Understanding Unlocked phone - Help?

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Understanding Unlocked phone - Help?

by Mizzouguy Oct 8, 2013 8:00AM PDT

Full disclosure...I'm pretty ignorant when it comes to the cell phone world. My current situation is I'm on a Sprint plan with a dumb phone with my wife. Recently a friend gave me her Samsung Galaxy SIII (TMobile was the carrier) and it is unlocked for international travel. What can I do with this thing? I would like to get a prepaid plan to give it a try, so what's the best out there? Can I go with any plan since it's unlocked or do I need to stick with certain providers?

Not planning to drop Sprint until I feel confident this is the way to go.

Thank you in advance for helpful replies.

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Thank you!

by Mizzouguy Oct 8, 2013 11:43PM PDT

That list is pretty incredible. Not sure what to do. TMob is not so hot in certain areas I frequent. Wish there was a MVNO that used multiple networks, but I guess that's not the case?

Thanks for your help, Pepe7!

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Like I said

by Pepe7 Oct 9, 2013 12:54AM PDT

Sell your phone and find one that works, with the provider that provides good coverage where you need it.

What's your zip code so we could quickly look online at your coverage(?)

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63330

by Mizzouguy Oct 9, 2013 1:39AM PDT

This is the area I need to text at the minimum. A call on roam would be nice too. Maybe Tmob will work, but I haven't tried it yet.

Thanks again for being so helpful.

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You should be using Verizon in that zip code

by Pepe7 Oct 9, 2013 1:56AM PDT

Nobody else seems to have much if any native coverage there, well north of St Louis.. The Sprint map shows off-network roaming, so most if not all of their MVNOs would not have service. I see T-Mobile simply has no coverage at all in a large area nearby. ATT shows 'moderate' coverage, but I would use that with a grain of salt, since I know how that can go <groan!>.

Page Plus wireless is one of the more popular Verizon based MVNOs. Check them out. There's also, Net10, Tracfone, Straight Talk and iQ Wireless.

Just do your research beforehand...

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Thanks again!

by Mizzouguy Oct 9, 2013 1:58AM PDT

Super helpful! I appreciate you.

Back to Phones forum

Pepe7 · Accepted Answer · Oct 8, 2013 2:54PM PDT

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Not gonna work- phone not compatible w/ Sprint

by Pepe7 Oct 8, 2013 2:54PM PDT

Sprint uses different technology/frequency bands than T-Mo. T-Mobile uses SIM cards too. You still need a sprint phone. Either sell the Galaxy and buy a compatible phone from Sprint, or keep it and go with a MVNO (=prepaid provider) that uses T-Mobile's network. Simple Mobile is one option for you. Here's a huge list of the rest-

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_mobile_virtual_network_operators

Understanding Unlocked phone - Help?

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