Apple's specifications indicate iPhone 4S is a "world phone", both GSM & CDMA ready. My inquiries with different salespersons at the China Telecom flagship store on Beijing Road yielded a range of contradictory answers from "no" to "Yes". Does anyone knows for sure if a cut down size China Telecom CDMA SIM card (die cut by one of China Telecom's competitor, since China Telecom also told me they do not provide SIM card cutting service) will work on an factory unlocked iPhone 4S purchased from Hong Kong? Thanks in advance for responding.
In the USA, "factory unlocked" 4S means only the GSM portion is unlocked. I'm pretty sure the HK unlocked model is no different.
@Alex,
Thanks for the prompt response. Perhaps I am using the wrong nomenclature above.
By "unlocked", I meant not "Locked & married" to a particular service provider without the use of a SIM card (i.e., at&t or Verison and not able to change service providers with that particular phone).
I am referring to a standard iPhone 4S sold by Apple in Hong Kong that one can simply insert a micro SIM card to use the phone for making & receiving calls. I don't know what they call that type of phone. I am confused by Apple's specs and China Telecom's range of even more confusing answers. It's conceivable China Telecom is trying to make me "subscribe" their service and buy the iPhone from them!
No, for two reasons:
1) the unlocked phones sold in HK (and the US) are GSM-only. They call it a world phone since it covers way more GSM frequencies than just in the US, but it doesn't have CDMA.
2) Even if you bought the Verizon iPhone in the US, waited 3 months, and asked them to unlock it, it a) would only unlock GSM, and b) the iphone's CDMA implementation does not use a SIM.
You're stuck with China Unicom and China Mobile for now.
@Alex & joshwa,
Thanks so much for the clarifications. I've found out via Baidu search that China Telecom's CDMA is China Telecom unique and special.
Both links below are misleading:
www.apple.com/iphone/specs.html
www.wired.com/gadgetlab/2011/10/apple-iphone-4s-specs/
