Mobile networks

[Betty Boop x]

I have bought a phone on a contract with O2.

If i then bought a phone on an Orange contract would i be able to put the sim from my O2 phone into the phone I buy on orange and would it work? (and vice versa)?

So basically would an O2 sim work on an 'Orange' phone?

Or do the networks lock the sims to one particular phone?

Thanx for any help x

[Piper-AK]

I'm not sure that it still works like this for contract phones, but with my pay as you go handset...

I bought a phone in Ireland, vodaphone pay as you go. When I got to England I put my English O2 pay as you go sim card into it, took it to 'The Phone Doctor' (a shop) who unlocked the mobile and I could then use the O2 sim card in my (originally) Irish Vodaphone Nokia.

I don't know if they unlocked it for use in a different country (Ireland and Englands) or for use with a different network (vodaphone and O2).

[qapmoc]

Hi piper, usually once a phone is ''unlocked'' then it really is unlocked and any sim for any network and/or country should work in it.

[Betty Boop x]

Thanx,

So it won't work unless i get both phones unlocked? where do i find somewhere that unlocks phones and how much would it cost?

Also can you unlock ANY phone?

I have got a Samsung D500 and want to get the Motorola V3.

x

[Piper-AK]

I found the Phone Doctor by word of mouth - try the phone book - they'll tell you if it's do-able (some phones only take certain shape sim cards). I think they charged me a couple of quid. You'll only need to unlock the phone that you want to be able to take both sim cards. Good luck!

[Betty Boop x]

I'm so glad it's possible to swap sim cards to different phones from different networks. I will try and find a shop that can unlock the phone for me.

Thank you for you're help

x

[chazza]

Some are automatically locked and some aren't. I recently gave a friend 2 old phones, one on the same network as her, one on a different.

The one on the same network didnt work, but the other did!

[dodgyshirt]

O2 contract phones are not sim-locked so you can use any network siimcard in them.

Orange contract phones are simlocked so you would need to get the orange phone unlocked before it will accept other network's cards. Even then the Orange settings for WAP etc would still be present so you would need to alter these manually.

One word of warning, the phones are heavily subsidised by the networks and they expect you to use them as intended. Make sure that the first few calls you make with each phone are made with the appropriate network's card which will register it as being used properly. Otherwise they are liable to charge you for the full cost of the phone for breach of contract.