iPhone and other technology: buy here, use in China

In My Humble Opinion
1

In an odd juxtaposition of my thread on a stolen iPhone (possibly on its way to China), and the fact that we’re hosting a student from China right now…

Our student is considering purchasing an iPhone 6 while he’s here. Not for use here, but to take back to China with him. Apparently they’re cheaper here.

I said I’d ask around because I’m concerned about the network types. AT&T / T-Mobile use GSM (as supposedly most other countries do as well), Verizon and Sprint use CDMA.

For some reason, i thought that with 4G networks becoming more common, this was not an issue any more. Regardless: I assume it means we’d need to buy a GSM phone from AT&T/T-Mobile/a third party such as WalMart / BestBuy.

Anyway:

  1. Are there any other technical considerations he’d need to be worried about?
  2. Are there any import / export restrictions on such a purchase?
  3. Would Apple honor a warranty if the phone is taken out of country and then malfunctions?
  4. Any other ramifications I might be missing?

The irony of buying a China-made iPhone in the US, and taking it back to China, is not lost on me :D.

What about other technology such as PC games? I know sometimes when I buy something electronic I see warnings about being impermissible to send outside the country.

2

Buying iPhones to take back to China is incredibly popular. At first, they weren’t even for sale in China, but I believe that’s changed now. You’re right that it’s the AT&T phones that will probably work in China. I remember when the iPhone 5 or iPad 3 or something first went on sale, there was a big line outside the Apple Store in New York. After an hour of sales, they announced that only Verizon ones were left, and half the people, mostly those buying to send to China, left.

Legally speaking, your student should buy the more expensive unlocked version, but … well, I’ll leave it at that.