How to Unlock UK mobile phone please !

[Miki]

I have been given a Samsung A300 mobile, just an everyday normal phone but better than my old French mobile by Sagem.

I have tried 2 French companies on the net to get it unlocked and thus enable me to put in my Sim card from my old phone and continue with the newer phone. One replied after 24 hours and said that they couldn't do it and that I would have to contact Orange (the previous supplier) to get them to do the unlocking. The other French company, after a couple of emails simply never got back to me.

Yes, there are many companies on the net who are based in the UK who say they can do it, my fear is that being so far away and it all goes pear shaped, I will be none the better off.

So my question is, is there anyone here who can tell me the best way to go about it, all I want is to unlock my newish phone and put in my old sim card, is this possible ? And what would you say, is the best way to go about it from France. I have been told on a few occasions, if I was back in the UK, any shop should be able to do it on the spot, even the market stall chaps ! 

Help please ! or the the phone gets it !!

 

[Buntina]

By email?

http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/extras/unlocking-samsung.php?ref=landmark

from a quick Google unlock Samsung A300 mobile

[Miki]

[quote]By email? http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/extras/unlocking-samsung.php?ref=landmark from a quick Google unlock Samsung A300 mobile[/quote]

Cheers Mike but as I said I have been on the net and the URL you gave me I have already been on and their charge seems to be £4.95, which seems very cheap but my problems is, as I said before, if it goes pear shaped and me being no techno, I could perhaps muck it all up.

It is why I asked if anyone knew the best way to get a phone unlocked and in which it enabled me to put in my old sim card and simply carry on.

I suspect it's a doddle and I will laugh once it's done but the 2 French companies who were unable to do it got me concerned a bit !

Ta

 

[Buntina]

Seems easy enough, from their FAQ's

When any of the network's unlock your handset they give you unique codes to enter into your phone's keypad. These codes are generated based on your phone's unique IMEI (or serial) number. We need to know your:

• IMEI / Serial number (e.g. 123456789012345)

IMEI

The IMEI is the unique serial number for your mobile phone.

You can find out your 15 digit IMEI / Serial number by entering the following code into your keypad:

*#06#

Your phone will then display your unique 15 digit IMEI / Serial number like this:

Serial no.
350856789012345

• Network Provider (e.g. T-Mobile)

Then we can provide you with the same codes to unlock your phone using your keypad at just a fraction of the price. Remember, you don't need any technical knowledge to do this. We send you the codes by email, you type them into your phone - it's as simple as that. If you mis-type the code first time - try again, you can try up to three times.

[Ecossais]

Miki,

 

The £4.95 or so being charged by mobilefun.co.uk and other such companies is pretty much all profit.  (I found one internet company charging £10 for a Samsung).

 

Unlocking most mobile phones simply involves keying in a code which deactivates the network lock function in the phone’s software.  The unlock code is unique to the IMEI (serial number) of the phone.

 

You can obtain the unlock code from the network but they will charge you much more for it (typically £20 - £30 in the UK) as they will be losing call revenue by you switching to another network.

 

A shop offering an unlocking service will probably have a computer programme which generates the code from the IMEI and original network details.

 

If you don’t fancy giving your credit card details over the internet or doing it yourself - is there a mobile phone shop near you?  If there is an independent, they may be able to do it for you or point you in the direction of somewhere local where you can get it done.  Multiples don’t tend to offer this service (it doesn’t cause any problems with the phone and it’s not illegal, just not in spirit of their relationships with the networks), but they will know where you can get it done.

 

After having the phone unlocked, there are a couple of settings on the phone that you will have to change.

 

For example the “Message Centre Number” for text messages will have to be changed to the correct one for the network SIM you are using and also the WAP settings.  You may find that button “1” is programmed to dial Voicemail – you’ll need to change that to the correct number.

 

Note that interfering with the phone’s software would probably invalidate the warranty (if it was still under guarantee).