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Instructions: Remove Simlock from iPhone and Co.
If you want to sell your smartphone or use it with another SIM card, you should first remove the simlock for all providers. We will show you how to do it.
Remove simlock: What you need to know
If you buy a smartphone with an associated tariff, you can usually get the mobile phone at a much lower price. To make the offer worthwhile for the mobile phone provider, the smartphone is usually equipped with a simlock, which means that the mobile phone only works with SIM cards from the respective provider.
- However, a simlock does not remain on the smartphone forever. After the contract period, usually 24 months, you can remove the simlock free of charge. This allows you to use other SIM cards in your mobile phone. If you want to be free before the end of the contract period, you pay around 100 euros.
- In order to remove the simlock from your smartphone, you need the IMEI number in some cases. To do this, call the code * on your mobile phone via your phone app. The 15-digit IMEI number will then appear on the display.
- While in the early years every iPhone in Germany was equipped with a simlock, the mobile phone providers have now said goodbye to this methodology. Since 2016, no more devices have been sold with a simlock.
Instructions: Remove Simlock from iPhone and Co.
Most providers only provide iPhones with a simlock. For this reason, most of the following instructions only apply to the iPhone.
- If you have an older iPhone, download iTunes and connect the device to the computer via USB cable. In some cases, the iPhone is already unlocked by the mobile phone provider, so the simlock will automatically disappear after synchronisation.
- Otherwise you will have to take care of the unlocking yourself. In the following practical tips and documents you will find instructions for removing simlocks on O2, T-Mobile, Vodafone and AT&T.
- Alternatively, you can resort to an external provider such as Unlocking.com. Unlocking is usually a little cheaper here. In the meantime, however, providers usually remove old simlocks free of charge, so you should rather contact your mobile phone provider.
- Jailbreaking was also a popular way to get rid of simlock. However, this method is no longer worthwhile nowadays, especially as there are hardly any working jailbreaks.
