As of December 1st 2017, all cell phones in Canada must be sold as unlocked. Further, Canadians have the right to have their devices unlocked for free. Regardless of where or when you purchased your phone, your wireless carrier is required to unlock your phone for you if you ask them to. If you are confused about what unlocking means, if you should consider doing it, and how to do it, don’t worry. This article will briefly provide you with all the information you need on how to unlock phones in Canada.
Unlocked Phones Canada: What You Need to Know
A locked phone is a device that can only connect to a single network. For example, Telus may have offered a promotion for a locked phone years ago. You could buy the phone to save money, but the phone would be “locked” to Telus, and unable to function on other networks’ cell phone plans. Even once your contract ended with Telus, you would have to buy a new phone if you wanted to use another service provider. Unlocking your phone allows you to easily acquire a new phone plan without having to purchase a new device. These are known as bring your own phone (BYOP) plans, and are very attractive options due to their affordable prices. Most unlocked phones Canada offers are brought by the customers to other providers for BYOP plans.
It is important to note that unlocking your phone is not required if you’re planning on moving from a “parent” to “child” company. Bell owns Virgin Plus, Telus owns Koodoo and Rogers owns Fido. If you wanted to leave your Rogers plan for one from Fido, you would not have to worry about unlocking. Lastly, if your phone is locked to a network and you are content with your plan, there is truly no need to unlock it. You can always unlock it later if you choose to sign up with another provider.
Unlocked Cell Phones Canada: What You’ll Need
Many unlocked cell phones Canada sells require a decent phone plan. If you’re in need of a new plan for your device, consider reading our list of the best unlocked phone plans Montreal has to offer. If you’re not in Montreal, don’t worry! We’ll introduce a way to find the best mobile plans in your region no matter where you’re located. Now, moving onto unlocking your phone, you’re almost ready to do it yourself. Before getting started, you will require the following information:
-The IMEI number of your phone. Your phone’s IMEI number is a unique 15-digit serial number. It can be found on the back of your phone, in your phone’s “About” section, or by dialing *#06# into your dialpad.
–APN Settings. Your phone’s APN settings allow it to access data networks. Most phones will automatically switch your APN settings for you, but some older models may require you to do it manually.
-A SIM Card. If you plan on switching network providers, you will need a new SIM card that connects to said network. Make sure to back up your phone’s data before swapping your SIM card, you could lose important information like your contacts list.
How to Unlock a Phone
Now that you have all the necessary details at your disposal, you’re ready to learn how to unlock a phone. To properly unlock phones in Canada, you must contact your current service provider. Since you already have all your information, a quick phone call to customer service is all that remains. The agent should walk you through the remaining steps.
iPhone unlocking is done by Apple, all you need to do is ensure that your data is backed up, wait patiently, and reset it when it’s time. Android phones require a tad more work. Your provider should give you a code and tell you exactly where to punch it in, which will manually unlock your phone. Once again, we recommend backing up your data even if you use an Android device. If you ever need to reference these steps in the future, make sure to save a picture of Planhub’s unlocking your cell phone infographic. If you’re ever forgetting something or want to share the process with a friend, you’ll be able to pull it up in a matter of seconds.
And that’s it! Unlocking your phone should be a simple task, no matter what kind of device you currently use. Now that you are well informed on how to unlock phones in Canada, we hope you enjoy all the perks of having an unlocked mobile device. Before rushing into buying a plan with a new provider, make sure to consider your options. Planhub offers a simple, user-friendly service which compares all of Canada’s best BYOP plans. Input your province, as well as your monthly needs such as talking minutes and gigabytes of data. Finally, click on the “bring your own phone” option and you’ll be presented with a list of your province’s most affordable phone deals. We hope we can help you find a plan that’s perfect for you!
