Recycling your phone, and your questions answered

Q: Are unlocked cell phones advantageous? Also, can you tell me how to unlock a phone? Does it have to be done by a professional, or can anyone do it?
—emerigold

A: Since you can take them virtually anywhere using whatever carrier you wish, an unlocked cell phone, such as the Sony Ericsson W800i, is the ultimate consumer-friendly product. But in the carrier-dominated market that is the United States, most GSM cell phones sold here don't offer that luxury. On the upside, unlocking a GSM phone is a simple process once you find the necessary information, which can be a challenge.

To unlock a phone, you'll need a special code that will remove the carrier restrictions when entered into the phone. You can get this code from your current carrier for a fee, but since it's not in the company's best business interest to hand out such information, it may be reluctant to do so. If your carrier balks, there are services online that will sell you the code for your phone; it will vary by the make and the model of your handset. I haven't used any of these services, so I can't recommend anything in particular, but you can try a Web search with something such as "Nokia 6101 unlock code." If you go this route, buyer beware.

Q: Does Cingular have any plans to acquire the Motorola Pebl in its lineup? If not, could I buy the phone and use it on the Cingular network? T-Mobile tends to have very spotty service in my area.
—Chris

A: When you have a hot phone such as the Motorola Pebl, carriers tend to be somewhat protective by making sure they offer the handset as an exclusive for a set period. That was the case with the Motorola Razr; Cingular offered the phone for about six months before we saw a T-Mobile Razr.

You can bet the same thing will happen with the new Pebl. T-Mobile will own it outright for a few months before other carriers pick it up. Unfortunately, I can't say how long it will be before we see another Pebl, nor can I promise whether Cingular will even select it. If you can't wait, you can get an unlocked model and use it on Cingular's network. The Motorola Pebl is a quad-band world phone (GSM 850/900/1800/1900), so you'll be able to make and receive calls. Check back in a few days for a review.

Q: If I buy an unlocked phone, do I simply pop my existing Cingular SIM card into the new phone? Or is there any kind of activation process/fee that would still require me to go through Cingular to get it working?
—Carly

A: Despite what carriers may say about activating unlocked phones, if you buy such a handset, all you'll need to do is slip in your SIM card, and you'll be good to go. No activation is needed to make calls. To use messaging features or your Web browser, however, you will need to get the correct data settings from your carrier. Your carrier can help you, but you can try other sources as well. The Nokia and the Sony Ericsson Web sites have tools that will send these settings to your phone in a text message. But if you still can't get your settings after trying the above methods (they vary by the make of the phone and the carrier), try searching CNET's cell phone forums or the Howard Forums.

Q: I currently have two cell phone accounts with two different numbers: an older account with the former AT&T Wireless and a newer Cingular two-year contract with a separate number. Eventually, I want to close my AT&T account and port that phone number to my Cingular service, but Cingular said it won't transfer former AT&T cell numbers to new Cingular accounts. Is this true?
—Don

A: Regrettably, Don, your case is a bit dicey. Although number portability is one of the best things to happen in the cell phone world, carriers (as they tend to do) have established a difficult process for doing so. First off, portability works only on new accounts that haven't been opened. That means you should ask the new carrier to transfer your old number at the same time it opens a new account for you. If you don't do it at the same time, you'll be assigned a completely new number. Unfortunately for you, Cingular did just that, and you wound up with two accounts. By the way, the other golden rule of number portability is don't close your old account before opening the new one. If you do that, you'll lose the old number completely.

In your situation, Cingular has not told you the whole truth. It can port old AT&T numbers to new Cingular accounts. But as discussed above, it won't port a number to an existing account. You might get the company to port the number if you agree to restart your contract date--meaning you'll agree to another two years--so I would ask about that first. Best of luck!