[Q] Galaxy S4 active LTE incompatibility in the U.S? - Galaxy S 4 Active Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

I`d like to purchase a Samsung Galaxy S4 active i9525 i537 on Ebay.
It`s defined as LTE but I understand there are incompatibilities with some or all united states LTE carriers.
I don`t understand though whether these incompatibilities apply to all versions of this smartphone and whether there`s a workaround or not.
Is there a specific model of this smartphone that can do LTE in the U.S. and another model that cannot?
I tried googling this issue real hard, and found zilch.
Thanks!

Questions and help issues go in Q&A and Help section
Thread moved
Thanks
FNM
The AT&T model i537 is the one for LTE in the US.

adumi said:
I`d like to purchase a Samsung Galaxy S4 active i9525 i537 on Ebay.
It`s defined as LTE but I understand there are incompatibilities with some or all united states LTE carriers.
I don`t understand though whether these incompatibilities apply to all versions of this smartphone and whether there`s a workaround or not.
Is there a specific model of this smartphone that can do LTE in the U.S. and another model that cannot?
I tried googling this issue real hard, and found zilch.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The I9295 I believe is the international version of this phone. The phone that is exclusive to AT&T is the i537 which WILL work on their LTE network. I don't have actual experience with the 9295 but I'm sure there's others on here who have. I guess it depends which carrier you plan to use that will dictate which phone to get.

Thanks kennyglass123 and solaris2k!
solaris2k said:
The I9295 I believe is the international version of this phone. The phone that is exclusive to AT&T is the i537 which WILL work on their LTE network. I don't have actual experience with the 9295 but I'm sure there's others on here who have. I guess it depends which carrier you plan to use that will dictate which phone to get.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Does this mean that the i537 will NOT work on other LTE networks outside th U.S?
You see, I might be using this phone in the U.S for a limited period but my main usage will be in Israel that is expecting an LTE network at the end of this year on LTE band 3 1800MHZ
Will the i537 cover them both or should I go with the I9525 and give up the U.S?
Thanks!

adumi said:
Thanks kennyglass123 and solaris2k!
Does this mean that the i537 will NOT work on other LTE networks outside th U.S?
You see, I might be using this phone in the U.S for a limited period but my main usage will be in Israel that is expecting an LTE network at the end of this year on LTE band 3 1800MHZ
Will the i537 cover them both or should I go with the I9525 and give up the U.S?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're prolly better off with the 9295 it wont get LTE in the US though but looks like it does support 1800. The 537 doesn't use 1800. Please don't quote me on this though, I don't have experience with phones outside of AT&T's network. They're all I've ever used.
Try checking out these links
List of LTE Networks
S4 Active specs on gsmarena

Thanks, solaris2k!
i think it`s a good safe advice.

Related

[Q] HSPA+ on T-Mobile

Hi, if I were to get an unlocked Galaxy Note GSM, would I have to do anything fancy to get HSPA+ (4G) to work on it?
Would it be as easy as to pop in my SIM card and go to work like on any T-Mobile device?
Please respond back soon because I am trying to buy one tonight off a guy on craigslist, I don't want to get ripped off!
.ili.music.ili. said:
Hi, if I were to get an unlocked Galaxy Note GSM, would I have to do anything fancy to get HSPA+ (4G) to work on it?
Would it be as easy as to pop in my SIM card and go to work like on any T-Mobile device?
Please respond back soon because I am trying to buy one tonight off a guy on craigslist, I don't want to get ripped off!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
International Version Galaxy Note N7000 doesn't support 4G [LTE] Network.
ranjan.alva said:
International Version Galaxy Note N7000 doesn't support 4G [LTE] Network.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't want LTE. I want T-Mobile HSPA+. Will it work by putting a sim card in it?
then you'll need to wait until T-Mobile repurposes their 1900MHz band for HSPA+. I don't know if they're doing it for the whole country, but it has started to happen in some areas already
But it is as simply as popping in my sim card?
.ili.music.ili. said:
But it is as simply as popping in my sim card?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you're lucky enough to be in the right area, yes
Well it's just to make phone calls. It's okay if I don't have internet connectivity everywhere. I am going to be buying it off a guy on craigslist in a place where I normally get service... he's selling it to me for only $450. Kind of nervous that it's a fake/scam.
leppo said:
then you'll need to wait until T-Mobile repurposes their 1900MHz band for HSPA+. I don't know if they're doing it for the whole country, but it has started to happen in some areas already
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any idea what areas? Mine arrives tomorrow, live in PHX.
Sorry but don't count on anything more the edge on TMobile, unless you are really lucky and you are in a 1900 Mhz area. If you want TMobile buy an AT&T Note and you will have to do some hacking to get the radio working on TMobile.
gedster314 said:
Sorry but don't count on anything more the edge on TMobile, unless you are really lucky and you are in a 1900 Mhz area. If you want TMobile buy an AT&T Note and you will have to do some hacking to get the radio working on TMobile.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This.
Don't expect the entire US to get 1900Mhz 3G on tmobile, since the radio spectrum is subdivided differently depending on the cities.
Mostly the west coast and pennsylvania so far
guitarplayerone said:
This.
Don't expect the entire US to get 1900Mhz 3G on tmobile, since the radio spectrum is subdivided differently depending on the cities.
Mostly the west coast and pennsylvania so far
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So there's no such hack for the international note? I don't understand how an internationally unlocked phone doesn't support USA GSM highspeed. My T-Mobile G1 supports HSPA+.
Does AT&T 4G work with the international Note? I have it now and I'm only getting 2G. It's god awfully slow.
If you want to buy Note N7000 you will get EDGE on Tmobile.
No 3G
No 4G
avetny said:
If you want to buy Note N7000 you will get EDGE on Tmobile.
No 3G
No 4G
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
On AT&T does it get 4G? There will never be a hack like there was on the AT&T model?
guitarplayerone said:
Mostly the west coast and pennsylvania so far
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm on the Left Coast, maybe should l see if 1900Mhz is in my area.
To be honest, I'm actually happy with me my broadband sim on AT&T. I just had the LTE code added to my account and I got a little boost in speed on HSPA+. I'm seeing 8Mbps down and the speed seems more stable then before. It does seem to be ramping up to max speed a little slower and I have a firm upload cap at about 1Mbps, before I occasionally would hit 1.5 Mbps. HSPA+ does seem to do Skype and Google Voice pretty well, I've been managing to use a a data sim as a phone quite successfully.
.ili.music.ili. said:
On AT&T does it get 4G? There will never be a hack like there was on the AT&T model?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The international Note gets HSPA+ on the AT&T no problem. I'm currently enjoying my H+ icon with my Red Pocket sim card.
The International and American Notes have entirely different hardware inside. The American Note has a pentaband radio that can be reflashed for either AT&T or T-Mobile frequencies. The International note does not.
ChicoKiri said:
The international Note gets HSPA+ on the AT&T no problem. I'm currently enjoying my H+ icon with my Red Pocket sim card.
The International and American Notes have entirely different hardware inside. The American Note has a pentaband radio that can be reflashed for either AT&T or T-Mobile frequencies. The International note does not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong. The International Note has a pentaband radio. It's the same modem as the Galaxy Nexus GSM.
It just so happens that the AT&T Note shares the almost the same hardware with the T-Mobile S2 which makes it easier in terms of getting the modem from the T-Mobile S2 to work on the AT&T Note. This is why how they got the hack working on the AT&T Note.
This DOES NOT WORK on the Int Galaxy Note as we are running an Exynos/Infineon chip/baseband.
Okay. Instead of arguing with each other about who can spout-off the N7000's and i717's specs most accurately, why don't we just give the OP a simple, comprehensive answer?
Okay. To answer your question, the N7000 (International Note) will work perfectly fine on T-Mobile US. Phone calls, SMS messages, and data will all work perfectly. The issue, however, is not with the services you can get, but the quality of the services you can get. Even though the N7000 is an "international" GSM device, T-Mobile uses irregular frequencies for it's HSPA+ network. Specifically, instead of supporting HSPA+ on a single frequency, T-Mobile's HSPA+ service is divided between 1700MHz and 2100MHz in what is referred to as 1700/2100 AWS (Advanced Wireless Spectrum). Because AWS is a rare and unusual implementation of HSPA+, almost no "international" phone models support it. In most cases, only phones meant specifically for North America support it. What this means, simply, is that the N7000 will never be capable of using T-Mobile's HSPA+ network (unless you have the rare privelege of being in a 1900MHz HSPA+ area).
Now, just because the N7000 won't let you use T-Mobile's AWS HSPA+, it doesn't mean you can't have your cake and eat it too. Granted, it is a small concession, but the i717 is a "more than adequate" smartphone and will (with some minor modification) make neat work of connecting to T-Mobile's AWS HSPA+ network. Preliminary speed tests even suggest that the i717 is faster on T-Mobile's HSPA+ network than the N7000 is on AT&T's HSPA+ network. So, if you're willing to sacrifice the added speed and power the Exynos SoC offers, you could gain T-Mobile 3G compatibility and NFC to boot just by opting for the i717; which, I might add, is only $649.99 off-contract at AT&T.
If I can help clarify any confusion or answer any questions, please feel free to ask. I know there are a lot of people out there who feel very strongly about which version of the Note is superior. However, it's my opinion that when you come across someone who's undecided, you should simply give them the facts and allow them to make their own decision. Passionately mixing facts with opinion only serves to further confuse things.
Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk
That is a really nice post. Too bad I already got the GSM Note. Trying to sell it so badly...
BTW unlocked at AT&T is $650
.ili.music.ili. said:
That is a really nice post. Too bad I already got the GSM Note. Trying to sell it so badly...
BTW unlocked at AT&T is $650
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're right. Sorry. I fat-fingered it. It's corrected now.
Sent from my GT-P7510 using Tapatalk
i live in boston and decided to call tmobile about the 3/4g coverage. supposedly the 1900 band is now in use for tmobile 3g. so i cant get 4g but i could get 3g...now i have to hunt down a non att branded note. the map the lady referred to was dated june 6th 2012 so im hoping her stuff is right.
hate to buy a not and still be stuck on edge.

[Q] Note 3 AT&T(unlocked) vs international

So I am planning on pre-ordering the N9005. My problem is that I travel frequently between the states and Europe. So I either get LTE here or in Europe.
I have always gotten the international versions for my other devices (S2,Note2,S3,note 10.1 3g). But since I spend most of the year in the states I wanted to get the AT&T LTE version.
However, I don't really want the AT&T firmwares, so I was wondering if I could flash an international firmware on the AT&T unlocked note 3? One of the reasons for this is I know that for instance you could not do tethering without rooting your phone (I am planning on rooting mine) on your AT&T handheld.
I know it's not a big deal, but I want my phone to have the international firmware of my choice, not AT&T's. Thank you
AT&T / T-Mobile compatibility
I would like to know the answer to this as well. Here are the two versions I am eyeing:
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 32GB LTE (AT&T) (Unlocked)
SKU SMGALNTEAUB
3G/4G bands 1900, 2100, 850
LTE Bands 1700, 1900, 2100, 700, 850
Samsung Galaxy Note 3 32GB LTE (N9005 - International) (Unlocked)
SKU SMGN9005UB
3G/4G bands 1900, 2100, 850, 900
LTE Bands 1800, 2100, 2600, 800, 850, 900
Was hoping one of the versions would work on both AT&T and T-Mobile....
Well, the international version won't work on either, you need the 1700/2100 (I.e. 1700) band for the international version to work on either networks, and that's missing from the international version. So I want to know the downsides of getting the att version.
sharl1987 said:
Well, the international version won't work on either, you need the 1700/2100 (I.e. 1700) band for the international version to work on either networks, and that's missing from the international version. So I want to know the downsides of getting the att version.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not trying to start an argument or anything but just wondering, are you positive about that? The international version has the 2100 band as well as the 850 band and I have read in multiple places, as well as hearing during the Samsung unveiling that it would work on AT&T LTE...
Maybe I'm just confused?
bekyndnunwind said:
Not trying to start an argument or anything but just wondering, are you positive about that? The international version has the 2100 band as well as the 850 band and I have read in multiple places, as well as hearing during the Samsung unveiling that it would work on AT&T LTE...
Maybe I'm just confused?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since I am new here, I can't post any links still, but if you go to newegg dot com or to negrielectronics dot com you can see the specs for the international version, they are missing the 1700 band.
bump
bekyndnunwind said:
Not trying to start an argument or anything but just wondering, are you positive about that? The international version has the 2100 band as well as the 850 band and I have read in multiple places, as well as hearing during the Samsung unveiling that it would work on AT&T LTE...
Maybe I'm just confused?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like the other user said you need the 1700 band to get AT&T LTE frequency. The 850 band is for H+ at&t so yes the international version will only work on at&t H+.
What Samsung probably meant by " it will work on all networks" is that they will support all LTE networks if you buy the correct model for your network.
sharl1987 said:
I know it's not a big deal, but I want my phone to have the international firmware of my choice, not AT&T's. Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should only get the AT&T variant if you prove that LTE is faster than HSPA+ in your area. Either use your current phone or use one at an AT&T store and turn off LTE. Run a speed test, turn LTE back on and run the test again, and compare.
It's possible to some international ROMs on carrier branded devices, but not all are compatible. At the VERY least, you'll have to manually configure the AT&T APN, you may also have to manually re-flash radios in order to connect to AT&T towers.
Some crafty devs have made an Aroma installer to do all this stuff while it loads their ROM:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2324565
Just know that you're in for a bit more tinkering if you plan on going this route. But there's no reason to go through all the trouble if there isn't LTE in your area or it currently runs poorly.
Lets hope it wont be bootloader locked
daraj said:
Lets hope it wont be bootloader locked
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not that it's ANYTHING close to official, but the link in the second post shows it's not.
docnok63 said:
Not that it's ANYTHING close to official, but the link in the second post shows it's not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im pretty sure by Unlocked they mean Sim Unlocked( u can use on other networks). There is no AT&T units that we know of to confirm whether its bootloader locked or not, but we are only assuming based on recent at&t attempts to lock down their devices.
daraj said:
Im pretty sure by Unlocked they mean Sim Unlocked( u can use on other networks). There is no AT&T units that we know of to confirm whether its bootloader locked or not, but we are only assuming based on recent at&t attempts to lock down their devices.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're probably right. I think the AT&T will be bootloader locked as well based on the S4 being locked down.
Doesn't atnt need 700 band for lte also?
@rbiter said:
Doesn't atnt need 700 band for lte also?
Yes I believe at&t operates on both 700/1700 bands for LTE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
daraj said:
Doesn't atnt need 700 band for lte also?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@rbiter said:
Yes I believe at&t operates on both 700/1700 bands for LTE
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, according to AT&T's website and to their phones' specs, you don't need the 700 band, just the 1700/2100 (I.e. 1700) band.
I believe only Sprint uses the 700 band for lte
Edit: I looked at the AT&T website again, I believe they plan on using the 700 band in the future, but they are not utilizing it now. I might be wrong, so don't take my word for it.
sharl1987 said:
Actually, according to AT&T's website and to their phones' specs, you don't need the 700 band, just the 1700/2100 (I.e. 1700) band.
I believe only Sprint uses the 700 band for lte
Edit: I looked at the AT&T website again, I believe they plan on using the 700 band in the future, but they are not utilizing it now. I might be wrong, so don't take my word for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually FCC just approved AT&T's purchase of 700 Mhz spectrum so they will utilize the said band for LTE and Wimax possibly
http://www.phonescoop.com/articles/article.php?a=187&p=231
sharl1987 said:
So I am planning on pre-ordering the N9005. My problem is that I travel frequently between the states and Europe. So I either get LTE here or in Europe.
I have always gotten the international versions for my other devices (S2,Note2,S3,note 10.1 3g). But since I spend most of the year in the states I wanted to get the AT&T LTE version.
However, I don't really want the AT&T firmwares, so I was wondering if I could flash an international firmware on the AT&T unlocked note 3? One of the reasons for this is I know that for instance you could not do tethering without rooting your phone (I am planning on rooting mine) on your AT&T handheld.
I know it's not a big deal, but I want my phone to have the international firmware of my choice, not AT&T's. Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
May I ask why t-mobile's unlocked note 3 is not in your list? It appears it will work equally well on AT&T, and there's a much greater chnace of it having an unlocked bootloader. There aren't as many 4G frequencies, so maybe LTE when you're abroad won't always work, but if you want to flash ROMs then an unlocked bootloader is important!
I am in a similar situation to you, and I was planning to go with T-Mobile unlocked. Part of me wants to forget LTE and go with the Exynos, but I fear dev support will be limited.
Thanks for the thread and discussion OP and everyone, because I do not want to regret my choice!
On an unrelated note (no pun intended) - does anyone have experience with Negri electronics? It looks like AT&T will probably start shipping their Notes by October 1st, if not sooner. Do you think Negri will be in the same timeline?
Komodo Rogue said:
May I ask why t-mobile's unlocked note 3 is not in your list? It appears it will work equally well on AT&T, and there's a much greater chnace of it having an unlocked bootloader. There aren't as many 4G frequencies, so maybe LTE when you're abroad won't always work, but if you want to flash ROMs then an unlocked bootloader is important!
I am in a similar situation to you, and I was planning to go with T-Mobile unlocked. Part of me wants to forget LTE and go with the Exynos, but I fear dev support will be limited.
Thanks for the thread and discussion OP and everyone, because I do not want to regret my choice!
On an unrelated note (no pun intended) - does anyone have experience with Negri electronics? It looks like AT&T will probably start shipping their Notes by October 1st, if not sooner. Do you think Negri will be in the same timeline?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If I get the t-Mobile version then i wouldn't have 4G nor 3G in Europe. Europe mostly operates on the 1900 band for 3G(or at least where I travel to), and T-Mobile's phones don't support this.
As for negrielectronics.com, there was a review of the website by another member, look for it
docnok63 said:
You're probably right. I think the AT&T will be bootloader locked as well based on the S4 being locked down.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I agree. FWIW, I remember reading a few month ago that AT&T released a semi-official statement (it may have been a tweet, or a response to an online article) that all of their android phones will ship with locked bootloaders from now on. Maybe if Samsung really pushed at&t to keep them unlocked, or at least offer a path to unlock (a la HTC's dev program), then it could happen... but I bet Samsung is happy the bootloader is locked; even though they ship the international model unlocked, I imagine they would prefer if it too was locked, but they don't have a convenient excuse outside of the US, where they can just blame AT&T. I LOVE samsung hardware, but looking at exynos documentation and other policies, they don't seem to welcome tinkering.
sharl1987 said:
If I get the t-Mobile version then i wouldn't have 4G nor 3G in Europe. Europe mostly operates on the 1900 band for 3G(or at least where I travel to), and T-Mobile's phones don't support this.
As for negrielectronics.com, there was a review of the website by another member, look for it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Darn... but maybe when LTE becomes more prevalent in europe, they'll use some of the same bands as the t-mo version?
I had an HTC One X on AT&T, and eventually a clever dev found a way to get root access and partially unlock the bootloader, but it was such a hassle. For developers, I'm doubt it seemed very hard, but for me, getting it unlocked, and then updating ROMs, flashing radios, boot images, older firmware, newer firmware, trying to find out what was causing a bootloop... It wasn't even worth the headache, I should have just kept it stock (and stock AT&T is pretty terrible when you've been using cyanogenmod for three years). I bought a Nexus 4 soon after, I never want to deal with all that nonsense again!
If only I could wait a couple of months to see what the developer/bootloader situation looks like, I'd probably get the AT&T version if a relatively safe and easy bootloader unlock exploit is found, but I'm too eager to wait, so unless someone miraculously finds an exploit by October 1st, I'm probably going international or t-mobile. It seems like international is the safest bet: 3G coverage everywhere and good support (unless exynos drives everyone away), but I live in DC and the LTE speeds are incredibly good. It's a tough choice!
Komodo Rogue said:
I agree. FWIW, I remember reading a few month ago that AT&T released a semi-official statement (it may have been a tweet, or a response to an online article) that all of their android phones will ship with locked bootloaders from now on. Maybe if Samsung really pushed at&t to keep them unlocked, or at least offer a path to unlock (a la HTC's dev program), then it could happen... but I bet Samsung is happy the bootloader is locked; even though they ship the international model unlocked, I imagine they would prefer if it too was locked, but they don't have a convenient excuse outside of the US, where they can just blame AT&T. I LOVE samsung hardware, but looking at exynos documentation and other policies, they don't seem to welcome tinkering.
Darn... but maybe when LTE becomes more prevalent in europe, they'll use some of the same bands as the t-mo version?
I had an HTC One X on AT&T, and eventually a clever dev found a way to get root access and partially unlock the bootloader, but it was such a hassle. For developers, I'm doubt it seemed very hard, but for me, getting it unlocked, and then updating ROMs, flashing radios, boot images, older firmware, newer firmware, trying to find out what was causing a bootloop... It wasn't even worth the headache, I should have just kept it stock (and stock AT&T is pretty terrible when you've been using cyanogenmod for three years). I bought a Nexus 4 soon after, I never want to deal with all that nonsense again!
If only I could wait a couple of months to see what the developer/bootloader situation looks like, I'd probably get the AT&T version if a relatively safe and easy bootloader unlock exploit is found, but I'm too eager to wait, so unless someone miraculously finds an exploit by October 1st, I'm probably going international or t-mobile. It seems like international is the safest bet: 3G coverage everywhere and good support (unless exynos drives everyone away), but I live in DC and the LTE speeds are incredibly good. It's a tough choice!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can't be better said.... There are so many in the same boat.....
Want att network but also need a bootloader unlocked device....
Sent from my GT-N8013 using Tapatalk 2

Where can I buy an unlocked Note 3 N9005 that would work with AT&T?

I have a Note 2 that I bought from AT&T. I want to upgrade to the note 3 but I want the N9005 version because I believe that it will be able to use G4 LTE signal from AT&T. The only place that I can buy the unlocked N9005 version is at Negri Electronics. However it only sell the 16 gb version and I want the 32 gb version. Is there any other place in the U.S.A that sells the N9005 unlocked version?
Earthbrain said:
I have a Note 2 that I bought from AT&T. I want to upgrade to the note 3 but I want the N9005 version because I believe that it will be able to use G4 LTE signal from AT&T. The only place that I can buy the unlocked N9005 version is at Negri Electronics. However it only sell the 16 gb version and I want the 32 gb version. Is there any other place in the U.S.A that sells the N9005 unlocked version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't think there is such a thing like a 16gb note 3. At least not yet.
xclub_101 said:
I don't think there is such a thing like a 16gb note 3. At least not yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://negrielectronics.com/phones/android-mobile-c-67.html
According to the above link...the 16 gb version does exist.
Does the n9005 model have AT&T LTE for sure?
Sent from my LG-D800 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
Earthbrain said:
I have a Note 2 that I bought from AT&T. I want to upgrade to the note 3 but I want the N9005 version because I believe that it will be able to use G4 LTE signal from AT&T. The only place that I can buy the unlocked N9005 version is at Negri Electronics. However it only sell the 16 gb version and I want the 32 gb version. Is there any other place in the U.S.A that sells the N9005 unlocked version?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Before committed to pay big $ for the phone ... check out this thread
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2457964
I'd buy what you're looking for in a heartbeat - if it existed. So far it doesn't. At least not ln any of the N3's for the UK, EU, or Latin America that have been announced. The Korean S-800 SGS4 supports AT&T's bands so their N3 probably will also. But the Korean phones have funky TV h/w and a funky MMS system that's different than Western versions. Rogers' (Canada) version will be compatible with AT&T LTE and may be closer to "virgin" than AT&T's version. The challenge is warranty service both because you'd have to send it to Canada for repair (assuming Rogers' services a phone for a non-subscriber) and because Knox prevents resetting the warranty status if a non-standard ROM's been flashed. Speaking of which, you'd probably only be able to flash Rogers' ROMs via Odin unless their N3 was a "pure" i9505 capable of using international ROMs.
And as someone above mentioned there's some question as to what "unlocked" means with the N3 as there are now regional limitations on top of carrier's locking phones to their networks.
If I find a true international N3 that works on AT&T's LTE that's not regionally SIM locked I'll let you know. Until then I'm sticking with AT&T's version and hoping they haven't molested it too badly.
Thread cleaned.
Lets knock off the keyboard hero stuff and get back on topic.
The N9005 doesn't work on AT&T LTE, it is missing bands 700/1700
designgears said:
The N9005 doesn't work on AT&T LTE, it is missing bands 700/1700
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will the N9005 work on the Rogers network in Canada? I have no idea what these bands and frequencies mean, I just know that I need LTE to work.
choch69 said:
Will the N9005 work on the Rogers network in Canada? I have no idea what these bands and frequencies mean, I just know that I need LTE to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can't just say "N9005" and expect to get an answer. "N9005" refers to generic Snapdragon 800 LTE capable version of GN3, but each country and carrier in the world has different LTE bands enabled in that Snapdragon's SoC radio. Find your Rogers here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_LTE_networks
It operates on bands 4 and 7 - none of the Euro countries' carriers work on band 4, as you can see from the list. AT&T USA, T-Mobile USA and Rogers CA should be LTE cross compatible in most coverage areas, but not all.
If you buy N9005 version with unlocked bootloader - later, when someone makes Odin compatible with GN3 you will be able to flash Roger's LTE modem firmware to your N9005, no matter which country it is from and what LTE bands it currently has enabled
]
Okay well I was looking to buy an unlocked N9005 from the UK. Since none of the euro countries work on band 4, what about band 7? Do both bands need to be working in order to get LTE? The problem with buying this in my country is that there wont be a 64gb option available.
choch69 said:
]
Okay well I was looking to buy an unlocked N9005 from the UK. Since none of the euro countries work on band 4, what about band 7? Do both bands need to be working in order to get LTE? The problem with buying this in my country is that there wont be a 64gb option available.
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Some carriers, which operate on dual band LTE use one band for upstream, and the other for downstream. If that is the case with Rogers you will have to have a phone with both bands enabled, to get LTE service from Rogers. However, even if that is not the case and both bands 4 and 7 are independent - Rogers has towers all over Canada, and in some regions those towers will operate on band 4, in other regions it will be band 7 and in some places towers will support both. By getting a phone that supports only band 7 you will greatly reduce your LTE coverage area. What percentage of Rogers' network uses what band - those details are publicly available, so you can either Google it or just call Rogers and ask. I would recommend against getting a phone, that supports only band 7, unless you plan on flashing Roger's modem to it later.
This not quite correct. A band, by definition includes both the up and downstream frequencies. Only one band is used at a time. Rogers happens to use band 4 and band 7. One is not reliant on the other. If you are in an area with band 7 coverage (most of Rogers LTE coverage has both) you will be able to use a N9005.
Apo11on said:
Some carriers, which operate on dual band LTE use one band for upstream, and the other for downstream. If that is the case with Rogers you will have to have a phone with both bands enabled, to get LTE service from Rogers. However, even if that is not the case and both bands 4 and 7 are independent - Rogers has towers all over Canada, and in some regions those towers will operate on band 4, in other regions it will be band 7 and in some places towers will support both. By getting a phone that supports only band 7 you will greatly reduce your LTE coverage area. What percentage of Rogers' network uses what band - those details are publicly available, so you can either Google it or just call Rogers and ask. I would recommend against getting a phone, that supports only band 7, unless you plan on flashing Roger's modem to it later.
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omegacell said:
This not quite correct. A band, by definition includes both the up and downstream frequencies. Only one band is used at a time. Rogers happens to use band 4 and band 7. One is not reliant on the other. If you are in an area with band 7 coverage (most of Rogers LTE coverage has both) you will be able to use a N9005.
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you're correct by claiming each band is self contained and and can carry both, upstream and downstream. However, each carrier owns only a small portion of the spectrum in the bands they operate on, and some carriers do practice using a single band for one way traffic only, in an effort to ease the network congestion and load balancing. I'm not saying it's Rogers - I have no information on that particular carrier, but some carriers do do that. I'm just saying for carriers, who use such practice, in order to get LTE service your phone's modem must have both bands enabled, otherwise it won't register with the network and you won't get LTE service at all.
Apo11on said:
you're correct by claiming each band is self contained and and can carry both, upstream and downstream. However, each carrier owns only a small portion of the spectrum in the bands they operate on, and some carriers do practice using a single band for one way traffic only, in an effort to ease the network congestion and load balancing. I'm not saying it's Rogers - I have no information on that particular carrier, but some carriers do do that. I'm just saying for carriers, who use such practice, in order to get LTE service your phone's modem must have both bands enabled, otherwise it won't register with the network and you won't get LTE service at all.
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The OP needs to take into consideration that If he buys from an online retailer an international unit, this unit will need to be activated in its intended region before he can use it in the states.
Apo11on said:
you're correct by claiming each band is self contained and and can carry both, upstream and downstream. However, each carrier owns only a small portion of the spectrum in the bands they operate on, and some carriers do practice using a single band for one way traffic only, in an effort to ease the network congestion and load balancing. I'm not saying it's Rogers - I have no information on that particular carrier, but some carriers do do that. I'm just saying for carriers, who use such practice, in order to get LTE service your phone's modem must have both bands enabled, otherwise it won't register with the network and you won't get LTE service at all.
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I've never heard of that. Seems like a problematic setup since the RF properties of bands can vary so much. Seems like you would get in a situation where you have up but not downstream or vice versa.
Yes, you would need a N9005 from Asia, not Europe as those are region locked.
omegacell said:
Yes, you would need a N9005 from Asia, not Europe as those are region locked.
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Do you have a link for a source, where you got that information from? Or better yet - list of countries/markets, where GN3 will not be region locked?
Apo11on said:
Do you have a link for a source, where you got that information from? Or better yet - list of countries/markets, where GN3 will not be region locked?
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Email me or hit me me up through my site. We're a retailer/wholesaler, not sure if I'm allowed to post about that since it would be "advertising".
omegacell said:
Email me or hit me me up through my site. We're a retailer/wholesaler, not sure if I'm allowed to post about that since it would be "advertising".
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that is a valuable information, which a lot of people, watching this thread could use, not just me. I don't think it will be considered as advertising. People in this thread are looking to buy international GN3, which will work on AT&T in US. If the phone is region locked then it won't work. Therefore, listing the countries, where there is no region lock would be very much relevant to this topic.
Apo11on said:
that is a valuable information, which a lot of people, watching this thread could use, not just me. I don't think it will be considered as advertising. People in this thread are looking to buy international GN3, which will work on AT&T in US. If the phone is region locked then it won't work. Therefore, listing the countries, where there is no region lock would be very much relevant to this topic.[/QUOTEN
N9005 from HK or Singapore (perhaps others too) will work.
The South American N9000 are region locked to South American, North American, carribean etc. SIM cards (western hemisphere).
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[Q] Unlocked / T-Mobile Moto X on AT&T?

This seems like a dumb question, but I'm trying to figure out if an unlocked Moto X off of the Motomaker site will fully work on AT&T. I know Motorola sells the "T-Mobile" version as the unlocked one on their site, which is why I put both in the subject. I can't tell by the specs I'm finding if the unlocked version will work or not, and I'm not real familiar with the exact bands needed on Tmobile and AT&T (we just switched from being long time Verizon users). Any help would be appreciated as I'm supposed to pick it up today from another guy!
jntdroid said:
...I'm trying to figure out if an unlocked Moto X off of the Motomaker site will fully work on AT&T...
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Yes.
dew.man said:
Yes.
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Thanks - so if you're paying full retail, there's really zero reason to get the AT&T version vs. the unlocked version off of the motomaker site, it would seem anyway...
jntdroid said:
Thanks - so if you're paying full retail, there's really zero reason to get the AT&T version vs. the unlocked version off of the motomaker site, it would seem anyway...
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Technically, the AT&T version does support one additional LTE band that the TMobile and DevEdition do not. HOWEVER, I've read that that specific band is not used in the US, and my experience has been consistent in that my tmo variant always has LTE coverage whenever my AT&T iPhone does.
I'm leaving Verizon with a T-Mobile motomaker moto x which I'll try on TMs no contract plan. If it doesn't work out, I can always give ATT a try. Seems like a no-brainer to use the TM version.
dew.man said:
Technically, the AT&T version does support one additional LTE band that the TMobile and DevEdition do not. HOWEVER, I've read that that specific band is not used in the US, and my experience has been consistent in that my tmo variant always has LTE coverage whenever my AT&T iPhone does.
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Interesting - trying to dig up some info on 850. But even still, it covers all the other major ones, and worst case scenario you're falling back onto their HSPA+ which is pretty good in and of itself. I live in the DFW area, and I'm here 99% of the time. So I'm sure it won't be an issue.
jntdroid said:
Interesting - trying to dig up some info on 850. But even still, it covers all the other major ones, and worst case scenario you're falling back onto their HSPA+ which is pretty good in and of itself. I live in the DFW area, and I'm here 99% of the time. So I'm sure it won't be an issue.
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The band that the TMO moto x doesn't have is band 5 LTE I think. AT&T only uses 4 and 7 in the US. You're going to be fine getting the tmobile one no matter what GSM carrier you choose.
dew.man said:
Technically, the AT&T version does support one additional LTE band that the TMobile and DevEdition do not. HOWEVER, I've read that that specific band is not used in the US, and my experience has been consistent in that my tmo variant always has LTE coverage whenever my AT&T iPhone does.
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Actually its two LTE bands (5&7) the T-Mo and GSM Dev X lack compared to the ATT US model. But you are right, they are said to be used outside the USA only, so if you don't plan on traveling, you wont miss them.
See the discussion in this thread -> http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2546466
And the since the T-Mo is sim unlocked, and can be bootloader unlocked, Right, if you are paying full retail, there is no reason to buy the ATT (which is sim locked and can't unlock bootloader).
KidJoe said:
Actually its two LTE bands (5&7) the T-Mo and GSM Dev X lack compared to the ATT US model.
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Can you please provide a reference to where the AT&T model supports band 7?
Everything I've read shows 5 but not 7...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2511121
http://www.phonearena.com/phones/Motorola-Moto-X_id7885
http://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/Xt1058_Info
The hardware in the AT&T model supports LTE band 7, all XT1058s do. However last time I checked the FCC docs it wasn't approved to use it in the US. In 4.2.2 it wasn't enabled in the AT&T build, in 4.4 I believe that it is though. It is used all across Canada and in some other countries, not sure if the US will ever use it though.
dew.man said:
Can you please provide a reference to where the AT&T model supports band 7?
Everything I've read shows 5 but not 7...
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2511121
http://www.phonearena.com/phones/Motorola-Moto-X_id7885
http://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/Xt1058_Info
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https://plus.google.com/114874428605785658638/posts/fkFtiVpXyHi John Renaldi of Motorola Mobility Inc. You have to scroll down as I can't seem to link to his post/followup on Nov 27.
While the TMO version does in fact have all the AT&T LTE bands (your AT&T SIM will work), the hardware itself does not contain all the same bands as the AT&T version. Our TMO version supports: LTE Band 02; LTE Band 04; LTE Band 17 and the AT&T version supports LTE Band 02; LTE Band 04; LTE Band 05; LTE Band 07; LTE Band 17
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KidJoe said:
https://plus.google.com/114874428605785658638/posts/fkFtiVpXyHi John Renaldi of Motorola Mobility Inc. You have to scroll down as I can't seem to link to his post/followup on Nov 27.
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Cool. Interesting how that's the only place it's mentioned (contrary to all the published specs). Wonder if it was just a slip up or if everybody else got it wrong!?
Oh well, like we both said, won't matter in the US
Ironically enough, I ended up disabling my LTE as HSPDA is fast enough and I get much better battery life with it off...

Will the International LTE S2 work on Verizon network?

I noticed on the specifications list that the international LTE version has some of the same LTE bands as the Verizon LTE version. Would the international LTE version of the S2 be at all usable on Verizon's network?
Which variant? I don't remember seeing any international variants with LTE B13 support. In any case, there is no CDMA in the international variants and I strongly doubt you could use them on Verizon.
Is B13 the one Verizon uses in the U.S.? I was just looking at the one on amazon listed as "international LTE". I didn't realize there were multiple versions of that. I also got the impression from reading around here that Verizon's LTE was more or less the same as everyone else's because CDMA just isn't capable of the modern band width requirements. That was a long time ago though and I may have misunderstood.
0reo said:
Is B13 the one Verizon uses in the U.S.? I was just looking at the one on amazon listed as "international LTE". I didn't realize there were multiple versions of that. I also got the impression from reading around here that Verizon's LTE was more or less the same as everyone else's because CDMA just isn't capable of the modern band width requirements. That was a long time ago though and I may have misunderstood.
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Yes, B13 is Verizon's main LTE band in the US.
You say main as if there are others. Does Verizon use other bands too? At all?
In certain areas Verizon also supplements coverage with bands 2 and/or 4. Eventually they are also expected to deploy on band 5.
Thank-you for repeatedly taking the time to answer my questions. I appreciate it.
I live around the Baltimore area so I imagine they might have need to supplement with the additional bands around here. The international Tab S2 being sold on Amazon does support bands 2, 4, and 5. No 13 though. So assuming Verizon has deployed band(s) 2, 4, or 5 in the area the question remains: Would the international Tab S2 receive LTE service? Someone must have tried it by now.
Have any other "international" samsung devices been able to receive Verizon service in the US?
0reo said:
Thank-you for repeatedly taking the time to answer my questions. I appreciate it.
I live around the Baltimore area so I imagine they might have need to supplement with the additional bands around here. The international Tab S2 being sold on Amazon does support bands 2, 4, and 5. No 13 though. So assuming Verizon has deployed band(s) 2, 4, or 5 in the area the question remains: Would the international Tab S2 receive LTE service? Someone must have tried it by now.
Have any other "international" samsung devices been able to receive Verizon service in the US?
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What you are trying to do is just a bad idea unfortunately. Even if you could activate it (which I doubt you could in the first place), the supplemental bands are high frequency bands and you may well run into situations where you won't have any coverage at all because you couldn't pick up band 13 (which is a low frequency band that penetrates into buildings much better than bands 2 or 4).
Why not just buy the Verizon model?
That is very helpful and insightful info. Thank-you.
For my purposes the tablet will be used mostly for entertainment purposes. I have a galaxy S4 (mdk bootloader) phone for serious communication needs. I was just thinking that there may be a performance advantage if I could swap the sim card from my S4 into the tablet and get internet (where available on bands 2, 4, 5) directly from LTE rather then from the wifi hotspot on the S4. I figured it may not work all the time but if it did some of the time it would justify buying the device with capability, all else being equal.
I would absolutely buy the verizon model if it wasn't boot-loader locked. It sounds like noone has been able to hack a ssmsung/verizon device for the last few generations so I'm not holding my breath.
(The info you've been giving will also be handy when it comes time to replace my & wife's S4 phones which will probably be in the next year.)
Oh, ok, I see, your issue is with the bootloader. Yeah, that's a problem.
I am also using an S4 on a CDMA carrier (Sprint). Planning on getting a Nexus 5X soon. It's nice in that unlike Samsung and their plethora of variants of the same device for each country, there is just one Nexus model for all carriers in the US, and it's also unlocked right out of the box.

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