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Just received my desire from Devicewire, not on contract but sim free version. I noticed that there was no HTC seal on the bottom of the box, does this mean I have been given a returned phone? I also noticed there is a virgin media widget? Also homepage on the browser is virgin media?
Apart from a tiny bubble in the glass (bottom left, you can hardly notice it) and a back cover that doesn't fit snug, everything else is fine.
My concern is that I will have problems when upgrading the firmware due to some virgin media connection? For example will I only be able to upgrade the firmware with VM firmware?
if you look around on this site you'll see that the general consensus is that due to stock shortages, HTC shipped some phones that were meant to be locked by Virgin, but in fact are still unlocked phones. I don't have one myself, but you shouldn't have any issues with it
that being said, I'd be a bit off-put by that, couldn't stand looking at a branding if I didn't buy it that way in the first place. I mean, the phones are usually knocked down in price due to branding and contract deals..
I'd send it back and demand an unbranded one, but you may have to wait.
Sent from my HTC Desire using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
oh yeah, the seal...
sounds to me like someone opened your box for one reason it another, I'd find out why...
Sent from my HTC Desire using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
I got a completely unlocked unbraded one from superetrader.co.uk and it didn't have a seal on, but the seal was inside the box ready to be used. So don't worry about not having a seal
mine was also unbranded, etc... I had a seal on the box AS WELL as inside the box.
maybe just confusion in the HTC packing plant at the moment ...
Sent from my HTC Desire using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
thanks guys for the info. It looks like they just didnt apply a seal at the factory, maybe they were destined for a carrier who adds some doc into the box and then applies their own seal.
I have one of the phones with Virgin branding, too, also from devicewire. I emailed them about it and they assured me it came direct from HTC themselves.
So I emailed HTC and they said it was a firmware bug, where using a sim on the t-mobile network, as virgin is, produces this branding. they assured me the phone is fully sim free and won't have any trouble being updated. I posted the email in the thread about the April 7th phones. i'll dig it up when I'm next on my pc.
I'm assuming you're on t-mobile?
Sent from my HTC Desire using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
Arrhhh, very interesting. Thanks for the heads up on that. I have used devicewire many times and never had a problem with them, so I thought it was a bit unusual for them.
Mine came without a seal aswell. The seal was in the box unused though.
yes I'm on T-Mobile
Sent from my HTC Desire using the XDA mobile application powered by Tapatalk
In case you hadn't seen it yet, here's my post from the other thread:
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For anyone that is actually curious, I emailed HTC about the rogue Virgin Media branding on mine:
Hi,
I ordered a SIM free HTC Desire from devicewire.com, and while the phone itself is just fine, I noticed some branding for Virgin Media. There was a shortcut on the homescreen (I assume to the website but I deleted it), the browser's homepage was set to Virgin Media and there is a Virgin Media scene that I can't delete. Devicewire assure me that the phone is a SIM free unit delivered directly from HTC so I was wondering if you had any idea as to why this branding is there?
More importantly, I'd like to confirm that this branding won't affect my ability to update the phone with HTC supplied firmware upgrades.
I look forward to hearing your comments.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
And here's their reply:
This is normal. There is a very minor bug in the generic rom in that whenever it sees a SIM from a netork that uses the T-mobile network (T-Mobile, Virgin, Fresh etc) it creates that virgin link and scene.
this will be fixed in the update so it is nothing to worry about. It is definitely a SIM free device you have.
Best regards,
Pete W
HTC
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So, assuming that's accurate I guess it's mystery solved!
-----------
When I bought my Touch HD from the carphone warehouse it was unbranded and didnt have the seal. That was in the box. I was told that is how HTC distribute them. It was/is so that networks can brand them and then apply the seal.
Im not sure if thats right or wrong but it was covered by warranty.
Hi All,
Just switched from ATT to sprint to try out the Motorola XPRT was wondering if we can either start a new thread on the sprint version or not? Or a seperate thread on main forum just for the Sprint Version? A little about me....
Always been into phones, Currently have Blackberry Torch AT&T and a HTC Desire Z unbranded. ATT service sucks in the new condo I purchased and I been eying the droid pro since It was been released on VZW but I refuse to be raped by the plans lol... I have so many diffrent smart phones its ridiculous but just wanted to put this out there because I love this phone so far except that it does suck in direct sunlight unless brightness is turned almost to 75%. I already tried to see if the radio frequencies were locked by putting in my gf att sim card and it said no gsm networks detected..
I just wanted to see if someone would be willing to work on getting this rooted so we can enjoy some fun.
I already tried Z4 root all in one root no go...
I am up for trying some things out as I am in withing my 30 day trial period
Froyo or Gingerbread? Gingerbread is so far unrootable, while Froyo is rootable using aroot or superoneclick
Its froyo 2.2.2 ill try using aroot....
Sent from my MB612 using XDA App
WOW I shouldve looked more...But I just used"Superoneclick" root install method using the universal root and it worked. I am rooted.
I realize the Sprint Motorola XPRT is a retread of the Droid Pro (with a better battery), but to release it with Froyo and 3G-only made it a questionable move in my mind (I considered it), even if the target market was Blackberry users.
Doug
dougsyo said:
I realize the Sprint Motorola XPRT is a retread of the Droid Pro (with a better battery), but to release it with Froyo and 3G-only made it a questionable move in my mind (I considered it), even if the target market was Blackberry users.
Doug
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I feel quite the oppisite, I'm glad its 3g only because $10 less a month on my bill and until Sprint gets wimax/lte on a better band imo sprints 4g sucks.....I have the evo shift and have used the og evo and for the most part unless you are within 8 blocks from the tower it disconnects frequently and hangs....
Having froyo at launch was a plus since rooting was done using 1 click and in the evo shift forums gingerbread doesnt have an exploit yet....
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I got my Nexus LTE on Wednesday, had it replaced on Friday, and now VZW wants to take it back all together. They are saying that Samsung is working on a fix on the phone, but now Verizon thinks its a Network issue?
Does any one have a Nexus that isn't dropping Data constantly? Is it a bad Batch of phones? Does anyone know what is going on?
The ones with data drops are the most vocal...
I, for one, find my GNex's signal to be COMPLETELY comparable to my Droid X.
I still get the same slightly-spotty service at work (center of a hospital...surrounded by lead to protect from the X-Ray Machines' radiation). Excellent service literally everywhere else I've been.
I'm also not experiencing ANY 4.0.4 deep-sleep related drops as many are.
Bad Batch
So, is there just a bad batch of phones out there? Because this seems that this has to be a hardware issue.With a certain amount of phones that went out.
Mine is working great, I had to have it warrantied twice before I got one that didn't drop signal randomly.
Seems like the ones made in Korea are your best bet for better signal. My China ones were horrible.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
I think my wife and i may both be having this issue with random signal drops while on 4G. 3G is solid as a rock. 4G drops and reconnects about every 3 minutes. Does that sound like hardware?
How do you tell where the phone is made?
i really think verizon hates this phone and doesnt really want to sell a nexus to people...
Talked to Verizon
So we are trying this one more time...
I talked to Verizon today, and the Tech person had the same phone and lived in my area and said she was not having any issues, which led her to believe it was Hardware and Software. She also said some razors are having the same issue, and if I switch phones I could have the same issue again. So, I am going to swap it out again and see what happens?
I have had 5 of these phones and they all have this problems.
Vzn just sucks!!! I can't wait until I can afford to break the contract!!!! and I thought sprint was bad!!! T-Mobile was heaven compared to this garbage service!!!!
siberslug said:
I have had 5 of these phones and they all have this problems.
Vzn just sucks!!! I can't wait until I can afford to break the contract!!!! and I thought sprint was bad!!! T-Mobile was heaven compared to this garbage service!!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you just blame Verizon for a phone it sells?
They didn't touch the hardware or software of the device....
adrynalyne said:
Did you just blame Verizon for a phone it sells?
They didn't touch the hardware or software of the device....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol so Verizon apps magically appeared?
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
DontJoinTheDarkSide said:
Lol so Verizon apps magically appeared?
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just because they are included in the CDMA/LTE version for Verizon, doesn't mean they touched anything on the OS side.
ZeroBarrier said:
Just because they are included in the CDMA/LTE version for Verizon, doesn't mean they touched anything on the OS side.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe that the radios, and maybe a few other driver packages, are developed by verizon and only distributed by google when they package their releases. That's what the tiff a few months back was with the CDMA phones being "dropped" by AOSP, a licensing conflict with anything that interacts with the CDMA tech being tied down and not open source. The actual Android code is google's game, true, but it's not the only thing the phones run on.
So there's room for Verizon to screw up the way the phones run in the OTA packages.
siberslug said:
I have had 5 of these phones and they all have this problems.
Vzn just sucks!!! I can't wait until I can afford to break the contract!!!! and I thought sprint was bad!!! T-Mobile was heaven compared to this garbage service!!!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just cause you're having issues with Verizon doesn't mean it's the same for everyone. Have fun being throttled on T-Moible's "4G" after you hit 2GB .
I've had nothing but exceeding standard service from Verizon reps. Only thing I hate is that it took Verizon forever to come out with this phone. And the updates take longer than GSM ones, but still, its faster than any other phone.
I actually don't mind the 2 apps they pre installed. I actually use My Verizon and I used to use Backup Assistant, a lot of people still use it.
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using XDA
I got one that works
On my 3rd try i got a phone that works, at least I think it works. The agents said that it can't be a lot number on the phones, because the same lots give out good and bad phones. They also said the Razor is having the same issues. They just told me to keep this one on 3G only until the update Samsung is supposed to be sending comes out.
mellis8 said:
On my 3rd try i got a phone that works, at least I think it works. The agents said that it can't be a lot number on the phones, because the same lots give out good and bad phones. They also said the Razor is having the same issues. They just told me to keep this one on 3G only until the update Samsung is supposed to be sending comes out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Glad to hear it worked out for you and you can finally enjoy the phone.
bill12690 said:
i really think verizon hates this phone and doesnt really want to sell a nexus to people...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Even when I was getting my Sim and activating it, the rep didn't seem to happy about it lol
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using Tapatalk 2
VZW customer service is amazing
I have never had an issue where VZW customer service DIDN'T immediately suggest "let me send you a new phone" when I called with an issue. The only phone I've ever had with VZW where I didn't warranty replace a phone (in Droid X's case, FIVE TIMES before they finally sent me an X2) was my old Blackberry 8703e. I'm on my 2nd GNEX (after a bad screen/battery life/overheating issue with my first) and I can't imagine every having someone other than VZW. I mean, I get 20Mb/s D/L on 4G LTE and 10-15 upload...and no matter how much bandwidth I use (with my husband and I playing MMOs via my GNEX) we do not get throttled. It really isn't VZW's fault if there is some widespread hardware issue in some of the phones that shipped.
JoeSyr said:
I believe that the radios, and maybe a few other driver packages, are developed by verizon and only distributed by google when they package their releases. That's what the tiff a few months back was with the CDMA phones being "dropped" by AOSP, a licensing conflict with anything that interacts with the CDMA tech being tied down and not open source. The actual Android code is google's game, true, but it's not the only thing the phones run on.
So there's room for Verizon to screw up the way the phones run in the OTA packages.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Nah. Even if every verizon file and app was bad, it would only have the effect of broken verizon apps.
DontJoinTheDarkSide said:
Lol so Verizon apps magically appeared?
Sent from my Galaxy Nexus using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Let me say it again.
Verizon did not touch the software or hardware in this device.
Did they supply Google with some apks and libs? Sure they did. Do they affect ANY PART of operation?
Heck no.
Verizon outsources their app development, by the way. If Verizon had modified anything built by Google, it would have broken signatures. Guess what? Google signs our otas and they stay signed (otherwise we couldn't install them).
1st time andriod user, Just wondering is there sim lock on at&t OG PRO?
Yes. But it's easy to deal with...
Google search dr unlock usa....many local spot use their servers, and they are very fast and reliable. I have used them 10+ already. Never had a problem
Sent from my LG-E980 using xda app-developers app
I'm using mine on T-Mobile now, got it unlocked the first day i bought it, just use Cellunlocker it's a website, probably the easiest way to do it hands down, and it's fast.
If you call at&t they will give you a code for free. They might make you wait 90 days though.
Has anyone used the SGH-I257M on US AT&T?
As I understand, it has the bands for multiple networks. The reason for asking is AT&T is dragging their feet.
Info I got from AT&T was that it has enough roll outs for Christmas and are not going to bring out the S4 Mini until January. My contract is up, S3 & S4 are too big for a pocket, I ditched my S3, I'm using an S2 clocked at 1.7 and gutted, nice phone, but time for a new toy to play with. I'm tired of waiting on the 'Mini', but flashable US Basebands will be unavailable for some time so I'm hoping someone has done this. More specifically meaning the 'non branded' SGH i257M and a functional LTE band 17. TIA
systwk said:
Has anyone used the SGH-I257M on US AT&T?
As I understand, it has the bands for multiple networks. The reason for asking is AT&T is dragging their feet.
Info I got from AT&T was that it has enough roll outs for Christmas and are not going to bring out the S4 Mini until January. My contract is up, S3 & S4 are too big for a pocket, I ditched my S3, I'm using an S2 clocked at 1.7 and gutted, nice phone, but time for a new toy to play with. I'm tired of waiting on the 'Mini', but flashable US Basebands will be unavailable for some time so I'm hoping someone has done this. More specifically meaning the 'non branded' SGH i257M and a functional LTE band 17. TIA
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you get an unlocked SGH-I257M from Canada it will work for AT&T with LTE. I got one as an early Christmas gift for my girlfriend and it works no problem. I just put her 4G microSIM from her old phone (Pantech Burst) and set it up. The only thing I had to do was add the APN for AT&T 4G. Also, I believe it was the ChatON app that would not work in the US but it wasn't important.
EDIT: Also, a question I was thinking of as well is, if when the AT&T version comes out (or the firmware at least) could the AT&T I257 firmware be flashed on an I257M? That would minimize any issues from the phone's software..
wiisixtyfour said:
If you get an unlocked SGH-I257M from Canada it will work for AT&T with LTE. I got one as an early Christmas gift for my girlfriend and it works no problem. I just put her 4G microSIM from her old phone (Pantech Burst) and set it up. The only thing I had to do was add the APN for AT&T 4G. Also, I believe it was the ChatON app that would not work in the US but it wasn't important.
EDIT: Also, a question I was thinking of as well is, if when the AT&T version comes out (or the firmware at least) could the AT&T I257 firmware be flashed on an I257M? That would minimize any issues from the phone's software..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I appreciate the reply. That is good to know. Yeah, ChatON is of no interest. As for flashing, There are multiple reports that the 9195 ROM flashes OK on the M's, 9195 also adds the FM radio that is not given functionality in the M's but restored with the 9195 OS so I would assume the AT&T version should be no problem provided AT&T isn't pulling another non standard hardware version as they have in the past with some phones. (FCC filings don't indicate that) AT&T seems to have developed a phobia in recent years about their phones being retrofitted with new OS's. Also likely they are waiting for 4.3 or a Knox implementation in the deluded belief that it is secure. Thanks again for the heads up on function, looks like the price from Canada isn't too bad right now.
wiisixtyfour said:
If you get an unlocked SGH-I257M from Canada it will work for AT&T with LTE. I got one as an early Christmas gift for my girlfriend and it works no problem. I just put her 4G microSIM from her old phone (Pantech Burst) and set it up. The only thing I had to do was add the APN for AT&T 4G. Also, I believe it was the ChatON app that would not work in the US but it wasn't important.
EDIT: Also, a question I was thinking of as well is, if when the AT&T version comes out (or the firmware at least) could the AT&T I257 firmware be flashed on an I257M? That would minimize any issues from the phone's software..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi. Thank you for sharing this. I actually just bought a Canadian i257M as well and now I'm waiting for it to get shipped to me. Question; do the samsung media apps work while in the US? For example, media hub, video hub and music hub? I ask because i used to own a GS4 from att and I purchased a lot of media on those apps and would like to continue using them if possible on the GS4 mini if possible.
Much appreciated!
Eltahur said:
Hi. Thank you for sharing this. I actually just bought a Canadian i257M as well and now I'm waiting for it to get shipped to me. Question; do the samsung media apps work while in the US? For example, media hub, video hub and music hub? I ask because i used to own a GS4 from att and I purchased a lot of media on those apps and would like to continue using them if possible on the GS4 mini if possible.
Much appreciated!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You may have some disappointment, Samsung has switched to 'Samsung Hub' on the new phones, replacing the older Media hubs and interoperability suffers a lot. T-Mobile offers a Media Hub for their new phones, AT&T may as well since the Sammy app's leave so much behind. It's going to be a wait and see I suspect. With luck AT&T will have Media Hub apps instead of the newer Samsung replacements and all you will have to do is wait. It seems quite a few people have money tied up in the old system and that may keep it alive.
But other than that, all you need to get on line is write your carrier APN. The phone is turn-key as it is. I just got an 'M' and after gutting the OS, dropping in an APN and editing the Build Prop a little (not needed) it works great on US AT&T.
There are more and more of the i257M's turning up recently in the States and hopefully someone will be able to clarify the Media Hub issue more for you better than this.
Where are you guys getting unlocked 257Ms? I can't find anything on ebay and the internet suggests canadagsm may not be reputable.
Hi...wondering if you can help given you are on AT&T 4G LTE. My i257M arrived today from canadagsm and it appears rooted. Surprise, but maybe good. BTW...canadagsm handled this order ok, not great and not responsive, but they did deliver. Anyway so far so good, but I am also on AT&T 4G LTE and wondering how to edit the APN? Why? Right now I am only getting H+ connectivity. So wondering if there is a way to do this voa the hardware or only via software? Also, can you post the Build Prop? Lastly, due to rooted phones being disallowed on my company network I can only use a stock ROM.
Lastly, as I write this I ended up going into the boot ROM and which is not CWM and for the last 30 minutes and selecting install the volume up, the screen shows DOWNLOADING, DO NOT TURN OFF TARGET!! However, I am not aware I am downloading anything and seeing this screen is a bit scary. I may mess with this a little more by the time anyone gets a chance to respond, so we will see.
Thanks in advance, malloy0
systwk said:
You may have some disappointment, Samsung has switched to 'Samsung Hub' on the new phones, replacing the older Media hubs and interoperability suffers a lot. T-Mobile offers a Media Hub for their new phones, AT&T may as well since the Sammy app's leave so much behind. It's going to be a wait and see I suspect. With luck AT&T will have Media Hub apps instead of the newer Samsung replacements and all you will have to do is wait. It seems quite a few people have money tied up in the old system and that may keep it alive.
But other than that, all you need to get on line is write your carrier APN. The phone is turn-key as it is. I just got an 'M' and after gutting the OS, dropping in an APN and editing the Build Prop a little (not needed) it works great on US AT&T.
There are more and more of the i257M's turning up recently in the States and hopefully someone will be able to clarify the Media Hub issue more for you better than this.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
malloy0 said:
Hi...wondering if you can help given you are on AT&T 4G LTE. My i257M arrived today from canadagsm and it appears rooted. Surprise, but maybe good. BTW...canadagsm handled this order ok, not great and not responsive, but they did deliver. Anyway so far so good, but I am also on AT&T 4G LTE and wondering how to edit the APN? Why? Right now I am only getting H+ connectivity. So wondering if there is a way to do this voa the hardware or only via software? Also, can you post the Build Prop? Lastly, due to rooted phones being disallowed on my company network I can only use a stock ROM.
Lastly, as I write this I ended up going into the boot ROM and which is not CWM and for the last 30 minutes and selecting install the volume up, the screen shows DOWNLOADING, DO NOT TURN OFF TARGET!! However, I am not aware I am downloading anything and seeing this screen is a bit scary. I may mess with this a little more by the time anyone gets a chance to respond, so we will see.
Thanks in advance, malloy0
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just made a thread abouu this. Just picked up a i257m and on every kind of combination of rom I'm stuck at only h+. I spent a few hours on the phone with cs to figure out why after googling a few other cases similar to ours. Turns out att doesn't support unlocked phones so the account isn't setup to push lte. What others have done, and what I'm going to try to do tomorrow is pop the sim into an att phone thss can do LTE and set it up and switch back and it should follow.
Att were assholes and wouldn't setup a device on my sim temporarily to prove to me LTE worked on my account. We popped my dim into a display g2 that was getting LTE, and got only h+. So I told him to pop the display sim in mine to see if I can get LTE, it only triggered the LTE option in the settings but never popped up saying it was getting any.. Hmm
Edit: got lte working with a new sim! All works perfect on att!
voilsb said:
Where are you guys getting unlocked 257Ms? I can't find anything on ebay and the internet suggests canadagsm may not be reputable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just wanted to throw in an update, I took the risk and ordered a 257M from CanadaGSM. Minor hiccup with the webpage didn't forward my address to their credit card processor, but they sent me an e-mail and a paypal invoice, and shipped out the phone the same day I paid. Quick customer service response time via e-mail, too (as in within a few minutes). It works great on Straight Talk, but I don't live in an LTE area so I can't test that till this weekend.
It rooted easily, and now it's running PAC.
Edited to add some information.
voilsb said:
Just wanted to throw in an update, I took the risk and ordered a 257M from CanadaGSM. Minor hiccup with the webpage didn't forward my address to their credit card processor, but they sent me an e-mail and a paypal invoice, and shipped out the phone the same day I paid. Quick customer service response time via e-mail, too (as in within a few minutes). It works great on Straight Talk, but I don't live in an LTE area so I can't test that till this weekend.
It rooted easily, and now it's running PAC.
Edited to add some information.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good news for CanadaGSM...I too was leery, but after a few emails and phone calls they stepped it up big time. For now I have retired the S5 mini in favor of a Nokia Lumia 520 for $65!! Woo-eeee!! It's a super smooth phone. Apps are a little limited, but still have found everything I need except "stay awake" with charging. as for the S4 mini on LTE? No luck at all and expect one of two things...1) it's a locked Rogers phone and I am on AT&T, thus they will not allow LTE or the phone is not truly LTE capable.
voilsb said:
... ordered a 257M ... It rooted easily ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you post some detail about the rooting procedure that you used? I have not yet seen a complete procedure for the SGH-I257M.
malloy0 said:
Good news for CanadaGSM...I too was leery, but after a few emails and phone calls they stepped it up big time. For now I have retired the S5 mini in favor of a Nokia Lumia 520 for $65!! Woo-eeee!! It's a super smooth phone. Apps are a little limited, but still have found everything I need except "stay awake" with charging. as for the S4 mini on LTE? No luck at all and expect one of two things...1) it's a locked Rogers phone and I am on AT&T, thus they will not allow LTE or the phone is not truly LTE capable.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm running the i257m on att with lte,only hiccup I had was they gave a 3g sim instead of an lte one and it took three weeks to prove it to them!
---------- Post added at 01:01 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:58 AM ----------
mdawdy said:
Can you post some detail about the rooting procedure that you used? I have not yet seen a complete procedure for the SGH-I257M.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Use the 9195 root method and 9195 roms, same phone just different lte bands.
What I did was use Odin to flash recovery then flashed the root kit then used the unlock app from the play store to be able to run att. Then I flashed my liquidsmooth and havent looked back!
I used Odin to flash philz touch recovery, then flashed the PAC nightly. Only issues so far are ROM related, like launcher preference and battery drain
Sent from my GT-I9195 using xda app-developers app