Getting Service for Unlocked/Serviceless Phones

[G9]

I'm interested in getting one of these, which are only available without service. I'm interested in Verizon (open to service suggestions) as the service, and I'm wondering how the process goes to getting service for the phone.

 

[freestyler105]

Those will not work with Verizon. You need to have one of those little chips in your phone (behind the battery). What you would do is swap out the chip from your old phone to the new one, and you'd be good to go with Cingular or similar companies. For Verizon, the phone has the information that's in this chip hard coded into the phone. It has to do with how the network operates. It may be possible by having the Verizon people switch it though.

Call your local Verizon store and ask them if it's possible for them to switch your service over to that specific model.

 

[G9]

How possible do you think getting that modification is?

 

[freestyler105]

Honestly, I don't really know. You have to either talk to Sony or Verizon to find out whether or not that phone is compatible with the Verizon network. Verizon doesn't use GSM, like most companies (Cingular, etc.). Verizon uses CDMA.

The GSM networks uses a SIM card, which allows you to switch hpones whenever. Read more about it here:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Subscriber_Identity_Module

From what I've read about CDMA, it is possible to switch serivce to the new phone without going to the store, but the new phone has to support CDMA.
http://reviews.ebay.com/How-to-Acti...0001211420?ssPageName=BUYGD:CAT:-1:LISTINGS:3

 

[G9]

Wow, very very complicated... maybe I should just go with the flow and get a PDA seperate from the phone. I'm sorry, the Q is windows mobile and the Treo's are just plain ugly.