So you bought a BlackBerry a few years ago and your contract is finally up… and there are deals to be had elsewhere!  Until recently, your only options were to cancel your service with your old carrier and get a new phone with a new carrier.  If you didn’t want to pay $600 for a new BlackBerry, you would also have to sign a new contract for about 36 months in order to get a discount.

Times, and terms,  have changed. 

 Bell and Telus have launched a GSM (different technology) network which means that you may now be able to take your phone with you between carriers.  Just check with Bell or Telus first to see if your handset is compatible with their service.  Bell offers a handy tool online to lookup whether your phone will work with their service. 

If your contract was with Rogers or Fido, chances are good that you can use your current phone on the new Bell and Telus network to take advantage of deals.  The key to this freedom is to unlock your phone from your original carrier.  There are many services out there that offer to unlock cell phones and if you’re technically inclined you might even be able to do it yourself with a little time, patience and the right unlock code.

If you’re like the rest of us though and want to use your cell phone on another network without learning rocket science, you might benefit from using a service such as Unique Phones which will provide you with the appropriate unlock code for your phone for a reasonable fee.

Click here to unlock your GSM cell phone.

I’ve been a Bell Mobility customer for the past 29 months and have only 7 months to go until I can kiss my contract goodbye.  One of my biggest complaints as a customer over the years has been the limited selection and high pricing of CDMA phones (the type Bell & Telus used to only offer) vs. GSM models offered by Rogers and Fido.  Until now…

While reading up about the recent launch of the Bell & Telus 3G networks, I happened to notice that Bell is now making it possible to use an unlocked 850MHz/1900MHz handset on their system.  They’ve even gone the extra mile and offered a free ESN (electronic serial number) lookup tool on their site that allows you to see if your phone is compatible.  You still have to buy a Bell sim card to use an unlocked phone on their network, but because GSM technology is a standard and not as much of an expensive, proprietary technology like CDMA, there are many more options and prices to choose from.

So here’s the question many of us have been wondering for a while:

Can you use an unlocked Rogers, Fido, or other GSM phone with Bell or Telus?

Yes You Can!

You can check out Bell’s tool and details here: http://www.bell.ca/support/PrsCSrvWls_COAM.page

As for Telus Mobility, according to a representative I spoke with it is also possible to activate an unlocked GSM phone on the Telus network, provided that it is also 850MHz/1900MHz and you purchase a Telus sim card and go through the process at a Telus store or with their customer care team.

Enjoy your freedom!