This question is more about Verizon Wireless than it is about the i535, but XDA doesn't have carrier forums to my knowledge.
I currently own an SGH-i747 (AT&T SIII). I am using it on Straight Talk via their BYOD SIM program. Unforunately, I am moving to an area with no AT&T signal. In fact, the only carrier with service there is Verizon.
I cannot afford Verizon Wireless, and would like to utilize a less expensive VZW MVNO. Straight Talk and Page Plus come to mind.
I hear Page Plus is known for flashing phones to their service under certain circumstances, like it's history on prepaid VZW networks, 3G/4G, etc.
I have read on here and many other forums, esp. Howard Talk, that using a 4G phone on a VZW MVNO is not possible.
My questions revolve around that statement - fact or farce. My main confusion comes out of my (mostly lack of) understanding of how networks operate. I understand that there are different frequencies/bands - each carrier uses their own, and each type of signal - 2,3,4G uses a different frequency. To me, it makes sense that if VZW MVNO's do not support the 4G frequency, then a 4G phone flashed to a VZW MVNO would simply only be able to utilize the 3G band. If, however, Verizon proactively searches their prepaid customers (MVNO or otherwise) for those attempting to hop on 4G bands and boots them, it then makes sense to me that I could simply disable 4G on my phone so it would never attempt to search for or use a 4G signal.
The only problem I have seen so far with using a 4G phone on a VZW MVNO is the lack of 4G support on the MVNO, and perhaps VZW's habit of kicking customers who attempt to circumvent this restriction. I honestly have not found a single concrete statement why else this situation is impossible. I don't really see any reason else why someone could not use a 4G CAPABLE phone on a VZW MVNO.
Right?
I would greatly appreciate some advice/experience on these questions. However, please refrain from just repeating what has been stated elsewhere, unless the statement was based on concrete first-person evidence with sensible reasons for the answer.
Thanks so much!
Related
Now im not sure why noone is asking about this but is there some reason why my Bell Sim card will not recognize on this fido Nexus S?
***RESOLVED/UPDATE***
I can verify that a Fido supplied Google Nexus S can work on Canada's Bell Mobility without modification.
You basically just need to be patient and reboot allot at first. But basically it just took some time to get over me wanting to switch its provider.
Although I have heard some reports of some carriers actually locking the Nexus S to their company's sim cards but I believe this is easily remedied. Although as this wasn't an issue for me I do not have any links for you sorry.
Nevermind this issue was resolved with a reboot or two. The sim card was just being stuck.
To answer some other questions that I've found around.
This phone will not do HSPDA+ so bell users are restricted to 3G use only.
Yes Bell Canada does support 3G
This phone apparently does support HSPDA regular though that is without the + at the end basically meaning you can use it on a 7mbps downstream wireless provider.
But again no HSPDA+ so no 14mbps downstream.
You can see the levels of network access on bell canada's coverage map. http://support.bell.ca/en-on/Mobility/Network_coverage/What_is_the_Bell_network_coverage_in_Canada
Anyways I just figured that I would close this thread because I hate finding questions that are clearly resolved with no answers.
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.
Hi all,
With Verizon releasing officially, the update making its SGS3 Global ready atleast for voice as of now, a lot of discussion is happening right now about the Global capabilities.
FYI. I'm a good reader and explorer on hofo,androidforums and xda. So any guidance is highly appreciated
So here is my question.
I have a Verizon S GS3. It is brand new.
1. Can I use it with Straight Talk T-Mobile SIM ( T-Mobile has good coverage near my house ) after doing the rooting, unlocking, etc. etc all the technical stuff
2. If I unlock the phone, will it be truly global capable, I mean, can I use my S GS3 on any GSM Network in the World, even in the USA, with 3G Speeds? Did anyone use it in any Country with 4G LTE Speeds?
3. I know this is really a very very strange question. But after unlocking the S GS3, will it be working on the AT&T LTE Netowrk in the USA? My thinking is, if it working in the LTE Network in the USA, then it will work in other countries as well, where LTE Network is going to be available in the future. Sorry, I know this is a bit weird.
If You can please refer and threads or links, it is fine with me. I'm also looking and not depending only on the answers that I get from this thread. But looking for replies/guidance/links though.
Thank You.
hope this is the answers you are looking for
qzmpal said:
Hi all,
With Verizon releasing officially, the update making its SGS3 Global ready atleast for voice as of now, a lot of discussion is happening right now about the Global capabilities.
FYI. I'm a good reader and explorer on hofo,androidforums and xda. So any guidance is highly appreciated
So here is my question.
I have a Verizon S GS3. It is brand new.
1. Can I use it with Straight Talk T-Mobile SIM ( T-Mobile has good coverage near my house ) after doing the rooting, unlocking, etc. etc all the technical stuff
2. If I unlock the phone, will it be truly global capable, I mean, can I use my S GS3 on any GSM Network in the World, even in the USA, with 3G Speeds? Did anyone use it in any Country with 4G LTE Speeds?
3. I know this is really a very very strange question. But after unlocking the S GS3, will it be working on the AT&T LTE Netowrk in the USA? My thinking is, if it working in the LTE Network in the USA, then it will work in other countries as well, where LTE Network is going to be available in the future. Sorry, I know this is a bit weird.
If You can please refer and threads or links, it is fine with me. I'm also looking and not depending only on the answers that I get from this thread. But looking for replies/guidance/links though.
Thank You.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
for Q1:yes you well be able to use any network... install any mod now most of them are already rooted and unlocked
for Q2:yes you can... all you need to ddo is to download a program called hiapn.. wipe the existing apn settings.. then auto detect and you are good to go 3g and hspa
Q3: yes it works thanks to the magic of hiapn software... but not many countrys use LTE .. usa canada japan and maybe few others
Verizon SGS3 on any GSM Carrier
Hi experts,
I have a small doubt here.
If the Verizon SGS3 can be used with any GSM Carrier around the world, then that means, the Verizon SGS3 can be used with AT&T or T-Mobile as well along with Verizon Network.
But the T-Mobile or AT&T Versions cannot be used on the Verizon's Network. Is that true?
I'm have got a traveling assignment coming up to Europe this Summer and I need to know what is the best possible solution out there before I leave.
Thank You.
Verizon's GS3 uses CDMA technology for the phone calling and data, as far as I know the SIM in the verizon version is only used for LTE.
From what I have read in forum posts, (this one in particular http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2013647) if you pop in a SIM card, calling and texting should work. If you want data to work then you need to change some APNs around. Stock touchwiz does not allow this so you would need an app to do that. AOSP ROMs should have a way for you to edit APNs.
On the topic of getting 4G on any other network besides Verizon, that is fairly unlikely as they all use different technologies/ bands. Verizon has LTE, T-Mobile has HSPA+, not entirely sure what AT&T has but I think its also LTE.
This phone will take any SIM card cut to micro-size.
3G+ speeds depends on the frequency the carrier uses. The VZW GS3 uses the following radio frequencies after the JB update: GPRS/EDGE/GSM (850/900/1800/1900); HSPA/UMTS (2100) [I had to search high and low to find this for my trip to China]
Each LTE carrier uses different radio frequencies, and global countries also use LTE frequencies different than the US ones. 4G is a very varied standard at the moment.
If you want fast internet on a non VZW carrier, it better have HSPA+, otherwise you are on 3G at best.
Right now, the only truely global phone is the iPhone5 on VZW, which supports 5 different LTE frequencies. Sad but true.
The US based SG3's dont even have the FM radio that the international versions have
Edge
Mix3d said:
This phone will take any SIM card cut to micro-size.
3G+ speeds depends on the frequency the carrier uses. The VZW GS3 uses the following radio frequencies after the JB update: GPRS/EDGE/GSM (850/900/1800/1900); HSPA/UMTS (2100) [I had to search high and low to find this for my trip to China]
Each LTE carrier uses different radio frequencies, and global countries also use LTE frequencies different than the US ones. 4G is a very varied standard at the moment.
If you want fast internet on a non VZW carrier, it better have HSPA+, otherwise you are on 3G at best.
Right now, the only truely global phone is the iPhone5 on VZW, which supports 5 different LTE frequencies. Sad but true.
The US based SG3's dont even have the FM radio that the international versions have
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, my girlfriend has a verizon s3 and with straight talk she is only on edge it never changes. It makes the phone nearly useless. Ive tried to talk her into letting me flash and unlock it but she isnt real interested in it. I dont even know forsure if unlocking the bootloader downgrading to 4.1.1 and using the att sim unlock method would work but I would assume that flashing it would allow you to at least get 3-4g. not?
I recently just migrated to ST from T-Mobile because I had very low network speeds at home with T-Mobile. Im all setup with the service and am getting "expected" speeds around 5-8mbps down in my area and other towns.
I did purchase the ATT LTE Compatible SIM.
Now here comes the confusion...
Does Straight Talk provide lte speeds in LTE coverage areas for ATT? I've been in areas that should have LTE coverage from ATT but my ST speed was nothing close.
Im running CleanROM ACE 5.0 (awesome) and don't have an option to change my network mode now to lte/gsm/wcdma... Although I don't think it might matter from what ive been reading in other forums.
I really just want to know if its ST not having lte or my phones modem/apn configuration the problem?
I feel like a leech asking a paragraph question and not completely browsing other threads. Even though the other threads dont seem to have a concise answer to this.
I would greatly appreciate even a simple link to a specific post that will clarify this issue.
Sent from my SGH-T889 using Tapatalk
As an LG V-series fan who buys phones unlocked and looks to custom roms (ie: LineageOS) for long term support, it looks like for US customers that use either At&t or T-mobile might run into some compatibility issues to say the least in the not too distant future.
https://www.androidauthority.com/volte-att-t-mobile-1148654/
https://www.att.com/support/article/wireless/KM1324171
This is a total jerk move, I can sort of "understand" them disabling 3G, but to block out phones that don't support Volte(which would often be unlocked phones or custom roms) from them seems more of a proprietary stiff armed move to force consumers to buy carrier only issued phones from the carrier.
Any one have any thoughts on this? Hopefully developers can figure out how to get Volte working on LineageOS, but from what I understand it's a very, very difficult hurdle to overcome.
It's not so much a move made out of proprietarianism. The 2G and 3G service takes up wireless spectrum, of which there is a finite supply; the more spectrum they can allocate to their 4G LTE (or hopefully 4G, by now) and 5G service, the better the signal and so forth for that service will be.
It was always going to be inevitable that 2G and 3G service would be shut down to free up the spectrum for other uses, just as what I imagine might have been called "1G" (although I don't think I've ever heard that term used) seems to have been. The unfortunate thing is that "4G" (and above?) seems to have been designed in such a way that special, non-built-in functionality is required for voice calling to function, so that voice calling is effectively a bonus feature of the device instead of being its core functionality around which everything else is built.
The real solution will be to fix the design so that the functionality necessary for voice calling is not a vendor- or even model-specific add-on but is part and parcel of the base system, and I don't think that can be done at any level lower than Google (and possibly not any level lower than the design of the wireless specifications involved).
As a separate rant: why the &*!% is it still called "LTE"? My understanding is that that originally stood for "Long-Term Evolution" - as part of the phrase "4G Long-Term Evolution", meaning "service which is not 4G, because it is not compliant with the 4G spec, but will evolve over the long term until it becomes compliant and therefore becomes 4G" - and that it was a way for US carriers to be allowed to do marketing with "4G" in the name without actually complying with the 4G spec. If they're now rolling out 5G, surely they must have finished that evolution into 4G by now? But the term "LTE" is still being used, and is even built into the voice-calling feature name "VoLTE", which apparently is being used even in markets which AFAIK didn't have that not-4G-compliant-so-we-call-it-4G-LTE problem in the first place.
Alias Bongo said:
As a separate rant: why the &*!% is it still called "LTE"? My understanding is that that originally stood for "Long-Term Evolution" - as part of the phrase "4G Long-Term Evolution", meaning "service which is not 4G, because it is not compliant with the 4G spec, but will evolve over the long term until it becomes compliant and therefore becomes 4G" - and that it was a way for US carriers to be allowed to do marketing with "4G" in the name without actually complying with the 4G spec. If they're now rolling out 5G, surely they must have finished that evolution into 4G by now? But the term "LTE" is still being used, and is even built into the voice-calling feature name "VoLTE", which apparently is being used even in markets which AFAIK didn't have that not-4G-compliant-so-we-call-it-4G-LTE problem in the first place.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's called LTE because AT&T and T-mobile hijacked the "4G" name for 3G-on-steroids HSPA+ when Verizon had a true 4G network before them (circa 2010, 2011).
https://www.zdnet.com/article/t-mobile-stretching-the-truth-on-4g-speeds/
The catch is that no one considers HSPA as 4G---except T-Mobile. Add it up and T-Mobile's 4G claims aren't based in anything resembling reality.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They started calling HSPA+ "4G" on their branded phones. To differentiate, then Verizon had to specifiy their 4G network was "4G LTE" (really 4G!). This is why ONLY in the U.S. does your HSPA status bar icon say "4G" and and your LTE icon say "4G LTE". Other countries -- especially Europe, Asia, South America -- the carriers weren't allowed to lie like that. In all other countries LTE signal shows a "4G" icon (as it should) and "H" or H+" for 3G HSPA. But when ignorant U.S. users see that in a custom ROM, they complain "why is it showing '4G' instead of 'LTE'?" Because it IS 4G! Except for Wi-Max (still used in Japan and briefly used by Sprint), LTE is the only 4G around. But due to past lying by AT&T and T-mobile, that locked the "LTE" into being the name for true 4G.
ROM I'm on shows H+ and LTE but now I will have to suffer through stock based roms. Maybe they will call H+ "4g". Will need a new phone too and in January, not 2022 as that's for ATT only.
Goodbye AOSP, it was nice while it lasted.
Does anybody have any potential fix for AT&T problem? I'm a oneplus fan to the core, but I'll be bumped off of the network within the week supposedly. After a half hr hold with tech support they said they "might have disabled the free phone that was sent out so my current phone will work till they shut down the 3g towers in Feb of 22." We'll see I guess. I am not a happy AT&T customer to be sure! What carriers do you other oneplus fans like?