and then AT&T will unlock your device. The requirements vary slightly for prepaid AT&T devices and business devices, which we'll get into below. AT&T won’t just let you unlock any phone at any time.
T-Mobile and AT&T this week responded to the FCC’s proposed rule requiring providers unlock phones within 60 days of activation—even if they’re under contract and not paid off yet.
When the FCC proposed the 60-day unlocking rule in July 2024, the agency criticized T-Mobile for locking prepaid phones for a year. The NPRM pointed out that "T-Mobile recently increased its locking ...
Others, like T-Mobile, won’t let you unlock your phone until you’ve stayed on their network for a certain number of days, even if the device is paid off. Earlier this year, the FCC proposed ...
Once you’ve tapped that, you won’t be able to switch apps, go back to your home screen, look at notifications, or do anything else until you exit the pinning and unlock the device. To do that ...
Carriers lock the phone to their network so you cannot switch to a different provider within the contract term, but usually don’t automatically unlock the device once that period ends.