How to Unlock Your iPhone WITHOUT Jailbreak

How to Unlock Your iPhone WITHOUT Jailbreaking
For information on how to LEGALLY unlock your iPhone for INTERNATIONAL use, visit my blog:
How to unlock your Verizon or Sprint iPhone 4S

Why "Jailbreak" is bad
First of all, I have never condoned "Jailbreaking".  I think it's risky and limiting.  For most people it's simply annoying not to be able to update your device to the newest version of iOS.  However, the sad truth is that it is far worse than that! A bad jailbreak can cause damage to your device and can lead to security breaches.  When you jailbreak a device, you are removing Apple's restrictions on the iOS and making modifications to the operating system that are not authorized by Apple.  Essentially,  jailbreaking makes iOS devices prone to malware and viruses, and thus makes it vulnerable to hackers.  In most cases jailbreaking causes your device to become unstable and to not function normally. DO NOT JAIL BREAK!

Not all iPhones are locked
It is important to note that most "locked devices" are sold in the USA to customers under contract.  It is not unusual to buy a "Factory Unlocked" iPhone/iPad OUTSIDE the USA.  In some countries locking a device to a specific carrier is illegal, and so Apple makes these devices unlocked and customers are asked to pay full price; this is common practice in Asia and some European countries.

What devices can I unlock?
This blog covers the unlocking of GSM devices... ie: iPhones that use SIM cards. Exclusions to this are: iPhone 4 on Verizon and Sprint or any other CDMA carriers.

• The iPhone 4 & 4S for AT&T is a GSM phone and CAN be unlocked. 

• The iPhone 4S on Sprint and Verizon are CDMA/GSM world phones... this means they use both CDMA and GSM technology--YES you can unlock an iPhone 4S from Sprint and Verizon, but there's a catch... continue reading for more info.

Unlocking the iPhone with a Turbo SIM
My recommendation to anyone with an "AT&T iPhone" who wants to switch to a different carrier (i.e., to T-Mobil, Boost, etc.) is to unlock the iPhone using a Turbo Sim. A Turbo Sim is a thin device with a 9mm by 9mm microprocessor mounted in the top right corner. When properly installed, it is pressed on top of a normal SIM card so that it is still small enough to be inserted into the SIM card slot.

How does the Turbo SIM work?
The main function of the Turbo SIM is to spoof the IMSI number and authentication key supplied by the SIM card, to the network. This "spoof" allows an otherwise "locked" phone to be used on any mobile network with which they are technically compatible.

Where do I get a Turbo SIM?
The most common places to buy a Turbo Sim are on eBay or Amazon. Turbo SIM's are made for a variety of different devices. You should read the details and description of the card before you buy and check with the dealer to make sure it is for YOUR particular device.  Turbo SIM's are available for the iPhone 3G S, iPhone 4 (GSM/AT&T), iPhone 4S, and will no doubt be available for iPhone 5 and iOS6 very soon.  A Turbo SIM can range in price, but the average price is around US$10 each.

PLEASE NOTE:  Turbo SIM's tend to be iOS specific, as seen here (the picture below is taken from eBay and is iOS5 specific).  It is important to DO YOUR RESEARCH BEFORE YOU BUY.  Not all Turbo SIM's are created equally and not all dealers will be honest!

Which Turbo SIM should I buy?
My personal choice when choosing a Turbo SIM was the "R-SIM V".  These Turbo SIM's come in different versions for different devices.  I believe the latest version for the iPhone 4S is the R-SIM V (version 5), however I am NOT ENDORSING or promoting any particular brand.  I am simply a blogger who is giving friendly advice based on personal experience. As stated above, please DO YOUR RESEARCH, read the item descriptions and ask questions before you buy!  THE TYPE OF TURBO SIM YOU WILL NEED will depend on two factors:  The carrier your phone is locked to, for example: (AT&T, VERIZON, SPRINT etc.), and it will also depend on what model iPhone you have!

The reason I prefer the R-SIM, is because it can AUTOMATICALLY unlock the iPhone.  Some Turbo SIM's require you to Jailbreak the phone, which in my opinion is pointless!

Personal Experience
My first experience was with an AT&T iPhone 4S running iOS5.  I used a "R-SIM V" that I bought off eBay. I got installation instructions from the dealer which lead me to THIS WEBSITE.  After following the instructions, I was able to use the AT&T iPhone with a T-Mobil SIM card.

My second task was not so easy. With the success of the AT&T iPhone 4S, I boldly took on the challenge of unlocking a Verizon iPhone 4S running iOS5.1... When I contacted the dealer about this, he told me that the R-SIM V was indeed compatible with the Verizon CDMA/GSM phone, but that I would have to "Jailbreak" it to work. "That's ridiculous!",  I thought. Why bother?  Later that month I went to Guatemala on vacation, but before leaving I asked Verizon to turn on the "international" feature on my plan and "unlock my phone for international travel".  Once I had my iPhone 4S unlocked, it was smooth sailing after that.  I purchased a local SIM card in Guatemala and the phone worked perfectly.  However, when I returned to the USA, to my surprise the phone did not switch back to Verizon.  Instead it said "AT&T" on top. At this point it all made sense! I didn't need to Jailbreak my phone to work with the Turbo SIM after all! Later that week I tested my theory.  When I installed an R-SIM V card in my now "internationally unlocked" iPhone 4S it worked! So there you have it... I didn't need to Jailbreak the phone after all!

Basking in my success, I told my friends about this, and they too asked me to help unlock their phones using my "International SIM Card".... The reason for this was because the Verizon and Sprint versions of the iPhone are programmed to pick up the "country code" of the SIM inside it...  When we ask Sprint or Verizon to "unlock" our phones for "international" use, they assume it's for legitimate travel, and it therefore requires an "international" SIM card to accomplish this.

For more information on how to LEGALLY unlock your Verizon/Sprint iPhone 4S for international use, read my blog: How to unlock your Verizon or Sprint iPhone 4S