SIM Adaptor Forces the iPhone to Skip SIM Lock Verification

A Chinese company says that it has developed a novel form of enabling the Apple iPhone to work with unauthorised network operators. Unlike most solutions which remove the lock from the handset software, this is a SIM card adaptor which then evades the handset SIM verification process.

Click to enlarge

X-SIM II

By leaving the SIM lock intact, any issues which have been reported with iPhone software upgrades or warranty claims would presumably be avoided.

The X-SIM II, aka Turbo SIM, is designed to skip the SIM card identification process that is necessary with most other iPhone unlocking software. With other iPhone unlockers, the working secret is that there is operator identification in the iPhone. When a user inserts a SIM card, the iPhone identifies whether or not the SIM card is from its authorized operator. If so, the iPhone will open; if not, the phone does not open. This identification step is eliminated with the X-SIM II.

An X-SIM II user needs to combine his or her own SIM card with the X-SIM II and then insert them into the iPhone's SIM card slot. The iPhone can then connect in any operator's network, meaning that the iPhone is never officially unlocked, but rather, the user bypasses the identifying step to opening the phone.

On the web: One Stop China

Posted to the site on 5th January 2008