Australia to get world's first truly unlocked 3G iPhone?

Alex Zaharov-Reutt
Wednesday, 09 April 2008 16:17

Your IT - Mobility

A totally unverified news report from MacTalk Forums in Australia has leaked the stunning news that Apple will sell an unlocked 3G iPhone, which will work on any Australian carrier, from the last week of June, 2008.

Could it be true, or is it all just a massive traffic-grabbig hoax? That’s the big question iPhone wanting Australians are asking themselves at the moment, following a very intriguing report from MacTalk Forums contributor "decryption", Anthony Agius, in Australia, which ZDNet says is a fellow called ‘aagius’ as seen on Flickr.

Apparently only a handful of top Australian Apple resellers have been given the news to prepare for the 3G iPhone’s arrival, which MacTalk contributor decryption/Agius says, from a reseller leak, will happen in the last week of June, on more than one carrier, with no contract lock-in, for any current reseller – as well as Apple stores themselves – to offer to the public.

Apple will be launching their first Australian store in Sydney in that timeframe, which is the around the same time that Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC) – an event that will actually take place in the first week of June, while the iPhone 2.0 software/firmware release in the US will come in July.

Apple also has another store in Sydney as well as a Melbourne store due to open this year, giving Apple some very high profile locations of their own to sell iPhones – and all their other gear from. Speculation is also offered that Steve Jobs himself would be down under to launch the 3G iPhone, while enjoying a holiday in the great land of Oz down under.

Agius says that: “Resellers have been told specific dates, but they have all been told different dates within the same week. If a specific date is said in the media, then Apple knows who leaks it and can slap them around.”

But as the sources are friends of MacTalk, no specific dates have been included so as not to betray who the ‘leaker’ is, something Apple would clearly love to know if any of this is indeed true, as it could very well be a prank on us all, worldwide.

Agius believes that Apple will use Australia as a test-bed to sell truly unlocked iPhones, and suggests that Apple might have thought the following: "Seeing as you won't play with us, we'll give the iPhone to anyone who wants it, meaning you all lose out on exclusivity for your network".

Of course that’s something Agius simply made up, but it, at the very least, sounds plausible.

So, why might Apple finally be interested in selling an unlocked 3G iPhone in Australia? And what's another source - highly reputable at that - which is practically confirming this rumour? Please read onto page 2.