Carrier charges money for iPhone unlock

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Carrier charges money for iPhone unlock

Hey guys. So, straight to the point. I have an iPhone 4, purchased from Omnitel by a person (not a company). Contract has ended around 2 years and 4 months ago. However, Omnitel states that I must pay 100LTL (around 40$) for a factory unlock. They say that I have 1 month time after the contract has ended to unlock my phone free of charge. After that they refuse to let you unlock the phone for free. However, in the list (http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1937) here, Omnitel doesn't seem to even offer Carrier Unlock. This information is probably out of date, but is it possible to actually get my phone unlocked free of charge? Like if I send my IMEI directly to apple, with a print of my contract? I do not want to pay for something that all (if not, then most) carriers offer for free with no expiration date. Thank you in advance!

iPhone 4, iOS 7.1

Posted on Mar 11, 2014 11:36 AM

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Answer 1

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Limnos

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411,193 points

Mar 11, 2014 11:38 AM in response to Rolas1

It's nothing to do with Apple. It's between you and your carrier, sorry.

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Answer 2

KiltedTim

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195,471 points

Mar 11, 2014 11:40 AM in response to Rolas1

Rolas1 wrote:

is it possible to actually get my phone unlocked free of charge? Like if I send my IMEI directly to apple, with a print of my contract?

No.

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Answer 3

Rolas1 Author

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Mar 11, 2014 11:42 AM in response to Limnos

But why is it okay for carrier to charge money for something that is entirely free. It's not fair at all. The contract has ended, they got theirs, I got mine, the iPhone is fully mine now they shouldn't force me to use their carrier if I do not want to, and my phone is no longer required to be undeir their SIM card since I payed for my device fully.

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Answer 4

Mar 11, 2014 11:48 AM in response to Rolas1

Who lied and said life was fair?

They charge you because they can.

If you don't like it, take your business to a carrier who respects and treats you the way you want.

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Answer 5

KiltedTim

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195,471 points

Mar 11, 2014 11:51 AM in response to Rolas1

Complain to your government. No one here can do anything about it.

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Answer 6

Limnos

Level 10

411,193 points

Mar 11, 2014 11:52 AM in response to Rolas1

Again, it's nothing to do with Apple and they won't intercede.

What's fair and what's legal isn't always the same. If they had those rules buried 10 layers down on a web site but you didn't read them when you signed the contract then they will just say they were there for you to read and that's their policy. You're actually lucky they even have that late policy. Some carriers won't unlock at all.

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Answer 7

Rolas1 Author

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Mar 11, 2014 11:53 AM in response to Limnos

Yeah, there was unlimited free unlock rule when I got the phone, but during the time it changed. And the funny thing is that Omnitel is the only carrier which sells iPhones with contracts in my country. Anyway, thank you both...

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Answer 8

Mar 11, 2014 11:54 AM in response to Rolas1

Rolas1 wrote:

But why is it okay for carrier to charge money for something that is entirely free. It's not fair at all.

Capitalism is frequently not fair. The carrier charges what the market will bear. Try calling the carrier's customer service and asking to speak to a supervisor.

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