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Hello everybody!
Does anybody know if the iPhone can be brought w/o activating through att, and hacked to accept any other sim?
I regret asking such a newb question, but since I have not been keeping track, all I can get w/the fu is crackit for 15.00...
In an ideal world, I would: not pay the extra 20 on my att bill, use a different sim when traveling, and... well, have an iPhone.
Thanks in advance for your help.
ps: I currently have a sony w300, with a cingular sim, if it makes any difference.
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must be activated at time of purchase -- ATT network only -- and will be that way for another 3.5 years
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What's the source of the 3.5 years?
I wanted to get one in the next year and was hoping for them to loosen the strings sooner.
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This could be horrible misinformation on my part but I thought the original contract with ATT was for 3 years. Since that was just over a year ago (I think), I was holding out that the iPhone could be freed up in just under 2 years from now. That was part of the reason I bought mine when I did. I figured I could ride out 2 years and switch back to T-Mobile if they were then going to carry it.
It's not a terrible problem for me if I'm incorrect but I'd just as soon have the freedom to go with a "better" provider like T-Mobile in 2 years.
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Your best bet is to get an original iPhone. There is no totally easy or certain way to both jailbreak and unlock the 3G iPhones--and don't expect there to be anytime real soon. Is it/will it be/possible? Yeah, but it's not a snap like it is with the original iPhone. The differences between the two models, in terms of hardware improvements or improved speed are negligible. If you want to use an AT&T contract, get a new iPhone. If you want to use your own SIM card in an unlockable iPhone, get an original iPhone, period.
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Like a broken record - iPhone's 3G won't work on T-mobile's network in the US. So getting a 3G phone and not using ATT only gets you a first gen iPhone with GPS. That said, you then need to find a way to buy one without activating it, buy a turbosim or other device to use a non-ATT SIM, and not run firmware updates (as Apple may find a way to by-pass items such as turbosim).
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I've never seen it stated anywhere, categorically, that the contract is either three or five years.
I've seen several references that various tech types have said what they think it is. Some have said they "understand" it's five, then others have said they understand it's three, and some have said it's back to five... Nothing definitive from Apple or at&t.
I'm hoping that one day at&t will give discount plans for the 'Phone.
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IIRC, Steve said 3yr exclusive with ATT when the iPhone was intro'd.
