For the past several months, I've been getting letters in the mail and voicemails left on my cell phone from Cingular telling me that I need to replace my SIM card or experience outages.
Last time about a year ago, when I changed my SIM card per their requirement, my phone stopped getting reception. I put in my old SIM card and had been using it ever since.
So, to get them to stop junk mailing me all these SIM cards and spamming my voicemail with their messages, I finally went down to the Cingular corporate store in Irvine on Harvard and Main and had them replace my SIM card. He put in the new SIM card and told me that it should be fine. He gave me my old SIM card and told me if I have any problems, I can switch it back out to the old SIM card. I checked my phone and there was NO reception. I showed it to him and he said it takes 15 minutes to activate and it should be good from there.
I left and forgot about it. A few hours later, I checked my phone because I hadn't got any calls and there was still NO reception. I couldn't call Cingular because my phone wasn't working and I couldn't get it changed out because the stores were now closed. I sent an email on the Cingular website and still have not had a response back.
So, the next day, I decided to go back to the Cingular store, but then it looked like it might be working, so I didn't. I realized it only *looked* like it might be working because it actually wasn't. It still had NO reception.
I replaced it with my old SIM card and received the message "invalid SIM card." Now my SIM card didn't work.
Today, I went to the Cingular corporate store on 17th street in Costa Mesa and asked them about it. He switched it out with another SIM card and there was still no reception. He said to give it 15 minutes like before. This time, I stood around the Cingular store and waited. It still didn't work.
I asked him to reactivate my old SIM card because at least that one worked in my phone. But, guess what. They CAN'T reactivate the old SIM cards. So, he told me "I guess you're going to have to buy a new phone. Apparently yours is broken."
I left that store and I went back to the one on Harvard and Main. They called into the Cingular support and told me the same thing. I will have to buy a new phone. It was working FINE before I put in the new SIM card. Now, somehow it's my phone that's broken and there's nothing they can do about it???
I left that store and called up Cingular Wireless. I spent 45 minutes on the phone with a very nice person who was ever so helpful... Except he couldn't help me.
He said there was a secret Cingular program where they could send me out a free new phone since my phone was no longer under warranty and my cell phone isn't up for upgrade until April. He went to see if I was applicable... They denied me.
His final suggestion? Buy a new phone.
Everything worked fine prior to installing the SIM and now I have to pay for a new phone because of it. There should be a class action lawsuit for this because I am sure it is HIGHLY illegal to threaten your service if you don't get a new SIM and then give you a new SIM that makes you have to pay for a new cell phone.
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