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Hi guys i have seen the sbf thread with different network branded sbf'
But play sell atrix, which firmware is that? is there a retail non network braded for Europe or UK?
http://www.play.com/Mobiles/Mobile/...ed-Mobile-Phone/Product.html?searchtype=genre
Now that we have an unlocked boot loader, why shouldn't there be one we can flash?
A vanilla image would be amazing.
I have an AT&T Atrix imported to the UK and would love a UK Vanilla image.
Thats what i want but i dont think there is.
Ronaldo_9 said:
Thats what i want but i dont think there is.
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Well not yet there isn't, but I'm sure as soon as they come out in August we will have one.
Bump any update on this? Expansys also selling sim free version!
I don't want to go through hell of selling my ATT atrix (and loosing 4G for when we get it in the UK)
http://www.expansys.com/motorola-atrix-207852/
Hey guys. After researching many possible smartphones in the market right now, I am going to go with my first smartphone ever and possibly the best one right now (in my opinion): the Samsung Galaxy S2.
However, I live in the U.S. in which I do not think the SIM-capable unnerfed galaxy S2 will ever be coming out here.
Anyhow, I was hoping people who have bought the unlocked version of the S2 would be able to help me. My questions are as follows:
1) Which online vendor is the best place to buy an unlocked version of the S2? I have been researching many possible sites for the past few months. It seems NewEgg.com, Amazon.com, and Expansys-usa.com are most mentioned contenders. The question then becomes… which one to buy from? Who to trust? Anyone have experience in this arena?
2) From several reviews online, it seems people worldwide have been getting unlocked S2s with different starting languages/manuals. Are they all the same? Are there any fundamental differences in hardware or settings? If so, which one is best? It seems there are different versions with various configurations, such as with/without NFC. Hmm...
3) My main carrier in the U.S. is AT&T. What would I need to do to experience compatibility with this network? I would like to get HSPA+ (~ 4G speeds as claimed by AT&T, so to speak). Is there a special SIM from AT&T or tweaking within the phone I need to do to achieve this? Do I have to tell notify AT&T as well? What do I need to do to ensure compatibility with that network & the speeds I would like to achieve?
Phew. That is all. Thank you!!!!
As far as I know, the international version of i9100 is quad-brand 3G which matches AT&T. You can get 1 on amazon for around $700 USD
OR
you can get a LOCKED i9100m from Bell or Virgin Canada, then unlock it. This phone is 599.99 in Canada.
Isn't the Bell version CDMA-only? Does it offer SIM?
Anyhow, I'll try my hands on an international unlocked version. Now, the question still remains... which one to buy from? Amazon.com has many resellers. NewEgg and Expansys-USA are single resellers, but I would probably have to ask where they get theirs from.
Are there any differences in getting it via from the UK, Korea, India, etc? I would also need an adapter that can be plugged in the US.
Ok there lots of information if you used search feature
Cheapest place to buy currently is www.expansys-usa.com, you get it for 658.99 and you get additional $10 off with lsjuly10 voucher.
You get hspa+ speeds with att and you can also use $15 unlimited non smartphone plan with sgs2.
Search around and you can find lots of info on this. Hope this helps
Edit : just to answer your other question, you get us adapter along with the phone from expansys, amazon. You might mostly get a phone with uk firmware but it shouldn't really matter. Once you get the phone you can flash whatever firmware you want thru odin.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
Thank you very much for the coupon!!!
Searching around, it seems like Expansys-USA might be the best bang for the buck to purchase the unlocked version.
I also tried e-mailing NewEgg.com and some Amazon.com vendors. NewEgg.com said their S2 was "made in China." Hmm. I am unsure if it means it is a Chinese version. One vendor from Amazon.com said it was "unsure of where the device came from."
I'm assuming since there's an Expansys-UK, the Expansys-USA may be coming from UK. Is the UK version good? I guess UK (since it's in English) would be best for me...
I've also heard some versions do not have NFC. Does the UK version have NFC or working NFC in the states?
Just get the bell one from canada and save yourself some money, its full hspa+ , meaning it will work with att 3g in the states. If you buy the european ones you'll likely pay upwards of 800$ I'm thinking...
Are the Bell ones unlocked? Where would I be able to find one? Any online resellers that are selling them? I thought the Bell ones were CDMA-only? Or do they also have SIM-card capabilities?
Driving up to Canada and purchasing one is not too feasible for me.
Alazarin said:
Are the Bell ones unlocked? Where would I be able to find one? Any online resellers that are selling them? I thought the Bell ones were CDMA-only? Or do they also have SIM-card capabilities?
Driving up to Canada and purchasing one is not too feasible for me.
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The bell ones are locked. Can be easly unlocked. They are sim ones. I using the one i bought with bell on telus
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App
Alazarin said:
Are the Bell ones unlocked? Where would I be able to find one? Any online resellers that are selling them? I thought the Bell ones were CDMA-only? Or do they also have SIM-card capabilities?
Driving up to Canada and purchasing one is not too feasible for me.
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Nope, bell has been ditching its CDMA network for well over a year... All their new phones are gsm. Well not just driving up I'm saying ordering online from canada would probably even be cheaper than buying a european phone, and they are the same phone, no nfc, same model.
I`m living in UK and I bought my SGS2 1 month ago from ebay. was sealed and is factory unlocked. It`s 100% original, not a fake. As far as I now if is factory unlocked it`s working in USA on At&t H+ speed, and you don`t need to unlock. If you want you can order from UK or wait when will be release in USA. Hope this help. Good luck!
unleashed12 said:
Nope, bell has been ditching its CDMA network for well over a year... All their new phones are gsm. Well not just driving up I'm saying ordering online from canada would probably even be cheaper than buying a european phone, and they are the same phone, no nfc, same model.
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Do you have any recommendations to reliable online Canadian resellers?
The hard part is that I'm still deciding whether to buy from Expansys-USA (cheaper), Clove (great reviews + most reliable), or from an online Canadian reseller (could be even cheaper + more reliable since I live in the U.S.?). My main criteria is that:
I would like to buy the phone that was made in Korea, but for the UK/CA market (thus, factory sealed) and comes with a US adapter (not add-on). That seems to be the best one, but I am unsure which one would provide that.
So, I see Best Buy are going to be selling this for $600 SIM-free, a good £100 cheaper than the UK.
What sort of issues will I see using the device in the UK if I buy it in the US? Will HSPA+ work? What about LTE?
Careful there: if it's the AT&T model, full price doesn't mean it's unlocked; it's just the price without the 2 year contract.
It is still alot cheaper buying it this way if you want a SIM free phone, the only issue is whether it will be possible to unlock it. I have found 1 site where they 'claim' to be able to unlock it for $79.99!!!
Im considering this as I really really want the cyan version, how likely do you think it will be that there will be a hack to unlock this?
psalmu said:
Careful there: if it's the AT&T model, full price doesn't mean it's unlocked; it's just the price without the 2 year contract.
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Well, that's just terrible.
Oh well, back to the drawing board.
edgedemon said:
It is still alot cheaper buying it this way if you want a SIM free phone, the only issue is whether it will be possible to unlock it. I have found 1 site where they 'claim' to be able to unlock it for $79.99!!!
Im considering this as I really really want the cyan version, how likely do you think it will be that there will be a hack to unlock this?
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If it is like Lumia 900 of AT&T, you will have to wait 6 to 8 months to get any unlock code from anyone, regardless how much you paid.
Also, AT&T itself is selling 920 for $449 without contract. 3rd party retailer will always sell for higher prices than AT&T because they don't get paid otherwise for contract free phones. But there is a slight chance that Best Buy can price match AT&T price for you.
On the other hand, Rogers version of 920 from Canada is selling for not much more and is known to be unlocked.
Both probably won't work with EU's LTE bands.
foxbat121 said:
If it is like Lumia 900 of AT&T, you will have to wait 6 to 8 months to get any unlock code from anyone, regardless how much you paid.
Also, AT&T itself is selling 920 for $449 without contract. 3rd party retailer will always sell for higher prices than AT&T because they don't get paid otherwise for contract free phones. But there is a slight chance that Best Buy can price match AT&T price for you.
On the other hand, Rogers version of 920 from Canada is selling for not much more and is known to be unlocked.
Both probably won't work with EU's LTE bands.
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So you are saying it will not support LTE 1800Mhz?
Tsury said:
So you are saying it will not support LTE 1800Mhz?
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Att here only uses 700Mhz for lte. Att phones typically come with 700Mhz and 1700Mhz bands. Even my dev version of 920 which supports more bands than att version only has 700/850/1700/2100 lte bands.
The RM820 (North American model) also has support for LTE 1900 (doesn't help anyone in Europe though).
so... is unlocking a cell phone tough?
the price is really very low.
pay extra 79.99$ is still cheaper than buying one in Europe. (but i hate the logo ._. )
but as edgedemon said, they just CLAIM that they can.
unlocking a phone must do this way?
or can jb the phone and install something to unlock?
or.. flashing the ROM?
Any idea how I'd go about getting a Rogers phone when I'm in the US? They're Canadian, right?
I'm not so concerned about LTE if it does HSPA+ on European frequencies.
What about flashing a US Device with a EU's Rom ?
I'm a real noobie in that domain !
In France LTE bands are 800 and 2600 ...
thx for advices !
Well, the rumour goes that all the 920s have all the bands available, but only the certain ones for that region are activated in software.
If that's true, then some day someone might work out how to flash the Radio ROM. But I doubt flashing the software ROM (which you can do just now) will make any changes to the radio ROM, so we'll need to wait until/if someone cracks it.
That goes for the 3G bands... I don't know if the phones come with all LTE bands available (and it's still a rumour that they even have all 3G bands)
elyl said:
Well, the rumour goes that all the 920s have all the bands available, but only the certain ones for that region are activated in software.
If that's true, then some day someone might work out how to flash the Radio ROM. But I doubt flashing the software ROM (which you can do just now) will make any changes to the radio ROM, so we'll need to wait until/if someone cracks it.
That goes for the 3G bands... I don't know if the phones come with all LTE bands available (and it's still a rumour that they even have all 3G bands)
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Many thanks for your answer... I think I'm gonna buy it into my country ...
Slaybz said:
What about flashing a US Device with a EU's Rom ?
I'm a real noobie in that domain !
In France LTE bands are 800 and 2600
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AT&T device (a) can't be unlocked, so you can't use it with anything other than an AT&T SIM and (b) won't have European LTE frequencies.
I have been buying the AT&T versions for years now, extending my contract term and trying the NEXT plan. But with the bigger carriers locking the software down I want to buy an international version, but I'm unsure where to get one.
interesting, I was looking at us version of Samsung site and realize they do not sell latest smartphones provider free and unlocked;
you have to try the Canada site, looks like up north here, we can buy Samsung phones unlocked, even the newest ones
There are a number of sites that deal with overseas international phones. You can also find them on Amazon.com quite easily. Here is one http://welectronics.com/gsm/SAMSUNGSMPHONES.shtml take note they are selling a 32GB & 64GB only version, not sure if they can't get the 128GB option, or it will come later.
Order Directly from Samsung or Use eBay Amazon Walmart Best buy or this super place swappa.com
Buying an international version sounds like a good idea.
biggstkk said:
I have been buying the AT&T versions for years now, extending my contract term and trying the NEXT plan. But with the bigger carriers locking the software down I want to buy an international version, but I'm unsure where to get one.
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I'm in the same boat. Just need to make sure the international version will support AT&T's LTE bands. If they do, I'll be going this route as well.
Try GSM Nation. Thet have the unlocked and at&t compatible version. Pre-Ordered mine.
Do not even try Canada. Yes we have stuff that work on pretty much all GSM carriers, but never can you buy an unlocked phone unless it's Google, Chinese made or bought overpriced on Sony's website. Samsung Nevers sells unlocked here. Got to use typical methods
Canada is not really international per se, Its networks are set up almost if not identical to those in the US, hence almost all devices are identical to those available in the US market.
There are however, few retailers that sells international versions of devices here in Canada. NCIX.com and Expansys Canada are the first 2 that come to mind. Its just a little more tougher to find as some retailers either don't post the complete information or don't even know their own inventory as some may carry the international versions without even knowing it.
Any other suggestions?
Buy an unbranded one off eBay.
I've just ordered the 256Gb Reno 10X from Amazon Spain which they are shipping internationally to me. The website does not make it clear, and they do not seem to be sure, whether the one they have is the Chinese or International variant. Will it be obvious when I get it which it is - the model number on the box or anything else? How can I tell?
Amazon Spain will ship the international version usually, of course you will see what version is inside the box once you got it.
Chinese version is PCCMOO, international should be something with CHP1919 or something like this...
Fir3blade said:
Amazon Spain will ship the international version usually, of course you will see what version is inside the box once you got it.
Chinese version is PCCMOO, international should be something with CHP1919 or something like this...
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Thanks. I'm sure you're right. I just wanted to be sure whether it is obvious which it is when it arrives. Amazon confirmed that they would pay for my returning it if it is the wrong one.