I recently moved to the US from the UK. My wife added a line for me to her AT&T plan and I received a Samsung A272 handset, which I don't like. I had my brother send me my old Nokia 6233 from the UK, which should work on the North American band. I tried putting the AT&T SIM in the phone, and, of course, got the 'Phone Restricted' message. What I'd like to know is: Can I get my UK phone unlocked in the US or will I have to send it back to my brother to unlock there? (it was with Virgin Mobile there, which used the UK T-Mobile network) Is there any other way to unlock the phone? (I realize I'll have to pay to have this handset unlocked) Many thanks!
You may not want to go to the trouble of having it unlocked for use here. Unfortunately, it lacks the 850 mhz band. Both the 850 and 1900 frequencies are used by at&t - but not necessarily both in all places; your coverage will likely suffer with a phone that doesn't have both.
Hi. Thanks for the heads-up. I guess I should have looked into that fully. I've checked out the 1900 band coverage for my part of Northern California and it seems pretty well covered, with a few holes here and there. If I can get the thing unlocked, I'm sure it will do me till I can afford to upgrade.
AT&T 1900MHz coverage in Northern California leaves a lot to be desired. The T-Mobile one is better, IMHO.
You're welcome. If you still want to try to unlock it, I'd suggest contacting the UK service provider first to see if they will provide the subsidy unlock code. If you don't still have an active account and it's required for them to do so, possibly your brother could request it for you if he has an account with them (?). You shouldn't need to send him the phone - I wouldn't think anyway. The subsidy unlock codes are simply e-mailed to the requestor, along with instructions for using them, by at&t. If either Virgin Mobile or T-Mobile is not able to provide the subsidy unlock code, then google "Unlock 6233" for paid provider options. iunlock.com is one that I see mentioned quite often. Also, how long has it been since your wife added your line to her plan and you received the Samsung? If the initial 30 day return/exchange period (assuming you purchased it directly from at&t) has not yet expired, have you considered exchanging it for another model?
Hello again I did look into unlocking it, but it seems this model of Nokia (BBS phone) cannot be unlocked by just entering a code, it needs to be done with hardware. I did find a service that would do it by mail, but it cost silly money, and as another poster pointed out, with the phone only covering one US cell phone band, it's hardly worth the money. I've decided to leave the Virgin Mobile SIM in the phone and use it when my wife and I visit my family in the UK, save having to use coin-phones. Unfortunately I got the Samsung about six months ago, so I'm stuck with that one for another 18 months, though my wife will be upgrading soon so I might be able to have her old LG phone, which is still better than the Samsung. I'm just disappointed the Nokia didn't work out - it's a cracking little phone. Thanks for your suggestions!
Have you considered getting rid of the AT&T phones and buying unlocked phones online? If you really aren't happy with the phones, you don't have to wait out the contract with a phone you don't like. I'm sure you could find an unlocked quadband Nokia on eBay for a reasonable price.
If the carrier itself will give you the subsidy unlock code, it can be unlocked by them. (I don't know if European carriers do that though.) It's just that the on-line code generators don't have the ability to generate the code for it as the locking algorithms became much more complicated with the BB5 devices.
I wish I could, Bill. Like everyone else at the moment, I'm having to tighten my belt. I agree, though, and will go for unlocked handsets in the future. I'm holding out for the best I can afford, I have my eye on the Nokia 6220, which would cost a bomb unlocked, so I'll need to save my pennies! @hme83 - thanks for the info. I've learnt a great deal about all this in the last couple of days, thanks to knowledgeable posters like yourself.
I'm happy I could help. What I know, I've learned from knowledgeable posters here too. Glad you have an LG "plan B" that at least sounds liveable for you for awhile.
