Can I use at&t iphone 4s on Verizon?

[jfio91]

My friend has an upgrade and won't use it. So if i use his upgrade on at&t for a verizon iphone 4s can I unlock it or use it for Verizon???!

 

[E_Brown]

No Verizon wont activate a phone they didn't sell.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk.

 

[kch50428]

From everything I understand, the US carriers will not allow something like that to happen - and will only allow the "other side" of the phone to unlock for international use only - so an AT&T phone can not be unlocked to work on a US CDMA carrier.

 

[robes1]

You could use it on t-mobile though! They'll take anything! LOL

 

[anon(19759)]

Couple of things -

An AT&T iPhone doesn't have CDMA which is what it would need to even work on Verizon. Also, Verizon will not activate any device that is not specifically for Verizon. So even if you had a Sprint iPhone with CDMA, Verizon still would not allow it.

 

[Phil DeLong]

Couple of things -

An AT&T iPhone doesn't have CDMA which is what it would need to even work on Verizon. Also, Verizon will not activate any device that is not specifically for Verizon. So even if you had a Sprint iPhone with CDMA, Verizon still would not allow it.

The 4S is dual CDMA/GSM. It's the first iPhone of it's kind, everyone is using the same model. Theoretically it could work, the carriers just won't allow it.

 

[kch50428]

On the inside, all the parts are there... my guess is there's some bits of carrier specific software that has to be present to turn on or off certain parts, enabling or disabling functionality.

 

[anon(19759)]

The 4S is dual CDMA/GSM. It's the first iPhone of it's kind, everyone is using the same model. Theoretically it could work, the carriers just won't allow it.

Learn something new every day.

 

[Blackcash]

Why don't you just ask Siri?

 

[D2TSHR1439]

Why don't you just ask Siri?

Seems she is unable to connect to the network lately.

 

[Speedriff1]

If you bought the phone outright you can use it on whatever carrier you like. If you got it subsidized then no, you can't. And by that I mean if you paid $750 for it.

 

[Peligro911]

If you bought the phone outright you can use it on whatever carrier you like. If you got it subsidized then no, you can't. And by that I mean if you paid $750 for it.

I think even if you bought it out right (unlocked) Verizon and or sprint won't activate the esn on there network but the gsm part would work for anything

 

[KidKid99]

I was wondering pretty much the same thing myself. I've this article and found some sad news. Short answer is no. The US Carriers are blocking iPhones that's not sold by them via the MEID Number. It's makes you kinda upset when you find out how bad the cell phone companies try to lock you in.

How U.S. Carriers Fool You Into Thinking Your iPhone 4S Is Unlocked - Forbes

 

[sting7k]

If you bought the phone outright you can use it on whatever carrier you like. If you got it subsidized then no, you can't. And by that I mean if you paid $750 for it.

Unlocked iPhone 4S's from Apple can only be used on GSM carriers. The CDMA radio is only "on" for CDMA carriers like Verizon and Sprint.

I think the only way to get a true unlocked one would be if you got a Verizon/Sprint iPhone 4S and jailbroke/unlocked it to use on any GSM carrier. If that is possible.

Edit - Not sure what the guy is talking about in the story linked above. It says right on Apple's website that the unlocked iPhone 4S will not work on a CDMA network. And paying full price for a phone from any carrier (in the US) has never meant you were getting an unlocked one; just that you don't have to sign a contract.

 

[Jaguarr40]

Unlocked iPhone 4S's from Apple can only be used on GSM carriers. The CDMA radio is only "on" for CDMA carriers like Verizon and Sprint.

I think the only way to get a true unlocked one would be if you got a Verizon/Sprint iPhone 4S and jailbroke/unlocked it to use on any GSM carrier. If that is possible.

Edit - Not sure what the guy is talking about in the story linked above. It says right on Apple's website that the unlocked iPhone 4S will not work on a CDMA network. And paying full price for a phone from any carrier (in the US) has never meant you were getting an unlocked one; just that you don't have to sign a contract.

I have to agree with Sting as it DOES say right on Apple's website... If you buy an unlocked phone from Aplle it is GSM only and all other 4S phones are carrier specific unlocked-jailbroken or not, they can only be used on the carrier from where you bought it.

 

[jsntrenkler]

It's really a shame that there isn't some type of unlocking mechanism for when you have completed your obligation. Would be nice to take your phone to the carrier of your choice.

 

[GingerSnapsBack]

The 4S is dual CDMA/GSM. It's the first iPhone of it's kind, everyone is using the same model. Theoretically it could work, the carriers just won't allow it.

It's got a dual radio in it for overseas travel. It'll work on a GSM carrier in Europe for instance but it won't work on American GSM carriers. My Storm2 was dual GSM/CDMA and could only be unlocked to work on foreign GSM carriers.

 

[BryanTheRed]

It's got a dual radio in it for overseas travel. It'll work on a GSM carrier in Europe for instance but it won't work on American GSM carriers. My Storm2 was dual GSM/CDMA and could only be unlocked to work on foreign GSM carriers.

Your right about the iPhone but wrong about the BlackBerry, I had a Storm and Storm 2 and I unlocked them both and used them on both AT&T and T-Mobile.

 

[GingerSnapsBack]

Your right about the iPhone but wrong about the BlackBerry, I had a Storm and Storm 2 and I unlocked them both and used them on both AT&T and T-Mobile.

On AT&T you never got anything more than EDGE did you? You never got 3G?

 

[BryanTheRed]

On AT&T you never got anything more than EDGE did you? You never got 3G?

Right, but that's not what you said, you said unlocked for international use only, which isn't true. It could still be used on US Carriers. Not having 3G doesn't mean a device does not work!