vB Easy Archive - Make SMT5600 Prefer Orange

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Make SMT5600 Prefer Orange
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Posted by: wwwebster0

Hello. I could use your help with my new Audiovox SMT5600.

Here's the background:
1) Audiovox SMT 5600 purchased off EBay -- seems to work fine
2) unlocked successfully - proof make and receive calls on TMobile Network in Colorado
3) have AT&T Blue SIM from approximately March 2004
4) can make and receive calls on AT&T Wireless okay

The problem is that when I am sitting in my basement office, with the phone in my pocket, the phone does not receive the call. The Nokia 6820 that I also have receives calls just fine. This is using the same SIM card in both.

I notice that when the SIM card is in the Nokia, the network displays as "Cingular." When the SIM card is in Audiovox, the network displays as "AT&T Wireless".

From this behavior, I infer that the Audiovox is not connecting to the Cingular Orange tower, which presumably has better coverage and signal for my location. I am in central Denver, Colorado.

The other alternative explanation is simply that this phone gets worse reception than the Nokia, and that "AT&T Wireless" really is the same as Cingular. I don't want that to be the case because I really like the Audiovox phone's features.

I've been researching this problem at great length and have spent over an hour on with Cingular. They, of course, know nothing.

I've also tried fiddling with my Network Settings in the Audiovox. I know from other posts that I need to tell the phone to "prefer" the Cingular Orange networks 310410 (et al) vs 310380 network of AT&T/Cingular Blue. When I try to set this manually in the Audiovox, it doesn't help. I either get No Service or "AT&T Wireless".

I've read other posts that address the question of how to make an Orange phone prefer Blue, but that's not my problem, as I have Blue and want Orange. I don't want to get a 64K Cingular SIM, as I don't see how that would solve the problem. I also don't want to swtich to Cingular because I have a better plan with AT&T/Blue.

One idea is to buy an AT&T White 32K SIM that may allow manual selection. Would that do the trick? If you think so, then could you explain why manual selection on my AT&T Blue 16K SIM doesn't work?

I've done a lot of reading on this subject, but, after all that, I still don't understand why the Audiovox should have different preferences and behavior than the Nokia 6820 with the same SIM. They are both 850/1800/1900 phones. (One idea is that the radio on the Audiovox is broken or less capable on one of the bands but works for whichever band Cingular Orange is not.)

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

George