iPhone UK O2 Question

[Gecko]

hi there,

i'm currently waiting for the iPhone to be released in the uk but i have a question that i cant seem to find an answer for online.
basically i am already an O2 customer with about 8 months left with my contract that i am happy with. is it possible for me to buy an iPhone without having to pay at least £35 a month by using my own O2 sim card?

so i guess im kinda looking to buy an unlocked iPhone that i can use my O2 sim card in - is this possible?

gecko

[Bob]

No idea - I guess O2 would answer that question. I doubt if they will let you get away with not signing up for a new contract.

If I could just buy the phone at £269 (£69 more than equivalent US price) then stick my T-Mobile SIM into it then I might consider getting one. But I refuse to be tied into an 18 month contract costing £35 a month for the minimum use I make of my phone.

From Carphone Warehouse site...

New & Existing customers
If you're an O2 customer billed by Carphone Warehouse, or you have a mobile phone with another network, you'll need to contact them to obtain a "PAC code" in order to transfer your number to your iPhone.

This process may take up to five working days to complete.

Please be aware that PAC codes are only valid for 30 days.

If you're an existing O2 customer and you receive your bills directly from O2, or you're an O2 Pay & Go customer, during the activation process you'll be asked whether you'd like to transfer your existing mobile number to your iPhone.

This process can take up to 5 working days to complete, but don't worry - we'll provide you with a temporary number so you can start enjoying your iPhone straight away.

[Gecko]

nice one, thanks for the info. shame there's no mention about how much this costs. im assuming the £269 is a special price cos they'll make their money back with the expensive contracts.
i'm guessing there will be a fee to transfer the mobile number across too :(

[zool0]

I think it's getting past the activation of the iphone and then getting it unlocked.

Though I'm assuming all these free iphone unlock software now available online is for that very purpose, i.e. activate/unlock iphone for all networks. If this is possible, then £269 isn't too bad.

If you've still got 8 months left on your O2 contract then I doubt you can upgrade to the iphone....normally you can upgrade within 60 days of your contract end.

I also think that you will be forced by O2 to use one of the special iphone tariffs because Apple is getting a cut from the tariff you will pay, so there is no alternative O2 tariff you can use.

Number portability charges depend on the network, alot are free, but you cannot port a number from the same network, only to/from different networks.

[Bob]

I just rang my nearest O2 store and the iPhone is not going to be sold without the 18 month contract.

I didn't ask about transferring number but as an existing O2 customer I should expect O2 to do that for free, especially if you are signing up to a new 18 month contract.

[Gecko]

thanks alot bob you've been very useful. i guess this means i'll have to buy an unlocked iPhone if u want to stay on my own contract then?

[Bob]

Therein lies the problem. Unlocked iPhones may not be available here in the UK for a sensible price. I can see a black market for them which of course will be at a nicely inflated price and how will you activate it via iTunes if you don't have an O2 contract.

I have to admit to being confused by the whole set up. Jesse Hollington managed to buy his iPhone across the border in the US on a pay as you go tariff then when he got back home he hacktivated it. It seems to be doing everything except the voicemail part.

Will this be an option here? Not according to the O2 store I just spoke with. Not for some time if at all.

I think I will wait and see - I am in no hurry to jump aboard this train - I was considering the iPod touch as a halfway house to the iPhone but the audio quality issue and battery/drive size is also a bit off-putting.

[Gecko]

yeh i'm currently considering Jesse's method. wot was the problem with the voice mail? with O2 i think you can just call 450 or something to access your voicemail, surely any phone is capable of that?

[Bob]

It's the visual voicemail that didn't work because it is tied into the AT&T backend - from the sounds of the O2 deal it may be a similar setup.

Isn't that an oxymoron? Visual voicemail?

[zool0]

It looks like existing O2 customers can transfer to the iphone/iphone contract at itunes activation. So I guess that means you don't have to wait for upgrade time. You also keep your existing number and it takes about 5 days to transfer, but you will probably be given a temporary number first during the transfer period. Naturally you have to sign for a new iphone tariff/contract.

http://www.pocket-lint.co.uk/news/news.phtml/10207/11231/iphone-uk-rules-requirements-contracts.phtml

Although I am a fan of the ipod, I'm still not entirely convinced by the iphone yet. I will wait for the Samsung F700 first before making a decision.

[Gecko]

so i guess the only option for someone who doesn't want to sign a new contract is to import and unlock?

[owen-b]

Guys, you can very easily get the UK iPhone and not have to sign up to the O2 contract, I'm not sure what you're worrying about. Just buy it at an Apple Store. You do the actual sign up to O2 etc via iTunes.

Go to 9to5mac.com to see all about how you activate the iPhone to use any SIM card you stick in it and not have to sign up to O2's a***-r***** 'deals'.

[Bob]

Guess we'll find out soon enough!!

[owen-b]

Guess we'll find out soon enough!!
Eh?

No, what I said is the way it is.

:shake:

[Gecko]

i take it there's no physical difference between US and UK iPhones?
my only worry is that they'll release some new firmware that'll brick all the unlocked iPhone's one day

[colonel_butt]

The iphone is locked to O2 in the UK. So there should be no issue with putting in another O2 chip and just using.

However, note that the O2 iphone tariffs have 'unlimited data'. This is needed to really enjoy the iphone properly.

The thing I am unsure about is that the phone needs to be initially activated. So you need to use the software solutions available free on the internet. The only thing to note is they only guarantee unlocking for firmware 1.02. Although it is likely they will be upgraded with future firmware upgrades from apple, there is no timeline or guarantee.

IMHO, if you really want an iphone, then there are two best scenarios:
1. If you are with O2, use their transfer system to the iphone
2. if you are not with O2, then just cancel your main contract (or get the iphone as well) and get a PAC code.

From the literature on the O2 site EDGE will be available on the O2 network when the iphone is released. So it should be pretty fast (I have had good experiences with EDGE abroad. It seems as fast as 3G, but not as fast as 3.5G/HSDPA) and therefore the iphone makes sense as a data phone with you keeping your main phone.
The advantage of EDGE is the battery life is much better. 3G data transfers kill a phones battery (ask any Samsung i600 user - like me).

Personnaly, although I'm a big fan of apple products, I think a 16Gbyte iphone, with a weight reduction, switchable 3G and less buggy safari starts to look like competition for WM6. The HTC touch II is coming out soon, together with a plethora of new WM6 and Symbian devices, so Apple will have to learn that 'man can not live on style alone'.

One last thing. I have already seen and played with a UK iphone. They have a demo model at the Apple concession shop next to liverpool st. station, for anyone who works in the centre of London.

rgds

[owen-b]

Here's a question. If I have a US iPhone and move to the UK having cancelled my AT&T contract, will I be able to reactivate my iPhone using iTunes in the UK onto O2 after the launch date in November? After all, O2 allow current O2 users to migrate but presumably you have to use the sim card that comes with the UK iPhone, which I wouldn't have.

Or, to put it another way, if I have a US iPhone hacktivated onto my current UK sim card, and I decided to 'go legit' with it on the rip-off O2 tariff, can I just do so at any time via iTunes/O2?

[colonel_butt]

Here's a question. If I have a US iPhone and move to the UK having cancelled my AT&T contract, will I be able to reactivate my iPhone using iTunes in the UK onto O2 after the launch date in November? After all, O2 allow current O2 users to migrate but presumably you have to use the sim card that comes with the UK iPhone, which I wouldn't have.

Or, to put it another way, if I have a US iPhone hacktivated onto my current UK sim card, and I decided to 'go legit' with it on the rip-off O2 tariff, can I just do so at any time via iTunes/O2?

I have asked this qu. in another thread.
I presume it would work fine if the US phone is functionality identical to the UK one. Which it might well be.
However you would need to get it unlocked using one of the various software solutions on the internet as it would be locked to the AT&T chip.
Once it is unlocked, there is no need to use an O2 chip, unless you want the O2 iphone tariffs, which have unlimited data.

One lucky thing for us in the UK is that O2 is rated very highly for customer service. I would therefore just give their support line a call to ask. However I suspect that they won't know for certain until later in the year as they tend not to be up to speed before the launch of any product. Try it and see, and tell us what they say ?

[Bob]

Eh?

No, what I said is the way it is.

:shake:


I'm not doubting what you say - just saying that come November we'll find out exactly what we can do with the iPhone in the UK.

For example - Jesse Hollington bought his iPhone in the US but on an AT&T pay as you go tariff as he resides in Canada. Will O2 or Apple sell just the iPhone on a O2 PAYG tariff? Not according to what I was told yesterday. You are locked into the 18 month contract.
So, you buy the iPhone and hack it to work on the network of your choice but you are still paying £35 a month to O2 just for that pleasure.

Now if you buy the iPhone in the US and bring it back to the UK and hack it to work on, for example, T-Mobile's network then that is great (and what I would do).

But I would say until the very first iPhone has been sold in the UK, without being tied into the O2 18 month contract, do we know exactly what will happen. This 'activate via iTunes' is a unique set up in the mobile phone scene. Sure, I can go into any phone store and slap down the readies on an all singing all dancing Nokia N95 or whatever, knowing I can slip my current PAYG SIM into it and it will work but the iPhone is a bit different.

At least we have two months to figure it all out!!!

[owen-b]

It's. Exactly. The. Same. Phone.

You buy the handset in an Apple store, and it isn't tied to anything. It's NOT tied to an O2 contract until you activate it via iTunes and sign up for an O2 contract. Ostensibly the device is useless until you do that. No, you can't buy it and stick a PAYG sim straight into it. Won't work. But it's also not tied to an O2 contract as this stage either. It's just a very pretty brick.

But we know better.

[Bob]

I. Know. It's. The. Same. Phone.

You'll have to bear with me - I have not seen one apart from behind a sheet of plexiglass at Macworld. I have not even touched one.
I have not had any interest in one as I am in the UK and we don't have any here until November. I have not been following the various sites who have hacked an iPhone.
I may even not bother getting an iPhone.

But of course you know better..... (http://forums.ilounge.com/showpost.php?p=1146622&postcount=17)

[Gecko]

yeh i think importing a US iPhone and unlocking is starting to look like the better option. from what i've read you basically cant have a uk iPhone without signing one of O2's contracts. even though i'm already an O2 business customer on contract O2 says:

"If you're an existing O2 customer and you receive your bills directly from O2, or you're an O2 Pay & Go customer, during the activation process you'll be asked whether you'd like to transfer your existing O2 mobile number to your iPhone.

This process can take up to 5 working days to complete, but don't worry - we'll provide you with a temporary number so you can start enjoying your iPhone straight away."

business customers:

"If you are currently a business or corporate customer and wish to purchase iPhone, you will need to take out one of the new 18 month Pay Monthly iPhone contracts.

Please note that you will need to obtain a new mobile number as we cannot transfer an existing O2 business number to an iPhone. We're sorry for the inconvenience."

so it kinda sucks for us business customers - we don't get to keep our number but at least we get a bigger phone bill... :rolleyes:

think i'll be importing and unlocking at this rate. i mite have a few friends that mite be able to help me out in that department, but if not does anyone know any good places to import without getting fleesed on ebay?

[colonel_butt]

yeh i think importing a US iPhone and unlocking is starting to look like the better option. from what i've read you basically cant have a uk iPhone without signing one of O2's contracts. even though i'm already an O2 business customer on contract O2 says:

"If you're an existing O2 customer and you receive your bills directly from O2, or you're an O2 Pay & Go customer, during the activation process you'll be asked whether you'd like to transfer your existing O2 mobile number to your iPhone.

This process can take up to 5 working days to complete, but don't worry - we'll provide you with a temporary number so you can start enjoying your iPhone straight away."

business customers:

"If you are currently a business or corporate customer and wish to purchase iPhone, you will need to take out one of the new 18 month Pay Monthly iPhone contracts.

Please note that you will need to obtain a new mobile number as we cannot transfer an existing O2 business number to an iPhone. We're sorry for the inconvenience."

so it kinda sucks for us business customers - we don't get to keep our number but at least we get a bigger phone bill... :rolleyes:

think i'll be importing and unlocking at this rate. i mite have a few friends that mite be able to help me out in that department, but if not does anyone know any good places to import without getting fleesed on ebay?

I am beginning to agree with you !
however you will always have to hold off updating firmware until the hack catches up with the version.

The latest version of the firmware in the US phone is 1.0.2. A hack is available for this.
However, I understand the UK version will have a newer firmware, 1.1.1, which will not be hackable immediately (I suspect until the US catches up).

[Bob]

Well to muddy the H2O a little more I have just phoned a local O2 store and asked if I can walk in on November 9th and buy just the iPhone. The reply was that as it is on contract a credit check would have to be carried out on me and I would have to sign the contract in order to get the phone. Activation is via iTunes.

So this is where my point about "waiting and seeing" lay - at the moment the staff in O2 AND Carphone Warehouse stores are under the impression the phone will be sold after you have signed a contract - which if I recall entails providing bank details for a direct debit. If you buy the iPhone, sign the contract then cancel the contract once you have left the shop - is this an option?

[colonel_butt]

Well to muddy the H2O a little more I have just phoned a local O2 store and asked if I can walk in on November 9th and buy just the iPhone. The reply was that as it is on contract a credit check would have to be carried out on me and I would have to sign the contract in order to get the phone. Activation is via iTunes.

So this is where my point about "waiting and seeing" lay - at the moment the staff in O2 AND Carphone Warehouse stores are under the impression the phone will be sold after you have signed a contract - which if I recall entails providing bank details for a direct debit. If you buy the iPhone, sign the contract then cancel the contract once you have left the shop - is this an option?

1. If you read the O2 website, it firmly says that activation is at home via itunes
2. The phones will sold at apple shops - outright
3. The phones will be sold at carphonewarehouse - outright

So it might be that O2 shops will do something else to tie people in OR it is such a new sales model that the person you spoke to is clueless.

One thing for sure. It will be sold at the Apple store (unless a 180 degree u turn) and the Apple shop will not have any facilities to collect contract signatures.

[Bob]

Activation is, yes. But in order to get your mitts on the iPhone what hoops will you have to jump through? If you buy the phone in a store, sign a contract and walk out you cannot cancel the contract. That only works if bought over the phone or on the net under the distance selling regs.

So if O2 and CPW do insist on a credit check and contract signing for iPhones sold in their stores, buying from the Apple Store is obviously the way to go (or even via O2/CPW website).

From the few stores I have just phoned around (including CPW main sales) they seem to be totally unprepared for questions.

[Gecko]

i assumed once you sign on the dotted line you can't just say you don't want it anymore, but i havn't done any research. do other O2 contracts give you a month to cancel if you want to?

although i'd guess the amount Apple is taking from O2 for the deal there won't be the same easy way out even if you can get out of todays normal contracts. who knows?

[colonel_butt]

i am not following this discussion.
it says clearly on the o2 site that the same model will be followed as in the US.
you buy the phone but sign up to the contract on itunes:

http://www.o2.co.uk/iPhone-GettingReady.html
click the getting ready tab and eligibility tab

rgds

[Bob]

You sign up for your Pay Monthly tariff and contract as part of the activation process so just make sure that you have this information to hand when you are ready to activate your iPhone.

OK - seems pretty clear then. So come Nov 9 walk into a O2/CPW/Apple store pay for the iPhone walk out and hacktivate if you don't want to be tied to an O2 contract.

[sUPERdUCKY]

i assumed once you sign on the dotted line you can't just say you don't want it anymore, but i havn't done any research. do other O2 contracts give you a month to cancel if you want to?

although i'd guess the amount Apple is taking from O2 for the deal there won't be the same easy way out even if you can get out of todays normal contracts. who knows?

All o2 phones have a peroid where you can cancel if you change your mind (14 days I think) however cance and you would have to return the phone.... what would happen if you did'nt I don't know but I'm sure they wont let us away with keeping them...

[zool0]

It'll be the same with any mobile phone. You have a 14 day cooling off period. If you decide the contract is not right for you, you can cancel the contract, but you must return the phone, as you have not completed the contract.

You never really get a free phone when you sign up for a contract, you pay for part of it over the period of your contract. Luckily the UK networks subsidise part of the phone price, but it seems the iphone is not heavily subsidised.