1. Shekeese's Avatar
    So here's my question. I have been using World versions of the BB from AT&T for about 5 years now. I travel a lot, so I never even think about switching networks or anything....I'm not sure how the World Phone works...but whereever I go...out of the country or in little podunk towns in the US, my phone ALWAYS works. Always.

    Will I lose that if I switch FROM a World Phone?
    11-02-11 08:49 AM
  2. Phill_UK's Avatar
    There's no such thing as a 'World' phone, that will work on all global networks.

    What you will have is a GSM phone with 3G bands 1, 2, 5 & 6, which will work fine on 3G around most of the world.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    11-02-11 08:59 AM
  3. anubis20's Avatar
    I think the AT&T 3g bands are the ones that are most commonly used... Ive been to colombia and honduras this year with my TMobile 9900 and i only got EDGE
    11-02-11 09:36 AM
  4. lowtrac's Avatar
    There's no such thing as a 'World' phone, that will work on all global networks.

    What you will have is a GSM phone with 3G bands 1, 2, 5 & 6, which will work fine on 3G around most of the world.

    Posted from my CrackBerry at wapforums.crackberry.com
    Yep. It'll work the same as your current device.

    Verizon markets some of their devices as "world" phones because they have GSM radios in them as well as CDMA or whatever else they're using on their network. All AT&T devices are GSM.
    11-02-11 10:19 AM
  5. Shekeese's Avatar
    I only have AT&T, never have been on Verizon. And I have always gotten the WORLD phone from AT&T...I have had a 9000, Tour...now 9700...ALL World Phones.

    I'm not sure what these terms CDMA and GSM means...can somebody tell me in layman's terms what differences I will see in phone service going from a WORLD phone BB to a NON-WORLD phone BB and how it may affect my service while I travel?
    11-02-11 10:33 AM
  6. Crucial_Xtreme's Avatar
    The term "World Phone" came when CDMA carriers weren't including GSM radio's in their phones. Hence you were limited to home soil for use or buying a different phone for overseas.

    As for AT&T 9900 phones, it will work overseas on EDGE & most 3G networks. )
    11-02-11 10:42 AM
  7. qbnkelt's Avatar
    Code division multiple access (CDMA) is what Verizon and a small number of countries use.
    Global System for Mobile communication (GSM) is used more extensively.
    Verizon uses both in their world phones.

    What countries do you frequently visit? You might want to check what bands their phones use and compare to the bands on the phone you plan to use. The easiest way to do this is to visit mobile websites for the country you plan to go and in the technical descriptions of the phones you will see what bands they're using. Compare that with the bands on the phone you plan to use.

    An inelegant approach, but one I would suggest.
    11-02-11 10:46 AM
  8. Pete6#WP's Avatar
    GSM - Global system for Mobiles it is what most carriers use in the US and worldwide.

    CDMA - Code Division Multiple Access, used by Verizon, Sprint and a few others in the US. It is not widely used in the rest of the world but, you can get a signal in some cities. CDMA is a later system than GSM, some say better too, but by the time it had come out, most carriers in most countries had standardised on GSM.

    AT&T use GSM as their system so provided you have Global Roaming enabled on your phone contract, then you will get a signal and can make calls with your new phone wherever there is a GSM signal, which as I said, is nearly everywhere.

    Most worldwide carriers use the same connection bands as AT&T so where there is HSPA (fastest), 3G (pretty fast), EDGE (slow), GPRS (snail) data, you will also be able to send and receive emails and browse the web. BBM will also work when you phone conects to one of the above.

    In very poor data signal areas you may see GSM displayed and then you may be limited to just phone calls and SMS text messages. However as soon as you get to GPRS again, the other services will automatically be restored.

    Using T-Mobile whilst travelling will result in you nevergetting 3G for data since T-Mobile uses a bifferent data band for its 3g and above data signals. Phone and SMS will work fine though.

    I hope this is all clear but if not, please say so and we can take any bits you missed more slowly.
    11-02-11 10:46 AM
  9. dougsorensen's Avatar
    So here's my question. I have been using World versions of the BB from AT&T for about 5 years now. I travel a lot, so I never even think about switching networks or anything....I'm not sure how the World Phone works...but whereever I go...out of the country or in little podunk towns in the US, my phone ALWAYS works. Always.

    Will I lose that if I switch FROM a World Phone?
    AT&T started using the World Phone label when they switched from TDMA to GSM. All this means is that the phone can work on several frequencies. All but the cheapest phones that they offer have quad band GSM (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900) and tri-band 3G (WCDMA, sometimes called UMTS, 850 / 1900 / 2100). The GSM bands and the 2100MHz 3G band are the important ones for roaming. Any phone you buy that has these frequencies will get the "World Phone" splash screen and work nearly anywhere you go. I'm open to correction, but I don't think BB currenty sells a GSM phone that doesn't have these frequencies. Even the newer BBs on Verizon and Sprint have quad-band GSM and Tri-band WCDMA capability (stick to models 9800 and higher, if you want to switch to one of these carriers).

    If you are considering buying a phone and are concerned about international roaming, look up the phone model here Phone Scoop. The frequencies are the first spec listed in Phone Scoop. If the phone you are considering has the frequencies listed above, you'll get the same roaming that you currently enjoy.
    11-02-11 12:08 PM
  10. Shekeese's Avatar
    THANKS DOUG! Phone Scoop helped a BUNCH
    11-02-11 12:42 PM
  11. data77's Avatar
    AT&T started using the World Phone label when they switched from TDMA to GSM. All this means is that the phone can work on several frequencies. All but the cheapest phones that they offer have quad band GSM (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900) and tri-band 3G (WCDMA, sometimes called UMTS, 850 / 1900 / 2100). The GSM bands and the 2100MHz 3G band are the important ones for roaming. Any phone you buy that has these frequencies will get the "World Phone" splash screen and work nearly anywhere you go. I'm open to correction, but I don't think BB currenty sells a GSM phone that doesn't have these frequencies. Even the newer BBs on Verizon and Sprint have quad-band GSM and Tri-band WCDMA capability (stick to models 9800 and higher, if you want to switch to one of these carriers).

    If you are considering buying a phone and are concerned about international roaming, look up the phone model here Phone Scoop. The frequencies are the first spec listed in Phone Scoop. If the phone you are considering has the frequencies listed above, you'll get the same roaming that you currently enjoy.
    Nice! So World Phone is:
    GSM (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900) AND 2100MHz

    OR

    GSM (850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900) OR 2100MHz
    11-02-11 05:02 PM
  12. jfmanzo's Avatar
    GSM - Global system for Mobiles it is what most carriers use in the US and worldwide.
    AT&T and T-Mobile are the ONLY US carriers that use GSM. The rest are CDMA.
    11-02-11 06:49 PM
  13. SwitchBeach's Avatar
    AT&T and T-Mobile are the ONLY US carriers that use GSM. The rest are CDMA.
    What about Cincinnati Bell and Simple Mobile?
    11-02-11 07:12 PM
  14. cold war kid's Avatar
    What about Cincinnati Bell and Simple Mobile?
    He probably meant National Carriers. Cincinnati Bell is a regional carrier and SIMple Mobile is a MVNO.
    11-02-11 08:13 PM
  15. gariac's Avatar
    If anyone from T-Mob is reading this, they should really encourage RIM to add the additional AT&T UMTS bands so that we could roam on their 3G network.

    I was reading up on UMTS (W-CDMA actually) versus EDGE. It seems UMTS has a 5KM limit, which is why in rural areas you only find EDGE.

    My two year contract is running out soon, so I could upgrade, but the technology hasn't moved enough to make me do so. [To be honest, I managed to break my 9700 and got a 9780 off of craigslist, so I'm only one generation behind.] Quad or Penta UMTS and the ability to run Android apps would seal the deal.
    11-03-11 12:50 AM
  16. otacon#AC's Avatar
    9900-
    GSM: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
    UMTS: 900, 1700/2100, 2100 MHz

    9930-
    CDMA: 800, 1900 MHz
    GSM: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz
    UMTS: 900, 2100 MHz
    data77 likes this.
    11-03-11 01:01 AM
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