Update on unlocking my iPhone
About a month ago, I wrote that I received the run-around from both AT&T and Apple regarding unlocking my out-of-contract original iPhone. At the time I filed an FCC complaint, and to be honest, I assumed that would be the end of it. However, it seems that the due to the FCC's posturing about new regulation, both Apple and AT&T have responded to my complaint.
It started last Friday -- while riding the train into Chicago for Lollapalooza, I received a call from the same product specialist at Apple that I had spoken to on July 11th. While this Apple person didn't have any new information for me, he was concerned by the negative feedback that I gave when I reviewed my support call from Apple. He felt that I shouldn't have given negative feedback, because the ability to unlock is (supposedly) out of Apple's hands.
I re-iterated that I am disappointed on two fronts: the first that I can't get my iPhone unlocked legitimately, and the second that nobody at either Apple or AT&T can tell me why they won't unlock my phone. I believe that the Apple product specialist could have done more digging to explain to me why AT&T and Apple don't support iPhone unlocking in the US, and so I was unwilling to change my feedback. I got the feeling that the incentives for the Apple support representatives are somehow tied into the feedback system.
So while that call was interesting, it didn't really get me anywhere. However, later that day, I also received a voicemail (but interestingly not a missed call) from a woman who works for AT&T, in the office of the president. After playing phone tag with her for a few days, I finally managed to speak with her today. This woman re-iterated what appears to be AT&T's official position, that they don't have unlock codes for iPhone, because AT&T has not received the codes from Apple. Furthermore, she went on to say that AT&T and Apple don't have any reason to provide the unlock codes, because the iPhone only works with AT&T's network. Thus I was told Apple hasn't provided the unlock codes to AT&T, because they don't support any other carrier (in the U.S.).
The AT&T representative put me on hold to see if she could find more information as to why no unlocking is supported on the iPhone in the U.S. She wasn't able to determine anything, but she submitted an internal request to determine additional information about unlock code. I'm told I should get a response from that by the end of the week.
I've been thinking some more about this, and the ability to unlock the phone (that I paid full price for) directly impacts the resale value. It seems like the original iPhone is still going for around $170 on Craigslist, but only if it is unlocked. I'm guessing it's worth near zero locked. And while I'm aware of the existence of hacks, I think that my iPhone could command an even higher price if it had a more official unlock. So, I think it is in Apple and AT&T's best interest to support me. If they help me to unlock my phone, then that helps my resale value, which motivates me to upgrade to an iPhone 3GS. That will make both Apple and AT&T more money (the same plan that I have now with AT&T, on an iPhone 3GS would cost me an extra $15 per month).
So, I'll continue to wait, and either get my phone unlocked, or determine a definitive reason why AT&T and Apple will not unlock it.
-Andy.