Need Cell-Phone Advice

[redshifter]

this is my first cell phone, in the past i've just used radio phones from work. actually it is a nifty little motorola flip phone, color screen, that i got for free from my wife. the sim card is gone, and i do not intend to use it very much at all.

question: are there any good pre-paid plans for someone who will make only a few calls a month, and already has a cell phone?

 

[jpelg]

If the phone uses a SIM card, then it is a GSM-type phone. I assume that you are located in the U.S., so it can potentially be used on either:

T-Mobile
AT&T (GSM*)
Cingular (GSM*)

* The latter to services also have other network types besides GSM in some areas of the country.

If your phone was purchased from one of these services, chances are it is "locked", meaning it can only be used on that service unless it is "unlocked" by entering special codes into the phone when another service's SIM card is put in. The original service has to provide these codes. Some will, some won't. FYI.

I think all of these services offer pre-paid plans.

 

[redshifter]

thanks jpelg!

my question then is, this phone does not have a sim--are there any plans that supply one, or can i just buy one and flash it? all of the plans i've seen include a phone, are there any that do not--and are all prepaid plans pretty much the same deal?

 

[averydonovan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by jpelg If the phone uses a SIM card, then it is a GSM-type phone. I assume that you are located in the U.S., so it can potentially be used on either: T-Mobile AT&T (GSM*) Cingular (GSM*) * The latter to services also have other network types besides GSM in some areas of the country. If your phone was purchased from one of these services, chances are it is "locked", meaning it can only be used on that service unless it is "unlocked" by entering special codes into the phone when another service's SIM card is put in. The original service has to provide these codes. Some will, some won't. FYI. I think all of these services offer pre-paid plans.

Not to mention that AT&T and Cingular also have towers on the 850MHz frequency that not all GSM phones can get.

Redshifter, what carrier is marked on your phone? More than likely you will have to use the phone with whatever carrier is marked on it due to the SIM-lock issue that jpelg mentioned. For prepaid service you are very unlikely to be able to get it unlocked by the original carrier. You might be able to get an unlock code somewhere on the 'net for your phone, I'm not sure if Motorolas are as easy to generate codes for as Nokia phones (I have software that generates unlock codes for Nokia phones).

I know T-Mobile will provide a SIM and 60 minutes of starter airtime for $50 on their T-Mobile To Go prepaid service. That starter card is good for 60 days before you have to add more time or otherwise your phone number and any time left over will expire. If you get a 100-minute refill card it will cost $25 and last for 90 days. I gave my mother my old Nokia 6610 phone and put her on this program and for her it is perfect since she uses it so little. I believe AT&T will provide just a SIM for their GoPhone service, but it is apparently hard to get them to sell you just the SIM and it is a monthly service and has a few extra gotchas compared to standard prepaid although it is better than most prepaid services if you use your phone somewhat regularly.

 

[stet]

If your wife had the phone for more than three months, she can call T-Mobile and they will give you the code to unlock your phone. For some reason it sometimes takes a couple days for them to e-mail it to you, but it's free and you don't have to risk or pay anything by those offering services on places like craigslist.