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If i buy a new unlocked phone that is fully paid can I just put my public mobile sim card in it?

alicepepindesja
Great Neighbour / Super Voisin

I have a LG Q6 and i wanted to buy an unlocked Pixel 4A!

17 REPLIES 17

Pawprints1986
Deputy Mayor / Adjoint au Maire

But imei doesn't change while flashing software then it sounds like...all very interesting to learn! I had no idea that they were quite that intricate. Like, operation wise. I know there's definitely lots of physical bits inside lol

 

Honestly didn't know if I had accidentally broken the law with my own device just from wanting root access which means flashing the OS on your own to update it without losing root. If flashing also changed imei I would have and not even known! Crazy... 


You are right, IMEI could be changed if you have the right equipment.. but of course, this is not legal.  

 

 

@Pawprints1986 

Changing a phone's IMEI is very criminal. A blacklisted phone though is only blacklisted in that country's provider networks.

Pawprints1986
Deputy Mayor / Adjoint au Maire

Hmm so if the phone is blacklisted, but the buyer knows how to install fresh software on it, is it still bricked? Is that imei "hard wired" no matter which OS version? 🤔 I know for Samsung firmware anyway, that the xac version isn't carrier specific but there's others that are, all of the same actual OS (like Oreo). So in theory it's possible a bricked blacklisted telus phone could become a working non carrier specific but Canadian phone... If I'm thinking of it correctly that is

 

Not looking to do anything criminal lol, just totally wondering how this all works. Had no idea it was a thing until today !

Unlocked phones are not carrier-locked, they'll work on any network, including Public Mobile (Telus).

 

Pretty much any phone meant for sale in Canada (or USA) over the last half decade is assured compatibility any of the major Canadian cellular networks. Phones using legacy radio or phones intended for foreign regions/markets typically won't work (although "global" phones often support CA/US). All compatible phones will support basic talk/text/data/etc, but not all compatible phones support all the latest-generation protocols and bands and frequencies and features, but this isn't an issue on Public Mobile (which throttles LTE data to "3G Speed" and which doesn't support stuff like VoLTE, etc).

 

Whether or not the phone is paid for isn't relevant. Unless the previous owner has secured or locked it in some way which prevents or limits usefulness to the current owner. Yes, they could get the phone blacklisted (registered as lost/stolen/etc) which would basically make the phone a worthless brick. Or they have installed modded firmware/software of the variety you don't want.

 

Buyer beware. If it's an option, plug your SIM card into the new/used Pixel to confirm compatibility before walking away from the deal. And (if you're unafraid of voiding the warranty which doesn't apply to you) then consider installing a clean copy of GrapheneOS.

@softech 

One more reason and often the one that gets a phone blacklisted a year or more after its sale to the innocent party. Insurance claims....device insurance claims can often be drawn out and depending if a device gets assessed and repaired or written off for a depreciated value or discovered to be a fraudulent claim it can take two years for the device to finally be blacklisted.

@Pawprints1986 ,

 

All i can say for sure is "Buyer Beware" when buying a second-hand device from a source that will not backup/guarantee the device.

 

Your IMEI may not be on the Blacklisted site today, but if someone listed it their tomorrow or in the future, your kinda hooped.

@Pawprints1986   the devicecheck is a reliable site.

 

the data in the the "stolen" database in fact are added by mobile providers

 

There are two ways that phones end up on the blacklist.

  1. If a device is reported lost or stolen.
  2. If the owner of the phone fails to pay off any device financing.

 

  All participating provider will not let devices on this blacklist to use their network.

Pawprints1986
Deputy Mayor / Adjoint au Maire

@esjliv just curious about that device check site... I don't need to use it, but can sim swaps happen via imei numbers at all? I'm just thinking if you check a phone and it is valid, but you've just given away it's critical identifier, could be bad news couldn't it? (I've wondered the same about do not call lists and if they actually just serve as a list of active numbers to spam instead 🤷)

 

Also if a device is currently stolen, how would anyone but the thief be able to know the imei ? Like, how is it possible to have a database like that?

 

🤔🤔 I know it's not totally related but very curious on that one

@alicepepindesja 

If you know someone in the US to ship the google pixel 4a 128gb to for you you can pick it up from B&H photo for US$349 about about $500 cdn including duty and taxes.

 

Otherwise with canadian shipping addresses its US$429 about $600 cdn with duty and taxes.

 

https://www.bhphotovideo.com/c/product/1647229-REG/google_ga01260_us_pixel_4_128gb_smartphone.html

 

Or if you act fast you can get it shipped to you from best buy for $479 about $545 with taxes.

 

https://www.bestbuy.ca/en-ca/product/google-pixel-4a-128gb-just-black-unlocked/14878808?

alicepepindesja
Great Neighbour / Super Voisin

thank you! Yes the Lg Q6 is my old phone and i wanted to upgrade to the pixel 4A thank you for your help!

Yes, both LG q6 and Pixel would work here.

 

for LG, make sure you reset your network settings after inserting the PM SIM to get Mobile Data working.

 

Personally I would get Pixel 4A , better support  🙂

esjliv
Mayor / Maire

Hello @alicepepindesja 

 

Public Mobile uses the following frequency bands:

  • 4G LTE and LTE Advanced: 700 MHz, 850 MHz, 1900 MHz and 2100 MHz downlink and 1700 MHz uplink (AWS).
  • HSPA: 850 MHz, 1900 MHz (UMTS).

Please note that this information is indicative only.

Your phone's compatibility with our 4G or 4G LTE networks is based on the radio frequencies of your phone. 

 

Always good to check whether a phone will work with any provider, especially Public Mobile. Use more than one source to be sure.

https://www.kimovil.com/en/frequency-checker/CA

https://willmyphonework.net

 

 

If you are buying a used phone, check if your phone is blacklisted here: https://www.devicecheck.ca/check-status-device-canada/

softech
Oracle
Oracle

yes you can.  PM doesn't sell phone (other than the Certified Pre-owned one).  Most of us bring our unlocked phone here.

 

Important thing is, your phone must be compatible.  If your got your phone from Koodo or Telus, it will work for sure.  If you got your phone from Canada and is a Canadian model, likely it will work.  But not all international phones will work here

 

Give us your brand and model of the phone and we can try to look it up for you

alicepepindesja
Great Neighbour / Super Voisin

I have an old LG Q6 and i wanted to buy a Pixel 4A!

Staliger
Mayor / Maire

@alicepepindesja What is the model of the phone? Just to make sure that it is fully compatible with PM...

Anonymous
Not applicable

Yes you can and would working,

 

for public mobile phone compatibility

you have to put it a device brand for any phone to you can see all information,

 

you can visit here >>

WillMyPhoneWork.net - Check if your phone works on a network

 

following  >> To find out if your cellular phone is compatible with our network, click  HERE

 

visit Here  to you can full information about your device.

 

 

Good Luck

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