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Cellular Phone Forum / Providers / Cingular / December 2005Cingular SIM card upgrade, stop!
If you have a Cingular phone and get a SIM card in the mail, stop! Don't install or activate it until you read this. I have a Cingular Samsung x427 phone (6 months old). Got a letter yesterday with a replacement SIM card, "this critical upgrade should be done ASAP" yada yada. So I took out the old card, put in the new, called and they activated the new card. BZZZZTTT!! Bad move. First, even though my phone was relatively new it couldn't handle the new card and locked up, insisting on a SIM password. After entering bad passwords 3 times it's supposed to let Cingular generate a PUK number, but the card screwed up the phone so they couldn't do that. And, since they had changed me to the new SIM card in their office I couldn't go back to using the old card. Bottom line, after 30 minutes or longer on the phone in the morning trying to get this resolved, I then spent 45 minutes in a Cingular store this evening with the result they're sending me a new phone that can handle the new card. This whole thing is FUBAR and someone's head will presumably roll at Cingular. If you get this letter and new SIM card in the mail, I recommend you take it to a Cingular store and let them verify your phone will work with it. You probably could have just entered the default PIN for your phone (in the manual) and saved yourself a lot of grief... > If you have a Cingular phone and get a SIM card in the mail, stop! > Don't install or activate it until you read this. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > recommend you take it to a Cingular store and let them verify your > phone will work with it. >>>>> "JW" == JW <jweb@swbell.net> writes: JW> You probably could have just entered the default PIN for your JW> phone (in the manual) and saved yourself a lot of grief... No--they Cingular store guy spent a lot of time on the phone with tech support, and they concluded the new SIM card damaged the phone so it was demanding an unlock password that it would never accept. There was no password that would satisfy the now screwed-up phone. > No--they Cingular store guy spent a lot of time on the phone with tech > support, and they concluded the new SIM card damaged the phone so it > was demanding an unlock password that it would never accept. Interesting... I wonder if you were in an older market with an original SIM and phone that were not on the USA-410 network. Cingular sent you a USA-410 SIM to conform with their new single network designation, but your phone was "SIM-locked" to the original network, and you PUK-ed it up when it really wanted a network unlock code (that your local store is unlikely to have). This seems really odd given the number of SIM-locked phones out there... you think Cingular would realize the potential problem and entice you to get a new phone (and pop the new SIM in at that time). I'll have to keep an eye out for this since I still have a USA-150 SIM. tg. >>>>> "tom" == tom glaab <tomglaab@gmail.com> writes: tom> Bob Fry wrote: >> No--they Cingular store guy spent a lot of time on the phone >> with tech support, and they concluded the new SIM card damaged >> the phone so it was demanding an unlock password that it would >> never accept. tom> Interesting... I wonder if you were in an older market with tom> an original SIM and phone that were not on the USA-410 tom> network. My original SIM card was Pacific Bell, about 6 years old, and that's probably why they sent the new card. But they clearly never bothered to check what phone I had now, and if it would work with the new card. Other screwups in the SIM card trade: - they gave instructions in their letter on how to replace the SIM card and activate the new one by calling a number, but never warned about copying all your SIM-stored phone numbers to the phone so as not to lose them. - they haven't sent a new SIM card for my wife's phone which is identical to mine (old SIM card). Not that we would use it now anyway. >>>>>> "tom" == tom glaab <tomglaab@gmail.com> writes: > [quoted text clipped - 18 lines] >about copying all your SIM-stored phone numbers to the phone so as not >to lose them. Heh. When T-Mobile did this, they shipped a GemStar SIM card backup device so that the subscriber could transfer their phone directory. JW Wrote: > You probably could have just entered the default PIN for your phone (i > the manual) and saved yourself a lot of grief... When it asks for the PUK code, it's different than the security cod for the phone. PUK code is for the SIM >If you have a Cingular phone and get a SIM card in the mail, stop! >Don't install or activate it until you read this. [quoted text clipped - 10 lines] >they couldn't do that. And, since they had changed me to the new SIM >card in their office I couldn't go back to using the old card. It's very unlikely that a SIM could actually "screw up" a phone permanently. Asking for a SIM password isn't a "lock up" -- it's at most a SIM compatibility issue, in which case a PUK code wouldn't work either. Did you try removing the battery for a hard reset? Did you try the old SIM in the phone after this happened? That might well have shown the phone to still be working normally, and the old SIM could probably have been reactivated by Cingular.  SignatureBest regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ> >>>>> "JN" == John Navas <spamfilter0@navasgroup.com> writes: JN> Did you try removing the battery for a hard reset? Yes--the battery must be removed to get at the SIM. JN> Did you try the old SIM in the phone after this happened? JN> That might well have shown the phone to still be working JN> normally, and the old SIM could probably have been reactivated JN> by Cingular. The phone does turn on and not lock with the old SIM, but Cingular says they can't un-activate the new SIM...thus the old SIM is unusable according to Cingular. Is there a market for old cell phones? I'll look on eBay.... >>>>>> "JN" == John Navas <spamfilter0@navasgroup.com> writes: > > JN> Did you try removing the battery for a hard reset? > >Yes--the battery must be removed to get at the SIM. *After* the problem with the new SIM? > JN> Did you try the old SIM in the phone after this happened? > JN> That might well have shown the phone to still be working [quoted text clipped - 6 lines] > >Is there a market for old cell phones? I'll look on eBay.... If you complain firmly enough, I think Cingular will come around. SignatureBest regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ> >>>>> "JN" == John Navas <spamfilter0@navasgroup.com> writes: JN> [POSTED TO alt.cellular.cingular - REPLY ON USENET PLEASE] In JN> <u0ddlpkd.fsf@mailinator.com> on Mon, 12 Dec 2005 18:05:06 JN> -0800, Bob Fry JN> <bobfry@mailinator.com> wrote: >> JN> Did you try removing the battery for a hard reset? >> Yes--the battery must be removed to get at the SIM. JN> *After* the problem with the new SIM? Uhmmm...the battery must be removed to get at the SIM, so every time we switched SIMs, the battery was taken out. Here's the general sequence: I get the letter with new SIM #1. Next day at work I turn off the phone, take out the battery, take out 6-year old SIM, put in new one, put battery back in, turn on phone, it's locked. I call Cingular service, after much screwing around and asking the same questions a dozen times they finally referred me to a Cingular store. Go to the store, they tried yet another new SIM #2, thinking new #1 was bad, but it's the same story, phone locked, long phone calls to tech support...this time the Cingular store guy was doing the calling. After much screwing around they concluded the x427 wasn't going to support the new SIMs, and they couldn't un-activate at HQ to let me use the old original SIM, so they ordered a new phone, the next model up, which model number I forget but I will know when I pick up the phone between 9:30 and 10:00 pm tonight from the UPS place (see prior post). JN> If you complain firmly enough, I think Cingular will come JN> around. Well, they did, see above. Hey, stuff happens, and Cingular did make good without me bitching, I just hope to prevent others from going thru this bother. >Well, they did, see above. Hey, stuff happens, and Cingular did make >good without me bitching, I just hope to prevent others from going >thru this bother. My own opinion is that it's better to do what's necessary to use the new SIM, which should improve your network performance (thanks to ENS if nothing else). SignatureBest regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ> >>>>> "JN" == John Navas <spamfilter0@navasgroup.com> writes: JN> My own opinion is that it's better to do what's necessary to JN> use the new SIM, which should improve your network performance JN> (thanks to ENS if nothing else). Could you elaborate on the advantages of the new SIM? I still am eagerly awaiting my new phone and card. BF >>>>>> "JN" == John Navas <spamfilter0@navasgroup.com> writes: > [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >Could you elaborate on the advantages of the new SIM? I still am >eagerly awaiting my new phone and card. See ENS in the FAQ below. SignatureBest regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ> >>>>> "BF" == Bob Fry <bobfry@mailinator.com> writes: BF> I still BF> am eagerly awaiting my new phone and card. Arrived today; a forced upgrade from a Samsung x427 to an x497. Nice upgrade, apart from now the SIM card actually works, because the x497 is tri-band, and it has an LCD display on the outside to check calls without opening the phone. But it has a poorer selection of ringtones; I miss my old-fashioned Bell telephone ringing sound. Maybe I can shop for it. After reading over the advantages of the new card (Thanks John Nava), I'm not convinced the whole thing was worth it. I rarely had connection problems anyway. But here I am at the end of it. > My own opinion is that it's better to do what's necessary to use the new SIM, > which should improve your network performance (thanks to ENS if nothing else). > > -- > Best regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT > John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ That FAQ says: >The new Cingular ENS handsets and Cingular (orange) 64K SIMs (if you have >both) make it possible for Cingular ... If ENS only makes a difference if you have both a 64K SIM and a "new Cingular ENS handset", why are they bothering to mail SIMs to a seemingly random subset of old accounts? Also, I gather it's the case that Cingular can't tell what kind of phone you are using - only what SIM you have? >> My own opinion is that it's better to do what's necessary to use the new SIM, >> which should improve your network performance (thanks to ENS if nothing else). > That FAQ says: >>The new Cingular ENS handsets and Cingular (orange) 64K SIMs (if you have [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] >Cingular ENS handset", why are they bothering to mail SIMs to a seemingly >random subset of old accounts? Probably to prepare for the upcoming network integration. > Also, I gather it's the case that Cingular can't tell what kind of >phone you are using - only what SIM you have? Essentially correct. (There is a way to tell, but it's non-trivial.) SignatureBest regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ> > >>>>> "JN" == John Navas <spamfilter0@navasgroup.com> writes: > [quoted text clipped - 12 lines] > > Is there a market for old cell phones? I'll look on eBay.... alot of samsung older phones have problems with the newer 64k sim cards. cingular knows this and they screwed up.. but they dont care.. i hope they didnt make you sign a new 2 year just to get a working phone.. if they did undo it asap. >>>>> "Aaron" == Aaron <aarons6@hotmail.com> writes: Aaron> alot of samsung older phones have problems with the newer Aaron> 64k sim cards. cingular knows this and they screwed Aaron> up.. but they dont care.. i hope they didnt make you sign Aaron> a new 2 year just to get a working phone.. if they did Aaron> undo it asap. No, no new contract. Actually I like Cingular but someone screwed the pooch on this one. What's curious is that my "old" Samsung (x427) didn't seem that old to me. Somewhere around Fri, 09 Dec 2005 20:38:39 -0800, while reading alt.cellular.cingular, I think I thought I saw this post from Bob Fry <bobfry@mailinator.com>: >If you have a Cingular phone and get a SIM card in the mail, stop! >Don't install or activate it until you read this. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] >recommend you take it to a Cingular store and let them verify your >phone will work with it. Hmm, I have an old x426 Samsung phone (formerly AT&T, but unlocked to use my Cingular SIM). I got the new sim card, and it works fine. My sim card was about 4 or 5 years old (Cingular, not Pac Bell). My family plan has 2 other users, and they didn't get the replacement sim. Sounds like Cingular needs to get their act together. SignatureMarty - public.forums (at) gmail (dot) com "Those are my principles, and if you don't like them... well, I have others." - Groucho Marx I do not know what will happens to me, I just I signup with Cingular, I got Motorola V557, just shipped to me, and expected to get it tromorroww, do you thing they shipped with new SIM card?. > If you have a Cingular phone and get a SIM card in the mail, stop! > Don't install or activate it until you read this. [quoted text clipped - 20 lines] > recommend you take it to a Cingular store and let them verify your > phone will work with it. >>>>> "PM" == Pete M <nonspam@nonspam.com> writes: PM> I do not know what will happens to me, I just I signup with PM> Cingular, I got Motorola V557, just shipped to me, and PM> expected to get it tromorroww, do you thing they shipped with PM> new SIM card?. Just to be sure, why not stop by a Cingular store with your phone and new SIM card to make sure everything's fine. Cingular has shipped my new replacement phone by 2-day UPS, but they insist on a signature in person. Of course we're not home during the day, so now after two days of trying to deliver to an empty house I get to drive to the UPS place 15 miles away, but ONLY between 9:30 and 10:00 pm! All this because I trusted their @*!& letter.... ...Not to mention the fact that if you try and activate the SIM and your contract has expired, you have to agree to a new 2 year contract. What a lousy trick! Signing a contract is a valuable thing to give away, if I was going to do that I am going to get all of my free phones. Andy Alexis >...Not to mention the fact that if you try and activate the SIM and >your contract has expired, you have to agree to a new 2 year contract. >... What makes you think that? SignatureBest regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ> >[POSTED TO alt.cellular.cingular - REPLY ON USENET PLEASE] > [quoted text clipped - 3 lines] > >What makes you think that? As you go through the activation process, it says "Do you agree to a new contract", or something like that, and you have to say "yes"... Andy >>>...Not to mention the fact that if you try and activate the SIM and >>>your contract has expired, you have to agree to a new 2 year contract. [quoted text clipped - 4 lines] >As you go through the activation process, it says "Do you agree to a >new contract", or something like that, and you have to say "yes"... Really? Just for a new SIM? Not in my experience. SignatureBest regards, SEE THE FAQ FOR CINGULAR WIRELESS AT John Navas <http://en.wikibooks.org/wiki/Cingular_Wireless_FAQ> |
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