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How to unlock iPhone from network providers or 3rd party services.

Updated on February 27, 2016

Get your iPhone unlocked from your cellular network provider for free

Today we are going to list down different ways and techniques which can help you in getting your iPhone unlocked right from the desk of your official cellular services provider. If you are customer of 3 Mobile, AT&T and O2 UK then there is a good news for you as now you can easily get your iPhone unlocked for free. Yes, cell phone contract providers are now offering a great deal for customers all over the world which means there is nothing to worry about your monthly contract fees as your iPhone 6 is one step away from official Factory unlock service. Read through the article and find magical ways of getting your iPhone unlocked officially!

What is official iPhone unlocking from network provider and how it works?

A few years ago, it was impossible for people like us to get our contract based iPhones unlocked from any company but after the invention of different iPhone factory unlock vendors online, cellular network providers are also started unlocking iPhones of their loyal customers. iPhone unlocking from network providers basically requires you to become a loyal member of that particular cellular network by paying all contract fees and using their service for at least 12 months. The process of getting your iPhone factory unlocked from the network provider revolves around submitting a request to the company and then waiting for your requests approval. Although this process is a bit slow and it can certainly help you in getting your iPhone factory unlocked (sometimes for free).

Why you should get factory unlock services?

People often ask in comment forums that for what purpose they need to get their iPhone officially unlocked. Well, the very first and basic reason is that you will be free to do whatever you want to with your beloved iPhone device. If you are fed up of paying monthly contract fees or other regular charges to your cellular network provider, then factory unlock is the only way to get yourself out of this trouble. A factory unlocked iPhone is no doubt valued higher in the market as compared to the locked ones and that is why we have lots of unlocked devices being used around us. You are not going to get the same value in the market if you are going to sell a locked iPhone 5s.

Another popular reason for getting your locked iPhone free from restrictions is that you will be able to use any network of your choice regardless of what geographical location you are in or what time you are using it. Official iPhone factory unlock service helps you in freeing your phone from any kind of restrictions set by your network. By getting your iPhone factory unlocked from a network provider, you will be able to enjoy free data roaming and reduced call charges for upcoming months and years. Factory unlock iPhone from network provider also saves thousands of dollars on your monthly contract allowing you to do more with your income.

Switch and save thousands of dollars every month:

Switching from one mobile network to another can often save you thousands of dollars every month. If you are using any iPhone 5 or 4 model with some fixed network which is charging you fixed monthly rates then you can cut the costs by switching an economical network service. But this is not that easy because you are using a locked device and in case if you want to use any other cellular network’s SIM card, you will be required to get your iPhone factory unlocked from your network provider. In case if you are finding it hard to get your device unlocked from a network provider, then you can get unlock service from 3rd party unlocking service providers as they are offering quick factory unlock services in just 24 to 48 hours. However, in this article we are going to focus on different methods that how you can get your iPhone factory unlocked from your network provider. Lets have a look at parameters set by different companies to get your official factory unlock services.

O2 UK
O2 UK

How to get O2 UK factory unlock service?

If you are going to apply for Official unlock from O2 then the process is also very simple and easy. Visit this link of official O2 UK site and sign in to your account and fill unlocking form in your MY O2 account. If you or some of your friends have recently bought iPhone with O2 Pay Monthly contract then you can get your official iPhone unlock processed at any time. However, for getting this service, you should complete the minimum usage limit written in your contract.

All O2 contract users with a Pay As You Go contract will have to fulfill the minimum limit of 12 months usage before applying for any kind of official factory unlock services.

Pay As you Go customers are required by O2 to pay charges for factory unlock services. These charges normally vary from $15-$25 depending upon the situation of the customer. One bad thing about iPhone unlock from network provider is that this service is not quick and efficient. You have to Top Up the balance if you don’t have in your account before filing a request for unlock from network provider. All requests without a minimum required credit by O2 will be discarded by the company immediately. You can check the minimum credit limit by checking your contract with O2.

Three Hutchison UK
Three Hutchison UK

How to unlock iPhone from Three Mobile?

Three mobile is another UK based iPhone contract and cellular network services providing company that offers a wide range of cellular products for its customers. If you are Three Mobile contract iPhone user then it is quite easy for you to get your iPhone unlocked from them. For this purpose you must use their services for at least 30 days and pay first bill. This way you will be able to apply for the factory unlock services from network provider.

If you are Pay As You Go customer of Three Mobile then you should have a minimum required credit before filing an application. Once you are ready with a minimum required credit then you need to fill this unlocking form on official 3 UK site or you can call their customer service at 333 and talk to their representative about unlocking service. He/She will facilitate you through the process to make it sure that you get the best deals but this may take a few days to process your unlock.

Vodafone UK
Vodafone UK

How to unlock your iPhone from Vodafone?

If you are monthly contract based Vodafone customer and have used their services for at least 6 months, then you can get your iPhone unlocked for £19.99. The same charges apply to the customers with Pay As You Go contract. In both forms you are required to make request of the company but before making a request, make sure that you meet the minimum criteria of iPhone unlocking set by Vodafone. All iPhone unlocking requests to Vodafone should be made via an online form available at Vodafone’s website.

The normal duration of this type of unlocking ranges from 2 weeks to 3 weeks and that is the reason why customers go to 3rd party unlocking service providers which means their services are quite faster than network providers.

How to Unlock iPhone from Orange Mobile, AT&T and others?

Getting your iPhone unlocked from these network providers is not easy. If you are a second user of a locked iPhone and willing to get it unlocked from the company then it may be difficult for you to process your request. However, the original owner of the device can get it unlocked for you. If you are a second user and still willing to get your iPhone unlocked then EE mobile and others will require you to enter into a 6 month contract and at the completion of that contract, you will be able to enjoy free unlock from the network providers.

Disadvantages of getting your iPhone unlocked from network providers:

Just as we see there are lots of benefits of getting your iPhone unlocked right from the company that has previously locked your device for a contract, we also see that there are possible disadvantages of applying for this type of services as well. Lets have a look at them.

  • Delayed process-Takes weeks to unlock your device:

iPhone unlock by network providers is worst when it comes to quick process. They normally take 2-3 weeks to process unlocks and customers are never sure whether they are going to get an unlocked device after such a long wait or not? Companies like O2 and Vodafone are taking enormous amount of time to process unlock requests from the customers all over the world. They provide a very simple reason for delayed process and that is that they have got millions of people in queue to process unlocks and you are not the only one who is applying for this service. We go turn by turn and that is why you should wait for your turn patiently.

  • Contract not ended:

Another problem that has been faced by many customers with contracts from UK based cellular networks is that after paying required amount, their contract was still on and they were receiving bills with charges. This appears quite annoying for most of us as once paying everything, if you are still asked to pay for your contract then there is no use of this facility.

Free iPhone unlocking scam

There is also another method to use other sims in your iPhone which is called Jailbreaking and can harm your iPhone. In this section I will tell you about disadvantages of Jailbreaking.

Before going into detail, we must make it clear that what is free iphone unlocking and how it differs from the paid service?

Free iPhone unlocking service?

There are thousands of tech savvy developers working online to discover something that can easily unlock any model of iphone and work for free for everyone. In the past few years, we have seen thousands of free iphone unlocking software entering the internet world with big slogans and leaving it with annoying comments from users. Till date none of the developers available in the world has developed anything 100% reliable that can unlock any model of iPhone. However in the mean time we have seen Apple developing new security measures to prevent scam iphone unlocking. Now the latest iPhone models iPhone 6 and iPhone 6 plus are very hard to unlock by using any type of free software available online.

Free iPhone unlocking services are basically services available online that offer iPhone users to unlock their locked iPhones by themselves. These services are very popular online and every year we see millions of free iphone unlock related searches to find something free or cheap but all end up in installing a software and then uninstalling it and leaving a poor feedback. We will later in this article discuss that why these free iPhone unlocking attempts are unsuccessful and why people are bound to pay for reliable services.

Did you Jailbreak your device?

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Possible disadvantages of attempting free iPhone unlock:

Just as free things come with a great surprise same is the case with free iPhone unlocking services. if you are trying to get your iPhone unlocked for free by connecting it with several different software available online then surely you are putting your device into a big risk of being hacked or damaged internally. Yes, there are free scam software available online for iPhone unlocking which once used can extract all type of personal information from any device. There are other disadvantages of free iPhone unlocking as well which are listed below.

Reduced functioning of iPhone:

Recent surveys have shown that developers or users who attempted free iPhone unlocking by connecting their device to more than 3-4 free software they faced weird sort of performance malfunctions while using their device afterwards. The overall function of an iPhone was reduced when it was connected with more than one software for unlocking purpose. The problem with these type of software is that they are not capable of meeting the set criteria by Apple. They are made just for the sake of unlocking and that is why they leave poor side effects over your device.

Quick battery draining issues:

iPhone normally delivers a one day standard battery timing to 90% of the users out there but those who do tricky things with their iphone like jailbreaking or software unlock often face quick battery drainage issues. These types of issues are often caused when you try to attempt free iphone unlocking by using different kind of third party apps or software available online. The reason why they damage battery of your iPhone 5 is that they work with high end programming things and they quickly drain all battery life of your iphone. If you are going to keep your iPhone in constant touch with these free iphone unlocking software then your iphone will start consuming battery faster than before and you would have no other option than replacing it with a new battery.

Malfunction of apps:

If you ever get successful in jailbreaking your device or unlocking it by using a free software then you wont be able to use it with a peace of mind. The problem with most of the jailbroken and software unlocked devices is that once they are altered internally, they start responding like zombies. Jailbrekaing and software unlocking make major alterations to the software of an iPhone and that’s what makes it a crazy device. You will be tapping on one app and you will be enjoying another. This is what happens with most of the freely dealt iPhones. After getting successful iphone unlocks and jailbreaking stuff, you will not be able to enjoy the same iPhone as it was before. Even official Apple approved apps wont be working fine with your device because they wont get a proper platform to run on.

No more Apple updates:

Free iPhone software unlocking is notorious for a reason that you wont be able to receive any further Apple software updates. Even if you will receive updates, you wont be able to successfully update your device because once you will update it, either it will get locked again or you will have to reset your device. Most of the jailbroken iPhone devices often go back to locked position when they are updated and this will cost you a few more hours tiring battle with the free iPhone unlocking software. Free iPhone unlocking software often attempt to block the reception of Apple updates because they know once the user will update his device, their software will fail which will ultimately bring negative reviews for them.

Possible chances of hacked device:

Free iPhone unlocking often leads to jailbreaking of your iPhone which ends up in Cydia store. Cydia store is full of third party non-authorized apps which are both dangerous for the health of your iPhone and for your personal data as well. Most of the apps available in Cydia store demand you to give access to your photos, personal information and other things and once you grant it permission, developers sitting at the back extract each and everything from your wallet to your phone book and texts. Thus jailbreaking your device or getting it unlocked by using free methods will leave you uncertain about security of your device. This is certainly a major threat for many people as we try not to let anyone enter our phone without our permission.

Poor display of your iPhone:

Installation of third party apps and free software unlocking attempts often damage the display of your iPhone. The reason why they target display of your iPhone is because they do not offer approved length and possibility of pixels and resolution to your device. Most of the third party apps available in Cydia store are rejected by Apple just because they were offering more load to the digitizer of your iPhone which results in poor display of your device. If you get a successful jailbreaking tweak or software unlocking then after a few days you will start seeing that your iPhone’s display is getting pale and poor. This is the sign that its time your free service is costing you in terms of your iPhone’s display. The only remedy for this problem is that you are going to replace the screen and touch digitizer of your device which will obviously cost you a few dollars.

A Dead iPhone device:

Yes, the end of free iphone unlocking attempts is a dead iPhone. This is because most of the unlocking software available online deal bruttaly with the internal structure of your iPhone. If during the unlocking process your iPhone gets over heated or some internal part gets burned then your device will dead for once and forever. You will have no other option than getting it repaired from some professional in the market with a healthy amount of dollars. This is something that keeps most of the jailbreaking and software unlocking enthusiasts away from this type of attempts because a dead iPhone cannot be repaired in at least 100 dollars which is approximately the cost of a well conditioned iPhone 5 in most of the countries of the world.

10 Reasons not to Jailbreak iPhone.

Official factory unlocking sites:

Some carriers do not provide iPhone unlocking services as mentioned above then you need 3rd party unlocking services or If you are not willing to enter any kind of mess with Jailbreaking or with your network and wait for months to get your iPhone unlocked then below I mentioned some 3rd party official factory unlocking sites have good reviews and recommendations by users globally. But remember read their terms of services, refund policy, check reviews on different trusted reviews sites, check their social pages for their popularity before placing order on these sites.

  1. MyIMEI unlock
  2. ChronicUnlocks
  3. Official iPhone Unlock
  4. Gsm Unlocking

It may take a few hours or minimum 24 hours to unlock your device and once unlocked you will be able to enjoy any network’s SIM card worldwide.

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