CertiCell Gets George Hotz's Unlocked iPhone

George Hotz, the 17-year old computer whiz who unlocked the iPhone, has traded his phone for three 8 GB iPhones and a new Nissan 350Z. The recipient of this unlocked iPhone is Terry Diadone, founder of Certicell.

Last week, Hotz unlocked the iPhone allowing him to use whatever carrier he desired to be attached to the phone. Apple has a strict deal with AT&T for the iPhone, enabling AT&T to be the only wireless carrier for the phone. However, Hotz unlocked the phone and is now using T-Mobile service through it. He then put the iPhone on eBay for the highest bidder.

Certicell is a Louisville, KY, phone repair shop and parts seller that deals in refurbished and recycled cell phones. Hotz has said he'll give the iPhones to three online collaborators who helped him on his quest, which, all told, took 500 hours to complete. For his trouble, the 17-year-old Hotz is also walking away with a paid consulting job with CertiCell.

A $100,000 reward has been offered by an anonymous source to the first person to give away an unlocking solution free to the masses. Since Hotz unlocked his iPhone, a few different unlocking methods have surfaced, most of which require you to pop open the iPhone and monkey around with the wiring. Two companies have come forward claiming to have developed software-only methods, though they're selling those secrets to the public for a fee.

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