How do you know if a phone is unlocked

I have a Cingular Motorola V551 that I no longer need because I have
upgraded to a different phone. I took the SIM card out of the old phone and
put it in the new phone and the new phone works fine.

I bought the old phone in June 2005 which was when I signed on with
Cingular. The initial one-year contract expired this year. The old phone
is still in working order and I would like to try to sell it, but one
question I always hear asked is whether the phone is unlocked. What does
that mean, and how would I know if the old phone is locked or unlocked? If
it is locked, how do I unlock it?

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› See More: How do you know if a phone is unlocked

On Sun, 15 Oct 2006 18:31:41 GMT, "Rick" <[email protected]> wrote in
<[email protected]>:

>I have a Cingular Motorola V551 that I no longer need because I have
>upgraded to a different phone. I took the SIM card out of the old phone and
>put it in the new phone and the new phone works fine.
>
>I bought the old phone in June 2005 which was when I signed on with
>Cingular. The initial one-year contract expired this year. The old phone
>is still in working order and I would like to try to sell it, but one
>question I always hear asked is whether the phone is unlocked. What does
>that mean, and how would I know if the old phone is locked or unlocked? If
>it is locked, how do I unlock it?

Your phone is probably locked to Cingular.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subsidy_lock_%28cellular%29>

--
Best regards, FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS:
John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ>

"John Navas" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> On Sun, 15 Oct 2006 18:31:41 GMT, "Rick" <[email protected]> wrote in
> <[email protected]>:
>
>>I have a Cingular Motorola V551 that I no longer need because I have
>>upgraded to a different phone. I took the SIM card out of the old phone
>>and
>>put it in the new phone and the new phone works fine.
>>
>>I bought the old phone in June 2005 which was when I signed on with
>>Cingular. The initial one-year contract expired this year. The old phone
>>is still in working order and I would like to try to sell it, but one
>>question I always hear asked is whether the phone is unlocked. What does
>>that mean, and how would I know if the old phone is locked or unlocked?
>>If
>>it is locked, how do I unlock it?
>
> Your phone is probably locked to Cingular.
> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subsidy_lock_%28cellular%29>
>
> --
> Best regards, FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS:
> John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ>

Is there a way to tell if a phone is locked (other than the obvious method
of trying sim card from another vendor)?

How do I unlock the phone if it is locked?

Rick <[email protected]> wrote:
> I have a Cingular Motorola V551 that I no longer need because I have
> upgraded to a different phone.

I don't know if you can tell if it's locked, other than to try some other
SIM, any other SIM but Cingular.

If you are a customer in good standing with Cingular, call Customer
Service, activate the International Roaming on your account (no charge),
and ask for the Subsidy Unlock Code. They will need the IMEI from your
v551 (displayed with *#06#). The code is free.

You won't be able to perform the unlock until you get a non-Cingular SIM,
but you could provide the code to anyone who buys the phone.

--
---
Clarence A Dold - Hidden Valley Lake, CA, USA GPS: 38.8,-122.5

On Sun, 15 Oct 2006 19:40:02 GMT, "Rick" <[email protected]> wrote in
<[email protected]>:

>
>"John Navas" <[email protected]> wrote in message
>news:[email protected]...
>> On Sun, 15 Oct 2006 18:31:41 GMT, "Rick" <[email protected]> wrote in
>> <[email protected]>:
>>
>>>I have a Cingular Motorola V551 that I no longer need because I have
>>>upgraded to a different phone. I took the SIM card out of the old phone
>>>and
>>>put it in the new phone and the new phone works fine.
>>>
>>>I bought the old phone in June 2005 which was when I signed on with
>>>Cingular. The initial one-year contract expired this year. The old phone
>>>is still in working order and I would like to try to sell it, but one
>>>question I always hear asked is whether the phone is unlocked. What does
>>>that mean, and how would I know if the old phone is locked or unlocked?
>>>If
>>>it is locked, how do I unlock it?
>>
>> Your phone is probably locked to Cingular.
>> <http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subsidy_lock_%28cellular%29>
>>
>> Best regards, FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS:
>> John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ>
>
>Is there a way to tell if a phone is locked (other than the obvious method
>of trying sim card from another vendor)?

No.

>How do I unlock the phone if it is locked?

Did you even bother to check the resources I referred you to?

--
Best regards, FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS:
John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ>

> Is there a way to tell if a phone is locked (other than the obvious method
> of trying sim card from another vendor)?

That may not be hard -- you could walk into a T-Mobile store and ask them if
the phone is compatible with T-Mobile, for example. But if you bought it
from Cingular and haven't had it unlocked, it's not unlocked.

> How do I unlock the phone if it is locked?

Google for "unlock" and your make and model of phone. Or sell it the way it
is.

On Sun, 15 Oct 2006 23:09:02 -0400, "mc"
<[email protected]> wrote in
<[email protected]>:

>> Is there a way to tell if a phone is locked (other than the obvious method
>> of trying sim card from another vendor)?
>
>That may not be hard -- you could walk into a T-Mobile store and ask them if
>the phone is compatible with T-Mobile, for example. But if you bought it
>from Cingular and haven't had it unlocked, it's not unlocked.

Probably, but not necessarily -- Cingular has sold unlocked phones at
times.

--
Best regards, FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS:
John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ>