Any use for old SIM cards?

patwa_2

Helo, doing a long overdue clearout and I have about ten SIM cards that are no longer valid in terms of having a mobile service attached to them (company's been desolved, or term has expired).

Was wondering if there is any use in keeping them, apart from data storage (incidentally how much data can they store) or should I just bin them?

Thanks.

gaming_guy

i find them useful for things like changing facias on nokias and sony ericsson's etc. propping things open

patwa_2

Ah, well thanks for that. I'll just bin the ones I have, I'll have loads more in the future I'm sure. Just wanted to check.

Wait, actually do phones need a SIM in them to operate their other features, apart from the phone? It's just I remember a phone once that wouldn't start unless there was a SIM inserted into it. It would just flash 'Insert SIM'.

gaming_guy

patwa wrote:

It's just I remember a phone once that wouldn't start unless there was a SIM inserted into it. It would just flash 'Insert SIM'.

all/most phones need a sim in to use features like the camera. you can call 999 without a sim in, and i just tried getting into the service menu on an SE K700i without a sim inserted and it worked

espresso

gaming_guy wrote:

you can call 999 without a sim in

Realy? Did you actually speak to anyone? Just because the handset appears to be making a call, does not mean that it would be successful in this country, even if it may work in others.

patwa_2

Thanks, I found 23 SIMs, I think I might keep a few.

I find it hard to believe that in this day and age of multi-function devices that the phone could not operate it's alternate features without a SIM. I mean, obviously the primary function is a phone, buttake some of the more advanced devices, they're practically offices and entertainment centers rolled into one.

The SIM typically has the info related to the contract the phone is operating on, but does it actually physically make the call? Would a 999 call not be possible without a SIM - maybe it would be, if the phone itself would make the call, although presumably it would not be able to make any other calls. I mean, if I have an old phone, but the SIM in it has expired, and I needed to make an emergency call, would it not be breaking a law or something if I couldn't?

I'm reluctant to test this out, I doubt 999 would take too kindly to a bunch of us calling up as just a 'test' call.

virgo17

patwa wrote:

Would a 999 call not be possible without a SIM - maybe it would be, if the phone itself would make the call, although presumably it would not be able to make any other calls. I mean, if I have an old phone, but the SIM in it has expired, and I needed to make an emergency call, would it not be breaking a law or something if I couldn't?

It is not possible to make a 999/112 call in the UK using a mobile without a valid SIM card. The mobile may appear to be doing something, however it will not connect.

Rightly or wrongly, the mobile networks in the UK will not carry an emergency call from a mobile without a SIM card, even though the phone is capable of doing this and ineed some other countries permit it.

The mobile operators stance on this matter is that the possible abuse caused by such actions outweighs any possible benefit.


V.

patwa_2

Ah I see. So basically I will make sure there is A card in the phone, regardless of who it's from or what it's connected to.

I personally find that rule about 999 calls to be absurd. If they're worried about abuse, there is just as much chance of people abusing the service using landlines/public phones as there is from a mobile. And with the increasing use of mobiles, and as I said before mobiles as multi-functional devices, this inability to access an important service - just absurd.

For Example, sometimes I leave my 'normal' phone at home, but I take my other phone with me and use it as a hard drive. I use a different phone for calls due to usability/software. So I could well be in a situation, that day, where I forgot my regular phone, but was unable to use the other 'phone' to call for help. Absurd.

virgo17

patwa wrote:

Ah I see. So basically I will make sure there is A card in the phone, regardless of who it's from or what it's connected to.

Yupp. Basically you need an active SIM in order to make a 999 call. I agree that it seems absurd, but that is the network policy. They are worried that without a SIM there is no audit trail.

It also seems strange because you can buy a SIM without any identification and with several networks, such as Virgin or O2, use it anonymously without ever registering. Thus the network would never know the name of the person making the 999 call anyway. In fact the only audit trail this would leave, if they were to expend the energy and expense in persuing it, would be a history of GSM cells that the phone had logged into over the preceeding weeks.

Regards,

V.