how to remove the SIM Lock from iphone

While initially iPhones were only sold on the AT&T network with a SIM lock in place, various hackers have found methods to "unlock" the phone; more recently some carriers have started to sell unlocked iPhones.[125] More than a quarter of iPhones sold in the United States were not registered with AT&T. Apple speculates that they were likely shipped overseas and unlocked.[126] AT&T has stated that the "iPhone cannot be unlocked, even if you are out of contract".[127]

On November 21, 2007, T-Mobile in Germany announced it would sell the phone unlocked and without a T-Mobile contract, caused by a preliminary injunction against T-Mobile put in place by their competitor, Vodafone.[128] On December 4, 2007, a German court decided to grant T-Mobile exclusive rights to sell the iPhone with SIM lock, overturning the temporary injunction.[129] In addition, T-Mobile will voluntarily offer to unlock customers' iPhone after the termination of the contract.[130]

On carriers where removal of the iPhone's SIM lock is allowed, the carrier can submit a request to Apple which will then remove the carrier locking on the next restore of the iPhone through iTunes. Note that in certain countries, where unlocked phones are required to be available by law, the iPhone is sold without a contract and without a SIM lock; on average, such units carry prices of US$700+ for the 8 GB model. Examples include Hong Kong, Italy, New Zealand, and Russia.[131] In Australia, all three carriers (Optus, Telstra, and Vodafone) will also provide an unlock after requesting it from the carrier.[131]

Activation

The iPhone normally prevents access to its media player and web features unless it has also been activated as a phone with an authorized carrier. On July 3, 2007, Jon Lech Johansen reported on his blog that he had successfully bypassed this requirement and unlocked the iPhone's other features with a combination of custom software and modification of the iTunes binary. He published the software and offsets for others to use.[132]

Unlike the original, the 3G iPhone must be activated in the store in most countries.[133] This need for in-store activation, as well as the huge number of first-generation iPhone and iPod Touch users upgrading to iPhone OS 2.0, caused a worldwide overload of Apple's servers on July 11, 2008, the day on which both the iPhone 3G and iPhone OS 2.0 updates were released. After the update, devices were required to connect to Apple's servers to authenticate the update, causing many devices to be temporarily unusable.[134]

Users on the O2 network in the United Kingdom, however, can buy the phone online and activate it via iTunes as with the previous model.[135] iPhones purchased in Australia as a pre-paid kit likewise do not require in-store activation, but require activation online at the Optus website and iTunes.[136] Buyers can also activate iPhones via iTunes on Spain's Movistar network. Shops usually offer activation for the buyer's convenience.