Vodafone PAYG from CPW was NOT locked - Upgrading, Modifying and Unlocking

During a little ordeal I had yesterday with my Galaxy Ace S5830i, I inadvertently discovered the following:
I bought my handset from the CPW on Vodafone (urrgh) PAYG (a condition of getting it cheaper from CPW, apparently), but I just discovered that the phone itself was NOT locked to vodafone, and came simfree. I dunno if this was a mistake from CPW and they maybe gave me the wrong box, but if you buy yours from CPW then I'd recommend checking it with a different sim before paying someone to unlock it for you, or before you go through the hassle of unlocking it yourself to find you brick it my mistake.
As it turned out, also, vodafone didn't even add the £10 credit to the phone, even after their standard 48hr waiting period, so I complained and got CPW to refund me the ten bucks anyway once they confirmed the sim didn't receive the credit.
So, bye bye vodafone and hello giffgaff with unlimited data.

Related

Unlocked phones available NOW from Carphone warehouse pretending to be from t-mobile!

My "T-Mobile" phone from Carphone Warehouse actually came unlocked! I suspected as much when there was no T-Mobile labeling at all and the opening animation just said HTC. So, while I'm waiting for my number to transfer from o2 I decided to try and use my o2 SIM card. It works! and the network settings all changed automatically.
so... if you want one unlocked but don't mind starting up a contract and just want it moveable depending on what country you may be in at a given moment... buy from Carphone warehouse! (At least from their website)
J
How much are they charging in store?
Carphone Warehouse phones are always unlocked. One of their trademarks if you will (that they sell unlocked sim-free phones)
Unfortunately they are quite a lot more expensive than going direct to t-mobile, I was looking at £20pm + £129 for 600 minutes, CPW seem to be £20 for 300 minutes + £189 also internet uses your booster, from tmobile you get internet then use your booster for free landline calls etc. looks better to go to tmobile then pay them £15 to unlock?
It's so they can buy in bulk and offer the same phone with numerous providers.
plus £129 for the handset?!
Are you upgrading?
T-Mobile gave me 600 minutes, unlimited text, web n walk max and a free handset for £15 a month on an 18 month contract. Works out cheaper than buying the phone and plus I'm getting a monthly bill.
You guys need to argue for better deals! haha

HTC Desire @ £348 on PAYG

Mobilephonesdirect have the Desire for £348 on T-Mobile PAYG.
Quite interested in this as it seems to be the cheapest price for PAYG and seriously undercuts CPW.
Anybody used the company before? Trustworthy?
Sorry, can't post link as I am a new member.
Thanks in advance
So would there be any difference between getting it PAYG on T-Mobile through mobilephonesdirect, and buying it sim-free? Would it be locked to T-Mobile? I thought all phones bought through MPD were unlocked, unbranded?
Thats a good point. Mpd do generally sell unlocked unbranded handsets. Worth finding out.
Reply from MPD:
"If you wanted an unlocked, unbranded HTC Desire then you would have to chose the Sim Free version rather that the PAYG version."
So you can factor in another £15 to unlock it. Still a very good deal though.
carphonewarehouse
you might not get it for now but carphonewarehouse now has them in stock now to order online and you will get it next day and there phones are unlocked to any network and unbranded
Why is the PAYG Price and Sim-Free price different by about £100?
I thought all their phones are Unlocked....Including the desire..
(Unless you pay £100 for the t mob. branding l0l!)

Desire in retail shops?

When can we expect the desire to be sold in retail shops?
I'm planning a trip to spain and I know a few people who will be in france\germany\UK in a few weeks, is there any information about the release dates for retail shops in those places and the cost?
Thank you.
The desire is in retail shops - I got one yesterday from a T-Mobile store
I got it on a contract £10 per month for 24 months plus £164 up front - it wasn't in stock PAYG although Carphone Warehouse should have them for around £400
Got mine off the local Vodafone shop yesterday. They had two delivered on the release date, and in store techy got one, I got the other.
CPW had them too, at least available according to the store and on display, also local Virgin media store and T-Mobile had them too.
Got mine Friday (2nd) in CPW on upgrade on VF - unbranded and unlocked
Can I buy the phone from a t-mobile, vodaphone or orange store without a contract?
If so, how much will it cost, and will it be unlocked?
And are there no retail shops to buy the phone in, unlocked and unbranded in the full package?
moran679 said:
Can I buy the phone from a t-mobile, vodaphone or orange store without a contract?
If so, how much will it cost, and will it be unlocked?
And are there no retail shops to buy the phone in, unlocked and unbranded in the full package?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They might do but don't quote me!
As far as I know Carphone Warehouse are selling it SIM free for £399 when you buy a £10 top up. The only issue is lack of stock so I would call around first.
I dont know how many of you are in or around CEntral London but you should try the CPW in the Selfridges basement floor, they had stock of both Sim free and Plan based. Got my Sim Free yesterday
All the T-Mobile stores in the Bristol area have sold out.
Same story with CPW (although they only provide it on contract for Vodafone & Orange).
Many phone calls later I've sourced one 30 miles away and am sad enough to drive to collect it now!
Wasn't in Wells by chance? That's where I got mine last Friday...
EddyOS said:
Wasn't in Wells by chance? That's where I got mine last Friday...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have returned with a Desire in hand.
If anyone in the South West needs a Desire, the Swindon branch of T-Mobile has 2 left. (All 3 Bristol stores, Newport, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Bath & Chippenham have sold out).
Now to wait the three hour charge time. Good excuse to get some paperwork out the way to pay the bills
Madgerr said:
I have returned with a Desire in hand.
If anyone in the South West needs a Desire, the Swindon branch of T-Mobile has 2 left. (All 3 Bristol stores, Newport, Gloucester, Cheltenham, Bath & Chippenham have sold out).
Now to wait the three hour charge time. Good excuse to get some paperwork out the way to pay the bills
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you need to unlock it be careful not to do the 15 EUR option on HTCCode as it didn't work, although they did refund me.
They do have a post in their forum which let's you send then 25 EUR by papal. Got my unlock code a few hours later
zippyioa said:
If you need to unlock it be careful not to do the 15 EUR option on HTCCode as it didn't work, although they did refund me.
They do have a post in their forum which let's you send then 25 EUR by papal. Got my unlock code a few hours later
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the advice but I'll be happy enough using it with my t-mob contract. May unlock it after upgrading to HTC xxxxx in 18 months time though to maximise its value on ebay
I needed to unlock now as I still have a £35 a month contract with Vodafone until Jan 2011.
At worst I will pay an extra £10 a month for my T-mobile contract, at best I may use it instead of Vodafone from Jan
Hope you enjoy the Desire, only had mine 48 hours but I am already VERY happy!
moran679 said:
When can we expect the desire to be sold in retail shops?
I'm planning a trip to spain and I know a few people who will be in france\germany\UK in a few weeks, is there any information about the release dates for retail shops in those places and the cost?
Thank you.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm from Spain. I've preordered mine thanks to the Spanish HTC forum with 50€ rebate, regular price is 499€.
That's the spanish HTC partner shop: http://www.ssmoviles.com/htc_desire_terminal-htc-desire.html
The Bristol Orange shop apparently has them in stock, phoned them earlier

[Q] is the o2 Nexus unlocked?

Hi guys
With the handtec fiasco, I have cancelled and am getting it from o2.
A quick question, is the o2 version unlocked?
Cheers guys
O2 is locked, but you can get an unlock code from them for free on contract, or a small fee if not. People have reported using ebay unlocking for £5 too.
if you bought it PAYG, then it will likely be SIM locked - mine is, and many others who have bought an O2 PAYG handset are SIM locked.
Usually O2 contract phones are SIM unlocked, at least that has been my experience in the past.
thanks guys, i'll get the unlock off ebay
Just so you are warned - O2 won't unlock your phone it you buy if on pay as you go for 12 months after purchase(even though they still charge you 15 pounds for the service). It is a complete mystery for me. You pay a full price for the phone and you still have to wait 12 months? This is just stupid.
If you buy it on contract though, they will unlock it for free at any time.
gambiting said:
Just so you are warned - O2 won't unlock your phone it you buy if on pay as you go for 12 months after purchase(even though they still charge you 15 pounds for the service). It is a complete mystery for me. You pay a full price for the phone and you still have to wait 12 months? This is just stupid.
If you buy it on contract though, they will unlock it for free at any time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks bud, I'll just take the ebay route

Is the O2 PAYG phone network locked?

Hi Guys
I'm looking to buy one to use with my Three contract SIM, but really hate waiting for deliveries. I can pick up a PAYG handset from O2.. but does anybody know if these handsets would be network-locked? Or could I use my Three SIM with it?
Thanks
its unlocked, can be used on any network. i got mine from o2 and use it on three.
Unlocked mate. I purchased mine from O2 but I use a three SIM
Mine works on Vodafone too
Unlocked (I'm using my 3 SIM) like everyone else said BUT if you buy from an O2 brick and mortar store they'll make you buy a £15 SIM card. They did with me anyway.
Don't bother asking the staff in-store because they either flat-out lie and say it's locked or they just don't know.
Also bought mine from O2; have both the O2 and my usual Virgin SIM in the phone. Both work fine.
Only odd thing is that I asked for the 10£ SIM, but the computer at the store wouldn't accept it, so I had to accept a 15£ SIM. One-time purchase, and I got the device instantly though, so I took it. I don't think the OP5T is sold locked anywhere (don't quote me on this though).
Perfect, thanks everybody.. I did as you said and brought it direct from O2 and also had to get the £15 PAYG SIM.. but its only about £6 extra compared to buying direct (with their faster delivery).. and I got it the same day. Really impressed so far.
EViL3666 said:
Perfect, thanks everybody.. I did as you said and brought it direct from O2 and also had to get the £15 PAYG SIM.. but its only about £6 extra compared to buying direct (with their faster delivery).. and I got it the same day. Really impressed so far.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
if u got it on o2 online you wouldn't have needed to pay a top up at all.
mikey_sk said:
if u got it on o2 online you wouldn't have needed to pay a top up at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I thought that. You just have to select a pay as you go sim but it doesn't cost anything
If you have an O2 SIM or you can borrow one, you don't need to pay for the £15 top up in store either. Just take the SIM in with you (in a working phone) and they'll sell you the 5t as an upgrade. During the process they send two SMS messages to the existing O2 SIM a each of which contains a four digit number. You read those back to them and hey presto you get the new phone without buying the £15 top up. I've bought two this way now, both using the same number.
Ouzo said:
If you have an O2 SIM or you can borrow one, you don't need to pay for the £15 top up in store either. Just take the SIM in with you (in a working phone) and they'll sell you the 5t as an upgrade. During the process they send two SMS messages to the existing O2 SIM a each of which contains a four digit number. You read those back to them and hey presto you get the new phone without buying the £15 top up. I've bought two this way now, both using the same number.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I ordered mine from 02 and didnt have to pay for a sim or top up
Reuben_skelz92 said:
I ordered mine from 02 and didnt have to pay for a sim or top up
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Very true, I was just trying to help the OP as they said they didn't like waiting around for deliveries This was the first phone I didn't order online for years! It was weird! Kinda cool too. I wish phone stores in the UK sold a wider range of Chinese phones at reasonable prices. I guess the phone networks wouldn't like that!

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