Re: Old mobile shows "BTCELLNET" not "O2"

Lobster wrote:
>
> The Ericsson displays "BTCELLNET" when it logs on to the network, and I
> was just wondering why? I realise it's the old name for O2, and
> wondered if it was hardwired into the phone. But if I get it to search
> for all available networks, it still shows BTcellnet as one of the
> options (the others being one2one, vodafone and orange). Anyone
> enlighten me?!
>
I'd like to know the answer to that, too!
I recently popped one of the free O2 SIMs into a phone which was previously
locked to Orange - it, too showed BTcellnet.

Just curious:

While waiting for my number to be PAC'ed into my new O2 account, I've
ressurected an old Ericsson A1018S mobile to stick my new O2 simcard in,
while I'm briefly running two contracts in parallel.

The Ericsson displays "BTCELLNET" when it logs on to the network, and I
was just wondering why? I realise it's the old name for O2, and
wondered if it was hardwired into the phone. But if I get it to search
for all available networks, it still shows BTcellnet as one of the
options (the others being one2one, vodafone and orange). Anyone
enlighten me?!

David

"S Viemeister" <firstname.lastname@which.net> wrote in message
news:439740E4.79E91723@which.net...
> Lobster wrote:
>>
>> The Ericsson displays "BTCELLNET" when it logs on to the network, and I
>> was just wondering why? I realise it's the old name for O2, and
>> wondered if it was hardwired into the phone. But if I get it to search
>> for all available networks, it still shows BTcellnet as one of the
>> options (the others being one2one, vodafone and orange). Anyone
>> enlighten me?!
>>
> I'd like to know the answer to that, too!
> I recently popped one of the free O2 SIMs into a phone which was
> previously
> locked to Orange - it, too showed BTcellnet.

Yep, AFAIR the network name is coded into the software of the phone.

--
Matt
http://www.matt-holland.org
I got the disk full message when downloading http://*.*

"Lobster" <davidlobsterpot601@hotmail.com> wrote in message
news:RiHlf.145$zt1.120@newsfe5-gui.ntli.net...
> Just curious:
>
> While waiting for my number to be PAC'ed into my new O2 account, I've
> ressurected an old Ericsson A1018S mobile to stick my new O2 simcard in,
> while I'm briefly running two contracts in parallel.
>
> The Ericsson displays "BTCELLNET" when it logs on to the network, and I
> was just wondering why? I realise it's the old name for O2, and
> wondered if it was hardwired into the phone. But if I get it to search
> for all available networks, it still shows BTcellnet as one of the
> options (the others being one2one, vodafone and orange). Anyone
> enlighten me?!

I'm guessing that the SIM has a code which identifies the network to the
phone. Even though the network operator changed the name, they still use the
same code.

Marcus

Marcus Fox wrote:
> I'm guessing that the SIM has a code which identifies the network to the
> phone. Even though the network operator changed the name, they still use the
> same code.

Each network has a unique 5 digit code, there's a table on the handset
which corresponds the network code to the network name. First 3 digits
identify the country and the last 2 digits identify the network within
the particular country.

Andrew Woodvine

On Wed, 07 Dec 2005 20:32:00 GMT, neo1ite <neo1ite@hotmail.com> wrote:
>
>"S Viemeister" <firstname.lastname@which.net> wrote in message
>news:439740E4.79E91723@which.net...
>> Lobster wrote:
>>>
>>> The Ericsson displays "BTCELLNET" when it logs on to the network, and I
>>> was just wondering why? I realise it's the old name for O2, and
>>> wondered if it was hardwired into the phone. But if I get it to search
>>> for all available networks, it still shows BTcellnet as one of the
>>> options (the others being one2one, vodafone and orange). Anyone
>>> enlighten me?!
>>>
>> I'd like to know the answer to that, too!
>> I recently popped one of the free O2 SIMs into a phone which was
>> previously
>> locked to Orange - it, too showed BTcellnet.
>
>Yep, AFAIR the network name is coded into the software of the phone.

That would be correct. The cells broadcast a country-network code, for O2
this is 234-10. (Voda is 234-15, T-Mobile 234-30, Orange 234-33).

Your phone is looking up that code in its list of known networks and
returning the name the operator was using at the time the phone was made.

This is also why some old single-band phones on Orange and T-Mobile will
show UK-10 and UK-15 when it sees a GSM1800 cell used by O2 and Voda (who
are primarily GSM900).

Code on the SIM card can override the stored name of a network - this is
why a Virgin SIM will show Virgin not T-Mobile (or one2one) on a phone
configured to allow the SIM to do this. This can also be updated over the
air, which is how T-Mobile updated all their subscribers' phones to
display T-Mobile UK when they bought one2one.

O2 just don't use this facility. My O2 PAYG SIM displays the even older
"UK CELLNET" tag in my Motorola L7089.

And, it's not just the UK doing this. My Nokia 6310i roams on to
"Microcell" in Canada, whereas my V500 displays "Fido" for the same
network (302-370). And network 310-270 in USA has gone from "Powertel" to
"Voicestream" to "T-Mobile".

(Curiously, my V545 still lists 505-08 as One.Tel (Australia), even though
that collapsed way back in 2001.)

--
-- Michael "Soruk" McConnell
Eridani Star System

MailStripper - http://mailstripper.eridani.co.uk/ - SMTP spam filter
Mail Me Anywhere - http://www.MailMeAnywhere.com/ - Mobile email

"Soruk" <soruk@bitbucket.eridani.co.uk> wrote in message
news:slrndpepsl.js5.soruk@zeskia.int.eridani.co.uk

[snip]

> Code on the SIM card can override the stored name of a
> network - this is why a Virgin SIM will show Virgin not
> T-Mobile (or one2one) on a phone configured to allow the
> SIM to do this. This can also be updated over the air,
> which is how T-Mobile updated all their subscribers'
> phones to display T-Mobile UK when they bought one2one.
>
> O2 just don't use this facility. My O2 PAYG SIM displays
> the even older "UK CELLNET" tag in my Motorola L7089.

Curiously, my Tesco SIM, which uses O2 of course, displays CELLNET very
briefly immediately after switching on and also after returning to the
standby display when used in my Nokia 6150. It doesn't do this in a 6310i
or 7250i.

Ivor