Want an unlocked iPhone? Just go to France. Orange France to sell carrier-unlocked iPhones

Well, well, well. Look what we have here. Carrier-unlocked iPhones, once thought to be an impossibility (given Steve Jobs’ stance on the iPhone’s business model), will be hitting France this holiday shopping season (November 29). Those same wireless regulations that sparked speculation about the iPhone possibly being barred from French soil will require that Apple (NSDQ: AAPL) and Orange offer legit, carrier-unlocked iPhones alongside the locked-to-Orange iPhones.

Word has it that the carrier-unlocked iPhones will be sold for a steep €999, whereas the locked version will be commanding a much more palatable €399 (about $580) including VAT. Apple obviously wants to make it as difficult as possible to get your hands on a legitimately unlocked iPhone, and what better way than to make it ridiculously overpriced? Still, if you want an unlocked iPhone that will assuredly survive future iPhone firmware updates without voiding warranty or bricking, then you’ll have to make a quick trip to France. And by quick trip, we mean a trans-Atlantic flight.

[Via: IHT]