Cell phone unlocking and travel news
Congress acts: Another step to bring cell phone service without contract closer Feb. 26, 2008
The U.S. House of Representatives is holding a hearing Wednesday on legislation that would require carriers to offer wireless service without contracts when devices are not subsidized.. The Wireless Consumer Protection bill is sponsored by Rep. Edward J. Markey (D-MA), chairman of the House Subcommittee on Telecommunications and the Internet.
The bill would require wireless carriers to offer consumers the ability to purchase subsidy-free wireless equipment without a long-term service plan at a price no higher than comparable plans offered with subsidized equipment. The bill would also require carriers to prorate early termination fees to ensure that the carrier recovers the cost of the subsidy, but no more. The bill said legislation is necessary “as wireless service is increasingly used and relied upon by residential and business consumers.” Audio of the hearing can be found here.
T-Mobile USA acquires SunCom - Feb. 22, 2008
BELLEVUE, Wash., & BERWYN, Pa.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--T-Mobile USA, Inc., and SunCom Wireless Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:TPC) today announced the completion of T-Mobile’s acquisition of SunCom Wireless. This means more than 1.1 million customers in North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee, Georgia, Puerto Rico and the U.S. Virgin Islands will now be able to benefit from T-Mobile’s award-winning customer service and the unique products and services offered by T-Mobile.
U.S. Celluar also annouces unlimited calling plan - Feb. 21, 2008
Following other network's annoucement, U.S. Celluar also annouces its unlimited calling plan starting at $99 a month.
T-Mobile annouces unlimited calling plan - Feb. 20, 2008
T-Mobile announced that it will offer subscribers an unlimited plan for $99 per month. T-Mobile's offering is the only plan
announced today that includes both voice and all messaging services
(SMS, MMS and IM) at the $99 price point. The new plan will be available beginning February 21.
AT&T annouces unlimited calling plan - Feb. 20, 2008
AT&T announced unlimited voice calling plans. Both new and existing customers can sign up for the new plan, which costs $99 per month and
gets you unlimited voice minutes. This will be available on Februrary 22.
Verizon annouces unlimited calling plan - Feb. 19, 2008
Verizon Wireless annouced a new range of unlimited calling plans starting at $100 a month for unlimited nationwide calls and mobile web access.
T-Mobile gives out unlock code to customers in good standing
T-Mobile USA will give unlock code to customers whose account are in good standing and have been active for more than 90 days. However, each customer can only request one unlock code per every 90-day period.
Our comment: Though we are in the unlocking business, ultimately we like to see carriers become more friendly and open toward their customers' unlock request even if it means we don't make the sale.
Verizon opens up its network to any compatible (CDMA) phones - Nov. 27, 2007
Beginning early 2008, however, Verizon will open itself to, "[a]ny device that meets the minimum technical standard," and "[a]ny application the customer chooses will be allowed on these devices." The company has yet to announce the minimal technical standards that it will set for applicable devices and applications. This is expected to be unveiled during an upcoming developers conference. A Verizon representative stated in a press conference this morning that the minimal standards are in place solely to ensure that devices will work with the network and that applications won't have adverse effects on network users, such as the spread of malware. Read the rest of this article
Sprint agreed to provide unlock codes - Oct. 28, 2007
As part of a proposed class-action settlement, the company, based in Reston, Virginia, with operational headquarters in Overland Park, Kansas, has agreed to provide departing Sprint PCS customers with the code necessary to unlock their phones' software. Read the rest of this article
Verizon proposed to release SPC (Service Provide Code/unlock code) - 2007
Recently, a proposed settlement has been reached in two class action proceedings, Nguyen, et al., v. Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless (Alameda County Superior Court, Case No. RG 04137703), and Patricia Brown and Harold P. Schroer, on a classwide basis on behalf of others similarly situated – against – Cellco Partnerships d/b/a Verizon Wireless, American Arbitration Association No. 11 494 01274 05, alleging that Cellco Partnership d/b/a Verizon Wireless installed software locks on its wireless phones to prevent them from being reprogrammed for use with other wireless carrier networks. Verizon Wireless and the plaintiffs reached a settlement which one of the terms is “Verizon Wireless has agreed to set the software code on all of its phones, except for models intended for sale with pre-pay plans and global phone service, to a default value that will be disclosed to consumers”.
Read about the settlement
Our comment: From our experience in the past few years, all except the prepaid Verizon handsets did not come with a SPC code. If you have a Verizon handset, you can try to use 000000.
$30000 bill from Cingular for calls never made - Jan. 27, 2007
"But when the 77-year-old retiree opened his Cingular Wireless bill in November, he saw $21,420 in roaming charges for more than 4,500 calls from Nicaragua -- where he's never been -- to numbers he's never called." Read more at the International Herald Tribune.
$600 bill from overseas roaming fee - Apr. 28, 2007
"Not too long ago, I returned from a trip to the Orient and Australia. My cell phone provider told me how to make calls, but I was never really clear on what it cost to call home. The phone bill came to a whopping $600, and instead of the dollar a minute I expected, most calls were almost $3 per minute! But yet, when in Vietnam and Hong Kong, friends who live there told me that when they use their own cell phones, it costs them only a few cents a minute to call the U.S.!" Read more at the Times Standard