Is my European smartphone already unlocked? [closed]
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I have a smartphone bought at home (Europe) and I changed providers during the time I've had it. This meant I went to my new provider, asked to become a customer. They gave me a new SIM card (with number transfer, so I kept my old number). I put it into my phone, they activated it, it worked. Both old and new providers operate in the same country.
At that time, I hadn't heard about locked and unlocked phones. Now that I'm planning on a trip outside of Europe (to the US) and want to buy a SIM card there, I'm reading everywhere that your phone has to be unlocked or it won't work with another carrier.
Does my previous experience mean my phone is already unlocked? Or is this unlocking something specifically for changing countries?
Best Answer
There are two types of locks:
- A "SIM lock" that restricts which SIM cards from which provider you can use.
- A "Region lock" that restricts in which regions your phone can be (initially) used.
For the former, you should check with your provider. If you once changed to a different company, then most likely you do not have a SIM lock. (See also the answer by Sebastiaan van den Broek)
The second type of lock is cell phone manufacturer-specific. For example, Samsung build such a lock into their phone such that you need to use it with a local SIM card in the geographic region stated on the phone cardboard box for at least 5 minutes of talk time before it can be used in another region. Shouldn't be a problem for you either.
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Are European cell phones locked?
Yes. Most likely. The only commonplace form of locking that I am aware of that is used by vendors of phones in Europe is locking the handset to SIMs issued by a specific phone-network when that network subsidises the initial cost of the phone.Can I check if my phone is unlocked?
But in general, you can go to Settings > Connections > Mobile Networks > Network Operators and tap Search Now to see if the names of other carriers come up. If multiple carrier names show up, your phone might be unlocked.Is my phone unlocked at end of contract?
If your phone is locked it won't automatically become unlocked when your contract expires with your provider. You'll have to specifically ask your carrier to unlock it.Is my phone locked to a network?
First go to Settings and then Cellular. If you see a Cellular Data option under the Cellular menu, then your iPhone is unlocked. If you don't see \u201cCellular Data Network\u201d as an option under Cellular, then the phone is locked.How to Check if iPhone is UNLOCKED
More answers regarding is my European smartphone already unlocked? [closed]
Answer 2
You should take at your country’s legislation at for example https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIM_lock and then if necessary check it with your provider.
Europe or the EU does not have a law against this such as for example Singapore, but in my experience it’s not a common practice to sell locked phones anymore. Still best to find out before you need the phone elsewhere though.
Sources: Stack Exchange - This article follows the attribution requirements of Stack Exchange and is licensed under CC BY-SA 3.0.
Images: Andrea Piacquadio, Tima Miroshnichenko, cottonbro, cottonbro