Iphone From Different Country

[cbyronx]

Hi, well i was directed here, as i asked someone on 02 where to get the chapest iphone. they said that if you buy a iphone from a different country you can make it useable in the UK.
so really i just want to know where to buy the phone and then how to unlock it or whatever you do
thanks alot
conorx
(iphone n00b)

 

[r6girl]

It won't be cheap, but you could get a factory-unlocked iPhone (these models are unlocked permanently and will remain unlocked through firmware updates). Apple has a list here that shows all countries where iPhones are sold and the 4th column shows where they are not locked to a specific carrier. If you can make it down to Belgium, this would be one of the closer options for you. I got my 3G from New Zealand, myself.

Or, you could simply find the cheapest iPhone you can get and unlock it yourself easily. iClarified.com has great tutorials and this is the one on how to unlock an iPhone 3G/3GS using UltraSn0w. If you take this route, it doesn't matter where you buy the iPhone at all. The used market might be your best bet to get a good price, so Craigslist or other similar local alternatives would be good bets for you.

 

[cbyronx]

so i couldnt buy a iphone from usa, get it shipped to uk, then unlock it?
wouldnt that be alot cheaper?

 

[macbookhamburg]

no, because in the us you can´t get the phone without a contract... so you would have to pay a termination fee and would probably still end up with a phone locked to att. you could unlock it but that would be a lot of money for phone that you still have to unlock yourself ..