will a Aussie bought cell phone work in Canada?
Jun 2, 2008 | 8:00 pm
#1
Original Poster
Join Date: May 2007
Location: Gold Coast Australia
Posts: 96
will a Aussie bought cell phone work in Canada?
Hi I have a Sony Ericsson J230i mobile. I keep get mixed answers about using it in Canada. Can't I just buy a prepaid SIM card and pop it in? or are the frequencies different? what do I look for??
Jun 2, 2008 | 8:39 pm
#2
Join Date: Apr 2004
Location: Arkansas/SFO
Programs: AA EXP 2MM
Posts: 333
Sure, you can pop the SIM in, but will it connect? Looks like the J230i is a Dual band 900/1800 Mhz phone, which makes sense for Australia since those bands are used there. In Canada, GSM-1900 is the primary band used in urban areas, with 850 as a backup, and GSM-850 is the primary rural band. Since the J230i doesn't cover either of those bands, it won't work in Canada.
The similar Sony Ericsson J230a is Dual band 850/1900 Mhz and is made for use in North America.
Hope this helps.
The similar Sony Ericsson J230a is Dual band 850/1900 Mhz and is made for use in North America.
Hope this helps.
Jun 2, 2008 | 9:30 pm
#3
A FlyerTalk Posting Legend
Join Date: Apr 2001
Location: PSM
Posts: 69,232
And, of course, you'd also need to make sure it was unlocked, since you're looking at using a pre-paid SIM. But that seems to be a non-issue since the frequencies are wrong on that particular model.
Jun 2, 2008 | 10:50 pm
#4
FlyerTalk Evangelist
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location: Sydney - Australia
Programs: BD, QF, QR/EY/GF & HH Gold/SPG, Hertz#1G
Posts: 11,079
Look for another phone which is tri-band or quad-band.
There are likely to be mobiles with this ability, just check the local www.imobile.com.au or just google the model you are looking to use, to see its frequencies.
For the dummies who've not considered this on our own, are all Canadian mobile (cell) operators using the same frequency or is it across a few frequencies like in the US?
There are likely to be mobiles with this ability, just check the local www.imobile.com.au or just google the model you are looking to use, to see its frequencies.
For the dummies who've not considered this on our own, are all Canadian mobile (cell) operators using the same frequency or is it across a few frequencies like in the US?
Jun 3, 2008 | 3:49 am
#6
Join Date: Sep 2002
Location: BNE, Australia...not too far from the nearest Qantas Pub err Club
Posts: 3,636
Buy a Nokia 6085 or like unlocked on eBay - should be around A$100...