As usual, a major phone maker from Asia is screwing over USA, by disabling US carrier compatible LTE bands in their flagship phone series. If anyone from US, or other parts of the world, left in the cold by Asus purchased this phone and would like to try this LTE unlock and report the results - that would be very much appreciated.
If anyone knows of an online store, which took the liberty of unlocking US compatible LTE bands (T-Mobile: 2,4,12, AT&T: 2,4,5,17) in Zenfone 3 Ultra - please post the link to the store.
Will Asus make a separate US version and sell it here, or will this phone be international only? I'm in the US on AT&T and would certainly like LTE capability, but I've been buying overseas phones for a while now and HSPA+ is certainly fast enough for my needs.
If Asus isn't planning on a US version i'll just get the international one...
omniphil said:
Will Asus make a separate US version and sell it here, or will this phone be international only? I'm in the US on AT&T and would certainly like LTE capability, but I've been buying overseas phones for a while now and HSPA+ is certainly fast enough for my needs.
If Asus isn't planning on a US version i'll just get the international one...
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Click to collapse
Just get a Mi Max, it's cheaper. My friend picked me up a 4gb/128gb version when he was in China for $313. I don't see a reason to spend top dollar on the Zenfone 3 if it won't support LTE here. I'd love to see Asus support LTE here but it's a shame they always disable the US LTE bands.
ajsmsg78 said:
Just get a Mi Max, it's cheaper. My friend picked me up a 4gb/128gb version when he was in China for $313. I don't see a reason to spend top dollar on the Zenfone 3 if it won't support LTE here. I'd love to see Asus support LTE here but it's a shame they always disable the US LTE bands.
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Click to collapse
I want the larger screen of the Zenfone. Thats really the only reason im not picking up a Mi Max...
ajsmsg78 said:
Just get a Mi Max, it's cheaper. My friend picked me up a 4gb/128gb version when he was in China for $313. I don't see a reason to spend top dollar on the Zenfone 3 if it won't support LTE here. I'd love to see Asus support LTE here but it's a shame they always disable the US LTE bands.
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Click to collapse
I heard that the Mi Max only supports some of the T-Mobile bands so you won't get full LTE (only HSPA). Do you know what network your friend uses his on and if he gets full LTE?
Techngro said:
I heard that the Mi Max only supports some of the T-Mobile bands so you won't get full LTE (only HSPA). Do you know what network your friend uses his on and if he gets full LTE?
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Click to collapse
None of these phones support any LTE bands in the US. You'll only get HSPA+ or 3G. My thought is why pay 400+ for a phone with no LTE capabilities here. My friend picked up the Mi Max for me, I own it.
Techngro said:
I heard that the Mi Max only supports some of the T-Mobile bands so you won't get full LTE (only HSPA). Do you know what network your friend uses his on and if he gets full LTE?
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Click to collapse
you can consider huawei mate 8 for USA LTE support (ATT & T-Mo), it is however a 6 incher 'only' .. my only gripe is the kirin 950 SoC, while on par with other top-tier silicon in terms of performance, it is none the less huawei in house and they are not known for releasing source code, meaning no 3rd party roms and probably no upgrade beyond nougat ..
http://www.anandtech.com/show/9878/the-huawei-mate-8-review
omniphil said:
Will Asus make a separate US version and sell it here, or will this phone be international only? I'm in the US on AT&T and would certainly like LTE capability, but I've been buying overseas phones for a while now and HSPA+ is certainly fast enough for my needs.
If Asus isn't planning on a US version i'll just get the international one...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I purchased my Asus Zenfone 3 ultra (ZU680KL) from EBay (593.00 factory unlocked), thru Never -Msrp, out of Houston Texas, but I believe it's still the global version.
I purchased a Bring Your Own Phone Plan thru Cricket, which is owned by AT&T. So they use their towers. I have not notice any problems with getting 4g/Lte.
Getting very good call reception and internet download speeds thru Cricket. I have a HTC 10 that I gave to my wife. The download speeds are similiar on 4g with the HTC 10 and the Asus. Both phones have many of the same 4g/lte bands. Just a little faster with the HTC 10, which might be due to the HTC having a faster processor. Depending where I am at in my area, I can see the H+ changing to 4g up in the status bar of the Asus phone when driving. Consistent 4g speeds where I live here in WV. I am also not to far from an AT&T tower.
XDA has always helped me with valuable information over the years of many of my phone ownerships, so I hope this information helps.
Slbtrb79 said:
I purchased my Asus Zenfone 3 ultra (ZU680KL) from EBay (593.00 factory unlocked), thru Never -Msrp, out of Houston Texas, but I believe it's still the global version.
I purchased a Bring Your Own Phone Plan thru Cricket, which is owned by AT&T. So they use their towers. I have not notice any problems with getting 4g/Lte.
Getting very good call reception and internet download speeds thru Cricket. I have a HTC 10 that I gave to my wife. The download speeds are similiar on 4g with the HTC 10 and the Asus. Both phones have many of the same 4g/lte bands. Just a little faster with the HTC 10, which might be due to the HTC having a faster processor. Depending where I am at in my area, I can see the H+ changing to 4g up in the status bar of the Asus phone when driving. Consistent 4g speeds where I live here in WV. I am also not to far from an AT&T tower.
XDA has always helped me with valuable information over the years of many of my phone ownerships, so I hope this information helps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just so people aren't confused... 4G and LTE are 2 different things.
4G = HSPA+ and is around 5-10Mbps.
LTE can be 20-30Mbps and also has much less latency.
Most people are looking for LTE in the USA and these international phones only support 4G (Which is slower than LTE but works good enough for me)
omniphil said:
Just so people aren't confused... 4G and LTE are 2 different things.
4G = HSPA+ and is around 5-10Mbps.
LTE can be 20-30Mbps and also has much less latency.
Most people are looking for LTE in the USA and these international phones only support 4G (Which is slower than LTE but works good enough for me)
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Click to collapse
Thanks for your comments. I accept mostly what you wrote for most companies definition of 4G and LTE. I was going by my carriers definition or interpretation of what they call 4G LTE and just 4G. The confusion is more from the caps on the data speeds various companies have. Because to me there is little difference between saying LTE and 4G LTE.
Cricket is the carrier owned by AT&T. They call their data speeds 4G and 4G LTE. AT&T caps Cricket download speeds at what they say is 4G LTE at 8Mbps and 4Mbps download speed cap for just 4G (Referenced from Crickets's website and from www.gottabemobile.com 6/21/2015 article on this topic).
However, my earlier remarks about my Asus phone was incorrect, due to Asus limitations on their 4G/LTE phones sold to individuals in the US, even though the carrier here might support some of the same 4G/LTE bands. It's an Asus thing and probably some others too. I'm probably only getting just 4G or less. My speed tests are only showing 3Mbps and a little better on download speeds on Cricket Wireless with the Asus Zenfone 3 ultra. But I was only getting on speed tests 4Mbps and a little better download speeds with my previous HTC 10 on Cricket Wireless. I have never even gotten close to Cricket's 8Mbps on my HTC 10.
At this point I'm ok with HSPA+ (It's what i've used for years now in the US with International phones)
I'm waiting for root to surface for this phone and then i'm jumping right in
omniphil said:
Just so people aren't confused... 4G and LTE are 2 different things.
4G = HSPA+ and is around 5-10Mbps.
LTE can be 20-30Mbps and also has much less latency.
Most people are looking for LTE in the USA and these international phones only support 4G (Which is slower than LTE but works good enough for me)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please do not confuse people with false information. HSPA+ is officially considered 3.5G connection type. Long Term Evolution (LTE) is defined as a 4th generation (4G) wireless connection standard. Those are official nominations, you can find through IEEE site, Wikipedia and many other reliable sources. LTE theoretical max speed are nowhere near 20-30Mbps figure you provided - they are *much* higher. There is also LTE-A (advanced), which is also 4G but doubles the LTE speeds, and the actual LTE speeds depend on the hardware and LTE category of the modem.
Apo11on said:
Please do not confuse people with false information. HSPA+ is officially considered 3.5G connection type. Long Term Evolution (LTE) is defined as a 4th generation (4G) wireless connection standard. Those are official nominations, you can find through IEEE site, Wikipedia and many other reliable sources. LTE theoretical max speed are nowhere near 20-30Mbps figure you provided - they are *much* higher. There is also LTE-A (advanced), which is also 4G but doubles the LTE speeds, and the actual LTE speeds depend on the hardware and LTE category of the modem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apple calls HSPA+ 4G, Yes i know its not technically correct, but that's what most people associate it with.
LTE can go much faster then 30Mbps for sure, I used to get 60. But nowadays with all the people using it 20-30 is a reasonable average for what most people actually see. (The point is its much faster than HSPA+)
I only bring this up because folks ask if they can get 4G on these international phones (As not everyone is a phone nerd like us) What they are really asking is if they can get LTE on these phones and most of the time that answer is no.
Basically I want people to understand that we are talking about HSPA+ vs 4G LTE and how that relates to international phones.
Is that good?
omniphil said:
Apple calls HSPA+ 4G, Yes i know its not technically correct, but that's what most people associate it with.
LTE can go much faster then 30Mbps for sure, I used to get 60. But nowadays with all the people using it 20-30 is a reasonable average for what most people actually see. (The point is its much faster than HSPA+)
I only bring this up because folks ask if they can get 4G on these international phones (As not everyone is a phone nerd like us) What they are really asking is if they can get LTE on these phones and most of the time that answer is no.
Basically I want people to understand that we are talking about HSPA+ vs 4G LTE and how that relates to international phones.
Is that good?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Apple or any other hardware manufacturers, as well as phone carriers can deploy any marketing schemes they like and call the lousy HSPA+ "4G" all they want, but it won't make it true. Neither of them gets to decide, and "most people" don't get to decide either. For the record, I disagree that most people think HSPA+ is 4G - most know better, in my opinion. The international governing body for wireless standards gets to name wireless technologies, protocols and classify by generation.
If you want people to understand that HSPA+ is different from LTE then saying "LTE can be 20-30Mbps" is not the way to go, because that would achieve the exact opposite. Theoretical max HSPA+ speeds achievable by this technology are 168 Mbps down and 22Mbps up, so defining LTE as 20-30Mbps connection makes your LTE no better than mediocre HSPA+ link. Some FDD-LTE and TDD-LTE links, based on the utilized spectrum, currently go up to 450Mbps down and 150Mbps up. Theoretical limits are much higher and LTE-A is twice faster.
While your intentions seem to be good, that still doesn't excuse providing inaccurate information, while also saying you dont want people to be confused. Confused is exactly what people would be, if they believe the info in your post. If you want to answer a question "will I get LTE in US with this phone?" - a simple "No" would be much better answer than inaccurate information you provided to "eliminate confusion". Or you could say something along those lines:
"ZenFone 3 Ultra is a GSM phone, so only AT&T or T-Mobile in US could be compatible, because Verizon and Sprint use CDMA technology. AT&T's LTE network operates on bands 2,4,5,17 (recently forced to support band 12 as part of FCC roaming support requirement) and T-Mobile's LTE network operates on bands 2,4,12 (recently forced to support band 17 as part of FCC roaming support requirement). Asus ZenFone 3 international version on the other hand, support LTE bands 1,3,5,7,8,18,19,20,26,28,38,40,41 - do you see any overlapping bands besides B5? B5 is utilized by AT&T in limited number of US regions and even there you will get extremely spotty LTE coverage, because LTE bands operate in conjunction with each other and there are constant layovers and fallbacks between frequencies, based on towers proximity".
Slbtrb79 said:
I purchased my Asus Zenfone 3 ultra (ZU680KL) from EBay (593.00 factory unlocked), thru Never -Msrp, out of Houston Texas, but I believe it's still the global version.
I purchased a Bring Your Own Phone Plan thru Cricket, which is owned by AT&T. So they use their towers. I have not notice any problems with getting 4g/Lte.
Getting very good call reception and internet download speeds thru Cricket. I have a HTC 10 that I gave to my wife. The download speeds are similiar on 4g with the HTC 10 and the Asus. Both phones have many of the same 4g/lte bands. Just a little faster with the HTC 10, which might be due to the HTC having a faster processor. Depending where I am at in my area, I can see the H+ changing to 4g up in the status bar of the Asus phone when driving. Consistent 4g speeds where I live here in WV. I am also not to far from an AT&T tower.
XDA has always helped me with valuable information over the years of many of my phone ownerships, so I hope this information helps.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi!
I bought a Huawei Mediapad X2 7" display phablet last November. I used it for a month on Cricket and couldn't get good MMS service... I wouldn't get group texts or pictures... How is your Ultra doing in that regard (on Cricket)? No good MMS is a deal breaker for me... Also, the X2 came with Google and Google Play Store already installed. I am not a techie but asked a LOT of questions on xda and was walked through a successful setup (I learned a lot from other people's questions, too)... I don't root my phones... So I need good out of the box service. I have been looking for a 128GB Ultra just to compare prices to a 64GB Ultra. Have you seen any? I am waiting for the Lenovo Phab 2 Pro to be re-released but I really would love this Ultra, instead (if it works on Cricket the way I need it to)... Thanks for your time!
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
VillaRegina said:
Hi!
I bought a Huawei Mediapad X2 7" display phablet last November. I used it for a month on Cricket and couldn't get good MMS service... I wouldn't get group texts or pictures... How is your Ultra doing in that regard (on Cricket)? No good MMS is a deal breaker for me... Also, the X2 came with Google and Google Play Store already installed. I am not a techie but asked a LOT of questions on xda and was walked through a successful setup (I learned a lot from other people's questions, too)... I don't root my phones... So I need good out of the box service. I have been looking for a 128GB Ultra just to compare prices to a 64GB Ultra. Have you seen any? I am waiting for the Lenovo Phab 2 Pro to be re-released but I really would love this Ultra, instead (if it works on Cricket the way I need it to)... Thanks for your time!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have had no problems with Cricket on my Zenfone Ultra. MMS, SMS, work just fine. No problem with sending group texts and pictures. However, you will not get LTE on the Ultra, in the US. For me, the 64gb on the internal side with a 64 GB SD card, gives me plenty of space. Google and Google play came pre-installed on my Ultra. So far, I have received great service from Cricket on my Asus Zenfone 3 Ultra and my HTC 10. I love the music app, the audio wizard, and the stereo speakers. Takes great pictures. It's like having a 7 inch tablet with 4gb of ram and it's a phone. Due to the size, the music features, the picture features, the huge battery, I use this phone more than my HTC 10. The only down side that I have with this phone, is you can't get LTE here in the US and you can't unlock the bootloader yet. But personally, I was initially looking for a 7 inch tablet with 4gb of ram, stereo speakers, that also took good pictures and has a big battery. I ended up with the Ultra.
If screen size is important to you might look at the Xiaomi Mi-Max, it has 6.4 screen and nice specs. Also Huawei Mate 9 with a 5.9 inch screen with nice specs also.
Hope this helped some...
Slbtrb79 said:
I have had no problems with Cricket on my Zenfone Ultra. MMS, SMS, work just fine. No problem with sending group texts and pictures. However, you will not get LTE on the Ultra, in the US. For me, the 64gb on the internal side with a 64 GB SD card, gives me plenty of space. Google and Google play came pre-installed on my Ultra. So far, I have received great service from Cricket on my Asus Zenfone 3 Ultra and my HTC 10. I love the music app, the audio wizard, and the stereo speakers. Takes great pictures. It's like having a 7 inch tablet with 4gb of ram and it's a phone. Due to the size, the music features, the picture features, the huge battery, I use this phone more than my HTC 10. The only down side that I have with this phone, is you can't get LTE here in the US and you can't unlock the bootloader yet. But personally, I was initially looking for a 7 inch tablet with 4gb of ram, stereo speakers, that also took good pictures and has a big battery. I ended up with the Ultra.
If screen size is important to you might look at the Xiaomi Mi-Max, it has 6.4 screen and nice specs. Also Huawei Mate 9 with a 5.9 inch screen with nice specs also.
Hope this helped some...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks so much for your time on the detailed answer!!!
Sent from my SM-N900T using Tapatalk
Apo11on said:
Apple or any other hardware manufacturers, as well as phone carriers can deploy any marketing schemes they like and call the lousy HSPA+ "4G" all they want, but it won't make it true. Neither of them gets to decide, and "most people" don't get to decide either. For the record, I disagree that most people think HSPA+ is 4G - most know better, in my opinion. The international governing body for wireless standards gets to name wireless technologies, protocols and classify by generation.
If you want people to understand that HSPA+ is different from LTE then saying "LTE can be 20-30Mbps" is not the way to go, because that would achieve the exact opposite. Theoretical max HSPA+ speeds achievable by this technology are 168 Mbps down and 22Mbps up, so defining LTE as 20-30Mbps connection makes your LTE no better than mediocre HSPA+ link. Some FDD-LTE and TDD-LTE links, based on the utilized spectrum, currently go up to 450Mbps down and 150Mbps up. Theoretical limits are much higher and LTE-A is twice faster.
While your intentions seem to be good, that still doesn't excuse providing inaccurate information, while also saying you dont want people to be confused. Confused is exactly what people would be, if they believe the info in your post. If you want to answer a question "will I get LTE in US with this phone?" - a simple "No" would be much better answer than inaccurate information you provided to "eliminate confusion". Or you could say something along those lines:
"ZenFone 3 Ultra is a GSM phone, so only AT&T or T-Mobile in US could be compatible, because Verizon and Sprint use CDMA technology. AT&T's LTE network operates on bands 2,4,5,17 (recently forced to support band 12 as part of FCC roaming support requirement) and T-Mobile's LTE network operates on bands 2,4,12 (recently forced to support band 17 as part of FCC roaming support requirement). Asus ZenFone 3 international version on the other hand, support LTE bands 1,3,5,7,8,18,19,20,26,28,38,40,41 - do you see any overlapping bands besides B5? B5 is utilized by AT&T in limited number of US regions and even there you will get extremely spotty LTE coverage, because LTE bands operate in conjunction with each other and there are constant layovers and fallbacks between frequencies, based on towers proximity".
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm only a junior member with limited experience with these technologies, But I am just a little confused with these previous comments in regards to these discussions on HSPA+, LTE, and even Wimax for that matter. Believe me, when I say that I still have much to learn on this subject. Just because HSPA+ is different from 4G, I was always under the impression from everything I've read, that they are all still labeled as 4G technologies, as defined by the ITU. With all the above, having wide variations in consumer speeds. Also, whether a certain phone manufacturer supports a particular LTE band is just part of the whole part of the 4G technology. (Information taken from, in part, from Android Authority and Tech Radar)
Slbtrb79 said:
I'm only a junior member with limited experience with these technologies, But I am just a little confused with these previous comments in regards to these discussions on HSPA+, LTE, and even Wimax for that matter. Believe me, when I say that I still have much to learn on this subject. Just because HSPA+ is different from 4G, I was always under the impression from everything I've read, that they are all still labeled as 4G technologies, as defined by the ITU. With all the above, having wide variations in consumer speeds. Also, whether a certain phone manufacturer supports a particular LTE band is just part of the whole part of the 4G technology. (Information taken from, in part, from Android Authority and Tech Radar)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Phrase "HSPA+ is different from 4G" has no meaning. Those are not comparible things "HSPA+" is an abbreviation for wireless protocol name, and "4G" is a generic reference to 4th generation of wireless technologies, which include several protocols. it's like comparing TV weight to picture brightness.
Judging from the phrase "whether a certain phone manufacturer supports a particular LTE band is just part of the whole part of the 4G technology" I'm not sure you understand how things work. Since approximately 4 years ago, ALL major SoCs (system on chip) support Worldwide Global LTE, all 41 bands. Here is an example of Qualcomm's Snapdragon SoCs, scroll down to "Global Mode": https://www.qualcomm.com/products/snapdragon/modems/4g-lte . So, all major SoC manufacturers have been "supporting" ALL LTE bands for approximately 4 years now. Mobile device manufacturers, who partner with SoC makers like Qualcomm, or produce their own (i.e. Samsung: Exynos) control what LTE bands are actually enabled using modem's firmware, which is purely a software issue and can be changed at any time with NVRAM hack or firmware update. They decide what bands to enable based on the country the device is targeted for. Operating frequencies in each country are tightly regulated, because otherwise there are security issues, surveillance issues, interference issues (that's why they ask you to shut your phone down on a plane) and LTE frequency bands spectrum is divided to over 100 chunks, and each country/region are only allowed to operate on a specific, limited number of frequency bands. Therefore, any phone manufacturer, who wants to release wireless device with certain LTE bands enabled in a specific country, first must abide by the frequency bands international rules and then before they are allowed to sell and operate their device, their device must be approved by each country's wireless regulations governing body, which will thoroughly test the device, to make sure it meets all the required technical, safety and security standards. For example, that governing body in US is called FCC and in China it's TENAA. To sum up, what LTE bands each phone maker enables for which country, has nothing to do with being "part of the 4G technology".
Slbtrb79 said:
If screen size is important to you might look at the Xiaomi Mi-Max, it has 6.4 screen and nice specs. Also Huawei Mate 9 with a 5.9 inch screen with nice specs also.
Hope this helped some...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Xiaomi Mi Max is a bit of an old news. This Xiaomi phone is the future. Same 6.4" screen size as Mi Max, but device size is comparable to 5.7" phone, not to mention numerous other innovations, such as ceramic body and audio transmissions via ultrasonic vibrations, instead of conventional speaker.
ebay LON-L29C636B156, t-mobile USA. (upgrade to B156 yesterday, did not change anything in respect to this issue).
I can get the 4G on the home screen, but never the 4G LTE symbol. And i do not get the VoLTE menu option. I called up t-mobile support and they said that whether or not its a phone bought from them or not, LTE would get enabled if the phone supports it. So i am starting to suspect that my phone (or rather the 636 taiwanese firmware ?) does not really support/enable LTE.
My t-mobile SIM does give me 4G LTE symbol in a colleagues Honor 8 from Best Buy, T-mobile USA does not sell that. Which seems to support what t-mobile support told me. His ATT SIM does also not give me 4G LTE indication on my phone.
Given how the specs of the HW all claim LTE support for the mate 9 pro, i wonder what my best diagnostics are to determine whether or not the firmware actually enables it.
Reboot phone without any SIM inserted: "LTE cell info" app: "3G mobile technologies": Yes, "4G mobile technologies: No", "Max speeds": HSPA - aka: seems to indicate that phone does not support LTE. Same with SIM inserted, no change whether i enable/disable 4G in the system.
"AntennaPict" app, with SIM inserted, 4G enabled says LTE: -106 dbm, with 4G disabled, it says HSPA+.
*sigh*. So the diagnostics apps are inconsistent.
Was wondering what others with Mate 9 pro see.
Not sure what else i could try. Go to european firmware via Funky and see if thats any better ? (whats the number for european firmware ?).
Thanks!
Its part of the upcoming software update. Same was enabled in the mate 9.
It absolutely supports LTE. 4G is synonymous with LTE outside of the US. It won't attach to LTE networks without a SIM inserted because of the way authentication onto those networks is performed. The second app is correct.
You can check network info in about phone.
Bumping here as I have the same issue as the OP.
Anyone figured how to get LTE and VoLTE enabled on LON-L29 on T-Mobile USA...
Also, how do we get OTA update while in the US as I believe my Mate 9 Pro is an Asian Model (LON-L29636) ?
Any help here guys/gals would be super helpful. I love the Mate 9 Pro, but without these 2 **important** features it is going to collect dust on my shelf.
Thanx
Delete. Sorry answered while I was drinking and didn't read properly
phoneman108 said:
Bumping here as I have the same issue as the OP.
Anyone figured how to get LTE and VoLTE enabled on LON-L29 on T-Mobile USA...
Also, how do we get OTA update while in the US as I believe my Mate 9 Pro is an Asian Model (LON-L29636) ?
Any help here guys/gals would be super helpful. I love the Mate 9 Pro, but without these 2 **important** features it is going to collect dust on my shelf.
Thanx
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Problem is you have a C636 model, which is for Asia region, not for USA. Unfortunately there is no model available under US? This was the same issue I face here in Australia - there is no AU model sold here.
From what I have seen there are only these models for the Mate 9 Pro:
Mate 9 Pro, Europe Version (LON-L29C432)
Mate 9 Pro, Asia Version (LON-L29C636)
Mate 9 Pro, Middle East Version (LON-L29C185)
Mate 9 Pro, Non-Region-Branded (LON-L29C900)
Mate 9 Pro, China Version (LON-AL00C00)
And from what I have read on XDA - there is a "cust" partition, which contains the VOLTE configuration files, which are specific to that regions Telco providers, so not having any USA configuration - the VOLTE options do not work or display to enable them... This is a major flaw with how Huawei have configured the mobile device, from what I read on forums these files are under 1mb in size, so why they have not included all regional files on each device no matter the location is beyond me.... I am stuck without VOLTE option here in Australia due to this fact, and will most likely never get it since they are not selling the device here.
The C900 being "Non-Region-Branded", sounds like this may (or may not) be a winner to rebrand to.. i'm wondering if it contains configuration for all regions!
LTE here tho is called "4G" and I am connecting with 4G and 4G+, and get the data speeds of that, but not calling (it drops down to HSPA+ when I make a call).
I have read on here that Mate 9 owners have been able to backup the cust partition and then restore it using TWRP on other devices, or most people have re-branded to their correct region.. this not possible since there is no USA or AU region build for M9 Pro.
Hey everyone,
the new Zenfone 6 is amazing, besides the FlipCamera it has nearly everything (big battery, microSD, 3,5 mm headphone,...).
Just one thing irritates me: there are three Versions A, B and C, as one can see here under "Network Standard"
https://www.asus.com/Phone/ZenFone-6-ZS630KL/Tech-Specs/
So can someone tell me what that means? Like if I get the European version A (with Band 20), will I than for instance not be able to use it in the USA for telephone / SMS?! Or just not LTE / can I still use it like on UMTS? No LTE at all or just not certain carriers?
Hope someone can make it clear to me, thanks in advance
You'll be able to use it anywhere, it's just there's slightly less band coverage, so some networks in some countries would be nixed.
See Kimovil.com for network compatibility.
Gearbest currently have the 6GB / 64GB Version C (most bands) for €495.
It means you'll have to be sure to verify you get the version with the bands needed for your particular carrier. You have to be very careful and verify before buying as it seems with the ZenFone 5Z, for example, sellers don't always properly clarify which version they're selling.
You need to find out which of the main bands your phone carrier uses then match them up to one of the versions. I use AT&T prepaid, so for for example I need a phone with coverage for bands 2,4,5,8, and 17 if I recall correctly.
If some bands aren't covered you won't have LTE in that area, as not all areas you're in are using the same network frequency bands. Therefore coverage can get worse when you travel with a phone without full band support.
Checked out the bands available on the Asus site you linked (thank you very much BTW) and it seems they are missing bands 66(extension of band 4) & 71 (600mhz frequency) so it seems like it may work okay on TMobile.
What do you guys think if those two bands are missing? Will it be detrimental to daily use or not really? Currently on an OG Pixel and this Asus offering is looking like a future purchase!!
CDMA (Sprint or Verizon) compatiblity in the US?
Stanto said:
CDMA (Sprint or Verizon) compatiblity in the US?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Looks like the C variants might work for you but double check the bands for your carrier Kimovil.com.
mudnightoil said:
See Kimovil.com for network compatibility.
Gearbest currently have the 6GB / 64GB Version C (most bands) for €495.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the hint.
I need Band 20 (O2 Germany), so I can only use Version A (so no B or C for me).
---edit---
I just checked: T-Online and Vodafone use Band 20 and 32 (in Germany), but none of the three versions support both.
MartyM76 said:
If some bands aren't covered you won't have LTE in that area, as not all areas you're in are using the same network frequency bands. Therefore coverage can get worse when you travel with a phone without full band support.
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Ok, but does it mean I will at least have telephone and SMS in those areas, where the LTE band won't be supported?!
JJ111 said:
Ok, but does it mean I will at least have telephone and SMS in those areas, where the LTE band won't be supported?!
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Yes, as long at the other bands are supported (which they should be) it will drop to 3G/4G or whatever. That's why people using some Chinese phones for example in the USA can use everything but LTE.
You might
need to check however about VoLTE, I think. I don't have T-Mobile but you should read more about that as I've seen it mentioned in XDA & other places.
---------- Post added at 12:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:48 PM ----------
> Gearbest currently have the 6GB / 64GB Version C (most bands) for €495
I only see the A version there. Where did you find the C version?
This device just hit my radar... looks like we might have an upgrade winner!
For Tmobile US, C model is the way to go. The two highest bands that are missing with this device would get you better signal indoors / less interference, but I am not sure how far along that tech even is.
charlatan01 said:
The two highest bands that are missing with this device would get you better signal indoors / less interference, but I am not sure how far along that tech even is.
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By highest bands do you mean 66 and 71? The only phones that use band 71 at the moment are Samsung s8 Active and LG V30. I currently have an OG Pixel and it does not use 66 or 71 and I get great coverage in the East coast even when going north into the mountains.
wreq5 said:
By highest bands do you mean 66 and 71? The only phones that use band 71 at the moment are Samsung s8 Active and LG V30. I currently have an OG Pixel and it does not use 66 or 71 and I get great coverage in the East coast even when going north into the mountains.
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'
Yep, those are the two. Those two are still relatively new, and general Tmo coverage continues to improve here in Colorado.
I imagine that once the phone is sold on the asus.com website that particular variant will support all the main carriers LTE bands. I would be surprised if there were any major issues with that otherwise what's the point of even selling it in the USA?
SantinoInc said:
I imagine that once the phone is sold on the asus.com website that particular variant will support all the main carriers LTE bands.
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Yes, for example in the case of the 5Z I just ordered (to get me by since I desperately need a phone with a better camera & no OLED to cause eye strain) the bands listed for phones at the Asus USA online store cover AT&T properly and to the best of my knowledge T-Mobile as well.
I figured out that they don't list phones there that aren't USA network compatible. I still check, regardless, just to feel 100% sure but that's what I found.
It's the 3rd party sellers you really need to be careful about and always verify.
The OnePlus 7 pro has bands 66 and 71.
This probably would have been my first choice until I noticed the different versions. With more and more manufacturers choosing to release single, global bands phones, I really don't understand why Asus insist on continuing to release regional versions of their phones.
Back in the days when everyone made regional models, I had the Padfone Infinity 2 and it was a great phone (until a late OTA release have it the new ZenUI, which was promptly removed). After reading that the latest ZenUI 6 has been slimmed down to an almost stock Android experience, I thought it might once again be similar to what Asus provided before ZenUI came along and that I can now once again consider Asus phones. Wrong!
I spend time in both Europe and Asia and there is no version that covers both areas major LTE bands. So Asus will have to remain on the list of phones to ignore.
Robbo.5000 said:
This probably would have been my first choice until I noticed the different versions. With more and more manufacturers choosing to release single, global bands phones, I really don't understand why Asus insist on continuing to release regional versions of their phones.
Back in the days when everyone made regional models, I had the Padfone Infinity 2 and it was a great phone (until a late OTA release have it the new ZenUI, which was promptly removed). After reading that the latest ZenUI 6 has been slimmed down to an almost stock Android experience, I thought it might once again be similar to what Asus provided before ZenUI came along and that I can now once again consider Asus phones. Wrong!
I spend time in both Europe and Asia and there is no version that covers both areas major LTE bands. So Asus will have to remain on the list of phones to ignore.
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I'm in the same position. The C version covers everything I need except for Band 20 which is a necessity throughout Europe. The A version has Bamd 20 but won't work on US LTE. They did the same thing with the Zenfone 2 and inexplicably mixed up the bands regionally. I'll stick with my NexS for now but keep an eye on this phone in case the Limited edition they usually release solves the problem.
prestonmcafee said:
The OnePlus 7 pro has bands 66 and 71.
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I don't want the OP7. This isn't the OP7 forum.