iPhone 5 bought in the USA does not send text messages in Russian networks

How is the seller responsible, he never was in Europe, nor does he have the access to European networks info. Nor did anyone have that info, until you guys started trying doing stuff, cause Apple keeps all info about new devices secure. If you d like you can confront the seller, there also 30 days return period for apple phones, no question asked.

"Verizon iPhone works with the same sim so you can forget the bandwidth thing"

I don't see att guys here, so it is, but you do know better..., I digress.

Even for mine one it says unlocked.... but still can't send SMS.

So stll the source of the problem is very blurry , we would need advices from someone that is truly informed about this topic.

What is still unclear:

1. Does the sms sending error happen on ALL the Sprint phones used outside USA with a non Sprint SIM card?

2. Does that same phone used with a Sprint contract work outside USA (I mean can they send messages?)

3. If this Sprint iPhone 5 is locked, as many claim, why my IMEI results to be unlocked (accordingly with http://dev.mk/2012/08/dev-mk-iphone-imei-checker-with-simlock-status-what-happen ed/) and why I'm still able to use in Europe with my local carrier SIM all the services except sending SMS?

4. Let's say it is a frequences problem... are SMS received and sent on different frequences? (hard to belive and I'm able to receive SMS). I'm not technical enough to tell if this could be the problem.

5. On the three phones I tested, both the Sprint ones do not send SMS's, while the Verizon one does. Hard to belive it is an hardware failure, since I tested on two devices, but could it be possible?

6. I was also able to reproduce the problem with two different SIMs, both working on the Verizon iPhone 5, so it is not the sim.

7. What software is installed on the phone (other than the firmware) which may lead to carrier specific features? Did Sprint provided or requested to Apple specific code which may lead to SMS send problems?

8. Is it possible that a similar problem may be solved by a future iOS update?

9. Do officially unlocked iPhone 5 devices work correctly in Europe? Sprint forum is full of people explaining how they got their phone unlocked... anyone with an iPhone 5 able to send sms in Europe?

10. GSM vs CDMA... aren't SIM based phones all GSM?

All the people that wrote on this forum up to now (included myself) are unable to aswer most of these questions (even if we probably share the same SMS/iphone5 issue). So I really hope someone can jump in and bring some light.

Pointing the finger to Apple store sales guys who sold a phone to (too) eager international customers will not help at all, even if I agree this was unfair if the problem of Sprint branded phones was known.

Thanks

Giulio

Hi Giulio, about the IMEI check you should try few, dev.mk is not accurate ... Mine too is "unlocked" on this website check, but "locked" on all others. it's locked no doubt on that, I really believe that we are not supposed to use our phone at all like we can do now, I am pointing Apple store US because they are the only responsible of that issue, Sprint iPhone are locked and should not be sold without a Sprint contract, it did not happen only with few people but hundreds and hundreds, how can Apple will deal with that now ?

You are right, another site reports my phone as locked.

There is no official response on that site, but all your phones are locked, not that you are going to trust me.

Link to feed back to apple website is provided in my first post.

On that (community forum) site, apple employees are not allowed by terms of service to represent apple.

It is way easier to beleive people who say "yes" to you, so I am not insulted that you didn't trust me.

Or so, I keep saying to myself.

Contact Apple is useless (JMHO), you more then welcome to do so.

I do not think the fact, that phone is locked matters (JMHO)

Link to developer forum is provided in my first post as well.

Good luck to you guys!

So there is no hope that someone from Apple pays attention on what we are saying here ?... so upset to get ripped off by Apple store

http://www.google.ca/url?sa=t&rct=j&q=youtube%20anna%20german%20nadezhda&source= web&cd=1&cad=rja&ved=0CCMQtwIwAA&url=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.youtube.com%2Fwatch%3Fv%3D 6wJ7BJ7ByqA&ei=OsxtUPGOHqWsywHtoICgBA&usg=AFQjCNGDffJ2snoLdEVrSQ5jAG8cmj8yRA

? can't find it ... so boring

"How is the seller responsible, he never was in Europe, nor does he have the access to European networks info."

I believe that the " what to do/sell/say to people who wants to use the phone outside US " was a big chapter in the staff brief before the lauch day 1 in every Apple store, every body asked them 100 times this question and they all had the same answer so they were briefed, it is not a question of European network knowledge.

"Nor did anyone have that info, until you guys started trying doing stuff, cause Apple keeps all info about new devices secure."

we are not doing stuff we just try to use our phone ...? If they have all info why they don't explain to us what happen

"If you d like you can confront the seller, there also 30 days return period for apple phones, no question asked."

Sure I would do that if I were in US and no wasting my time on that forum, but now it's too late we are far and I thought this forum was a way to alert Apple about such an issue

As you have been told on more than one occassion, this is a user forum and everyone who replies to your posts is a user of Apple products just like yourself.

Apple do NOT monitor these forums and it does make that clear when you sign up as a user here on the forums.

If you want to give Apple feedback about your problems, then give it to Apple directly. Try going to http://www.apple.com/feedback.

Also, whatever you were told in the US, no unlocked iPhone 5's are for sale there at present. It does not matter what you were told by either Apple or Sprint, unlocked iPhone 5's have not been released for sale in the US yet. Remember also that contract free, that Sprint might have been referring to is not the same as unlocked. You can purchase the phone full price contract free, but this still does not mean that the phone is unlocked.

That is the problem when you want something that much and you purchase it in a different country, especially the US and then discover that the phone will not work properly.

In the end, if you wanted and iPhone 5 that was truly officially unlocked, you should have purchased from the UK and then you would have had a better chance of it working.