Unlocking a cellphone

Many people don't realize how a cell phone works. That's okay, general ignorance of technology is job security for me. People don't need to know how something works... It just needs to work.

This isn't true if you actually work for a cell phone company. In planning for my trip, one of the things I am doing is "unlocking" my phone. GSM phones (AT&T, t-mobile and nextel use the GSM network) are generally locked by the carrier so that they only work with the service provided by the company that sells them. That's okay with me, I wouldn't pay full retail for a phone when my phone company will give me a deal with a new contract anyway. You trade a little freedom for a substantial subsidy towards a phone. (That's how cell phone companies can afford to give you such steep discounts off retail prices, they are guaranteed to make back the loss on equipment through contracted service).

This poses a small problem for international travelers though, because international roaming is very costly. Its a bigger problem if your primary phone is a work phone and you aren't allowed to use it internationally at all (like me). There are a few solutions to this problem.

1. Get an international rate plan. It would cost me about $6 more and I'd get a discount on calling while roaming internationally. The problem with this idea is that its still expensive, may not work where I need it, and I'm still not allowed to do that because of my own companies guidelines on acceptable use with a company account.

2. Buy a local prepaid phone. The problem? Either pay a lot or get something very basic. My phone is my address book, my alarm clock, my calendar, my email device, my internet connection, my MP3 player, my organizer  and my ever ready camera. For all this, I'd be looking at several hundred bucks (or more!) without a contract. No thanks.

3. Unlock my phone to free it to be used on another carrier and get a prepaid SIM card with a local number while in Sydney. Use my current hardware on their network and prepay for minutes or data. While a post paid line would be cheaper per minute, prepaid requires no credit check and no commitment.

I like option 3 the best. It is cheapest for the time I'll be there, and I don't get fired for abusing company equipment. While my company covers service, the phone I use is my personal property, so this is a legitimate and inexpensive option.

My solution is nearly complete, except now that I have a plan of attack I need to unlock my phone. A simple call to customer service should have sufficed, but it didn't. I had to call 5 different times before I got someone who knew how to help me. The other 4 spoke with "authority" as they bumbled along and gave me incorrect information or misunderstood my request... But that confidence was only a facade because they got nervous when I tried to explain to them how to do their job.  (I wasn't being arrogant, I've worked for the company for 3 years now, I just won't accept incorrect info on company policy or how to do something I need done).

Long story...long, I got the code I need and unlocked my phone. When I get to Sydney, I'll find a local GSM crrier and get a SIM card.

If you ever care to try this yourself, make sure your phone supports the proper frequency. If you have a "tri band" or a  "quad band" phone, the country you visit may not use the same frequency your phone operates on. If you have a "world phone" then it should support all 5 frequencies that are used globally for voice and data transmission. If you don't know, go to a store and ask.

I'll do some research tonight to see who the best GSM carrier in Sydney is.

One more thing. Don't ever pay someone on the web for an unlock code... Get it from your carrier. Its free, and a lot of online sites will just scam you. If you input the wrong unlock code 10 times you turn your phone into a paperweight... So don't try and guess it. (My code was 20 chars anyway. If I could guess that I'd play power ball.)
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