Unlocking Your Cell Phone
Posted on July 29, 2008
Filed Under AT&T, Cell Phones, T-Mobile | Leave a Comment
Unlocking a cell phone is of particular interest to those on GSM networks. By unlocking a GSM phone, you can replace the original sim card with a card from another GSM provider and the phone will work on that network.
Because it is so easy to take and unlocked T-Mobile or AT&T phone and switch networks, these providers lock the phone to their network as a way of keeping you from using your phone elsewhere. There are cases where a provider will unlock a handset but usually you have to be with the provider for a period of time.
For instance, if you are planning on travelling overseas, T-Mobile and AT&T will generally provide you an unlock code after 12 months of service.
Some brands can be unlocked by finding codes online. Samsung and LG are fairly easy to unlock. Nokia used to be easy but has since locked down their system as per the service provider requests and are now next to impossible to unlock.
Before buying a phone to unlock, check online to see if it is unlockable or not. If not, plan on using it for a year or paying a hefty fee to the service provider for the unlock.
