“No one ever doubted that the iPhone would be unlocked. It was only a matter of time before someone figured out how to crack the armor that heretofore has kept iPhone users from popping in a SIM card other than the iPhone-specific one that AT&T Wireless supplies with every new iPhone,” Melissa Perenson reports for PC World.
“It seems that the team of someones at iPhoneSimFree.com are the first to successfully pull off this feat. The group says it has unlocked the phone, and will be releasing its software for sale starting next week,” Perenson reports.
“Unlocking the iPhone dramatically widens the phone’s appeal. For one, it means that you won’t be tied to AT&T Wireless’ services and network; you can use whatever local GSM network operates best for your needs–and potentially save money while doing so. Once it’s been unlocked, you can take the phone with you anywhere, and pop in the SIM card of choice,” Perenson reports.
“Engadget says that at the moment, the hack appears ‘restore-resistant’–meaning you won’t have to re-hack your phone after you apply an iPhone update,” Perenson reports. “I’ll be interested to see what the response will be from Apple and AT&T Wireless.”
Full article here.
Engadget’s article here.
A software update.
And they are getting ready to sell mass licenses of —– something.
I guess the procedure of how to unlock the phone. I don’t know where they get the idea that they will make money off of this. 🙁
I guess time will tell.
GOOD!!
MDN Word: “freedom”
How appropriate.
I suspect Apple legal, or ATT legal, will have something to say about this. Sure, the flexibility would be nice, but this will never fly.
How about synching with iTunes ?I’m sure Apple must be validating iphone during synch process.
If you can’t synch your iphone with itunes, then unlocking iphone is not worth it.
Restore resistant? How about Apple not providing any more updates for these “resistant” iPhones?
Yeah, that’s great… iPhone with no visual voicemail and other special services customized by AT&T, no prospects for future enhancements except more hacks, and no accommodating unlimited data plans. And they want to make money off of it?
I see Apple’s legal department in someone’s future…
<sigh>
Okay, I’m only going to say this once. I have not posted anything today except for the joke link to the ZunePhone on the Korea thread. That’s it. Nothing on the “Report: Major Apple event on September 5th”, nor the message above.
I’m not going to post for the rest of the day. When you see my name again, it won’t be me.
-c
MW: ‘enough’
Will you just listen to all these monopolistic posts!
Switching carriers IS A GOOD THING!!
For instance I took a trip and wasn’t able to use my iPhone because there was no AT&T service in the area.
Imagine all those people who need a iPhone yet can’t use it because of limited carrier availability?
Think of the prices if there was a monopoly by AT&T?
Think what Microsoft has done to the quality of the PC experience and you’ll have a idea.
So WAKE UP!! CHOICE IS GOOD!!
Yes, Butters. Choice is good. Just as you have the choice to buy another phone if you need to use a different service. Whatever. I have Verizon. I have no plan to switch anytime soon. I’d like an iPhone, but I’m not throwing a tantrum because it doesn’t work with Verizon. But then, I don’t have this ridiculous sense of entitlement some people seem to have these days…
No visual voicemail, no hack for me. And $20 unlimited data is not bad either.
Yeah, go ahead and “unlock” your iPhone. I guarantee you, this isn’t anything that Apple didn’t anticipate. And I guarantee you that Apple will be able to detect this and at the very least prevent you from updating the software on your iPhone, syncing with iTunes, and they may even give you a well-deserved brick in the process.
And yes, it would be well deserved, because you knew before buying the iPhone what the deal was. It’s a take it or leave it proposition. You don’t want AT&T? Fine. Then it’s your option to not buy an iPhone. But don’t buy it and then start complaining about limitations you already knew it had. It is what it is. And you either buy it or you don’t.
So when you brick your iPhone, don’t start complaining about Apple and AT&T “monopolistic……blah blah blah”.
This company is not going to outsmart Apple, and neither are you. Rob Glaser tried, and golly didn’t that work out so very well.
think we will ever get user reg for names so the stupidity will end?
nah, me either.
“you can use whatever local GSM network operates best for your needs”
cool! so that means i can use…. let me hit google a sec, hang on…. ummm…..
AT&T is an option it looks like.
…and errr.
At&T as well….
hmm.
I’m having a tough time imagining anyone who ‘needs’ an iPhone.
I suppose to have the choice of which crappy machines you run your crappy windows OS is on is good too eh?
Damn Apple and their monopolies!
And in the US, your only other choice for a GSM carrier is T-Mobile.
Coverage wise, talk about going from bad to worse.
And it was Apple’s choice to give at&t an exclusive for now. If you don’t like it, don’t buy an iPhone. Not rocket science.
This is great news for people who want an iPhone now but don’t live in the US. I’ll wait a couple of weeks to see what the testimonials say, but if Apple and Rogers Communications in Canada don’t announce something soon about the iPhone coming to Canada, I suspect a lot of Canadians will be planning day trips across the border thanks to this (and other) unlocking solutions.
isn’t it a DMCA violation to sell software that’s essentially a hack? I’m mean if they can use the DMCA to pull down items that are clearly Fair Use, I would assume that attempting to legal sell and illegal endeavor should be declared illegal.
I’m for the iPhone being opened, I just don’t feel that it needs to start that way, or that 2 years is too long to wait for the possibility of additional carriers. Besides, a number of the features available for the phone are based on AT&T’s willingness to modify their network. I want a fully functional iPhone, not one with missing features.
ChrissyOne:
I think it’s funny how the imposters can’t even spell your name right… lol
I totally agree with “Oops” above. We all know what we got into when we purchased our iPhone, and there is a reason why Apple needs a partner with this. AT&T has a personal stake in the success of the iPhone, because they’re responsible for applying the services. The iPhone not only integrates hardware and software seemlessly, it also had to integrate the network seemlessly as well. Perhaps in a couple of years a completely open system will work, but for know I understand why it’s all tied together.
Of course, if AT&T (and future partners) were smart, they would have contractual language offering Apple those user fees and kickbacks only for as long as the phone was unhacked. And it could easily sue to have those fees negated, now that Apple can’t provide or guarantee an exclusive deal anymore.
I would.
This could conceivably hurt Apple’s bottom line more than it helps it. Without the fees and kickbacks, Apple may have to increase the phone prices significantly to maintain profitable margins.
to Chrissy – This is not Freedom, you already have freedom of choice not to by an iPhone if you don’t like the terms of the licensing agreement, this is a violation of one of the basics that FREE enterprise is built on and people who buy any product intending to violate an agreement they freely make when buying the product should expect to be prosecuted and accept the consequences of their action of intentionally violating a contract that they FREELY entered into..
No kidding. I’m trying to figure out some way of validating my identity in every post. Maybe I could put a link in it to my site or something. That would be kind of a pain… but it’s funny that for whatever reason I am so important that people have to spoof me.
Oh, and if you’re wondering if THIS post is really me, your name means “one ring”, as any scholar of middle-earth should know but might be quite beyond the modest mental capacity of anonymous internet cowards.
-c, signing off.
Okay. I’ll write one more post. I’m changing my nickname as of tomorrow… so from tomorrow, you won’t see any more of the REAL ChrissyOne
to Chrissyone – my previous post was meant for the fake Chrissyone who posted the 3rd post
Dear ChrissyOne — I like the smell of your farts.
On second thought, I am keeping this nickname. Why should I change?
Macs suck. Dell rules. Woo woo!!!
So ChrissyOne will, from this day forward, be known as the artist formerly known as ChrissyOne.
ChrissyOne:
Ah, yes. Not too many people these days get the “one ring” reference! I’m pleasantly surprised a few distinguished individuals still exist.
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Best of luck fighting off the wanna-bes.
And other MDN readers…
Please read
This makes me laugh!
The idiots who buy an iphone to use it unlocked are gonna be in for a big shock.
1. Visual Voicemail WILL NOT WORK.
2. If you have ANY problems with the iPhone and Apple WILL NOT HELP YOU AS YOU WILL NOT HAVE AN AT&T CONTRACT.
3. Dont expect ANY support from your NON AUTHORISED carrier either.
4. Apple is already probably getting the court order drawn-up to stop this company distributing the software. Who I should imagine Apple will be sueing too.
Buy an unlocked iPhone and you are on your own!
Apple’s not going to walk from its cut of ATT revenues so watch out for a software upgrade, very quickly.
So tomorrow, the real ChrissyOne won’t be believed to e who she is? Nice, er, weak try.
re: This is great news for people who want an iPhone now but don’t live in the US. I’ll wait a couple of weeks to see what the testimonials say, but if Apple and Rogers Communications in Canada don’t announce something soon about the iPhone coming to Canada, I suspect a lot of Canadians will be planning day trips across the border thanks to this (and other) unlocking solutions.
—-
Good luck trying to use your unlocked ibrick.
You obvioualy have $500 to wait on an unusable phone.
What an idiot.
i think Chrissy’s posts are easy enough to spot, when they’re real.
seriously – i just checked out all the data plans for T-Mobile in the US – none of them are even close to $20. The plans appear to be $50 a month. How is that better?
how do we know that the code that was hacked was written by apple and not by at&t to work with its sim cards? in the end this hack is both an apple and at&t problem, but the company who’s ultimately responsible for correcting the issue is the company who provides the sim cards and the related code e.g. at&t.
So does this also unlock the iPod part of the iPhone?
As it is now, once you end your at&t service, the iPod stops working. If this hack keeps your iPod working regardless if you have service or not, then this is going to make just about every iPhone buyer happy.
If this truly works without a hitch, and visual voice mail and all the other iPhone features work exactly the same as they do on AT&T’s network, this type of hack will be huge – huge for Apple – and a huge nightmare for AT&T…
…perhaps…
There is little doubt that Apple’s contract with AT&T has Apple responding to these hacks and desposing of them with software updates.
But does Apple want the iPhone to become unlocked? Not likely.
It has been reported that Apple makes up to $15 a month via AT&T’s subscription fee, and that is a ton of free cash for Apple over a two-year period.
For Apple to be selling iPhones to customers that can easily unlock them and run them outside of AT&T’s network – this does not help Apple’s monthly profit coffers…
Count on Apple delivering SW updates in short order that revert the iPhone back to AT&T only, and this type of idea slowly dying on a vine. Who will want to play the revert game over and over again?…
If this truly works without a hitch, and visual voice mail and all the other iPhone features work exactly the same as they do on AT&T’s network, this type of hack will be huge – huge for Apple – and a huge nightmare for AT&T…
…perhaps…
There is little doubt that Apple’s contract with AT&T has Apple responding to these hacks and desposing of them with software updates.
But does Apple want the iPhone to become unlocked? Not likely.
It has been reported that Apple makes up to $15 a month via AT&T’s subscription fee, and that is a ton of free cash for Apple over a two-year period.
For Apple to be selling iPhones to customers that can easily unlock them and run them outside of AT&T’s network – this does not help Apple’s monthly profit coffers…
Count on Apple delivering SW updates in short order that revert the iPhone back to AT&T only, and this type of idea slowly dying on a vine. Who will want to play the revert game over and over again?…
If this truly works without a hitch, and visual voice mail and all the other iPhone features work exactly the same as they do on AT&T’s network, this type of hack will be huge – huge for Apple – and a huge nightmare for AT&T…
…perhaps…
There is little doubt that Apple’s contract with AT&T has Apple responding to these hacks and desposing of them with software updates.
But does Apple want the iPhone to become unlocked? Not likely.
It has been reported that Apple makes up to $15 a month via AT&T’s subscription fee, and that is a ton of free cash for Apple over a two-year period.
For Apple to be selling iPhones to customers that can easily unlock them and run them outside of AT&T’s network – this does not help Apple’s monthly profit coffers…
Count on Apple delivering SW updates in short order that revert the iPhone back to AT&T only, and this type of idea slowly dying on a vine. Who will want to play the revert game over and over again?…
If this truly works without a hitch, and visual voice mail and all the other iPhone features work exactly the same as they do on AT&T’s network, this type of hack will be huge – huge for Apple – and a huge nightmare for AT&T…
…perhaps…
There is little doubt that Apple’s contract with AT&T has Apple responding to these hacks and desposing of them with software updates.
But does Apple want the iPhone to become unlocked? Not likely.
It has been reported that Apple makes up to $15 a month via AT&T’s subscription fee, and that is a ton of free cash for Apple over a two-year period.
For Apple to be selling iPhones to customers that can easily unlock them and run them outside of AT&T’s network – this does not help Apple’s monthly profit coffers…
Count on Apple delivering SW updates in short order that revert the iPhone back to AT&T only, and this type of idea slowly dying on a vine. Who will want to play the revert game over and over again?…
People, there is NO LEGAL TROUBLE for those who use, nor those who build and distribute, this hack. You need to read the most recent rulemaking with respect to the DMCA carefully!! You’ll find the document here:
http://www.copyright.gov/1201/docs/1201_recommendation.pdf
The rule was passed in December (just before iPhone was announced). The one referring to SIM unlocking begins on Page 42.
It is PERFECTLY LEGAL (with respect to DMCA) to unlock, or provide a tool to unlock, a SIM code for the purpose of using legally obtained mobile phone on a network different from the one
I hate it when MDN truncates my posts.
This was mainly for Petey;
There is nothing illegal about unlocking a SIM lock. Check my previous (truncated) message.
Apple cannot (and probably will not) sue anyone for this. Neither can AT&T. While creation of SIM subsidy lock is not in itself illegal, breaking that lock for the purpose of using the phone legally on another carrier is NOT ILLEGAL either (page 42-52 of the above-mentioned rulemaking document).
This event will not affect Apple, nor AT&T in any meaningful way. The number of people who will unlock their phones is minuscule. Majority will continue paying AT&T anyway (myself included).
I wish this company good luck in selling their product. I’m sure they’ll find a receptive audience.
re: If this truly works without a hitch, and visual voice mail and all the other iPhone features work exactly the same as they do on AT&T’s network, this type of hack will be huge – huge for Apple – and a huge nightmare for AT&T…
—
Sorry to burst your bubble but Visual Voicemail is part AT&Ts; data servers.
AT&T invested $100,000s developing it with Apple over a a few years.
You have no chance of accessing any feature that uses the Visual voicemail code.
And believe me, it’s not just Visual Voicemail that you wont be able to access either.
If Apple finds out you are using a hacked iPhone and trying to connect it to iTunes then you can say goodbye to your iTunes account too and all your music.
Apple will suspend your account too.
This hack is not worth it. If you have $500 to waste then goodluck – you are gonna need it.
The ChrissyOne above is not me.
By the way, check out the ads on this page:
Unlock Phones
Unlock Phones quickly and easily with codes from Shoponline!
http://www.shopoline.com
MDN is a fake mac site.
MDN is just interested in the hits.
If Apple (or AT&T) decides to disable your phone simply because you hacked it, you have an iron-clad legal case against Apple. Removing SIM lock is perfectly legal and neither Apple, nor AT&T can do anything about it.
There are two scenarios here that are somewhat different. First one:
You buy the iPhone and activate it on AT&T. You unlock it. You use it with other SIM cards whenever you wish, meanwhile you continue to pay your AT&T monthly bill until your two-year contract is up (I do this all the time with my SE W-600 when I travel overseas, several times a year). Apple MUST continue to support your phone, and AT&T must to allow you to use it on their network;
Second; you buy the iPhone, but activate it with the phony activation software. You unlock it. Well, in this scenario, you may be on your own, depending on Apple’s EULA for the phone. If EULA requires an AT&T activation before their warranty and support can begin, then you potentially may have a brick in the future. However, if you are entitled to Apple’s support the moment you buy the phone, regardless of activation, then you may still be able to have a fully functioning iPhone (minus visual mail) and not worry about Apple disabling it with an update.
MDN is a part of the problem, not the solution. Buy Windows Vista – see the light!
Apple will just do a software update and that will be the end of it.
If apple did a software update and reversed the unlock by a legitimate user, they would be in legal trouble and the user could sue them. Again, unlocking is LEGAL and manufacturers cannot do anything about it.
Before the iPhone, pretty much all GSM carriers in the US (definitely the big ones, Cingular and T-Mobile) would provide instructions to remove SIM-lock to anyone who asked (with some minor restrictions). Sooner or later AT&T will do this for iPhone owners who ask. This is always good for business, as it keeps a customer happy.
This argument depends heavily upon the EULA. If Apple’s EULA states that, in order to enjoy features like iTunes syncing, Visual Voicemail, photo syncing, Google Maps, Safari, etc., you must use AT&T’s service, then unlocking a phone is pretty much an exercise in futility. The iPhone isn’t all that great if half of its features are disabled because you hacked the phone to work on another network. In any event,
I wouldn’t expect these hackers to make any money off of this hack – Apple legal will likely act quickly to shut it down. Even if the hackers were to challenge Apple in court, nothing would get resolved for months to years, at which time the iPhone will be using something completely different to prevent hacking. Plus, I doubt these guys have the resources to fight Apple in court.
Isn’t it illegal for Apple and AT&T to **NOT** allow the unlocking of the iPhone? I thought that it was a law that wireless carriers HAD TO ALLOW unlocking?
I don’t mind people tinkering with iPhones or other devices to make them do what they want. But what I really hate is when fsckers like this company decide to go and sell their “software”. This is a sure-fire way to draw legal attention to this, and it also flies in the face of good community “open-source-like” efforts to do things like hack the iPhone.
Personally, I think Apple probably won’t care too much, but I think they can easily build in an iTunes checker like the one they already use before firmware updates, in order to check for hacked phones. If found hacked, then just don’t update it with any of the upcoming new features (like those when Leopard finally comes out) etc.
MDN: real, as in get real
And to the GIT that keeps pretending to be ChrissyOne – grow up, you stupid kid.
Is it illegal to unlock the iPhone?
Article here:
http://www.engadget.com/2007/08/24/know-your-rights-is-it-illegal-to-unlock-my-iphone/
—
Scott Rose
President, ScottWorld
Certified FileMaker Consultants. Since 1992.
http://www.scottworld.com
Nobody has mentioned the fact that AT&T’s $20 unlimited data plan is much cheaper than anyone else’s.
In reality if this crack affects <~5% of iPhone/at&t sales/users/accounts it will be ignored on the basis of cost/benefit analysis. This is the part that fascinates me:
The software was supplied by an anonymous group of hackers that apparently plans to charge for it.
http://biz.yahoo.com/ap/070824/iphone_unlocked.html
Well I know that the merchants (cockney rhyming slang – look it up) contest that money is blind; and I know that software is a brilliant way to launder money (one disc and an email can be 1 license or 10,000,000 licenses) but show me a way for the little guys to get money through the system anonymously.
In respects of the ethics of this well if people want to mess with kit they own that’s entirely up to them and good luck to them, if they expect others to support them (like carriers providing service) well that’s up to them too. No great conflict there, you takes your choice, know the risk/reward equation or maybe it is just sport, challenge or entertainment.
The real game is keeping people so busy filling in forms, worrying about their mortgage, complying with health and safety overlords, reading overly long and complicated EULAs all in uppercase &c so they don’t have time to worry about whether to hack their iPhone or not.
Ever wondered why Vista sucks?
This is great for people who travel overseas, or like me live in a country where we do not see an iPhone anytime soon.
In Mexico we do not even have an iTunes store.
I will purchase in the States using my USA address, and get the cheapest plan they have, then for the majority of the time I will use my TelMex simm card, and the ATT simm card when traveling out side of Mexico.
Chrissy One is a valued contributor to this web page. False representations are juvenile, inappropriate, and will eventually cause her to leave this site altogether…remember, always, our actions will have consequences.
Lets be respectful folks…
thx.
thx.
thx.
thx.
Ok, here’s the real problem–this “I want everything free–and if you don’t do it my way” attitude are the new PC’rs that have come over from the dark side. You can tell, because everytime they don’t get it free, it should be free, or you didn’t do my way–waaah, waah, waah. As far as I’m concern opening up itunes, and using intel chips will now put apple in the same boat as MSuck–hackers, and freeloaders galore–go back under the cold, dark, dank rock you crawled out of