Little advice buying an international version (SM-G965F/DS) - Samsung Galaxy S9+ Questions & Answers

I'm looking at picking up a SM-G965F/DS (FACTORY UNLOCKED) for use on the USA T-mobile network. The one I'm looking at is reportedly Region free (no region lock) and SIM unlocked. . So a couple of questions:
1 - Should I be fairly safe in my ability to bootloader unlock and mod this version of the phone as described above?
2 - To get the OEM unlock will I use my t-mobile SIM for 7 days to make OEM unlock available or will the date hack work:
How to fix the missing OEM Unlock button on the Samsung Galaxy S9/S8/Note 8
3 - I'm familiar with unlocking and installing on older devices such as the OnePlus One, and Nexus series of devices. Is the process for the S9+ fairly bulletproof like those devices? I mean, they were all pretty forgiving to a little "Oops" here and there. No one needs $700 brick.

Received the phone today. Cannot get OEM Unlock to show even using the above mentioned method. Anyone have any luck to share on the this model #?

Did you ever figure out how to get the oem unlock fixed. I just bought a Claro s8+ sm-g955f and no matter what I try the oem unlock remains missing in my developer options

Related

OEM Unlock not appearing after 7 days -- SM-G965F/DS (Exynos)

I have an unlocked SM-G965F/DS (Exynos) that has not shown the OEM unlock option yet. Tried:
Installing active SIM
Logging in to Google and Samsung accounts, then
Leaving the phone online for 170 hours (uptime reached ~175 hours)
I see a few other threads on the SM-G965F/DS, also indicating no OEM unlock appeared. Has anyone actually gotten the SM-G965F/DS to show an OEM unlock option?
Firmware and hardware versions:
Hardware: SM-G965FZBDXSP
CSC code: XSP
Botloader: G965FXXU1BRE6
CSC: G965FOXM1BRE6
Android Build Number: R16NW.G965FXXU1BRE6
EDIT:
Bootloader shows:
Model: G965F
RMM State: Prenormal
FRP Lock: ON
OEM Lock: ON
Is only the single-SIM 965F unlockable? Is there a recommended dual-SIM model in case I end up just sending this one back?
Appreciate any help you guys can provide!
whitepines said:
Is only the single-SIM 965F unlockable? Is there a recommended dual-SIM model in case I end up just sending this one back?
Appreciate any help you guys can provide!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mines dual sim, had oem unlock after the 7 day wait.
sent from my Exynos S9 plus, Pixel 2 XL or Note FE
force70 said:
Mines dual sim, had oem unlock after the 7 day wait.
sent from my Exynos S9 plus, Pixel 2 XL or Note FE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great, thank you for the data point. Do you happen to know the CSC and stock firmware version you had installed when the OEM unlock appeared? If I don't see the option after another 7 days I intend to ODIN over a known good CSC / firmware version.
whitepines said:
Great, thank you for the data point. Do you happen to know the CSC and stock firmware version you had installed when the OEM unlock appeared? If I don't see the option after another 7 days I intend to ODIN over a known good CSC / firmware version.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
My CSC is EGY (egypt) but no idea what the original firmware was when i got it
Mine is a S9+ dual sim and has OEM unlock
Vadwiser said:
Mine is a S9+ dual sim and has OEM unlock
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Click to collapse
do i need to have an active sim card in my phone to oem unlock? feeling like i wasted the last 3 days by not having one inserted. thanks in advance
this.guy.lol said:
do i need to have an active sim card in my phone to oem unlock? feeling like i wasted the last 3 days by not having one inserted. thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Lol, why wouldnt you have one inserted?
sent from my Exynos S9 plus, Pixel 2 XL or Note FE
force70 said:
Lol, why wouldnt you have one inserted?
sent from my Exynos S9 plus, Pixel 2 XL or Note FE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
because i have a oneplus 6 i am using. and because i require root. i dont use devices that are not rooted.
Did finally get it working. My device originally came with RMM prenormal, FRP lock off, OEM lock on. Setting up the phone normally and inserting a SIM, then waiting 7 days, did NOT work. I suspect the phone was in an abnormal state due to a partial setup by the prior owner / reseller.
What did the trick for me was to force reset the phone (lose all data) via the settings menu, have a SIM inserted, go through the full setup process (Google and Samsung accounts), then leave the phone on for 7 days. The reset caused RMM prenormal, FRP lock on, OEM lock on. After 168 hours the OEM unlock option appeared in the developer settings menu.
A little guidance here. I've only dealt with Google Nexus devices and the OnePlus One, which were ridiculously easy to unlock and put on a custom ROM. I'm currently running (yes, still) a Nexus 6P because there hasn't been a phone that really interests me. I do like the S9+, and can get a good price on a BNIB SM-G965F/DS. I just want to run AOSP on it, no frills, no thrills, just vanilla. That's how I roll. So, I'll need to unlock the bootloader, install TWRP, and load up a new ROM.
With that said, all that I've read, I'm a little confused. I use t-mobile, so will I need to put in the t-mobile sim for 7 days to get OEM unlock, or will I need this done in an EU country (it is an EU version) due to the region locking Samsung has been doing since 2013? There just seems to be a lot of competing and incomplete information all over the damned place.
And don't tell me to search, please. I've been around on this forum long enough to know how to search, and long enough to know that search doesn't always yield the results you're looking for. So, if you have a link to a more descriptive explanation of what to do/expect, I'd be grateful.
Thanks.
EDIT: Found this: https://www.xda-developers.com/fix-...y-s9-samsung-galaxy-s8-samsung-galaxy-note-8/
Maybe that would work... but still don't understand if I need it activated on an EU SIM first.. Now I remember why I've avoided Samsung devices...
stewa2jm said:
A little guidance here. I've only dealt with Google Nexus devices and the OnePlus One, which were ridiculously easy to unlock and put on a custom ROM. I'm currently running (yes, still) a Nexus 6P because there hasn't been a phone that really interests me. I do like the S9+, and can get a good price on a BNIB SM-G965F/DS. I just want to run AOSP on it, no frills, no thrills, just vanilla. That's how I roll. So, I'll need to unlock the bootloader, install TWRP, and load up a new ROM.
With that said, all that I've read, I'm a little confused. I use t-mobile, so will I need to put in the t-mobile sim for 7 days to get OEM unlock, or will I need this done in an EU country (it is an EU version) due to the region locking Samsung has been doing since 2013? There just seems to be a lot of competing and incomplete information all over the damned place.
And don't tell me to search, please. I've been around on this forum long enough to know how to search, and long enough to know that search doesn't always yield the results you're looking for. So, if you have a link to a more descriptive explanation of what to do/expect, I'd be grateful.
Thanks.
EDIT: Found this: https://www.xda-developers.com/fix-...y-s9-samsung-galaxy-s8-samsung-galaxy-note-8/
Maybe that would work... but still don't understand if I need it activated on an EU SIM first.. Now I remember why I've avoided Samsung devices...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Been a month and no oem unlock for me... Tried all the time trick settings and factory reset plus more time changing... I am not using a sin on this phone because I have a work phone... Why so much bs just for oem unlock?
IparryU said:
Been a month and no oem unlock for me... Tried all the time trick settings and factory reset plus more time changing... I am not using a sin on this phone because I have a work phone... Why so much bs just for oem unlock?
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Click to collapse
Oem unlock isnt gonna do anything for the device. Its kind of pointless to do for now.
HELP! OEM Unlock came up after 7 days. I turned it on, and it said that doing so will erase data... yadda yadda, and then it restarted, wiped, and then rebooted. ... No OEM Unlock in the menu anymore and back to RMM STATE: Prenormal.
WTF??
stewa2jm said:
HELP! OEM Unlock came up after 7 days. I turned it on, and it said that doing so will erase data... yadda yadda, and then it restarted, wiped, and then rebooted. ... No OEM Unlock in the menu anymore and back to RMM STATE: Prenormal.
WTF??
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Multiple guides to either TWRP/root or ROM s9+ involve manually restarting the phone BEFORE samsung auto restarts your phone.
In other words, don't let the force restart from samsung go through, and manually restart it the moment you press OK to factory wipe and restart
EDIT: also make sure you have signed out of google before going into DL mode to TWRP phone, as this does the "FRP lock" from what I personally understand and Odin won't let you TWRP with FRP lock on. This was my 2nd mistake (and second 7-day lockout). First mistake was what you did, by letting samsung beat you at restarting phone.
jujubeans said:
Multiple guides to either TWRP/root or ROM s9+ involve manually restarting the phone BEFORE samsung auto restarts your phone.
In other words, don't let the force restart from samsung go through, and manually restart it the moment you press OK to factory wipe and restart
EDIT: also make sure you have signed out of google before going into DL mode to TWRP phone, as this does the "FRP lock" from what I personally understand and Odin won't let you TWRP with FRP lock on. This was my 2nd mistake (and second 7-day lockout). First mistake was what you did, by letting samsung beat you at restarting phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks. I got through it all a while back now. You have to be lightning quick. So dumb. This will most likely be my last Samsung device. There are other options that are much less hassle to do this work on.

Invalid SIM After Firmware Unlock

Hi guys,
I just need some general direction here.
I recently purchased a locked Sprint S9 Plus and I had successfully flashed the firmware to the unlocked version of the phone (Model number showing SM-G965U1 )
I had plugged in the sim card to the new phone, only to receive a message that says "Invalid Sim card." I also checked the system apps and it looks like there are some Sprint apps still on the phone. Any ideas?
eyewin said:
Hi guys,
I just need some general direction here.
I recently purchased a locked Sprint S9 Plus and I had successfully flashed the firmware to the unlocked version of the phone (Model number showing SM-G965U1 )
I had plugged in the sim card to the new phone, only to receive a message that says "Invalid Sim card." I also checked the system apps and it looks like there are some Sprint apps still on the phone. Any ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You got confused about what "unlocked" means in various contexts. It's easy to do. The U1 firmware is for devices that are sold as "factory unlocked" from Samsung, Best Buy, and Amazon. But what that really means is "unbranded and unlocked". By flashing U1 firmware on a Sprint (SIM locked) device, you now have an unbranded device, but flashing U1 firmware cannot SIM unlock it. Those are different things. You still need a proper SIM unlock, regardless of what firmware happens to be running on it.
CrazyApe18 said:
You got confused about what "unlocked" means in various contexts. It's easy to do. The U1 firmware is for devices that are sold as "factory unlocked" from Samsung, Best Buy, and Amazon. But what that really means is "unbranded and unlocked". By flashing U1 firmware on a Sprint (SIM locked) device, you now have an unbranded device, but flashing U1 firmware cannot SIM unlock it. Those are different things. You still need a proper SIM unlock, regardless of what firmware happens to be running on it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, and after 2 weeks of research - I thought I had it all together.
I've looked up a few options to SIM unlock the phone. They seem to be:
1) root the phone, then sim unlock it (is this possible?)
2) get a sim unlock code (any recommedations?)
OR
3) get a new unlocked or carrier-specific phone
Anyone have inputs for options 1 or 2?
eyewin said:
Wow, and after 2 weeks of research - I thought I had it all together.
I've looked up a few options to SIM unlock the phone. They seem to be:
1) root the phone, then sim unlock it (is this possible?)
2) get a sim unlock code (any recommedations?)
OR
3) get a new unlocked or carrier-specific phone
Anyone have inputs for options 1 or 2?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't discuss such things on XDA. Your carrier should unlock for you once you've met their requirements.
CrazyApe18 said:
Can't discuss such things on XDA. Your carrier should unlock for you once you've met their requirements.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately my family was going through a carrier switch where I purchased the phone before they changed their minds to go with Verizon. Now I'm stuck with a Sprint phone while my family went with Verizon.
I would gladly guidance from anyone, through PM or through this post, and is MUCH appreciated. Thank you in advance.

OEM Unlock SM-G9650

So I just got in an s9+ snapdragon model that is supposedly oem unlockable. It's brand new running android 8. All I care about right now is getting the oem unlock to show in developer options. I've tried the date trick and all, but I don't mind waiting a week if it means I can unlock the bootloader. I've set it up with a sim card, samsung account, and google account to hopefully ensure that I can unlock it. Is there anything I can do to bypass the rmm state thing, and would there be any reason that the oem unlock toggle would not show up eventually?
cosmogroid said:
So I just got in an s9+ snapdragon model that is supposedly oem unlockable. It's brand new running android 8. All I care about right now is getting the oem unlock to show in developer options. I've tried the date trick and all, but I don't mind waiting a week if it means I can unlock the bootloader. I've set it up with a sim card, samsung account, and google account to hopefully ensure that I can unlock it. Is there anything I can do to bypass the rmm state thing, and would there be any reason that the oem unlock toggle would not show up eventually?
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Click to collapse
9 out of 10 times waiting the week with no power downs is all it takes. Suposedly you.can flash a combination file. then do the date trick and it can show up right away but I dont know the exacts.
But welcome to the club mate. There are several of us with the device. New roms just came out los 17.1 havoc evo x

Question Can you unlock the bootloader on this? (Canada, Carrier Unlocked)

I'm just about to return my Samsung A52 5G after realizing that the bootloader seemingly can't be unlocked. I did a quick google and thought it was possible, but apparently the North American version is locked.
Now I'm looking at this phone as my next option. Can anyone confirm if the OEM Unlock button appears in the Canadian version of this phone? I'm buying from the OnePlus website, and it says that it is carrier-unlocked (not T-Mobile).
I'm not even planning to root the device or do anything advanced, but I want to have the option to install Lineage later on once I stop receiving OTA updates, assuming that the Lineage devs make a build for this phone.
_eternal said:
I'm just about to return my Samsung A52 5G after realizing that the bootloader seemingly can't be unlocked. I did a quick google and thought it was possible, but apparently the North American version is locked.
Now I'm looking at this phone as my next option. Can anyone confirm if the OEM Unlock button appears in the Canadian version of this phone? I'm buying from the OnePlus website, and it says that it is carrier-unlocked (not T-Mobile).
I'm not even planning to root the device or do anything advanced, but I want to have the option to install Lineage later on once I stop receiving OTA updates, assuming that the Lineage devs make a build for this phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm having the same issue. T-mobile US and the OEM Unlock button is gone
greenteaandroid said:
I'm having the same issue. T-mobile US and the OEM Unlock button is gone
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe there's a method to unlock the T-Mobile US version. I asked OnePlus's support, and there was a separate set of instructions for T-Mobile, so they might be able to help you.
I ended up buying the carrier-unlocked phone in Canada, and everything worked out; the OEM Unlock button wasn't blocked or anything. You just need the fastboot and adb drivers for the device, as usual.
There's a way to get oem ungreyed,read aroud
Even OEM and SIM unlock are separate, you have to have SIM unlock first before enabling OEM unlock.
Units sold directly from OnePlus.com is SIM unlocked.

Question Does Google always ship OEM unlocked?

When I received my device 1 year ago, I checked to see of the oem unlock switch was greyed out. It was not at the time and the phone was not branded. I bought it through Xfinity, so I popped in the sim card and started the activation. I know its normal to download branded firmware, but it locked everything. It has been about 6 months since I bought a new phone and Xfinity's garbage firmware is still locking up my pixel. ADB fastboot fails at bootloader unlock. I went online to check my devices and they have removed my Pixel from my devices list as well. Is there a way to sideload the original unbranded Google firmware without unlocking the bootloader? Any ideas would be greatly appreciated!
There is only one firmware for all variants of the Pixel series. While some carrier software may install when the device detects a carrier SIM, the firmware is not carrier specific. The only difference is the occasional modem updates that might contain various fixes and improvements for specific carriers, but this does not affect the system image. If OEM unlocking was available before you connected to the Internet, that was probably your one chance, as sys.oem_unlocking_allowed is set by means of checking the IMEI against an online whitelist.
To make sure I understand you correctly, are you trying to unlock your bootloader or not? If you bought it through Xfinity instead of Google, it might be subject to carrier rules on OEM unlocking.
Am following. Tho I already have arooted P6a from google, I'm considering switching to Xfiniry cuz I'm already a broadband subscriber. Still on the fence tho...Verizon's not too bad...

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