I have a Samsung Galaxy Edge 6 with T-Mobile from T-mobile, love the phone, but I lost my job and the bill got out of control so I have not paid in like 3 months I think now.
It was not too big of a deal since my main number is a Google Voice number and I use Google Hangouts to make phone calls and text messages by default.
Its perfect when I am at home on wi-fi but as soon as I leave and not within wi-fi of course I get no internet functionality.
For a while I saw the carrier logo at the top of my phone "T-Mobile" but now it just says "searching" where it used to say that in the upper part of the screen on every screen. (I may have switched a setting causing this or they may have blacklisted my phone I am not sure how to tell).
The phone is not carrier unlocked however if I was to go to Walmart or even a T-Mobile store, tell them I don't have the phone on me but I just want to purchase a pre-paid SIM, could I do that and would it work on my phone to get back on the T-mobile or other carriers network?
Since I use Google Hangouts for my texts and calls it is very important for me to have data. I am sure 5GB would be fine but I want to purchase the cheapest SIM which has any kind of data to see if it even works first. I do not care what number it gives me since I will not be using it for outgoing or incoming calls.
My concern is that if I go with T-Mobile pre-pay, when I put SIM in, it may reject it automatically because they may have sent some kind of SIM lock command since it is not showing carrier anymore OR they may look up my IMEI and see that I have an outstanding bill with them and not allow the SIM.
Any suggestions besides the obvious "pay your bill" would be greatly appreciated! When I can afford to pay the bill I will :cyclops:
Short answer, yes it will work.
Sent from my SM-G925T using Tapatalk
Ok great thank you! Will go in and get a T-mob SIM tomorrow. Or actually, does anyone have advice of where to get the cheapest SIM so I can try this to make sure it works first? I think for $30 you can get 5GB data and a little talk from T-Mob is there anything cheaper? I am super-broke right now lol. I just need the data no talk.
Actually it depends on if the phone was part of the bill. If it wasnt payed off and you didnt pay them it will get blacklisted and it wont work with any carrier in the us. But if the phone was paid outright then you should be fine.
See that is what I am talking about. The phone AND Galaxy Gear S with activated SIM both were not paid off and bill is at $600 and it used to say "T-mobile" for carrier on top of phone screen now it just says "Searching" thus I am pretty sure that is a sign of being blacklisted. Even if phone is blacklisted cant I do something to make it use a prepaid SIM? Can I spoof the IMEI? Is that how they blacklist it?
Alex9090 said:
Short answer, yes it will work.
Sent from my SM-G925T using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I got around to trying this and no, it did not work. In fact I went to one of those third party T-mobile places which is an authorized dealer but he was still cool to talk about it with and had access to the T-mobile database.
He asked for my phone, went to the dialer app on the phone, put in a code with the numeric keypad, and it pulled up two bar codes and numbers (I think the IMEI).
He then went on his computer and put in my IMEI or whatever number was there and sure enough it said it was blacklisted.
I had a feeling this was the case when my phone went from showing the carrier logo on the top of the screen they it said "searching" after about 3 months on non payment.
So when I tried to purchase a new prepaid SIM and put it in the phone and phone restarted, instead of saying "searching" it now says "no service".
There has to be a work around for this. Maybe changing the phones IMEI is the only way but if there are other alternatives I would like to know. I can program and have been writing code since I was 12 years old but not sure if I need special hardware to flash and internal EEPROM or something like that. Any hep is greatly appreciated!
I hear there are people that I can pay to do it but I enjoying learning things like this on my own so I would really like to do it myself if possible?
Changing the imei might be possible but for legal and policy reasons that can not be discussed here
I see tons of ways to do it with a Google search super easy. But it seems TWRP might do it or at least let me backup everything including the system partition so I dont lose anything and can always go back?
Where can I get and learn more about TWRP and must I be rooted?
Can we currently root Samsung GS6 with Android OS 5.1.1 ?
Related
if somebody can answer my question thats be great.
im trying to buy note 4 its at&t. but the person who bought the phone from at&t he did not activate the phone on at&t network.. he just got it in the mail and never contact at&t to activate it.. and he did not pay it off
ri have red pocket SIM and this is what i use for phone service..
if i buy this phone and use my SIM card with it.. does the phone with count as blacklist in at&t database ? what i know at&t blacklist phones will not work on red pocket..
thanks alot
If he did not pay it off it will likely be blacklisted. I assume he got it through the AT&T next program.
It will take up to a few months to be blacklisted.
But there is the chance that it will not be blacklisted as it wasn't registered on their network.
I was told that even if you owe money on a Next Plan device, you can still sell it to someone else. I just did that with my S5 and it went fine.
The Next Plan is tied to your account, not the device. If you sell the device and still owe money on it, they will come after you.
I could be wrong, has anyone heard differently?
so does at&t have all there phones IMEI in the database before the activate and they mark it as blacklist when they sale the phone if its unpaid and inactivated on any account on there network ?
At&t doesn't generally block phones regardless of what happened. They do everything with the account unless the account holder requests it be blacklisted. If they did do something on their end, they would just block it from use on their network, not others once it's unlocked. Generally I would say look for one from someone more reputable, but the fact that he admitted everything makes me think he's just going to let the account go unpaid.
the reason i ask because Red pocke SIM card works on at&t phones without unlock them.. they use at&t towers.. so its at&t based service.. and any blacklist phone will not work on Red Pocket SIM card.. im using LG G2 verizon and its blacklist on verizon but its works fine on redpocket.. the problem is i can not get 4G LTE with verizon phones i can get HSPA.. its should be at&t phone to get 4G LTE..
and the reason im trying to get that phone because its cheaper than to get it from at&t..
First and foremost, I'm a noob.
Anyways, I'm giving this whole Android thing a go for the third time. I had an S7 and an S7 Edge, both were great phones but they were also carrier versions. I've owned pretty much everything Apple and coming to the realization that Apple is dropping the ball. It's time to switch it up.
I ordered an International Unlocked 930F Note 7 and I'm currently with AT&T. After researching, I'm aware that I'll be losing a few things like Samsung Pay and VoLTE. Few questions I have: When the Note comes in the mail, shall I remove the SIM out of my iPhone SE and insert it into the new phone? Or go to an AT&T store and ask for another SIM?
Your feedback/suggestions are greatly appreciated!
Someone will correct me if I am wrong but I don't believe you will lose Samsung Pay. It should work. And yes, just plug your SIM (if its a nano) and go. I plan on getting the same phone and I had the S7 Edge international version and it worked fine on AT&T. I never tried Samsung pay though.
Thanks for the quick reply.
Not too worried about Samsung Pay, as I don't even use Apple Pay. But the VoLTE is what I'm mainly concerned about.
Also what about visual voicemail? I understand it can be downloaded from Google Play, but will it still work and keep my same greeting, etc..?
Brings me to next question: Samsungs website offers the micro SD card as a free gift when purchasing the phone, do you know if they honor purchases from eBay and/or international devices?
Yeah I don't use Samsung pay either. Not sure about VoLTE.
Visual voice mail works fine. Just download the app from the Play Store like you said but not sure about the greeting. Don't know if that stored in the app or on AT&T's server.
From what I've been reading, when you register your phone, regardless of where you got it, you will be able to take advantage of the current promotion. LETS HOPE!
Samsung pay should still work, and so will the VVM app from the play store.
Eventually if a root/flashing method should come out for the international model which could let you flash over AT&T stuff such as HD voice. Not 100% sure on that but maybe someone else can verify that.
When you get the phone, go to the store and ask for a sim.
As for the free gift, it only applies if you buy it from a carrier store, or certain stores. I'm assuming the guy you bought it from already got the promo gift from Samsung. If you really want it maybe cancel the eBay order and get it from Samsung.
As far as I know you can't buy the international version straight from Samsung. If that would have been an option, I'd been all over that.
Would the SIM in my iPhone not work?
Seems you may be right, the only options I see on their site are carrier models. If you go to the promotion site though, they have an option for "other" retailers so you can try with your eBay invoice as proof of purchase.
I like where your heads at.
I suppose what I can do with the SIM is try swapping it into the Note and if it doesn't work, go to the store.
mattjewell said:
I like where your heads at.
I suppose what I can do with the SIM is try swapping it into the Note and if it doesn't work, go to the store.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll pop in with a lil info for you. I use a international Note 4 on AT&T now with zero issues. A few reasons why I went with this version instead of a carrier branded phone. First one was the unlocked bootloader, since the AT&T version was locked up and still locked to this day. My 4 still works perfectly fine with a custom S7/Note 7 Rom on it. So you decide if you want it..
Now in regards to the crapple sim going into the N7, if I'm not mistaken you're going to have to get that changed from the crapple set-up. Think they need to put it back to regular data or whatever all the other phones use. You know it's always something special with crapple! I would say try the sim if no data you'll know why.
Good luck
Bajan
mattjewell said:
I like where your heads at.
I suppose what I can do with the SIM is try swapping it into the Note and if it doesn't work, go to the store.
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Click to collapse
As mentioned above, I believe Apple uses different settings for data with their sim cards. When my brother switched from a 4S to Android he had to get a new card. I also just got his LTE working for him by contacting support and registering his Sim card with the one I from a store display phone. I just took a picture of the IMEI of an S7 in store and used the "ATT Phone" APN settings. The NXTGENPHONE APN will not work for some reason when I tried it.
cadcamaro said:
As mentioned above, I believe Apple uses different settings for data with their sim cards. When my brother switched from a 4S to Android he had to get a new card. I also just got his LTE working for him by contacting support and registering his Sim card with the one I from a store display phone. I just took a picture of the IMEI of an S7 in store and used the "ATT Phone" APN settings. The NXTGENPHONE APN will not work for some reason when I tried it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
While I'm at the store, I'll snap a pic of the back of an S7 as well just to be safe. Can you clarify "ATT Phone" in the APN settings? Where is this located?
Go into the phone settings and get the IMEI and IMEISV
I needed both when talking to tech support.
As for the APN I used the same ones as the OP from this thread.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/verizon-s7-edge/how-to/verizon-s7-edge-sm-g935v-att-lte-tip-t3429897
What is the proper procedure to unlock an att s9 to use with another carrier?
Thanks.
Just to clarify. This phone was purchased from Samsung directly with the new $150 discount for Att branded phones.
RossTeagan said:
So the phone is bought from samsung but lock on att?
Try the following to check if your phone is network locked be sure you really need to unlock it (otherwise, I don't think you need to unlock it).
1. Insert a GSM SIM card from another network (a non-AT&T SIM, liek Cricket ot T-Mobile)
2. Try placing a call
If your phone manages to connect and make the call with this other SIM card, then you won't need to unlock it, as it's already unlocked. And if the phone is locked, I recommend you check with AT&T, given that this phone is not tight to a contract.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't have the phone yet (2 more days,) but I did an extensive Google search, and it seems like this particular phone will be sim locked. It's paid off outright, no contract or anything, but there were several heavy discounts like $150 off msrp and another $150 off for trading in S6.
My Google search gave me two possible options -
1) Talk to ATT and ask to unlock,
2) Use an unlock site, like DeviceUnlock, pay 20-50 dollars for them to obtain and send an unlock code to you.
As for #1, I saw a post where a guy complained that talking to ATT and Samsung was useless to him in a similar situation - each company sent him to the other one to get it unlocked, so he got nowhere with this option.
Also, I saw a few posts that said that a locked phone may have to be activated on ATT first and used for up to 40 days before ATT will unlock it for you. What would happen with this Samsung bought phone though?
And for #2, I just don't know how this kind of business works - you send them IMEI and the locked carrier info, pay money, and a few days later, they send you an unlock code that you can enter yourself.
Is it safe? How does it work exactly? What if there's a problem because the IMEI is not actually registered on ATT because the phone was sold by Samsung?
I have many more questions, just because I don't know what I am talking about, but the bottom line is this. What should I do?
Thanks.
AS your phone is paid off and there is no contract on it, you should stick with your first option: ask att to unlock it but as you said you will need an activated phone, so you will need to activate the phone with att, however, you should go to them immediately and not wait for 40 days. While Samsung locked the phone, the actual company who controls the lock and who has authority of unlocking it att. So don't let them fool you to go search the code somewhere else.
Also, there is a law in the US that forces operators to unlock your phone if there are no debts or contract on your device. So keep that in mind.
Regarding third parties, they are a shortcut and you just have to provide them the devices IMEI and network lock. They, in turn, will look for the unlocking code for you. And if there are issues, as you said, I think you can ask for a refund (so if you decide to go for such a service, first make sure they have a money back guarantee).
TLDR Go with att, they should (have to) provide the unlock for you
Hi nabbed,
did you manage to unlock it?
what did you do in the end?
Giskardors said:
Hi nabbed,
did you manage to unlock it?
what did you do in the end?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I called ATT, spoke to tech support. The tech said that since I had no history/account with ATT, they had to make one to verify that the phone IMEI was clean. He created a new account - name, address, phone, email, imei etc info. He created a support ticket (and gave me its number) for sim unlock. He said that I should receive an email within 48 hours that would either tell me that I cannot unlock or will come with the unlock code (if it is decided that I should be able to unlock.)
I tried using their default web service for getting an unlock https://www.att.com/deviceunlock/#/unlockstep1 but that thing doesn't work - the Next button cannot be clicked.
If unsuccessful, I am considering going and talking to a retail ATT store representative directly. They probably don't know much, but perhaps they can be more convincing on the phone with ATT.
Third option is trying one of the unlock websites.
So I had to do this with my S9, same kind of situation as you (I have T-Mobile service, received an AT&T locked device).
As you know, the web portal won't work. AT&T never entered your IMEI in their database, so as far as THEY are concerned, your phone doesn't exist.
Call tier 2/advanced tech support and have them create a case with the Device Unlock Team. GET A CONFIRMATION NUMBER. You should receive an email confirming that the case was made.
48-72 hours later, you SHOULD have an unlock code. Should. This is AT&T, and they don't know their ass from their elbow. It took me 2 weeks.
Device unlock services didn't work, as the IMEI has to be in AT&T's database for it to work correctly. They'll just (hopefully) refund your money when it fails.
Don't go into an AT&T store. As a former AT&T retail employee, I can guarantee you, those employees are dumber than a bag of wet hammers, and have no way of helping you with this, whatsoever. In addition, since you're not BUYING anything, they're not going to help too much even if they could.
Good luck. It will work for you eventually.
entropism said:
So I had to do this with my S9, same kind of situation as you (I have T-Mobile service, received an AT&T locked device).
As you know, the web portal won't work. AT&T never entered your IMEI in their database, so as far as THEY are concerned, your phone doesn't exist.
Call tier 2/advanced tech support and have them create a case with the Device Unlock Team. GET A CONFIRMATION NUMBER. You should receive an email confirming that the case was made.
48-72 hours later, you SHOULD have an unlock code. Should. This is AT&T, and they don't know their ass from their elbow. It took me 2 weeks.
Device unlock services didn't work, as the IMEI has to be in AT&T's database for it to work correctly. They'll just (hopefully) refund your money when it fails.
Don't go into an AT&T store. As a former AT&T retail employee, I can guarantee you, those employees are dumber than a bag of wet hammers, and have no way of helping you with this, whatsoever. In addition, since you're not BUYING anything, they're not going to help too much even if they could.
Good luck. It will work for you eventually.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks.
The tech guy didn't say what kind of a support ticket he created. It may have been a general support ticket, or maybe he referred me to the unlock team directly, I don't know. He seemed like he understood perfectly what I needed. Anyway, the ticket format is like this - cm10230128_122673352, does that look right?
I have received an email confirmation that the call was made, but not that the case was created yet. The call ended at 5:30pm CDT on a Friday night, so maybe it would take until Monday to get a confirmation?
nabbed said:
Thanks.
The tech guy didn't say what kind of a support ticket he created. It may have been a general support ticket, or maybe he referred me to the unlock team directly, I don't know. He seemed like he understood perfectly what I needed. Anyway, the ticket format is like this - cm10230128_122673352, does that look right?
I have received an email confirmation that the call was made, but not that the case was created yet. The call ended at 5:30pm CDT on a Friday night, so maybe it would take until Monday to get a confirmation?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe it will take up to tuesday. That's the limit
Im going to the US for 2 weeks, I dont know if i'll be able to unlock it on time, but If I order it I'll get it on the 2nd week.
I really hope you can unlock it!
Keep us updated
Update:
Got the unlock code in an email. The instructions say "Please allow 24 hours upon receipt of this notification to complete the unlock process." Not sure what that means, gonna try to unlock tomorrow with a project fi sim.
Update2:
Phone unlocked fine with a Project FI sim card and connected to T-mobile.
We're on the same boat!
I'm also on Project Fi and I received my AT&T S9 today.
My IMEI was found in AT&T's database and I just submitted the unlock request.
Do you experience any issues when using S9 w/ Project Fi?
zenlifexxa said:
We're on the same boat!
I'm also on Project Fi and I received my AT&T S9 today.
My IMEI was found in AT&T's database and I just submitted the unlock request.
Do you experience any issues when using S9 w/ Project Fi?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just used the Fi sim card to facilitate the unlock procedure (the S9 is not mine, it's for a friend, and I am just setting it up.) I just looked at sim status in the options to confirm that provider was T-Mobile. In my research, I read that using Project FI T-Mobile was no different from any other unlocked gsm phone using T-Mobile. You will lose all Project FI apps because they don't exist with non-Google phones. There will not be carrier switching between T-Mob, Sprint and US Cell, and there will not be wifi calling. But if your T-Mob service is already good, there shouldn't be a problem.
As as side note, my own FI service is kind of awful. Ever since Google introduced "preferred partner" feature, where a FI phone would connect not to the strongest signal carrier but rather to a particular carrier, in this case Sprint in my area, I have had really bad sound quality.
US Cellular has best towers in this area, with signal strength of -70-80 db or so, while Sprint has crappy towers with signal strength of less -100 db. Yet I am constantly connected to Sprint with crappy sound quality because they are the preferred partner here. I have to constantly to remind myself to manually switch to US Cell if I'm to make a lengthy phone call.
Good luck.
This is very long and I was going to reply to the thread "Unlocked V30 & Verizon... all bands?" but I figured some people would get upset so I gave this it's own thread. If you're trying to bring an LS998 to a non-Sprint carrier this story may be of interest to you.
As expected, despite the previous Verizon agent telling me they have no problem offering me service and sending me a SIM card, I called Verizon (800 225 5499) today and they said won't do it, based on the IMEI of the LS998.
Last time I called ATT prepaid support (800 901 9878) they told me I needed to call regular sales support (888 333 6651) to get a SIM card for prepaid service, which I thought was weird. This time I called the regular number and was told they aren't allowed to send out SIM cards anymore. They said that maybe the prepaid support could do it but regular sales cannot.
So I called ATT prepaid support today and now they've suddenly changed their story too. After waiting 18 minutes to speak to someone, I was told once again that the regular sales department support is the only one who can give me help. I explained that they told me this less than a week ago and just now before I called the prepaid support and now he's telling me prepaid support can't send out SIMs. Why does it even matter by the way? Why can't they all just do it? What a ridiculous and inefficient setup. He told me he's giving me the "online support phone number" instead, since they "told me the wrong information".
As instructed by prepaid support, I called the "online support" number (866 267 4510) and the horrible voice detection failed miserably then hung up on me (I'm actually calling from the internet using a high quality mic so it's even better than what would usually come through a phone line..it even failed several times to understand the word "yes" when given the options of "yes" and "no"). I called it again and wasn't able to speak to anyone because it kept asking for all this nonsense and wouldn't actually let me speak to a real person in any way.. so yeah, that outsourced moron who could barely speak English gave me a useless number, as I expected.
So instead of calling Sales for the 2nd time today and 3rd time this week, I decided to call regular ATT wireless support (800 331 0500). I waited on hold for 17.5 minutes until I was finally able to speak to a person, who I explained to that I just want a nano SIM card. I found out she's from the prepaid support.. so despite calling the regular support number I was sent to the prepaid support, which was probably the reason I was on hold for so long once again. Anyways she told me she could send me a card and when I gave her my number and 4 digit ATT code/password she said I have to go pick it up at a store LOL.
She said I have to go to a "big" store and I asked her to explain herself because that's a subjective term and she asked for my ZIP code. I don't understand this because in 2013 when I first became their customer they were fine sending SIM cards for two phones in the mail and about 2 months ago they were fine sending one out in the mail for someone else (though this was never gone through with) and less than a week ago they told me it was fine too. All of the sudden, it's a big deal and they just can't send SIM cards in the mail? what??
I had already planned to call my local Verizon store and ATT store to see if they could handle this simple task but once she told me that I decided to just accept the SIM she wants to give me. She never asked me for the phone's IMEI but due to the course of the conversation I eventually explained the situation with the phone.
She told me to call Sprint and make sure it's unlocked, which I already planned to do actually. After suggesting I try putting my old SIM in my new phone I explained the old one is a micro and new one is a nano so I told her I might cut it if I can't get them to give me one. She actually said she had done that once; pretty funny.
I called Sprint (888 211 4727) to ask about the phone and make sure it's unlocked. They asked for my number in the automated thing but I pressed "#" as instructed since I don't have one. After speaking to someone finally, they asked for my full name and I only gave my first name and explained that I'm not a customer. I was then asked for my phone number and once again explained I'm not a customer. They asked why I was calling and I explained and after a brief moment on hold was told it's already unlocked. They didn't bother trying to keep me on their network AT ALL, which I was very surprised about. It was the fastest of any call, totaling under 5 minutes where all the others so far have taken me over an hour (mostly due to waiting on hold).
So I called Verizon again (800 922 0204) [wow they have too many support numbers at these places] to ask WHY they won't give me a sim since Sprint says it's unlocked. The sassy black lady had a terrible attitude when she realized I wasn't going to accept "the system says it won't work" because "it isn't compatible with Verizon network" as an answer...after having already explained that it's unlocked by Sprint and it supports the Verizon network. All I did was say "well there has to be a reason it isn't compatible, do you have any information?" and she got an attitude with me. Eventually she told me she'd get me over to tech support so they can look into it if I'd like and I accepted (anything to get away from her + they're probably more knowledgeable about this than the ordinary, lowest tier customer support representative). I was instead sent to an automated system asking for a phone number and got past it eventually and was put on hold once again while I await a new CSR from tech support.
Line quality was horrible and was asked for my first and last name and I explained I'm not a customer and gave my first name. I asked if it's tech support and was told it's new line support.... so that rude lady didn't even transfer me properly. What a surprise. I was given the number to their tech support (866 271 7585, option 2) and then transferred to it by the lady with the poor line quality.
At this point I've been talking with the carriers and waiting on hold for at least 2 hours and on this call with Verizon for 28 minutes... most of it on hold. I heard random voices come through the hold music a few times and just now it happened again and the call was disconnected. Thanks for hanging up on me again, Verizon.
So now I'm calling the Verizon tech support number I was given (866 271 7585) by the last person I spoke with, since I was hung up on. Option 2, which I was told to press is for SPANISH, not anything related to my call... so I pressed 1 (also it makes no sense for an American company to do that. We speak English here). The automated system asked for a phone number and I didn't have one so I just waited and they said the usual about call being monitored/recorded and I'm once again on hold...
This lady was VERY friendly (she sounded a little older) but this was NOT tech support. I explained the entire ordeal to her after she asked what problem I'm experiencing. After I got to the part about why I was trying to reach tech support (their agent told me to) she told me she would actually get me there. So I'm on hold again...
...She came back and asked which phone it is then told me she'd get me straight over to tech support and put me back on hold. She came back once again and asked me for clarification or something and I explained the situation with the LS998 and that it DOES work on the network and Sprint says it IS unlocked so there's no reason for it not to work. It's a matter of it being cheaper than the unlocked one and me choosing to put software on that allows it to take advantage of the available hardware in the phone. She said she was thinking of transferring me to tele-sales but she will bring me to tech support (what? she already said at least two times she would transfer me to tech support... if I ask for tech support - give me tech support. I didn't ask for her opinion on where to transfer me). She's very nice but not very good at transferring customers to where they try to go, it seems.
So I actually got tech support this time. I explained the situation. He seemed from the start like he did have more of an idea what he's talking about. He seemed like he was capable of following along with what I was saying. His initial suggestion was to have a friend or family member on Verizon let me try their SIM in the phone to make sure it works. I explained that's not an option and we had a bit more of a discussion about the topic.
I asked about a real tech support number because the one I was given didn't get me to tech support and he told me it's a queue system and that's why I got customer service instead of real tech support. He said they can only send me a SIM if I have a live account but at the store they can sell one for $10-15 (like Walmart or Sam's Club). A corporate/official store would give it for free. This must be what the ATT lady was referring to earlier...
He said the store would setup the SIM with a dummy phone number to make sure it works then I can port my ATT number over later.
I asked him to check the IMEI to make sure there are no other issues with it (since he may have some kind of superior access or information compared to a tier 1 CSR) and he was checking on it and kept coming back to let me know he's still there and it's taking a moment. Very professional... very satisfied with his attitude.
He said it didn't come up in the system but it should work since the V30 (non-plus) does and reiterated his statement about going to the store and making sure the employee doesn't test it while WiFi is enabled.
It was so refreshing to speak to someone with a powerful enough mind and who was well-spoken and polite.. didn't waste any time and helped me out. It's always better talking to tier 2 and above support with these phone and internet companies...
To sum up these companies:
I don't like T-Mobile and Sprint is merging with them (Sprint wasn't too great for me in the past either). However, when calling to ask about unlock status of the device it was the call with the best line quality and quickest resolution.
ATT's regular numbers have decent line quality usually, but the prepaid line quality is always bad.
Verizon's support often has bad line quality.
The outsourced people who barely speak English at ATT are either useless wastes of my time or incredibly friendly and somewhat helpful.
Verizon has a mixed bag when it comes to politeness of agents.
All of the above companies seem to be convoluted when it comes to giving out SIM cards as well as the system they've setup for contacting them via phone. There's no reason for this to be so complicated.
As expected, Verizon and ATT assured me there'd be no issue with this and there are issues with it.
So far, this entire thing has taken me at least 3 hours of speaking on the phone with mostly ATT and Verizon and I haven't even gone to a store to pick up a SIM yet... more as the story develops...
So now I need to go to my local "big store" (ATT) to get an ATT sim OR just cut my old sim and take the risk of something going wrong. I really want to switch to Verizon but I just paid for ATT a few days ago so I have a month left of that.
For now, I'm waiting on the phone to arrive so I can convert it to a US998. Also considering staying on ATT and just knowing that I can use Verizon later if something goes wrong.
If it doesn't work out I either have to argue with the carriers until they give me what I want, or use an unlocking service (though I'm not sure those are legit/worth it)... or return the phone, which I really don't want to do.
sneak310 said:
A corporate/official store would give it for free. This must be what the ATT lady was referring to earlier...
He said the store would setup the SIM with a dummy phone number to make sure it works then I can port my ATT number over later.
If it doesn't work out I either have to argue with the carriers until they give me what I want, or use an unlocking service (though I'm not sure those are legit/worth it)
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Click to collapse
Nothing to unlock. When you convert LS998 to US998 firmware the phone is carrier unlocked, even if Sprint never unlocked it.
You just need a SIM card.
The only problem you would have is if the IMEI is blacklisted for some reason.
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I warned you about Verizon -- that you would need something like an original US998, original VS996, or an already-activated Verizon SIM card. . They are very finnicky about phones with Sprint IMEI.
By the way, all AT&T SIM cards are the same. The only difference is internal accounting, whether it's Prepaid or Postpaid. Even with a Prepaid logo on it, it's STILL just a regular AT&T SIM card. You can switch from one to the other without actually changing SIM cards.
Had a friend who bought new Samsung Galaxy phone and they made him sign up with AT&T Postpaid to buy the phone. They wouldn't let him pay in full upfront. Once he signed the contract, he pulled out his credit card, made the full payment to pay off the phone -- then IMMEDIATELY switched to AT&T Prepaid (which is what he really wanted). They never touched his SIM card when they switched him over from Postpaid to Prepaid. And this was back when Prepaid division was confusingly called "GoPhone". STILL the same SIM card.
I have AT&T Prepaid, as do several friends, family members.
ChazzMatt said:
Nothing to unlock. When you convert to US998 firmware the phone is carrier unlocked, even if Sprint never unlocked it.
You just need a SIM card.
The only problem you would have is if the IMEI is blacklisted for some reason.
____
I warned you about Verizon.
By the way, all AT&T SIM cards are the same. The difference is internal accounting, whether it's Prepaid or Postpaid. You can switch from one to the other without changing SIM cards.
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Click to collapse
Yeah I only asked him to check the IMEI for that reason you stated.. the blacklisting. They won't just send me a SIM... I have to go physically to a store for some reason instead of having them just mail me one like how I got my SIM from ATT in 2013.
Both Verizon and ATT are giving me identical trouble. They both require me to go to a store to get a SIM card and won't just send me a SIM card and give me service.
Due to the "if it ain't broke" thing, I'll probably just stick with ATT for now so I don't have to end up trying Verizon and liking it less than I used to/less than ATT then ultimately switching back to ATT... plus it should be easier to just get a new SIM instead of having to setup a whole new line of service with a new company... and finally I'm already pretty familiar with how ATT does things.
Phone should arrive on Thursday but Type C cable on Friday so I can probably go to an ATT store over the weekend.
PS - $238 is an amazing price ;D
sneak310 said:
Yeah I only asked him to check the IMEI for that reason you stated.. the blacklisting. They won't just send me a SIM... I have to go physically to a store for some reason instead of having them just mail me one like how I got my SIM from ATT in 2013.
Both Verizon and ATT are giving me identical trouble. They both require me to go to a store to get a SIM card and won't just send me a SIM card and give me service.
Due to the "if it ain't broke" thing, I'll probably just stick with ATT for now so I don't have to end up trying Verizon and liking it less than I used to/less than ATT then ultimately switching back to ATT... plus it should be easier to just get a new SIM instead of having to setup a whole new line of service with a new company... and finally I'm already pretty familiar with how ATT does things.
Phone should arrive on Thursday but Type C cable on Friday so I can probably go to an ATT store over the weekend.
PS - $238 is an amazing price ;D
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wal-Mart also has AT&T Prepaid SIMs.
https://www.walmart.com/ip/AT-T-PREPAID-SIM-Starter-Kit/44938608
https://www.walmart.com/ip/AT-T-PREPAID-SIM-Kit/129539926
Sent via open market LG US998 V30/V30+
ChazzMatt said:
Wal-Mart also has AT&T Prepaid SIMs.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/lg-v30/development/us998-lg-v30-us998-us99820a040330-kdz-t3786337
Sent via open market LG US998 V30/V30+
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Click to collapse
Yeah and according to these carriers they charge you for it. I'd also rather deal directly with the carrier than some random person at Walmart AND get it for free.
sneak310 said:
Yeah and according to these carriers they charge you for it. I'd also rather deal directly with the carrier than some random person at Walmart AND get it for free.
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Click to collapse
Sure, I understand. I also edited to put in the correct link.
You need to go to "corporate" owned AT&T store to get free SIM card. "Franchise" stores, which look almost identical, will charge you.
ChazzMatt said:
Sure, I understand. I also edited to put in the correct link.
You need to go to "corporate" owned AT &T store to get free SIM card. "Franchise" stores, which look almost identical, will charge you.
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Click to collapse
Hah, yea.. I was wondering why you sent me that original link. And yeah, they told me specifically which store is corporate.
So I'm curious to see if you switch to Verizon and your results. I'm currently on Verizon and I'm trying to get a V30+ so if you go with them I'd like to know how it worked out.
Hyperbomb64 said:
So I'm curious to see if you switch to Verizon and your results. I'm currently on Verizon and I'm trying to get a V30+ so if you go with them I'd like to know how it worked out.
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Click to collapse
You will have no issues since you have an already-activated Verizon SIM card. Just take your SIM card out, put it in new phone.
ChazzMatt said:
You will have no issues since you have an already-activated Verizon SIM card. Just take your SIM card out, put it in new phone.
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Click to collapse
Thanks for the info. Now I just have to actually get the phone and I should be good to go.
ChazzMatt said:
You will have no issues since you have an already-activated Verizon SIM card. Just take your SIM card out, put it in new phone.
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Click to collapse
im also on verizon and just got this model online brand new it says its unlocked. do i need to avoid updating it when i get it?
Bamaboi89 said:
im also on verizon and just got this model online brand new it says its unlocked. do i need to avoid updating it when i get it?
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Click to collapse
Yes, don't update when you first get it, as you will possibly making your life harder, by having to downgrade to what you need for bootloader unlock and rooting. You can update after that.
Hyperbomb64 said:
So I'm curious to see if you switch to Verizon and your results. I'm currently on Verizon and I'm trying to get a V30+ so if you go with them I'd like to know how it worked out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I ended up just sticking with ATT for now. Mostly one of those "if it ain't broke" things. I also realized (once I got to the ATT store) that I actually already HAD a nano SIM in my Nexus 5 with a converter. It was 2013 when I put that SIM in and I haven't messed with it so I completely forgot.
So, the main issue is that I need to get it away from Tracfone T-Mobile because their service is terrible in my area. I can't seem to get either a Tracfone AT&T or Tracfone Verizon SIM to work yet the phone is compatible (according to the websites respectively) with Cricket wireless (AT&T) and US Cellular (cdma). I don't understand... That is why I brought this question to all of you. I live and work in a rural area and it may sound crazy but all I want to do is make stinking phone calls. Oh and I checked the IMEI and it is not locked by any carrier.
You guys suck...
I know most of you on here probably don't care about my problem cause I'm not looking to root or flash or whatever cause I'm not into that. I JUST WANT A PHONE THAT HAS SERVICE. From what I've read it was probably one of you on these forums that "sim unlocked" this phone in the first place back before you really knew the right way and then when you moved on you sold it as "new in box" to a sucker like me. And now for some reason it will only work with a Tracfone Tmobile sim in it which according to them isn't going to work at all come 01/2021 because they are upgrading the network. Well I also know from wasting endless hours trying to figure out how to [email protected]$ck this phone that it is capable of everything I need it to do, like simply switch it to a different "brand" of sim so I can get better service or operate on VoLTE because apparently that's what most carriers are going to switch to and convince most of the general public to buy a new phone based on the misguided notion that their phone has somehow become obsolete when in fact it isn't.
So if you all would stop passing over my post because my technology knowledge level is down there with an 75-year-old and help me I would appreciate it.
I will pay to send this to someone to "fix" or whatever but I refuse to replace a perfectly good phone because some yutz who didn't know what they were doing when they sim unlocked this phone messed it up and somehow turned a US Cellular version (VMX) into a who knows what that only works on Tmobile, and maybe Cricket (we'll see, the sim is in the mail).
No nead to start two threds about the same thing.
NO your phone will mot stop working... Just chill
Turnhoo said:
I know most of you on here probably don't care about my problem cause I'm not looking to root or flash or whatever cause I'm not into that. I JUST WANT A PHONE THAT HAS SERVICE. From what I've read it was probably one of you on these forums that "sim unlocked" this phone in the first place back before you really knew the right way and then when you moved on you sold it as "new in box" to a sucker like me. And now for some reason it will only work with a Tracfone Tmobile sim in it which according to them isn't going to work at all come 01/2021 because they are upgrading the network. Well I also know from wasting endless hours trying to figure out how to [email protected]$ck this phone that it is capable of everything I need it to do, like simply switch it to a different "brand" of sim so I can get better service or operate on VoLTE because apparently that's what most carriers are going to switch to and convince most of the general public to buy a new phone based on the misguided notion that their phone has somehow become obsolete when in fact it isn't.
So if you all would stop passing over my post because my technology knowledge level is down there with an 75-year-old and help me I would appreciate it.
I will pay to send this to someone to "fix" or whatever but I refuse to replace a perfectly good phone because some yutz who didn't know what they were doing when they sim unlocked this phone messed it up and somehow turned a US Cellular version (VMX) into a who knows what that only works on Tmobile, and maybe Cricket (we'll see, the sim is in the mail).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
maydayind said:
No nead to start two threds about the same thing.
NO your phone will mot stop working... Just chill
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Click to collapse
This is correct. Read my post I wrote in the other thread about the VOLTE issue.
If the phone supports VOLTE, you need a SIM that is compatible with it!
----------
I have some information that might make all of you guys happy.
I was told by Safelink Wireless that VOTLE is a function of BOTH the phone *AND* the sim card.
Basically, if the phone itself is VOLTE compatible but the sim card is not, then the phone will be reported on their system as not compatible, and will ask you to upgrade your phone.
However if a VOLTE compatible SIM is inserted, if the phone does in fact support VOLTE, it will then work. That's because it's provisioned on the carrier via the sim card itself.
If you purchased a sim via the "Buy your own sim" package, e.g. online or from Best Buy, etc, awhile ago, then that sim is not compatible. You simply need to call Tracphone/Safelink and ask to buy a VOLTE compatible SIM (which costs 99 cents). Then when you get it, call their tech department to have them transfer the phone service and phone number to the new SIM.
You can dial the phone's service menu and go to the VOLTE/GPRI menu and if the options are there, then the phone supports it.
Turnhoo said:
I know most of you on here probably don't care about my problem cause I'm not looking to root or flash or whatever cause I'm not into that. I JUST WANT A PHONE THAT HAS SERVICE. From what I've read it was probably one of you on these forums that "sim unlocked" this phone in the first place back before you really knew the right way and then when you moved on you sold it as "new in box" to a sucker like me. And now for some reason it will only work with a Tracfone Tmobile sim in it which according to them isn't going to work at all come 01/2021 because they are upgrading the network. Well I also know from wasting endless hours trying to figure out how to [email protected]$ck this phone that it is capable of everything I need it to do, like simply switch it to a different "brand" of sim so I can get better service or operate on VoLTE because apparently that's what most carriers are going to switch to and convince most of the general public to buy a new phone based on the misguided notion that their phone has somehow become obsolete when in fact it isn't.
So if you all would stop passing over my post because my technology knowledge level is down there with an 75-year-old and help me I would appreciate it.
I will pay to send this to someone to "fix" or whatever but I refuse to replace a perfectly good phone because some yutz who didn't know what they were doing when they sim unlocked this phone messed it up and somehow turned a US Cellular version (VMX) into a who knows what that only works on Tmobile, and maybe Cricket (we'll see, the sim is in the mail).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey buddy, xda forum does not allow unlocking sims related stuff. You are complaining in the wrong forum.... There are other forums that do that.