On Aug 13, 2005, at 1:08 AM, Cotty wrote:
I confirmed with Verizon that I can
get a new phone on October 6th. Woohoo!
Why do you have to confirm with Verizon?
If I want a new phone here, I buy one and pop a SIM card in from my
old
phone. In fact I have three SIM cards - one supplied by my employer
but
used in a phone I bought, a private one in a backup phone and another
private one in a GPRS card (to allow internet connection in a
laptop when
on the road).
Phones can be sold independent of a service provider, unlocked, or
locked to a particular service provider's SIM cards. Those sold
locked to a service provider are usually at about half the normal
retail price, and are usually sold with a service contract. Phones
can also be either CDMA or GSM protocol, CDMA is still fairly
widespread in US service providers, and they don't take SIM cards. (I
don't believe Verizon offers GSM as yet. I use Cingular/AT&T GSM
service on a simple, pay as you go plan.)
When I bought the Treo 650, I specifically wanted an unlocked, quad-
band GSM phone with no service contract ... I wanted maximum
flexibility to use anyone's SIM card, anywhere in the world, and pick
whatever plan/use model made the most sense. It cost a fairly hefty
premium to get that kind of equipment but I feel was worth it.
Godfrey
