Iphone and Qtel Scandal

Buy your Iphone from Vodafone, the official distributor here in Qatar... as stated in the Apple website

I love my iphone too :)

thanks for the heads up dude really appreciate it. well i still love iphone merely because it has a faster processor than nokia 5800. and macOS is way more responsive than symbion. you are right though about the battery, i personally hate that on iphone. why they cannot make an iphone wherein batteries can be removed and replaced easily hassle free. but with regards to talk time, it's 10 hours not 5 as you've mentioned. and you can easily put any mp3's on the iphone thru itunes (free), just create a playlist, drag your mp3's to that playlist and connect the iphone then sync... (remember it's the officialy unlocked version iphone 3g)not to mention you can create custom ringing tone also.

iphone 3g have message forwarding. there is cut and paste too... with regards to music,i don't have to worry... i have a lot of choices where it is more suitable to play music... namely... pc, component, mp3 player & ipod.

nokia 5800 is practically great. it just happened that i chose iphone coz' nokia products depreciates too fast and the design is top notch... and again the processor is faster.

Firstly I doubt if Qtel launched iPhone, because why on earth would Qtel provide you with Factory unlocked iPhone when there are providing service, if at all they give 200% its for sure it will be locked with Qtel... so as vodafone so this basic reason is enough to prove Qtel never announced iPhone. secondly its starlink trying to cheat ppl with so called unlocked iphones. i bet you can get a genuine factory unlocked 16GB 3G iphones from our own souq for 3200 QAR (couple of friends bought it). i confirm this.

so dont be fooled with factory unlocked iPhones. if you truly want them then get it from ebay from Hongkong.

good question dude. though having it unlocked is different from being jailbreak. just google about jailbreaking and unlocking iphones for a better understanding.

dude i can't comment about your unit because i never used it. just want to share you some info about iphone. please allow me for the benefit of others, it has wifi, not sure about the bluetooth anyway but i will check it, and even if the camera is only 2megapixels (iphone 3g) it produces good quality image. it's just a matter of how you take the shot. nokia and iphone has different target customers that's why they can't be compared. blackberry will come close but in my humble opinion iphone will come on top. There are abundant applications that we can download and install thru itunes if we are willing to spend a couple of dollars and if we want "free apps" you can jailbreak your unit anytime you want at your own risk. but why do it? if we can buy an iphone, we can spend some dollars for the apps right? and did i mention a very good screen resolution? crisp and vibrant? and oh before i forget... the very sensitive touch sensor for the touch screen... it's unbeatable.

my friend is going to purchase an Iphone second hand for QR. 1900. and he is thrilled. since it is second hand, it mustbe already unlocked .

what else he shuld take care of ?... does the term "unlocking" means, someone else can encroach in our privacy ?...

good opinion dude... but let me correct you on some parts... as a long time customer of starlink i know how they treat their customers and they do it very well. there are some reasons which are force majeure, and did the thread starter mentioned he got his money back? i bet starlink employees even told him to wait for the good unlocked unit to replace it? those are the solutions right? how many companies here in Qatar can do that? give back the money with the blink of an eye.

Most importantly, do you think starlink will just let go of the supplier when their good company image is being tarnished? and what do you think the supplier will do? those questions can only be answered by them of course.

what i am saying is... we as customers most of the times complains and brags about a single unfortunate event that any company does but how about if we found their service and quality on top of the chart? did we let everybody knows about it? did we post it here or any forums about it?

lastly, there is an irony and i cannot understand it well so please tell me the procedure. how they can check if the stocks where officialy unlocked? if they open it (which they will not of course), warranty will not be valid. in otherwords they just need to trust their source right? and that is where the danger comes... on which we as customers are not fully aware of.

well... it doesn't matter anymore because they have now the perfect unlocked unit and i have to buy one!

how much did it cost?

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hi vmitri

can i ask you which branch of starlink and how much the iphone costs?

also was it a 16gb or 32gb?

many thanks

Just wanna let every one knows that Starlink start selling back the official unlocked version I purchased one and it's working fine

http://www.quickpwn.com/2009/09/search-for-top-iphone-apps-using-bing.html

Name some cool apps for Iphone

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vmitri

I am sorry for ur loss,, yea starlink shud shapeup,, u sure do have all ur rite with ur money,,

let it be starlink or any other retailers.

peace

iPhone,, seriously the moste talked about phone according to my knowledge, so stop asking stupid questions like "what's the big hype of the iPhone"

btw this thread has nothing to do with blackberry or Nokia or ,,,, users,, but are mostest welcme to start a new thread. which , infact will be a boring 1.

I've personally used a blackberry, n97,Serricson xperia,,

they just don't prove to dedicate the quality that apple does.

iPhone officially unlocked or not,,it's just cool and very convenient to use 1,

ok all the iPhone haters can hate me 2 for this poste,, bring it on,,

or shall we start a new thread about this ;)

ohhh,, iPhone ,,,, looool

@stealth, starlink belongs to Qtel.

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Mr. Q's Blog - A Qatari's view on Qatar.

ah dude there are many cool apps specially cracked ones. Are you paying for it or using cracked ones?

If its free try intalles and download them for free ;)

ah dude there are many cool apps specially cracked ones. Are you paying for it or using cracked ones?

If its free try intalles and download them for free ;)

For all the people who did not understand the hall idea about why i have wrote this again and again read this.

I'm working in one of the biggest electronics retailer in Doha, called Techno Q so i know the difference between what is new and what is used.

Mobile used = phone logs show that it's been used and call logs show the time, the first phone was showing that it was used to call several locations in UAE and US

2nd lie to customers telling them it's officially unlocked, that's mean you can upgrade the software from the net directly when they were selling Jailbreak which mean if you upgraded from V3.0 to V3.1 it will instantly lock your mobile and you need to send it to some one to unlock it for you, charges between Qr. 100 and Qr. 300

to the person who asked "Why to bring this subject here?" where else to bring this subject???? and why not here this is community and this place to discuss this issue.

Just to let you know that because of my complains Starlink have stopped selling these fake mobiles and offered the client to wait till they purchase new stock or refund their money back.

There are people who don't know about this issue and i'm just trying to warn people who dont know about what they can suffer in the future.

officially unlocked or jailbreak I still love my Iphone

BTW can you name some cool/useful programs to download.

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exactly. there is nothing great about iphone. Its signal strngth is low for gsm as well as wifi if you compare with other phones.

What is wrong with bringing this up here ? Someone has a issue not once, but 3 times ? And StarLink just brushes it off, without providing a proper resolution multiple times ?

Most importantly, if they are getting their phones from supplier(s) who also deal with jailbroken phones, I wonder what kind of warranty support they can give ?!?!? Doesn't look like this arrangement has any sort of direct support from Apple.

clearly it seems u never bought a laptop from a reputed place.....laptops, the ones on display are not for sale, u choose the model, and then they give u brand new box packed piece, which has never been touched or opened:P

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The Weather is here, Wish you were beautiful !

I can never understand y every 1 is all hyped up about the iphone..

With so man Blackberys and other smart phones available now which have much better features i dont think its worth all the trouble gettin a 3gs which doesnt have much to offer..

Every second phone now has 32gb of memory or more.. not to mention 5, 8 or 12mp cameras..

Its just face value i guess..

thanks for the info vmitri. it was very unfortunate that it happened to you. i can't blame you on hitting the company that bad either. but on the other side, upon reading your post i am very happy that starlink after market service was very fast. it is more important to me i guess. i bought an iphone3g at starlink 4 months ago and i am very satisfied with it. it comes out of the box 100% factory unlock. about the updating thing... yes, starlink is right. if it is factory unlock, you can update the firmware version online without any hassle. of course jailbreaking is illegal and i bet it's not on starlink's policy as well.

Adhamino is right. starlink is not selling it as of this date due to that particular incident. I will wait for the next stock. it will be factory unlock no doubt.

Bringing up your matter here is really unnecessary imho. if you have complain, starlink will surely willing to assist you my friend. grab a phone and start dialling.

my I-phone model is mb496b, what does it means?

Graduated from Xavier Institute for Higher learning.

I guess humour, just like beauty is in the eye of the beholder...or understanding, in this case. By Alexa ( as I do not plagiarize)

read carefully bro and you will find it plus you can easily contact starlink they will promote it to you under qtel umbrella.

Im just warning people of what i found. So the get warned its alot of money for mobile so at least it should be factory unlocked.

And i may not be lucky yes i totally agree out of 4 mobiles non was originally unlocke.

jailbreak is elligal again telecomm companies can be suid for such actions.

I checked out the ads, and have checked the links as well, and I don't see where Qtel is packaging these phones with Shahry packages.

All I saw is Qtel's launch of it's Mobile Internet Packs, which works on all smartphones, including the iPhone.

I suggest you wait for the next stock, as according to "Paul R" Starlink is not selling the current stock anymore. Perhaps you were not lucky today with a troubled stock.

a brand new 16gb 3gs officially unlocked is 800 CAD (Canadian dollars) which is 2400 riyals approx.

u can never get this fair deal from qtel or voda.

whoever is waiting for an official release are just wasting tym,,and missing out the gud apps and games and phone utility,,

just get 1 from Canada or us. best deal!!

Victor,

If it isn't online, it doesn't exist... I haven't read newspapers for months....

I know about vodafone's offer because they are active online, on facebook,twitter, and even here on QL.

Raya is viewable online at raya.com.

Wrong frickin thread nevermind please

I have seen the add my self one full page Al-Raya news paper the day before yesterday.

Qtel is packaging these mobile along with Shahry packages, starlink is the official distributor for Qtel in Phones and other services like the 3G cameras etc.

You can ask Al-Raya to give you a copy.

Plus check these links on the net for similar adds:

http://www.shufflegazine.com/2009/09/02/starlink-start-selling-iphone-3gs-in-qatar/

http://www.telecompaper.com/news/SendArticle.aspx?u=False

http://www.godubai.com/citylife/press_release_page.asp?pr=29509

I have seen the add my self one full page Al-Raya news paper the day before yesterday.

Qtel is packaging these mobile along with Shahry packages, starlink is the official distributor for Qtel in Phones and other services like the 3G cameras etc.

You can ask Al-Raya to give you a copy.

Plus check these links on the net for similar adds:

http://www.shufflegazine.com/2009/09/02/starlink-start-selling-iphone-3gs-in-qatar/

http://www.telecompaper.com/news/SendArticle.aspx?u=False

http://www.godubai.com/citylife/press_release_page.asp?pr=29509

Starlink on the other side is the offici

Next time you go to Jebel Ali fishing for a deal, bring some kind of quality inspection along :D

jackmohan, I don't have an iPhone but I love, absolutely love my iPod touch 2G. It's really the app store that makes the difference, I don't know how many apps are out there for the Nokia and Samsung but I doubt as many as for the iPhone. Granted at least 80% of them are rubbish but there are some gems that make the platform truly worth owning. I do however think that the iPhone is a little bit of a status symbol. The only differences between the two is that the iPod Touch doesn't have a camera, a phone, and 3G internet. Apple just dropped prices on the Touch in the States, and paying three or more times the price of the unit for those three advantages is a little ridiculous to me. You could buy a killer phone, an iPod Touch, and a real decent digicam for the price of just one iPhone, easily :) I think it comes down to good old "snob appeal" in the end.

I've just been to the City Centre branch and they are not selling the current stock. The advised me that the stock they recieved is factory locked and shouldn't have been sent to them. They say new stock will arrive in 3-5 days that is unlocked.

See how much problem Apple puts the Genuine Apple lover in...

....

There are better phones at cheaper prices than Iphone & N97...but people dont want to use them.

I have always maintained Samsung Omnia is way better than Iphone & N97 combined at only QR1850.

Looks like we have to wait for the iPhone to come here 'officially'/

My husband got 2 SMS from Starlink saying that they got the 16G and 32G, but no mention of Qtel.

Motherhood...The hardest job you'll ever love! : )

wt?...if this is true,its really shitty..

Qtel has never announced it. could anyone pls show any press release? Starlink is not Qtel anyway..........

Both QTEL and Vodafone announced it officially guys.

Vodafone selling the Iphone 3G 16GB by 2600

Qtel selling the Iphone 3GS 16GB by 3500 and 32GB by 3800

You can easily get these mobile from the net officially unlocked with one year warranty by Qr. 3300

incub0t, but vodafone did announce that they are releasing the iphone, they explained the price by claiming here on QL that it's better since it's officially unlocked and not jailbroken.

repeated

Yes Qtel annonced it in one full page yesterday in all news paper. StarLink is the official distributor for Qtel. in addition also Vodafone is selling Iphone

Regarding the Factory Unlocked version, i have clearly asked the employees at Starlink with other customers if these phones are official unlock or Jailbreak and they have repeated the same answer it's OFFICIALLY Unlocked.

I asked almost 3 times there employees and they have answered me clearly with this issue.

Regarding fingerprint this is not the issue the main issue and one of the 3 mobiles i purchased there was phone calls in the log one to Dubai and the other to US. I guess you are also Okay with this under testing purposes????

Third issue, ISP should never sell Jailbreak copies, it's first illegal copies licensed to AT&T plus Jailbreak have many many problems, i sold my brand new mobile minutes before i purchased Qtel one under the impression that it's legally unlocked.

In addition and the funny issue, StarLink is telling all the customers that it's okay to upgrade the firmware online :) this is the biggest joke i've ever heard... that mean the 100 of mobiles client purchased will be locked and all these customers will run to StarLink complaining shortly.

This is not the first Qtel Lie ever they dont stop fooling the customers like the Unlimited internet bandwidth which they have announced earlier and they fooled many clients .....

Qtel never announced that they "Officially" released the Iphone here in Doha, So does Vodafone. Approximately 95% of Iphone users here in Doha are using either Unlocked or Jailbreaked. there are few Iphone user's have Factory Unlocked Iphone ( I've met quite few users here). and of course u will find fingerprints all over the iphone because of during the jailbreak/unlocking thing in iphone and some customers would say that they want to touch and see (of course they will hold them) but they never buy the unit. same as before buying a laptop that u need to hold the top cover lid, tap the keyboard, turn it upside down. etc... and to think that laptop is still brand new..

well never saw any or heard any girl that techy and knows so much about iphone too.

well its very much addictive set that you never wana stop playing with it.

good morning :)

Ramadan Kareem... long time i didnt see you on board... :P

you're an expert in iphones, im sure you know that already :)

good tip there gal

Thanks for your feeback, however this is not the idea.

Qtel / Starlink annoynced that it's officially unlocked, and by asking them they claim it is...

however it's not...

In addition it's used ones seeling it as new....

go to SETTINGS -> GENERAL -> ABOUT -> Model: *****LL

if the last 2 char is LL, it's from the US, that means it's not factory unlock.