[Shaqib19]

Hi friends, I am from India...
My uncle is coming from USA in December and I requested him to bring iphone 5S from there locked at AT&T..
Getting it unlocked is not an issue..I heard about R Sim so I can use any sim here by using R sim 9
In India, it is selling unlocked at $900 for 16 gb variant, which is beyond my reach...But its price mentioned at istore is from $199..
So guys just need to know whats the actual take away price for iphone 5S handset 16 gb ...including taxes....or any other charges I have to pay before I can take away from the showroom..
And walmart is better or iphone showroom in context to price???..

Thank you in advance

[warcraftWidow]

You won't be able to use the locked $199 variant in India on your local carrier.
However he should be able to pay full price of $649 for an unlocked one.
Also if you want LTE and not just 3G service you need to check the bands available on the phone purchased in the US compared to the bands available in India and specifically your carrier.

[Shaqib19]

You won't be able to use the locked $199 variant in India on your local carrier.
However he should be able to pay full price of $649 for an unlocked one.
Also if you want LTE and not just 3G service you need to check the bands available on the phone purchased in the US compared to the bands available in India and specifically your carrier.

Thanks but my issue is not relating to locked to network...
My big issue is price... I am interested in sealed pack Handset only whether activated or not , it doesn't matter..
Hope you can clear my doubts in this matter..

[sunnysideup22125]

Hi friends, I am from India...
My uncle is coming from USA in December and I requested him to bring iphone 5S from there locked at AT&T..
Getting it unlocked is not an issue..I heard about R Sim so I can use any sim here by using R sim 9
In India, it is selling unlocked at $900 for 16 gb variant, which is beyond my reach...But its price mentioned at istore is from $199..
So guys just need to know whats the actual take away price for iphone 5S handset 16 gb ...including taxes....or any other charges I have to pay before I can take away from the showroom..
And walmart is better or iphone showroom in context to price???..

Thank you in advance

$199 is the price only when you sign u for a 2 year contract.


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[DarkBlade_95]

Get the one in your country. Since the iPhone 5S doesn't have an international warranty, you'll be in trouble if your phone goes bad, since you'll have to take a flight to the States to get it fixed. It may be more expensive initially, but at least you still have your warranty if you buy it from your own country.


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[EmceeGeek]

It's $649 USD before tax, tax depends on what city your uncle is in. $199 is the 2 year contract price, which won't be of any use to you. If you buy it at full retail price, you might be stuck with just 3G speeds and if your phone is damaged, that's money down the drain. Like someone said, you'll only be able to get it fixed in the USA.

[Shaqib19]

It's $649 USD before tax, tax depends on what city your uncle is in. $199 is the 2 year contract price, which won't be of any use to you. If you buy it at full retail price, you might be stuck with just 3G speeds and if your phone is damaged, that's money down the drain. Like someone said, you'll only be able to get it fixed in the USA.

Thanks bro for suggestion but I understand all the complication of buying from USA...Getting a damaged phone would be the worst scenario...just worried about the price there bcoz I have to pay him here as he is my father' friend..thats why I wanted to know the actual price bcoz my budget is around $300 only..

[warcraftWidow]

Thanks but my issue is not relating to locked to network...
My big issue is price... I am interested in sealed pack Handset only whether activated or not , it doesn't matter..
Hope you can clear my doubts in this matter..

You're uncle would have to sign up for a 2 year contract with ATT to get that $199 price.

[jsntrenkler]

$649 + Tax at the apple store. Probably the best route however I agree with all above, it is recommended that you buy the device in your home country if it is available.

[anon(4698833)]

Thanks bro for suggestion but I understand all the complication of buying from USA...Getting a damaged phone would be the worst scenario...just worried about the price there bcoz I have to pay him here as he is my father' friend..thats why I wanted to know the actual price bcoz my budget is around $300 only..

For $300...I doubt you're going to be able to get a new iPhone (just reading your posts). You might want to look on the 2nd hand market.

[warcraftWidow]

For $300...I doubt you're going to be able to get a new iPhone (just reading your posts). You might want to look on the 2nd hand market.

And for $300 I think the best you'll probably find second hand is a 4S. But that's still a good phone.

[Shaqib19]

Thank you all for your valuable suggestions..

My doubt regarding this is clear now that a contract iphone cant be bought at $199 or even at $ 300 for a non US citizen..
and the contract termination fee is also around $ 400 which will make the locked iphone even more costlier than unlocked iphone..
So if I have to spend $ 650 + taxes so its better that I should opt in my country...

[DarkBlade_95]

Hey, I just read an article which says that there are contracts in India for the iPhone 5S. Why don't you try that? They're offering subsidies, too!

http://articles.timesofindia.indiati...tional-roaming

This might interest you


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[Mr. Marco]

$649 USD full price (tax will be added to final purchase price), no carrier contract. And usually... $199 USD (tax will be added to final purchase price) with two year contract locking you to the carrier.

[TiredOfPhoneWar]

199 dollars is with 2years of contract thats mean your uncle have to pay like 60 dollars per month for 2years, i paid 719 plus tax=819 for unlocked and cost me 20 dollars per month

[Ujjwal Agarwal]

Thanks bro for suggestion but I understand all the complication of buying from USA...Getting a damaged phone would be the worst scenario...just worried about the price there bcoz I have to pay him here as he is my father' friend..thats why I wanted to know the actual price bcoz my budget is around $300 only..

300$ only? forget the 5s even 5 too!
however your uncle wont be able to get it to you! 199$ is the price of a locked phone which comes with 2 year contract basis you wont be able to get a brand new iphone5s for under 700$ there is no way bud 649$ (16gb version) is official price for unlocked phone +tax vary state to states. your uncle have to pay the full price of the phone to get it work in other countries.
even the brand new iphone 4s is around 500-600$ ( india )
extend your budget or go for second hand phones
i m from india too and yeah currently prices of iphones are extremely high because of weak indian currency.
and also there is no contracts providers here like in other countries!

i hope i helped!

[JSHidaka]

Get the one in your country. Since the iPhone 5S doesn't have an international warranty, you'll be in trouble if your phone goes bad, since you'll have to take a flight to the States to get it fixed. It may be more expensive initially, but at least you still have your warranty if you buy it from your own country.


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With applecare + or even without it(not sure), you are covered in any Apple Reseller store, Here in Dominican Republic, we have like 4 Apple reseller and they cover the warranty(they did announce it).

[DarkBlade_95]

With applecare + or even without it(not sure), you are covered in any Apple Reseller store, Here in Dominican Republic, we have like 4 Apple reseller and they cover the warranty(they did announce it).

From what I know, the iPhone 5S does not have an international warranty, so it's still a risk. The guys at Apple are pretty helpful but if they want to, they can reject the warranty on legal grounds. It's still a big risk.

Besides, there's also the fact that OP has a budget of $300, which isn't enough to buy an iPhone 5S from any country.


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[Trees]

Thank you all for your valuable suggestions..

My doubt regarding this is clear now that a contract iphone cant be bought at $199 or even at $ 300 for a non US citizen..
and the contract termination fee is also around $ 400 which will make the locked iphone even more costlier than unlocked iphone..
So if I have to spend $ 650 + taxes so its better that I should opt in my country...

I think you made a good decision. In addition to the good advice and info everyone has shared, it's likely that your Uncle would have to declare the new phone at Customs, and be required to pay additional VAT or related import fees.

[Ujjwal Agarwal]

From what I know, the iPhone 5S does not have an international warranty, so it's still a risk. The guys at Apple are pretty helpful but if they want to, they can reject the warranty on legal grounds. It's still a big risk.

Besides, there's also the fact that OP has a budget of $300, which isn't enough to buy an iPhone 5S from any country.


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yep. iphones dont have international warranty.. atleast it never worked in india.

[DarkBlade_95]

yep. iphones dont have international warranty.. atleast it never worked in india.

I think that's because they want people to buy phones from the country they live in. Most companies do it in their own style. Samsung uses a SIM Lock technique in their Note 3 which means the phone has to be activated with a SIM from the country it was purchased in before it can be activated. Others use Apple's method.


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