10 October 2007
There are a few things UAE residents may want to know before they pick up an iPhone: you can't update it, you can't return it, and if it stops working, you may be stuck with it.
Why the lack of support for a phone costing as much as Dh4,000? It's because the current crop of iPhones turning up in the UAE are sold in a grey market, which means that phones are not being sold by authorised distributors nor are they authorised by Apple to run on either of the UAE's two telecommunication networks.
The iPhones have been unlocked using third-party software so they can work on local networks.
Apple Inc's response to unlocking the iPhone has been very straightforward: using third-party software to unlock an iPhone voids its warranty. Apple will not support the phone after that in any way.
The company began warning iPhone users in September that activating their phones without using approved service providers may cause "irreparable damage" to the device and prevent them from using new features.
Apple's warning has been criticised by some, but buyers have no way of knowing what other effects the unlocking software could have on the phone.
It is not just support that is being withdrawn. Any updates to the phone's software starting with version1.1.1 will result in the phone being disabled, rendering it into what many in the US have dubbed the iBrick.
Apple has said that their only solution for a "bricked" phone is to buy a new one. Apple has drawn harsh criticism for their policy, and Timothy Smith, a California resident, has even sued Apple claiming that unlocking cell phones is legal and that bricking is anti-competitive.
Local retailers
Some retailers in the UAE have sold the phone claiming there is no warranty. However, that is somewhat ingenious, says Magnus Nystedt, a certified Apple Help Desk Specialist who is also president of EmiratesMac, an Apple Users Group located in the UAE. The unlocked iPhones have already had their warranty voided.
An iPhone user in Dubai, Omar K., said he bought it from a "dealer" he was introduced to by a friend.
By Scott Shuey & Abbas Al Lawati
Gulf News 2007. All rights reserved.
