HYDERABAD: If you are an Apple fan, this is delicious news. It's illegal but then, forbidden fruits are always delicious. Some Apple fans in the city are apparently getting iPhones from abroad, to be precise the US, and getting them unlocked here. Shopkeepers in stores at Abids say this is a roaring business these days.Go to any small mobile store in the area, an iPhone, you will be told, can be unlocked within minutes. And the service charge? Depending on the model, the price varies from `400 to `1000. One of the shopkeepers in Abids claims he receives numerous customers in a month. "I give 100% guarantee that no harm will be done to your phone," he assures. The iPhone, which is costlier in India than anywhere else in the world, is relatively cheaper in the US, if one takes it on contract."Ask any of your relatives residing in the US to get it for you. Buy it from there and bring it to us, you will save a lot of money," advises another shopkeeper who has his shop among a row of numerous mobile stores in Abids. Verizon and AT&T sell iPhones on contract basis in the US and they work only with their SIM cards. Unlocked versions of the phone too are available in the US but they are costly. Now, to use an iPhone, bought on contract from Verizon or AT&T, here in the city with an Indian SIM card, one needs to 'jail break' the software."It is not legal. We cannot comment on it as small-time traders are engaging in illegal business. I, however, suggest that customers buy factory unlocked phones at the iStore," says a salesman at the Apple store.But the accessibility to a high-end phone, an iPhone at that, for a cheaper price tag is tempting. However, there's some risk involved. Jail breaking softwares are available but there is no guarantee that it would not harm the phone. "I have seen phones of many who got iPhones from the US and got it unlocked here. Soon after, they had problems with Wifi connectivity and battery time," explains Md Zaki, IT manager at Purple Talk.
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