How to get unlocked phone hooked up with Cingular

Hi, I am completely new to GSM phones and SIM cards being a longtime Verizon user. I am looking to switch to Cingular and want to buy a unlocked phone off of ebay. My question is do the phones come with the SIM card and Cingular programs it or does Cingular give me a SIM card if I sign a contract with them.

The reason I ask is because I've heard of buying unlocked phones and placing your existing SIM card from your old phone into it. But what if I want to start with a unlocked phone rather than buying one directly from Cingular. Any help is appreciated, thanks.

-Ray

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› See More: How to get unlocked phone hooked up with Cingular

When you sign up for Cingular service, online or local retailer, they give you a sim card. Most give free phones for signing up for service, so just go ahead and take it with the sim card. Then once you are all setup, swap your sim card into your unlocked phone.

When purchasing a unlocked phone, make sure it supports both the 850/1900 bands. If the phone isn't Cingular branded, you'll need to go online and configure Cingular's MMS and MediaNet settings.

thanks for your help, the problem I saw with getting their free phone is they require you to sign a 2 yr contract. Is there a way to get a free phone and only sign a 1 yr contract? I tried do this online but it doesn't give me the option.

I guess if it has to be 850/1900, I can't get the phone I wanted... Does t-mobile also require 850/1900?

Originally Posted by ffsxray

I guess if it has to be 850/1900, I can't get the phone I wanted... Does t-mobile also require 850/1900?

Well, T-Mobile's network is 1900 but roams on 850. Which means, if you were in a roaming area with T-Mobile you wouldn't be able to get a signal.

ok, thanks for the info... I guess I'm going for a quadband phone with cingular... I also want 3G and initially wanted the Sony M600i, but since it's triband that is not a option.

Phones that are quadband and feature 3G seem uncommon, looks like only the N80 features both and is pricey. Does anyone know of any other phones that fall into this category?

Originally Posted by Bourn Identity

Well, T-Mobile's network is 1900 but roams on 850. Which means, if you were in a roaming area with T-Mobile you wouldn't be able to get a signal.

Only part of their roaming is 850; some of it is 1900.

And I don't see why you want to get the free phone, too. To my understanding, you can get an unlocked phone and Cingular will send you a contract-free SIM, but I could be totally wrong on this.

And if you want a 3G quad band phone, then why not get the RAZR V3x? Here it is for only $299:
http://wirelessimports.com/ProductDe...?ProductID=470

contract free SIM? I didn't know you didn't need to have a contract, please enlighten me, this would be make it even more attractive....

Originally Posted by ffsxray

contract free SIM? I didn't know you didn't need to have a contract, please enlighten me, this would be make it even more attractive....

Don't get your hopes up as I'm not positively sure about this, but see, when you buy that "free" phone they make it free with all those discounts and rebates because you've agreed to use it for two years. I've heard that if you decide to pay full price for a phone, there's no contract. And I always thought that you didn't need to sign a contract because you didn't get a phone through them and you didn't get the contracts. But once again, I could be totally wrong.

Perhaps Bourne here can confirm if I'm right or wrong.

The only thing I could think of that wouldn't be a contract would be, pre-paid or month-to-month. With Cingular's pre-paid(GoPhone) there are two rates, pay-as-you-go or pick-your-plan. With pay-as-you-go for $1/day you get unlimited M2M and $.10/min. anytime. The pick-your-plan rates look like this: GoPhone Pick Your Plan | Cingular Wireless

I don't know if Cingular offers a month-to-month plan without signing a agreement first. I know Sprint does, but the rates are a lot more expensive than the rates if you had a contract. You won't be able to use a unlocked phone with Sprint though.

Originally Posted by char777

Don't get your hopes up as I'm not positively sure about this, but see, when you buy that "free" phone they make it free with all those discounts and rebates because you've agreed to use it for two years. I've heard that if you decide to pay full price for a phone, there's no contract. And I always thought that you didn't need to sign a contract because you didn't get a phone through them and you didn't get the contracts. But once again, I could be totally wrong.

Perhaps Bourne here can confirm if I'm right or wrong.

Sometimes a phone will be free with activation because the service provider has some in stock and they just want to get rid of it. I remember when the Siemens S56 first came out for Cingular...kinda pricey. After a few months, it was offered free.

Originally Posted by peryus88

Sometimes a phone will be free with activation because the service provider has some in stock and they just want to get rid of it. I remember when the Siemens S56 first came out for Cingular...kinda pricey. After a few months, it was offered free.

Sometimes? I have never seen a retailer, direct dealer or online dealer that wasn't offering a free phone with new service. They might not be the best or prettiest, but it's free!

Originally Posted by peryus88

Sometimes a phone will be free with activation because the service provider has some in stock and they just want to get rid of it. I remember when the Siemens S56 first came out for Cingular...kinda pricey. After a few months, it was offered free.

But you still have to sign a contract.

That is the general idea. Although, when I activated a pre-paid account, I had a choice to get a phone that was not offered free at one point when I was talking with a rep at a local Cingular store...it also helped that the manager was a friend of mine . So there are "sometimes" other options.

what happened to the old Sprint days of no contracts? I stayed with them for 4 years even though I wasn't on contract... they were on to something but it never seemed to catch on...