Roland Tanglao's Weblog

It would be cool if somebody actually implemented a system where we could move GSM SIMs to CDMA phones and vice versa so with one SIM or R-UIM you could use mobile phones from CDMA or GSM suppliers or networks but the odds of that happening I'd imagine are the same as the odds were of Betamax winning over VHS :-) ! [And yes I know that CDMA technology is used by 3G GSM!]

FROM Removable User Identity Module - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia via email from David

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Removable User Identity Module (R-UIM), a card developed for CDMA handsets that is equivalent to the GSM SIM and 3G USIM except that it is capable of working in both CDMA and GSM phones and networks. It is physically compatible with GSM SIMs and can fit into existing GSM phones as it is an extension of the GSM 11.11 standard

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EMAIL FROM David:

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It seems that not only are R-UIMs the equivalent to SIMs, according to the Wikipedia article they're actually compatible with SIMs and can be placed into GSM phones:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Removable_User_Identity_Module

It can actually store provisioning information for both types of networks:

http://www.china.org.cn/english/BAT/109251.htm
http://www.cdmatech.com/products/ruim.jsp

Technically, the R-UIM is basically kind of like of an extension of a SIM card that is defined in the "GSM 11.11" standard:

http://www.ttfn.net/techno/smartcards/gsm11-11.pdf
http://www.3gpp2.org/Public_html/specs/CS0023-0.pdf

Perhaps the CRTC should simply say that all providers in Canada (regardless of the underlying network) must use R-UIMs?

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I am unencumbered by knowledge when it comes to R-UIMs on CDMA phones. Are they really the CDMA equivalent of SIM cards (which allow people to switch phones).? If so, it seems logical (but unfortunately nothing is logical in the 'krazy' world of the mobile bandwidth oligopoly) to make their use mandatory and to make R-UIMs work across different Canadian CDMA carriers so people can switch carriers just as easily as they can switch numbers. Have any other CDMA carriers around the world done this? I'm guessing no and I'm guessing this is yet another reason why CDMA will continue to lose market share world wide.

FROM Telecom Trends: Looking forward to Videotron wireless:

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A new entrant on this market would be a nice thing. But beside a 4th entrant, maybe the CRTC should mandate first the Bell, Telus, Virgin Mobile and other CDMA operators to let customers port their CDMA handset. So that to really complement the MNP of March 14th.I find this situation where to benefit from the services of one operator you have to buy "one of his phones" and you can't use he same phone on another CDMA network. The case with Virgin Mobile which operate on the physical infrastructure of Bell doesn't allow one to buy say a CDMA smartphone from Bell and activate it with Virgin Mobile is abusing for me. I am used to the european market and maybe porting CDMA phones from one operator to another is by far an efficient way to bring competition and innovation in this market. R-UIM technology have been around for years but operators still hold back the customer's freedom to choose the best offer. I don't see where a customer will benefit from a 4th operator.

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Best "Why you should buy an unlocked phone" rant ever!

FROM AAS Feature: Unlocking the Mobile Phone: Why we need to go SIM-Free:

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How to free the phone

This is all easier said than done, of course, and much of the change has to be cultural as well as technical or legal. Here are three suggestions that would help bring about this change:

- Phone-locking should be completely illegal.

- Phone network operators should not be allowed to sell phones.

- "Free" phones should not be called free, but labelled exactly like any other product bought on installments with the real total price and interest rate clearly marked on all advertising.

As the Finnish example showed though, the phone operators have a tremendous lobbying power which is difficult to overcome. While we're waiting for enough politicians to realise and accept that the operators are worth taking on, we can make a difference right now by doing the following:

1. Don't buy phones from operators

2. Don't sign long term contracts with operators

3. Buy phones SIM-free from high street and online electronics retailers and other non-operator shops

The more we do those three things, the less power the operators have, and the freer, cheaper and better the phone world becomes.

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