AT&T refusing to unlock my iPhone 4 because I made a warranty claim with Apple?

[slugg]

Less than a month after I got my iPhone 4, I had the phone exchanged for another one at the Apple store under warranty. Now AT&T is claiming that because it wasn't the original phone I bought directly from AT&T, they refuse to unlock it.

Anyone have any creative solutions? Any similar experiences? Google is failing me.

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

So it's been 2 years but since you got it replaced a month into your contract they won't unlock it?

 

[slugg]

So it's been 2 years but since you got it replaced a month into your contract they won't unlock it?

They're telling me it's because it's not the original IMEI number that I activated when I got the phone. That since I got a new phone, it is not eligible for an unlock. What a bunch of crap.

 

[TheStu]

Are you out of contract?

 

[Bateluer]

Are you out of contract?

This. If you're out of contract, AT&T has no legal leg to stand on.

 

[mmntech]

So unlock it as in be able to run on any network? Why don't you just use Sn0wbreez?

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

So unlock it as in be able to run on any network? Why don't you just use Sn0wbreez?

Because the iPhone 4 is only unlockable at 01.59.00 and if you've been updating regularly your baseband has been updated past that. Plus with the new policy of AT&T unlocking iPhones, he should not have to go through hoops to get his iPhone unlocked.

 

[slugg]

Are you out of contract?

Yup, I'm out of contract.

I'm going to call again tomorrow and hopefully get domestic customer service. Maybe that'll make a difference.

I want it to be legitimately unlocked for a couple reasons. First of all, I don't want to rely on a hack that may fail at any time without warning. Second of all, I'd like to increase the resale value of my phone.

I do plan on ditching AT&T; the price is just ridiculous. By switching to Straight Talk for $45 a month, I get unlimited everything and the only thing I lose is Apple's visual voicemail. I can just replace that with YouMail, which is actually a tad better. Straight Talk uses AT&T's infrastructure/network anyways, so the actual service will remain the same. So what the hell, why not?

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

Yup, I'm out of contract.

I'm going to call again tomorrow and hopefully get domestic customer service. Maybe that'll make a difference.

I want it to be legitimately unlocked for a couple reasons. First of all, I don't want to rely on a hack that may fail at any time without warning. Second of all, I'd like to increase the resale value of my phone.

I do plan on ditching AT&T; the price is just ridiculous. By switching to Straight Talk for $45 a month, I get unlimited everything and the only thing I lose is Apple's visual voicemail. I can just replace that with YouMail, which is actually a tad better. Straight Talk uses AT&T's infrastructure/network anyways, so the actual service will remain the same. So what the hell, why not?

Who did you originally call?

You can always send an email to Apple (timcook@apple.com or something like that).

 

[slugg]

Who did you originally call?

You can always send an email to Apple (timcook@apple.com or something like that).

611 directly on the AT&T phone, which is customer service. But that was on a Sunday... the call was clearly routed to a foreign call center.

I'll try my luck tomorrow when I know I'll talk to the "main" service center. They're probably more likely to escalate it, or just use common sense.

 

[power_hour]

Email the Apple CEO. AT&T's answer is bullshit.

 

[slugg]

I called again during normal hours and it wasn't an issue. They asked me why I wanted to unlock it, I told them because I was switching carriers, and they tried to convince me not to switch, of course. I told them they'd have to match Straight Talk's price, which I know is possible because Straight Talk is just a middleman to AT&T, but they wouldn't. So whatever, I don't care

 

[ChAoTiCpInOy]

I called again during normal hours and it wasn't an issue. They asked me why I wanted to unlock it, I told them because I was switching carriers, and they tried to convince me not to switch, of course. I told them they'd have to match Straight Talk's price, which I know is possible because Straight Talk is just a middleman to AT&T, but they wouldn't. So whatever, I don't care

So everything worked out and they unlocked your iPhone?

 

[slugg]

Correct.

 

[vshah]

just hope you are aware of straight talk's data use limits and consequences (getting kicked off after 2 warnings or something like that). I think they warn you if you use over 100mb of data in a day. if I were you, i'd port your AT&T number to google voice now, so you'll always have control of it.

 

[Bateluer]

just hope you are aware of straight talk's data use limits and consequences (getting kicked off after 2 warnings or something like that). I think they warn you if you use over 100mb of data in a day. if I were you, i'd port your AT&T number to google voice now, so you'll always have control of it.

This is good advice. Porting your main number to Google Voice not only allows you a great deal of flexibility to carrier hop as you wish, you'll also be able to make calls from any Android tablet without having to distribute a new number to anyone. Bonus for the consumer.

I plan to do the same when my Verizon ETF gets low enough.

 

[shyyah23]

Are you out of contract?