My brother is giving me his old Verizon Galaxy S3, I am pretty novice when it comes to this kind of stuff. I have been trying research this but am coming up with conflicting reports across google search that this phone is unlocked from the factory/had a firmware update to unlock it or that it was never really unlocked. Most of that information is from 2012.
I have also come across videos teaching how to unlock it and how to flash to other carriers, but the links to the files required are no longer on the servers they are linked to..
I wish to know what are my options today on which prepaid carriers to take it to with minimal effort and minimal money to spend on my end(unlocking/flashing software)
Some topics I have seen mention that sometimes data doesnt work on prepaid carriers or that the phone needs to have its apn changed via an app that most likely needs to be paid for.
There is a local store that I frequently visit that sells prepaid services, They are trying to sell me on Simple Mobile. But I am also trying to find out of this phone can be easily put on Verizons current prepaid service. The store I mentioned also accepts Page Plus payments as well as Spot Mobile.
I am currently using a Galaxy Prevail on Boost.
So out of my above carrier mentions, Which would be the easiest to set this phone up on?
Related
I bought an AT&T Samsung Focus on eBay with no contract and will probably be getting a plan for it in the future, but I am in Canada. Rogers has Samsung Focuses, but I really hate Rogers, so I would rather get a plan with Bell or Telus.
My question is: If I were to put in a SIM card from Bell or Telus and get a smartphone plan, both of which do not have Samsung Focuses, would I be able to fully utilize all of the features that either company would offer with their smartphone plans even though I would not be able to have a ROM for my phone from them?
In particular, I do not know if the ROMs that they have for the Windows Phones that they offer have any special software that enables certain features to be used. For instance, Bell plans are supposed to come with tethering, but there is no built-in way to handle tethering in Windows Phone 7.
My phone came with some preinstalled AT&T apps, but they all required extra subscriptions for them anyway. If those are the only unique things that ROMs from Bell or Telus would provide, I can do without those.
Thanks.
Well, you won't be able to access Bell/Telus exclusive apps (mostly paid services), but nothing else is really missing.
Further advice.
Make sure your Samsung Focus is unlocked. If not, call AT&T and have your phone's IMEI number in hand.
Go to Marketplace > Samsung Zone and install the Network Profile application.
While I'm not new to rooting and flashing ROMs, I'm new to Samsung... I've done some research, but have had little luck fully understanding the steps to gain root on my S3. I've seen mskip's toolkit, but couldn't get it to work. I would appreciate someone's help for a Samsung noob.:silly:
Start here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1762709
or here:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1974114
Unlocking the Verizon Samsung Galaxy S3 I535
Greetings, I am new to this site and forum and I am looking for some information on unlocking 2 Verizon Galaxy S3 I535 phones that I bought recently. My wife and I are Straight Talk subscribers and we participated in their bring your own phone program where we could transfer any phone to their service. A friend of mine is a Verizon customer and he bought 2 new Galaxy S3 I535 phones and the bills got so high that he dropped these phones and bought standard phones to help reduce his bills, I contacted Straight Talk and they confirmed that these S3 phones could be used. We bought AT&T SIM cards and the phones can call and receive calls as well as texts but the media is not working. None of the apps work and it will not connect to the internet unless we are signed into a wireless network at home or at a restaurant or similar. I have contacted 2 web sites fir assistance with unlocking the phones by giving them the IEMI number and both companies said they could not generate an unlock code for me. So, my main question is how can I unlock these phones so that I can get my apps working without being connected to a wireless network? Are there any companies that I could send these phones to where they could unlock them and send them back to me? I do not have much experience with configuring cell phones and I would prefer that a professional unlock these phones as I am not sure I could do it unless the instructions were easy to follow. Any information would be most appreciated!
So since the new laws have been passed with all phones basically being SIM unlocked, and Straight Talk has began selling a Verizon SIM, there has been a ton of phones that have come out such as the Huwaei P8, and many other phones by companies but in reading the descriptions on the radio frequencies it would seem they should be compatible on Straight Talk with Verizon's signal. All of these ads are still saying that they are not compatible like the old configurations of locked Verizon phones. Guys. Can we all for the sake of the XDA community, and people in general, chime in on your experiences with the ST Verizon card, what phone, and get a rolling list for people to come to to find out if they go buy a phone straight out and try the V Verizon card, they at least have a heads up. This would be a fantastic resource for anyone on a prepaid budget. I currently own a Nexus 6 bought directly from Motorola, and activated with the ST nano SIM for Verizon. Working perfectly VoLTE and all. *** PLEASE CONTRIBUTE*** A lot of people are wondering and searching. Peace.
Assuming that TMOB does not lock the bootloader so that the S7 variants can be rooted and custom roms eventually installed, what is the best way for a non-TMOB customer to outright purchase a TMOB variant of the S7 so that it could be unlocked and used on another carrier, like T, that locks their bootloader?
I am going to assume here that TMOB will use the same TMOB Remote Device Unlock App that requires the IMEI to be in their DB and registered. Looking at the TMOB pre-paid site, the phones available seem not to be very modern so I would guess S7 will not appear there for many years.
Is it as simple as going to a TMOB store and doing an outright purchase without a plan?
Last time, I pre-ordered a Note 4 prior to release and had to setup service and cancel within 30 days which was a bit of pain.
I am looking for a simpler retail channel.
:fingers-crossed:
Right there with ya, would love to find out.
Carriers in the US are finding new ways to keep users from unlocking phones and moving to other carriers. These new monthly installments and required post paid plans are one of those ways. Best bet would be hoping for third-party unlocking services to work with t-mobile's version soon after launch.
Flame Red said:
Assuming that TMOB does not lock the bootloader so that the S7 variants can be rooted and custom roms eventually installed, what is the best way for a non-TMOB customer to outright purchase a TMOB variant of the S7 so that it could be unlocked and used on another carrier, like T, that locks their bootloader?
I am going to assume here that TMOB will use the same TMOB Remote Device Unlock App that requires the IMEI to be in their DB and registered. Looking at the TMOB pre-paid site, the phones available seem not to be very modern so I would guess S7 will not appear there for many years.
Is it as simple as going to a TMOB store and doing an outright purchase without a plan?
Last time, I pre-ordered a Note 4 prior to release and had to setup service and cancel within 30 days which was a bit of pain.
I am looking for a simpler retail channel.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in the same boat, but I don't believe a simpler retail channel exists. Each release since the S6 has been locked down with the TMOB app and even direct customers have a hard time unlocking within the first 21 days. Threads on XDA discussing carrier unlock reach hundreds of posts - never seems to be an answer other than buy the device outright and request an unlock code after 30days. =/
Found this place that is supposed to be able to unlock TMOB's crapulance. I have not idea if they really can do it though.
http://www.androidsimunlock.com/phone-unlocking-service/tmobile-device-unlock-app-official-unlock/
unlockbase.com also advertises they can too, but when I emailed them specifically about the S7 they said they were not sure.
I'm wondering whether there will be an unlocked 64gb (or hopefully 128gb!) variant that could accept a TMo stock-based ROM & utilize WiFi calling & all TMo LTE bands.
I'm glad this thread was started, I'm looking to buy the tmobile s7 outright and was trying to figure out how I was gonna unlock it.
My tmobile s5 had an unlocked bootloader, I'm hoping for the same with the s7... Anyone know if the tmobile s6 came with unlocked bootloader?
Can you activate a used S3 LTE on AT&T network that already has an ICCID/Phone# on it
Hi I bought a used s3 on ebay and the listing says you can transfer it to your account but of course this doesn't seem to be quite as easy as it sounds. I've tried searching through here but all I can find is information on unlocking these devices which doesn't seem to really add any value whatsoever since what everyone really needs/wants to do is reprovision the ICCID on the device to a new number on a new account.
Are there any people that have successfully figured out this process with the gear that can explain what they had to do or what they had to tell the people at ATT? Or is this not actually currently possible with ATT?
PS. Samsung is funny with their online documentation on scanning the QR Code with SingTel etc... You would think they might have some instructions for US customers/carriers.
any help on this ?