..

my question is :

my uncle (an american citizen) is coming from USA next month and i'll ask him to buy me an iphone 3gs 16gb .. i've read that it costs 599$ without contract , so..(here's the question).. can him buy it without having a subscription with at&t ?? he is not a at&t customer , and i don't want him to go through getting a contract then canceling it .
if yes he can .. where should he go to buy it ?? apple store ?? or online ?? if online please put the link because i checked (best buy) but didn't find the 599$ contract-free price .. all prices were 199$ and 299$ with 2yr contract . ( i prefer to get it from a store if that possible in USA) , my uncle is in Chicago city .

((note: i know it's locked on at&t , and it's ok ..i can JB it and unlock it))

and please tell me .. are the new iphones come with OS 3.1 .. and how can him (my uncle) make sure that the iphone he is gonna buy is 3.0 os not 3.1 (because i'm gonna jailbreak and unlock it)

i realy need your help (my uncle will come soon and i should tell him the way to buy the iphone)

thanks a lot ..

 

[jav6454]

The $599 pricing means here is no commitment on your uncles part. That also means your uncle is not bound to anything. Also you get your iPhone questions free.

 

[holyindian]

The iphone most probably will be flashed with a 3.0 firmware.. or 3.0.1 version.
No worries abt 3.1 as of now. U can come back to this forum once u have ur fone, pick up a jailbreaking guide and unlock ur iphone to use it.

 

[abulrom]

thank you "jav6454" and "holyindian" for your replys .. but you didn't answer the most important question :

where can my uncle find this 599$ iphone 3gs wich doesn't need an activation or any extra fee.. please answer me where should he go to buy it for me at this price 599$ ???

 

[hierik]

I went to BestBuy in the summer. Told'em I wanted a contract free iPhone 3gs for my friend, and I wanted to pay full price. I got the iPhone and walked out of there. Next day it was jailbroken and unlocked - could carry any SIM card

They'll try to advice against the full price deal - you let'em know you've made up your mind ! Things will go fine .

Best Regards

 

[ThatsMeRight]

The $599 pricing means here is no commitment on your uncles part. That also means your uncle is not bound to anything. Also you get your iPhone questions free.

Wow, 3Gs 16GB without commitment is just $599? That's €407,02! Over here in NL the price of a 3Gs 16GB without commitment is between 800 and 1000 euros, wow.

 

[abulrom]

I went to BestBuy in the summer...... I got the iPhone and walked out of there.

so i understand that there are BestBuy stores in USA (not just online shopping website) ???

do these stores exist in chicago city ??
is the full price 599$ still available in these stores ??
is there any extra fee over the 599$ price ??

please anyone knows about that answer me ... thanx

 

[jav6454]

thank you "jav6454" and "holyindian" for your replys .. but you didn't answer the most important question :

where can my uncle find this 599$ iphone 3gs wich doesn't need an activation or any extra fee.. please answer me where should he go to buy it for me at this price 599$ ???

You can't. When you buy a non-commitment iPhone all you are doing is basically buy an iPhone at full price and you get to take it home if you wish not to activate it.

The activation part is done thru iTunes at AT&T store or Apple. However, in many countries you can still Activate in Home.

As for you Hacktivating it, I am not sure you can at this point (3.1.0 is out and 3.1.0's baseband is not unlockable at this point).

 

[Vandam500]

so i understand that there are BestBuy stores in USA (not just online shopping website) ???

do these stores exist in chicago city ??
is the full price 599$ still available in these stores ??
is there any extra fee over the 599$ price ??

please anyone knows about that answer me ... thanx

Yes there are Best Buy's in Chicago. He can buy it there and also in a Apple Store. There is no fee, just $599 without tax.

 

[skubish]

so i understand that there are BestBuy stores in USA (not just online shopping website) ???

do these stores exist in chicago city ??
is the full price 599$ still available in these stores ??
is there any extra fee over the 599$ price ??

please anyone knows about that answer me ... thanx

There is also sales tax charged.
10.25% if in Chicago
6.25% if in Illinois

 

[abulrom]

thank you all for your help

but actually i've got confused ..

"skubish" said there is tax like 60$ over the initial 599$ so it becomes 660$ .

"Vandam500" said There is no fee, just $599 without tax .

I thought I had finally found the right forum .. and here i can get exactly the right answers ...

 

[samcraig]

Nothing to be confused about

the COST is 599. You have to pay tax on purchases. The approximate cost for the iphone WITH taxes is $660.

 

[holyindian]

In US, even if u buy a needle u have to pay taxes. In the same way, when u buy a product worth 599, u have to pay taxes for it.
However the best part is, u dont have to pay any other charges to Apple other than the product price + taxes.

 

[MyMaria]

I have a similar question...

...if we buy the phone from Best Buy without any commitment at $599 (plus taxes)... is it already an UNLOCKED/OPENLINE IPHONE that can be used with any sim? Or are there other things we need to do to make the phone work with any sim?

Hope to get a reply. TIA!

 

[Stampyhead]

I have a similar question...

...if we buy the phone from Best Buy without any commitment at $599 (plus taxes)... is it already an UNLOCKED/OPENLINE IPHONE that can be used with any sim? Or are there other things we need to do to make the phone work with any sim?

Hope to get a reply. TIA!

No, it's still locked to AT&T. You would need to unlock it yourself.

 

[MyMaria]

No, it's still locked to AT&T. You would need to unlock it yourself.

wow..! thanks for the quick reply. will keep this in mind.