Sorry, The Number You Dialled Has Expired

[RDN]

A friend bought a SIM card in China - where she is now - so I could call her. It worked fine yesterday, but now all I get is: "The number you dialled has expired".

I know she has to remove the SIM card from her phone to call people in China, and yesterday I got a similar message, something like "The phone you called is power-off" - bad English, I know, but that's what it was.

Anyone know what this "expired" is all about. I can only think that after a period of not being on the China network, the network assumes the SIM is dead. But I'm only guessing because how can it differentiate between a dead SIM and one in a phone that is turned off? Is it based on time? i.e. phone off for more than 12 hours = expired SIM?

[Crossy]

Can't speak for China but the UK system knows when a phone has been turned off (the phone tells the system when you push the off button) and triggers the 'phone is off' message. If a phone has not been heard from for a while (like it's gone out of range) you get 'number cannot be reached' or something similar.

The 'expired' message may just be bad English for 'cannot be reached'.

Or maybe I'm totally wrong !!!

[Thetyim]

"The number you dialled has expired" translates into

Send her some more money

[RDN]

"The number you dialled has expired" translates into

Send her some more money

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hmm, I thought the recorded voice sounded familiar (You cheeky bugger!)

Actually there are two recorded messages I have heard. The second one says, in almost perfect English: "The number you delled has expaired". It's almost as if this Chinese person cannot say the vowel "I". Very strange.

I just tried another number - the same as her number but with different last two digits, and I got: "Sorry, the number you dialled does not exist".

Of course, all these messages are preceded by a message in Chinese - I assume the equivalent message.

[lampard10]

"The number you dialled has expired" translates into

Send her some more money

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

Hmm, I thought the recorded voice sounded familiar (You cheeky bugger!)

Actually there are two recorded messages I have heard. The second one says, in almost perfect English: "The number you delled has expaired". It's almost as if this Chinese person cannot say the vowel "I". Very strange.

I just tried another number - the same as her number but with different last two digits, and I got: "Sorry, the number you dialled does not exist".

Of course, all these messages are preceded by a message in Chinese - I assume the equivalent message.

<{POST_SNAPBACK}>

You think that's good. The other day I called my wife mobile to mobile, and, in the middle of the call I got the message 'The number you called is not available'

I tried again. Once more the same. Halfway through the call the same message. Third try I just said to my wife 'Call me on the home phone'

Home phone rings. I pick up the reciever to be greeted by the message' The number you called is not available'

" I'm not calling,you are ' I screamed into the phone and launched the offending article across the hallway.

Apparantly my wife heard everything her end. New acronym T.I.T.T.