What You Need To Know Before Switching Mobile Phone Carriers

The following post is by MPFJ staff writer Travis.  Travis is a customer blogger for Care One Debt Relief Services, and also appears weekly at Enemy of Debt.  Travis candidly shares his personal journey to pay off $109,000 of credit card debt and the tips he’s learned along the way. As a father and husband he provides a unique perspective on balancing debt, finances, and family.

I could tell by the tone of their Facebook status that my friends were frustrated. They had used Sprint as their cell phone carrier for a couple of years, and frankly were not happy with the service they had received from them.  When their contract was up, they went shopping for a new carrier.  While Sprint did honor the request to unlock their phones, they found that leaving Sprint might not quite be as easy as they had thought.

Do You Speak My Language?

There are actually two different types of mobile phone networks used in the United States. Global Systems For Mobile Communication (GSM) networks are used by T-Mobile and AT&T, while Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) network are used by Sprint and Verizon.  Mobile phones manufactured for specific carriers identical at their core, but a special smart card is then added that enables the phone to talk to the type of network used by a specific carrier.

It is possible to use a GSM enabled phone with any carrier that uses a GSM based network.  Similarly, it is possible to use a CDMA enabled phone with any carrier that uses a CDMA based network. However, since the two networks essentially speak different languages, you cannot take a GSM phone and use it with a CDMA network carrier.

For example, my friends were seriously contemplating switching to T-Mobile. Unfortunately, even though Sprint unlocked their phones, since their phones speak CDMA, they would not work on T-Mobile’s GSM based network.

There are a select few phone models that have the ability to talk to both network types.  Some Blackberry phones, as well as the Apple iPhone 4s were dual mode phones.  For phones that can cost over $500, it likely isn’t cost effective to put hardware into a phone that may never be used.

Carriers Want You To Think You NEED Their Phone

While it is possible to take a phone from one carrier, and use it with another carrier that uses the same type of network, that doesn’t mean they make it easy for you.  I received a T-Mobile Galaxy S4 as part of a blogging promotion to try out Walmart Family Mobile, which runs on the T-Mobile GSM network.  When the blogging opportunity was over, I wanted to take my new phone and use it with AT&T, with whom I was under contract at the time. I got the phone unlocked, and slid my SIM card into the phone.  I was instantly able to make calls,  but there were a few functions that didn’t work:

• No Data: I couldn’t access the internet at all through the AT&T network, which was disappointing since the Galaxy had the largest and nicest screen of any mobile phone I had ever owned.  AT&T support was unable to help me, citing the standard line that they do not guarantee that a non AT&T phone would work on their network.  Despite their unhelpfulness, I found that I simply had to reconfigure the phone to use AT&T’s data server.

• No MMS Messaging: I could receive normal text messages, but multi-media messages could not be sent or received. Another call to AT&T, and another claim that it was likely just a limitation of the phone since it was not made specifically for the AT&T network.  This issue took a bit more searching, but buried deep in an Android forum I found network access point settings that finally made my phone fully functional.

What This Means To Consumers

Carriers obviously want to make it as unappealing as possible to leave them for another carrier.  They used to force you to sign a contract. Once you signed it, you were theirs for two years unless you wanted to pay a hefty early termination fee. Now that the new rage is the no contract service, what power to carriers have over you to make you stay?  Given the information I’ve provided, the answer is obvious; the price of a new phone.

Let’s revisit my friends that want to switch carriers, who really have two options:

1. Move To Another CDMA network carrier: If they take this route, they could defer the cost of a new phone until they were ready and willing to spend the money.  That assumes that their new carrier will aid them in getting their old phones running seamlessly with their new carrier.  Which is a huge IF.

2. Move to a GSM network carrier: This decision will render their current phones useless. To purchase new smart phones for each member of a family of four would be a hefty price tag.  That’s certainly not a decision to take lightly.

After careful consideration, our friends decided to jump ship and sign on with a GSM carrier which required them to buy four new phones.  For them it wasn’t entirely about cost as it was about service coverage and reputation of better customer service also played a huge role in their decision.

It’s easy to jump to a different mobile phone carrier because of a promotion,or because they can offer a better monthly plan for a lower price.  However, the monthly plan price isn’t the only thing that requires consideration.  The ability to use your existing phone with your new carrier, or the need to buy a new phone could be a major factor in whether switching carriers is worth it.

How about you readers?  Did you know there were different, non-compatible mobile phone networks? Have you ever switched carriers for a cheaper plan only to find out you had to shell out your hard earned cash because you needed to buy a new phone?

 Share your experiences by commenting below!