Solved! Phones

[sbailey32]

Can I reactivate a deactivated old phone

 

[RandomGuy42]

It depends on which carrier and "type" of service your old phone are capable of. For example, if you have an iPhone 4 you bought from Verizon, it would be "stuck" on Verizon's network, but you could still use it today with 4G service. However, if your phone is older, like the original, 2G iPhone, it would only be usable on a 2G network.

If this is confusing, this might help:

Verizon, Sprint, and some other budget companies are "CDMA" carriers. Don't worry about what that means- just know that phones from any CDMA network will work on another (a phone from Sprint should work on Verizon unless it is "locked-" more on that in a bit).

Similarly, the other type of carrier, called "GSM," is used by T-Moble, AT&T, and many other companies. GSM is used worldwide, while CDMA is normally used in only the United States.

About "locked" phones- If you buy a phone from a specific carrier (and not an "unlocked" phone), it might only be able to be used on that one carrier. If you bought an "unlocked" phone, you might be able to use it on other carriers, depending on whether the carrier you switch is compatible with the GSM/CDMA network that your phone came with. Some phones can even use both- new iPhones can use data from both Verizon and AT&T, for example, giving them wider service.


The bottom line:

Reactivating an old phone is very complex and has lots of variables to account for. Most old phones can be reactivated, but the best thing one can do is to either research which carriers can support your old phone, or bring your phone to a carrier store (AT&T, Verizon, T-Moble, etc.) and see what they recommend.

I hope this swath of information is helpful in some way.

Good luck!

-RandomGuy42

 

[sbailey32]

It depends on which carrier and "type" of service your old phone are capable of. For example, if you have an iPhone 4 you bought from Verizon, it would be "stuck" on Verizon's network, but you could still use it today with 4G service. However, if your phone is older, like the original, 2G iPhone, it would only be usable on a 2G network.

If this is confusing, this might help:

Verizon, Sprint, and some other budget companies are "CDMA" carriers. Don't worry about what that means- just know that phones from any CDMA network will work on another (a phone from Sprint should work on Verizon unless it is "locked-" more on that in a bit).

Similarly, the other type of carrier, called "GSM," is used by T-Moble, AT&T, and many other companies. GSM is used worldwide, while CDMA is normally used in only the United States.

About "locked" phones- If you buy a phone from a specific carrier (and not an "unlocked" phone), it might only be able to be used on that one carrier. If you bought an "unlocked" phone, you might be able to use it on other carriers, depending on whether the carrier you switch is compatible with the GSM/CDMA network that your phone came with. Some phones can even use both- new iPhones can use data from both Verizon and AT&T, for example, giving them wider service.


The bottom line:

Reactivating an old phone is very complex and has lots of variables to account for. Most old phones can be reactivated, but the best thing one can do is to either research which carriers can support your old phone, or bring your phone to a carrier store (AT&T, Verizon, T-Moble, etc.) and see what they recommend.

I hope this swath of information is helpful in some way.

Good luck!

-RandomGuy42

Thank you, but I got the answer I needed........Have a great night

 

[RandomGuy42]

Alright! Have a great night as well.