On the wake of US President Barack Obama signing the Unlocking Consumer Act law, T-Mobile seems to have unconsciously complied with speed by coming out with a SIM unlocker app. But hold on to your horses, it’s not going to be the one you’re thinking of, because telcos will be telcos – this one works (currently) for only one device.
The app is called “Device Unlock”, and is downloadable via the Google Play Store. So far it is confirmed that the app only works with T-Mo’s Samsung Galaxy Avant, a low end smartphone on the carrier’s catalog. Before you even ask – yes, we have reports of people using it in other T-Mobile devices such as the Galaxy S5, but the unlocking was (of course) unsuccessful.
There are two options available on the app – the “temporary unlock”, which is reportedly for 30 days. This is nice for people going out of the country and looking to use a local telco’s SIM card while they are in that country. The other option is the “permanent unlock” – and there are bound to be caveats with T-Mobile with that option, we think. There is still no word on whether T-Mobile will be adding more devices supported by the unlocking app.
With the Unlocking Consumer Act a law now, we might be seeing more and more of these kinds of apps coming out from the telcos themselves. One statute of the act is that the mobile carriers should be able to assist those who have no tech savvy in unlocking their phones – provided that ownership of the device is already achieved. An app is surely a hassle-free way to do it.
VIA: Android Central
