Invalid Sim problem

phonez

Hi

i have three phones that were all on the Vodafone network but have now been unlocked through Vodafone customer care. now when i put a sim card in from another network i get "Invalid sim" message on the screen. when i ring Vodafone they cant understand why this message is coming up on the phones.

just for the record the three phones are, N91, E61 & E61i

hope someone can shed some light

Phonez

Random

Has a non-Vodafone SIM ever worked in them before?
Does the SIM card you're trying to use work in any other phones?

Sam Vimes

on those phones, invalid sim is the message displayed when they're locked and a foreign sim is put in. Are you sure they're unlocked?

strecker

When you say, "unlocked through customer care", you do mean cc gave you the unlock codes that you correctly entered, do you?
(they do not unlock it remotely!)
I have a vodafone e61 unlocked that way without problems...
as sam asked: have you tried the sim in any other unlocked phone? Or have you tried another non-voda sim?

phonez

the phones were unlocked by phoning Vodafone customer care and they gave me the unlock codes, i entered them into the phone as instructed by them, the E61 works with any network but the other two give "sim card invalid" message. the sim cards from other networks work in other locked phones, that is the cards i have tried are working cards. all three phones are working albeit on the vodafone network if i put a Vodafone card into them

the codes were entered correctly and i even phoned cc and verified the codes

hope this explains it a bit better

Phonez

grey squirrel

What message was displayed after entering the unlock code?

Personally I wouldn't trust Vodafone CC to give me unlock codes. On two previous occasions they gave me incorrect codes.

You only have three attempts to enter the correct codes. If Voda had given correct codes, but previous attempts had been made to unlock, then the correct ones are useless unless you get something like this

Sam Vimes

The problem here is that two of the phones are still locked. I know vodafone told you they're not but they are.

At this stage the phone probably says "cannot undo restriction" when you enter a code. This means that you've used up the three tries you have for unlocking the phone with a code and now unlocking hardware will be needed. Call vodafone and explain that they gave you the wrong code and have now "hard locked" your phone. (assuming you entered the codes they gave you correctly and this isn't your fault)

phonez

cant remember the exact message that came up on the phone when i unlocked it but the message deffinitly indicated that the phone was now unlocked. the code was entered correctly. the phone still works with a Vodafone SIM

grey squirrel

Use this link to check the sim lock status. It's free. After you have checked, report back

phonez

Grey Squirrel i downloaded the software as sugested on my laptop and tried to connect to the phone but when i click the read button it says error!

what am i doing wrong

i have tried it with three different phones and three different cables

each one comes up with the same message. i even removed the software from the laptop, started it up again and tried again still no luck

any clues?

grey squirrel

For checking simlock status, download and instal PC Suite and This version of NSS

Virtual USB device

Ignore the thing about re installing connectivity software. The two are compatible

Follow the instructions on the previos link to NSS I posted above.

I just tested it on my own Nokia and getting results as expected

phonez

that link is dead

any other places i can get this?

whisht

You can download all the software above, but at the end of the day, Commander Vimes is right. They are still locked. Vodafone can say they are not and they gave you correct codes, but I guarantee you 100% they are still locked to the network

Sam Vimes

i was just about to post exactly that whist. All this software etc you're trying to get to work is just going to tell you something we already know:the phones are still locked and you need to call vodafone and explain that they gave you the wrong codes for them

and i'm not a commander anymore

Mad_Mike

Oops! Old habits and all that

At least I didn't call you viNes

whisht

Sorry. Mate was logged in here on my PC

phonez

OK

downloaded the software as instructed. connected to the phone, clicked the scan button and it shows an error message in the bottom bar. so i wonder if its anything with the laptop, download it again to a PC and get the same error

just in case it makes a difference the phone is an N91

Phonez

Sam Vimes

Look, phonez, you don't seem to be reading the replies you're getting

the only possible reason for the phone to be saying invalid sim is if it's still locked. All that software will do is confirm that it is still locked.

It is 100% definitely still locked and no amount of messing with this software will change that fact. What you should be doing, what i keep telling you you should be doing is calling vodafone and telling them that they gave you the wrong codes.

If you call vodafone and they tell you the codes are right, they're wrong. If the codes were right* the phones would no longer be saying "invalid sim" when you put a different sim in.

*assuming you entered them correctly, which i think it's safe to say you did because you managed to unlock one of them. Describe what you did when entering the codes