The Essential Guide On How To Unlock An iPhone 3GS

The Essential Guide On How To Unlock iPhone's

Today’s the day you at long last completed the contract on your iPhone and that baby is officially all yours. This means that you’re able to use it while traveling abroad with a local SIM card and have the freedom to change networks when you want, right? Don’t start booking your flight to Paris or running to AT&T just yet as, unfortunately, it’s not quite that simple.

So as to stop users from switching over to a rival’s network before they’ve payed off their iPhone or fulfilled their contract, loads of carriers put a SIM lock (also known as a network lock) on their cell phones. This consequently ensures that you, or the person who you sell your pre-owned iPhone to, are stuck with them for the long term. If you’re thinking this sounds like a rather dysfunctional partnership, we’d have a tendency to agree with you. Luckily, along with a little legwork as well as an account in good standing, you are on the way to a SIM-unlocked iPhone very quickly!

Before we proceed, a quick note about the kind of unlocks that are available, and the one's you should avoid! There are apps available on the market offering the ability to unlock your handset yourself, but they require you to jailbreak your cell phone, and this is inadvisable, for numerous reasons. You can do your own investigation into jail-breaking, but it's very risky, and to be avoided. The best way to unlock your iPhone is actually talking directly with your cellular provider. Your journey to a carrier-unlocked iPhone hinges largely on your network, with the procedure being either comparatively quick and easy or painfully difficult. To get you a step closer to a life free from carrier-locked tyranny, we accumulated all the steps to be able to get an iPhone unlock in this comprehensive guide. Please be aware that even though this was written with iPhone owners in mind, the majority of the advice could be used with other smartphones.

What Is SIM Unlocking?

As noted previously, when you buy an iPhone or other smartphone through your network provider, that smartphone is only going to work on that network until you either request to have your service provider unlock it or maybe your carrier automatically unlocks it for you (more on that later). Often known as a SIM unlock, factory unlock, or network unlock, carrier unlocking means removing a network’s restrictions on a device, permitting you to use it with a different cellular provider.

Fortunately, not all iPhones have to be unlocked. For example, if you purchase your iPhone from Apple and purchase it outright, it should already be unlocked and able to use on a variety of networks.

Take note, however, that not all phones purchased outright from third-party retailers are automatically unlocked. For instance, although sold as “unlocked”, smartphone's purchased at Best Buy are in fact considered universal. So, when you insert a Sim initially, the cell phone will basically lock itself to the network linked to the SIM card. Subsequently, seeing that certain service providers like T-Mobile will only unlock your iPhone if you got it directly from them, you may end up getting an permanently network-locked device. Simply put, you wind up paying factory-unlocked prices to get a carrier-locked mobile phone.

Why Should I Unlock My iPhone?

Having a officially-unlocked iPhone comes with a number of advantages including the flexibility to utilize (almost) any network within the Unites States and in another country together with increased resale values.

IMEI-unlocking gives you the ability to use your mobile phone with the cellular provider of your choice, almost whenever and wherever you like (with several exceptions, as you’ll find out later). As an example, if you're currently using T-Mobile but are relocating to a new part of the country with bad T-Mobile coverage, you'll be able to swap to AT&T on a dime

A Carrier-unlocked iPhone makes international travel a breeze. Unlocking also offers you the flexibility to use your smartphone abroad. International roaming fees, costly international plans, and mad dashes for WiFi become a distant memory with an unlocked iPhone. Merely pop in a SIM card from a local carrier and you're golden.

IMEI-unlocked iPhones have far higher resale values.

In the event you don’t anticipate switching service providers or going internationally anytime soon, unlocking your iPhone is still a good idea. If you ever plan on trading in your old iPhone whenever you upgrade, you’ll almost always get more cash for it if the iPhone has already been carrier unlocked due to greater demand for them in the resale market place.

Is it unlawful to IMEI Unlock your phone?

Not at all! As a result of Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act, signed into law by President Barack Obama in 2014, all US-based cellular providers have to allow people to unlock their phones. However, the conditions under which a provider will unlock a cell phone differ greatly from service provider to service provider. Generally speaking, virtually all service providers require you to complete your contract, pay for your financial obligations fully, or at best have an account in good standing before they’ll allow you to unlock your iPhone.

The way to find out if your iPhone is Unlocked

Before beginning the phone-unlocking process, you’ll first want to check if your iPhone has already been unlocked (no need in going through the hassle when you don’t really need to). All you need to do is make sure that you’re connected with WiFi and insert a new SIM card from an alternative service provider and your mobile will do the rest automatically. This verification check normally takes less than a minute to complete as soon as a Sim card has been inserted.

Through the verification procedure, you’ll notice that your iPhone will boot onto a white screen and try to authenticate that it has been unlocked with your carrier. Should Apple confirm that your iPhone is network-unlocked, it will go back to the home screen and signal bars will appear from the new service provider. However, if you see a white screen that says SIM Not Supported, your cell phone has not been unlocked.

How to Unlock iPhones from any Carrier

Once you verify that your phone is definitely locked to your current cellular provider, next you will need to take a look at your provider’s unlocking eligibility requirements. If your iPhone meets their unlocking criteria, you can ask that the handset can be unlocked from their network. As recommended before, both the eligibility requirements and the unlocking process vary from company to company. They all have been outlined below for the major carriers including Verizon, AT&T, Sprint and T-Mobile.

Please be aware that, provided you’ve met the unlock conditions and therefore are completing the network-unlocking directly with your network, asking for your iPhone be unlocked may possibly be absolutely free. If you choose to work through a third party unlocking service, you will need to pay for the privilege, but making use of a 3rd party provider is going to be your only option if you are not the original owner of the phone. So, before you spend money unnecessarily, try using the directions outlined below as a first step.

How To Locate Your iPhone’s IMEI Number

When factory-unlocking your iPhone, you'll have to give your provider the cell phones IMEI number. This unique, 15-digit identifier is essentially your cellphone’s VIN or social security number. To locate your IMEI, on your phone, select Settings > General > About and search to the bottom section where you will see it displayed next to IMEI.

You could also look for the IMEI number on the cell phone housing itself. For older iPhone's (1st-generation SE, 5s, 5c, 5, 6, 6 Plus), the IMEI number will also be printed on the back or the SIM tray.

When you’ve located the IMEI, we strongly recommend that you keep it somewhere for safekeeping.

Unlock an iPhone on AT&T

Unlocking your iPhone from the AT&T network is about as simple as a, b, c. Just run on across to the AT&T unlock portal, answer a few questions, and you'll be well on your way to network-unlocked freedom.

After you submit your request, use your IMEI and request reference numbers to review your AT&T unlock status. Once you acquire your validation text or email, just open it up and click on the confirmation link. That's all there is to it! AT&T will unlock your iPhone within a couple of business days.

For any iPhone to be unlocked from the AT&T network, it must meet the following requirements:

Must not be active on a different AT&T account
If it is a work phone, you must have your employer’s permission to unlock it
If it is an AT&T PREPAID phone, it must be active for at least six months
Must not be reported as lost, stolen, or blocked
Must not have a past-due balance

If the iPhone is part of a term agreement or installment plan, it needs to also adhere to these requirements:

The term agreement must be complete
The device must be active on the AT&T network for at least 60 days
The installment plan must be paid off

For in depth eligibility prerequisites, click here.

Unlock an iPhone on Sprint

Based on when you bought your phone and if it has SIM-unlock capabilities, you have a few different unlock choices. In the event you bought a new iPhone from Sprint after February 2015 (it should be SIM-unlock capable) and it's currently being used on their network, Sprint will unlock it automatically once it meets their qualifications requirements. So, you honestly don’t have to do anything apart from keep your account in good standing. However, if your iPhone hasn't been activated or was purchased prior to February 2015, you’ll have to get in touch with Sprint Customer Service directly to ask for an unlock (either dial *2 on your Sprint phone or ring 888-211-4727).

There are reports from some Sprint customers that the auto-unlock program does not always operate as it needs to, so it’s definitely a good idea to confirm that your iPhone has been unlocked before trying to change to another carrier or advertising your iPhone as unlocked, if you're planning to sell it to a buyback company or on auction web sites.

For an iPhone to be unlocked from the Sprint network, it's got to meet the following requirements:

Must have SIM-unlock capabilities (if it doesn’t, it is MSL (Master Subsidy Lock) locked and you will need to call Sprint for the MSL code)
Must be active on the Sprint network for at least 40 days
Must be on an account in good standing
Must not be reported as lost, stolen, or associated with fraud

If your iPhone is part of a service agreement, lease agreement, or installment plan, it's got to also satisfy these conditions:

Any lease or installment payments must be fully paid
If leased, the end-of-lease purchase option must be fully paid
Any early-termination fees must be fully paid

For in-depth eligibility prerequisites, click here.

Unlock an iPhone on T-Mobile

If your reading this and own an Android mobile phone and your device meets the eligibility requirements, consider yourself lucky: You can unlock it directly from the handset itself. For all you iPhone owners out there, you’ll have to speak to T-Mobile’s Group of Specialists directly (either dial 611 from a T-Mobile iPhone, call 877-746-0909.

For an iPhone to be unlocked from the T-Mobile network, it must adhere to the following conditions:

Must not have been reported as lost, stolen, or blocked
For prepaid accounts, it must have been active on the account for at least 12 months
Must have been purchased directly from T-Mobile
Must be paid for in full

If your iPhone is part of a pre-paid plan, it must also fulfill these requirements:

The account must be in good standing
Must have been active on the account for at least 40 days

For in depth eligibility requirements, click here.

Unlock an iPhone on Verizon

Verizon is, by far and away, the leading service provider to work with for unlocking an iPhone. Why? Because Verizon will automatically unlock your phone 60 days after the purchase of the handset. If you purchased your iPhone at a retail partner, it can be unlocked automatically 60 days after device activation.

There are no catches. You don’t have to pay off your phone, fulfill any special demands, or even contact them to ask to unlock your phone from their network. Provided your iPhone hasn’t been reported stolen or lost, merely wait eight weeks following purchase or activation and your phone will be all set.

Don’t believe us? Just click here.

Once I've Unlocked my iPhone — what do I do now?

Back many years ago, you’d have to hook your iPhone to iTunes and complete a software restore to finish the unlock procedure. Thankfully, it’s much easier today. All you need to do is stick to the same steps you used earlier to determine if your phone is unlocked to start with.

When you don’t have access to a Sim from another carrier, you may still confirm that your iPhone has been unlocked by performing iTunes software restore. Just connect your iPhone with a computer running iTunes and hit the “restore” option. After the restoration process has completed, you should see a message which says “Congratulations, your iPhone has been unlocked.”

Good job! You successfully carrier-unlocked your iPhone! That means your able to use what ever network you wish to now, right? We hate to break this to you, but no. Because of the two different kinds of systems employed in the US, GSM and CDMA, your available network providers is dependent upon the model of your iPhone as well as the original network it was locked to. Specifically, Verizon and Sprint are CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) networks, while AT&T, T-Mobile, and most providers abroad are GSM (Global System for Mobiles) networks.

As you may have guessed, both of these different network types do not talk to each other (because that's too logical). Thankfully, as we approach global 5G access and as older networks are phased out, it will hopefully cease to be a major issue.

To determine which networks you can access depending on these two factors, carry on reading.

AT&T

GSM networks only (AT&T, T-Mobile, international GSM carriers): Original iPhone, iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X

Any carrier worldwide: iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

Sprint

International networks only: iPhone 4s and iPhone 5

Any carrier worldwide: iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

T-Mobile

GSM networks only (AT&T, T-Mobile, international GSM carriers): Original iPhone, iPhone 4, iPhone 4s, iPhone 5, iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X

Verizon

Compatible with any carrier in the world, but with limitations when using GSM networks: iPhone 4s, iPhone 5

Any carrier worldwide: iPhone 5s, iPhone 5c, iPhone 6, iPhone 6 Plus, iPhone 6s, iPhone 6s Plus, iPhone 7, iPhone 7 Plus, iPhone 8, iPhone 8 Plus, iPhone X, iPhone XR, iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, iPhone 11, iPhone 11 Pro, iPhone 11 Pro Max, iPhone SE, iPhone 12 mini, iPhone 12, iPhone 12 Pro, iPhone 12 Pro Max

Will the Unlock last forever?

Yes! Once your phone has been network-unlocked, it will stay like that for the life span of the handset. You can restore your iPhone or update applications without having to worry about your unlock vanishing afterwards.

About This Author

Boyle Carney
Joined: February 18th, 2021

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