Turbosims. A newbie's guide. Plus: List if you know of reliable ones.

[mobilefreedom]

Turbosims/Hypersims/Sim bypass keys/unlock sims. Call them what you will, they have been around since 2004 when the original Turbosim came out. Basically a tiny piece of film with a chip attached to it, it is sandwiched between the phone contacts and the sim that one desires to put on that phone if the phone is locked. Basically, they tell the phone that they are on the original network they were intended to be on and masks the identity of the foreign, carrier not supported sim by 'spoofing' the data that is supposed to be provided by a sim from the "right" carrier that it is locked to.

Example of an iphone 'turbosim' in use. [Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

It is not a true unlock so much as a simlock bypass.

Turbo sims are used heavily to deal with Japanese Keitai Unlocking and are often the first way to "unlock" a new version of the latest iphone OS when it first comes out before the Iphone Dev. team cracks it.

It is also a good backup in case other methods fail. There are pros and cons to 'turbosims' (I will be using this as the generic catchall term from here on out).

Most 'turbosims' are fragile and require jimmying it against the sim. A lot of times you actually have to cut a piece of the sim away to accomodate the circuit board part that may bump up. The older ones were thicker and almost always required cutting away a (non essential) part of the desired sim to be used. There are newer ones including ones that claim to be 'cut free' (but often are still not) that are much thinner and like stated earlier, unfortunately, more fragile as well.

Sims come in several varieties. The most expensive types are specialized ones with customer firmware/roms to work on one specific of a few specific models like the iphone types.

Then there are ones that work on general groups of phones like all Nokias. Finally, there are the so called "universal types".

There is also two types of rom: permanent and not. Permanently programmed 'turbosims' are good for beginners as it is a set it and forget it operation. But the problem is when a new version of said phone's firmware comes up (especially smartphones) it can end up invalidating the now obsolete bypass programming of the 'turbosim ' being in question.

The other non permanent type is for more advanced users. A lot of times they are either preprogrammed with the latest firmware which can be updated by users with a sim reader or come in blank 'turbosim' form which is custom programmed by the user.

The good thing about 'turbosims' is that they are dead easy to use. Anybody can "unlock" a gsm handset if it is the right 'turbosim' and phone firmware combo.

And as the 'unlock' goes away when you remove the turbosim, it is a good way to circumvent any warrantied phones. Though sometimes, ill matched, poorly designed and other problematic 'turbosims' can end up causing unintended issues like constant reboots, error messages and crashing.

One of the biggest issues with choosing one is that there are so many different types with similar names and brands like ismartim, ismartphone, universal sim, hyper sim, sim pig, Mr. Sim , etc, etc.
And to add to the confusion, there are different firmwares and COUNTERFEIT ones.

EG. Gevey 'turbosims' for iphones were very trusted at one time so the counterfeiters would make those. The expensvie and high quality Inex 'hypersims', which are used often for Japanese 'keitai' phones are also often imitated/counterfeited. There are even some 'turbosim makers' who try to show picture tutorials on telling the difference between their real sim and the fakes. But the problem is that the fakes get batter.

If anyone uses or knows what 'turbosims' are reliable and affordable, please list along with models of phones used. Even list those that have problems so we know what to watch for. Thanks.

Btw, the best place to look for a turbo sim for YOUR phone is on ebay.

I've used ismartsim and ismartphone 2008 versions with success on older phones. The one good thing about 'turbosims' is that the older they get, the cheaper they get. Though, you still have people who overcharge (there are still turbosims for iphone OS v1.xx on sale!).

Further reading:[Only registered and activated users can see links. ]

[RIP MOBILE-FILES]

hell i feel smarter since i read this. good write up

[mobilefreedom]

Newest turbosim/"sim interposer" devices. Because of the iphone unlocking community's inability to come up with an effective software unlock for the higher basebands of iphone 4's iOS 4, there are new microsim sized "turbosims" hitting the market that bypass the simlock built in.

Gevey has released a micro "sim interposer" device which unlocks an iphone 4 w/o jailbreaking, however it requires to use of dialing an emergency number 112 (redirects to 911 in the US) as well as has to be reused everytime the phone is reset or turned off and on.

Rebel Sim, a turbosim/Gevey competitor has turned up their version of the micros
sim interposer. Their reportedly does not require rebooting and reunlocking everytime it is turned off. That is as of yet unconfirmed.

Both are very expensive. A generic universal turbo sim can go for as low as $3 on ebay.

The Gevey is $75. The Rebel Sim is $65.

Their value will PLUMMET once the soft unlocks come out. Local iphone unlockers in my area charge $75. You can buy ten at a pop on ebay for around $50-300.

Just be careful, there are many now obsolete iphone turbosims out there floating around, rendered worthless by software unlocks.

I think turbosims are best for fast, easy, quick and dirty unlocking of most phones, especially older types. I'd wait for the soft unlock if it's the iphone. $75? Geez.