Fonexchange - Mobile phone services including unlocking, repairs and software upgrade in Belfast, Northern Ireland Unlock, repair and update your mobile phone in Belfast, Northern Ireland
Sell your used mobile phone in Belfast, Northern Ireland
Unlock, repair and update your mobile phone in Belfast, Northern Ireland
Mobile phone accessories in Belfast, Northern Ireland, UK

Unlocking your phone

Why do mobile phone companies lock phones?
Mobile phone companies subsidize the cost of new phones to entice you to buy from them. They need to make up this shortfall and also retain your custom so they lock the phone to their network. They don’t want to sell you the phone at reduced cost and then let you go to another network provider.
Unlocking your mobile enables the phone to be used with any compatible Sim card
on any network, from any country. So if you have a handset that you want to put a new Sim card into, you may need to unlock the phone.
Most phones can be unlocked, although some models can not and the cost can vary from £10 up to £40.
So check
a) If your phone can be unlocked
b) What it will cost
c) How long the process will take
Simply email us with the make and the model of your phone and we will reply with the answer to all 3 questions. If you are not sure what type of phone you have, this information is normally printed on the phone underneath the battery.
It's important at this point to make the distinction between unlocking and unblocking. Unlocking, which lets you use your phone, with any Sim card from any network is completely legal.
However unblocking is enabling a phone to work when it's been rendered unusable after being reported lost or stolen and registered on the network providers black list. This is completely illegal and should never be attempted.

When you leave your phone for unlocking you must ensure that all sim cards are removed as any sim cards left in the phone will automatically be destroyed for data protection.