Different types of smartphone blockades - info

What are smartphones?

Smartphones are a very important part of our lives. They allow us to communicate with others, check favourite websites, watch movies, play games etc.

Basicaly we can say that smartphones are a combination of a regular phone and a pc. Being so popular means that we have a huge variety of options available when we want to buy one. Most popular smartphone producers include: Apple. Sony, Samsung, Huawei, Xiaomi and many more.

Some models have better displays, others take better pictures, have more RAM memory or better hardware in general.
There is something for everyone when it comes to buying smartphones.

How can I buy a smartphone?

There are a couple of ways to get a smartphone. If you want a brand new device you can go to any local network provider and buy a smartphone from them. They will give you two options: smartphone with a subscription or a network free device.
The first options reduces the cost of the smartphone itself, but you need to pay bills each month. The second one doesn't require to pay any bills, however the device will cost a lot more. You can also buy a new device in any shop like Media Markt, Amazon, Ebay etc. The price will be still high so you might think about buying a used device. In such case you get a used device from second hand shops, internet markets or your local selling websites. The device won't be new so it might be damaged, it can also be reported to the police as lost or stolen or it might have some unpaid bills.

What types of blockades can block a smartphone?

The most common one is called NETWORK BLOCKADE or SIMLOCK.

Network blockade was created for all network providers that want to stop a customer from using other networks.For example lets say you buy a brand new samsung from AT&T network. AT&T needs to make sure that you won't take their device to a different network without paying all of the bills.

How to check if you have a network blockade?

The simple way is to insert a simcard form a different network. If the device works with a different simcard than AT&T, it doesn't have a network blockade. You can do it also at IMEI check services.

On the other hand if you get a message that you should use a network unlocking app, enter a network unlock code or network password you have a network blockade.

We need to mension however that there are some producers like Apple, who remove the blockade without a code or an app.

They unlock the device remotely on their servers.

Another type of a smartphone blockade is called BLACKLIST or BLOCKLIST. In such case the device cannot use any network, not even the one where you bought the device.
There are 2 reasons why your smartphone can get BLOCKLISTED. The device got reported as lost or stolen or there are unpaid bills for your device. BLOCKLIST means that after inserting a simcard, you get a message saying no signal, or no network. There won't be any message for a code or any app.

Again in case of some producers like Apple, you can also get a message from the phone's owner. The message might look like this: Hi this is Mark, please give me back my phone xxx-xxx-xxx. Please remember that a reported device can be also reported to the police.

In such case if the police finds the smartphone they can take it back without any refunds, even if you bought the device legally.

There are also some other blockades like region blockade (you can use the device in USA, but not in Europe or Asia)

User passwords or screen blockades (special passwords created by the owner to stop others from using their devices)

Don't worry however there are a couple of ways to remove those blockades. You can contact the network and ask them to unlock your blockade. You can use 3rd party shops or websites that remove phone blockades like SIM-UNLOCK.NET. Or you can visit a local repair shop to unlock the device for you.