Help switching wife's Tracfone to unlocked GSM MOTO G (2013) 16GB

[markf1971]

I just bought a 2013 unlocked GSM MOTO G 16GB to send to a friend overseas. Before I send it to him I wanted to experiment with the possibility of switching my wife's Tracfone over to the MOTO G just so she can get a feel for it. She currently has an LG 840G (non-smartphone) that was Tracfone's first device that allowed WIFI usage.

I realize that if the SIM sizes are different and/or dumbphone vs smartphone may prohibit our experimentation. BUT, I just wanted to give her a trial run to see what she is missing by not having a smartphone or a great OS like Android.

Any help would be appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Rukbat]

Tracfone uses proprietary firmware to keep track of the airtime left - you can't use a non-Tracfone on a Tracfone account.

 

[markf1971]

Tracfone uses proprietary firmware to keep track of the airtime left - you can't use a non-Tracfone on a Tracfone account.

Could we switch over to one of their 'other' services like Straight Talk or Net10?

 

[Rukbat]

Could we switch over to one of their 'other' services like Straight Talk or Net10?

Yes - except for one problem - region lock. If the phone is region locked (I don't know if it is), it'll lock to the region in which it's first activated. So if you connect to AT&T or TMobile through American Movil (ST or Net10), it'll lock to North America and won't work in Europe, Asia, wherever. If there's no region lock on it, pop in a SIM and it should be good to go. ($45+fees and taxes for one month plus $7 for the microSIM.)

 

[markf1971]

Yes - except for one problem - region lock. If the phone is region locked (I don't know if it is), it'll lock to the region in which it's first activated. So if you connect to AT&T or TMobile through American Movil (ST or Net10), it'll lock to North America and won't work in Europe, Asia, wherever. If there's no region lock on it, pop in a SIM and it should be good to go. ($45+fees and taxes for one month plus $7 for the microSIM.)

Rukbat,

How can I determine if the Moto G has region lock?

Also, if we can 'export' my wife's minutes and airtime from Tracfone to one of their other brands like Straight Talk, could we then swap from her Tracfone branded LG device to an unlocked phone of our choosing?

 

[Rukbat]

Rukbat,

How can I determine if the Moto G has region lock?

Check with people technically familiar with the model - either on our Moto G forum or on XDA's.

Also, if we can 'export' my wife's minutes and airtime from Tracfone to one of their other brands like Straight Talk, could we then swap from her Tracfone branded LG device to an unlocked phone of our choosing?

You can't transfer the minutes. Each "brand" is operated independently.