i don't really give a sh!t about what kind of phone i have and it comes time for me to get a new one. my buddy gave me his alcatel one touch which is just a standard phone. i've never used a sim card before and this one requires it i suppose. i need a network key to use the phone and i've found that it's going to cost around six euros to unlock it. my question is, if i pay this fee (thru some website not affiliated with my current phone company), will i be able to use this phone? i'd like it to be this easy, or will i have to go thru my phone company and have them activate it?
As long as it's unlocked, you should be able to use it.
the question then, if it's unlocked, am i operating outside of my phone company?
If I understand your question correctly....
Once you unlock your phone, you are no longer bound by any phone company.
I have an unlocked Apple SE that I use just for international travel. Once I land in Japan, I pay for 1 week Do-Co-Mo service. They give me a card and I use the phone (both phone and data). Some companies will let you choose phone OR data, Some for a time limit, some for a $$ limit, that is easy to reload. When I land in Guam, I use ITE, in Philippines I use Globe, Thailand, AIS all on the same phone, I just change out the card. Most gateway airports into each country will have kiosks selling their services. Most are similar, some have advantages or disadvantages. Just tell the salesperson how you want to use your phone.
6 Euros to unlock seems pretty cheap to me though...
I hope this helps.
(01-12-2017 06:31 AM)TomorrowHerd Wrote: [ -> ]If I understand your question correctly....
Once you unlock your phone, you are no longer bound by any phone company.
I have an unlocked Apple SE that I use just for international travel. Once I land in Japan, I pay for 1 week Do-Co-Mo service. They give me a card and I use the phone (both phone and data). Some companies will let you choose phone OR data, Some for a time limit, some for a $$ limit, that is easy to reload. When I land in Guam, I use ITE, in Philippines I use Globe, Thailand, AIS all on the same phone, I just change out the card. Most gateway airports into each country will have kiosks selling their services. Most are similar, some have advantages or disadvantages. Just tell the salesperson how you want to use your phone.
6 Euros to unlock seems pretty cheap to me though...
I hope this helps.
i'm sure that answered the question, perhaps as stated. but, how does the phone know what phone number it is? there was a sim card in the old phone but i don't think anything from the phone was loaded into it
The phone number is on the SIM card exclusively. You can reset the phone just to be on the safe side, but the phone doesn't retain the old number.
It is my understanding that "unlocking" the phone removes the carrier specific restriction. It used to be that an iPhone from AT&T would only work on the AT&T network, not Verizon, not Sprint, etc. You are still going to have to buy a service from a carrier in order to use that phone on their network.
Using a carrier's service without paying is illegal and very expensive.