[gibbyhome]

I want this phone and I want to know how to order this online with no contract .

[Michael-Dallas]

Maybe mobilecityonline.com?

Michael.

[palandri]

Maybe mobilecityonline.com?

Michael.

That's a good choice. You probably also find it on Amazon and eBay when it's released.

[Stig]

I want this phone and I want to know how to order this online with no contract .

I'm in the UK, and there are very few sites listing SIM free Lumias at the moment. You could try Expansys as they have both UK and US sites.

[desmonium]

Words on street (and from those people at clove.co.uk or expansys.com):

Do not expect the unlocked version to be available until the end of the year.

If I don't get it shipped in Nov, I'll get an iPhone 4S.

[palandri]

Words on street (and from those people at clove.co.uk or expansys.com):

Do not expect the unlocked version to be available until the end of the year.

If I don't get it shipped in Nov, I'll get an iPhone 4S.

It would be really dumb for Nokia to hold back the unlocked version. I see MobileCity has a pre-order available: GSM Unlocked Phones at MobileCityOnline.com

[desmonium]

It would be really dumb for Nokia to hold back the unlocked version. I see MobileCity has a pre-order available: GSM Unlocked Phones at MobileCityOnline.com

I know, and I pre-ordered at 2 different places (clove, expansys), and they told me the ETA is the end of the year for the unlocked version.

I hope I can have this babe in Nov but I guess iPhone 4S stands a higher chance now.

[Stig]

If it's true there's no unlocked version until January, I'll be really angry. This is a massive mistake for Nokia. They are putting out lots of TV ads for the Lumia 800 and you can't even buy one!

It's a good job I've found a nice 16GB Samsung Omnia 7 to keep me going in the meantime, else I'd be in the iPhone 4S queue too.

[luckyvpn]

clove ，i think this also do that business

[Michael-Dallas]

It's not uncommon for carriers to want exclusitivity for a while.

Michael.

[palandri]

It's not uncommon for carriers to want exclusitivity for a while.

Michael.

One of our European friends can probably clarify this better, But I don't think they allow exclusivity in Europe because it allows for unfair competition. I remember an iPhone article about it when Apple wanted the iPhone on an exclusive carrier over there. It wasn't allowed, so iPhone had to sell unlock/unbranded iPhones in Europe.

[desmonium]

One of our European friends can probably clarify this better, But I don't think they allow exclusivity in Europe because it allows for unfair competition. I remember an iPhone article about it when Apple wanted the iPhone on an exclusive carrier over there. It wasn't allowed, so iPhone had to sell unlock/unbranded iPhones in Europe.

Yea, a smarter way is to give the unlocked handset slow shipping, and Nokia is doing that.

Now the shipping date for cyan L800 is Nov. 26th. Unlocked version? Wait till the end of the year guys...

[Stig]

One of our European friends can probably clarify this better, But I don't think they allow exclusivity in Europe because it allows for unfair competition. I remember an iPhone article about it when Apple wanted the iPhone on an exclusive carrier over there. It wasn't allowed, so iPhone had to sell unlock/unbranded iPhones in Europe.

Manufacturers can do exclusive deals, because Apple did do an exclusive deal with the iPhone 3G and the carrier O2 in the UK.

What seems to be happening is the same as happens with the iPhone in the US: there are contract deals with carriers but no unlocked version... at least not in the UK.

Some European countries may have an unlocked version from the launch date, but it seems like the carriers get the first wave of units released on November 16, and the unlocked units appear from January.

One carrier '3' lists a 'Pay as you go' verson for UK£399. This will be offered without contract, but the handset will be locked to their network. Sometimes, these can be unlocked for a fee of about UK£15. However, there is no availability date.

[Stig]

I've done some checking on the other Nokia European websites:

UK: contracts with 3 carriers, and PAYG (£399) with one carrier '3'

Germany: Contract only with Telekom (T-Mobile)

Spain: Contract or PAYG with one carrier, Orange

France: Contract or PAYG (509 Euro) with three carriers

Italy: Contract and PAYG with '3' and SIM free with 2 retailers.

Netherlands: Contract or 'Simlockvrij' (SIM locked PAYG?) with three carriers.

So, if you want one unlocked, it looks like you order from Italy from either Euronics or Nstore for €499.

[desmonium]

I've done some checking on the other Nokia European websites:

UK: contracts with 3 carriers, and PAYG (£399) with one carrier '3'

Germany: Contract only with Telekom (T-Mobile)

Spain: Contract or PAYG with one carrier, Orange

France: Contract or PAYG (509 Euro) with three carriers

Italy: Contract and PAYG with '3' and SIM free with 2 retailers.

Netherlands: Contract or 'Simlockvrij' (SIM locked PAYG?) with three carriers.

So, if you want one unlocked, it looks like you order from Italy from either Euronics or Nstore for €499.

499 euro?! that's too much...

[Stig]

499 euro?! that's too much...

It was announced it would be 420 Euro plus local taxes, so that's about right. The other Italian site says 489 Euro.

[desmonium]

It was announced it would be 420 Euro plus local taxes, so that's about right. The other Italian site says 489 Euro.

When I was pre-ordering from clove, they said no tax for me because it's an import. Are you sure we have to pay Italian tax...? =(

[palandri]

Thanks for that info Stig! I thought I had read that European courts stopped exclusivity with the iPhone, which forced Apple to sell unlocked iPhones in Europe, but I must have misread it.

[Stig]

France: Contract or PAYG (509 Euro) with three carriers.

The Nokia website doesn't tell the whole story, as the French PhoneHouse (Carphone Warehouse?) sell unlocked for 499 Euro.

[Stig]

As the WPC article confirms, the Lumia 800 wont be available SIM unlocked In the UK until January 2012. This is great news for the carriers who can sign people up who really want the phone, but bad news for those of us who want to buy unlocked.

Now I have a 16GB Omnia 7 to play with, I'm not going to go to the extremes of getting one imported from mainland Europe in the meantime. Nokia have missed a sale.