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Buying a Hong Kong second-hand iPhone 3GS...any guidance please?

I'm currently in Thailand, and I'm looking at buying a 16GB iPhone 3GS. This 3GS is from Hong Kong, therefore it is FACTORY UNLOCKED. I will be taking this phone back to the USA to use with AT&t. The usage says that lifetime talk time is around 1 day and 14 hours (I cant remember exact number).

Anyway...will this phone still work ok back in the USA? What things should I look for to determine is the phone is still functioning perfectly? Is 1 day 14 hours a long time? Can anyone give me any guidance to help me determine if this phone is in working order? Also, how do I tell if the phone really is factory unlocked as the iPhones are that are sold in Hong Kong?

Thanks everyone!

Imac, Mac OS X (10.5.6), Macbook Pro - aluminum unibody

Posted on Feb 20, 2010 3:24 AM

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1 reply

Feb 20, 2010 3:36 AM in response to JCMoney

If the phone is truly officially unlocked, it will work on any GSM network with the proper activated sim. You can easily check if in fact it is unlocked by putting any carriers sim in the phone(the sim need not be activated). You should not get any error messages. However, that doesn't tell you whether it was officially unlocked, just that the phone is unlocked. You can find out if it was officially unlocked by restoring it in itunes. If it was not officially unlocked, the restore will lock the phone back to the original carrier it was locked to. Warrant & support are only provided in the country of original purchase, thus if you have a problem in the US, the phone will have to be returned to Hong Kong for any and all warranty & support issues. You can check the phone's warranty here:

https://selfsolve.apple.com/agreementWarrantyDynamic.do

Buying a Hong Kong second-hand iPhone 3GS...any guidance please?

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