64K SIMS and ENS Phones Q&A (Resulting from Cingular and ATTWS Merger)

[Jay2TheRescue]

I've been playing with more advanced functions on my phone since I got the advanced menus unhidden late last week. I am a Cingular Orange GSM customer w/ a Motorola V551 and a 32k sim. When I manually connected to the Cingular Blue network today I noticed improved signal @ work. To keep this I applied the cell sticker to keep the phone connected to that tower and I have great signal inside, even w/ the steel roof and the EMF going on @ work.

My question is this: Why doesn't my ENS capable V551 automatically jump to the blue network while at work for the better coverage? Isn't that the point of ENS to make both networks operate as one? I know a secondary function of ENS is load management, but you would think that they wouldn't mind putting me on the blue when it has better coverage? The phone hands off from blue to orange, but it doesn't seem to go from orange to blue?
__________________

[kilo]

My question is this: Why doesn't my ENS capable V551 automatically jump to the blue network while at work for the better coverage? Isn't that the point of ENS to make both networks operate as one?

You'll need the 64K SIM for the phone to run the ENS apps.
But don't go out and buy one (see post 1), besides it sounds like you've already gotten a solution lined up (feel free to start a post in the Motorola forum about how you were able to unhide the advanced menus).

An ENS phone wouldn't automatically jump to a different network for better coverage immediately. I had hoped (but was dissapointed) that they would switch with a lower threashhold than the phones we were all using before the merger.

The point of ENS is to allow the new Cingular to turn down the old networks without stranding the customer with an unworking phone.

[Jay2TheRescue]

(feel free to start a post in the Motorola forum about how you were able to unhide the advanced menus).

Actually after a week of seem editing I found a custom flex at www.motomodders.com that did almost everything I was trying to seem edit. It removed all visible Cingular branding, removed all pre-loaded images, Media Mall is gone! it also enabled many hidden menus and features. I was only able to partialy expose the features through seem edits, the flex had it all worked out, and in the 5 minutes it took to flex all the changes were done.

After all that crap was removed there is about 8 megs of memory free in the phone instead of the Cingular stock 5 megs. More room for pics & ringtones!

[Jay2TheRescue]

I was thinking today, and this may explain why this strange thing happens. My parents live in a rural area, but they do have Cingular GSM service. My phone doesn't seem to find that tower until I can actually see it, then it holds onto the tower and I can go for a few miles after that. I'm guessing now that maybe the tower is on the blue network. Does the phone wait until it can find absolutely no trace of its home network before it jumps to another network? I've noticed that it will constantly jump from blue to orange (hence I use the cell sticker when at work to stay on blue) but if I put it on orange it pretty much stays put.

[TxTwin]

[QUOTE=kilo]<SNIP>
"Back in the day" all the SIM cards Cingular sold were regional (3 (4?) regions in the whole US) and the 64K SIMS do have some "slight" issues with older GSM phones so that may be why you were told some of the info you had heard, but it should not have any problems at all with the Motorola V180
<SNIP>QUOTE]

Kilo,
Maybe you can help me. I have read 21 pages on this thread, and 2 pages on another....I realize my phone is not ENS enabled, but I have been forced into a SIM change and have a question about the different 64K SIMs.

I had a 64K SIM in my new 6340i in FEB05 when I traded in my TDMA phone. This was an Orange/Green SIM (I assume regional). Then, in May05, I started having problems with my phone. They "solved" my problems by turning off my GAIT -- not acceptable as I then had no service at work or home (except out the front door). I went through many, many trials to "correct my phone", and one of them was a new 64K SIM (blue wave - I assume national?).

I continued to have problems, until someone resolved most of the GAIT issues, voice mail issues, etc. Unfortunately, ever since the SIM change, I am stuck on BLUE. At first, it was only periodic on the TDMA side, but now, I cannot even force it to Orange. Someone just showed me how to tell if on BLUE GSM, and yep, blue there too.

So, with BLUE GSM, I drop 1/2 - 1/3 of my calls on GSM, and on TDMA, I have less signal. I want my ORANGE back, but they say I can't be color swapped on GAIT phone. I have not seen ORANGE to my knowledge in weeks. With TDMA, I drop less calls, so I have to reverse bar at home...but then I don't get Orange * services. Why, as a legacy Orange customer, am I forced to BLUE? I went with Cingular after trying ATTWS almost 4 years ago, as Cingular had better coverage than ATTWS at my home, and I want to be ORANGE again.

Thanks!

[Jay2TheRescue]

An ENS phone wouldn't automatically jump to a different network for better coverage immediately. I had hoped (but was dissapointed) that they would switch with a lower threashhold than the phones we were all using before the merger.

I was just thinking - Is there a known seem edit to change the threshold of network switching? It must be there somewhere.

[kilo]

If you find out, let everyone know.

[jakeryan90]

Hey,
New to the forum and to the ability to manually switch Net IDs.
I just bought a brand new Motorola E680i...linux-based PDA Phone. Love the phone and the ability to manually switch ID's. When set to Auto it locates 310-410, overriding all other networks. Problem is, I get on average 2/5 bars inside my apartment on 310-410. When I set the ID scanner to manual and switch to 310-380, I get 5/5 bars. People, however, tell me that they keep getting "busy signals" or "all circuits busy" messages. Would this have anything to do with the Net ID and pending switch? My sim card is was bought in March of 2004 if that helps. Just wondering if the "all circuits busy" message people get is from being on 310-380 or just me being paranoid?
Any help in the matter is appreciated.
.j

[Mango808]

Hey,
When I set the ID scanner to manual and switch to 310-380, I get 5/5 bars. People, however, tell me that they keep getting "busy signals" or "all circuits busy" messages. Would this have anything to do with the Net ID and pending switch? My sim card is was bought in March of 2004 if that helps. Just wondering if the "all circuits busy" message people get is from being on 310-380 or just me being paranoid?
Any help in the matter is appreciated.
.j

Could be the over-crowding of the 310-380 network as Cingular transitions over from the 310-170 network. Usually the "all circuits busy" usually happens on the networks at night when everyone wants to use their "Night minutes." Cingular use to have them in the beginning in California when they were expanding their network when they formed from Pacific Bell Wireless and they got a lot more people signing up. It didn't help when the Joint Venture to allow T-Mobile to use the same network in California/Nevada brought more people as well.

I'd say it's going to be another rough time for Cingular to build out the "half-baked" AT&T Wireless network to sustain all of its customers.

[jms27]

Now, this is my exprience for my company of 32, with cingular in the atlanta market, i switched to cingular in 12/04, cingular gave me v551s with 32k simcards, well we activated the phones, after two days, i read on the howard forums, about 64k sim card and ens, now i like to be on top on technology, so after two days of service, i switched to 64k sim cards, well there came all my problems, see when i put the 64ksim card in my nokia 3650, it was k, no problem, service was consistent, even while travelling, now as soon as i switched the sim card to v551 it would drop calls, would show me 5 bars, then all of a sudden switch to 1 or 2 bars. I called cingular they said it was the phone, so they switched out the phone, i tried it again, same thing, when i was in ny, the same thing was happenning, i checked cingular to see if they where doing some network integration in ny market and atl, the answer was no. Well i got fed up, and bought a 89014 32k sim cards on ebay and all my problems, with my phones have been fixed. my two cents is this, 64k sim cards and ens, helps cingular, not the customer, if you want solid service, and actually use cingulars great network, get a 32k sim card, it'll help a lot, at least it did for me! by the way the whole company was having problems with this, i switched all the v551phones back to 32ksim and everything is k now.

[gfunkdave]

As they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

Now, this is my exprience for my company of 32, with cingular in the atlanta market, i switched to cingular in 12/04, cingular gave me v551s with 32k simcards, well we activated the phones, after two days, i read on the howard forums, about 64k sim card and ens, now i like to be on top on technology, so after two days of service, i switched to 64k sim cards, well there came all my problems, see when i put the 64ksim card in my nokia 3650, it was k, no problem, service was consistent, even while travelling, now as soon as i switched the sim card to v551 it would drop calls, would show me 5 bars, then all of a sudden switch to 1 or 2 bars. I called cingular they said it was the phone, so they switched out the phone, i tried it again, same thing, when i was in ny, the same thing was happenning, i checked cingular to see if they where doing some network integration in ny market and atl, the answer was no. Well i got fed up, and bought a 89014 32k sim cards on ebay and all my problems, with my phones have been fixed. my two cents is this, 64k sim cards and ens, helps cingular, not the customer, if you want solid service, and actually use cingulars great network, get a 32k sim card, it'll help a lot, at least it did for me! by the way the whole company was having problems with this, i switched all the v551phones back to 32ksim and everything is k now.

[kilo]

I get 5/5 bars. People, however, tell me that they keep getting "busy signals" or "all circuits busy" messages. Would this have anything to do with the Net ID and pending switch? My sim card is was bought in March of 2004 if that helps. Just wondering if the "all circuits busy" message people get is from being on 310-380 or just me being paranoid?
Any help in the matter is appreciated.
.j

It sounds like you've figured it out. It appears that the 310-380 network might be overloaded in that area.

If you want to try and fix it, I would suggest calling into CS and tell them "my phone normally uses orange without any problem, but I notice THAT WHEN MY PHONE SWITCHES TO the blue network, people calling me get "all circuits busy" and busy signals, I think there's a problem with your blue network.

****

As they say, if it ain't broke, don't fix it.

and as I said in the first post, you don't need it

[DJFriar]

Just a question:

Does any of this matter now??? Its been a year and a half since the last post, is most of this change over done or ???? I just ordered a BlackBerry 8800, so I'm assujing its ENS and 64k, but are the towers merged yet?

[jervin123]

Just a question:

Does any of this matter now??? Its been a year and a half since the last post, is most of this change over done or ???? I just ordered a BlackBerry 8800, so I'm assujing its ENS and 64k, but are the towers merged yet?

In nov. there was an article talking about that it was done but im sure there are some areas that may never get integrated for a long while or will just die off with the next generation.

[Jay2TheRescue]

Just a question:

Does any of this matter now??? Its been a year and a half since the last post, is most of this change over done or ???? I just ordered a BlackBerry 8800, so I'm assujing its ENS and 64k, but are the towers merged yet?

In areas where there was and AT&T and a Cingular network they have been merged. The only exception is California where the Cingular network was sold to T-Mobile and Cingular is now using the old AT&T network. For all practical terms though it really doesn't matter anymore.