How to SIM Unlock an iPhone

A SIM (subscriber identity module) card is the part of a mobile telephone device that stores the information used to connect with the phone service subscriber. For the iPhone, the official and exclusive phone service provider is AT&T, so all SIM cards within iPhones are designed to connect with their network. However, some iPhone users wish to unlock the SIM card in order to allow them to use other networks from different phone service carriers, which can be done using a relatively easy, though technically prohibited, process.

Difficulty: Easy

Instructions

1. Disable iTunes' helper application by opening the Windows Task Manager or Apple Activity Monitor, for your PC or Macintosh computer respectively. Scroll down the list to find iTunes Helper, selecting it clicking and "Quit Process" or "End Task" depending on your operating system. This will prevent the iTunes Helper from interfering with the process of SIM unlocking the iPhone.

2. Connect your iPhone to the computer using the USB cable. Make sure that your computer is connected to the Internet throughout this entire process.

3. Download the AppTapp software from the NullRiver website to your computer (see Resources below). It is important to note that Apple does not support or condone the installation of independently developed software applications on the iPhone, or more importantly, the act of unlocking the iPhone.

4. Install AppTapp to your iPhone by running the program on your computer and accepting the agreement the program provides to add the software to your phone. Once you have successfully installed the software, select the applications titled "Unlock.app," "Lockdownd," and "Cyberduck" from the list provided by AppTapp and download them and install them as well.

5. Go to "Settings" in the main panel of the iPhone controls in iTunes and change the "Auto Lock" button to "Never." Click on the "Wi-Fi" tab in "Settings" and write down the IP address listed next to the blue arrow. You will need this address later to SIM unlock the iPhone successfully.

6. Open the Cyberduck program you previously installed and select "Open Connection" from the top menu bar. You will be asked to enter the IP address of your phone, which is the number you previously wrote down from iTunes. Be sure to check that Port 22 is the port listed in this window and that the "SFTP" button is selected.

7. Drag the file labeled "Unlock.app" into the folder labeled "Applications" in the Cyberduck program. You can open this folder by clicking on the button with the same name within the top menu bar.

8. Turn off your iPhone and remove the SIM card from the phone. The SIM card is usually stored in the back of the phone with the battery and is usually about the size of a credit card. Turn your iPhone back on once the SIM card is removed and you should see an application labeled "Unlock" in the main menu. The application will take about 20 minutes to run once you press "Start."

9. Insert a new SIM card into the iPhone once the "Unlock" application has completed running. You have now successfully unlocked your iPhone.

Tips & Warnings

• The only other phone service provider in the U.S. that currently supports the iPhone's SIM card besides AT&T is T Mobile.
• Certain features of the iPhone, including Visual Voicemail, are only supported by AT&T and will not work on an another network, even if you successfully SIM unlock your iPhone.

Resources

• Download AppTapp from NullRiver