“Apple today released an unlocked GSM version of the iPhone 5s on its online store for the United States,” Mark Gurman reports for 9to5Mac.
“This version of the iPhone 5s includes the same exact capabilities of the non-unlocked models, but does not include a SIM card,” Gurman reports. “Users who buy this version of the iPhone [16GB – $649, 32GB – $749, 64GB – $849]will need to supply their own SIM card.”
Gurman reports, “The central benefit of an unlocked iPhone is that it can work on many GSM networks across the globe with no contract.”
Read more in the full article here.
[Thanks to MacDailyNews readers too numerous to mention individually for the heads up.]
The Universal iPhone unleashed!
The next step will be to release an iPhone sim card that will recognize what country you are in and offer you a choice of what network you would like to activate.
Thw only way to go if you travel abroad to avoid extortive roaming charges.
And…be nice AT&T to your customers and start showing Apple like appreciation and service, upgrde your corverage to all areas of Big cities without dicrimination, or i’ll use you only when it suits me and not a minut more you greedy bastards. ( hint: for grandfathered unlimited plans).
Kinda redundant given that the “T-Mobile” versions that Apple carries already come unlocked. The only difference is that those phones come with the T-Mobile SIM card installed. Installing a SIM card for another GSM network already requires popping out the SIM tray, so it’s not like a SIM-less iPhone saves any time or hassle.
Ummm. This is not news. Apple sold the iPhone 5S unlocked since opening night. I know because I bought 2 of them. There was a T-Mobile SIM in each phone, but that was simply for convenience (since T-Mobile is the most likely carrier in the US for unlocked iPhones).
The only difference now is you can choose if you want your unlocked phone to have a free T-Mobile SIM card, or no SIM card. The wait time on the “no SIM card” phones is weeks longer than one with a free T-Mobile SIM. That pretty much makes your decision for you.
Just pull out the free T-Mobile SIM if you’re not on T-Mobile. 🙂
Will these also work on CDMA?