Local mobile operators can lock your phone to their network

[Kevin Lancaster]

SA mobile operators can lock your phone to their network

Asking whether a phone is network-locked is not the silly question many experts in South Africa thought it was.

 

[ToxicBunny]

Intriguing..

More reason to buy a phone outright then instead of on contract.

 

[MickeyD]

Very interesting!

I was also under the impression that the clause was still in effect.

 

[mr_norris]

though it was.

*thought

 

[LinuxMan]

Not unless you flash your firmware.
As far as I know it is then completely open..
Correct me if i'm wrong.

 

[bwana]

For years I'd been asking people to show me the legislation when it came to their insistence that it was illegal to network lock phones - no one ever did.

 

[Hemi300c]

And I was shot down by the MYBB police when I asked the question.............

 

[system32]

Where is ICASA when you need them?
Locking phones should be illegal.
The contract binds the user to pay for 24 months.

 

[Bighit]

So, he bought a dual sim phone, that is locked to Cell C, whahahahahaha

 

[HideInLight]

That blacklisted phone I bought from gumtree, was technically network locked...
Only worked 100% on the Vodacom network.

 

[AfricanTech]

Phones used to be sold network locked many yoinks ago iirc

 

[CeeBee]

i also understood handsets used to be network locked, and then the networks stopped doing that... probly when network porting came in.
still it says something when you need to lock people in to force them to stay your customer.... much better to let them stay loyal out of choice due to good service .... yes, lol

 

[Insint]

Well this is horrible news. Why can't icasa ever get something right.

 

[icyrus]

Well this is horrible news. Why can't icasa ever get something right.

ICASA are paid handsomely to not get things right.

 

[warwickw]

That blacklisted phone I bought from gumtree, was technically network locked...
Only worked 100% on the Vodacom network.

Wasn't that a UK Vodafone device? Hence why it worked only on Vodacom in SA.

 

[bwana]

Well this is horrible news. Why can't icasa ever get something right.

Why is it horrible? You must know the network operators would have been aware of this. I don't imagine the status quo will change.

 

[ginggs]

Not unless you flash your firmware.
As far as I know it is then completely open..
Correct me if i'm wrong.

You are wrong.

 

[whatwhat]

If they lock it then they should have the option to unlock the phone at any point during the contract, either for an extra fee or something.

 

[ginggs]

I've read that MTN network-lock the primary SIM slot of dual SIM phones.

 

[abbott10k]

So, he bought a dual sim phone, that is locked to Cell C, whahahahahaha

I feel offended, I'm one of those! My daughters dual SIM LG is network locked to Cell C on the 1st slot but the second slot is open to any network. Cell C denied locking the phone.