Carrier-financed iPhones in the US now get locked to that carrier

It used to be that all iPhones bought directly from Apple in the US came unlocked, meaning that you could use them with any carrier – even if you bought the phone with financing from another carrier. Now that’s no longer the case. Apple has updated its FAQ and it now says that iPhones bought with carrier financing are locked to that carrier until the phone is paid off. Once you complete the final payment, the phone will be unlocked and you will be free to switch to a different carrier.

This applies to AT&T, T-Mobile and Verizon, which are the three carriers that Apple works with. There are two more options – Apple Card Monthly Installments and Apple iPhone Payments. These require activation on one of the three carriers, though as far as we can tell, this doesn’t lock the phone to that carrier. Confusingly, the “See details” popups for T-Mobile and Verizon still claim that you will receive an unlocked iPhone, but maybe Apple forgot to update that text. AT&T’s popup doesn’t promise an unlocked phone. Contradictory details for T-Mobile’s and Verizon’s device payment programs

Source|Via