# Help getting a new cell-phone!

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-getting-a-new-cell-phone/214154>\
**Category:** In My Humble Opinion\
**Created:** [November 19, 2003, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-getting-a-new-cell-phone/214154 "2003-11-19T18:24:19Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 5\
**Page:** 1

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![pizzabrat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/e9c0ed/32.png) [@pizzabrat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pizzabrat)\
**Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 6:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-getting-a-new-cell-phone/214154/1 "2003-11-19T18:24:19Z")

</div>

My Motorola C332 bought in May (which I bought before my new “buy quality” policy) is dead, so I need a new phone. I’m new to the whole cell-phone culture so I don’t know how easy this will be. If I buy another T-mobile phone of any brand, can I just slip my old SIM card in and go about business as usual, or are there other hurdles? Also, what’s a consistently good cellphone brand?

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Casey1505](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/dc4da7/32.png) [@Casey1505](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Casey1505)\
**Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 6:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-getting-a-new-cell-phone/214154/2 "2003-11-19T18:36:48Z")

</div>

I’m wondering the same thing. I was going to wait until after the 24th, when keeping your phone number becomes an option if you switch from land line to cell, I think, to see if rates change for the better.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![SouprChckn](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/5f9b8f/32.png) [@SouprChckn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/SouprChckn)\
**Post date:** [November 19, 2003, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-getting-a-new-cell-phone/214154/3 "2003-11-19T22:07:53Z")

</div>

I believe that with T-Mobile, its as simple as a SIM card switch assuming you buy another T-Mobile phone. Otherwise there is the business of unlocking your phone first.

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![fizgig](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f04885/32.png) [@fizgig](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/fizgig)\
**Post date:** [November 20, 2003, 2:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-getting-a-new-cell-phone/214154/4 "2003-11-20T02:56:44Z")

</div>

I don’t know about the SIM card, since the Motorola 712 or whatever the model is, that I got last month is the first SIM card phone I’ve had.

It sounds to me like you got a lemon phone; motorola has a good reputation among my friends. Nokia is also generally good. OTOH, I had an Audiovox for the last year and it was mechanically fine (ugly, poor battery life, and crappy sound quality tho).

---

<div class="post-metadata">

**Author:** ![Crusoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/49beb7/32.png) [@Crusoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Crusoe)\
**Post date:** [November 20, 2003, 8:38am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-getting-a-new-cell-phone/214154/5 "2003-11-20T08:38:06Z")

</div>

Nokia are a consistently good brand, in my opinion. I’ve had four different Nokia handsets in the last four years - I get a discounted annual upgrade - and all have been excellent.

As for SIM cards, that may depend upon your provider. At my last upgrade I had to swap to a new SIM card that had greater capacity for stored numbers and messages. In the UK the high street phone stores generally offer a free number transfer service. Nokia handsets also come with PC software allowing you to manage and backup all numbers and settings via infrared.