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So i've just signed up for a cell phone plan, they said is unlimited social networking browsing, didn't look at the fine print and they said is just for non-smart phone only...
I talked to their technical support and it looks like they check the phone's IMEI to determine what phone/model i am running... so i'm wondering if there is a way i could either change/hide my IMEI so that i can browse facebook and twitter with my current plan.
I asked the technical support what's the different between a regular phone browsing and a smart phone browsing, they said it has to do with the data compression and such... if that's the case, is there an app out there that i could use to simulate non-smart phone browser?
Changing your IMEI is illegal. It's your mobile's ID. International ID. Stolen mobiles have a 00000 etc IMEI, for instance. Some phones when wiped lose their IMEI. You can change it, but you could get in trouble. It's also very hard. Normally, only certain operator shops can reflash your phone and RESTORE your IMEI. I know this since I had an issue with that. 0'ed IMEI due to reset.
If they check your IMEI I don't think any app will solve that. But I'm not the best person to point you in the right direction.
Hum... i also have my old Samsung F488, if is possible i could use that one's IMEI, since i own both phone.
You'd be passing one phone as another. As a rule, tampering with your IMEI is illegal and operators only rarely restore it, if you have documentation proving the phone is yours. They don't change it.
When a phone is stolen, the IMEI is wiped so it can't be traced. That's why they won't change it nor restore it just like that... I doubt you'll have any luck asking for IMEI transfer...
sucks... ok thanks
You can try... I just wouldn't expect it to work. My experience comes from Portuguese operators, but it's probably the same all around.
From what i read, is legal to change it in North America. Is just lame that i'm paying for 50$ plan, but can't do zero browsing with this ****. I think i will have to roll back to some 30$ plan and only do text messaging with my smart phone lol..
Well, then you could try. Good luck then!
Yea, well the question remain, how. LOL
At least here, you need specialized shops, not all operator shops can do that, ask the nearest where your phone can be flashed to change the IMEI
codenamezero said:
From what i read, is legal to change it in North America. Is just lame that i'm paying for 50$ plan, but can't do zero browsing with this ****. I think i will have to roll back to some 30$ plan and only do text messaging with my smart phone lol..
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Disclaimer: I'm not from the U.S. so I might be wrong.
After some reading, there's no law in the U.S. that even talks about IMEIs, so technically it is legal to change it, however, since most if not all carriers changer certain things based on your IMEI I think that changing your IMEI would effectively violate your service contract (if they found out), so instead of trying to change your IMEI I'd go to your carrier and ask for an unlimited smartphone plan.
codenamezero said:
is there an app out there that i could use to simulate non-smart phone browser
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The problem here is not the app, it's the internet protocols that are used by different types of cellphones, see, dumb-phones use WAP as the internet protocol, whereas smartphones use plain HTTP.
Boy, I am sick of ignorant goofballs spewing 'It's illegal' with no facts whatsoever to back their opinion up.
IF IT IS ILLEGAL, TELL ME WHAT LAW IT VIOLATES OR SHUT UP!
Seriously, this is a valid question that goes to a host of privacy and fair use issues, and I cannot believe that no one has any facts to share. I could give a hoot less if you think that just because it is a serial number it is somehow forbidden by God that you should mess with it. Personally, I would love to have a smartphone without having to pay for wireless data. The country would be up in arms if the cable company decided to charge you extra because your TV is capable of receiving HD signal, so why are we such sheep that we all pony up for data plans we don't really need? Nearly everywhere I go with my phone, even in a rural state, has WiFi. I need a data plan like I need silk boxers.
OwenW71 said:
Boy, I am sick of ignorant goofballs spewing 'It's illegal' with no facts whatsoever to back their opinion up.
IF IT IS ILLEGAL, TELL ME WHAT LAW IT VIOLATES OR SHUT UP!
Seriously, this is a valid question that goes to a host of privacy and fair use issues, and I cannot believe that no one has any facts to share. I could give a hoot less if you think that just because it is a serial number it is somehow forbidden by God that you should mess with it. Personally, I would love to have a smartphone without having to pay for wireless data. The country would be up in arms if the cable company decided to charge you extra because your TV is capable of receiving HD signal, so why are we such sheep that we all pony up for data plans we don't really need? Nearly everywhere I go with my phone, even in a rural state, has WiFi. I need a data plan like I need silk boxers.
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Two things:
1) Since nobody's been anything but a nice person trying to help I think your reaction is way out of line, no need to YELL or BOLD your opinion in order to be heard.
2) If you had taken a moment to read the entire post you would've read this:
Akath19 said:
After some reading, there's no law in the U.S. that even talks about IMEIs, so technically it is legal to change it, however, since most if not all carriers change certain things based on your IMEI I think that changing your IMEI would effectively violate your service contract (if they found out), so instead of trying to change your IMEI I'd go to your carrier and ask for an unlimited smartphone plan.
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So that answers your question in a very civil and decent way, but since you might not get it that way, here's the answer in your own style:
THERE IS NO F-ING LAW THAT EVEN TALKS ABOUT IMEI, SO NO LAW = LEGAL
I was just stating an opinion regarding the fact that changing your IMEI is kinda immoral considering that that practice is done mostly on stolen phones in order to use them on any network after they've been reported.
So to put it plainly there is no law that forbids it and it'd be nice if you read posts before attacking the posters.
While I agree that yelling is normally in bad taste, I feel strongly that someone needs to be yelling about this. In every forum I go to, every time this question is asked we get flooded with meaningless opinions, nearly every one of them saying that even thinking it is illegal. Rubbish. Up until very recently, IMEI numbers stood a good chance of not even being unique, and even now many may not be, since phone manufacturers are assigned blocks of numbers, and it is up to them to govern the assignment of the IMEI to the hardware.
As it stands, GSM operators in the US are using your IMEI number to make sure you are being charged for a data plan if you use a smartphone, even if you don't want a data plan.
I, for one, would like my provider to think I'm using a RAZR or any other dumbphone, and the only way to do it is to spoof my IMEI. I don't believe it is illegal to do so, although my provider would surely be peeved. iPhone users can do this with a bit of software.
Here is what I'd like to see from this conversaation:
1. Establish conclusively that IMEI changes are legal.
2. Discuss methods by which a new IMEI could be entered in software.
3. Avoid discussing how the carriers may feel about it. We already rooted, right?
Again, I apologize for ruffling feathers by shouting. I hope the message came across to those with opinions but no facts. This is a legitimate question of fair-use, and I'd love to hear from someone who has facts regarding the legality of this idea. Even better, I'd welcome a way to actually accomplish the change.
Thank you for your answer, I honestly thought that you were just flaming for flaming's sake.
Sadly there's not much info anywhere besides a lawyer's office, after some serious digging, most people seem to think that changing an IMEI in the US is a Class C felony, however no one knows exactly where is that law written.
I'd also advise you on asking these kinds of things in the forum 'cause I know people have been banned for asking these kinds of things. I know that's stupid but some mods in the forum think that just asking a question about something illegal in certain countries constitutes a felony in an of itself.
So, to sum things up:
1) Apparently it's illegal to change your IMEI, but I'd consult with a lawyer to know exactly where is that written.
2) People in general think that just talking about illegal activities is a felony so I'd expect much hate towards you for asking.
3) IMEI's in smartphones are not software based, meaning if you want to change it you'd need to isolate the chip on which they're located and change it with dongles and flasher tools (not software)
Sorry that I can't say anymore but I'm not from the US so that's all the info I can gather.
I do know in the uk it is a arrestable offense to change a phones imei no., dont know about anywere else.
I found a seller on eBay that changed my IMEI for $50. I bet he can give you any IMEI you want. He claims to change the mother board with that of a different IMEI but im sure he is just using the flash tools I read about wile doing google searches. The flash tools are physical items that connect into the phones usb port and or directly to the chip on the motherboard. They cost about $500. There are also ways to do it via software on some phones especially androids but there is more risk involved for the do it your selfer.
I am such a do it your selfer and after reading about it for 12 hours I decided that id have to read about it for 3 more before I felt comfortable and even then the risk of bricking was greater then having the pros do it for me. This high risk level is why you dont see much talk of the processes in the forums online. The pros know its best to use the hardware so they buy it and protect the process by not disclosing it online. The talk of its process that I did find on line involves so many abbreviations and new terms that I was heavily burdened with not understanding.
The bottom line is unless you plan on doing it for an income its not worth learning how to do.
Now back to the original question. Will the internet work on a smart phone if you change the IMEI to that of a none smart phone? Will you be stuck using the carriers dumbed down WAP internet or have no internet at all? Maybe you could run some sort of dumb phone simulator to gain access to a dumb phones web browser program?
For those of you that want to rag on me for reviving an old thread. Know that many people like my self searching google for knowledge end up here and will see my post. Thats how I got here so this thread is not so dead after all. Threads that start with a real question need more real answers.
---------- Post added at 01:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:20 PM ----------
Here is a software example of how to change the IMEI of a cretin android.
I doubt this app works on any other model.
http://changemtkimei.blogspot.com/
As I remember, I lost the IMEI (actually it was replaced by something like 00499010640000) on my Samsung Galaxy i9000 and Galaxy Tab P6200 when I SIM unlocked them, so at least on Samsung this is possible, the IMEI was stored in the EFS files.
I am considering buying a handset from a seller on ebay that is network blocked in Australia (my country).
Can this be undone by flashing a new ROM? Or is the block done on the hardware or at the nerwork level?
And what are you going to do with it pal.I'm not going to get abusive....,but surely your not that stupid.
Crachel/Mistahbungle its over to you..
Sent from my GT-I9100
You will need unlock code. Network lock is stored in EFS.
What's he saying that the seller got the phone network blocked (maybe didn't pay the bills or its stolen). The device is identified by the IMEI and that does not change regardless of what ROM you have on the device.
Changing of the IMEI is illegal.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk 2
block is done on a network level by the provider.
I suggest you get the IMEI from the seller and phone your provider and find out the reason for the block.
If it is a simple thing, like non payment ofd bills, once you show that it is going on a new account, it maybe possible to unblock it.
If they consider the handset stolen, you will not be able to d anything.
Did you steal it? If you change the imei you will go to prison for a long time and the Americans will probably deport you to Guantanamo and soldiers will pee on you and stuff.
The reason I asked was because it was going cheap on eBay and I thought if I could unblock it it would be a cheap way to buy a phone.
And wow, some of the people who replied here make retarded look smart.
mrnaz said:
The reason I asked was because it was going cheap on eBay and I thought if I could unblock it it would be a cheap way to buy a phone.
And wow, some of the people who replied here make retarded look smart.
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Do you mean its its network locked, ie to one network or do you mean its blocked from all networks?
If its network locked you can download an app from market to unlock it, its easy and takes few minutes, called galaxy_unlock or somthing, worked for me.
If its blocked to all networks then you cant unblock it (easily) for use in same country as you would need to change it IMEI which is very illegal in most countries. However if you're importing it then it wont really matter as the networks wont be blocking it in another country. You should be able to just stick a sim card in and off you go.
So do some of the retards who consider buying phones that are IMEI blocked
Check. Your move.
mrnaz said:
The reason I asked was because it was going cheap on eBay and I thought if I could unblock it it would be a cheap way to buy a phone.
And wow, some of the people who replied here make retarded look smart.
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MistahBungle said:
So do some of the retards who consider buying phones that are IMEI blocked
Check. Your move.
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Not everyone is born with all of the knowledge that they are going to die with. Sometimes esoteric knowledge, such as the various details considering network blocking of communications devices, can be exchanged on internet forums where those who are well versed in those details can provide assistance to those who are not as familiar with them. Unfortunately, not everyone on the internet is polite to those who ask questions, or acknowledges that they may be experts in fields other than the one they are asking about. Consequently, they respond with sarcastic and unhelpful comments.
mrnaz said:
Not everyone is born with all of the knowledge that they are going to die with. Sometimes esoteric knowledge, such as the various details considering network blocking of communications devices, can be exchanged on internet forums where those who are well versed in those details can provide assistance to those who are not as familiar with them. Unfortunately, not everyone on the internet is polite to those who ask questions, or acknowledges that they may be experts in fields other than the one they are asking about. Consequently, they respond with sarcastic and unhelpful comments.
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Hello yes can be done find the right threads. Anything is achievable as long as u can get download mode
s2 RR jb siyah
mrnaz said:
Not everyone is born with all of the knowledge that they are going to die with. Sometimes esoteric knowledge, such as the various details considering network blocking of communications devices, can be exchanged on internet forums where those who are well versed in those details can provide assistance to those who are not as familiar with them. Unfortunately, not everyone on the internet is polite to those who ask questions, or acknowledges that they may be experts in fields other than the one they are asking about. Consequently, they respond with sarcastic and unhelpful comments.
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+1
You'll find a lot of them sort of people on here, thats why its got a bad name, plenty of helpful people left though, thank God!
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
mrnaz said:
Not everyone is born with all of the knowledge that they are going to die with. Sometimes esoteric knowledge, such as the various details considering network blocking of communications devices, can be exchanged on internet forums where those who are well versed in those details can provide assistance to those who are not as familiar with them. Unfortunately, not everyone on the internet is polite to those who ask questions, or acknowledges that they may be experts in fields other than the one they are asking about. Consequently, they respond with sarcastic and unhelpful comments.
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Lol,this q + a section isnt a patch on the development section.See what happens when you ask stupid questions in there,or dont search the thread for questions that have been asked dozens of times before.
The only thing that I can imagine is that because eBay allows them to be listed,then it must be legal somehow then you think theres no harm done and you can "sort" the phone>you get cheap working phone.
If you were considering buying a used phone or water damaged one,then you wouldnt have got such a rough ride.
If blacklisted phones were simple to modify then it would lead to more phones getting stolen.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using xda premium
+1 in the real world if u asked a simple question ud get a... Dunno or a sensible answer in a forum u usually get abuse because these people hide behind there screens. Face to face ud jus jaw the lairy ones.
Try to help everyone cos everyone knows something.
HI all,
My Name is Morne. I live in RSA. and I am a new owner of a Galaxy S3.
I picked up this phone about a month and a half ago laying in front of a pub and I reported it to the police station who took my details and the phone details. the owner of the phone was still not found and they have made me the legal owner of the phone now. but there is one problem the imei is blocked and the police said that I should get samsung to change it. I have asked but they want me to ship it away to them and pay for the change. but unfortunatly Im a little broke. So I was wondering if it was possible that any of you GURU's could help me with this. I have read through your forums and I have noticed that XDA does not really like sharing this information. Due to stolen phones. But in my case is there anyone who is out there who could help as the phone was not stolen and is legally mine. you can private message me or send a link with video instructions. Its the Galaxy S3 32GB running on ICS(Ice cream Sandwich).
Thank you so much
S3Boi said:
HI all,
My Name is Morne. I live in RSA. and I am a new owner of a Galaxy S3.
I picked up this phone about a month and a half ago laying in front of a pub and I reported it to the police station who took my details and the phone details. the owner of the phone was still not found and they have made me the legal owner of the phone now. but there is one problem the imei is blocked and the police said that I should get samsung to change it. I have asked but they want me to ship it away to them and pay for the change. but unfortunatly Im a little broke. So I was wondering if it was possible that any of you GURU's could help me with this. I have read through your forums and I have noticed that XDA does not really like sharing this information. Due to stolen phones. But in my case is there anyone who is out there who could help as the phone was not stolen and is legally mine. you can private message me or send a link with video instructions. Its the Galaxy S3 32GB running on ICS(Ice cream Sandwich).
Thank you so much
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Changing the imei yourself is completly illegal in most countries and you will not get any help with it here, all you can do is what the police have told you to do.
We don't share information about it because of the legal implications of doing it yourself, Samsung doing it would be legal because they have recognized you as the legal owner of the device.
delsus said:
Changing the imei yourself is completly illegal in most countries and you will not get any help with it here, all you can do is what the police have told you to do.
We don't share information about it because of the legal implications of doing it yourself, Samsung doing it would be legal because they have recognized you as the legal owner of the device.
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Im not sure if that is completely true in south africa. I know it is in UK and other countries. Hence why I asked if it was possible someone contacts me via PVM(private mail) instead. As I really would like to start using this phone.
S3Boi said:
Im not sure if that is completely true in south africa. I know it is in UK and other countries. Hence why I asked if it was possible someone contacts me via PVM(private mail) instead. As I really would like to start using this phone.
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This is a legitimate forum though, you will very rarely if ever get any information that could be illegal either publicly or via PM, we don't know the laws in every country so it's better to be safe than sorry.
delsus said:
This is a legitimate forum though, you will very rarely if ever get any information that could be illegal either publicly or via PM, we don't know the laws in every country so it's better to be safe than sorry.
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Ok thanks alot. whats the quickest way to get hold of samsung?
You can go to the police to give you a legal document that said the phone is yours by law; with this document you can go to a samsung official service to unblock the phone, paying this service of course, so you will never have problems using this phone.
Personally i don´t believe your story....
S3Boi said:
Ok thanks alot. whats the quickest way to get hold of samsung?
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I would go to a service center because of what you need to get done, if you go to the Samsung website it will have a page for you to find a service center near you.
Remember to take any documents the police gave you to prove you are now the legal owner of the phone or they could refuse.
I hope you get it sorted.
Discussions like this are not allowed. Thanks for your cooperation.
Dear XDA fellows,
i requested a provider unlock code for my simlocked samsung s2
Unfortunately the code does not work at all.
Now i wonder why,
i have rooted the phone with the old ICS and used the galaxy s unlock app on it to use other providers cards.
A few months later (now) i updated Android to 4.12 and tried to use the provider unlock code on it but it did not work.
Rooted the phone again and tried various unlock apps, but none of them work.
Now i wonder why the phone has become so defiant to my attempts to unlock it, after all i treated it good for all the time that i used it.
Maybe someone has any suggestions on how to unlock the phone after all?
IMEI blocked
Hello Everyone,
I don't know if this is the right place to post my issue. Briefly.... After having a Samsung Galaxy s II, GT-I9100, with a contract in Italy (VODAFONE), having paid the phone in full, suddenly after two years, I decide to close contract,
The Vodafone bastards tell me that I must pay 380.00 € (threehundredeigthy) because of some invoices. This obviously according to them. I always paid everything. I refuse to pay this sum and open a controversy with them demonstrating with facts and papers at hand that it is not right I pay this amount. Anyway, after a week, they block my IMEI.
I think this is absurd. I PAID THE PHONE IN FULL!!! They want 380.00 € of telephone calls related to the SIM card. I don't want to pay this money. The phone is no brand.
I went to a lawyer, and he told me it's not worth the hassle to go to court for such sum.
What I want to know is:
Why should I have a phone that doesn't work after I have paid for it?
You need to contact a guy called "gaston" on here.
He works for vodafone italy in the customer service dept.
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maybe your an iphone expert
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If they IMEI block the phone, you're boned. Nothing anyone here can do to help. If they block it, the phone is blocked at the carriers end & in many countries on all networks in that country.
And further talk about changing the IMEI will likely see the thread closed, given this is illegal in most countries & talk of same is against XDA rules. Go see a local mobile repair shop, some might be able to 'help'.
Re:
arsy82 said:
Why should I have a phone that doesn't work after I have paid for it?
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Why should we care ?
MistahBungle said:
If they IMEI block the phone, you're boned. Nothing anyone here can do to help. If they block it, the phone is blocked at the carriers end & in many countries on all networks in that country.
And further talk about changing the IMEI will likely see the thread closed, given this is illegal in most countries & talk of same is against XDA rules. Go see a local mobile repair shop, some might be able to 'help'.
Re:
Why should we care ?
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I've asked for help..If you come up with "What should we care", then I guess you shouldn't care of anything and not be on the site. I think this site other than an educational point of view, can also offer expertise and technical assistence as it is a really important internet forum. I really don't understand your rude answer..honestly it has no sense or help to me.
Why should he care.....hes not getting paid.You are involved in a civil dispute with vodafone or whoever,so this isnt the carriers complaints dept.
Then you start talking about an illegal method to help you out which is against xda rules.
So dont pay then,sell the phone and use the money towards buying another phone.Make sure it isnt a vodafone one......lol
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maybe your an iphone expert
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bahmonkeys said:
Go on Ebay and look for faulty phones. Basically ones with broken screens. Stay away from water damaged ones and ones with the same problem you are having. Once you get it, you could swap out the motherboards and sell yours on Ebay. Sell yours outside of the country as it might work. This would be the easy way. It might cost you about 50 bucks but you could sell your motherboard and make it back.
Remember Google is your friend for changing IMEI. I would choose the option above.
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I just have 1 technical question: if i get a ****ty alcatel phone i have home and get my imei blocked samsung galaxy s2. CAN I TAKE THE ALCATELS IMEI E SHOVE IT IN THE SAMSUNG GALAXY S2?
I DON'T THINK IT IS ILLEGAL TO TRY TO HAVE A PHONE I PAID FOR WORK.,
I JUST WANT TO KNOW IF IT IS POSSIBLE.
And which part of changing an IMEI is both illegal, and more importantly, discussion of same is against XDA rules aren't you clever enough to understand ? I've reported this thread, hopefully your posts are removed (because the OP had legitimate queries about unlocking it until you hijacked it).
MistahBungle said:
And which part of changing an IMEI is both illegal, and more importantly, discussion of same is against XDA rules aren't you clever enough to understand ? I've reported this thread, hopefully your posts are removed (because the OP had legitimate queries about unlocking it until you hijacked it).
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I'm really sorry if I caused any sort of trouble to any member of the forum. Honestly it was the last of my intents. I will obviously put a stop to my curiosity, thoughts & problems regarding the IMEI related issue to avoid any sort of problems. Sorry once again.
Regardless of the circumstances changing the IMEI, discussing how to change the IMEI, and I believe in the UK even possessing tools capable of doing so, is all illegal and can get the site in trouble. This is an issue you would need to take up with your local representative or vodaphone and should not be discussed in anyway here.
This is non-negotiable.
Thank you for your understanding and cooperation.
Hi everyone,
I have a rooted note 10 plus with modified IMEI from UAE.
The guy who sold me the phone isn't reachable and I would like to restore it to it's original state.
I successfully managed to put the original firmware on it (with the warning every time I restart) but the IMEI is the same and the mobile network won't work.
It says emergency calls only and I'm unable to manually search for networks.
I don't mind the warning but sim cards don't work.
Anyone know what I can do?
Thanks.
kenaness said:
Hi everyone,
I have a rooted note 10 plus with modified IMEI from UAE.
The guy who sold me the phone isn't reachable and I would like to restore it to it's original state.
I successfully managed to put the original firmware on it (with the warning every time I restart) but the IMEI is the same and the mobile network won't work.
It says emergency calls only and I'm unable to manually search for networks.
I don't mind the warning but sim cards don't work.
Anyone know what I can do?
Thanks.
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I'm really sorry to hear about your problem. However, please be aware that XDA doesn't allow any discussions of or support for edit/change of IMEI's as this is illegal in quite a few countries. In this repect I'll have to monitor this thread.
XDA Forum Rules
Spoiler: Rule No. 9
9. Don't get us into trouble.
Don't post copyrighted materials or do other things which will obviously lead to legal trouble. If you wouldn't do it on your own homepage, you probably shouldn't do it here either. This does not mean that we agree with everything that the software piracy lobby try to impose on us. It simply means that you cannot break any laws here, since we'll end up dealing with the legal hassle caused by you. Please use common sense: respect the forum, its users and those that write great code.
Regards
Oswald Boelcke
Senior Moderator