Play.com explains sim-free iPhone 3G deal
Comes with full manufacturer's warranty
The announcement that Play.com was to sell sim-free iPhones was greeted with both suspicion and confusion. Where was the stock sourced from? Is it legitimate stock? And would it be covered by Apple's warranty in the event of a hardware failure? For the answers to those questions and more, read on.
First up, Play wants to make it clear that its iPhones are 'sim-free', available to use on all networks, rather than being unlocked from a network. And it's all above board. According to a company spokesperson, the stock 'is available due to EU legislation ensuring the sale of sim-free mobile phones' and '...comes with a full manufacturer warranty.' Indeed, if you pick up one of the phones, you are encouraged to register your iPhone at the Apple website. And if you do that, you can input the imei number to find out exactly where your handset came from. Probably the only way - Play isn't giving much away on that front right now.
Everything you would expect to find on a contract iPhone should be available to you, with one notable exception: 'You get free wi-fi spots across the UK with O2, therefore if you're not using O2, this will not apply.' We suspect you'd already guessed as much. And if you order one and find any fault or discrepancy, just send it back, with the company confirming that 'the standard Play.com returns policy would apply to this product'.
Pushed on the number of pre-orders taken so far, Play was typically vague on specifics, but did tell us that 'customer response so far has been very positive' and that 'orders are growing nicely'. If you want to join that pre-order list, prices start at £549.99 for the 8GB model and £599.99 for the 16GB handset. And do let us know how you go on with it.
Link: Play.com
Buy one here: Amazon | Play | Carphone Warehouse
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By mpwt3
30|03|2009 18:23
Play.com is based in Jersey, where you can also get the iPhone SIM free or on contract from two of the three local telcos (Jersey Telecom and Cable & Wireless) for very similar prices to Play.com's. The Jersey Telecom product are Czech or Italian Apple product codes, so I'd guess the same source as Play.com's.