Thread: Can I Activate DATA Plan and switch to N900?
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texaslabrat is offline texaslabrat
2009-09-23 , 20:07
Posts: 271 | Thanked: 220 times | Joined on Sep 2009
#6
Originally Posted by allnameswereout View Post
Yes, a phone can be locked to a SIM. It is called SIMlock. If you buy a phone with a subscription ('subsidized' it is apparently called in English) the SIM is locked to the phone.

Legal ability to unlock differs per jurisdiction. See e.g. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIM_lock

There is also something as 'SIM only'. This is simply a subscription for a SIM card which you can put in any phone without SIMlock.

Even then, the telco can see the phone you use.

Nope, they can see perfectly fine what phone you use on their network.
I think you have mis-interpreted the wiki article you linked. The post you seem to be responding to asked if a SIM could be locked to a phone. In other words, a SIM card that will ONLY work in a particular phone. That is not what SIM_lock provides. SIM_lock provides a "feature" such that a branded phone can only be used with a certain service provider (which was the example the poster provided). A given SIM will work in any unlocked phone (which is kind of the point). There is a small caveat to that in that very old SIMs might have trouble working in new phones after the switch to the new "magic 3G" SIMS was made. The solution to that is just get a new SIM with your number transferred to it.
Last edited by texaslabrat; 2009-09-23 at 20:10.