I bought a cell phone while I was living in France in 2004. I'm traveling to Italy in December and would like to use it there, but is there any way to tell whether or not the phone is "unlocked" so that it will work in Italy? I don't want to get there and buy a SIM card just to find the phone won't work!
Any help would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks
Abby
Should be easy. Since you bought it in France it came with a SIM card from a French telecom. If it was locked it would only work with that carrier. Simply plug in any SIM card from a US carrier (ATT, etc) and try to make a call. If it works, it's unlocked.
The phone won't work in the US though, its only GSM compatible.
Abby,
Actually, if the phone you bought in Europe is a tri-band or quad-band, it WILL work in the U.S. on either the AT&T or T-Mobile networks (both are GSM). Check the specifications, either using the owner's manual or search that model on the net - if it has the 850 & 1900 MHz bands, it will work in the U.S. (although if it's "locked" it won't be able to function with other SIM cards).
It might be worth a stop at one of your local mobile shops to check it out.
Cheers!
The owners manual says it works on GSM 900 (not 850) or 1800 MHz.
So would my next step be to find someone with an AT&T or T-Mobile phone and see if my phone works using their SIM card?
Abby,
There won't be any need to try using AT&T SIM cards in your phone, as it appears that it's a dual-band model and is only equipped with the two Euro frequencies (900 & 1800 MHz). Even if it was unlocked and you were able to try it with a US SIM card, the display would indicate "no network found", as North American GSM cell networks use 850 & 1900 MHz.
Your phone should work just fine in Italy, however the SIM card you were using in France may have expired (they usually have a "limited shelf life" if not used for six months or more). Even if the SIM still functioned, it would function in "roaming" mode in Italy, meaning your rates would be higher.
You have several choices. You could purchase a travel SIM from a firm such as Cellular Abroad, Mobal, MaxRoam or others, keeping in mind that your phone would have to be unlocked to work with any of these. You could also buy a PAYG SIM when you arrive in Italy (again, your phone would have to be unlocked), which is probably the least expensive option if you'll just be travelling in Italy.
In your situation, I'd probably try a U.S.-based SIM briefly, just to see if the phone display indicates whether it's unlocked. Depending on which model phone you have, it may be possible to buy unlocking codes off the net for a fairly reasonable price. Post another reply if you need further information on that.
Good luck!
Thanks for the info!
Hi Abby,
A company that I have been looking at for a sim card also has what they call a pig card. It is meant to be inserted into your phone along with the sim card and it is supposed to bypass the locked phone so that you can use it with any sim card.
Geo Sim
I think you mean SIM PIG. It allows you to use any SIM in a locked handset. It also goes well with their Global SIM Card which has free roaming accross Europe. We used one on our tour in the summer. It worked really well and had great service from them. www.globalsimcard.co.uk
