Phone Problem

[#1]

Got a new phone for the missus.... basic talk and text job... ALCATEL 3080G 

Mainly because, her current phone is ancient... running on 2G... and the battery will not last much longer.

Simple thing to do... swap over the SIM card and away you go...... Oh. no you don`t.... the sim card is also ancient.. T-Mobile,...before they made the small and smaller versions. 

                   So.. it won`t fit..

Not too much of a problem, because I intended to shift her over to ASDA PAYG SIM as it is cheaper than current T-mobile aka EE ...........

Insert ASDA Sim card.......

          ................              replace battery ( already 3/4 charged )

Switch phone on... and try to register the SIM with ASDA.

During registration.. you have to wait for them to send you an Activation code.  ( presumably to the email address - but could equally be sent to the phone it activates).

NEITHER arrived. so can`t "activate" the SIM card.

so.. thinking laterally... I`ll see if my SIM card will work in the phone... swapped it over.. and... NOTHING>. no contacts showing.. ..

One thing I did notice.. is that the signal level indicator has a red X on it and a figure 1... 

which I do not understand.

                             because when I put MY sim in... it also showed the red X and the figure 1..

My phone works perfectly well indoors and out doors...yet with my sim in the ALCATEL phone it shows the red X..

can anyone suggest why this is.. and what is wrong... and what I should do to get the phone to work.

Thanks

[#2]

Possibly a silly question @shutter , but is the new phone unlocked?  (i.e. not tied to another provider)

Old SIMs can be cut down to the correct size using a sharp pair of scissors if you're careful.

[#3]

@RobPN I did ask the guy who was selling it... and he said it could be used on any network..(his listing said it was unlocked too) .. however.. on receipt. amongst the new packs ( unopened) was a new EE sim card...

I`m not "aux fait" with this unlocking business... though I do understand that certain phones are like PN routers...

[#4]

In that case @shutter why don't you stick the provided EE SIM into the phone and see what happens.

If it works with that then there's a good chance it's locked to EE which is how Argos etc. often sell cheap phones, which are usually £10 - £20 cheaper than unlocked ones.

[#5]

@RobPN  OK  done that... still got the red x on the signal level....

On start up... there was no message saying the phone was locked,... or requesting a SIM number.. so I went to the Settings and found this...

I have adjusted the contrast to show up better... it does not have a tick in the square box... so am assuming that it is not locked.

[#6]

@shutter 

Sometimes with piggy back providers you need to manually configure the APN settings. Worth a look?

https://mobile.asda.com/help/phones-devices/apn-mobile-settings

Edit.

Maybe this is only for mobile data? I certainly had to do it several years ago on an old phone when I swapped from orange to 3.

Edit 2

This may help detrmine if the phone is actually locked:  ttps://www.simplyunlocked.co.uk/unlocking-guides/general-alcatel-unlocking-instructions/

[#7]

Sorry I can't help with that @shutter , but on P.29 of the manual here (P16 of the pdf) it says the X means no SIM installed ...

https://www.manua.ls/alcatel/3080-4g/manual?p=16

[#8]

@Baldrick1  Haven`t got a clue what APN is...  ! . but that linkage only says for ANDROID or Apple phones...

 I think the main problem is the RED X on the Signal Level indicator, because when I plug my own SIM in the new phone it still s hows the RED X on the Sign level indicator..and it should show at least 3 bars on my Three sim ( as it does on the Microsoft Lumia phone).. Also.. it should show up my contacts list, but that does not appear on screen either. (shows  "Empty" )

[#9]

@RobPN   Well, if I take out the sim card.. and put the battery in.. and power up... it says   "Insert SIM"  .    it also shows the rubbish X that your linky shows.. with no signal level bars .......

which , again, is strange cos there should be "service" when I put MY sim card from MY phone in the ALCATEL phone  ! .

[#10]

Strange indeed @shutter .

Does the stuff on P51 (and following pages) of the manual linked above give any clues?

[#11]

@RobPN  Not really... cos they don`t mean anything to me.... ! ! ... e.g. on  "Network Connections"... it says.. "you can set your own network connection".... but it don`t tell me how to do it,... or even if I should... or when I should because something else is not working properly... etc etc etc..

[#12]

OK @shutter , I was just wondering if the phone was set to, say, 2g, and there was no 2g service available at your location.

[#13]

@RobPN In fact... it does not give me that option ! ! ! ..

[#14 · Accepted solution]

@RobPN  & @Baldrick1   Thanks for the input guys.... contacted the seller via ebay returns... and he quickly accepted the return...( even though his listing said no returns).. and printed a returns postage label. !.

So , it`ll be going back next week...

Sham really, cos it was a nice phone and in very good condition.. like new... even had the sticky plastic on the screen !.

Now looking for another of same type on ebay... got a couple in mind...

Thanks fellas ! 

[#15]

@shutterYou do know that 2G phones aren't even a thing any more? People use 4 or 5G?