What is mobile phone unlocking?
Unlocking a mobile phone allows the phone to be used on any mobile phone network. By unlocking the phone, you will be able to insert a SIM card from the network of your choice and take advantage of the great SIM only offers available today.
Why will I need to unlock my phone?
If you intend to move from your current mobile phone network to another network, you will need to have your phone unlocked before it will accept the SIM card from the new provider.
Why are mobile phones locked in the first place?
Mobile phone companies claim that the mobile phones that they sell to consumers are heavily subsidised and that they are only able to recoup profits by the consumer using the phone on their network and spending money on calls, texts, mobile Internet, etc. Therefore, to make it more difficult for consumers to purchase a subsidised phone and then use it on a cheaper tariff such as a SIM only deal, the networks choose to lock the phone so it will only work on their network. However, it is very easy to unlock the phone if need be.
Is unlocking a mobile phone legal?
It is completely legal to unlock a phone in the UK. There is often a misconception that it is in some way illegal to unlock a phone. This is something that the networks themselves are understandably not keen to clarify as they do not want people to unlock their phones. However, the fact remains that it is totally legal to unlock a phone in the UK. If the phone is “blocked” by the network i.e. the bills have not been paid or it has been reported stolen, etc, then it is understandably illegal to unblock the phone.
What information do I need to unlock my phone?
When you go to a specialist phone unlocker, they will ask you for three main pieces of information. Without which you won’t be able to unlock the phone.
You will need:
The mobile phone brand and model number – This will be on the handset itself or the box.
The network – This is the mobile phone network that the phone is currently locked to.
The IMEI number – The IMEI (International Mobile Equipment Identity) number is a unique number that is assigned to every phone which is tagged if the phone has been reported as lost or stolen. To get the IMEI number for your particular phone you need to type *#06# into your handset and the number that appears is the IMEI.
How do I unlock my mobile phone?
It is surprisingly easy to unlock a phone. The most common method is to purchase a code from a specialist mobile phone unlocker that will use software to generate an alphanumeric code that simply needs to be typed into the phone. Once this has been done successfully, the network restrictions that were previously placed on the phone will vanish and you will be free to use the phone on the network or tariff of your choice.
The code will take the format of #pw+2746763089+1# for Nokia phones or *2767*637# for other brands of phones.
You should always follow the exact instructions for the input of the code from the mobile phone unlocking site from which the code was purchased as you will only get 5 attempts to input the code correctly.