For Americans Going To Europe Or Overseas

[inquisitor]

All SIMlocked phones purchased in Germany can be unlocked free of charge after a period of 24 months. However therefore you'll need to send a proof of purchase to the operator, the phone is tied to, which is Vodafone in your case.
Vodafone also has a form for retrieving unlock codes on their website. Maybe they record when phones register on their network for the first time and so they can determine the age of the phone even without proof of purchase.
Just find out the IMEI (serial number) of your phone by entering *#06# or looking below it's battery and enter it on the linked page. If you're lucky you'll get your unlock code within seconds.
In any case let us know if you succeeded.

[dg7feq]

As far as i can remember the hotline can help you in this case and find out if the phone is already free to unlock. I am not sure about the exact procedure, i just remember that i bought some 2nd hand phone on ebay some years ago and was able to unlock it quite easily even though i was not the original buyer of the hardware.

Chris

[inquisitor]

You're right Chris.

It just crossed my mind, that Vodafone should actually know the date of purchase as Vodafone SIMs need to be registered upon purchase. So if they have a database linking each IMSI (SIM card identity) with the IMEI (phone serial number) of the bundled phone, they can conclude from the SIM registration date when the phone was bought, even without gathering data from their network.

To prove this theory, I just got an IMEI from a friend's locked Vodafone phone and entered it in the mentioned form, which resulted this message:

Ihr Entsperr-Code ist leider noch nicht freigegeben. Sie können ihn erst im Januar 2010 hier finden.

in English:

Unfortunately your unlock code has not been released yet. It won't be released until January 2010.

So obviously this unlock procedure is completely automatized these days and you'll only need the IMEI of the locked phone to unlock it not earlier than 24 months after purchase.

[Motel75]

Originally Posted by inquisitor

It just crossed my mind, that Vodafone should actually know the date of purchase as Vodafone SIMs need to be registered upon purchase.

I think it might also be an approximation of when the phone was probably sold. My wife got a Vodafone phone unlocked at a Vf shop after about 21 months (a couple of years ago). The sales assistant told us it didn't have to be exactly two years, and received the unlock code by calling a number and giving them the IMEI. Either way, there's no harm in trying Vodafone's online unlocking service.

[dripley]

Thanks for all the replies. I tried to obtain the unlocking code from Vodafone but it appears that I will have to wait until September before they will issue me with a code. That is OK by me as our holiday in Italy doesn't start until October. Thanks again to all of you.

Denis

[inquisitor]

Insert a non-Vodafone SIM into your phone, switch it on and you will be asked for the unlock code after the PIN code for the SIM.

[jchoo]

Hello,

I'm currently an AT&T customer at home in the US, but am in the middle of a month long trip to England for work. I purchased a quad band, unlocked phone (samsung S5230) for use here with an Orange prepaid sim (on Camel, for 6p/min calls back home). I am also going to be sent to Spain (Almaraz) for work in November, and am trying to figure out what my best option is for inexpensive calls back home. I expect to use anywhere from 20-60 minutes of talk time per day calling home, so the "home option" of utilizing my AT&T sim is right out. From the research I've done, I am leaning toward a Lebara sim, but I would like some guidance. I am also looking to purchase a USB modem for 3g internet use with my laptop. Is there anything available in Spain like there is here in the UK, such as the £25ish per month for 5 gb that is offered by Orange? I am also open to using my phone as a modem, but this phone is not 3G (didn't need it, as my hometown in the US won't be getting 3G for at least another 8 months!)


So, a recap for the TL:DR crowd:

US customer on postpay AT&T
have the following additional sims: UK Orange PAYG, UK Talkmobile PAYG
going to Almaraz, Spain
will call almost exclusively back to the US (mobile number)
using quad band (not 3g) phone
also looking for 3g usb modem and sim with 1gb or larger prepaid data plan


Thanks in advance,

-Joe

[petkow]

Hi Joe. Have another search through the Europe sub-section of the forum. Plenty of info on Spanish prepaid SIMs there including ones that will give you very cheap internet access.

Personally I would stay clear of Lebara. Instead go with any Spanish operator that gives you cheap national calls (the going rate is 8c/min) and then use a callthrough for calling internationally. Otherwise stick to VoIP.

[powerlifter]

Joe,

Have you thought about Skype. You can call through your computer, and for very little cost.
You can get a subscription for a few dollars a month, or you can buy credit. It is very cheap.
The subscription is for unlimited calls to almost anywhere in the world. Just trying to give you options.

Hi.
Hey mate thanks a lot for sharing this.
Its really useful and helpful.