Patent ID: 8249649

Claim:
An apparatus comprising: a code division multiple access (CDMA) antenna that is arranged and configured to transmit and receive communication signals; a global system for mobile communications (GSM) anenna; a memory that is configured to: store multiple mobile equipment identifiers (MEIDs), multiple activation protocols and instructions, wherein each MEID comprises an identifier that is uniquely recognizable on one of a plurality of networks and wherein the activation protocols comprise protocols for uniquely activating the apparatus on one of a plurality of different networks each of which have different communication protocols, store multiple access point network (APN) configurations, wherein each of the APN configurations comprises protocols for uniquely activating the apparatus on one of a plurality of different GSM networks each of which has different communication protocols; and a processor that is operably coupled to the CDMA antenna, the GSM antenna and to the memory and that is arranged and configured to execute the instructions stored on the memory to: enable a user to select a network from the multiple different networks on which to activate and operate the apparatus, activate and operate the apparatus on a selected network using one of the MEIDs recognizable by the selected network and the activation protocol for the selected network, enable the user to switch from the selected network to a GSM network on which to activate and operate the apparatus, recognize a presence of a subscriber identity module (SIM) chip associated with a specific GSM network, and activate and operate the apparatus on the specific GSM network using the APN configuration for the specific GSM network.