Not satisfied with your current network service? Why not unlock it and switch to a new carrier? According to the Unlocking Consumer Choice and Wireless Competition Act, it is totally legal for you to unlock the Android phone from current carrier. So what you need to do is just to learn how to do it. And this article will give you a detailed guide about how to unlock your Android phone from the wireless carrier. Keep on reading the article to get more information.
Carrier Unlock Android Phone
Most of Verizon phone are equipped with an unlocked SIM card slot even though they are not use GSM but CDMA. And Verizon does not lock their 4G LTE phones, and there is no code needed to program them to use with other carriers. Also it does not lock the 3G Verizon phones, except their non-iPhone 3G World Devices.in other words, you do not need to unlock your Android phone from the Verizon carrier if you have a Verizon phone with 4G LTE service.
Even though the Verizon phone with SIM equipped can work with AT&T, T-Mobile, Sprint and other GSM carriers, the phone still needs roaming GSM radios if you want to make phone calls, send texts normally in the United States. Thus, you can call 800-711-8300 and request a SIM unlock though the Verizon does not support the online unlock request.
And for most of the prepaid 3G phones, you can enter the code "000000" or "123456" to unlock the Android phone on Verizon carrier; and as for the World Phones on Verizon, you may need to call Verizon support at 888-294-6804 to start the unlocking process.
Unlocking the Android phone from AT&T carrier is a little more complicated than from Verizon carrier.
Firstly, you have to meet the following prerequisites to unlock your phone from AT&T: you have to be a current or former AT&T user; the device in question must be from ATT; your Android phone must not have been lost, stolen or blocked; the phone should be attached to an account with "good standing"; it must be active on the same AT&T customer account for up to 2 months with "no past due or unpaid balance", and you have to wait for the 14 days "buyer's remorse" time before unlocking the Android phone from AT&T carrier if you have upgraded early.
To unlock your phone from AT&T, you can fill out an unlock request form provided by AT&T online and submit it. Then check the confirmation email the AT&T send to you and AT&T will give you an instructions to unlock your Android phone from the carrier through email. As for prepaid phones, you can call 800-331-0500 to unlock the AT&T Internet support but cannot officially unlock the handsets on the phone.
Similar to AT&T, you have to meet the requirements before you unlock your Android phone from T-Mobile carrier: the device must be a T-Mobile phone; it must not have been reported lost or stolen; the phone must be attached to an account with "good standing" that is never canceled; it must have been active at least 40 days according to the requesting line; you have to pay at least 18 consecutive monthly payments when the phone is on a service contract; the device must be fully paid for all payments when it is in T-Mobile's Equipment Installment Plan or leased through JUMP! On demand, you have made fewer than two unlock requests, per line, in one year.
As for prepaid T-Mobile phone to unlock Android phone from the carrier, it must be active for more than one year and the account related must have at least $100 in refills.
Then you are allowed to download the T-Mobile Mobile Device Unlock app, communicate with the T-Mobile customer representative, or call at 800-746-0949/611 from the T-Mobile phone to unlock your T-Mobile phone.
Before unlocking your Android phone from Sprint carrier, make sure you have met the following demands: the device must be from Sprint; it should be Domestic SIM Unlock capable; it should never be reported lost, stolen, blocked, or related with any fraudulent activity; it must be attached to an account with "good standing" that is active more than 50 days on the requesting line; there is no pending payments or fees; you have made fewer than two unlock requests, per line, in one year.
The domestic SIM card-based phones launched after 2015 can automatically unlock when they are up to the mustard. So to unlock the Android phone from Sprint carrier, you can chat online with the customer representative or call at 88-211-4727 from the Sprint phone.
And toy can also sign into the online account, go to the relevant page and "Unlock device to use int'l SIM" to get the short-term unlocking for international travel. Also, unlocking it by calling at 888-226-7212 is a good way.
Android SIM unlock is an amazing application for you to unlock your Android phone from the current carrier and change to a new one. Different from asking the carrier to unlock your phone, Android SIM unlock is aimed at operating the whole unlocking process by yourself. Besides, Android SIM unlock is compatible with your Android phone no matter which Internet service you are using. Read on and learn how to unlock your Android phone from the carrier with Android SIM unlock:
Step 1 Download Android SIM unlock
Download and install Android Data Backup & Restore in your computer first. This software is only available for Windows system.
Step 2 Choose SIM unlock tool
Hit on the "More Tools" option on the left column of the main interface, and then choose the "SIM Unlock" option to start unlocking your Android phone from the carrier.
Step 3 Connect phone with the program
Connect your Android phone with the computer via a USB cable. Once connected successfully, you can see a connection icon on the main interface of this program.
Step 4 unlock your phone
When you see an "Unlock" button on the screen, simply click it. The whole unlocking process may take some minutes. After your Android phone is unlocked from the carrier successfully, you can set the phone back to the normal mode with the same instruction.
When the Android phone is unlocked from the carrier, you may need to backup some important Android data first. Android Data Backup & Restore should be the best program you can take into considerartion.
Available on: Windows/Mac
If you want to learn more about how to backup android data to PC, you can also check the video tutorial as below:
1. Do all carriers support unlocked cell phones?
Any carrier that services GSM phones will support unlocked cell phones. However, most carriers do not advertise unlocking services, which leaves customers unaware of the concept and benefits of unlocking phones and switching SIM cards.
2. Is there any way to get free SIM network unlock codes?
You can get free unlock code only from your service provider. You just have to contact their customer support and ask them to provide the code. To get the unlock code from your service provider you must have to fulfill their terms of unlocking and your contract period should be expired.
3. Can an unlocked phone be used on any carrier?
Unlocked phones can be used on almost any wireless carrier. But locked phones can only be used with one carrier. Making sure you don't switch carriers is basically the whole point of phone locks.
December 15, 2020 18:45 / Updated by Iris Walker to Fix Android Problems
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