I need help w/ an unlocked phone

I don't know if this is the right forum for this, if not please let me know or move/delete this thread.

My girlfriend recently bought a T-Mobile phone that had been unlocked for Cingular/ATT/etc. The phone was a Samsung e315. This was to take the place of her existing phone, a Nokia 3120. The new phone works fine in the city she lives in where there is a Cingular tower. But when she goes to her hometown, where there are no Cingular towers, the phone doesn't work.

I was hoping someone could tell me what this problem is, any possible solutions, or if she's just out of luck.

Also, I have learned since she bought this that the new samsung phone is ony a dual-band while the old nokia is a tri-band phone. I don't know if this has anything to do w/ her problem.

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Originally Posted by mleathers

The new phone works fine in the city she lives in where there is a Cingular tower. But when she goes to her hometown, where there are no Cingular towers, the phone doesn't work.

If Cingular doesn't have towers in a particular city and they don't have a roaming agreement with T-Mobile, you are out of luck.

Originally Posted by mleathers

I don't know if this is the right forum for this, if not please let me know or move/delete this thread.

My girlfriend recently bought a T-Mobile phone that had been unlocked for Cingular/ATT/etc. The phone was a Samsung e315. This was to take the place of her existing phone, a Nokia 3120. The new phone works fine in the city she lives in where there is a Cingular tower. But when she goes to her hometown, where there are no Cingular towers, the phone doesn't work.

I was hoping someone could tell me what this problem is, any possible solutions, or if she's just out of luck.

Also, I have learned since she bought this that the new samsung phone is ony a dual-band while the old nokia is a tri-band phone. I don't know if this has anything to do w/ her problem.

The Samsung E315 has the 900/1900 MHz bands. If the local GSM carrier is using the 850 MHz band, the phone will have no reception.

You did not say whether your girl frien was a T-Mobile or Cingular customer. Since T-Mobile only operates on 1900 MHz, the phone would work whereever T-Mobile had service if she is a T-Mobile customer. If she is a Cingular customer, there might not be a roaming agreement in place in those areas where both T-Mobile and Cingular had service. If Cingular used 850 MHz in that market, she is out of luck.