Dead iPhone 3GS after ATT Unlock

Question

Level 1

26 points

Dead iPhone 3GS after ATT Unlock

After I upgraded to a 4S, I kept my 3GS in hopes of someday unlocking it for my wife to use on t-Mobile. I was pleased to hear that ATT and Apple would provide an Unlock for out of contract iPhones. I got the unlock and everything went well for about week. Then one morning the 3GS was completely dead. I tried every reset and plugging it in to every type of charger. Still dead. I even took into the Apple Store and they said they couldn't do anything and would replace the 3GS for $150. This phone worked fine until the unlock, it may be coincidence but phone has never been dropped, or wet and is grreat condition. $150 is not an excessive amount if I can unlock it, which Apple says I can. I thought about replacing the battery for about $25 but Apple says that if I open it up the $150 is off the table. I would like to keep this phone since it is already unlocked and if I replace the battery could Apple really tell.

Any thoughts would be appreciated.

MacPro, Mac OS X (10.6.7)

Posted on May 4, 2012 6:37 AM

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Answer 1

gdgmacguy

Level 7

21,885 points

May 4, 2012 6:58 AM in response to guidingbyte

Thoughts on what? You want that phone so it can be used on T-Mobile, pay for the replacement. Not much to think about, really.

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Answer 2

guidingbyte Author

Level 1

26 points

May 4, 2012 7:18 AM in response to gdgmacguy

It would help to know if others;

had ATT unlock their 3GS and were not having battery drain issues.

had replaced the battery and brought a dead 3GS back to life.

had gotten a replacement phone and were able to unlock it.

had replaced a battery and Apple still replaced the phone. Do they actually open the phone before they replace it. There is one screw that has a security label over it and in order to change the battery you would have remove that label.

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Answer 3

Jan 31, 2015 2:42 PM in response to guidingbyte

When ATT unlocked my iphone 3gs, it also turned into a brick. Completely died. I was traveling in Europe at the time, and wanted to switch out the sim card. When it died, boarding passes, reservations, directions, contacts, camera, etc, all gone. Totally aggravating. I had replaced a few parts over the years. It was old, but it still worked great, before the unlock.

Anyway, when I got home, I took out the battery and tested it, and sure enough it still had 3.5v. (I had replaced the battery maybe a year before.) And just for my own edification, I replaced the dock connector, thinking maybe that was the cause. Nope. Still wouldn't even be recognized on USB...let alone itunes.

When I went into Apple store, they confirmed that the phone was probably too old to support the software/change. Fair enough. But apparently, ATT unlocking phones has been problematic. Here's an recent example:

http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303559504579195881629809394

If it happens to you, I suggest demanding a credit from the carrier. ATT gave me $170. I bought a used, factory-unlocked GSM iphone 5s. swappa.com worked great. And going non-contract cut my mobile phone bill by two-thirds.

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Answer 4

deggie

Level 10

167,177 points

Jan 31, 2015 4:09 PM in response to kookla143

You have to be a subscriber to read that. I've never had a problem unlocking an AT&T phone.

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Answer 5

KiltedTim

Level 10

195,189 points

Jan 31, 2015 5:40 PM in response to guidingbyte

If your phone was legitimately unlocked by AT&T and you get an out of warranty replacement, the replacement will be unlocked as well.

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