I am new to the whole cellphone scene. I have much more experience in the PC world.
I purchased an Verizon Galaxy S4 (I545) on e-bay, primarily for use as a media device. I have decided to get pre-paid service on T-Mobile. (My wife has a T-Mobile G2 and when I put her sim card in, I was able to make calls.)
I have the T-Mobile sim installed and will be initiating service tomorrow.
After reading many of the threads here, I see a lot of talk about flashing different ROMS onto the hardware. Since I am not a Verizon customer, I really have no need for "Verizon's" version of Android, other than if it is required for the hardware to work properly. I like to have my options for customization and installing various apk's, etc.... I like to control my hardware and not be limited to what one company or another says I should do. I do travel internationally, which is one reason why my wife has the T-Mobile account, since it has great coverage in Europe, etc....
So, I ask this:
Should I flash a different ROM on this beast?
What would be the benefits?
What would be the drawbacks?
Which ROM would be recommended and why?
Thanks in advance for your insights! :angel:
p.s. Before knowing any better, I updated my S4 using Verizon's Software Upgrade Assistant on my PC, meaning I currently am running Build LRX22C.I545VRUGOC1 w/ Kernel 3.4.0 [email protected] #1.
I am thinking about purchasing the LeEco Le Max 2 to use with AT&T. I've been reading on XDA and it seems like the US variant is the x829 one. I'd love to have the 6GB RAM model but the x829 does not have 6GB RAM.
Is there anyone here using the 6GB RAM model without issues (especially getting LTE to work) on AT&T? or maybe T-Mobile? If yes, which hardware variant do you have? The x820/x821/x82x...etc? and from where did you buy your device? Please share the full link if you have it.
Also is there a guide that shows which bands each variant supports?
Thanks guys, really appreciate any feedback.
Google "le max 2 x829 128gb" you'll find many places to purchase a 6gb/128gb x829 for as low as $245. I have the 4/64 x829 running stock rom on T-mobile with full coverage on lte. To my understanding the only band that's problematic is band 20 which we dont use in the united states. I bought it for my wife who wanted a rose gold model which is not offered in the 829 but I forced the gold 829 variant on her because I wanted direct access to the 829 rom so I can do some deving on it. I'm ordering a rose gold 4/32 for her Thursday for $193. When it arrives I'm going to clone her rom directly to the 820 then take over the 829 and have some fun. As for the 829 we currently have she loves it, loves the screen loves the camera loves the new ui (I hate it but to each their own). Call quality is great, volte works and even wi-fi calling on tmo works. As a comparison my wifes last phone was a Moto X 2015 (xt1575)
@castuis Thank you for the information. Do you mind if I ask from which website/seller you brought the phone? also where are you seeing the 6gb/128gb for $245?
Got mine from tinydeal. Ali express for the 128gb but they bumped it up to $259 about an hour ago, plus you couldn't pay me to order from them, made that mistake a few years back.
I am awaiting a silver 6GB/128GB from coolicool.com.
My first order with them, but they have been conversing with me via email since I changed the shipping address.
I 'should' have it with the next week? I hope it arrives and has a good fingerprint scanner?
@fcreeves I'm thinking about ordering from coolicool as well. Did you order from the Hong Kong warehouse or the Europe warehouse? Can you please let me know the condition of the phone when you receive it and which variant is it? x820 or x821 or x822 or x829?
A friendly word of warning. Success with the phones on T-mobile is not an indicator of how well they will work on AT&T, even though they are both GSM networks. For example, if voLTE is important to you, you are very likely not going to get it on AT&T. It is not automatically provisioned on AT&T, unless they know your phone intimately (and they don't know the Max 2 from a tin can and a string.) The first line of tech support refuses to even enable it on "unlocked" phones. There's also no means for WiFi calling, via an app or otherwise, unless you count the microcell boxes.
I'm tempted to call "BS" on anyone who says they are using these features on AT&T with these phones, based on the time I have spent on the phone with tech support..
Under the right conditions (read: areas), the phones work great on the AT&T network. Fast LTE data, and decent call reliability. But if if you want the bells and whistles, and enhanced reliability, the Max 2 can't deliver what the more mainstream brands can on AT&T. Even when right next to a tower, with the Max 2 showing full bars, I am unable to make calls, while every major branded phone brought into that same area has no problems. So something isn't 100% with these phones.
@RandyT2 I really appreciate the feedback.
@fcreeves, I'll be waiting for a feedback from you on the phone condition & fingerprint scanner.
I do have X829 64GB in the Boston area and I just got the Straight Talk AT&T nano sim yesterday. Popped it in, transferred my #. Had to change my APN in order to get LTE working, but everything seems good now. I don't know about VoltLTE, but everything else seems OK (for the moment).
With Straight Talk you have the option to go either Sprint/AT&T/T-Mobile or Verizon. I was using AT&T on my Nexus 5 so I thought I'd stick with it. Not sure if Verizon would be a better choice, but I didn't want to wait for them to send me another sim to test it.
The main issue for me right now is getting the fingerprint sensor working and rooting/flashing my ROM which seems a daunting task.
@Wagmans thank you for your feedback, not sure why many have issues with the fingerprint scanner and some don't have issues at all with it. It would be good to know if it's a hardware or software thing.
castuis said:
Call quality is great, volte works and even wi-fi calling on tmo works.)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you give me some idea as to the ROM and Baseband version of the X829 phones you have? I really need WiFi calling, if I wish to keep this phone (which I do), and the way I understand that the T-mobile Wifi calling works is that the ROM detects that its an option based on the connection with the carrier, and the option just appears on the phone.
I'm ready to ditch AT&T because I have a fairly unique situation which makes the phone virtually useless to me without WiFi calling. But I need to make sure that I'm not switching, just to have the same issues, or to find out that only the X829 version supports it.
Thank you!
memee4eva said:
@Wagmans thank you for your feedback, not sure why many have issues with the fingerprint scanner and some don't have issues at all with it. It would be good to know if it's a hardware or software thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it's more of a software thing. We'll know once I root/flash it if that's the case. The root/flash process for this phone seems so involved. A little overwhelming- I hope I don't brick it.
Wagmans said:
I think it's more of a software thing. We'll know once I root/flash it if that's the case. The root/flash process for this phone seems so involved. A little overwhelming- I hope I don't brick it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's too easy to flash TWRP, flash a new ROM, root and do all the things you need with it. This phone is practically unbrickable as you have a guide that teaches you how to unbrick it. Still, it's as easy as it gets to play with it.
@Wagmans please keep us updated if you get the fingerprint scanner to work
Yeah keep us posted. I'm interested in this phone. I have a Samsung S5 which I love and still use with no issues, but I'd like to have dual sim and have redpocket 99$ per year plan and Freedompop free data on the other. This set up will end up saving me hundreds of $$ per year.
memee4eva said:
@Wagmans thank you for your feedback, not sure why many have issues with the fingerprint scanner and some don't have issues at all with it. It would be good to know if it's a hardware or software thing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Or a human thing. I got my wife the x820 in January. Immediately flashed TeamSpain's CM13 understanding the stock firmware had fingerprint scanner issues. All that, and only to learn she rarely gets the phone to accept her print, but when I pick it up it works every time. So there is obviously a human print component in the equasion that determines the FP scanner works, in addition to hardware & firmware.
I pulled the trigger on the TinyDeal 64 x829 today for $202 for myself. Leaving the Moto G4 xt1625 behind as a backup. I'm sorry, 2 GB RAM on my Moto G4 is insufficient. We expect our phones to be computers, and they are, but we'd never expect to run 2GB RAM on a modern day desktop. I'd really like to see a 32GB model with 6GB RAM.
valy_cta said:
It's too easy to flash TWRP, flash a new ROM, root and do all the things you need with it. This phone is practically unbrickable as you have a guide that teaches you how to unbrick it. Still, it's as easy as it gets to play with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll fool around with it. I'm still confused as to exactly which ROM I should flash and still have US Straight Talk/AT&T compatibility? Would the stock Indian ROM work? How about the Chinese? I don't know what the differences are (needs to have English, obviously). It would be nice to flash a stock ROM and be able to get the software updates from LeEco (as opposed to being locked out with my modified 16s now).
Oh, and as far as I can tell, VoLTE/MMS is working for me on AT&T in the Boston area.
So to sum up, everything is good for me on this phone except fingerprint and new/better ROM. I'll see if I can resolve that once I get some answers as to which ROM to flash.
Wagmans said:
I'll fool around with it. I'm still confused as to exactly which ROM I should flash and still have US Straight Talk/AT&T compatibility? Would the stock Indian ROM work? How about the Chinese? I don't know what the differences are (needs to have English, obviously). It would be nice to flash a stock ROM and be able to get the software updates from LeEco (as opposed to being locked out with my modified 16s now).
Oh, and as far as I can tell, VoLTE/MMS is working for me on AT&T in the Boston area.
So to sum up, everything is good for me on this phone except fingerprint and new/better ROM. I'll see if I can resolve that once I get some answers as to which ROM to flash.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd say if you want updates from LeEco, then don't flash. IMO security updates are really what's at stake.
Ideally:
(1) you want a stable rom with all the bells and whistles to make you happy, and
(2) the dev is updating the rom every MONTH with google's security patches.
But we don't live in an ideal world. TeamSpains CM13 rom may be the best google stock-like rom out there, but it appears not to be 'updated' anymore. It's very stable and everything just works. So from a performance standpoint, it's great. But from a security standpoint maybe not. But then again, branded carrier phones sometimes never get security updates
Wagmans said:
I'll fool around with it. I'm still confused as to exactly which ROM I should flash and still have US Straight Talk/AT&T compatibility? Would the stock Indian ROM work? How about the Chinese? I don't know what the differences are (needs to have English, obviously). It would be nice to flash a stock ROM and be able to get the software updates from LeEco (as opposed to being locked out with my modified 16s now).
Oh, and as far as I can tell, VoLTE/MMS is working for me on AT&T in the Boston area.
So to sum up, everything is good for me on this phone except fingerprint and new/better ROM. I'll see if I can resolve that once I get some answers as to which ROM to flash.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as I remember, the Chinese one has no limitations such as SIM1 4G and SIM2 only 3G or less. I'm using the Chinese one for quite some time and I'm happy with it. The Indian ROM has Play store but will add an encryption to your phone. In case you want to flash something again using TWRP, you have to format internal memory. The US version that was leaked 3-4 months ago had a limit of 4G on SIM1 only and 3G on SIM2.
Once you will flash the ROM, don't root it, otherwise you will not receive updates and you have to flash the new official stock again when it comes out. Search "manual gapps" to install Play Store on it.
Any ROM has English on it, even the Chinese, and it's not "translated"
About the AT&T compatibility, I'm not so sure. Maybe somebody from US can help on that matter.
Wagmans said:
I'll fool around with it. I'm still confused as to exactly which ROM I should flash and still have US Straight Talk/AT&T compatibility? Would the stock Indian ROM work? How about the Chinese? I don't know what the differences are (needs to have English, obviously). It would be nice to flash a stock ROM and be able to get the software updates from LeEco (as opposed to being locked out with my modified 16s now).
Oh, and as far as I can tell, VoLTE/MMS is working for me on AT&T in the Boston area.
So to sum up, everything is good for me on this phone except fingerprint and new/better ROM. I'll see if I can resolve that once I get some answers as to which ROM to flash.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just flashed the 20s Chinese full package, fingerprint started working again. I live in Michigan, I get LTE on [email protected]/ straight talk. Everything works fine with that ROM
So I bought the XQ-BC72 model and flashed US firmware. Earlier this year I was able to do this on the Xperia 5 II and it worked perfectly. The 5 II was also the Chinese/Asian model that I flashed to US firmware.
So has anyone managed to use the asian model on verizon with or without flashing US firmware?
UPDATE: I called verizon tech support and got them to add the IMEI number to my phone line. This along with a 4G sim card has allowed me to get LTE on this phone and sending/receiving texts works too. Sweet. Will try getting VoLTE or VoWIFI to work, but I highly doubt it.
UPDATE 2: LTE/4G only worked where I originally set it up (at work, within their WiFi range). Very odd behavior. As soon as I left work, service was gone. Connecting to any other WiFi did not bring back service. As soon as I got back to the office, the service came back. This is so weird. I did all this on a 4G sim card. Will try using a 5G sim card before giving up and getting a US version or staying on the OnePlus 8T.
UPDATE 3: I got Verizon to work on the XQ-BC72. I flashed from the US Firmware to Taiwan Firmware (TW). You will still need a sim card that is provisioned as CDMA-less by verizon (you can do this over the phone or chat on their website) while inserted into a phone that verizon supports (such as your currently phone most likely if you already use Verizon). Then just switch out the sim card into the Sony and should be good to go.
You're brave to be a guinea pig here, and it's much appreciated. I'd love to purchase the bc72 but am too worried about compatibility with Verizon. Please update us on your progress or lack thereof, I'm sure I'm not the only one interested in the outcome
delfuhd said:
You're brave to be a guinea pig here, and it's much appreciated. I'd love to purchase the bc72 but am too worried about compatibility with Verizon. Please update us on your progress or lack thereof, I'm sure I'm not the only one interested in the outcome
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I got it to work for a little bit. Basically, it only worked while I was at work within the range of my works WiFi (this is where I set up the phone by chatting with verizon). As soon as I left work, I lost LTE and it would not return until I went back inside the building (yes I was still in range of the service signal). Its very odd. Connecting to any other WiFi outside of work did not bring back LTE/service.
I will attempt to get a 5g sim card and try again but I doubt I will get better results. I am currently using a verizon 4G sim card which works perfectly in OnePlus 8T (which was converted from TMobile to Global)
See update 3 above if anyone is interested in using the international model (XQ-BC72) on Verizon. Benefits of this route is you can use the Gray color model as well (not just black and purple that the US model allows) and you can also get the one with 512gb storage (internal storage is almost always faster than SD cards). Downsides are warranty is probably gone, no 5G or VoLTE support most likely.
Hi,
I would like to buy a V60 and use it in Europe.
But reading about it makes me wonder if it is such a good idea to buy this phone.
Could you help me out, I'm a bit of a newbie to Roms, rooting and fixing phones so they work.
I was reading something general about importing a unlocked carrier phone and it stated that I can buy an unlocked T-mobile or other carrier and use an european sim. There it stated that it will come a time when you need the us carrier sim card to perform things and I will be unable to do those things without the correct sim card. I do not remember what those things where. Perhaps it was If I need to update it. Is it true that you have to have the carriers sim card even if it is unlocked?
Is there any other problems one might face. e.g.
This was the latest LG phone so perhaps they will not care about customer service so much:
perhaps LG will stop posting security updates:
From what I understand there are two parts of the software of a phone: the firmware and android. The firmware is LG specific and I will not be able to get updates on that. But for android which is on top of the firmware there should be a way to get updates even if LG stops posting them, or?
If not, can I switch to an other rom to have them?
Can I update to a later android version even if LG does not post one for the phone?
Can I root the phone and be rid of all the us carrier stuff, get a phone that is not associated with any carrier?
yes you can root the phone and flash EA firmware. instructions available here and works perfect for ATT unlocked phones. also you can buy a Verizon version, use it 60 days in the Verizon network, after it will work anywhere and get updates. the problem is that no new LG V60 devices left in the stores.