Cell phone fun

I was happy to find out I could still use my old cell phone when I came back to Korea. I paid a good bit for it back in 2005 -- it would have been a shame if I couldn't.

Here's something I've been thinking about, and can now explain at least a little better: why can't Korean cell phones work in the U.S., and vice versa?

I still can't give a technical answer, but very basically, phones in the the U.S. and China use their smart cards as their IDs, while in Korea the phone has its own ID. That's kind of neat in a way, because then you can use the smart card slot for something else.

In my phone, for example, I have a bank chip. It allows me to check my balance without dialing a phone number (which would of course give information in Korea). It's also possible to check exchange rates and even do wire transfers though my phone.

I like it because it's a lot less stressful than having to talk to someone in Korea or wait until they dig someone up who can speak English. I just wonder what other sorts of cards are out there.