Hi all. I've just found out about this brilliant phone. Had no idea it existed. I've always liked the Motorola Milestone (qwerty physical keyboards are a must to me) however i ended up getting the wrong version of the milestone (european) with the wrong 3G bands for my carrier so i could only get Edge speeds.
Anyways, it seems like the Droid 2 Global version uses simcards. I live in the Dominican Republic, Claro (my carrier) runs on the 850/1900 bands and it seems like the D2G can work with them, in theory. I've been reading a couple of threads regarding this though, it seems like those bands have been locked out by verizon so people don't use it on other US carriers such as AT&T which happens to run on the same bands i need (850/1900). But others say its the carrier ID that has been locked out. I read something about a user being able to get 3G speeds on Chile, but i've no idea what bands he was using.
What i want to know is, if i ordered a Droid 2 Global phone, would i be getting 3G speeds using my Claro simcard here after having it sim-unlocked?
There's also the Milestone 2 of course, but they seem to cost $500+ plus they dont specify which bands the phone works with. I dont want to end up buying the wrong phone version again. Also, It seemsl ike the droid 2 global is being sold for a less ($300-400).
XtriFe said:
Hi all. I've just found out about this brilliant phone. Had no idea it existed. I've always liked the Motorola Milestone (qwerty physical keyboards are a must to me) however i ended up getting the wrong version of the milestone (european) with the wrong 3G bands for my carrier so i could only get Edge speeds.
Anyways, it seems like the Droid 2 Global version uses simcards. I live in the Dominican Republic, Claro (my carrier) runs on the 850/1900 bands and it seems like the D2G can work with them, in theory. I've been reading a couple of threads regarding this though, it seems like those bands have been locked out by verizon so people don't use it on other US carriers such as AT&T which happens to run on the same bands i need (850/1900). But others say its the carrier ID that has been locked out. I read something about a user being able to get 3G speeds on Chile, but i've no idea what bands he was using.
What i want to know is, if i ordered a Droid 2 Global phone, would i be getting 3G speeds using my Claro simcard here after having it sim-unlocked?
There's also the Milestone 2 of course, but they seem to cost $500+ plus they dont specify which bands the phone works with. I dont want to end up buying the wrong phone version again. Also, It seemsl ike the droid 2 global is being sold for a less ($300-400).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.gsmarena.com/motorola_droid_2_global-3636.php
read the spec
I am using my SIM-unlocked D2G fine here, on a carrier that uses 850MHz UMTS.
The Milestone 2, as far as I know, is still only available in a 900/2100 UMTS variant so far.
From what I gather, the lock Verizon put on the radio to prevent use on US GSM carriers is based on the MCC (mobile country code) number associated with networks based in the USA, and not the frequencies themselves. In effect, once unlocked the phone will work with any GSM provider (on a supported frequency), except those based in the U.S. This would explain why the AT&T 850MHz network (MCC 301) doesn't work, whereas the Telstra 850MHz network I use (MCC 505) does.
One complication about buying a Droid 2 Global now, is that from various reports on this forum, some devices don't respond to their SIM unlock codes (!) and are effectively unlockable. If I were buying a D2G now for use on a GSM carrier, I'd only buy one that has already been unlocked - wouldn't want to take the chance on getting a phone that is unlockable. This might be why some are being listed for dirt cheap!
helmutiffe said:
I am using my SIM-unlocked D2G fine here, on a carrier that uses 850MHz UMTS.
From what I gather, the lock Verizon put on the radio to prevent use on US GSM carriers is based on the MCC (mobile country code) number associated with networks based in the USA, and not the frequencies themselves. In effect, once unlocked the phone will work with any GSM provider (on a supported frequency), except those based in the U.S. This would explain why the AT&T 850MHz network (MCC 301) doesn't work, whereas the Telstra 850MHz network I use (MCC 505) does.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Brilliant, thats what i wanted to know, many thanks !
helmutiffe said:
One complication about buying a Droid 2 Global now, is that from various reports on this forum, some devices don't respond to their SIM unlock codes (!) and are effectively unlockable. If I were buying a D2G now for use on a GSM carrier, I'd only buy one that has already been unlocked - wouldn't want to take the chance on getting a phone that is unlockable. This might be why some are being listed for dirt cheap!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow thats not good is it. Thanks for the advice, i'll make sure the phone is unlocked. I've never really understood how phones are unlocked by third party anyways. But I understand you can have them unlocked by giving verizon a call and under certain conditions, they'll provide the unlock code for free.
I was in the Dominican Republic last week with my D2G and it worked perfectly (unlocked using Rogers Canada service). Claro service sucked a bit (coverage wise) but worked fine (3G), Orange (EDGE) seemed a bit better where I was.
I am pretty sure you will be fine AS LONG AS you get unlockable/unlocked D2G.
ok one last question,
does anyone know if a droid with bad esn will work ok with a different carrier's simcard if unlocked?
I would assume droids with bad esn will be going for cheaper on ebay
bas esn mean d phone could be stolen so it will b a hassle to clear the esn
How can one know if the phone has a bad ESN? Just wondering.
TripleMPower said:
How can one know if the phone has a bad ESN? Just wondering.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Obtain the esn from whomever you are purchasing from. Then ask Verizon regarding the esn you were provided.
Sent from my DROID2 GLOBAL using Tapatalk
but wouldnt you only need a clear ESN if you're going to use the phone with CDMA? or would that affect GSM usage as well ? (simcards)
According to the eBay listing I bought mine from, it has a bad ESN (at least, it explicitly stated "will not activate on Verizon") - but the GSM/UMTS radio works fine.
helmutiffe said:
According to the eBay listing I bought mine from, it has a bad ESN (at least, it explicitly stated "will not activate on Verizon") - but the GSM/UMTS radio works fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Bad ESN will only affect use on Verizon and its MNVOs (possibly). GSM networks will work fine. Just remember though if it's not already unlocked, and the ebay unlocker codes don't work, it will probably be near impossible getting verizon to give you the code for a phone with bad esn.
thanks for the info. I''ll look for unlocked plus bad ESN phones on ebay and see if theyre any cheaper
Related
Can remove simlock from HTC Dream and from any other HTC device.
This service is not free.
You will get unlock code in 5 minutes to 72 hours.
It will costs 50$ = 34EUR = 27GBP by donation to xda-developers.com - http://forum.xda-developers.com/donations.php
Please send me a Private Message for details.
P.S. you do not need to reflash, disassembly, hard reset your device!
How is this better then just asking T-Mobile for the unlock code?
I believe they will only unlock it after 6 months of service
Chryslerq said:
I believe they will only unlock it after 6 months of service
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
90 days... But with the ETF, it's not like you're going to buy from T-Mobile then cancel and use it elsewhere after unlocking it through this guy. It's much easier to buy it off of a current T-Mobile subscriber if you plan on using it with another network.
Black93300ZX said:
90 days... But with the ETF, it's not like you're going to buy from T-Mobile then cancel and use it elsewhere after unlocking it through this guy. It's much easier to buy it off of a current T-Mobile subscriber if you plan on using it with another network.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you can just buy it from somewhere else. e.g. eBay and you might want to use it on other carriers. or you might just want to have an unlocked phone in case you travel and put different sim card on it.
sumitescp said:
you can just buy it from somewhere else. e.g. eBay and you might want to use it on other carriers. or you might just want to have an unlocked phone in case you travel and put different sim card on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Right, I understand the reason for having an unlocked phone... I don't think I'd pay that much for an unlock, but whatevs.
It seems like the XDA Dev team will probably have a way to unlock it in a couple weeks anyway especially if the OS is open.
dagentooboy said:
It seems like the XDA Dev team will probably have a way to unlock it in a couple weeks anyway especially if the OS is open.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You have to remember, it's only on T-Mobile in the US for now... I don't know if I should expect the developers of SIM unlocks (olipro/cmonex have done most of the work in that department) to get their hands on one... Maybe they'll grab one just for development, but for all we know their only plans could be to stay with the Touch Diamond/Pro/HD.
I dunno. We still don't really know how "open" the Android OS is yet. Although the kernel is open and freely available, it handles low-level hardware functions. SIM functions seem to be handled higher up in the Android stack and not all the Android source code has been released yet. Unless I'm missing something, it's a wait-and-see situation as far as SIM unlocking goes.
Even if I were to want an unlocked G1 (which I don't) I'd be wary of shelling out $50 for an unlocker to a phone that hasn't been released yet. And honestly, tmo's unlocking policy is very liberal as it is.
i am not a t-mobile customer, but the rest of my family is. i buy t-mobile phones all the time and i get the unlock code no problems. i'm not sure on if they are gonna give the unlock code right away, but if not i can always get the unlock code through my family. i hope we get a free unlocker before i get around to getting the phone
i work for t-mobile UK and on a contract you only have to have the phone for a month then you can buy an unlock code for £15
so you save yourself alot of money doing it via T-mobile UK plus they now issue most unlock codes on the spot unlike their old 28days in the post way
T-Mobile USA's policy is one, free unlock code every 90 days.
And I don't understand why you'd care about SIM-unlocking it, as the US version is really only good on T-Mobile's 3G network. T-Mobile uses different 3G frequencies than AT&T and the rest of the world. As I understood it, the European version will have a different radio set inside. I'd like to hope I'm wrong, but I understood that to be the case.
beartard said:
T-Mobile USA's policy is one, free unlock code every 90 days.
And I don't understand why you'd care about SIM-unlocking it, as the US version is really only good on T-Mobile's 3G network. T-Mobile uses different 3G frequencies than AT&T and the rest of the world. As I understood it, the European version will have a different radio set inside. I'd like to hope I'm wrong, but I understood that to be the case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
actually i think the G1 could be used anywhere
http://www.htc.com/www/product/g1/specification.html
850/900/1700/1800/1900/2100 MHz
hex-band phone
i believe 900/1800 is eu band
and
850/1900 is at&t usa
warwolfx0 said:
actually i think the G1 could be used anywhere
http://www.htc.com/www/product/g1/specification.html
850/900/1700/1800/1900/2100 MHz
hex-band phone
i believe 900/1800 is eu band
and
850/1900 is at&t usa
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're confusing GSM frequencies with 3G frequencies. No phone maker yet has made a phone containing all the GSM frequencies, all the 3G frequencies, *and* the new tmo USA 3G frequencies. You can use the phone anywhere, but the 3G data would be crippled on anything but tmo-USA...and even tmo has said that the phone would pretty much suck without 3G.
ok you may be right about the frequencies
but the spec dose say that
HSDPA/WCDMA:
Europe: 2100 MHz
so it may not work with at&t 3g
but it might work in EU on 3g
Again, that's not what I'm hearing. The G1 in the US is configured for download on tmo's 1700MHz spectrum and upload only on 2100MHz. If I recall correctly, Europe does it all on 2100. That's the part I hope I'm wrong on, but just having "2100" on it doesn't mean it's configured for the particular part of the band that the Europhones use.
Chryslerq said:
I believe they will only unlock it after 6 months of service
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
90 days of continued satisfactory service will do.
what you all forget is that he is doing it non profit.
all the time he has been doing these unlocks, its probably helped a lot to the upkeep of the site.
beartard said:
Again, that's not what I'm hearing. The G1 in the US is configured for download on tmo's 1700MHz spectrum and upload only on 2100MHz. If I recall correctly, Europe does it all on 2100. That's the part I hope I'm wrong on, but just having "2100" on it doesn't mean it's configured for the particular part of the band that the Europhones use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
WOW! that would suck if that was the case- i think i will wait until someone else over here in Australia has tried one first
beartard said:
Again, that's not what I'm hearing. The G1 in the US is configured for download on tmo's 1700MHz spectrum and upload only on 2100MHz. If I recall correctly, Europe does it all on 2100. That's the part I hope I'm wrong on, but just having "2100" on it doesn't mean it's configured for the particular part of the band that the Europhones use.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Euro/Asia 3G (WCDMA Band I) uses 1900 for UL and 2100 for DL while T-Mobile AWS (WCDMA Band IV) uses 1700 for UL and 2100 for DL. However, WCDMA Band I was called UMTS 2100 therefore the confusion.
BTW the T-Mobile G1 is a dual-band HSDPA phone (T-Mobile AWS and UMTS 2100)
Hello gents, I'll start with a short story to get you into the thread:
Me and my girlfriend live in Venezuela, our service providers are not up to par with american or european carriers in terms of available devices, so we bought an HTC Magic for each of us last year to try out Android, everything was fine, I learned how to root it, install roms and such, and we had a pretty good run with the phone and the OS.
Last week we got robbed and they took away our phones, I decided to get a Nexus S for her and I found one at a good price on eBay(270$+shipping) however this one is branded for Sprint, will I be able to go to my service provider and just tell them to attach my account to the phone I bought on ebay? or are the Sprint and Verizon Nexus S locked to those carriers exclusively?
If the answer to the second question is yes, then a third question is raised, can I in any way unlock this phone to use it on my non-american service provider?
I have seen other threads and the replies are always "the Nexus S is factory unlocked." but I dont know if this refers exclusively to the ones sold in the UK or retail stores in the US.
I apologize for any noobish behaviour, I'm a big fan of devices and gadgets yet I lack a lot of the technical skills you all seem to demonstrate.
Thanks in advance.
-Gaash
There is no such thing as a Verizon Nexus S. Sprint Nexus S have different radio bands than the regular Nexus S (I9020T/I9020A/I9023) and features a 4G radio with it. You have to make sure that the phone is compatible with your carrier's bands. Another thing to note is that the Sprint Nexus S is CDMA (No SIM card) as well.
All Nexus S models come unlocked regardless if you're on the contract or not. Sorry to hear about your incident
The model I bought is GT-I9020T, according to people on the internet(random links on google) this model works on GSM frequencies of 850, 900, 1800, & 1900. It supports UMTS 900, 1700, and 2100 frequencies.
My current provider works on 850 and 1900 for GSM and 850 for CDMA.
Do you think I will have trouble using the phone I bought for my girl?
I feel terribly dumb when I ask this, I cant explain why, hehe.
Oh, I think I figured it out, I bought for her the non branded GSM version, so yes, it will probably work on my provider.
But what happens if I buy a Sprint CDMA one for myself? Those are definitely cheaper, and CDMA seems to be better down here, at least more stable.
Thanks for your replies, and simpathy, it's been a rough week without a smartphone for both of us.
Gaash said:
Oh, I think I figured it out, I bought for her the non branded GSM version, so yes, it will probably work on my provider.
But what happens if I buy a Sprint CDMA one for myself? Those are definitely cheaper, and CDMA seems to be better down here, at least more stable.
Thanks for your replies, and simpathy, it's been a rough week without a smartphone for both of us.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm not sure and I wouldn't say the CDMA version is more stable. I personally never used the Nexus S 4G but from what I can tell from threads is that there are problems with WiFi or something of that sort.
You might want to ask the carrier yourself via phone to see if it would be compatible or so. Just let them know about the bands the phone supports.
And that's interesting if your carrier supports CDMA and GSM.
CDMA = No SIM card
GSM = SIM card
GSM is more popular around the world. Just including that just incase!
Alright, so I talked to my carrier they said the following:
-If I buy a CDMA phone with no contract on the US I will be able to register it on their network.
-If I buy an unlocked GSM phone I can register it on their network.
I guess I'll have to buy a couple of GSMs just to be sure... even tho they are about 100$ more expensive.
Thanks for all the replies, catch you later!
Ok, so I've searched all over and haven't had much luck. I have no experience with cdma phones, as t mobile is all I've ever had.
I was given a new US Cellular HTC Hero s. I opened it up and saw the sim slot and though, sweet I can replace my sensation with it (I smashed the screen pretty bad). Well, that was a no go, as the phone is cdma. Looking online though, I see it can run in gsm (options global mode, cdma mode, gsm / umts mode. I unlocked the bootloader using the htc site (not sure it matters) and popped in my sim card again, and tried both global and gsm mode, though neither got signal or would dial out. (under networks, it had the tmo apn info.)
So, is the GSM mode offered on this phone only for non US bands? Would a custom rom (now or down the road) allow it to work on tmo? I read something about the HTC Merge and someone being able to switch out the modem in the rom that allowed it to work in the US, but that is well beyond me. I can follow instructions, work ADB and flash roms.. but thats about it.
Is it possible, or will it soon be, to have this phone work on GSM or am I just stuck trying to sell it as a us cellular phone (or perhaps another cdma carrier.. like I said, I don't know anything about cdma)
As a Canadian I'm not sure about who owns US cellular or if they are their own company but I'm guessing they work like Verizon world phones. They have sim card slots but will work only outside of the US. If those verizon phones are used within the States, they will only pick up Verizon's frequency, as opposed to T-Mobile or AT&T where you can unlock them and use them with any GSM carrier within the States. But yeah, you can unlock it and it will work with any GSM carrier outside the States but within the States I think it will only work under US Cellular CDMA network...please correct me if I'm wrong.
That's right, u.s. cdma "world phones" have gsm radios but are locked down from connecting to gsm networks in the u.s. This is not just the normal sim lock found on gsm phones but they are hard coded to ignore u.s. gsm networks.
Some have been unlocked to work on any network through various methods including flashing a modem from a non-us varient of the same phone and other hacks. I can't comment specifically on this phone however.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Well, that points me in the right direction, and confirms what I read about swapping modems (on the other phone mentioned).
So basically it's software telling it not use a certain frequency, and not that the phone itself is incapable of picking it up (had my doubts about that)
Pretty shady the way phone companies are allowed to operate (don't get me started on my unlimited internet in my contract [pre data caps in tmo]. "Hey! check it out, this phone uses data 5 times faster than your old one, oh, and you get half as much too) sorry, end of rant.
I'll keep searching, and post if I find something..
On a side note, can cdma phones be flashed to another cdma carrier like verizon or sprint, or is it the same deal, coded to only use a certain frequency range?
only thing I've heard of is flashing sprint and verizon phones to cricket, metro pcs and boost.
Got my FIDO Razr HD. Rogers SIM = all is good. AT&T sim = asks for unlock code, which i buy online.
After entering code, phone appears to do a factory reset. During the reboot, a box pops up:
"SIM not allowed MM #3"
Now the phone permits "Emergency Calls Only" with the AT&T sim. Rogers SIM = still good.
When I put AT&T sim into my other phone (HTC desire) it works fine on roaming (rogers network). So I know sim + signal is fine.
Don't understand this error message.
Did I mess up the unlock?
advice appreciated, thanks.
Do you have another Canadian SIM you can try? Bell/Telus etc?
grant2 said:
Got my FIDO Razr HD. Rogers SIM = all is good. AT&T sim = asks for unlock code, which i buy online.
After entering code, phone appears to do a factory reset. During the reboot, a box pops up:
"SIM not allowed MM #3"
Now the phone permits "Emergency Calls Only" with the AT&T sim. Rogers SIM = still good.
When I put AT&T sim into my other phone (HTC desire) it works fine on roaming (rogers network). So I know sim + signal is fine.
Don't understand this error message.
Did I mess up the unlock?
advice appreciated, thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Have you inserted your fido/rogers simcard when you are in usa... and roaming (put the phone on and get the att signal)... if yes... there are no solution you must roam with rogers... imei is recorded via att and you can t use att on your razr ;( this is a strange things... but is real ... many user report this ! ( not just with the razr ) this is not a phone problem
This is a very... great problem for traveller...
grant2 said:
Got my FIDO Razr HD. Rogers SIM = all is good. AT&T sim = asks for unlock code, which i buy online.
After entering code, phone appears to do a factory reset. During the reboot, a box pops up:
"SIM not allowed MM #3"
Now the phone permits "Emergency Calls Only" with the AT&T sim. Rogers SIM = still good.
When I put AT&T sim into my other phone (HTC desire) it works fine on roaming (rogers network). So I know sim + signal is fine.
Don't understand this error message.
Did I mess up the unlock?
advice appreciated, thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was doing some research for you, have you tried using a different SIM card from AT&T? The SIM might be corrupted.
Sent from my XT925 using Tapatalk 2
Really not sure...
My fathers who travel in usa and canada... have tried 2 others att simcard ... same problems ...
i have see anothers topics on howardforum
o2qc418 said:
Really not sure...
My fathers who travel in usa and canada... have tried 2 others att simcard ... same problems ...
i have see anothers topics on howardforum
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are the SIM cards prepaid or postpaid? Did you have to cut then yourself or were they already micro sized?
Sent from my XT925 using Tapatalk 2
I have try with a rogers xt925 last month ... tried with different sim... micro and regular... postpaid and prepaid too... have see many people in the same boat...
Sent from my XT925 using xda premium
If you think AT&T are blocking your phone, then why don't you try T-Mobile...?
... Yes no problem with tmobile or others prepaid carrier on att network...
You just don t roam on att with uour rogers simcard...
Sent from my XT925 using xda premium
Thanks for the replies everyone. to answer the questions:
1) i don't have any other sims right now: just rogers + ATT. Next time i am w/ friends I will ask to borrow telus/bell microsim.
2) they were regular sims that were cut down.
3) haven't had a chance to visit USA since posting topic- but when i do, i will test both cards and also visit an AT&T shop to bug them about it.
Is sim corrupted? I don't think so because it works fine in HTC desire. But I guess trying a new one will prove or disprove.
imei is recorded via att and you can t use att on your razr ;( this is a strange things... but is real ... many user report this ! ( not just with the razr ) this is not a phone problem
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
How do we know this is happening, has someone from AT&T discussed this before?
grant2 said:
Thanks for the replies everyone. to answer the questions:
1) i don't have any other sims right now: just rogers + ATT. Next time i am w/ friends I will ask to borrow telus/bell microsim.
2) they were regular sims that were cut down.
3) haven't had a chance to visit USA since posting topic- but when i do, i will test both cards and also visit an AT&T shop to bug them about it.
Is sim corrupted? I don't think so because it works fine in HTC desire. But I guess trying a new one will prove or disprove.
How do we know this is happening, has someone from AT&T discussed this before?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I want to let you know that I was able to use a Bell sim card in my phone. That's what I used to unlock it with.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk HD
grant2 said:
Thanks for the replies everyone. to answer the questions:
1) i don't have any other sims right now: just rogers + ATT. Next time i am w/ friends I will ask to borrow telus/bell microsim.
2) they were regular sims that were cut down.
3) haven't had a chance to visit USA since posting topic- but when i do, i will test both cards and also visit an AT&T shop to bug them about it.
Is sim corrupted? I don't think so because it works fine in HTC desire. But I guess trying a new one will prove or disprove.
How do we know this is happening, has someone from AT&T discussed this before?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am using this phone with at&t with no problems, I took my sim out from my iphone 5 and used a adapter to go to micro sim and it works fine, no issues.
I'm receiving a Fido RAZR HD to be used with AT&T this afternoon, I'll let you guys know if there are any issues.
OOI, is AT&T seen as a much better GSM network than T-Mobile in the US?
I was looking at the T-Mo USA site, and there are some amazing "Monthly4G" SIM only plans (e.g. $30/month for 100 minutes, unlimited texts and 5GB of HSPA data).
This seems much better value than AT&T, Verizon and even Sprint! But is their network sketchy compared to the others?
Sumanji said:
OOI, is AT&T seen as a much better GSM network than T-Mobile in the US?
I was looking at the T-Mo USA site, and there are some amazing "Monthly4G" SIM only plans (e.g. $30/month for 100 minutes, unlimited texts and 5GB of HSPA data).
This seems much better value than AT&T, Verizon and even Sprint! But is their network sketchy compared to the others?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
AT&T offers the second largest network coverage behind Verizon. They are also one of the two GSM carriers in the United States, and tend to be more popular with mobile phone enthusiasts because their UMTS bands are more common and used with other regions such as Canada or Australia. T-Mobile does indeed offer excellent value, but they use mainly AWS band in addition to PCS band in selected regions, thus making them the lesser choice for using unlocked phones from outside the country.
Hey,
Just looking on wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-Mobile_USA#Radio_frequency_spectrum_chart
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AT&T_Mobility#Radio_Frequency_Summary
It looks like T-Mo mainly use 1900 for 2G and 1700 for 3G, whereas AT&T use 850 and 1900 for both 2G/3G, right?
So if I bought a Canadian Razr HD XT925 and came to the US, would I be able to use T-Mo's 3G network? I am guessing no, since it does not support 3G on 1700MHz.
But then there is a note on that Wiki page saying that they now have a roaming agreement with AT&T after the failed acquisition. So if I forced the phone into "WCDMA only" mode from the test menu, would it then fall back onto the AT&T 3G network?
Sorry for taking the thread slightly off topic
Cheers,
Su
Sumanji said:
Hey,
Just looking on wiki:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-Mobile_USA#Radio_frequency_spectrum_chart
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AT&T_Mobility#Radio_Frequency_Summary
It looks like T-Mo mainly use 1900 for 2G and 1700 for 3G, whereas AT&T use 850 and 1900 for both 2G/3G, right?
So if I bought a Canadian Razr HD XT925 and came to the US, would I be able to use T-Mo's 3G network? I am guessing no, since it does not support 3G on 1700MHz.
But then there is a note on that Wiki page saying that they now have a roaming agreement with AT&T after the failed acquisition. So if I forced the phone into "WCDMA only" mode from the test menu, would it then fall back onto the AT&T 3G network?
Sorry for taking the thread slightly off topic
Cheers,
Su
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As you have read, T-Mobile did acquire PCS bands from the failed merger with AT&T, but these bands are not as utilized as their 850 MHz band so it's not as widely available as you may think. Some areas might be able to use the 1900 MHz band for T-Mobile 3G, but I would check with fellow T-Mobile users to confirm first before you dive in headfirst. I know that there are T-Mobile users in the Dallas-Fort Worth area that are getting 3G data connectivity with their unlocked AT&T iPhones.
Well T-Mo do daily plays for like 2 bucks right, so I can always try this out before committing to a contract
Do you think AT&T would be the better bet if I am bringing my own device from Europe?
The reason I ask is that I may be coming to a US college for a couple of years, so naturally, I'm planning ahead to see if my phone will work over there
Sumanji said:
Well T-Mo do daily plays for like 2 bucks right, so I can always try this out before committing to a contract
Do you think AT&T would be the better bet if I am bringing my own device from Europe?
The reason I ask is that I may be coming to a US college for a couple of years, so naturally, I'm planning ahead to see if my phone will work over there
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If you're using a device from Europe or Asia, then yes, you have a much higher chance of being able to get 3G connectivity with AT&T. Off the top of my head, Nokia seems to be the only one that tries to actively keep AWS band in their radios.
Hmm, so I did a bit of research on GSM Arena. Seems the Nexus line of devices consistently support 1700MHz 3G (including the Nexus S which I currently have).
Guess who cancelled their Nexus 4 order last week, and opted for a Canadian RAZR HD instead...
Whoops
I've been searching everywhere but can't seem to find my answer. Maybe you guys could help me out. I found specs online showing the XT925 does support DC-42 but on the Motorola website it only says HSPA+21. I would like to purchase one with HSPA+42 capability. Also I noticed that there are two different boxed versions. The first comes in a larger box and looks like this:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Motorola-RA...0911347237?pt=Cell_Phones&hash=item20cef88625
That seems to be the international GSM unlocked version, but then I came aross this one:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/Motorola-Dr...0982633857?pt=Cell_Phones&hash=item27cf5bf181
Which comes in a smaller box. I emailed the seller for the second phone and he said it was originally for ROGERS/FIDO network in Canada.
Can someone tell me if there is any difference between the two if there is other than packaging?
I'm looking to purchase soon.
Thanks!
Both devices are the same with the exception of the firmware that has its specific baseband and default language. If someone can confirm that their XT925 can pick up DC-HSPA, then they all support it regardless of where it came from.
TRF-Inferno said:
Both devices are the same with the exception of the firmware that has its specific baseband and default language. If someone can confirm that their XT925 can pick up DC-HSPA, then they all support it regardless of where it came from.
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I have an XT925 through Telstra in Australia. DC-HSPA works fine, as does LTE. I would say that both phones are the same, just with different carrier packaging and firmware. You might want to make sure that they're not locked to any networks.
lobie81 said:
I have an XT925 through Telstra in Australia. DC-HSPA works fine, as does LTE. I would say that both phones are the same, just with different carrier packaging and firmware. You might want to make sure that they're not locked to any networks.
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Thanks for confirming that. I would also like to know if there is a way to determine the manufacture date and is there a way to check if it's still covered under Motorola's warranty. I bought my XT925 on eBay originally for Fido. It came unlocked and seems to be working fine on T-Mobile
So, I'm little confused by the whole unlocked gsm thing. I've been looking at replacing an S3 with the razr and came upon a few Razr HD LTE phones from canada that say they're GSM unlocked. Will this work on Verizon?
WRONG!!
Three are 3 versions of Razr HD
XT926 Verizon US
XT925 Rogers Canada
XT925 Australia, UK & Asia this one use 800 - 2600 lte frequency
sumomuscle said:
So, I'm little confused by the whole unlocked gsm thing. I've been looking at replacing an S3 with the razr and came upon a few Razr HD LTE phones from canada that say they're GSM unlocked. Will this work on Verizon?
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I've been bitten a few times by compatibility claims, where unlocked and 3G mean different things in different places.
Firstly, Verizon uses CDMA for their phones and they do not use SIMs. You would need an XT926 to use on Verizon. In Canada I have found that many people think that GSM and "uses a SIM" are the same. Bell for instance now uses SIMs for their 3G and faster networks, however their older CDMA network supposedly exists and people could use their old CDMA phones to get 2G data speeds.
All that to say, "measure twice, cut once" applies to phones as well. Do research, and then validate the research before jumping in on what could be an expensive purchase.
biKF said:
I've been bitten a few times by compatibility claims, where unlocked and 3G mean different things in different places.
Firstly, Verizon uses CDMA for their phones and they do not use SIMs. You would need an XT926 to use on Verizon. In Canada I have found that many people think that GSM and "uses a SIM" are the same. Bell for instance now uses SIMs for their 3G and faster networks, however their older CDMA network supposedly exists and people could use their old CDMA phones to get 2G data speeds.
All that to say, "measure twice, cut once" applies to phones as well. Do research, and then validate the research before jumping in on what could be an expensive purchase.
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Click to collapse
This whole thing is further complicated by O2 in Germany which has a CDMA / HSPA / LTE version of the XT925. As far as my research has shown (and Motorola has a lot of documents on their site about phones and bands, etc): it seems like the XT925 comes in one version, but the firmware on your phone is what unlocks the different bands.
If you look on the bottom backside of your phone: there's a lot of FCC / regulatory information. One of them is type. Mine reads MOD46. You can research that directly on Motorola's site for detailed information about what radios, bands, etc the phone was certified for. This is what leads me to believe all XT925 are the same model. Anyone have a type different that MOD46?
Just my hypothesis.
Mine says MOD46 as well.
You're right on the whole complicated thing...it is definitely messed up when there is a whole thread on this forum where a bunch of members are trying to sort out the differences between the JB builds for Rogers and Fido, when Rogers and Fido are the same company.