iPhone Carriers

T-Mobile may not be an official Apple partner, but the company is making serious moves to increase the amount of iPhones used on its network. According to a leaked flyer obtained by TMONews, the carrier is preparing to launch a "Bring Your iPhone to T-Mobile" campaign.

The flyer shows how much money AT&T customers will save if they bring their unlocked iPhones to T-Mobile. The carrier's move comes after AT&T's Mobile Share Plan / FaceTime controversy, and right before Apple is expected to announce the iPhone 5 in Spetmeber. iOS 6 will add 3G cellular calling to the popular FaceTime feature on the iPhone 4S and later models, and AT&T has announced that its subscribers will need a Mobile Share data plan to use the 3G service. T-Mobile hopes AT&T's unpopular FaceTime policy will convince some AT&T subscribers to switch carriers, but that's not all T-Mobile has up its sleeve.

Old iPhone lovers, your vintage smartphone circa 2007 will be limited to Wi-Fi only in less than five years. AT&T Mobility plans to take the 2G (EDGE) data network offline by January 1, 2017 which will leave original iPhone users without a cellular data connection.

Currently 12 percent of AT&T customers with data contracts have devices limited to EDGE, which amounts to 8.4 million subscribers. Before panic sets in, AT&T has explained they will help customers transition to more modern devices ahead of the switch. The company needs as much spectrum as possible to support newer, faster networks including 3G and LTE.

Cricket Wireless has launched the first pre-paid iPhone in the U.S. this weekend. Circket is offering a 16GB no contract iPhone 4S for $500, and an 8GB iPhone 4 for $400. AT&T, Sprint and Verizon offer the 16GB iPhone 4S for $200 with a two year agreement. A pre-paid Cricket iPhone also comes with a $55 unlimited calling and text messaging plan with 2.3GB of data.

A Cricket representative told CNET that the phone is available at their retail stores and select dealers. The rep also claimed that they are experiencing "brisk" customer activity.

Cricket covers around 60 million Americans compared to AT&T' and Verizon's 300 million.

Sprint is looking to sell as many iPhones as possible thanks to its deal with Apple. Now the company is moving to offer a pre-paid iPhone to customers through its Virgin Mobile brand in the US. The iPhone will be available on the carrier starting on July 1.

The announcement comes hot on the heels of news that carriers Boost Mobile and Cricket Wireless will offer pre-paid iPhones starting this summer. Cricket will be the first carrier to sell a pre-paid iPhone with no contract in the US. The company plans to begin offering the device along with a $150 subsidy on June 22.

Wireless carrier Cricket has announced it will be offering two iPhone models pre-paid with no contract starting on June 22. The iPhone 4 or the iPhone 4S will be available subsidized for $400 and $500 respectively. This pricing is $150 cheaper than buying a no-commitment iPhone 4S from Apple.

Besides no contract, Cricket offers the advantage of an unlimited talk, text and data plan for only $55 per month. This undercuts all of the major carriers, although Cricket will throttle data speeds when customers exceed 2.3 GB during the billing period.