Hello Everyone,
Long time view, first time poster.
Let me start with, I'm so damn confused on what to do now...
I've recently (yesterday) upgraded (using AT&T Next) to get the Galaxy S5 (awesome phone, btw) and immediately starting looking into Rooting and Custom Recovery. Through all my searching, I find the same info, AT&T with it's locked BootLoader and no Root as of yet. I originally had the AT&T S4 that I rooted as soon as I got it, which had the unlocked BootLoader, so LOKI was awesome and I didn't get hit with the OTA upgrade to a locked BootLoader, so this is all new today. I know the SafeStrap stuff for the upgraded S4 but never had to experience that.
Now I have the S5. The dev's are awesome, so I'm sure there will be a way to root the S5 at some point, but it sucks looking on the forums every hour, hoping, but seeing the same CFAUTOROOT's for all the other versions, like T-Mobile, which brings me to my main question.
SHOULD I RETURN THE AT&T SAMSUNG GALAXY S5 AND GO WITH T-MOBILE???
Details:
I've already sold my awesome S4. I have 14 days to return the S5, but would have to link another phone to my account due to contact (till 10/2015), which is fine because I still have a Note and Iphone 3GS. I also see that T-Mobile will pay the cancellation fee for switching to them. The plan that I have with AT&T and the plan that T-Mobile is offering are roughly the same in specs and price, T-Mobile may even be *slightly* cheaper.
BUT...
Is it worth it to do this, just for the S5 with an unlocked BootLoader, that already has a Root method and Custom Recovery available, right now, as I type this...
I know, ultimately, I'm the only one that can answer this question; depends on how badly I want to root my phone.
I guess I'm just looking to see if other people are in the same boat as me and what their thoughts are on it, and what they are doing...
Any advise, comments, recommendations or in-sight is greatly appreciated.
THANKS!!!
If TMO has a good rep in your area then I would switch. Absolutely. Tbe S6 on ATT will even worse im sure.
Sent from my GT-I9505G using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
CZ Eddie said:
If TMO has a good rep in your area then I would switch. Absolutely. Tbe S6 on ATT will even worse im sure.
Sent from my GT-I9505G using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
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Click to collapse
That's a good point, and one I didn't even think about.
I have a prepaid $70 unlimited everything sim from T-Mobile. I find them to be good, not great. I live in Northwest, Indiana (suburb of Chicago). In my experience I find T-Mobile's LTE LTE signal to be pretty weak in general. Most likely due to the AWS frequency. The HSPA+ signal seems fine. I have also noticed that the LTE is not very fast (despite their claims). If you turn if off, the HSPA+ performs just as good, or if not better. I do not travel at all. But I like having a peace of mind with guaranteed HSPA+ coverage on AT&T. T-Mobile only gives me EDGE at home. It's 100% useless. I haven't tried out the wifi calling recently, but I wonder if you can send MMS over that.
I just returned my AT&T S5 for a defective headphone jack. I was going to exchange it, until it hit me that $700 is not worth it for a locked down device. I loved to flash custom roms and modify everything. AT&T has stopped that. Despite excellent coverage, I too am contemplating switching to TMO permanently. I like that they don't modify their devices. Maybe AT&T's system loosing my unlimited data plan today was the final straw.
Gonna look into options.
MattMJB0188 said:
I have a prepaid $70 unlimited everything sim from T-Mobile. I find them to be good, not great. I live in Northwest, Indiana (suburb of Chicago). In my experience I find T-Mobile's LTE LTE signal to be pretty weak in general. Most likely due to the AWS frequency. The HSPA+ signal seems fine. I have also noticed that the LTE is not very fast (despite their claims). If you turn if off, the HSPA+ performs just as good, or if not better. I do not travel at all. But I like having a peace of mind with guaranteed HSPA+ coverage on AT&T. T-Mobile only gives me EDGE at home. It's 100% useless. I haven't tried out the wifi calling recently, but I wonder if you can send MMS over that.
I just returned my AT&T S5 for a defective headphone jack. I was going to exchange it, until it hit me that $700 is not worth it for a locked down device. I loved to flash custom roms and modify everything. AT&T has stopped that. Despite excellent coverage, I too am contemplating switching to TMO permanently. I like that they don't modify their devices. Maybe AT&T's system loosing my unlimited data plan today was the final straw.
Gonna look into options.
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Click to collapse
I don't understate why did you do this for. T-mobile Samsung galaxy S5 have lock bootloader too : http://support.t-mobile.com/thread/67380
norbarb said:
I don't understate why did you do this for. T-mobile Samsung galaxy S5 have lock bootloader too : http://support.t-mobile.com/thread/67380
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Click to collapse
It's not locked, people are rooting and installing custom recoveries and flashing ROMs already.
norbarb said:
I don't understate why did you do this for. T-mobile Samsung galaxy S5 have lock bootloader too : http://support.t-mobile.com/thread/67380
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Click to collapse
It's not locked. They wouldn't have root if it was.
MattMJB0188 said:
It's not locked. They wouldn't have root if it was.
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Click to collapse
They had root for galaxy S4 from AT&T and bootloader is lock. Root is not proof.
If you check the tmobile forum you will see that they have rooted the S5, installed a custom recovery and some tmobile owners have even flashed and installed Indies rom from the International forum.
Sent from my GT-N5110 using xda app-developers app
Ok some people need some education here, so here goes.
The ATT S4 Bootloader was technically LOCKED when it shipped. There was however a bootloader exploit that allowed custom roms and recoveries, this exploit was known as LOKI. Loki is not a true bootloader unlock, it is a bypass. It intercepts instructions during the boot process that allows unsigned code to be run. This exploit was patched in later updates by Samsung, and all current Samsung's are no longer vulnerable to the LOKI exploit.
The S5 on tmobile is BOOTLOADER UNLOCKED. This is confirmed. To those saying TMO is locked you are mistaken. I will enlighten you as to why. The root method used to obtain root on the TMO S5 requires an Unlocked BL to be successful. CF Auto Root by Chainfire works by modifying the stock recovery partition and then using ODIN to flash the TAR file. Odin flashes this modified stock recovery which then pushes SU binary which then flashes the Stock S5 firmware over. This only works if the BL is unlocked. 1 of 3 outcomes will happen if trying to flash on a locked BL. First if the BL is locked Odin will error out saying that the modified recovery image is not official/signed (end of story thats it), this is the most likely scenario. If somehow the modified image flashes onto a locked BL, the phone will not boot. Worst case scenario it flashes and you end up with a brick.
CF has already stated his root method won't work on the ATT S5 or VZW S5 because of the BL, worse is that modifying system to get root is not possible according to CF. This was used to root the S4 and Note 3 orginally. The only way the ATT or VZW S5 gets rooted is if a dev is able to find an exploit for Kit Kat.
In short TMO S5 has an unlocked BL and ATT is locked, stop being in denial. Class over.
djkinetic said:
Ok some people need some education here, so here goes.
The ATT S4 Bootloader was technically LOCKED when it shipped. There was however a bootloader exploit that allowed custom roms and recoveries, this exploit was known as LOKI. Loki is not a true bootloader unlock, it is a bypass. It intercepts instructions during the boot process that allows unsigned code to be run. This exploit was patched in later updates by Samsung, and all current Samsung's are no longer vulnerable to the LOKI exploit.
The S5 on tmobile is BOOTLOADER UNLOCKED. This is confirmed. To those saying TMO is locked you are mistaken. I will enlighten you as to why. The root method used to obtain root on the TMO S5 requires an Unlocked BL to be successful. CF Auto Root by Chainfire works by modifying the stock recovery partition and then using ODIN to flash the TAR file. Odin flashes this modified stock recovery which then pushes SU binary which then flashes the Stock S5 firmware over. This only works if the BL is unlocked. 1 of 3 outcomes will happen if trying to flash on a locked BL. First if the BL is locked Odin will error out saying that the modified recovery image is not official/signed (end of story thats it), this is the most likely scenario. If somehow the modified image flashes onto a locked BL, the phone will not boot. Worst case scenario it flashes and you end up with a brick.
CF has already stated his root method won't work on the ATT S5 or VZW S5 because of the BL, worse is that modifying system to get root is not possible according to CF. This was used to root the S4 and Note 3 orginally. The only way the ATT or VZW S5 gets rooted is if a dev is able to find an exploit for Kit Kat.
In short TMO S5 has an unlocked BL and ATT is locked, stop being in denial. Class over.
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Click to collapse
This is an awesome explanation! Thanks! So technically, my S4 didn't have an Unlocked BootLoader, there was just an exploit Jellybean (LOKI) that was able to gain root (that I used) prior to Samsung patching. And that same patch (or "fix") is applied to the S5, right out the gate. :crying:
I'd, switch and all of us here that can't switch should let them know that because they locked their bootloaders. That we will all be switching carriers due to them locking the bootloader. If we can find the right place to tell them that they will be losing many customers then maybe they will change the way they do things or send us a unlocked update.
I had to call them yesterday with a problem with my sim. It was coming up not registered on a network. When talking with AT&T I told them when upgrade time comes I am switching to T-Mobile due to them locking the boot loader. That it should be my choice what I do with and to my phone that I paid for. Then today while doing a servay about the call. I told them again, at the end when they asked if there was anything else. After telling them again, the response was. Thanks again for your time and feedback. Your comments will help us continue to improve our service.
Now this is probably just a general response that's given at the end of the servay. But if we can find the right place in AT&T and threaten them with the loss of many consumers. Then maybe they will change some things. Just think T-Mobile in One year or Two seeing the trend of more and more At&t and Verizon consumers jumping ship to them. They will have no choice but to make T-Mobile better than the others, in all aspects.
Honestly, I am thinking of either going back to my Note 3 or doing the T-Mobile but I am not sure that the S5 offers enough new stuff to support the added expense over the Note 3.
Hi
Earthdog said:
Honestly, I am thinking of either going back to my Note 3 or doing the T-Mobile but I am not sure that the S5 offers enough new stuff to support the added expense over the Note 3.
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Click to collapse
Hi,
I'm also thinking about going to T Mobile especially because they
will pay your ETF for the switch. Just not sure about their coverage,
that's the only thing holding me back right now,
Ken
Or you could go with the HTC one m8 it's unlocked,rooted with a custom recovery and s-off.I had never owned an HTC device always had Samsung.but after handling the phone and how dev friendly HTC it's I'm glad I went with them still have my s4 anyway with Loki.
Second choice buy an s5 from t mobile unlock it and use it on AT&T , people have said that lte and reception is excellent on AT&T with the tmo s5.
I hate the fact that AT&T is going the Verizon rout but lays face tmo network is no where near AT&T .I've used both .hope this helps.
Sent from my HTC One_M8 using xda app-developers app
Thank you everyone for your responses!
I finally did it and made the move to T-Mobile.
LTE on T-Mobile is soooo much faster than AT&T. On LTE I went from between 10-20 MB/s to a minimum of 25 MB/s on TMO, and most of the time a solid 30 MB/s.
HOWEVER, I did notice that places where I would normally have LTE with AT&T, I only sometimes get LTE with TMO; otherwise it's just 4G, which knocks the speed down to between 8-18 MB/s from using speedtest, but still not a huge deal.
I do find myself 'waiting' for websites to load a little longer on TMO, probably slow DNS servers, so gotta look in to that to see if I can change the DNS servers used when using Cell DATA (not Wifi).
All in all, I couldn't be happier with the same exact phone, but that has an unlocked bootloader and already rooted and custom recovery. I was nervous about switching since AT&T did have GREAT service (and by service, I mean reception, lol) but glad I did.
So, if you have AT&T and the S5 and want/need root and are tired of looking for a Root and keep seeing the CF-Auto-Root available for TMO, take the plunge and switch... just check out service reviews in your area first.
Thanks again everyone!!
kharrison83 said:
Thank you everyone for your responses!
I finally did it and made the move to T-Mobile.
LTE on T-Mobile is soooo much faster than AT&T. On LTE I went from between 10-20 MB/s to a minimum of 25 MB/s on TMO, and most of the time a solid 30 MB/s.
HOWEVER, I did notice that places where I would normally have LTE with AT&T, I only sometimes get LTE with TMO; otherwise it's just 4G, which knocks the speed down to between 8-18 MB/s from using speedtest, but still not a huge deal.
I do find myself 'waiting' for websites to load a little longer on TMO, probably slow DNS servers, so gotta look in to that to see if I can change the DNS servers used when using Cell DATA (not Wifi).
All in all, I couldn't be happier with the same exact phone, but that has an unlocked bootloader and already rooted and custom recovery. I was nervous about switching since AT&T did have GREAT service (and by service, I mean reception, lol) but glad I did.
So, if you have AT&T and the S5 and want/need root and are tired of looking for a Root and keep seeing the CF-Auto-Root available for TMO, take the plunge and switch... just check out service reviews in your area first.
Thanks again everyone!!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is exactly what I will be doing when they get reception in my area. The people that voted stay with At&t either work for them or have high hopes. As there most likely will never be root for At&t's S5 unless they give it up and that most likely is not going to happen. So in all reality their votes don't count as there won't be root.
Thought I'd add my two cents here. I just recently tried out T-Mobile (again) and the more I used their service, the more I hated it. Of course this is subjective because not everyone lives in my area. After having AT&T LTE for years, you get use to it. When driving AT&T's LTE signal was stable. It would never drop to E or 4G. If your driving and streaming something with T-Mobile, FORGET IT. The LTE signal is EXTREMELY weak. In my area AT&T & TMO share towers. My AT&T LTE phone would show a -90dbm signal, while T-Mobile would show a -110 signal.
In my area they need low bandwidth spectrum to cover it. They will never get it here. I can't have my phone signal bouncing all over the place. Its annoying and drains the hell out of your battery.
I also found their LTE to be slow. Much slower than AT&T's (in my area). So anyone who switches to TMO and has great service, I envy you. For me, it wasn't what I thought it was, after a few days of use.
Related
I would like to buy Note 3 n900a so as to use it with Straight Talk carrier (using AT&T towers) on LTE data speed.
Will it work? Should I buy locked or unlocked version?
Or perhaps I should buy n900t unlocked version? I've seen the info that n900t is compatible with any LTE carriers in the US unlike n900a which supports only AT&T LTE.
The main issue for me is to get LTE data speeds.
Thanks!
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2479927
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GalaxyNotesTx said:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2479927
Sent from my SM-P600 using XDA Premium HD app
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Click to collapse
Thanks, I already read the thread but unfortunately I didn't find the info will locked n900a work with StraighTalk ATT sim card.
Or may be I'd better should purchase unlocked n900t?
RioPalmares said:
Thanks, I already read the thread but unfortunately I didn't find the info will locked n900a work with StraighTalk ATT sim card.
Or may be I'd better should purchase unlocked n900t?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In my "opinion" the 900t is superior over the 900a. The 900a has a locked bootloader where the 900t doesn't. The 900t is able to have a custom recovery installed which allows for custom roms and development. Since the 900a has a locked bootloader your stuck with the software and bloat that at&t has provided. If you don't care about software, the 900t is better for tmobile network, and the 900a is better for at&t's network.
440bro said:
In my "opinion" the 900t is superior over the 900a. The 900a has a locked bootloader where the 900t doesn't. The 900t is able to have a custom recovery installed which allows for custom roms and development. Since the 900a has a locked bootloader your stuck with the software and bloat that at&t has provided. If you don't care about software, the 900t is better for tmobile network, and the 900a is better for at&t's network.
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Click to collapse
Well all I really care is LTE.
So I can assume that n900a is better for me since I'm using StraightTalk ATT sim?
RioPalmares said:
Well all I really care is LTE.
So I can assume that n900a is better for me since I'm using StraightTalk ATT sim?
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Click to collapse
I would assume the 900a would be better lte connection wise myself. If your really worried about connection speed, I wouldn't go with straight talk.
*30 day Unlimited Plans include 3 GB of high speed data per 30 day cycle. After 3 GB, your data speed will be reduced for the remainder of the 30 day cycle. High speed data is restored once a new 30 day service plan is redeemed at the end of the 30 day plan cycle. Other limitations, terms and conditions of service apply. Straight Talk reserves the right to terminate your service for unauthorized or abnormal usage.
440bro said:
I would assume the 900a would be better lte connection wise myself. If your really worried about connection speed, I wouldn't go with straight talk.
*30 day Unlimited Plans include 3 GB of high speed data per 30 day cycle. After 3 GB, your data speed will be reduced for the remainder of the 30 day cycle. High speed data is restored once a new 30 day service plan is redeemed at the end of the 30 day plan cycle. Other limitations, terms and conditions of service apply. Straight Talk reserves the right to terminate your service for unauthorized or abnormal usage.
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Click to collapse
Should I switch to Verizon. lol?
Sraight talk uses either an AT&T SIM or a T-Mobile SIM (the "unlocked" SIM is a T-Mobile SIM). The 900A will work - as is - with the AT&T SIM, the 900T will work with the T-Movile SIM.
First decide which network gives you better coverage. That will decide which phone you want. (Unless you care about being able to load different ROMs into the phone. You can't with the 900A - all ROMs are variants of he stock ROM - the bootloader is locked. In that case, if you want to use the phone on AT&T, you'll have to get the 900T unlocked.
Rukbat said:
Sraight talk uses either an AT&T SIM or a T-Mobile SIM (the "unlocked" SIM is a T-Mobile SIM). The 900A will work - as is - with the AT&T SIM, the 900T will work with the T-Movile SIM.
First decide which network gives you better coverage. That will decide which phone you want. (Unless you care about being able to load different ROMs into the phone. You can't with the 900A - all ROMs are variants of he stock ROM - the bootloader is locked. In that case, if you want to use the phone on AT&T, you'll have to get the 900T unlocked.
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Click to collapse
Thanks. I gonna get n900A. ATT coverage is better than T-Mobile in SFBA and I don't care about ROM.
I use straight talk, have a locked AT&T note 3, and I get LTE speeds no problem, just have to set the APN
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
I have the "Straight Talk" AT&T Sim card that works perfect in the 900a model, I get LTE perfectly. I didnt even have to mess with my APN on this phone it all just worked.
I'm using Motorola Moto X with Verizon Wireless (XT1060) (on unlimited data plan) and Android KitKat 4.4.
I'm having some _MAJOR_ issues with battery( and bluetooth as well. The only reason I didn't update my phone yet is I _REALLY_ need to have WiFi tethering and as far as I understand I cannot update my phone to even 4.4.2 or 4.4.4 as I'll lose root and therefor wifi tethering.
I will definitely try to wait for Dan Rosenberg and/or Justin Case, however as of now as far as I know it's not certain if/when an usable exploit/tool would be released to public, so it's a long shot(
my question is with recent Obama signing bill about "unlocking" cell phones, could that be another way or is it something completely different?
a1exus said:
I'm using Motorola Moto X with Verizon Wireless (XT1060) (on unlimited data plan) and Android KitKat 4.4.
I'm having some _MAJOR_ issues with battery( and bluetooth as well. The only reason I didn't update my phone yet is I _REALLY_ need to have WiFi tethering and as far as I understand I cannot update my phone to even 4.4.2 or 4.4.4 as I'll lose root and therefor wifi tethering.
I will definitely try to wait for Dan Rosenberg and/or Justin Case, however as of now as far as I know it's not certain if/when an usable exploit/tool would be released to public, so it's a long shot(
my question is with recent Obama signing bill about "unlocking" cell phones, could that be another way or is it something completely different?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This has nothing to do with bootloader unlocking. This is in regards to SIM unlocking, which allows you to take your device to another carrier.
sivarticus85 said:
This has nothing to do with bootloader unlocking. This is in regards to SIM unlocking, which allows you to take your device to another carrier.
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Click to collapse
ah, ok.. sorry for stupid question.. i took my phone abroad and it was working, i didn't had to unlock sim or anything like that...
You can take the 4.4.2 OTA and still root with PieTowelRoot, I have a moto x on 4.4.2 right now rooted with it and using the entitlement hack by kryptonite, the set up works nice.
Get a developer edition
For once att isn't the worst carrier I can use Hotspot without any issues on stock 4.4.2. I haven't tried since updating to 4.4.4.
Sent from my XT1058 using Tapatalk
doitinthedirt said:
You can take the 4.4.2 OTA and still root with PieTowelRoot, I have a moto x on 4.4.2 right now rooted with it and using the entitlement hack by kryptonite, the set up works nice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the downside for that is i'll lose write protection to /system.
SymbioticGenius said:
Get a developer edition
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Click to collapse
as much as i like to do that, i don't think there is a point to do that right now, especially as in less than a month new version coming out...
superp32 said:
For once att isn't the worst carrier I can use Hotspot without any issues on stock 4.4.2. I haven't tried since updating to 4.4.4.
Sent from my XT1058 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i can use it too, just gotta pay for it and just person next to me i don't wanna) especially 'cause i have unlimited data plan))
i dont have any issues with my batt and im on 4.4 rooted with slap.. I keep the brightness down to a minimum location battery saving mode and I get 3 or 4 hours surfing constantly lot longer than that if I'm just using it periodically. I also have another Moto X its on 4.4.2 rootrd with topie using entitlement hack and I don't see any difference at all in the battery.. or anything else. I'm on the grandfathered unlimited data plan also so I need the hot spot it powers my home internet Netflix everything. you won't lose write if you go to 4.4.2 when rooted with towel pie you can write but your changes are lost if you reboot
doitinthedirt said:
i dont have any issues with my batt and im on 4.4 rooted with slap.. I keep the brightness down to a minimum location battery saving mode and I get 3 or 4 hours surfing constantly lot longer than that if I'm just using it periodically. I also have another Moto X its on 4.4.2 rootrd with topie using entitlement hack and I don't see any difference at all in the battery.. or anything else. I'm on the grandfathered unlimited data plan also so I need the hot spot it powers my home internet Netflix everything. you won't lose write if you go to 4.4.2 when rooted with towel pie you can write but your changes are lost if you reboot
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Click to collapse
I don't even get 2 hours of screen time(( I guess its also depends on apps you have installed and usage, before i took OTA update from 4.2.2 I was getting _MUCH_ greater screen time for sure, so I was thinking since there are bugs in 4.4, updating to anything higher would (re)solve at least some of them, but going that route has its own pros and cons.
a1exus said:
I don't even get 2 hours of screen time(( I guess its also depends on apps you have installed and usage, before i took OTA update from 4.2.2 I was getting _MUCH_ greater screen time for sure, so I was thinking since there are bugs in 4.4, updating to anything higher would (re)solve at least some of them, but going that route has its own pros and cons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since you've still got write protection off you can use safestrap to flash newer versions and retain full root, that's what I'm doing!
And I'm getting much more battery life with 4.4.3 (over 4.4.2 at least)
frenchie007 said:
Since you've still got write protection off you can use safestrap to flash newer versions and retain full root, that's what I'm doing!
And I'm getting much more battery life with 4.4.3 (over 4.4.2 at least)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good point!
Yeah, There is actually a 4.4.4 safestrap-compatible ROM "Krypton" in the Development sub-forum.
EDIT @KidJoe : I sent you a PM regarding the post below this one...
a1exus said:
...i took my phone abroad and it was working, i didn't had to unlock sim or anything like that...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Verizon LTE phones are sim UNlocked out of the box, and considered "global" due to quadband GSM support, and some HSPA support.
superp32 said:
For once att isn't the worst carrier I can use Hotspot without any issues on stock 4.4.2. I haven't tried since updating to 4.4.4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Verizon users on a TIERED data plan can tether without hacks or anything. I just eats from their tiered data bucket.
Those still on the old Unlimited data plans have to pay for tethering or hack their phone. Hence rooting being required.
samwathegreat said:
EDIT @KidJoe : I sent you a PM regarding the post below this one...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Fixed. Thanks!!
KidJoe said:
Verizon LTE phones are sim UNlocked out of the box, and considered "global" due to quadband GSM support, and some HSPA support.
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Click to collapse
Since I have a Moto X and Droid Ultra I could pop in a Cricket or Net10 sim and be good to go? Every time I tried to search about only thing I can find is sites to pay for a SIM unlock code.
rebretz000 said:
Since I have a Moto X and Droid Ultra I could pop in a Cricket or Net10 sim and be good to go? Every time I tried to search about only thing I can find is sites to pay for a SIM unlock code.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Depends on whose towers Cricket and Net10 use. If they use GSM (like use T-Mobile's towers), then yes.
I can stick my T-Mobile USA sim (my work line used for GS3 and iPhone), into my personal Verizon X since I got it. Some of the firmwares work better than others, some I needed to manually enter APN settings, some I get "SIM is from unknown provider" etc.
With 4.4.4. its been the best and most compatible to date. I haven't had to enter T-Mobile's APN settings on my VZW X, and voice, sms, mms and data work, including HSPA+ and LTE. There is a slight lag of switching from H/H+ to LTE (like after I hang up a phone call), but that is about it.
Keep in mind, the VZW X supports LTE bands 4 and 13. T-Mobile uses 4 and I'm not sure if they use any other bands for LTE.
For HSPA/HSPA+ on T-Mobile, you need to be in areas where T-Mobile has re-farmed their 1900mhz from EDGE to HSPA/HSPA+
Now, if you use ATT... EDGE/GPRS/HSPA/HSPA+ will be fine, but LTE will likely not work as ATT uses different bands.
frenchie007 said:
Since you've still got write protection off you can use safestrap to flash newer versions and retain full root, that's what I'm doing!
And I'm getting much more battery life with 4.4.3 (over 4.4.2 at least)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
as much as I'd like to use that, I really would like to stay on stock rom, and that dev made some customization to rom that i'm not too crazy about it, i really wish there was a rom without any of that customization.. maybe its just me and everyone else wants to have all that customization in
KidJoe said:
Depends on whose towers Cricket and Net10 use. If they use GSM (like use T-Mobile's towers), then yes.
I can stick my T-Mobile USA sim (my work line used for GS3 and iPhone), into my personal Verizon X since I got it. Some of the firmwares work better than others, some I needed to manually enter APN settings, some I get "SIM is from unknown provider" etc.
With 4.4.4. its been the best and most compatible to date. I haven't had to enter T-Mobile's APN settings on my VZW X, and voice, sms, mms and data work, including HSPA+ and LTE. There is a slight lag of switching from H/H+ to LTE (like after I hang up a phone call), but that is about it.
Keep in mind, the VZW X supports LTE bands 4 and 13. T-Mobile uses 4 and I'm not sure if they use any other bands for LTE.
For HSPA/HSPA+ on T-Mobile, you need to be in areas where T-Mobile has re-farmed their 1900mhz from EDGE to HSPA/HSPA+
Now, if you use ATT... EDGE/GPRS/HSPA/HSPA+ will be fine, but LTE will likely not work as ATT uses different bands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll be using ATT. If T-Mobile was where I live I'd be all over it. I made up my mind to leave Verizon and I just want to get going. I'm going to try and do the activate, port, and generate new Verizon number thing. I don't want to buy new GSM phones yet. Going to hold out until the new Moto X is released or Moto Maxx. Or Motorola Nexus to buy new phones. My wife won't give up her Droid Ultra at all. The Active Display has her hooked. So I have to wait to see what is coming in September.
I have an old Thundebolt and RAZR HD to activate on my verizon lines right now.
If I pull this off I'll have two unlimited data lines up for exchange for some expresidents
Thank you.
a1exus said:
as much as I'd like to use that, I really would like to stay on stock rom, and that dev made some customization to rom that i'm not too crazy about it, i really wish there was a rom without any of that customization.. maybe its just me and everyone else wants to have all that customization in
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'll admit these are buried deep, and I don't even think there's one for 4.4.3.
These should be fully stock with the exception that they come rooted.
here's vzw stock 4.4.2: http://rootzwiki.com/topic/116025-romsafestrap-unlockedxt1060-stock-rooted-vzw-164552-kitkat-442/
here's vzw stock 4.4.4: http://forum.xda-developers.com/moto-x/development/rom-stock-rooted-vzw-212-55-26-t2829123
Hello,
So I just switched from ATT to Tmobile and now using the Tmobile service. After I put in the tmobile simcard into my unlocked N900A, I got everything from good service to 4gLTE. Now I want wifi calling feature on my N900A, So I rooted the device with towel root and installed SS (of course after SU and BUSYBOX). After I backed up my stock rom, in rom slot 1 I installed tweaked N3 3.8 but the wifi calling toggle got stuck on "enabling". I thought may be something was wrong with the flash so I flashed the tweaked N3 3.9 but it gave the same result. So I thought let me try another Tmobile rom on my ATT note 3 so I flashed the "Effortless ROM" from the tmobile section but still when I see the wifi calling toggle in the setting it is still stuck on enabling.
Is there anyway I can enable the wifi calling feature onto my ATT note 3 4.4.2 NC2.
I installed the SRX tmobile rom on my galaxy S3 and the wifi calling feature is working great.
p2s246 said:
Hello,
So I just switched from ATT to Tmobile and now using the Tmobile service. After I put in the tmobile simcard into my unlocked N900A, I got everything from good service to 4gLTE. Now I want wifi calling feature on my N900A, So I rooted the device with towel root and installed SS (of course after SU and BUSYBOX). After I backed up my stock rom, in rom slot 1 I installed tweaked N3 3.8 but the wifi calling toggle got stuck on "enabling". I thought may be something was wrong with the flash so I flashed the tweaked N3 3.9 but it gave the same result. So I thought let me try another Tmobile rom on my ATT note 3 so I flashed the "Effortless ROM" from the tmobile section but still when I see the wifi calling toggle in the setting it is still stuck on enabling.
Is there anyway I can enable the wifi calling feature onto my ATT note 3 4.4.2 NC2.
I installed the SRX tmobile rom on my galaxy S3 and the wifi calling feature is working great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
2 things,
1.. when you flashed Tweaked, did you do the custom install.prop and edit it, and when you edited it, did you set it to att on tmo? i think that is what you might want.. if you flashed it strait from att thread, it is going to load as att and you cant do Wifi calling..
2. did you double check your APN, not 100% certain if wifi calling is effected by that, but make sure you are using tmo apn if you are with them..
side note, why the hell wouldn't you change over to the tmo note3 if you are on tmo now? unlocked BL and you can do so much more id say trade that att N3 in for the tmo one if you are able... you will probably love it so much more.
Zugshad said:
2 things,
1.. when you flashed Tweaked, did you do the custom install.prop and edit it, and when you edited it, did you set it to att on tmo? i think that is what you might want.. if you flashed it strait from att thread, it is going to load as att and you cant do Wifi calling..
2. did you double check your APN, not 100% certain if wifi calling is effected by that, but make sure you are using tmo apn if you are with them..
side note, why the hell wouldn't you change over to the tmo note3 if you are on tmo now? unlocked BL and you can do so much more id say trade that att N3 in for the tmo one if you are able... you will probably love it so much more.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1 - I did change in the custom install.prop. I changed it to tmo on att N900a , isn't that what I am supposed to do? or other way around att on tmo as you mentioned?
2- APN was set up correctly as I was getting the 4GLTE and I double checked it and it was using tmo apn.
for the side note I actually won't mind trading my phone in for tmo note 3 but I am short on money so can't spend those extra few hundred on trading unless if I can find someone to do the straight swap as my phone is like new out of the box (not a single scratch).
Question for you,, Have you seen anyone able to enable wifi calling successfully? because I really want to use this feature as it will help me at home.
As far as I know, T-Mobile wifi calling is not supported with any AT&T plan/SIM
p2s246 said:
1 - I did change in the custom install.prop. I changed it to tmo on att N900a , isn't that what I am supposed to do? or other way around att on tmo as you mentioned?
2- APN was set up correctly as I was getting the 4GLTE and I double checked it and it was using tmo apn.
for the side note I actually won't mind trading my phone in for tmo note 3 but I am short on money so can't spend those extra few hundred on trading unless if I can find someone to do the straight swap as my phone is like new out of the box (not a single scratch).
Question for you,, Have you seen anyone able to enable wifi calling successfully? because I really want to use this feature as it will help me at home.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That sounds about right..you would need to double tap with dwith I his thread to be sure.
Yeah figured apn was fine
Can't you do their version of next program and trade in and pay nothing then just add to monthly if something you would do....personally not a fan of those plans but an option to save some or can't do the up front costs
graydiggy said:
As far as I know, T-Mobile wifi calling is not supported with any AT&T plan/SIM
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hee has an att phone on tmo network..so not sign att plan...unless I'm reading it wrong
Zugshad said:
That sounds about right..you would need to double tap with dwith I his thread to be sure.
Yeah figured apn was fine
Can't you do their version of next program and trade in and pay nothing then just add to monthly if something you would do....personally not a fan of those plans but an option to save some or can't do the up front costs
Hee has an att phone on tmo network..so not sign att plan...unless I'm reading it wrong
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ya I talked with dwith but he said he has no clue, it works for some and it doesn't for others. He did gave me some other ideas like checking it with tmobile and I did that and they said its all set up correctly with tmobile.
And you are right I have att phone on tmobile network so i am using tmobile simcard on att note 3.
p2s246 said:
Ya I talked with dwith but he said he has no clue, it works for some and it doesn't for others. He did gave me some other ideas like checking it with tmobile and I did that and they said its all set up correctly with tmobile.
And you are right I have att phone on tmobile network so i am using tmobile simcard on att note 3.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry to hear nothing came of this - and nice job on being thorough and testing some other tmobile rom options. I know it worked for people back in the Note 2 days (Non-TMo N2 with TMo service and TMo rom -> wifi calling worked), so my gut says it should be possible... but my gut is rather uninformed on such things so I dunno how good the ole gut read really is
dwitherell said:
Sorry to hear nothing came of this - and nice job on being thorough and testing some other tmobile rom options. I know it worked for people back in the Note 2 days (Non-TMo N2 with TMo service and TMo rom -> wifi calling worked), so my gut says it should be possible... but my gut is rather uninformed on such things so I dunno how good the ole gut read really is
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ya thanks for keeping this in the back of your mind. I did some research after I talked with you and saw that there are some unknown problem with safestrap and using the rom slots, And all the roms I tried including yours was on rom slot. So I am thinking of flashing the tweaked on the stock slot and see if that helps with the wifi calling. I will keep you guys posted if I find anything.
Thanks.
p2s246 said:
Ya thanks for keeping this in the back of your mind. I did some research after I talked with you and saw that there are some unknown problem with safestrap and using the rom slots, And all the roms I tried including yours was on rom slot. So I am thinking of flashing the tweaked on the stock slot and see if that helps with the wifi calling. I will keep you guys posted if I find anything.
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Any luck? I have an AT&T Note 3 as well that I'm using with a T-Mobile SIM, and I'm about to move to a building that has very poor T-Mobile coverage, and so I want to be able to use wifi calling.
If someone was willing to do a straight trade of a T-Mobile Note 3 for my AT&T one, I'd be all set, but probably hard to find that.
rvmehta said:
Any luck? I have an AT&T Note 3 as well that I'm using with a T-Mobile SIM, and I'm about to move to a building that has very poor T-Mobile coverage, and so I want to be able to use wifi calling.
If someone was willing to do a straight trade of a T-Mobile Note 3 for my AT&T one, I'd be all set, but probably hard to find that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey sorry for the late reply, but i tried so hard to solve this problem but i couldn't find the resolution so i did straight trade up with my friend and now I am using the tmobile note 3.
i would need some help if you could
p2s246 said:
Hello,
So I just switched from ATT to Tmobile and now using the Tmobile service. After I put in the tmobile simcard into my unlocked N900A, I got everything from good service to 4gLTE. Now I want wifi calling feature on my N900A, So I rooted the device with towel root and installed SS (of course after SU and BUSYBOX). After I backed up my stock rom, in rom slot 1 I installed tweaked N3 3.8 but the wifi calling toggle got stuck on "enabling". I thought may be something was wrong with the flash so I flashed the tweaked N3 3.9 but it gave the same result. So I thought let me try another Tmobile rom on my ATT note 3 so I flashed the "Effortless ROM" from the tmobile section but still when I see the wifi calling toggle in the setting it is still stuck on enabling.
Is there anyway I can enable the wifi calling feature onto my ATT note 3 4.4.2 NC2.
I installed the SRX tmobile rom on my galaxy S3 and the wifi calling feature is working great.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have sm-n900a on stock rooted 4.4.2 locked bootloader for sure... im currently on net10 data plan since its at&t network and sim works fine but they only allow me 2.5 gb of high speed then it goes to ridicously 4kbps which is crazy slow... wondering how i could unlock for tmobile and make it work on full 4g lte since it service is cheaper no data restriction
Mcheverez said:
I have sm-n900a on stock rooted 4.4.2 locked bootloader for sure... im currently on net10 data plan since its at&t network and sim works fine but they only allow me 2.5 gb of high speed then it goes to ridicously 4kbps which is crazy slow... wondering how i could unlock for tmobile and make it work on full 4g lte since it service is cheaper no data restriction
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry for the very late reply but I was away for 2 months to my home country and I had very bad internet there so didn't visit
XDA from there.
For your problem you can unlock your device either by calling att which is a free method or you can buy the unlock code from the ebay or any unlocking company, If you google it you will find plenty. And as far as I know tmobile also caps there data at 1 or 2 GB unless you have unlimited 4g LTE plan which I would think is little on the expensive side.
p2s246 said:
Sorry for the very late reply but I was away for 2 months to my home country and I had very bad internet there so didn't visit
XDA from there.
For your problem you can unlock your device either by calling att which is a free method or you can buy the unlock code from the ebay or any unlocking company, If you google it you will find plenty. And as far as I know tmobile also caps there data at 1 or 2 GB unless you have unlimited 4g LTE plan which I would think is little on the expensive side.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
tyvm its been a while i already unlocked my phone by requesting unlock code by att and then sold it and bought a t mobile variant and now enjoying my unlock bootloader tnx for the reply
Sent from my SM-N900T using XDA Free mobile app
I am coming from my last few phones being Samsung models , the Galaxy Nexus, Note 2 and 3, and the S4. The last Motorola phone I had was a Droid Razr. I left Moto because the hardware specks started to decline, no sd-slot, no removable battery, less desirable construction. I came back due to Samsung's questionable antenna and radio package. I never really had good strong signal with Samsung though. So, Motorola finally comes out with a beast of a phone in the specs catagory, although still no sd or battery pull but my signal is amazing, reception just about everywhere. So I'm confused why is there no development for the US Verizon Turbo? To me it seems like a no brainer.
That one is easy to answer... Until a vulnerability is found and exploited and root is achieved there is no platform to develop on. That doesn't mean that there isn't anyone working on it, just that not much is going to happen until root is achieved.
Then how do we get some of the heavy hitting android minds on this thing? It really is the best specimen out there currently.
PerCompLLC said:
That one is easy to answer... Until a vulnerability is found and exploited and root is achieved there is no platform to develop on. That doesn't mean that there isn't anyone working on it, just that not much is going to happen until root is achieved.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sorry, maybe I'm being a newbie here, but I never understood the software difference between Droid Turbo and Moto Maxx that makes the last rootable and the first not. Is it just the bootloader?
You can unlock the Moto Maxx bootloader. You cannot unlock the Turbo's. Plain and simple.
DarkLey said:
I'm sorry, maybe I'm being a newbie here, but I never understood the software difference between Droid Turbo and Moto Maxx that makes the last rootable and the first not. Is it just the bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Two words. Unlockable bootloader.
DarkLey said:
I'm sorry, maybe I'm being a newbie here, but I never understood the software difference between Droid Turbo and Moto Maxx that makes the last rootable and the first not. Is it just the bootloader?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All bootloaders can be unlocked by the manufacturer. But in the case of the Verizon variant (Droid Turbo) Verizon has asked/told Motorola to keep the bootloader locked. Ergo the need for a vulnerability - and someone who knows how to exploit it.
Everything I've been reading indicates that root for the Turbo is a long shot, since the folks that do that stuff really don't want to spend the efforts on a phone that's strictly on only one carryier, Verizon in this case.
this_is_nascar said:
Everything I've been reading indicates that root for the Turbo is a long shot, since the folks that do that stuff really don't want to spend the efforts on a phone that's strictly on only one carryier, Verizon in this case.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't blame it on that. The Thunderbolt was exclusive and had root before it even was officially released.
It more boils down to that those who can do it have day jobs and probably don't have the phone nor care to have it.
adrynalyne said:
Don't blame it on that. The Thunderbolt was exclusive and had root before it even was officially released.
It more boils down to that those who can do it have day jobs and probably don't have the phone nor care to have it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like I said, I really don't know. I'm just repeating what I've said, however I can understand your point as well.
Are there any recognized developers that even have the phone? I know its a bad idea to purchase devices and "loan" them to developers, but I feel like we should donate a few. Something like the bounty for root, but the money funds devices ahead of time. Find a few devs that would be interested and give them the device. It would have to be no strings attached though, if the Dev had no success people couldn't demand their money back. You would know ahead of time that you were donating for the chance at root, not a guarantee. Probably would just end up being an ordeal, but we really need capable devs with the device to take a look. I feel like at this point were just waiting for another moto device to get rooted that happens to work for us.
No root, no recovery, but moto maxx its same device basic "quark" have root and recovery too, but no roms or kernel, the real problem is device dont sell in all countrys, so no devs until now.
georgiadog3 said:
I am coming from my last few phones being Samsung models , the Galaxy Nexus, Note 2 and 3, and the S4. The last Motorola phone I had was a Droid Razr. I left Moto because the hardware specks started to decline, no sd-slot, no removable battery, less desirable construction. I came back due to Samsung's questionable antenna and radio package. I never really had good strong signal with Samsung though. So, Motorola finally comes out with a beast of a phone in the specs catagory, although still no sd or battery pull but my signal is amazing, reception just about everywhere. So I'm confused why is there no development for the US Verizon Turbo? To me it seems like a no brainer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know this thread isnt about sd card slot, but why not go and use a otg usb sd mount stick? Its like having a sd card.
I am guessing that since Verizon is furnishing mobile and internet to some major corporations, the corporate environment wants to have phones secure. Hence that is why they want the bootloader locked as to appeal to the major companies and sell more phones. That was the reason it was when I worked for a major company.
web_ninja said:
I am guessing that since Verizon is furnishing mobile and internet to some major corporations, the corporate environment wants to have phones secure. Hence that is why they want the bootloader locked as to appeal to the major companies and sell more phones. That was the reason it was when I worked for a major company.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is not the reason. All carriers have deals like that and not all of them are locking bootloaders.
Verizon is doing it for warranty, support, and insurance reasons.
adrynalyne said:
That is not the reason. All carriers have deals like that and not all of them are locking bootloaders.
Verizon is doing it for warranty, support, and insurance reasons.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am making the switch to tmobile at the end of the day today because verizon straight out is trying to over charge for stuff on the bill that shouldnt be there. No one on my account has ever used the visual voicemail paid version nor gone over usage and my fiancees line is said to be 600 dollars or more a month. Not happening. I called tmobile and talked to them for a bit, and explained to her about the bill she gave me the best deal plus with unlimited data for 70 a month. Bringing over my nexus 6. After that was all done I just randomly asked questions about locked bootloaders and root, and the lady spoken clear as day is we are not verizon or att. We support the development community (root and unlocked bootloaders), and that all devices are unlockable in that sense. Tmobile is a go to company for me. Yes some of the service is spotty but still its well worth it for having to deal with verizon since 1998. She even brought up that she is currently using an s5 with cyanogenmod. They actually allow their employees to do that stuff to their work phones as long as they know how to return to stock. Verizon you have been ok in the past but i am out.
Have a good day guys. Happy flashing
the_rooter said:
I am making the switch to tmobile at the end of the day today because verizon straight out is trying to over charge for stuff on the bill that shouldnt be there. No one on my account has ever used the visual voicemail paid version nor gone over usage and my fiancees line is said to be 600 dollars or more a month. Not happening. I called tmobile and talked to them for a bit, and explained to her about the bill she gave me the best deal plus with unlimited data for 70 a month. Bringing over my nexus 6. After that was all done I just randomly asked questions about locked bootloaders and root, and the lady spoken clear as day is we are not verizon or att. We support the development community (root and unlocked bootloaders), and that all devices are unlockable in that sense. Tmobile is a go to company for me. Yes some of the service is spotty but still its well worth it for having to deal with verizon since 1998. She even brought up that she is currently using an s5 with cyanogenmod. They actually allow their employees to do that stuff to their work phones as long as they know how to return to stock. Verizon you have been ok in the past but i am out.
Have a good day guys. Happy flashing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried T-Mobile a couple of months ago for exactly the reasons you described. I wanted to stay with them so badly but I just couldn't deal the spotty coverage. Ended up back with Verizon. Hopefully you have better luck!
the_rooter said:
I am making the switch to tmobile at the end of the day today because verizon straight out is trying to over charge for stuff on the bill that shouldnt be there. No one on my account has ever used the visual voicemail paid version nor gone over usage and my fiancees line is said to be 600 dollars or more a month. Not happening. I called tmobile and talked to them for a bit, and explained to her about the bill she gave me the best deal plus with unlimited data for 70 a month. Bringing over my nexus 6. After that was all done I just randomly asked questions about locked bootloaders and root, and the lady spoken clear as day is we are not verizon or att. We support the development community (root and unlocked bootloaders), and that all devices are unlockable in that sense. Tmobile is a go to company for me. Yes some of the service is spotty but still its well worth it for having to deal with verizon since 1998. She even brought up that she is currently using an s5 with cyanogenmod. They actually allow their employees to do that stuff to their work phones as long as they know how to return to stock. Verizon you have been ok in the past but i am out.
Have a good day guys. Happy flashing
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as T-Mobile is concerned I hope you live in a better coverage area than I. Typically if you only stick to cities then your good but if your on the out skirts or in rural areas your screwed on signal. Even though the coverage map said to be strong network coverage where I lived it just wasn't so.
I happened to purchase this phone expecting the development to be near non existent. I was wanting to see if I could use a phone that was non-rooted and bootloader locked for a period of time as I have never done this before in all the years I have used smart phones.
good luck with T-Mobile though.. love what they are doing just hated the service coverage areas.....
bkeaver said:
As far as T-Mobile is concerned I hope you live in a better coverage area than I. Typically if you only stick to cities then your good but if your on the out skirts or in rural areas your screwed on signal. Even though the coverage map said to be strong network coverage where I lived it just wasn't so.
I happened to purchase this phone expecting the development to be near non existent. I was wanting to see if I could use a phone that was non-rooted and bootloader locked for a period of time as I have never done this before in all the years I have used smart phones.
good luck with T-Mobile though.. love what they are doing just hated the service coverage areas.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Don't switch trust me, I just switched from managing T-maybe to managing Verizon I switched all my lines and have never been happier with the choice. T-Mobile even in a metro area constantly drops calls.
kwyrt said:
I tried T-Mobile a couple of months ago for exactly the reasons you described. I wanted to stay with them so badly but I just couldn't deal the spotty coverage. Ended up back with Verizon. Hopefully you have better luck!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I switched as well a few months ago and the coverage was so spotty I had to switch back. Good luck though.
Hey T mobile users, I currently have a Sprint note4 unlocked on Cricket network. As you may know I only get hspa speeds this way, Not a super big deal to me. As I've had the phone this way for a year now. Only reason I even ended up this route is because i got the phone (at the time) real cheap from a relative.
But now that I've seen the prices drop quite a bit cause of its age, my question to you is first will the t mobile phone get lte speeds with Cricket(at&t)? It looks like to me it has them bands.
Second, Do you think it's worth the hassle? I figured I could comp the price by selling mine afterwards.
Your advice and opinion is appreciated. Thank you!
It WILL work, but it isn't worth the hassle. With T-Mobile you would only benefit from VoLTE and WiFi calling. You can root your existing phone and flash a ROM with the T-Mobile system files and keep your.
AT&T and T-Mobile note4 is the same hardware-wise except the bootloader, modem and corresponding kernel required to make WiFi calling work for the N910T. The N910A is punished with the locked bootloader, so I can see your concern.
If I understand you correctly: You wish to keep your current carrier, but to switch phones just to get LTE speeds?
I have a 910T running on Cricket's network. I think I paid $150 for it used which was a huge upgrade from the HTC Desire 510 I was using. It had a burnt in screen but I learned to deal with it for $150. Also has some other quirks that usually only show when a phone's been water damaged. I learned to deal and get around them though. Because of this, I don't recommend buying a phone used. And since you're content with your Sprint model, I might just stay with that.
The reason I went T-Mobile was because of the unlocked bootloader. And there's no doubt in my mind that I'll have this phone for another 2 years. It's a great phone and after Samsung took a bunch of features away with the Note 5 and then created an exploding Note 7, I'm quite happy with this device for a while to come. Now the rumor is that Samsung might be taking away the 3.5 headphone port. If that's true, **** them. I just used my headphones for over 6 hours on a Greyhound bus and Bluetooth requires charging which I don't wanna deal with.
I can't tell you what to do but if it were me, I'd stick with the Sprint model. But I do love custom ROMs so...
****If you buy a note 4****
Only buy a refurbished or recertified one with a full warranty...
There's reported issues with these phones real or imagined... don't take the risk!!!
Good Luck!