How To Make A Gsm Phone Cdma

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This wikiHow teaches you how to determine whether your phone uses a CDMA network or a GSM network. Knowing this information is important if you want to remove a carrier lock from your phone, or if yous want to employ a specific carrier's SIM card in your unlocked phone.

Steps

1
Have into account your location. Unless yous're using a phone purchased in either the United States or Russia, your phone most probable uses GSM.^[1]
- Fifty-fifty with the The states using CDMA with two of its major cellular networks, only around 18 percent of cellular networks in the earth use CDMA.
ii
Empathise that nearly smartphones apply LTE. CDMA and GSM are 3G networks, but both CDMA- and GSM-networked phones are able to utilize 4G (LTE) every bit long as the smartphone itself supports a 4G-enabled SIM card. This means that choosing between CDMA and GSM may not be necessary if you're not attempting to switch to a different network.^[ii]
- This means that your telephone having a SIM card no longer helps decide whether you're using CDMA or GSM.
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3
Consider your current carrier. Past default, Sprint, US Cellular, and Verizon use CDMA for their phones, while AT&T, Virgin Mobile, and T-Mobile apply GSM. If you bought the phone from a carrier, simply knowing the carrier's name will exist enough to tell y'all what the network blazon is.
- Verizon phones come equipped with CDMA, but they also support GSM.
- If you bought an "unlocked" phone, that means the phone itself tin exist used on whatsoever carrier's network. In which case, knowing current carrier's network won't tell you if your phone uses GSM or CDMA.
4
Check your phone's "About" settings. If you lot see a MEID or an ESN category, your phone requires CDMA; if y'all come across an IMEI category, your phone is GSM. If you see both (e.g., Verizon phones), your telephone supports both CDMA and GSM, and may use either network. Use the following steps to bank check your phone's "About" settings:^[3]
- iPhone:
  - Open the Settings app.
  - Tap General.
  - Tap About.
  - Curl down to look for the MEID (or ESN) or IMEI number.
- Android:
  - Open the Settings app.
  - Curlicue down and tap System (Android Oreo only).
  - Tap Near phone.
  - Tap Status,
  - Await for an MEID (or ESN) or IMEI number.
v
Look up your phone's model number. If you lot still tin't decide whether or not your phone is CDMA or GSM, effort looking upwardly the phone's model number. You can find this in the phone'due south manual, or yous tin check your phone's Nearly settings. An online search will display the blazon of network associated with the telephone model.
- iPhones accept the model number listed on the back of the phone's housing, though the number can be difficult to see if you have a blackness or infinite-grayness version.
6
Check your telephone's specifications. The documentation that came with your phone should have a list of specifications that say whether or non your phone uses GSM or CDMA. You can also cheque the specifications for your phone manufacturer'south website.
- If you no longer have your phone's model, attempt visiting the phone manufacturer's site, and looking up the type of phone yous have (east.chiliad., iPhone 7, jet blackness, 128 gigabytes). You lot can narrow it downward from there.
7
Telephone call your current carrier. If you take a current carrier, you can call them to ask whether your telephone is CDMA or GSM. They will nigh likely demand your phone's IMEI or MEID number, equally well every bit your name and other account information.
- Once again, if your telephone is unlocked and has never used a specific carrier, you'll take to look up the telephone'south model number. Calling a carrier won't work.

Add together New Question

Question

Are there different sized sim cards?

Yes, there are. Equally electronic circuits are becoming smaller in size and weight, sim cards come in two types - micro sim and nano sim.
Question

I take a Samsung Galaxy S3 with a SIM card slot that was used with a Verizon program. Then what network does this run on? GSM or CDMA?

Some phones support both GSM and CDMA. In this case, the phone works with any GSM carrier, but will non necessarily work with whatsoever CDMA carrier.
Question

I have a Galaxy S3 that I bought from Verizon. Co-ordinate to what I read is is CDMA; information technology also has what I think is a SIM card - that means it's GSM. Plain it can't exist both. How to resolve this conundrum?

Some phones support both GSM and CDMA. In this case, the telephone works with any GSM carrier, but volition not necessarily work with whatsoever CDMA carrier.
Question

Does Verizon also have GSM?

Verizon is slowly converting to GSM, but rather than just accepting GSM or CDMA phones, they support CDMA and cross-uniform phones, with a few exceptions.
Question

Does my Sony Xperia Z1 compact phone work with both GSM and CDMA?

I'yard gonna approximate you are GSM. If your carrier is Verizon or Sprint, y'all can consider yourself as CDMA. Another manner to check is to go to Almost Phone; if yous see MEID or ESN, you are a CDMA telephone. If you detect an IMEI, you are most likely GSM. At the end of the day, when in Costa Rica become a Movistar SIM bill of fare (inexpensive). Don't go the Verizon/ATT roam $10.00-a-day road. You volition pass plenty of places to recharge your Movistar carte.
Question

My iPhone vi is from Straight Talk. Is information technology a CDMA or GSM phone?

Bonny Adams

Community Answer

Straight Talk uses GSM and CDMA. Straight talk uses all four major carriers in the U.s.a. to provide their Services. Verizon and Sprint use CDMA, while AT&T and T-Mobile use GSM. Information technology's up to the users to decide which carrier towers they want to use.
Question

How do I find out if the S6 I have from Sprint is CDMA or GSM?

FallingFromWillows 511

Community Answer

Every phone has the card option "Nigh Phone" in the phone'due south settings. This is where the important and identifying factors of your phone tin can exist plant. Look for one of the following: MEID, ESN, or IMEI. MEID or ESN = CDMA. IMEI = GSM.
Question

How do I know if my phone is GSM if it has an IMEI?

MEID or ESN = CDMA. IMEI = GSM., and so if your phone has IMEI that means it is a GSM.
Question

I have a Milky way five telephone which was connected to a Tracfone which is now unlocked. is this telephone uniform to a GSM network?

If the phone has a sim menu and is unlocked, so it should exist uniform with any GSM network.
Question

What exercise I do if my phone is not accepting my SIM from Nigeria?

Sell the phone or trade it. If information technology doesn't utilise a sim card it wont work there.

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GSM phones are about commonly used throughout Europe and Asia, and are normally preferred while traveling due to their modularity.
When y'all take your telephone into a carrier's store, you lot may be able to make up one's mind whether information technology supports both networks. Some phones, such as certain models of Verizon phones, back up both CDMA and GSM networks via multiple SIM card slots.

If y'all can't notice your phone's model number anywhere, y'all may demand to have the phone into a manufacturer store (e.g., an iPhone would go to an Apple store and a Samsung Galaxy would go to a Samsung dealer) to have a professional determine your phone's model and network type. This is commonly complimentary.

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Article Summary X

iPhone:
ane. Open Settings.
2. Tap Full general.
iii. Tap Nigh.
4. If you see MEID or ESN, your phone is CDMA.
5. If you see IMEI, your telephone is GSM.

Android:
ane. Open Settings.
2. Tap Most phone.
3. Tap Status.
4. If you come across MEID or ESN, your telephone is CDMA.
5. If you lot see IMEI, your phone is GSM.

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