I haven't used a Sprint phone before with a sim card. Can you use the Note 3, with CM11, overseas on a gsm network?
Anyone?
Just used mine in the UK no problem. Sprint unlocked for me and when I got to the UK bought a O2 prepaid sim. Called customer service and they texted me the APN settings which self installed. Took less 10 minutes. Got 3g and hspa with a best of 3mbs but I was in mostly rural areas. Can't comment on cm but if it didn't work you could just back it up flash sprint while over seas and do a restore when you get back.
Andy
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I recently took my phone to the UK, and it seems to get no signal at all. When I do the *#*#4636#*#* service menu, it only states that it has usa bands (my captivate and nexus one had multiple bands to choose from). Does anyone know of a workaround to get this phone working overseas?
Called AT&T and they were no help in getting the phone connected.
changw414 said:
I recently took my phone to the UK, and it seems to get no signal at all. When I do the *#*#4636#*#* service menu, it only states that it has usa bands (my captivate and nexus one had multiple bands to choose from). Does anyone know of a workaround to get this phone working overseas?
Called AT&T and they were no help in getting the phone connected.
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AT&T does that **** on purpose because they want you to pay for their international plan...if you talk to them about it, they'll tell you that you need to sign up for a plan that will let you go out of the US with signal.. (it's not permanent, but you pay for the month that you are gone).
Problem is I already have the international roaming plan.
If you're trying to use a foreign simcard it wont work unless you have a sim unlock code.
Otherwise there is no reason it shouldnt work overseas on your ATT sim card if you have the right plan. it has the correct 3g bands to work anywhere in UK/EU on 3g.
It could be that its not pulling down the right APN settings for orange or whatever provider its trying to roam on. Just a thought.
Just out of curiosity where in the UK were you? I was there in Dec with my AT&T Blackberry (worked fine) and will be there in June with my BB and my Atrix (didn't have a personal international phone when I was there in Dec as I had been on Sprint at the time). In the past I've had no problems - taken past AT&T phones to Germany, France, Spain, Scotland, Slovenia and Italy and they've always worked (that was with my old HTC Fuze which I had totally unlocked). The only place I ever had a problem was rural Wyoming about 100 miles west of Sturgis two summers ago. It wouldn't work but for one corner of the driveway at the cabin we were staying at.
I have been in London. I actually brought my samsung captivate, and put my at&t sim card, and everything worked just fine. If I place my sim card back in the atrix it looks as if it does not detect the signal at all.
changw414 said:
I recently took my phone to the UK, and it seems to get no signal at all. When I do the *#*#4636#*#* service menu, it only states that it has usa bands (my captivate and nexus one had multiple bands to choose from). Does anyone know of a workaround to get this phone working overseas?
Called AT&T and they were no help in getting the phone connected.
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Hi. I know where you can work that phone overseas. Kindly contact me.
A few days ago I found out that T-Mobile's 3g won't work on the Photon (only their Edge service) after I'd already ordered 2 T-Mobile pre-paid SIMs. Yesterday I received my T-Mobile pre-paid SIM cards, and sure enough, it's like being back on dial-up.
When I go to StraightTalk's website to order a SIM card and put in my zip code, it tells me that it will send me an AT&T compatible SIM card. Here's my question: Since AT&T is also GSM, will I still be stuck with 2g speeds or will I be able to get 3g? I know that both AT&T and T-Mobile have good service where I live. (Sorry if this seems like a stupid question, but I've been on CDMA for almost a decade).
Thanks in advance!
--Adam
niphoet said:
A few days ago I found out that T-Mobile's 3g won't work on the Photon (only their Edge service) after I'd already ordered 2 T-Mobile pre-paid SIMs. Yesterday I received my T-Mobile pre-paid SIM cards, and sure enough, it's like being back on dial-up.
When I go to StraightTalk's website to order a SIM card and put in my zip code, it tells me that it will send me an AT&T compatible SIM card. Here's my question: Since AT&T is also GSM, will I still be stuck with 2g speeds or will I be able to get 3g? I know that both AT&T and T-Mobile have good service where I live. (Sorry if this seems like a stupid question, but I've been on CDMA for almost a decade).
Thanks in advance!
--Adam
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Yes, you will get 3G data speeds. I have 3G data speeds that beat Sprint's 3G speeds.
Make sure to flash the KDDI radio before doing so or you won't get any results.
tmobile is unique in that they use 1700mhz for 3G (which isnt used by any other US carrier). The photon is a quad band (not penta band) phone and doesnt pick up 1700mhz frequency. Tmobile is making a transition to put 3G on 1900mhz so that it is more iphone friendly. Some locations in the US have already made that transition.
Thanks for the help guys. I guess I'll finish out this month on T-mobile then switch to straight talk.
So I've been globetrotting with my Incredible 4G/aka Fireball with CM10.1 (currently the unofficial 20130420 build by mdmower) for about 6 months now and it works great on VZW's global plan, Used it all over Europe and across US / Canada using Verizon's plan. Feel free to ask any questions below if you are curious about my experiences with that. I can't promise a speedy response but will do my best to answer.
The point of this post is actually to see if anyone wants me to try any specific services or networks while I am in Europe later this month. I see a number of posts asking if it will work in -insert country here- or on -insert service provider here- so if you want a guinea pig, here I am.
I was thinking of buying a pre-paid SIM or 3 and basically try different services and setups for kicks and giggles. I am flying into Amsterdam and will end up in Belgium and Germany at different points in my trip and this summer have projects in Asia and Scandinavia.
I'll either grab cards off of Amazon before I go or when I land hit up a kiosk or vending machine.
Not sure if this is of any use to anyone but since I'm already going to satisfy my own curiosity I'd offer my results to the community.
Now everyone stand back.... I'm about to SCIENCE! :laugh:
i'm heading to italy this summer and wondering what it will take to make this phone work. this is my first 4g phone with a sim card...
my previous verizon phones have always worked around america (mexico, dominican republic, etc). when i went to asia last year (japan, thailand) i only used wifi for email and data - the roaming worked but was outrageous price.
I'm using this phone in Ukraine with no issues. I have Ukranian GSM service provider and another one for CDMA. No LTE in Ukraine.
The only tip, that this phone doesn't support my GSM provider's Mobile Internet. Never the less, it does support it on other Ukranian GSM providers.
When I was in German, I bought myself German prepaid sim-card and sucsessfully switched to its network
j13smiley said:
i'm heading to italy this summer and wondering what it will take to make this phone work. this is my first 4g phone with a sim card...
my previous verizon phones have always worked around america (mexico, dominican republic, etc). when i went to asia last year (japan, thailand) i only used wifi for email and data - the roaming worked but was outrageous price.
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That's kind of my thought on the matter too, how easy is it to switch carriers on a device which is normally carrier locked. I see there are some configurations needed for the CM10.1 to work on a different carrier and want to try and see how it works. I will be giving that a whirl and see.
I noticed that last time I was in Belgium I had very spotty coverage with VZW and very slow data while nobody else had any problems getting decent speeds, but in Netherlands I usually had same or better signal than locals and mostly full 3G signal in main train routes and larger downtown areas like Amsterdam, Rotterdam and Eindhoven. Germany was about the same but I wasn't paying much attention to my phone while briefly passing through.
VZW lists the radios as:
Network
LTE 700 MHz (band 13)
CDMA 1x/3G 800/1900 MHz
UMTS/HSPA 2100/900
Quad Band GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900)
With this gamut I would think it can attach to any network for voice and data with the right settings. I also plan on paying closer attention to what kind of signals I am attaching to and speeds, etc.
After spending a week abroad I found that if you are just visiting using the Global Plan through Verizon is by FAR the best solution.
First, a "Local" SIM card runs about 10 Euro from most providers, T-Mobile (NL) and KPN were the ones I selected. Vodafone is in partnership with VZW for service in Netherlands so I skipped them assuming same coverage. With the 10 Euro you get varying minimal amounts of voice minutes for local calls... assume it's JUST a SIM though, you pay extra for minutes, texts and data.
The Pre-Paid SIMs I had access to do not offer roaming. I was told you need a plan for roaming. When I went into Germany or Belgium I lost service.
Data plans on pre-paid plans for a smartphone are about 25-30 euro for 100mb.
It's only $25 per 100mb chunk through VZW.
Texting plans range from 5 Euro and up. I didn't get one, didn't need it since I use WhatsApp and Viber for that.
Coverage and data speed would the ONLY reason I would go with a pre-paid SIM again. T-Mobile had exceptionally fast data and amazing coverage while I was in the NL. KPN was comparable to Vodafone (thought my VZW global plan).
Switching to other providers was difficult and cumbersome and CM10.1 does NOT handle global roaming very well. Can't just jam a SIM in and it works (See MDMower's Unofficial CM post for settings) Once the settings were made I made a TWRP backup to make switching possible without a PC.
CM 10 and 10.1 did not show a signal bar even when I had signal so it was VERY difficult to ascertain signal strength and relied on just speed and what I perceived of signal strength.
Stock Rooted works great for Global Roaming but did not like SIM cards from other providers.
Recap; If you plan on visiting a country outside of USA and use this phone (or any Global phone really) then it's best to add in a global plan at $25-30 a month and the $25 100mb package. A SIM will cost you about that or more and doesn't allow you to use your same phone number or roam into other countries without added expense.
It's best to stick with Stock Rooted on that plan. IF you plan on using a local SIM for data speeds and you are staying in one major city/area for the duration then it will work alright but make backups of different configurations before you do the switch... Plan on spending an hour or two getting your phone configured and setup with the right settings and my signal bar never worked in CM, even if you have full signal.
From now on I will use only VZW plan on Stock Rooted. It's the best way to have a reliable phone when travelling abroad.
I'm new to Verizon and new to having a phone with a SIM card (GS4.) Now that I have come to understand that Verizon is evil :laugh: I have started counting down the days to when my contract expires - 23 months, 10 days, 10 hours, and 36 seconds.
Will I be able to take the phone to another carrier, get a SIM from them, and then operate on their network? Or is this phone forever tied, by a deal with the devil, with Verizon?
jwhistler said:
I'm new to Verizon and new to having a phone with a SIM card (GS4.) Now that I have come to understand that Verizon is evil :laugh: I have started counting down the days to when my contract expires - 23 months, 10 days, 10 hours, and 36 seconds.
Will I be able to take the phone to another carrier, get a SIM from them, and then operate on their network? Or is this phone forever tied, by a deal with the devil, with Verizon?
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Short answer: Yes, you can take it to any GSM carrier and it is already unlocked, so you could pop a prepaid SIM in today and it would work fine.
Since you're in the US, it will work on AT&T with few issues and can get "4G" (HSPA+) but cannot access AT&T's LTE network. With T-Mobile, it will also work on HSPA+ where T-Mobile has refarmed their network for 1900 MHz. It should also be able to access LTE on T-Mobile once it is update for the AWS bands and it should also access AT&T's LTE in some limited areas where AWS is available.
In addition, you may need to root the phone to be able to change the APN settings.
dossa002 said:
Short answer: Yes, you can take it to any GSM carrier and it is already unlocked, so you could pop a prepaid SIM in today and it would work fine.
Since you're in the US, it will work on AT&T with few issues and can get "4G" (HSPA+) but cannot access AT&T's LTE network. With T-Mobile, it will also work on HSPA+ where T-Mobile has refarmed their network for 1900 MHz. It should also be able to access LTE on T-Mobile once it is update for the AWS bands and it should also access AT&T's LTE in some limited areas where AWS is available.
In addition, you may need to root the phone to be able to change the APN settings.
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Thank you for the explanation!
Hopefully someone will figure out how to unlock and root the SG4 with the latest build (I545VRUDMI1)
I purchased a Note 8 from T-Mobile in September. I was told by T-Mobile that if I didn't like the service, I could take my phone and go back to Verizon. Unfortunately, the coverage in my rural area is too spotty. I went to Verizon and they said my Note 8 is not compatible with their network. They said I can connect to the 4G network but I can't connect to the 2G and 3G networks where I can make calls and send texts. I was told I can flash the phone so it will work on Verizon. Is this true and if so, how do I do it?
Thank you so much in advance,
Mike