mobile phone

[sridas]

hi, i want to have some info about using my home country mobile phone. some says the canadian SIM card will be unfit in my home mobile ph. I want to bring my moile ph with me to canada. any suggesstion most appreciated. thx

 

[Leon]

If you have a GSM system mobile phone and it works on one or both of the Canadian frequencies, 850MHz and 1900MHz, then you will be able to use it in Canada. You can buy a SIM card from Fido or Rogers.

There are also many cell phone companies in Canada which use a different system called CDMA, not GSM and they do not use SIM cards and with them, you would not be able to use your phone.

 

[Suin]

is there a chance to convert GSM phone to CDMA?

 

[PMM]

Hi

is there a chance to convert GSM phone to CDMA?

Why would you want to that? A quad band GSM phone covers the CDMA spectrum. As an earlier poster suggested, you buy a SIM card from Rogers or Fido.

PMM

 

[Leon]

You definitely can't convert a GSM phone to CDMA and if you buy a CDMA phone in Canada, be aware that they are usually locked to the provider. I had a CDMA phone from one company that was not on contract anymore so I asked another company if I could use it with them and they told me in no uncertain terms that I would have to buy one of their phones.

You can get cheap pre-paid phones if that is what you want or if you want an expensive phone, it's very common to buy them on a 2 or 3 year contract so when the contract is up, you can buy a new phone on a contract and if you so choose, at that point move to a different company.

However, if you have a quadband GSM phone, you will not have a problem using it with a SIM card from either Rogers or Fido. If you only have a tri-band which only has either 850MHz or 1900MHz but not both, you can still use it but you will not have full coverage.

 

[toby]

I saw recently an ad for a company that will sell you the code to unlock your telephone. Price about $16. I don't know if it works or not, but I saw it in Craigslist \ Nanaimo \ telephones.

Also, some people have been able to convince the phone company where they are buying their phone to unlock it for them, as a condition of buying. If they say no, look for a different provider. If you already have the phone, tell them you're leaving for Canada, and ask them to do the right thing.

Weeping sometimes helps.

 

[Leon]

Yes, if you have a locked GSM phone, you can unlock through the net or in a dark alley used cell phone shop so you can use it in Canada. Be aware though that locked phones are sold cheaper because they are locked and you may have to pay a fee to get out of your contract. That is, if you get a $400 phone for $50 because you take a 3 year contract and a year later, you want to move to Canada, the service provider will probably will not be so nice as to let you out of the contract and unlock the phone unless you pay them some cancellation fee. The dark alley option is still there though.

 

[Suin]

Hi

Why would you want to that? A quad band GSM phone covers the CDMA spectrum. As an earlier poster suggested, you buy a SIM card from Rogers or Fido.

PMM

Telus is much cheaper than Rogers and better service.

 

[Suin]

You definitely can't convert a GSM phone to CDMA and if you buy a CDMA phone in Canada, be aware that they are usually locked to the provider. I had a CDMA phone from one company that was not on contract anymore so I asked another company if I could use it with them and they told me in no uncertain terms that I would have to buy one of their phones.

You can get cheap pre-paid phones if that is what you want or if you want an expensive phone, it's very common to buy them on a 2 or 3 year contract so when the contract is up, you can buy a new phone on a contract and if you so choose, at that point move to a different company.

However, if you have a quadband GSM phone, you will not have a problem using it with a SIM card from either Rogers or Fido. If you only have a tri-band which only has either 850MHz or 1900MHz but not both, you can still use it but you will not have full coverage.

thank you for your reply Leon. do you know whether any new GSM operators come to Canada next year or the only option is Rogers and Fido?

 

[AlanWales]

thank you for your reply Leon. do you know whether any new GSM operators come to Canada next year or the only option is Rogers and Fido?

I believe Shaw are looking at entering the Mobile phone market.

 

[Leon]

Telus is much cheaper than Rogers and better service.

If you want Telus, then you have to buy a Telus phone. They operate on a CDMA system and do not use SIM cards. You can not use your old GSM phone with them. You can find them at http://www.telusmobility.com/ and look at their phones but you can also go to any mall and look for a Telus stand or you can buy them in most stores that sell electronics. If you don't use the phone a lot, you can get a prepaid one starting at 70-80$ complete with start up credit. If you use it a lot, then maybe better off getting a contract and if you get a contract, you can get a free phone from them.

thank you for your reply Leon. do you know whether any new GSM operators come to Canada next year or the only option is Rogers and Fido?

If you go to http://www.gsmworld.com/roaming/gsminfo/cou_ca.shtml it mentions some other GSM providers such as Dryden mobility but I think they are only in N-Ontario. Bell mobility seems to have a GSM 3G network. I was with them some years ago with a CDMA phone and I did not have good experience with them, I found them expensive but not to say they haven't changed, they might be better now. At http://www.bell.ca/shopping/en_CA_ON.SIM-card/69170.details you can check if your GSM phone is compatible to run on the Bell network.

 

[Suin]

I believe Shaw are looking at entering the Mobile phone market.

could you give more information about this operator - I haven't heard about it yet.

 

[Leon]

Shaw is the cable company in Alberta and some other provinces. You can see there website here: http://www.shaw.ca/en-ca Nothing about mobile phones yet but like he said, they might be planning to so in that case it wouldn't be on their website yet if they are not doing it yet.

 

[Suin]

If you want Telus, then you have to buy a Telus phone. They operate on a CDMA system and do not use SIM cards. You can not use your old GSM phone with them. You can find them at http://www.telusmobility.com/ and look at their phones but you can also go to any mall and look for a Telus stand or you can buy them in most stores that sell electronics. If you don't use the phone a lot, you can get a prepaid one starting at 70-80$ complete with start up credit. If you use it a lot, then maybe better off getting a contract and if you get a contract, you can get a free phone from them.

If you go to http://www.gsmworld.com/roaming/gsminfo/cou_ca.shtml it mentions some other GSM providers such as Dryden mobility but I think they are only in N-Ontario. Bell mobility seems to have a GSM 3G network. I was with them some years ago with a CDMA phone and I did not have good experience with them, I found them expensive but not to say they haven't changed, they might be better now. At http://www.bell.ca/shopping/en_CA_ON.SIM-card/69170.details you can check if your GSM phone is compatible to run on the Bell network.

unfortunately Telus doesn't work for my phone.

thank you for information about Bell, Leon.

 

[Karlshammar]

The wireless market is being opened up for more competition. A new company just got permission to start operating nationwide a few days ago. I can't remember the name of it, but it's all over the news.

I'm excited to see freer markets and think competition is great.

The only backside is that it sent my Rogers shares tumbling!