How To: Unlock Your Phone November 9, 2008
Posted by Nik G. in : How-To , trackback
Picture this scenario, you want — no, NEED — a new phone that just isn’t available on your carrier, for example those who want an iPhone but lack AT&T service, or others who want a T-Mobile phone but not their wireless plan. Or maybe you’re traveling overseas soon and by unlocking your phone, you avoid those outrageous roaming charges.
If so, I have some good news for you: you can easily unlock any GSM phone by calling the carrier whose branded the phone or by using the internet to search for the unlock code.
But I have to warn you, this is only available if both your original phone and your phone-to-be have SIM cards; if they arent GSM carriers, I hate to say it, but you arent qualified. See below for the list of GSM/SIM card phones and greater detail for unlocking your phone.
AT&T, T-Mobile, or Rogers (for our Canadian friends): Congratulations, you qualify. Verizon, Sprint, or Alltel, please play again.
Back to the process, if you have one of the aforementioned GSM carriers and two different network phones, then you’re ready to begin. Now, there are two ways to go about this, you can try to do it from the internet for free or by paying a fee to get it done. The second way — the way I unlocked my AT&T Blackberry 8800 for T-Mobile — is to simply call the carrier that sold the phone first. We’ll get to both methods though so you can see which one suits your fancy.
***CAUTION*** THIS CAN BRICK YOUR PHONE AND RENDER IT USELESS!!!! PROCEED WITH CAUTION!
The Internet Way
First, Google your phone model and put “Unlock codes” after it (example: Blackberry 8800 Unlock code). If that doesn’t work, then try going to one of these sites: http://unlockitfree.com/unlock.php (this one only works for Nokia’s) or http://bilemo.com/solfinder/.
The next step, as mentioned in the sites above, is type in your 15-digit IMEI number, obtainable by typing *#06# into your phone. What will come up is a 15 digit number that the site can use to find your unique unlock code. Once it’s done searching, follow the instructions on how to enter the code from the site and use the codes given. If the code works, then congrats! Your phone is unlocked! If that doesn’t work, then you’re going to have to go with the second method.
The Carrier Way
(Don’t worry, this way won’t brick your phone, but it could incur some charges so make sure it’s free)
This way is a little bit easier than the internet way and, if you or a friend have been with the carrier for more than 90 days, they’ll do it for free.
Just call the carrier that originally sold the phone (the brand on the phone) and tell them that you’re traveling overseas. They will check your account and if they see that you’ve been with them for 90+ days, they’ll begin to help you unlock your phone. Make sure to follow all their instructions and have the IMEI code (see above paragraph) ready. After talking to them and getting the code, just do what they tell you and Voila! Your phone is unlocked!
There you go, you can now use your phone with another carrier (or another carrier’s phone with your carrier). Now we gotta ask- what phone do you want to unlock and which carrier do you want to use it on? Let us know in the comments.
Inspiration and references from the October 2008 physical copy of PCWorld magazine.
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