The officially-sanctioned ChevronWP7 unlock tool for WP7 handsets and developer use will cost just $9, according to a Twitter post from ChevronWP7 dev Chris Walsh. It will let developers avoid the usual $99 per year cost to be a full-fledged Windows Phone developer. It allows developers to unlock their devices and experiment before signing up to publish apps.
More information will soon be forthcoming under ChevronWP7’s new labs section on its website. Microsoft originally blocked the Chevron WP7 app but after a meeting with the team’s Rafael Rivera and Long Zheng earlier this year have changed their mind.
ChevronWP7 pulled its original, non-sanctioned tool at Microsoft’s request. It was of limited use, however, as Windows Phone 7 devices were programmed to phone home after two weeks of use to re-lock unofficial devices.
