Comments on: Apple selling unlocked iPhone 3G in Hong Kong

The price is steep, but Apple is giving consumers in this tiny Chinese territory the option of choosing any carrier they so desire.

[NeilMcPhee]

bobmaelstrom: I agree with you that Apple is in on this scheme of ripping off U.S. users. I also applaud you for refusing to make youself a victim. Apple and ATT are businesses going after profits, but they can achieve that only if there are enough people willing to buy their products. If you "must" have the iPhone (despite the availability of hundreds of other choices to make that all-important phone call) then you are on the hook.

In some countries people are lucky enough to have the legislators clamp down on the practice of locking the cellular phones. Here in the States we can stop whining and start to play our "voter" role and urge our legislators to do the same. Just beware that this process will take a very long time. For people who are not patient enough to wait for that day to come, they can always work within the framework of free market economy -- DO NOT BUY IT.

Let's see how much longer these two companies can go against the market force. But first let's create the force.

[Thomas, David]

Fine, I'll say it. No, I'll chill.

Since many whiners believe this is some cheap investment, and an inexpensive plastic phone with tacky construction, and additional abilities added on as an afterthought ... get a life.


I really should not need to say more. If the device was crap, no one would even give a damn. So quit ******** about how you think it should be priced, and about how you are being ripped off. If such a quality device was rampant on the market from multiple providers, I would agree with you ... but IT ISN"T!

[redrobin62]

What a nightmare I'd just experienced trying to cancel my cellular service with AT&T. It took about an hour of phone time! I was frequently put on hold, got two service reps who suddenly, mysteriously couldn't hear me, was rerouted to tech service who then rerouted me to a rep who told me I was in the wrong state so she would I had to call their 1-800 number. (This I had to do, by the way, at least three times). Finally I got a British rep on the phone who was able to confirm my cancellation. It's interesting that a company the size and reputation of AT&T would put up "dummy" reps. I guess that's just to tire you out so you will hang up and forget about canceling. The good news about all this is I was walking past the Seattle Convention Center at the time and decided to step inside to avoid traffic noise so I could hear the phone better. As it turned out there was a colored pencil exhibition going on in the Center at the time. I got the brochure and viewed all the drawings as I lingered on the phone with AT&T.
It brought back college memories; I was an artist then. Those aspirations have now been re-triggered. Thanks AT&T. Your phone service is great but your customer service sucks.

[imacpwr]

More or less the same already in Switzerland. You have the option to choose not just one carrier but 3 or buying the unit outright is also allowed. The carriers are Swisscom, Orange and (soon to be as well) Sunrise:

http://iphone3g.swisscom.ch/?lang=en

http://microsite.orange.ch/index_f2.php#home_en

[imacpwr]

[i]This is in sharp contrast to Apple's policy for the almost everywhere else on the planet. [/i]

Tom Krazit; you'll never become a world renowned journalist as long as you keep believing North America [/B]IS[/B] the planet.

[marcusmaedl]

Wonder what would happen if I were to buy an iphone in HK and brough *** back?

Living in SoCal, AT&T is the worst possible carrier. While they all suck in their own way, I often feel sad that I have this great toy, yet can't call my friends becasue I know the call will drop 2 or 3 times on average.
The coverage and speed are so pathetic that I am almost considering bringing back the iphone and switching carriers - or flying to Hong Kong....

[pkarage]

"This is in sharp contrast to Apple's policy for the almost everywhere else on the planet."

I would like to highlight the world "almost" since the iPhone has been selling unlocked in Greece since August the 22nd but apparently it didn't make it to the news. But of course it's more expensive than the US version (569 euros for the 16GB version - remember that one euro is almost 1,5 US dollars).

[cristian_petri]

In Romania, Orange, sale iphone 3G 8GB with prepay at 518 Euro and for unlock iphone you need to pay another 100 euro that means that an unlocked iphone 3G 8Gb is 900 $ . So in Hong Kong is very cheap.

[Khaled A.]

It's a fair price, look at unlocked Nokia phones' prices.

There are other countries without an iPhone deal (like Saudi Arabia), why can't Apple just sell the iPhone here directly instead of making a deal?

[vip_m]

To all those complaining, I'd say just get another phone and then buy the new iPod Touch--it has all the features of the iPhone w/o the headache of a plan (of course no camera, but your other phone should have one).

[rosudeuja]

i'm in Nepal and were not bein able to get 1st hand iPhone in the market,so i was hopin wo get it frm honk kong,is the unlocked version safe,what i'm tryin to say is that...wont it get lockd again or have any problems in future because its next to impossible to find anyone who can repair the software or unlock it....so is it safe to get it coz 695$ is a lot of money n m a student with no income of any sort...so...u got it right!....thank you....for info providers