How to Unlock Smartphones

Smartphones present a slightly different unlocking scenario.
They're essentially handheld mobile computers. Locking and
unlocking them is a more involved process than the simple
linking of serial numbers and account numbers seen in regular
cell phones.

Smartphones are often locked to a service provider. For
example, the iPhone is locked to the AT&T network. For some
smartphone owners, unlocking isn't a matter of wanting to
change service providers. These owners just want to gain
control over the applications they can install on their
device. A lot of smartphone manufacturers lock the devices so
that only approved applications can be installed. The iPhone
can only install apps purchased from Apple's App Store, for
instance. If there's an application you want to install that
isn't officially approved and offered by Apple, you're out of
luck. That is, unless you can unlock your smartphone.

It's possible to purchase unlocked iPhones, or you can apply
a software crack to an iPhone to unlock it. This is often
referred to as jailbreaking the phone. Because the software
on a smartphone is more complicated than a cell phone's, the
unlocking process is more difficult than simply entering
a code. The software cracks can have unpredictable results,
rendering some features of the phone (or the phone itself)
non-functional.

Is Cell Phone Unlocking Legal?

The last question everyone asks about cell phone unlocking:
is it legal? In Europe, the answer is generally yes. Though
laws differ from country to country, they tend to favor
consumers over companies. In the United States, the answer is
also yes. The U.S. Copyright Office issues rulings every
three years, and in 2006, they declared that unlocking a cell
phone does not infringe on the copyright of the phone
manufacturer or service provider, and therefore isn't
prohibited.

In the ruling, they suggested that locking phones to accounts
only serves to support a particular business model. "The
underlying activity sought to be performed by the owner of
the handset is to allow the handset to do what it was
manufactured to do -- lawfully connect to any carrier. This
is a noninfringing activity by the user...the purpose of the
software lock appears to be limited to restricting the
owner's use of the mobile handset to support a business
model, rather than to protect access to a copyrighted work
itself.".

That ruling could be reversed later in 2009, but the
justification for the original ruling hasn't changed, so it
may stand. However, in 2008, Apple filed an opposition to the
ruling, asking that it be overturned in 2009. They want
jailbreaking iPhones to be illegal.

There is one caveat, however. Unlocking a phone might violate
the terms of any contract you may have signed with your
service provider. If so, you could be subject to whatever
penalties are outlined in the contract, or your service may
be cut off. It's also unclear if it's legal to offer
third-party cell phone unlocking services -- U.S. courts have
not yet ruled on this matter.