The Wall Street Journal reports Apple may have developed a modified version of its iPhone compatible with China Telecom’s “CDMA-2000’ network. The device is set to make its debut in China this Friday, but as things currently stand, it’s to be exclusive to China Unicom.
There’s a reason Sprint has stopped selling SIM unlocked versions of the iPhone 4S today, and it’s not just because of the pleasing parallel symmetry of the digits in the date 11/11/11. It’s because today is also the day that Apple has started selling unlocked, contract-free iPhone 4Ses to customers willing to pay a premium.
While Sprint’s initial batch of iPhone 4S handsets were sold unlocked, allowing you to swap out your Sprint SIM card for a SIM card of your choice, that will no longer be the case. From today, November 11, Sprint will be SIM locking Apple’s latest iPhone.
Despite losing its exclusivity to the iPhone back in February when Apple introduced the CDMA iPhone 4 for Verizon, AT&T is still the most dominant iPhone carrier in the United States, enjoying 60% of iPhone 4 subscribers.
Wow, big news! The iPhone 4S is officially coming to a fourth American network in the coming weeks!
Bad news for the millions of T-Mobile customers using their jailbroken iPhones on the fourth-largest American wireless network, though: the iPhone 4S is coming to a network you’ve probably never heard of.
![Sprint’s iPhone 4S Will Be Unlocked, And So Will Verizon’s After 60 Days [Update: Too Good To Be True]](http://cdn.cultofmac.com/wp-content/plugins/lazy-load/images/1x1.trans.gif)
![Sprint’s iPhone 4S Will Be Unlocked, And So Will Verizon’s After 60 Days [Update: Too Good To Be True]](http://cdn.cultofmac.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/10/Camera.jpg)
If you’re buying your new CDMA iPhone 4S through Sprint, then you’ll be pleased to know that the device will come unlocked — allowing you to stick in any SIM and use the device on any network. If you’ve ordered a Verizon device, however, it will come locked to Verizon, but you can request to have it unlocked after 60 days.
So Apple didn’t announce that all-new iPhone 5 you were so desperately longing for, but the good news is, you can use your current stock of iPhone 4 cases with your new iPhone 4S, right? Wrong!
While Apple’s new iPhone looks the same as its predecessor, there’s a very subtly difference that may mean some cases won’t fit it.
Apple’s iPhone 4S is available to pre-order today, but if you’re ordering in the U.S., you’ll have to purchase it with a commitment from either AT&T, Sprint or Verizon. Those wanting an unlocked device will have to wait until November, and they won’t get a world phone.
While Apple is still yet to announce its highly-anticipated iPhone 5, that hasn’t stopped a number of carriers from advertising the device and taking pre-orders. China Telecom is the latest to begin preparations for Apple’s fifth-generation device, reportedly taking orders from the end of this month.
Following its move to shun T-Mobile and begin selling Verizon devices instead, a screenshot from Radio Shack’s internal system reveals the retailer is set to begin selling the CDMA model of Apple’s iPhone, and its iPad 2, from September 15.
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