How to buy and import AT&T locked iPhone 5?

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StillWaters

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Hi Guys,

My iPhone 3GS got flicked last week. I am now looking for a new iPhone. I saw that the AT&T locked iPhone 5 is available for USD 199. However, its only availabe for new or existing AT&T customers in US.

My question is that is there a way for someone to buy this locked phone and send it to me. I can then get it unlocked via eBay or others. If someone is USA has AT&T contract, can they buy 2 more phones at the locked price? How does it work?

Thanks,
StillWaters
 
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Simple answer -- No, you won't be able to do that as you have described. ;)

Its on contract and you can't just walk in to a store, pay $199 and walk away with an iPhone.
 
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Pay up $649 + Taxes for the unlocked version and get the phone from US.
Else buy from India.

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Pay up $649 + Taxes for the unlocked version and get the phone from US.
Else buy from India.
 
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raksrules said:
Pay up $649 + Taxes for the unlocked version and get the phone from US.
Else buy from India.

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Pay up $649 + Taxes for the unlocked version and get the phone from US.
Else buy from India.
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Never buy from a carrier even if they sell unlocked phones if you're planning to use it on other networks..for eg carrier unlocked lumia 920 is around $450 on at&t but still u'll be only able to use at&t sim on it...best check the details before and be sure about it..
 
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vinay91 said:
Never buy from a carrier even if they sell unlocked phones if you're planning to use it on other networks..for eg carrier unlocked lumia 920 is around $450 on at&t but still u'll be only able to use at&t sim on it...best check the details before and be sure about it..
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There is no carrier unlocked Lumia 920 in the US. The one you are talking about is WITHOUT CONTRACT. The two are different things.
 
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vinay91 said:
Never buy from a carrier even if they sell unlocked phones if you're planning to use it on other networks..for eg carrier unlocked lumia 920 is around $450 on at&t but still u'll be only able to use at&t sim on it...best check the details before and be sure about it..
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iPhone 5 running AT&T can be easily unlocked.

Second, AFAIK apple will not ship an unlocked iPhone if you use a Indian CC.
So this leaves third party resellers (which equals full price) or eBay (equals auction wars, a few days of hard work and you might even get $150 off the price)
 
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I have seen verizon iphone 5 and HTC 8x versions which are gsm unlocked in ebay. Can we buy them without any problem as they are not locked? do we need to consider like imei is not blocked. If so, how can we check. please advise.
 
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cri_sss said:
I have seen verizon iphone 5 and HTC 8x versions which are gsm unlocked in ebay. Can we buy them without any problem as they are not locked? do we need to consider like imei is not blocked. If so, how can we check. please advise.
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Verizon iPhone 5 come with GSM part unlocked. You need not do anything special. This is because Verizon needs to remain compliant with some US norm (don't know the details) and hence is mandatory required to keep the GSM part unlocked. But this is applicable only for Verizon and not sprint, remember that.
I am pretty sure someone on TE is using a verizon iPhone 5 on GSM in India.
Also this DOES NOT mean you can get a phone for $199, you still will have to pay either a full price from apple or verizon but rather if you are paying full price go for GSM version (factory unlocked).
Another option is to check ebay for verizon iPhone 5 which may be going for cheap compared to Factory unlocked ones.
 
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I have seen some Htc 8x verizon model in ebay for auctions.


Also pl suggest any things to be in mind while buying the used or mint condition ones as no idea on Verizon with GSM unlocked models. Some of models they have mentioned clean ESN. what does it mean?


Any verizon model having gsm unlocked apart from HTC8x and iphone 5?


Thanks
 
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cri_sss said:
I have seen some Htc 8x verizon model in ebay for auctions.


Also pl suggest any things to be in mind while buying the used or mint condition ones as no idea on Verizon with GSM unlocked models. Some of models they have mentioned clean ESN. what does it mean?


Any verizon model having gsm unlocked apart from HTC8x and iphone 5?


Thanks
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Clean ESN basically means one can take a Verizon Phone (with clean ESN) and get it registered on some other CDMA operator in US (like sprint, MetroPCS etc). If the ESN is flagged as dirty (not sure if right word) or bad, then you cannot use the phone on other CDMA networks (at least within USA). But i suspect the ESN part won't matter if one wants to use the GSM part of the phone only.
ESN is the one for a CDMA phone what IMEI is for a GSM phone.
That's whay you see many bad ESN phones going for cheap on ebay but it means a deal for us since i guess reliance etc here don't care about clean or bad ESN before it is registered on their network.
ESN might be flagged as bad in case a person lost his mobile or got it stolen then he might tell the operator to flag the ESN as bad so no one else can use it (at least the CDMA part).

I myself was planning to buy a bad ESN iPhone 4(no GSM part here) to be used as iPod only.
 
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^ I believe the major operators like Sprint, Verizon will not even let you activate a phone from a different operator even if the ESN is clean. For eg I don't think Sprint will allow you to activate a Verizon iPhone whatever be the case.

But there are other operators like Pageplus which allows you to bring your own phone from any operator, basically you can just call them and give the ESN/MEID and they will activate it on their network, you of course have to flash it yourself. Basically how you get foreign CDMA phones activated on Reliance, but the MEID registration is easy and can be done over phone.

So a BAD ESN on a particular operator is applicable only to that operator but can be activated on smaller carriers if they allow it.

Q: What does "bad ESN" mean?
A: A cell phone with a "bad ESN" is a phone which cannot be activated on the carrier it was manufactured for due to various reasons. This can be due to the fact that the original owner was dissatisfied with their current carrier and switched carriers, or had a billing dispute with their carrier and canceled service without paying the early termination fee, or they got behind on their bill. The ESN can also be bad due to the cell phone being reported lost or stolen.

Q: If I buy a cell phone with a bad ESN, can't I just use it with another carrier?
A: Most major CDMA carriers will not activate a cell phone from another carrier. There are some smaller carriers that will, but the cell phone will usually need to have new software installed ("flashed"), and this is usually not done for free.
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eBay Guides - What is a bad ESN cell phone and should I buy it

For us in India, it doesn't make any difference whether its BAD or GOOD as @raksrules said and its applicable only for the CDMA part of the phone.
 
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