Quote:
Originally Posted by Bobby95
Will I still be able to get the unlock code for free? It is a Vodafone branded handset, by the way...
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I would have thought so. Lets get this right. You have a Vodafone contract. This means you can use the SIM card in any unlocked phone to use the account of that contract, or any phone locked to Vodafone.
Your
N95 while not the phone supplied with your contract
is locked to Vodafone. Meaning you can use any Vodafone SIM but not any other network providers SIM.
You need the phone's IMEI. This is the serial number of the phone and stays the same unique number whatever SIM you use with it. Type *#06# from standby and the phone will give it you. Then phone 191 (free) from your locked phone to gain your unlock code from Vodafone.
A Vodafone branded handset means that it still has the annoying Vodafone version of the firmware (v11 with Vodafone garbage bolted on). A branded phone can be an unlocked phone and a 'de-branded' phone can be a locked one. A phone bought without a contract from a high street store should be both unlocked and unbranded (same as de-branded but never branded in the first place IYSWIM). It is this that most
N95 owners hope to aspire and achieve.
A branded phone won't let you upgrade via Nokia Software Updater (NSU) because Vodafone (or any other network provider) haven't bothered to bolt their junk to v20 (the latest) firmware. Sheer laziness and bad customer relations IMO. To 'de-brand' it you need a generic product code for your
N95, this can be changed using a piece of PC software called Nemesis Service Suite (NSS). Then upgrade (or re-install) the latest firmware. This will purge your phone of all Vodafone software. Your
N95 will run faster with fewer 'hang ups' and crashes. (I can't unfortunately say none). You can now use all the
N95's features such as VoIP, SIP etc. Things purposely disabled by operators with their branded firmware.
The settings for the internet browser and multi media messages (MMS) are now Vodafone Live! (to Vodafone Live! WAP pages but
NOT the internet generally) Vodafone Internet GPRS (the internet but
NOT Vodafone Live!) and Vodafone MMS (for MMS settings only). These are determined by the SIM card you have in the phone on power up not the phone.
De-branding and using NSS instructions can be found here in the forum (on page 2):
N95 Tips
As far as I know the only difference between a generic unbranded unlocked
N95 and a once Vodafone branded and locked
N95 that has now been de-branded and unlocked is that the product code in the phone is different to the one printed on the sticker behind the battery rather than the same in the once Vodafone one. A word of caution here. Once you have de-branded your phone it is worth while changing the product code back to the one found behind your battery on the sticker because a it may invalidate the warranty should you need a warranty repair. It is a grey area. This does mean to update your firmware you have to swap it back again, but this is a minor inconvenience compared to paying for a repair.
I will stand corrected if I'm wrong here, its only my understanding of 'De-branded' 'Un-branded' and locked and unlocked as I see them, technically I could be at fault but for practical purposes I believe I'm correct.