Mizzmp Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 We have a blackberry curve 8520 and are due to renew. Hoping that we wil get a CO soon but does anybody know if blackberries work over in Perth? Thinking of buying a handset but gonna be a waste of money if they wont work. Any ideas on which phones from the UK deffo work would be real helpful. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llessur Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 Best to just check the specs of your prospective before you buy. Anything showing GSM, tri band or quad band should be fine in Oz... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quoll Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 If the phone that you bring over is locked to a particular UK network then it isnt going to work here at all with an Aus sim in it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
llessur Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 If the phone that you bring over is locked to a particular UK network then it isnt going to work here at all with an Aus sim in it. Oh yeah - that as well :wink: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nathalie Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 iPhone definitely works In general if you have a contract phone it's locked to your carrier. You can ask them to unlock it if you tell them you are migrating and want to take the phone with you. If you buy a phone outright independent of carrier it's generally unlocked and you can stick in any sim. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lebourvellec Posted May 30, 2011 Share Posted May 30, 2011 any phone will work in Oz that has been unlocked - dual band, tri band. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest loop the loop Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I brought my o2 blackberry over from the UK and it worked but I had to get it unlocked and get o2 to remove my Blackberry PIN from my account so that I could get it linked to my Australian network account. Worked fine after that. You only really need to do that if you want to use Blackberry messenger I think. I wanted to use it because it was a free way of messaging my mum back home! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 One option to consider as you're about to renew - don't renew, just ask your current provider to convert it to Pay As You Go. That way you keep the same number until you get here. Once here, you could get an Oz SIM (and possibly handset) record a new voicemail greeting on your UK one to advise anyone calling it of your new Oz number. That voicemail greeting will remain in place for as long as your UK provider keeps that number active (should be long enough for anyone you forgot to tell to be able to get hold of you). As others have mentioned, watch for any network lock on your handset (ask the network provider if in doubt). If it helps, shortly before leaving I bought two phones from Phones 4 U that were sold with T-Mobile UK SIMs, but were totally unlocked so worked here no problem when I stuck Oz SIMs in. Unlocked handsets are usually more expensive, but there are some deals to be had. Of course, if you wait till you get to Oz, the charger will have the correct mains plug on it. I didn't worry about it, but if you buy a handset in the UK, there might be warranty implications if you move to Oz(?) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twister292 Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 If your phone is not locked to the UK carrier, most Eurasian phones will work. Most networks use GSM900 and GSM1800 in some metro areas for 2G. For 3G networks, a majority of phones sold in the UK do support UMTS900 and UMTS2100, which are used by 3, Vodafone and Optus in Australia. Telstra's NextG network uses UMTS850, which is a North-American frequency, so if you intend to use the Telstra network, UK phones may not be able to harness the complete coverage of it. In terms of network coverage, Telstra is by a distance the best, then there's Optus and Vodafone. Steer clear of 3 if you're outside of major metro areas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Har00n Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 Good posts. Thanks everyone for the info. Now, a quick question over phone contracts in oz. IS it the same as the uk, i.e. 12-18 month contracts, with phones generally being subsidized? I know theres going to be a new iphone coming out in september, am due an upgrade, but was thinking about just going onto payg, and keeping my UK number, then getting a contract on the new iphone out in oz.... what do you gusy think? What were the costs of the iphone 4 when it was released? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I've heard some newly-arrived folk have had trouble getting contracts (no credit history here I guess). Contracts seem to be about the same as the UK - although you'd be lucky to find one as short as 12 months. One thing to note, the place is a lot bigger, differing coverage between networks is worth investigating depending on when you live (and if there's any "no quibble" return policy). If you wait for a new iPhone model, remember it's not guaranteed to come out in September. And things tend to get released here a little after other places. And all the mobile networks I've dealt with here have had abysmal customer service (worse even than Orange in the UK and that's saying something). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twister292 Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 Telstra's network coverage is much better than the other 3. The contracts here usually run for 24 months...12-month contracts are present but with much reduced phone subsidies. What you guys call PAYG in the UK is called "PrePay" or "Prepaid" here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phil Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 Coverage was why I tried to go with Telstra. I gave them a week to try and activate three different SIMs purchased at different times from different retailers. They simply couldn't manage it (despite numerous phone calls/emails to their useless customer service centres). So my money went elsewhere. For lots of things here, the onus is very much on the customer to get things sorted I'm finding. Just a different way of life I'm adapting to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boganbear Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I had a lot of trouble getting a contract and had to go on pay as you go for 6 months before Virgin would let me have one. However, rip off Australia is an apt description as PAYG only lasts 3 months unlike in the Uk where it lasts until you use your credit up. Also on contracts it is cheaper to use a UK Virgin mobile in Australia than an Aussie one. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest loop the loop Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 Vodafone have been in a lot of trouble recently with their coverage. I didn't believe all the hoo-haa about it and signed up with them (mainly because their HTC Desire HD was on a better plan than Telstra was offering). What a big mistake that was! Coverage is a nightmare, and I live reasonably close to the city! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
twister292 Posted May 31, 2011 Share Posted May 31, 2011 I had a lot of trouble getting a contract and had to go on pay as you go for 6 months before Virgin would let me have one. However, rip off Australia is an apt description as PAYG only lasts 3 months unlike in the Uk where it lasts until you use your credit up. Also on contracts it is cheaper to use a UK Virgin mobile in Australia than an Aussie one. Most providers let you choose the validity of the prepaid package yourself. Saying that prepaid packages last only 3 months is not correct as such. For example, Vodafone offers prepaid packages where u can get heaps of credit but you need to recharge every 30 days, or you can just have the face value of the credit and it lasts you 1 year. In Oz the phone package give you dollar amounts of credit to use, not minutes. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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