Hello all, I plan on buying a Nexus 5 from a private seller. He was previously on At&t. If I were to take it to Tmobile and buy a 70 unlimited plan and put in the Tmobile sim would everything be working? Would the Nexus 5 be locked to at&t or the esn be locked to them? What if the person cancelled there at&t service would it be locked to at&t? I am a noob when it comes to these things. Any help is appreciated.
The nexus 5 is not carrier locked for SIM devices.
No worries about it being tied to AT&T or their account as AT&T doesn't sell the phone. Unless he purchased it from Sprint or T-Mobile and it's tied to a contract there and he hasn't been using it long enough on AT&T for Sprint/T-mobile to blacklist it, but not likely. You can check the IMEI vs the global blacklist either:
http://swappa.com/esn
or
checkesnfree.com
or from T-Mobile (though good luck getting it to recognize the IMEI - has sucked at that recently)
http://www.t-mobile.com/verifyIMEI.aspx
Related
When i first purchased my Nexus S from Best Buy for AT&T, I was informed by the sales guy that I could call AT&T and get it unlocked by AT&T for free since Best Buy didn't have unlocked units at the time . I called and AT&T informed me that I would have to wait 90 days from the day of activation to be eligible for an unlocked code for my device. I called 100 days later and I am now being told by the AT&T support rep that AT&T does not offer an unlock code for my particular device . Has anyone encountered a similar problem or knows of a free solution to having the Nexus S GSM version unlocked? Open to any explanation or interpretation.
damambt said:
When i first purchased my Nexus S from Best Buy for AT&T, I was informed by the sales guy that I could call AT&T and get it unlocked by AT&T for free since Best Buy didn't have unlocked units at the time . I called and AT&T informed me that I would have to wait 90 days from the day of activation to be eligible for an unlocked code for my device. I called 100 days later and I am now being told by the AT&T support rep that AT&T does not offer an unlock code for my particular device . Has anyone encountered a similar problem or knows of a free solution to having the Nexus S GSM version unlocked? Open to any explanation or interpretation.
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It's already unlocked. Every Nexus device sold has always been sim unlocked (even those sold subsidized by the carriers).
Thank you! I guess that would explain the 35 minute phone call with AT&T trying to figure out why the phone didn't have an unlock code. At one point during the call i was asked if the manufacturer was really samsung. I told the lady it was a Nexus S and she said that the manufacturer didn't exist. I had to explain it to her but she was very polite.
Haha, its great isn't it! I went as far as to order the unlock code from one of the many online services, which they obviously couldn't generate.
To my delight, tried a foreign similar card when I went on vacation and BLAM!
I threw my sim (telus) in my friends (wind mobile) Nexus s and his was emergency calls only, while mine worked with his sim. Interesting note. After putting the telus card in the wind phone, his phone was unable to receive service again. I had to randomly google a dial code thingy to connect to his mobile network
The Rogers/Bell/Telus/AT&T version of the Nexus S (i9020A) supports different frequency bands than the Wind/Mobilicity/Videotron/T-Mobile version (i9020T). That would explain why you weren't able to exchange SIM cards. Fortunately the upcoming Galaxy Nexus will support all frequency bands in a single phone, so it won't have this problem.
I have a tmobile G2 , and I am
thinking about purchasing a Galaxy
Nexus. However, the Galaxy Nexus
will only be released on Verizon,
meaning that I will have to buy an
unlocked version. If I buy an unlocked
version of the phone and put my
simcard in it, will my plan with tmobile
be transferred to that phone? My
brother told me that the plan with
tmobile is only based off the simcard,
so I can put my card in any
unlocked phone without having to
start a new contract with tmobile
because I will still have the same
number and be on the same plan. Is
that how it works? Is it as easy as
putting my simcard in the unlocked
phone and using it? I have seen some people who are buying an unlocked version talking about going with a month to month plan on it. I just want to know how exactly the sim card/contract transfer would work on the unlocked phone. Sorry if this makes me sound stupid.
I am wondering if there is such thing as an unlocked CDMA version of the S3? My thought process is...buy a SGS3 from verizon for $250 (locked bootloader) and promply sell it on ebay for ~$600??... Then take profits to help buy samsung unlocked cdma version. Is it possible or practical? Anyone?
CrimsinX said:
I am wondering if there is such thing as an unlocked CDMA version of the S3? My thought process is...buy a SGS3 from verizon for $250 (locked bootloader) and promply sell it on ebay for ~$600??... Then take profits to help buy samsung unlocked cdma version. Is it possible or practical? Anyone?
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In a word, no. It's not possible.
CDMA devices are not locked or unlocked in the way that GSM devices are. You can't just switch carriers, nor can you buy a device that will work on any CDMA carrier. The only way to get a Galaxy S3 working on Verizon is to buy the Verizon version with the locked bootloader.
Getting CDMA carriers to add meid numbers is almost impossible. Some have reported that MetroPCS and Pageplus have added meids. Most people have to resort to changing the meid.
Even a meid change may not be good enough. Sprint caught up with me in January. My Meid repaired phone first stopped receiving calls and then data stopped. Fire up the original phone and all was working fine. I reprovisioned the phone copied the passwords and programming info onto the hacked phone and still no go. Tried a few other phones and same result. The donor phone never stopped working.
Hey guys im going to be pre-ordering tomorrow and want to know your thoughts on which carrier variant to go with. I have AT&T where I live but I have heard that tmobiles phone are usually easier to get bootloader unlocked, or they come pre unlock. Which one do you think is a better choice?
I'm sure the tmobile one will have all. The band's requires for att.. Or at least the main ones. If you're looking at modding, go the tmobile route. But Idk how easy it will be to get the tmobile one and have them unlock it for you. I went through hell with my s6 edge and getting them to unlock it
Sent from my SM-N920G using Tapatalk
I am debating the same thing. Last time I got a TMOB, and paid for a 3rd party unlock which took a week. Then canceled the TMOB service before the 30 days were up.
TMOB won't unlock phones until they are on plan after two payment cycles and the phone is fully paid off.
Now TMOB unlocks via app and I understand there is a 3rd party vendor that might be able to get them unlocked, but might be troublesome. I asked my sister who is a TMOB customer if she could just outright buy the phone for me but she said under her plan they require her to surrender her old phone so I have to put it on their stupid plan.
Not sure if you can get the phone via MetroPCS as a pre-paid plan and avoid this nonsense but it seems their phone choices are severely limited.
Definitely looking for a better way to get an unlocked bootloader.
I'm in the same boat. Have an AT&T S4 and finally looking to upgrade but after the hell AT&T gave with the S4 locked bootloader I think T-mobile is the way to go. Just hope unlocking it for AT&T will be a straight forward process.
The guy that unlocked an S6 for me emailed me back that he was not sure yet if he could unlock a TMOB S7.
I believe AT&T has more bands than T-Mobile.
Will get the AT&T model as will use with prepaid carriers and AT&T supports most T-Mobile bands. T-Mobile does not support all AT&T bands.
Nextstep said:
I believe AT&T has more bands than T-Mobile.
Will get the AT&T model as will use with prepaid carriers and AT&T supports most T-Mobile bands. T-Mobile does not support all AT&T bands.
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The only bands that are missing from the 930T (t-mobile version) versus the 930A (AT&T) are bands 29 and 30 which don't appear to be used in the US at all. I found the bands on the product pages on both sites. You are better off getting the t-mobile one and hope for an unlocked bootloader. AT&T will be locked down for sure.
zcubed said:
The only bands that are missing from the 930T (t-mobile version) versus the 930A (AT&T) are bands 29 and 30 which don't appear to be used in the US at all. I found the bands on the product pages on both sites. You are better off getting the t-mobile one and hope for an unlocked bootloader. AT&T will be locked down for sure.
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That's great news, thanks for checking.
What I'm currently debating is preordering the AT&T S7 from Best Buy to get in on the VR and MicroSD, then just selling once an unlocked T-Mobile variant becomes available No other way to preorder a 930T without an account right?
The TMOB preorder is up. You need to subscribe to a plan to order it. It does not let you pre-order it on a post paid or prepaid plan.
I am really hesitant to preorder it since TMOB sucks and won't unlock until after 2 billing cycles. And you have to unlock it using their app verses typing in a code provided by a 3rd party unlocker after you turn the phone on when a non-TMOB sim is inserted.
Guess I'll have to wait until some unlocked ones appear on Swappa or Fleabay. Hate doing that as I was just burned with a phone that that eventually popped up with a blacklisted IMEI.
Like Flame Red said, there's no way to get the T-Mobile one without signing up for a plan but you also get a year of Netflix with the t-mobile one that's worth WAY more than the microSD from Best Buy. You can cancel the plan immediately though and hope for a third party unlocking service to unlock the phone for a fee.
---------- Post added at 10:03 AM ---------- Previous post was at 10:02 AM ----------
Bands detail links:
https://support.t-mobile.com/community/phones-tablets-devices/android/samsung_galaxy_s_7#id_1299991
https://www.att.com/cellphones/samsung/galaxy-s7.html#sku=sku7840239 (Click Details)
Is there a place to order the 930F Global version? Will that have all the bands required for ATT & TMO?
Are there any Galaxy S7 that will support CDMA and GSM.
I looking to go prepaid route and Sprint prepaid MVNO and T-Mobile prepaid MVNO with maybe some AT&T prepaid.
Any assistance greatly appreciated.
According to this thread, the underlying hardware is the same for all S7 variants and the bands are turned on/off via the radio files. http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-s7/how-to/finally-single-hardware-variant-carriers-t3308040
Should be interesting if I decide to get a t-mobile S7 and possibly being able to "turn on" the extra bands at a later date.
Looks like it doesn't matter which one you get anymore: http://www.phonearena.com/news/Cert...the-carrier-of-the-first-SIM-inserted_id78809
The S7 should "lock" to the first carrier's sim you insert. Would love confirmation of this if someone gets the T-Mobile one and puts in an AT&T sim.
Will see, hoping some users will get the phone soon, and confirm before I purchase.
clove.co.uk is now showing pre-orders for the unlocked international s7 (and edge). Interestingly enough, they're showing it having the SD820 whereas I thought EU was getting the Exynos!?
zcubed said:
Looks like it doesn't matter which one you get anymore: http://www.phonearena.com/news/Cert...the-carrier-of-the-first-SIM-inserted_id78809
The S7 should "lock" to the first carrier's sim you insert. Would love confirmation of this if someone gets the T-Mobile one and puts in an AT&T sim.
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So technically speaking, no matter what version ill get it will be locked to att after I put in that sim card?
I wonder if that means the bootloaders will be the same on all the models, since they are all the same except for the radio differences?
Neither for me. International versions only
As far as unlocking goes, I've been in that scene for about 6 months. If it's an app unlock, no biggie, it'll just cost about $30 more than without the app unlock. You should expect to pay about $20-50 for the unlock once the phone comes out. No sweat!
The big difference between att and tmobile is not the sim lock, but the fact that att phones come with locked bootloaders thereby severely limiting their attractiveness to the mod community.
Hello everyone I have a question i just oderded a s22 ultra from att I have a 3 year contract with them for device payments but basically the phone was free. I also have a tmobile acct i dont plan on canceling either. I have the magenta max on tmobile and an unlimited on att is it possible to use my phone on both networks with the phone being locked to att or am i able to change sims and use it as long as i keep both accts current. I am not trying to do anything shady just wondering if i can use it on both networks would much rather do that becuase it gives me so much more for hot spots since i can use the 50 from att and the 40 from tmobile i know i could if the phone was unlocked but i cant do that for three years
Thanks in advance
no, its locked to att networks (mvno will work too)
Thanks for the reply
i figured it would be locked but it would of been nice to be able to work on both. what is mvno?
I wonder if he could use the esim on TMobile?
rayhawk said:
Hello everyone I have a question i just oderded a s22 ultra from att I have a 3 year contract with them for device payments but basically the phone was free. I also have a tmobile acct i dont plan on canceling either. I have the magenta max on tmobile and an unlimited on att is it possible to use my phone on both networks with the phone being locked to att or am i able to change sims and use it as long as i keep both accts current. I am not trying to do anything shady just wondering if i can use it on both networks would much rather do that becuase it gives me so much more for hot spots since i can use the 50 from att and the 40 from tmobile i know i could if the phone was unlocked but i cant do that for three years
Thanks in advance
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All of the US models support dual SIM (physical SIM plus eSIM). You should be able to use the physical SIM for one network, and the eSIM for the other. AT&T will most likely be the primary (physical SIM) and T-Mobile the secondar (E-SIM). Once you get it activated on AT&T go into Settings -> Connections -> SIM card manager.
From there it will allow you to "Add mobile plan" for the eSIM. That should allow you to active your T-Mobile account.
I don't know how that works in practice and you may have to talk to both AT&T and T-Mobile to work it out.
oh wow that is awesome thanks for letting me know
this is off the topic but are any of you using screen and camera protectors on top of using a case?
You need to get the device unlocked to have it work on T-Mobile at all, ESIM or physical. You have 2 choices: Pay off the device in full and then request a SIM unlock, or pay for an unlock service on Ebay. AT&T won't do **** for you until the device is paid in full.
rayhawk said:
this is off the topic but are any of you using screen and camera protectors on top of using a case?
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Click to collapse
Nope.
entropism said:
You need to get the device unlocked to have it work on T-Mobile at all, ESIM or physical. You have 2 choices: Pay off the device in full and then request a SIM unlock, or pay for an unlock service on Ebay. AT&T won't do **** for you until the device is paid in full.
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Yes. AT&T will require it to be paid off to unlock the physical SIM. The eSIM isn't activated and therefore probably isn't locked. As long as he's using it on its network with the physical SIM, I don't think AT&T will care about the eSIM being used on T-mobile.
This is kinda new territory with phones being produced with both physical SIM and eSIM.
I can tell you with 100% certainty, it's locked.
entropism said:
You need to get the device unlocked to have it work on T-Mobile at all, ESIM or physical. You have 2 choices: Pay off the device in full and then request a SIM unlock, or pay for an unlock service on Ebay. AT&T won't do **** for you until the device is paid in full.
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Not true. AT&T unlocked my Note 20 ultra that was still under contract. I told them I was going overseas for an extended period of time and they unlocked my phone. I had 13 payments left.