[jieming]

I just bought a GSM Palm Pre Plus from ATT with no contract and no SIM card. I have a T-Mobile SIM card I want to use with it.

My first question is this: I am in the US. Should I activate the phone with an ATT SIM card before I unlock it? What are the advantages to this over bypassing activation?

Once I make that decision, I will try to unlock it.

Thanks.

[jieming]

Let me give more detail on my question:

For one thing, people say that if I activate with ATT, they will charge for a data plan. I assume this means that they will charge the owner of the SIM card I use for activation. Is that right?

Once I unlock the phone and start using a T-Mobile SIM card, ATT will stop charging, right?

Will I have access to ATT's app catalog after unlocking?

According to
Developing on an Unactivated Device - Palm Developer Center
it seems that I won't be able to use the phone if I bypass activation. Is that correct?

What implications does this decision have for GPS usage?

[verwon]

No, AT&T would not stop charging, just because you stopped using the SIM card, the phone has to be on a data plan and it is charged for every month, regardless of how much you do or do not use the phone/SIM card.

I am not sure how it would work, if you could activate on their SIM, without setting it up on a plan, but I think some people have been able to, as long as that particular card was already active and on a data plan.

You may want to do a search for information on the Meta Doctor, it may be what you need.

[ryleyinstl]

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[jieming]

I was thinking of borrowing an ATT customer's SIM card just to activate it. Does this change the advice?