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The Telecom Digest for February 3, 2014
Volume 33 : Issue 27 : "text" Format
====== 32 years of TELECOM Digest -- Founded August 21, 1981 ======
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Telecom and VOIP (Voice over Internet Protocol) Digest for the
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against crime. - Geoffrey Welsh
See the bottom of this issue for subscription and archive details
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Date: Sun, 02 Feb 2014 09:21:09 -0500
From: Arnie Goetchius <arnie.goetchius.remove-this@and-this-too.att.net>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: T-Mobile Sparq phone with no SIM card - options?
Message-ID: <lclk8m$3t3$1@dont-email.me>
Bill Horne wrote:
> My sister just gave me a T-Mobile Sparq Cell phone; it came with
> everything but a SIM card. I'd like to know what my options are, so
> here are some questions I hope T-D readers can answer -
I have the exact same phone so I hope I can answer some of your questions.
> 0. Where are the best deals for SIM cards?
Based on what you said in (4.) below, it sound like you already have a
SIM card in the phone. It is white with a big red T on one side and
brass colored contacts on the other side. If that is not a SIM card
but some kind of packaging material, the SIM card should be in the box
that it came in.
> 1. The box has a sticker for a discount plan, saying "Only at
> Walmart", so I need to know if T-Mobile phones sold at Walmart
> have any different setup and/or restrictions compared to those
> available elsewhere.
I don't know of any restrictions on Walmart phones.
> 2. It's a T-Mobile "Monthly" unit, with various prepay options. Can it
> be unlocked, used for another carrier, etc? How's the T-Mobile
> network?
In my area, (Central NJ) the T-Mobile network is not bad if you are
outside your house. However, unlike AT&T, the T-Mobile network does
not have 850 mhz frequency, only the higher ones. This means that
without the lower frequency capability, it may not operate too well
inside some buildings. For example, mine would not work in the
basement where my office is. I did have T-Mobile send me the unlock
instructions so that I could port it to AT&T but I later changed my
mind and went with TracFone LG840 with AT&T SIM card. The Sparq is
currently not in use.
> 3. The display shows "01/01/2010 Emergency", which I assume is what
> you get without a sim card, but I'm curious: is the camera
> operational? Can I download images via the USB port? Is there any
> WiFi capability?
You will also get the "Emergency" if you are too far from the T-Mobile
transmitter or are sitting deep in your house where the phone cannot
connect to the T-Mobile network. If there is no SIM card, you will
also see a message "Invalid SIM - SIM Card unavailable". If you don't
get that message, I think there is a SIM card installed but you are
not making a connection with the T-Mobile network. It does not have
WiFI which is why I switched to the LG840 (only sold by TracFone). You
can down load images via the USB port where the phone appears as just
another drive on your system. There is also software that you can
download called Alcatel PC Suite from www.alcatel-mobilephones.com The
camera works.
> 4. There's a card in the SIM slot, marked "T-Mobile", but I pushed it
> deeper into the slot when I tried to remove it, and I'm not sure if
> it's meant to stay, or if it's just a cover for the
> contacts. Should I leave it alone?
Sounds to me like it is a valid SIM card that just cannot connect to
the network because of your location. I'm guessing that once you get
to a location where the phone can connect, it will take you through
the activation process and assign you a telephone number. As I recall,
the initial SIM card had $10 of credit on it. I set up an online
account with T-Mobile and was able to add credit to me T-Mobile number
with my credit card. I much preferred T-Mobile to AT&T except it would
not work in the basement.
> 5. Is there any way to download the contact list via USB?
I am pretty sure there is but I never used it so can't tell you
positively yes or no.
> All help appreciated. TIA.
You can get more help here: alt.cellular.t-mobile
Date: Sun, 2 Feb 2014 15:37:15 -0500
From: Julian Thomas <jt@jt-mj.net>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: T-Mobile Sparq phone with no SIM card - options?
Message-ID: <9A935ECA-C701-47C1-AA00-E5331E85245B@jt-mj.net>
On 2 Feb 2014, at 09:21, Arnie Goetchius
<arnie.goetchius.remove-this@and-this-too.att.net> wrote:
>> 5. Is there any way to download the contact list via USB?
>
> I am pretty sure there is but I never used it so can't tell you
> positively yes or no.
If it is an Android, there's almost certainly an app.
jt
Date: Sun, 2 Feb 2014 00:38:17 -0500
From: tlvp <mPiOsUcB.EtLlLvEp@att.net>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Re: T-Mobile Sparq phone with no SIM card - options?
Message-ID: <ad9rs9b88m26.10ppycl08y59e.dlg@40tude.net>
On Sat, 01 Feb 2014 19:48:49 -0500, Bill Horne wrote:
> My sister just gave me a T-Mobile Sparq Cell phone; it came with
> everything but a SIM card. I'd like to know what my options are ...
You might find some of the customer reviews on Amazon of interest:
http://www.amazon.com/product-reviews/B005XE5TLS/
.
Cheers, -- tlvp
--
Avant de repondre, jeter la poubelle, SVP.
Date: Sun, 2 Feb 2014 16:00:00 -0500
From: "news" <news@fx12.iad.highwinds-media.com>
To: telecomdigestmoderator.remove-this@and-this-too.telecom-digest.org.
Subject: Stopping Illegal Robocalling
Message-ID: <mlyHu.227859$VG.104383@fx12.iad>
comp.dcom.telecom readership:
I'd like your help. Perhaps together we can get an infrastructure in place
to stop illegal robocalling.
The background:
You may remember that in 2012-2013 the FTC (NOT FCC) held a contest
for a way to stop illegal robocalling.
I entered the contest, but did not win. My proposal is technical - I
don't think trying to change bad behavior will work.
The summary of my original proposal can be seen at
http://robocall.challengepost.com/submissions/13216-illegal-robocall-free-with-trusted-caller-id
I could not get the entry itself made visible because the contest is closed.
Because I think the affair needs FCC (not FTC) action, I tried to get
people at the FCC to look at my proposal and tell me what's wrong with
it. I've been unsuccessful in getting feedback.
So, other pool of expertise is you. What I'd like is for those of you
so inclined to look at my entry and critique it. If it turns out it
has fatal flaws, so be it, I'll go away quietly. But if there's
consensus that it will work, the next step is to gather suggestions as
to how to get it implemented. At this moment I would guess that means
proposing and advocating new FCC rules, nontrivial as that may be.
Our Moderator, Bill Horne, has kindly posted my entry document on the
telecom web site, even while warning me of the difficulty of this
task. Be aware before you jump in that it's 15 pages (the FTC contest
limit) of fairly small print and technical. Some of you will remember
a thread in this newsgroup about this topic; I exploited information
in that thread and referenced it in the proposal.
You can access the proposal here:
http://telecom-digest.org/robocalls.pdf
The main thrust of the proposal is to detect Caller ID spoofing. For
your information, the IETF has resurrected its efforts to detect
Caller ID spoofing.
Check it out:
http://tools.ietf.org/html/draft-ietf-stir-problem-statement-03
Also available at:
ftp://ftp.ietf.org/internet-drafts/draft-ietf-stir-problem-statement-03.txt
To summarize, what's needed is
1) critiques of my robocall/caller-ID document
2) advice on how to proceed next if we can agree that it will work.
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