iPhone in China (Chinese iPhone)

[iphonejww]

This thread is for discussing iPhone use in China, I tried doing a search for similar topics but couldn't find too much on this forum.

I'll ask about my situation but answers should help all of those that are either traveling to China with an iPhone or living in China who wants an iPhone.

My uncle in China recently calls me and says he wants an iPhone. He's a banker and doesn't know much about tech. So here're my questions:

1. best for him to just get the official chinese Apple iPhone?

2. if I buy an UNLOCKED iPhone in USA, will it work in China? (China only use GSM right?)

3. which version of US iPhone is best for China? 2g/3g/3gs?

4. since iPhone's best feature is internet-EVERYwhere, are there Chinese GSM sim cards that have data/internet for an US-unlocked iPhone (links please)?

5. does China use wi-fi? I know the official chinese iPhone doesn't have wifi, is it because China doesn't use the same wi-fi as US?​

thanks!
JW

 

[TarekElsakka]

1. I am not sure if they sell iPhones in China, they probably do, but the most reasonable solution would be to buy an officially unlocked iPhone 3G or 3GS.

2. Yes, it will work. iPhone supports GSM (GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900).

3. Why would you buy an iPhone 2G nowadays? 3GS is the best, but 3G is okay as well. It all depends on your uncle's budget - how much is he willing to pay?

4. You need to ask some one in China or any network provider in China about that.

5. Wi-Fi in any country is the same. If the place he's in has Wi-Fi, the iPhone will connect to it normally.

 

[mr.reggaeton72]

1. It will be better for him to get a chinese iPhone, like that, you don't have to mess around with updating, then unlocking again..and then updating again, and then unlocking again..

2. If you buy an unlocked iPhone in the USA, yes, yes it will work on china if there is a carrier with a GSM network...just make sure not to update any updates that Apple releases, as this is lock your phone again....

3. I will say the 3GS 16GB, its fast, and its enough space for an average person...

4. Data doesn't have to do anything with the SIM on the iPhone, is with the plan that is registered for that SIM card, im not sure if there are unlimited data plans on chinese plans, but if they are, i would suggest getting an unlimited data, as the iPhone consumes huge amounts of data...

5. and the reason why there is no wifi in iPhones on china ? http://db.tidbits.com/article/10707

 

[MAD 69]

How about an iClone? I would like to check one out, I hear they are pretty good.

 

[mr.reggaeton72]

ive never used an iClone before, thereforee i cant help you on that one, but ive seen them on google and other pages, and i can tell you one thing, they are as square as a FedEx box, and ugly too, i wouldn't buy it...

 

[iphonejww]

1. from what i see, the chinese iPhone is a 3GS w/o wifi
2. going into more detail about Chinese GSM providers: 1. China Unicom 2. China Mobile
3. Is there 3G / EDGE in China? The 3GS is still very expensive in US.
4. how expensive are the data/internet plans in China?
5. as for wi-fi, since the official wifi in China is different than rest of the world, iPhone's wifi (for now) is useless?

More questions:
6. The the iTunes/app store usable in China? Lots of apps out there in Chinese?


Quick price for Chinese iPhone:
4,999 yuan ($732, for the 8-gigabyte iPhone 3G),
5,880 yuan ($861, 16-gigabyte 3GS),
6,999 yuan ($1,025, 32-gigabyte 3GS).
source: http://blogs.wsj.com/chinarealtime/2009/10/30/china-iphone-the-cost-equation/

 

[iphonejww]

Update, just chatted with someone in china with an iPhone:

3. for 3G, the only company is China Unicom, that has the 3G that iPhone can use.

5. In China, wifi is not the same as here in US. But many places have the US wifi network, such as Starbucks, and coffee places have their own wifi network for free access.