Managing the phone cost by keeping 2-3 mobiles? And more ironically you dont know which one is ringing. People find it difficult to switch between service providers but they still want to minimize their cellphone cost. There are network problems with one service provider and at the same place the other works surprisinglly well. So i am in a deep dielnema which one to go for ? the solution is simple go with 2 sim cards. Yes now you can very easily use 2 sim cards at a time and that need not be only gsm or only cdma.
We start with the transitions that the dual sim phone has undergone. It's basically divided into 4-5 stages.1st Gen (offline switching) - required cutting of the SIM cards to fit a special IC template but required the phone to be restarted to switch operators/networks and worked on most handsets (should be avoided now).
2nd Gen (online switching) - could switch between operators 'online' without restarting the handset but still required careful cutting of the SIM cards (NOT recommended).
3rd Gen - don't require any cutting of your SIM cards but only work on a limited variety of handsets with sufficient 'headroom' to squeeze the folded adapter inside (usually 1-2 mm thicker).
4th Gen - the 2-4 original SIMs are copied (SIM cloning) to a single blank 64K SIM with extra capacity and will work on virtually all (98-99%) of GSM handsets (US$ 40 - 50).
Most of these versions can usually be purchased for around US$15-25 (Rs.600 - 950) in those countries that use GSM networks.
Let's now find out how actually the sim cloning is possible,what could be the apprehensions once you get on with this cloning.Cutting of your SIM card usually voids the operator warranty and is not considered a legal modification in most (over 3/4th of all) countries.It can also accidentally damage the SIM permanently and the only solution is to register it as stolen/lost and buy a new SIM with your old number on it.
Cloning of your SIM card is illegal in most countries also! This could invite troubles because the subscriber reserves the exclusive rights to permanently disconnect your no. and you become the defaulter of the company.
So the next question is how do the service providers know about it.This can ONLY be auto-detected if you try to switch on both SIMs together. It can be manually detected if you switch between SIMs and the handsets are far away (e.g., different cities) so the operator can realise you could not have travelled many km in a few seconds.Historically cloning has been one of the biggest sources of fraud but has many useful and legitimate applications too (e.g., multiple numbers on a single handset or multiple handsets with a single number like landlines).Always backup your SIM data before attempting such unauthorised modifications.
Next comes the 3rd gen variation that works for Nokia-like handsets that have removable back covers has the 2 slots built into a customised back cover itself and is not destructive for the SIM cards. However this is only available for a very limited range of models (usually about 1/4th - 1/3rd of the entire offering). All the add-ons are limited by the handsets to only allow one SIM at a time to be on (ready to get calls)..Moving on we take a look at the OEM dual SIMs.The handsets with dual SIM built-in are the best bet since no warranties are voided and they are completely legal. They have an added benefit of being 'synchronous' (both the SIMs are on simultaneously so you can get calls on either one) unlike any of the other add-ons that are 'asynchronous' (requiring manual switching between SIMs). You can even setup automatic switching every 5-10 min between the 2 SIMs but that still will mean one of them will be off network at any given time and thus unable to receive calls (vmail or call fwd will continue to work since that's usually not SIM related).A sync (dual standby) dual SIM handset must have dual transceivers and display dual network bars on screen. A regular GSM handset (single transceiver) can NEVER be converted to a sync dual SIM (only async dual SIM is possible with the adaptors mentioned above).Obviously battery life (talktime and standby time) will be reduced when both SIMs are on. The amount of this reduction is around 1/4th - 1/3rd in most cases.
The problem is that none of the well known phone manufacturers had launched dual SIM handsets till the end of quater 2.Only some relatively unknown Chinese companies are selling such mobiles in a few Asian countries.But now we have the giant players like Reliance, Lg and Spice have entered and this assures a very bright future in the competitive sense.Spice people also hinted at the possibility of the company launching a 'people's phone' to cost less than Rs 1,000. They said Spice would likely start manufacturing these low-cost handsets in 2008. Meanwhile the dual-mode phone has been launched in two variants: the D-88, which supports both GSM and CDMA active connections at the same time; and the D-80, which supports two GSM active connections, and is useful for travellers operating in the local area. The D-80 carries a price tag of Rs 9,849 while the D-88 is yet to hit the market. Also Reliance has launched a entry level phone with such features to capture the gsm market .
The fututre seems to be bright but there are still there are areas which need attention and need to be worked upon like the size of such dual size phone.Over 99% of handsets are single SIM currently. You could have dual SIM & dual band handsets or dual SIM & dual mode & dual band, etc. The ideal handset for global roaming would be dual SIM, dual mode, tri-band or quad band but will not be available until 2010 or later depending on commercial considerations.This is very much possible and may be you would be having such feature pack dual sim, quad band before the decided date because ingenious minds like you would always be hunting for a new idea and once it cliks the jobs done. So go for it!!!!!!!!!
Prepared by: Ravi Shah
U. V. Patel College of Engineering
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