Korean Job Discussion Forums

[khyber]

I know that there are chips in cell phones that can be removed and replaced depending on which zone you are using it in.
1) Does anyone know the name of these chips?
2) A Korean friend of mine said it was illegal to remove those chips: True?
3) When I go back to Canada, I would like to take this phone (sans chip) and have it replaced with a chip from Canada. My parents do this with a phone that they bought in europe (and also use it in Africa) but I wonder if I could take it home from here?

thanks in advance.

[SeoulFinn]

As far as I know, you should not b able to use a Korean cell phone back at home. Korea uses different technology (CDMA) than Europe (GSM) does.

Well, you can use Korean phone in Canada, but that would be really expensive as you would have to use "roaming service."

[Slightly Lit]

you can use a Korean cellphone in Canada with a Canadian provider, assuming 2 things

1. The phone is unlocked - most carriers, at least in Canada, lock a phone so that it cannot be transferred to other providers without paying a fee(~$200). There are plently of sites on the net that will provide you with an unlocking code for cheap, or if your in a major city you can bring it to local cellphone shop and get it done for about $30.

2. You get service through Telus or Aliant....they both use CDMA while rogers is solely GSM.

Hope this helps.

[khyber]

[Slightly Lit]

The phone your folks bought was more then likely an unlocked GSM phone...Which would work no problem in Canada, when using a Canadian SIM card(chip).

Locking just means that you can't transfer the SIM card from another phone into yours and use it on that network. You need to unlock your phone for this, and get a new sim card from a Canadian providor. As far as I know CDMA phones like the ones here in Korea don't use sim cards.

Check this link out it, it explains it better then I can.
http://www.wisegeek.com/what-is-a-sim-card.htm

Cheers

[khyber]

I realized (stupid me) that there is a sticker on my phone.
It says
QUALCOMM 3G CDMA

So I'm guessing there is no chip. And, what I THOUGHT was a chip, was just a piece of plastic SHAPED like a chip. HOWEVER the little slot is shaped EXACTLY like the little SIM card. Guess it's over to google i go....

sigh...

[Slightly Lit]

All you need to do is make sure your phone is unlocked (if your not in a major city do it over the web) and sign up with telus/aliant when you get back to canada.

The benefit being you dont need to sign a contract to recieve a phone, you can go straight to a monthly plan.

good luck!

[khyber]

Thanks for the help SL! INVALUABLE!

Does anyone know if there is an internet source that lists locked and unlocked phones from korean providers?

I could just ask at the shop I guess.

[Slightly Lit]

I used http://www.unlock123.com and it worked fine($4.95 USD). If they have your model I would go through them. Also be careful to follow instructions exactly because most phones only give you 3-5 attempts before you phone becomes "hard-locked" meaning you will have to take your phone into a specialist with a unlocking clip before your phone is usuable again.

If you need any further help feel free to drop me a pm.

[khyber]

SL....
I asked my Korean friend about cell phones being "locked". I actually said, "Is it difficult to change cell phone providers in Korea?"
He said, "No, it's very easy."
I asked, "Is the phone locked?"
He looked a bit confused and said he didn't know but assumed that it wasn't since it was "so easy to change".

Any ideas as to whether Korean phones are locked? Could they only be locked for the duration of a contract?