How to replace a phone whilst under Cingular bondage.
October 3, 2005 8:16 PM Subscribe
So my wife and I made the stupid decision last year to sign one of Cingular's 2-year contracts for 2 free phones and their Family Plan. Problem is, the phones suck, and we can't upgrade until the contract is up.
We'll probably stick around rather than pay the fee to break the contract, but until then I'm wondering if there's a way to get another phone that doesn't suck. We have LG C1300's, which were nice for about 16 days, but are actually tiny silver turds straight out of Satan's butt -- i.e., they stink. Bad. And yes, Cingular sucks, too.
Is simply sticking the SIM card in another phone a viable option?
We'll probably stick around rather than pay the fee to break the contract, but until then I'm wondering if there's a way to get another phone that doesn't suck. We have LG C1300's, which were nice for about 16 days, but are actually tiny silver turds straight out of Satan's butt -- i.e., they stink. Bad. And yes, Cingular sucks, too.
Is simply sticking the SIM card in another phone a viable option?
We've had reasonable success with just harassing Cingular until they did what we wanted. It might be worth a try.
posted by crabintheocean at 8:35 PM on October 3, 2005
posted by crabintheocean at 8:35 PM on October 3, 2005
Yes, you can just get another set of Cingular or unlocked US GSM phones and stick your SIM cards in. They'll work perfectly.
If it's really within 16 days, Cingular has a 30-day trial period where you can cancel everything with no fees or repercussions.
posted by zsazsa at 8:52 PM on October 3, 2005
If it's really within 16 days, Cingular has a 30-day trial period where you can cancel everything with no fees or repercussions.
posted by zsazsa at 8:52 PM on October 3, 2005
HA!
When I read this, I thought it was my father that had written it! SAME EXACT EXPERIENCE.
The answer is to get the phones that you already have and either find the unlock code online or have someone with the cables do it for you. My father sent his to some guy in Chicago who charged him $16 per phone and had it done in three days. Then you just slip the sim in.
(Can I ask, were they those shitty little Nokia ones?)
You can recognize my mother around town as the woman who has the "Cingular Sucks- Don't Buy Their Phones" sign in her back window (she's been mentioned on local talk radio when there was trouble with a correspondant's phone line. When he returned he noted that while he wasn't going to say the name of the advertiser on air, it was the same one as "that woman..." and then he described her car and the sign.)
For anyone else out there, NEVER CINGULAR!
posted by klangklangston at 9:03 PM on October 3, 2005
When I read this, I thought it was my father that had written it! SAME EXACT EXPERIENCE.
The answer is to get the phones that you already have and either find the unlock code online or have someone with the cables do it for you. My father sent his to some guy in Chicago who charged him $16 per phone and had it done in three days. Then you just slip the sim in.
(Can I ask, were they those shitty little Nokia ones?)
You can recognize my mother around town as the woman who has the "Cingular Sucks- Don't Buy Their Phones" sign in her back window (she's been mentioned on local talk radio when there was trouble with a correspondant's phone line. When he returned he noted that while he wasn't going to say the name of the advertiser on air, it was the same one as "that woman..." and then he described her car and the sign.)
For anyone else out there, NEVER CINGULAR!
posted by klangklangston at 9:03 PM on October 3, 2005
I had the same problem with my phone company. Ironicaly I got sucked into another contract with a free motorolla contract long after my orgional contract expired.
I ended up buying a Nokia at full retail price. Nokia makes the best phones in the world (or at least that I've ever used).
You can usualy get out of your contract if you move somewhere that you can't get service, or if the service dosn't work in your home.
Find somewhere where you can't get reception and claim that you moved there.
They might ask for documentation, but a copy of photoshop will help you out there.
posted by delmoi at 9:21 PM on October 3, 2005
I ended up buying a Nokia at full retail price. Nokia makes the best phones in the world (or at least that I've ever used).
You can usualy get out of your contract if you move somewhere that you can't get service, or if the service dosn't work in your home.
Find somewhere where you can't get reception and claim that you moved there.
They might ask for documentation, but a copy of photoshop will help you out there.
posted by delmoi at 9:21 PM on October 3, 2005
As previously mentioned, most gsm phones (USAisan) can be unlocked and used with a cingular plan. At work I have a cache of unlocked phones purchased cheaply on ebay for our employee cell phones.
posted by AllesKlar at 9:22 PM on October 3, 2005
posted by AllesKlar at 9:22 PM on October 3, 2005
Response by poster: were they those shitty little Nokia ones?
Well, these are shitty little LGs. The batteries last about 30 minutes, they miss calls even in high-reception zones, the menus are awful, and the volume button is sensitive enough to make the phone spontaneously ring in your pocket. There is a mirror on the outside with an LED that shines through it when you miss a call (where there should be a clock) and the screen is completely unreadable in the slightest sunlight.
Anyway, so I can just get any unlocked GSM phone from some cellphone store or off Ebay, put in the SIM card, and be in business? I didn't realize it was so easy.
posted by swift at 9:29 PM on October 3, 2005
Well, these are shitty little LGs. The batteries last about 30 minutes, they miss calls even in high-reception zones, the menus are awful, and the volume button is sensitive enough to make the phone spontaneously ring in your pocket. There is a mirror on the outside with an LED that shines through it when you miss a call (where there should be a clock) and the screen is completely unreadable in the slightest sunlight.
Anyway, so I can just get any unlocked GSM phone from some cellphone store or off Ebay, put in the SIM card, and be in business? I didn't realize it was so easy.
posted by swift at 9:29 PM on October 3, 2005
Cingular, formed in 2001, is a joint venture of the American landline telephone companies SBC and BellSouth [wiki]
Aha... as someone who came from SBC hell I finally understand why Cingular sucks so much.
posted by rolypolyman at 9:29 PM on October 3, 2005
Aha... as someone who came from SBC hell I finally understand why Cingular sucks so much.
posted by rolypolyman at 9:29 PM on October 3, 2005
klangklangston, he doesn't need to unlock the LG phones he has right now, as they're the ones he doesn't want to use any more.
posted by zsazsa at 9:30 PM on October 3, 2005
posted by zsazsa at 9:30 PM on October 3, 2005
Best answer: swift, yes, it's that easy; that's the beauty of GSM. As long as they're unlocked or were previously used with Cingular, all you have to do is put in the SIM card. Please make sure the phones you get support both 850 and 1900MHz bands. You can find this out on the manufacturer's site or just Googling the model number. A few ex T-Mobile and AT&T Wireless phones only support one of the two bands, and if you get one, your reception may suffer greatly.
posted by zsazsa at 9:37 PM on October 3, 2005
posted by zsazsa at 9:37 PM on October 3, 2005
Cingular has an Exchange by Mail program that may be of use. I have heard of people exchanging phones they were not happy with via this option, if you bitch enough and its not past the year mark.
Personally, I have been happy with Cingular compared to other companies I have had service with.
posted by phox at 9:38 PM on October 3, 2005
Personally, I have been happy with Cingular compared to other companies I have had service with.
posted by phox at 9:38 PM on October 3, 2005
Make sure whatever phone you buy has 850Mhz at the very least, you'll need 1900Mhz in some parts of the country. Cingular uses 850Mhz primarily, T-Mobile uses 1900Mhz, and they do have roaming agreements which is transparent to you, but you need 850Mhz the most for US Cingular.
posted by riffola at 9:51 PM on October 3, 2005
posted by riffola at 9:51 PM on October 3, 2005
Aagh, I'm in the same boat as you, swift, except we have the shitty Motorola V220's -- which aren't unlockable by any simple means, and are quite possibly the nastiest pieces of interface mis-design I've ever had the extreme displeasure not to be able to avoid encountering (with apologies to Douglas Adams).
I think I'll investigate the replacement unlocked handset idea too. I rue the day I ever decided not to go with a Nokia handset.
I realise this is just bitching, and it's not terribly constructive or useful towards answering the question, but if I can save someone else making the same mistake ... I think it's worth it.
posted by 5MeoCMP at 10:24 PM on October 3, 2005
I think I'll investigate the replacement unlocked handset idea too. I rue the day I ever decided not to go with a Nokia handset.
I realise this is just bitching, and it's not terribly constructive or useful towards answering the question, but if I can save someone else making the same mistake ... I think it's worth it.
posted by 5MeoCMP at 10:24 PM on October 3, 2005
Having the same experience myself. Anyone reccomend a good seller of unlocked nokia phones?
posted by sophist at 1:24 AM on October 4, 2005
posted by sophist at 1:24 AM on October 4, 2005
Sprint uses CDMA I think, so it's not GSM, and you can't just buy any GSM phone and hope it'll work. Sadly like Verizon and Nextel (now Sprint), you have to buy the phone branded by Sprint.
posted by riffola at 7:11 AM on October 4, 2005
posted by riffola at 7:11 AM on October 4, 2005
Response by poster: Thanks everyone for the informative responses. It's off to Ebay for me.
posted by swift at 7:21 AM on October 4, 2005
posted by swift at 7:21 AM on October 4, 2005
riff is right on this.
Verizon + Sprint use CDMA. Technically, their phones systems are interchangable, but they'll never make that easy.
Nextel (which sprint now owns) is a GSM carrier...along with Tmobile, cingular and...well, anyone else.
By the way. the place for cellphone questions is howardforums.com
posted by filmgeek at 8:13 AM on October 4, 2005
Verizon + Sprint use CDMA. Technically, their phones systems are interchangable, but they'll never make that easy.
Nextel (which sprint now owns) is a GSM carrier...along with Tmobile, cingular and...well, anyone else.
By the way. the place for cellphone questions is howardforums.com
posted by filmgeek at 8:13 AM on October 4, 2005
klangklangston: you mean "those cheap and nasty sony/ericsson t28 phones" don't you?
crabintheocean, I'd like to know what amount of harassing actually works. I have gone through all of the phone escalation (they won't even pass my calls upward anymore-I must be on some kind of a list) and have sent registered mail to the top 5 Veeps at cingular, which resulted in only ONE return phone call from a drone. Telling me what I had already been told. That I'm a sucker.
I had t-mobile phones before, and sent them to a guy in Chicago who lists on eBay to get them unlocked. Excellent service. email me for name & details if interested (I don't think it's appropriate to advertise for him by name, here).
I think all the cellular providers customer service sucks with a vengeance. When my contract is up, I'll definitely drop cingular. not because I think any other provider is necessarily better, but because they need to learn how to keep customers. I told them I was going and go I shall.
posted by beelzbubba at 9:03 AM on October 4, 2005
crabintheocean, I'd like to know what amount of harassing actually works. I have gone through all of the phone escalation (they won't even pass my calls upward anymore-I must be on some kind of a list) and have sent registered mail to the top 5 Veeps at cingular, which resulted in only ONE return phone call from a drone. Telling me what I had already been told. That I'm a sucker.
I had t-mobile phones before, and sent them to a guy in Chicago who lists on eBay to get them unlocked. Excellent service. email me for name & details if interested (I don't think it's appropriate to advertise for him by name, here).
I think all the cellular providers customer service sucks with a vengeance. When my contract is up, I'll definitely drop cingular. not because I think any other provider is necessarily better, but because they need to learn how to keep customers. I told them I was going and go I shall.
posted by beelzbubba at 9:03 AM on October 4, 2005
T-Mobile does unlocking for free. You just get to unlock 1 phone per account in a 90 day period. You have to be a customer for at least 90 days to be eligible for it.
I don't get people who say Sony Ericsson UI sucks. Having used phones by Panasonic, Samsung, Nokia, Motorola (thankfully only for a day), and Sony Ericsson, I've found the Sony Ericsson UI to be the most well thought out.
In my experience and due to my preferences, it just works the way I want it to within the limits of what the phone can do. I can't ask it to make me a smoothie at 3AM... yet.
Their reception quality was the biggest drawback for all their phones on the 900Mhz/1800Mhz/1900Mhz line up until last year's K700i, since then, especially with the K750i/W800i/D750i generation, their signal quality is as good as any of the better Nokia phones out there. The phones with the 850Mhz, including T616 were champs at holding onto the reception.
The weirdest thing I've experienced was that for all the praises Nokia gets on signal quality, and call quality, the sound tonality is pretty off on almost all their phones. It sounds very flat, and unnatural. On Samsungs and Sony Ericsson you're more likely to find a more "natural" phone sound, it feels normal.
As for battery life, most newer phones from all manufacturers have good battery life. I only have a cellphone so I use about 30 - 60 minutes a day on it for various reasons, and with regular usage of the 2MP camera and MP3 player for the summer, when carrying an iPod is cumbersome, I still get a single charge to last just a little over three days.
As mentioned above, the best place for all cellphone questions, reviews, advice and tips, it's hard to beat Howard Forums.
posted by riffola at 9:30 AM on October 4, 2005
I don't get people who say Sony Ericsson UI sucks. Having used phones by Panasonic, Samsung, Nokia, Motorola (thankfully only for a day), and Sony Ericsson, I've found the Sony Ericsson UI to be the most well thought out.
In my experience and due to my preferences, it just works the way I want it to within the limits of what the phone can do. I can't ask it to make me a smoothie at 3AM... yet.
Their reception quality was the biggest drawback for all their phones on the 900Mhz/1800Mhz/1900Mhz line up until last year's K700i, since then, especially with the K750i/W800i/D750i generation, their signal quality is as good as any of the better Nokia phones out there. The phones with the 850Mhz, including T616 were champs at holding onto the reception.
The weirdest thing I've experienced was that for all the praises Nokia gets on signal quality, and call quality, the sound tonality is pretty off on almost all their phones. It sounds very flat, and unnatural. On Samsungs and Sony Ericsson you're more likely to find a more "natural" phone sound, it feels normal.
As for battery life, most newer phones from all manufacturers have good battery life. I only have a cellphone so I use about 30 - 60 minutes a day on it for various reasons, and with regular usage of the 2MP camera and MP3 player for the summer, when carrying an iPod is cumbersome, I still get a single charge to last just a little over three days.
As mentioned above, the best place for all cellphone questions, reviews, advice and tips, it's hard to beat Howard Forums.
posted by riffola at 9:30 AM on October 4, 2005
filmgeek, Nextel is not GSM; they use their own proprietary system called iDEN.
posted by zsazsa at 9:53 AM on October 4, 2005
posted by zsazsa at 9:53 AM on October 4, 2005
You are right zsazsa, but Nextel SIMs are compatible with GSM phones.
posted by forforf at 1:18 PM on October 4, 2005
posted by forforf at 1:18 PM on October 4, 2005
If you are past 12 months on you Cingular contract, you can renegotiate and get new phones with a new 1 year contract
posted by Megafly at 6:16 PM on October 4, 2005
posted by Megafly at 6:16 PM on October 4, 2005
This thread is closed to new comments.
posted by jmgorman at 8:23 PM on October 3, 2005