GSM phone question

hello i have a question,is there any one awake, the word gsm,does that mean unlocked,which ,the phone when i bought it said can use a sims card,

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gsm does not mean unlocked. gsm refers to the type of network the phone uses. gsm phones do use sim cards, but you could have bought a locked phone. you might want to check the description for any mention of being unlocked

If you bought the phone specifically to be used on one service provider's network, it is most likely a locked phone. If, however, you bought a phone that was advertised to be used on any GSM network, then it must be an unlocked phone. It sounds like your phone did not include a sim card, and the seller intended for you to buy a sim card from your service provider. This is yet another clue that that you bought an unlocked phone. I hope this helps clarify things for you.

GSM refers to the type of network the phone can be used on. A GSM network's phone use SIM cards behind the battery, telling the phone which signals to send and receive, as well as what phone number to use.

If you buy a GSM phone through a GSM carrier, such as Cingular or T-Mobile, the phone is locked and can only be used on that carrier.

If you buy an unlocked phone, the phone will not come with a SIM card, which you will get through your network. The phone can be used on any network.

The carriers Sprint, Verizon, Alltel, US Cellular, Cricket, and metroPCS use the CDMA network, which is completely different to GSM and CDMA phones not only don't have SIM cards, but cannot be used on GSM networks and vice versa.

Is unlocking a phone a simple matter of swapping out the SIM card or is there more to it?

Originally Posted by char777

GSM refers to the type of network the phone can be used on. A GSM network's phone use SIM cards behind the battery, telling the phone which signals to send and receive, as well as what phone number to use.

If you buy a GSM phone through a GSM carrier, such as Cingular or T-Mobile, the phone is locked and can only be used on that carrier.

If you buy an unlocked phone, the phone will not come with a SIM card, which you will get through your network. The phone can be used on any network.

The carriers Sprint, Verizon, Alltel, US Cellular, Cricket, and metroPCS use the CDMA network, which is completely different to GSM and CDMA phones not only don't have SIM cards, but cannot be used on GSM networks and vice versa.

Originally Posted by PHQNECOM

Is unlocking a phone a simple matter of swapping out the SIM card or is there more to it?

If your phone is locked, that means it can only be used with the carrier to which it is locked. So, let's say you buy a T-Mobile locked phone, the only SIM card that can be placed into it is a T-Mobile SIM card. You could, for example, trade a T-Mobile phone with someone else, but you couldn't put let's say a Cingular SIM card into a T-Mobile phone.

You can unlock your locked phone by asking for an unlock code from your carrier. With T-Mobile, they will give it to you if you've used it for more than 90 days. I forgot what Cingular does, but I think they do the same practice.

Thanks for the quick and thorough reply.. you learn something new everyday!

Originally Posted by char777

If your phone is locked, that means it can only be used with the carrier to which it is locked. So, let's say you buy a T-Mobile locked phone, the only SIM card that can be placed into it is a T-Mobile SIM card. You could, for example, trade a T-Mobile phone with someone else, but you couldn't put let's say a Cingular SIM card into a T-Mobile phone.

You can unlock your locked phone by asking for an unlock code from your carrier. With T-Mobile, they will give it to you if you've used it for more than 90 days. I forgot what Cingular does, but I think they do the same practice.

Originally Posted by PHQNECOM

Thanks for the quick and thorough reply.. you learn something new everyday!

No problem!