Allegedly 'unlocked' iPhone 4 problem

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Moved to Spain in 2000 after enforced early retire
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iMac24,iMac27,iMac21.5-i3,iPhone4-32gb,iTouch3.32gb,iPad1,Apple TV,iPodClassic160gbx2
A year ago I bought a new iPhone 4 while visiting the UK. I asked the Network which was 02 to unlock the phone so I could choose my network, but also because I live most of the time in Spain.
The phone was a joy to use in the UK. However on returning to Spain I was unable to get the phone to work properly, partly with the initial problem of getting mini-sim cards to fit, and also because the Spanish shops I tried said the phone wasn't fully un-locked.
I had to pay about 50Euro's to buy a special additional sim card, which is tricky to use and requires I never switch the phone off.
Consequently, because of the hassle, I rarely use the phone which is such a waste.
Any suggestions as to what I can do please ?
 
C

chas_m

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Yeah, it sounds to me like the phone wasn't unlocked. Your "special additional SIM card" is most likely a Gevey SIM, which does a hardware unlock and is a PITA in newer phones.

Depending on what iOS version and baseband you're running, there may not be much you can do for the time being. If you stop upgrading the phone whenever a new iOS version comes out, there should eventually be a solution for truly unlocking it.
 
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Moved to Spain in 2000 after enforced early retire
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iMac24,iMac27,iMac21.5-i3,iPhone4-32gb,iTouch3.32gb,iPad1,Apple TV,iPodClassic160gbx2
Thanks for the reply Chas - yes, it is a Geevey sim which I don't particularly like using as I like to switch off my iPhone at times - what is 'PITA 'out of interest ?
I had an online chat with an 'O2 Guru ' this morning and from his records he says my phone is un-locked and all I need to do is sync with iTunes on my iMac to achieve this - something I think I tried some months ago....
Will try again - without the Geevey sim.

Are these Geevey sim's well-thought of ?
 
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chas_m

Guest
PITA stands for pain in the ... um ... posterior region. :)

Geevey's used to be well thought of but as time has gone on the company hasn't kept up with progress for the latest models and such. I have no direct experience with them so that is just my impression.
 

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