Wednesday, August 31st, 2011
Dual SIM phones are becoming increasingly common in the Western world, after being hugely popular in Asia, because of the flexibility they offer. After clumsier solutions in the past, today’s active Dual SIM phones can be active simultaneously. This new technology will be described in more detail later, but for now let’s have a look at some situations in which Dual SIM phones can be incredibly useful.
There are actually quite a few situations where Dual SIM is worthwhile; probably the most notable is that of travel. You might travel to a different country weekly, and with a Dual SIM phone you could just switch SIMs using the phone’s software instead of having to manually replace them.
Another good use for Dual SIM is to take advantage of imbalanced calling plans. For example, you might use a low cost PAYG sim for unlimited internet access to supplement your cheap Internet-limited contract that provides good value minutes and texts.
Having one SIM for business use and another for personal use can also be handy, letting you keep your professional and private obligations separated.
You can also use SIM cards to lead a double life, with one SIM for each of your disjoint characters. Leading a double life is not recommended however, and could lead to film adaptions.
Whatever the situation, it is important to ensure that you’re getting the right kind of Dual SIM phone. There are a few different types, distinguished by what you can accomplish whilst the two cards are installed.
Let’s have a look below:
- Dual SIM Shift: A second SIM card slot exists, but switching is manually activated.
- Dual Sim Standby: Both SIMs are connected to mobile networks at the same time, but if one SIM is in a call the other will be busy.
- Dual SIM Active: Both SIMs can be used at once, allowing incoming calls on the other SIM to be accepted or rejected.
- Dual SIM Talk: Both SIMs can be talked on at once, allowing two different callers to be talked to at once.
Typically, Dual SIM Standby will be enough for most needs, although Dual SIM active can be a handy upgrade if you spend a lot of time using your phone for calls instead of for internet access or texts. It’s worth noting that most dual SIM phones will only support a 3G connection on one of the SIMs, so if you are using one for Internet and the other for calls make sure they’re the right way around.
There are a few options to operating a Dual SIM phone. One option is to buy a Sim Free Dual Sim Phone specifically for this purpose, a solution which does limit your choice of phones but also provides the most elegant package solution. At Mobile Fun, we have three such phones, including two QWERTY Samsung phones and a more basic candy-bar Samsung.
Another option is to use an adapter for your existing phone. While this does mean that you can keep your existing, high-powered smartphone, it does mean that you will have to deal with an externally mounted SIM.
The Dual SIM card adapter for the iPhone 4 does include a case as well, allowing you to keep the unsightly cable out of site and protected for unwarranted tugs. This goes a long way to ameliorate the flaws of this option, and is certainly the better choice if you own an iPhone 4. It’s also worth mentioning that it takes a full size sim, meaning you don’t have to use a iPhone 4 MicroSIM cutter tool to bring it down to size.
Dual SIM Card Adapter With Back Case - iPhone 4
Whichever way you go, a dual SIM can be just the thing. Look for more dual and even triple SIM phones and adapters to come onto the market as these technologies continue to develop – with the small size of the iPhone 4′s microsim, this functionality is getting much cheaper for mobile phone manufacturers to include.
Links
Conclusion
That’s all for now. If you found this helpful or had a question about Dual Sim Phones, please let us know via the normal social media channels, or leave a comment below. Thanks!
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Wednesday, November 11th, 2009
The iPhone is without doubt one of the most successful phones every produced, but it’s not perfect. Don’t get me wrong, it’s a great phone. I’ve had one since the day it was released and not really had any problems with it, but I know there are quite a few people out there who have problems with coverage and getting a signal, others struggle to make it through the day because of its relatively short battery life.
This week saw the release of the iPhone on Orange, with Vodafone expected to release it early next year. For some this will solve the problem of coverage, but if you’re tied into a contract with O2 it’s not really going to help you much until you’re out of commitment with O2.
The good news is that as the phone is no longer exclusive to one network, O2 have agreed to unlock all pay monthly iPhone handsets – allowing you to use an alternative sim card in the handset if you want to. You’ll still need to pay O2 your usual line rental each month, but at least you’ll be able to use a sim card from a different network in the phone. You can find more details on what you need to do to unlock your phone on my post that explains “How to Unlock your iPhone“
Unlock your iPhone to use it on any UK network
As you’ll still be paying for minutes and texts with O2, you might as well still use your O2 sim, but having to constantly swap sim cards over is a hassle we could all do without. To overcome this, we’ve just launched the Twin Sim Charging Case for the iPhone 3G & iPhone 3GS.
The idea behind the case is simple. It works in a similar way to the Mophie Juice pack and Case-Mate fuel to charge your iPhone while it’s in the case, but also adds a twin sim adapter that allows you to have two sim cards in your iPhone at the same time as long as your iPhone is unlocked.
iPhone 3G & 3GS Twin Sim Charging Case
The Twin Sim Charging Case contains a rechargeable 1900mAh battery that can be used to charge your iPhone or extend battery life by:
- 300 hours stand by time
- 5 hours talk time
- 25 hours music playback
- 8 hours video playback
- 5 hours game play
- 6 hours Internet surfing over Wi-Fi
To recharge the battery or your iPhone, you just need to plug it into a spare USB port on your laptop or PC. You won’t need any additional cables as the case has a USB cable built in.
Having two sims in your phone opens up no end of ways to save yourself time and money:
- Better Deals: Since the iPhone launched, the number of ‘Sim Only’ tariffs available has increased significantly, with most networks offering much better deals than you can get on the iPhone. If you find you’re constantly exceeding your free minutes, get a Sim Only deal from a different network and switch to it when you’re out of minutes or texts.
- Tethering: O2 charge quite a bit for using your iPhone as a modem to connect your laptop to the internet. By using a Mobile Broadband Sim from 3, you can cut your data costs considerably.
- Calling abroad: Using a sim card from a company such as Lebara will save you money on calls abroad. By using the twin sim adapter, you can easily switch to the cheaper sim card when ever you need to make a call, without having to restart your phone or try and remove your O2 sim.
- Travelling Overseas: If you travel often, the cheapest way to make calls is by using a local sim card. Instead of buying a second phone, simply put your foreign sim in the twin sim case and switch to it when ever you’re away.
- Everything Together: If you currently use two phones, there will be times when the number you need to call is in the phone you don’t have with you. By using just one handset, all your contacts, calendar appointments and emails are with you all the time.
Fitting the Twin Sim Adapter:
Fitting the case takes just a couple of minutes, all you’ll need is your sim tray removal tool that came with your iPhone, or if like me you’ve lost it, a paperclip.
1. Remove the sim tray and attach your sim cards to the Twin Sim Reader and insert into your phone
Attach the Sim Cards to the adapter and insert into phone
2. Remove the top cover of the case and slide it onto the phone
Slide the top of the case onto the phone.
3. Fold the 2nd sim card over the top of your iPhone and clip it into place behind the USB connector. Once in place, clip the back cover onto the case.
Clip the 2nd sim into place and refit the top cover
4. To switch between sim cards, go into the Sim Applications menu within settings on your iPhone
Sim Application menu lets you chose which sim card to use.
Don’t forget though, the twin sim functionality will only work once you’ve unlocked your iPhone.
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