total noob ?

[LJS]

  i know nothing and was wondering where to start gathering information to "test"  a cell phone thats lying about my house doing nothing.
nope ive never had cell service myself. im retired & enjoy computer goofing & thought this cell stuff might be fun to have a try at making it work for more than emergency calling. ; )

thanks from this total newbie

[godaigo]

What do you mean by "test"? What type of cell phone, etc. ? I'm sure that some of the people on here with extensive cell phone knowledge would be happy to help, but the more info you can provide the better the response (or likelihood of a response) will be! Cheers....

[Cobra]

I think godaigo has all the questions covered..

[LJS]

 uh sorry noob - newbie,noobie/novice : without a clue : )

the phone i have is a  Motorola flip phone - silver/gray colors & there seems to be no visible numbers or print to indicate model that i can find.
it has a short antanae that screws out [approx 1.5"]
there is a volume control on the outside on the left upper side
if i could find how to remove any battery pac im guessing the numbers might be under that [?]

on the front of the closed phone it has the motorola logo that is just below the window with the message "No Service"
on the upper right front is the light that flashes red,yellow or green - depending on service status.

my goal is to see if this phone might be put into service of sending & possibly receiving calls.
by "test" i meant free phone use. Im unfamiliar with phon hack terms  in time i will learn that too - perhaps

thanks let me know how to get all the needed info to get this motorola to call more than the emergency number. : )

uh its  att well now a combo of att/cingu

[LJS]

 I will try to find the box this phone came in so i can get some info for the good ppl here to respond to.

 the motorola flip/fold phone seems to have a built in battery pak thats not removeable & it was a 2 year old model without any cards or sims. just 2 ports on the bottom. 1 pair for the charger - external power & another longer slot that seems to be where some type of cable might be plugged in.

thanks for looking

perhaps someone could direct me to some sites to read some information about making cell phones work. ?