[captainmccool]

So, I know these are fairly pedestrian questions/concerns but I really don't want to mess anything and want to know what I'm getting myself into.

Questions:
1) Does AT&T allow you to buy an iphone without getting a contract in-store?
- I know the apple store does but I don't have one near me.
2) What firmware are iphones coming with? 1.1.3 or 1.1.4?
3) What exactly is a baseband and a bootloader and why does their version matter? I've searched for an answer but it seems this is just implied knowledge and I'm a little late in the game.
4) What is more highly recommended, Ziphone 2.5 or the newly released iplus 1.2?
5) And lastly, what is the order of operations for an OTB 1.1.3 or 1.1.4 unlock? IE when do I insert my t-mobile sim card or open itunes or use the program.

I really would appreciate any help you guys can offer, I've seen how much you've helped others and hope you can do the same for me, thanks in advance.

[AotW]

Originally Posted by captainmccool

So, I know these are fairly pedestrian questions/concerns but I really don't want to mess anything and want to know what I'm getting myself into.

Questions:
1) Does AT&T allow you to buy an iphone without getting a contract in-store?
- I know the apple store does but I don't have one near me.
2) What firmware are iphones coming with? 1.1.3 or 1.1.4?
3) What exactly is a baseband and a bootloader and why does their version matter? I've searched for an answer but it seems this is just implied knowledge and I'm a little late in the game.
4) What is more highly recommended, Ziphone 2.5 or the newly released iplus 1.2?
5) And lastly, what is the order of operations for an OTB 1.1.3 or 1.1.4 unlock? IE when do I insert my t-mobile sim card or open itunes or use the program.

I really would appreciate any help you guys can offer, I've seen how much you've helped others and hope you can do the same for me, thanks in advance.

Well, lets see...

1) You need to buy it in an apple store or the apple online store.

2) 1.1.3 and 1.1.4(fresh from apple store)

3) The Baseband is the component of the iPhone that handles all the communication aspects of the the iPhone;

The Bootloader is the Bios of the phone. There are two versions: v3.9 and v4.6. If you are unsure of which version you have, you can check it by finding out what week your phone was manufactured. To do this, look at the 4th and 5th digits of your serial number. If you are going to buy your phone new from apple you definately have the 4.6 version.

4) I used ZiPhone and iPlus- they are both good to use. For the unexperienced user, ZiPhone is better due to the GUI.

5)To unlock your phone just connect it to your computer, run for example ZiPhone 2.5c´s "Do it all"(this unlocks, jailbreak, activates AND downgrades your 4.6 Bootloader to 3.9 Bootloader); sync with iTunes as NEW phone and your done. You can pop your T-Mo sim in before unlocking and all, worked fine for me.

Hope that helps.

[captainmccool]

Thanks for all of the info, that helps alot.