On Sat, 27 Aug 2005 04:18:18 EDT, Dan Lanciani <ddl@danlan.com> wrote:
>> That "performance" statement has to be the biggest crock I've seen in
>> quite a while, GSM is GSM is GSM, the whole concept of a standard is that
>> all equipment that complies with it will interoperate.
> So does Cingular do something active to block the use of "foreign" GSM
> phones on its network or does it rely on such phones being
> subsidy-locked to another provider's network?
No, they can't do that. Unlike other technologies such as CDMA and
TDMA (IS-136) where you have to register and authenticate the
handset's ESN to activate it on the network no such stipulation exists
for GSM. If an operator (such as Sprint PCS for example) doesn't want
you to use certain equipment on their network all they have to say is
that they won't activate any ESN other than what they sell or have
sold in the past for use on their network and check it against a
database which they hold. Operators can be as cooperative as they
wish or as uncooperative as they wish. T-Mobile for instance has no
problem securing the unlock codes for any of their handsets.
They'll even attempt to get the unlock for present subscribers from
competing operators. They can't get codes for AT&T Wireless because
AT&T Wireless never released unlock codes under any circumstance.
Still the AT&T Wireless subscriber with GSM equipment isn't totally
out of luck. Some handsets such as are sold by Nokia have readily
available unlock code calculators for PCs which you can download and
generate an unlock code for your handset provided you know what your
operator's MCC/MNC (mobile country code/mobile network code.) Also
there are on line sites that will calculate the code for you while
you're on line either free or for a small fee. Other manufacturers
handsets can be unlocked with procured codes or by modifying the
hardware with flashing and by other means.
It is only the arrogance of this "mouthpiece" from Cingular who
insists that you have no alternative except to buy equipment from
them.
Joseph (JoeOfSeattle@yahoo.com)