SIMlock free iPhone comes to Belgium

The iPhone 3G will be available SIMlock free in Belgium on Friday, local operator Mobistar has revealed.

Belgium is one of those European countries where forced bundling and device exclusivity are outlawed on networks. As a result, consumers have to pay a hefty price for the hardware, but they can use it on any network.

T-Mobile Germany, one of the exclusive carriers of the original Apple device, ran into similar problems last year when Vodafone won a temporary injunction preventing T-Mo from SIMlocking the device. But the victory was short lived as a Hamburg court overturned the order and validated T-Mo’s right to exclusivity.

Nevertheless, Mobistar will be going ahead with sales of an unlocked iPhone 3G this week, but the 8GB model will set buyers back Eur525, while the 16GB version will weigh in at Eur615.

Tariff packages will be available on the Belgium network, ranging from Eur30 for 3 hours talktime or 300 texts, as well as 200MB of data, to Eur60 per month for 9 hours or 900 SMS and 1GB of data.

Mobistar is the exclusive carrier of the iPhone 3G in Belgium.