not only is the iPhone 6 unlocked, but the t-mobile phones work on verizon!

if someone makes a youtube video or writes a news story about my post, this time around i really would appreciate some credit. saying rigor mortis from apple discussions' is good enough.


it turns out that the iPhone 6 and 6 plus model numbers #1459 and #1522 are universal. and both have the CDMA radio enabled. However, Sprint models are still separate as far as i know. i did not test Sprint. but as far as AT&T, T-Mobile, and Verizon, go , it is the EXACT same phone. i was playing around with my iPhone 6 on launch day. i wanted to see if "ask maggie" was right and the phone was locked to a specific carrier. i tried the T-Mobile and AT&T sims that i had. they do not have service.


however when i inserted my LIVE and ACTIVATED Verizon Sim into my iPhone 6 , my iPhone suddenly became a verizon iPhone. i was able to Place and Receive calls using CDMA, i was able to use DATA services, and i was able to send SMS messages. i assumed that VoLTE was not enabled. and it was not. i assumed

that you had to buy a Verizon model to get Volte. but i was wrong. it just took a while to activate. and i did see use VoLTE in settings, for Voice and DATA


however, since the IMEI and MEID serial numbers are not listed with Verizon, you are not able to either Sign up to verizon, or to transfer service to your new iPhone 6. your service is still tied to your SIM card. and when the iPhone 6 is running and active with your sim card, your device listed on "MY Verizon" will be shown as NON VZW device and it will only show the sim card. but a pre-activated sim card pulling from another device will work in the iPhone 6.


this is just like the iPad Air and the iPad Mini Retina. the only difference between these phones is the serial number is put in some list that tells someone which

carrier it supposed to belong to, and if it is locked or not. and which sim card came with the device. other then that. there are no technical differences between them. except for sprint of course.



whenever i inserted a new sim card into the iPhone 6, it automatically got carrier settings and changed its baseband.

Posted on Sep 22, 2014 9:25 AM

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229 replies

Oct 18, 2014 12:36 PM in response to ianhall186

I have a Verizon upgrade available on a line I don't use and keep suspended. If I use the upgrade to get a Verizon 6 Plus at the contract price ($499. for 128GB), will I be able to use the Verizon 6 Plus on my AT&T account using my AT&T SIM card? I currently have an iPhone 6 on AT&T but want a 6 Plus. $1,020. for an unlocked 6 Plus including sales tax. I'm a little confused because you indicate other carrier's unlocked phones can be used on Verizon but will a contract Verizon phone be locked to Verizon by default? Going to buy from Apple so it comes unopened and not activated.

Oct 18, 2014 2:29 PM in response to jackfromcamarillo

Jack, to clarify my earlier post, last year I purchased a non-contract Verizon phone directly from Apple, and slipped my AT&T sim card in and all worked perfectly. I'm not positive that the same will hold true for buying a Verizon phone on contract, but somehow I believe I've read it would. You could always try, and if it doesn't work, just return the Verizon phone within the 14 days to Apple.

Oct 20, 2014 2:32 PM in response to rigormortis

As far as I understand from hours spent researching, the iphone 6+ A1522 CDMA (verizon flavor) is factory unlocked. Can anyone on this thread confirm this? Also, Does anyone have a Verizon 6+ and can take a screen shot of the regulatory page (settings>general>about>legal>regulatory) I am looking to see if this phone has certification for Japan (which would be listed on the regulatory page) as I am moving there for a two year contract on Nov. 1st. I would like to have a phone that I can freely use between Japan and USA Over the next two years By swapping sims for each country.

Oct 23, 2014 12:40 PM in response to bmc205

Just wanted to give an update to my situation...I saw that my closest Apple Store had the Verizon 6 back in stock, so I called and ended up talking to an Apple representative that was not in the store. I won't bore everything with all the details of the conversation, but the gist of it is that they have changed their stance on selling folks iPhones at full price without activating. He assured me that I would not have a problem purchasing a Verizon iPhone 6 at full price without activating.


The only strange thing is that apparently they are unable to reserve a phone for store pickup unless you are a current Verizon customer. He also said he could not give me information on how many phones were in stock...I guess that's an Apple policy. So now I just have to take the risk that in the hour and a half it takes to get to an Apple Store that they don't sell out!


I'll update again when I confirm the above information.

Oct 23, 2014 9:21 PM in response to bmc205

So it turned out I met no opposition in purchasing a full price Verizon iPhone 6 from the Apple Store. So perhaps they have changed their tune on this. I did however have trouble with Apple and their inventory system for their stores. I was told that the availability online was a live representation of inventory in the store. So as I was traveling to my destination Apple Store, I was constantly refreshing the online inventory. I even checked on my way into the store to be sure they still had what I came for. I was very surprised when the first employee I met told me they were completely out of stock. It amazes me that even the employees are unable to actually physically go and check inventory...they rely solely on the iDevices that they carry around with them. Thankfully, someone that was going to buy a couple iPhones decided not to right before I left, and I was able to get one.


Anyway, the take home point from what I wanted to add is that it looks like currently Apple Store employees are not giving folks a hard time that want to purchase a specific carrier iPhone at fully price without activating. Now you just have to actually find a store that has them in stock...

Oct 25, 2014 5:16 PM in response to bmc205

OK,the history. I got an iPhone 6 from Att with plans on moving next year. I called Att and they confirmed they don't have good coverage were I'm looking to buy property. So back to the Apple Store to return the phone. After reading this post I decided it would be best to buy a Verizon moddle giving me all the carier chooses in the US (besides sprint, but I will neve use sprint anyway).

I had originally bought a Verizon online with the Apple Store banking that they come shipped turned off and hoping the Att sim would work.


SIde note backup plan. I wanted the 128gb moddle. $399 in contract, $35 activation fee, 350 early term fee when done with 2yr cintract and Verizon said I could cancel anytime, no ine or 2 month minimum. So this is what I was going to do......Get the phone with cintract, pay term fee but tell them you just don't like contracts and keep the line active, then have them unlock it if it needed it then turn the account off. It would have been maybe $50 cheaper then paying full $850 after the activation fee and a couple days service.this needed to be a 2 yr contract. Att is even cheaper with the $325 term fee then unlock it, but I dint know if they have a minimum service like one month required first.


Well ell I never tried the activate and term fee plan since the local Apple Store got some in this morning. I told them I needed device only. They asked why and I said because I have a pending order with the online Apple Store and Verizon won't accept another app from me until I camcle it and the. It might take 24 hours before the approval gets reset. They didn't question it and sold the phone at cost to me. I out my Att sim in it, turned it on and all is good. Updated to 8.1 and still working great. I then canceled the order on the online store. I was even able to finance it with the apple card I had approved with the online store even though I didn't receive the card yet. The rep pulled up a web page, I out in my information and he scanned a QR code and it went to the apple card.


Now for the question. I don't have the option to turn off or on LTE like on a Att phone, this has to do with carrier setting update. I now need to figure out how to get the latest carier update file for Att and I beleive I can use itunes to install it. Anyone know we're I can get the carrier files? I did have Att change the emei number in my account and maybe it will get pushed to the phone? Only time will tell with that theory.


IM happy, that's my story, now when I move I can use any GSM sim based carier or even Verizon. It will depend on who has the best service in that area.

Oct 26, 2014 8:13 AM in response to sjdavie

As soon as you connect the new iPhone to iTunes, it will ask either before or after you sync it if you want to update your carrier settings. I'm waiting for a 6 Plus I ordered from Apple for Verizon that I plan to use on AT&T. If I can't get it to work properly on AT&T, I can always return it. I suspect I'm not going to have any issues as long as I remove the Verizon SIM card before turning it on. Let me know how you make out.

Oct 26, 2014 12:48 PM in response to rigormortis

I purchased a Verizon Iphone 6 from the Apple store and without turning it on, removed the SIM card and insrted a H2O prepaid SIM. I contacted H2O, and they transferred my old number to the Iphone (my previous phone was also H2O, but the card was a different size). They also sent out the configuration for the data setup. This all took about 5 minutes, and the phone is working perfectly on the H2O card. My phone bill averages about $7.00 per month from H2O. Back in the day when I had ATT it was about $100.00 for similar service.

Oct 26, 2014 4:20 PM in response to rigormortis

I have read through this forum. Perhaps time for me to find if I am reading correctly and to present my situation.


The following statements seem to be true, PLEASE correct me if not:


1. The TMobile and Verizon versions if purchased in full are unlocked. Tmob from online or in apple store and verizon in apple store as device only.


2. No one has mentioned purchasing an Att version at full price. I don't know if apple stores are selling them at full price and unlocked like the Tmob and verizon versions??? In theory should be able to buy on Next plan go in to store and pay off next plan immediately, but will probably be locked.


3. Att, TMob and Verizon HARDWARE are identical and all radios are active (not shut off)...in theory work on same LTE bands and what not depending on which SIM installed. Sprint version may be different? I doubt I would ever go back to sprint unless I absolutely had to.


4. Verizon customer service is not very helpful if you do not have their version. But all their features do work. However, some may not if on a prepay plan.


My situation...I am currently on Att. Will probably stay with Att at least in the short term. I assume Att will give up an unlock code if I have the phone paid off and maintain service for 60 days according to their unlock policy I found online. Ultimately, like many researching, I want the MOST FLEXIBILITY with provider choice down the road and resell value. I have strongly considered straight talk in the past and have even test drove their service. It worked well where I tried it. So, which version to get? In theory, all three are the same. Att version have to wait for the unlock code. TMobile and Verizon immediately unlocked. Perhaps best to get Verizon model just in case ever wanted to use verizon service...make their customer sevice happy. Only concern with verizon model is the opposite...how is Att going to treat me when I try to set up the the Verizon model on Att. I will need to get an Att nano sim activated as my current phone uses a micro sim so I cant just swap. I do know someone who already has an Att version, perhaps I could use their phone to get the nano sim if need be. T Mobile seens to be the most willing to help regardless of phone version.


Wow, if you read all of this...awesome.

Oct 26, 2014 4:59 PM in response to iApplesUser

All that seems right. I have an AT&T Sim in my iPhone 6 already. My plan is to just put that SIM in the Verizon 6 Plus and not have to do anything.Sync it with iTunes, update the carrier settings and go. If I want to use it overseas, just replace the SIM


if you have a phone already and want to use it with AT&T then sign up for service and get a free SIM at an AT&T store and you're off to the races


Same if you want to go to Verizon or T Mobile


Once you have the phone any carrier will give you a SIM


The key is to make sure you're not locked in to a carrier out of the box with the SIM you get from Apple

Don't buy the phone from any carrier or at an Apple a Store, order it online through Apple only for Verizon or T Mobile so it comes inactivated


THen you can activate it with any carrier without being locked in to one carrier

Oct 26, 2014 8:06 PM in response to jackfromcamarillo

looks fairly acurate. But he issue of some users having problems with the Verizon Sim card getting certain features activated and the fact that Verizon doesn't like you to have other unknows serial number phones or non Verizon serial number phones on their network I figured it would be safer to buy the Verizon phone.

Plus I believe the Verizon phone supports TD LTE which is the next generation LTE and none of the other phones Mention this being active in the specs.

as for what frequencies or radios are active they can only be turned on for the chip manufacture. So it's possable Att requested to have CDMA radio disabled?

I have not read any report showing the Verizon Sim card will work in an AT&T iPhone six, so I'm not sure about that part. But I did out the Verizon sim in my now unlocked iPhone 5s today and it said no service, but prompted me to call a 1-800 number. When I called it I found out that it was Verizon's number. So that made me go hmmm?


I bought the Verizon device only from the store, and I still have when your contract left with AT&T for the iPhone 5s. I took the Sim card out of the 5S and put it into the iPhone six and everything came up and it's working great. I called AT&T and told them I did a phone swap and they changed the EME I number on my account to the iPhone 6 EME I number, then the following day I was able to submit an unlock request for my iPhone 5s even though technically I have a year left on my contract. I received the confirmation of the unlock for the 5S today and I successfully unlocked my 5S so I can sell it and recoup some of my cost for the device only Verizon phone iPhone 6 that I purchased.


So now I feel confident that the Verizon phone will give me the most options next year, even if I chose Verizon and that all the features will work without the need to buy a prepaid phone just for the SIM card.

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not only is the iPhone 6 unlocked, but the t-mobile phones work on verizon!

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