Originally Posted by
HockeyCoachBen
I can answer the first part of your question...if you buy an iPhone at full price directly from Apple Store, it is unlocked. Always.
In the US, even the phones listed as Verizon, Sprint or whatever are still unlocked if you buy them at full price (no carrier subsidy, discount, financing, payment plan, etc).
That is how Apple does business and has been that way since the 4s launch. So, I would imagine the same would be true if bought in Japan.
Japan has always had different rules about locked phones, not the same as the USA. I think only recently were phones even allowed to be unlocked in Japan.