If you ask most cell phone users what they understand the term
“unlocked phone” to mean, they will likely tell you that it is exactly
what it says: that you can use the phone on any cell carrier anywhere.
Well, this is not exactly true with the iPhone 4S.
The iPhone 4S is the first device produced by Apple
that is a dual-mode phone. This means the iPhone can theoretically be
used on any CDMA or GSM network, in any country. In the United States
CDMA is the protocol for Verizon and Sprint, while GSM is used by AT&T and T-Mobile.
Internationally there are about 40 CDMA countries and more than 220 GSM
venues. International phones have to accommodate different protocols
and frequency bands for voice and data services, depending upon carrier
and location. The 4S meets this requirement almost everywhere.
Apple did a very smart thing when they designed the 4S. Rather than
having to produce a GSM version and a CDMA version of their popular
phone as they had done in the past, they combined the two protocols in
one chip set, which should save the company potentially billions of
dollars, and make distribution and logistics infinitely simpler. It also
means that the consumer only needs one phone to travel anywhere in the
world, absent a lack of roaming agreements between their home carrier
and the system they are trying to use while out of the country.
Last month I purchased an iPhone 4S from Best Buy Mobile for
use on my Verizon account. I paid full retail so there would be no
restrictions from Verizon with regard to unlocking the handset. My
intent was to run tests in Europe and the U.S. to determine if the phone
would perform as well as competitive CDMA-GSM phones that I have used
(Android and Blackberry). Initially, my focus was on how well Apple
handled the different issues required for roaming on foreign carriers
and whether the Apple iOS 5 offered the same level of connectivity and
data options that Android and Blackberry provide.
Verizon registered the phone on both their CDMA network and the
pre-installed Verizon-Vodafone GSM SIM card so I could roam
internationally as a Verizon customer. I contacted technical support
before leaving for Europe to have the phone unlocked. Verizon stated
that I would have to meet certain conditions in order to unlock the
phone.
These were: I had to be a Verizon Wireless customer. The device had
to be active on a Verizon line (unless I was upgrading from an older
global phone that had a 3G unlocked SIM for at least two months). My
line of service had to be active for at least 60 days and the account
had to be in “good standing” for the past 60 days (meaning a current
balance and no service suspensions in the past 60 days). Only one unlock
per line every 10 months.
What this rigamarole means is that a non-Verizon customer cannot
unlock a phone they purchased from someone other than Verizon, nor can a
customer that has only subscribed to the service for less than sixty
days, even if the phone number was ported from another carrier. If you
upgraded a handset which has been active for at least two months then
the phone can be unlocked.
Verizon Rules regarding the use of unlocked phones
While Verizon does not specifically address just exactly what an
unlocked phone really means, they do require a customer to agree to a
number of conditions. It is somewhat perplexing that this particular
carrier seems to think they can regulate the use of your phone on
foreign carriers that are not allied with Verizon, especially where
prepaid SIM cards are used. I especially find this condition, below,
rather perplexing because it indicates that Verizon maintains control
over your phone and usage even if you are not using their network.
Unlocking your Iphone 4S
Among the three major carriers operating in the U.S., only one, AT&T,
will not unlock any iPhone. Because I purchased a Verizon-designated
handset, the following information relates to those customers that
purchase Verizon iPhones, but the technology and result is the same for
any carrier.
When I called Verizon tech support to unlock my phone prior to
leaving the U.S., I was told that I had to have a foreign SIM card
installed in order to complete the process and that the phone would have
to log in to the Verizon network on WiFi. The reason for this procedure
is that the phone must validate the foreign SIM.
