Hey guys,
The Galaxy S2 is an extremely powerful (and very popular) smartphone in the market today - and since Samsung have sold a record number of these worldwide, figured its about to BOOM bigtime; particularly in Australia as prices start to fall and phone plans start to drop. Because of this, I wanted to provide other Aussie members on these forums with a HANDY point of reference, as a lot of guides & tutorials are for different models or have different specifications and require some tweaking. Use this thread as a guide, a starting point, or utilise this thread for other aussie general help.
Please help by posting what build you have on your SGS2, your speed test results in australia, modem type, network,etc...Your experiences, your advice, any input is appreciated. Ive only done the first 15 pages thus far:
Members and their SGS2's on the following networks:
VODAFONE
unrealtb
MealsOnWheels
anuj25
Jesmicael
akira888
infra4800
fuusuke
OPTUS
HeavySixEight
sm98
jwonga
robt772000
ausdrioder
sabamacx
jinx405
beaver2233
Sico69galaxy
mrxd
cheetah2k
TELSTRA
roosta
tjjensen23
bentothemaxx
zeitgeb3r
BennyT83
gunigugu
Plopz
shtumpa
irv777
extremeit79
maark11
YukiestRapier
alexeiw123
UNKNOWN:
380AU
jerome.d
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
page 2: Optus/Telstra tips/tricks on FW: diable fast dormancy, GPS info etc
page 5: Full review of phone (photo/vid), usb drivers, oldin, complete phone service manual, letter codes
page 10:Specifics for rooted phone 3g hack
page 11: undervolting and saving battery life steps
...
Thanks guys
RoOSTA
From another forum:
The Samsung Galaxy S2 is a 3G quadband phone and will work basically on every single network in Australia as it supports every network band aussie carriers use. So it doesn't matter where you buy the phone from, it will work on Telstra unless you go buy the korean version or something.
Anybody who says it won't work is either naive, fooled, or plain ignorant. There has been cases where some staff at Telstra shops have told people that it won't work, that is total bull**** and **** that they give to make people wait for the phone on Telstra or some **** they themselves were feed with.
I myself use the S2 on Telstra and is getting HSPA+ speeds with no problem.
Usually Telstra release phones late cause they need to get a special version~~ now with the S2 they are saying they release it late cause of their test cycles and their so call "optimizations"
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well, i got mine with an Optus $59 at the start of june, KE7 stock..
I Hated the amount of Optus rubbish on the phone (that i could'nt remove!) so i ended up here, reading everything i could for a few days, then rooted my stock rom from chainfire's post.
Since then, I've de-branded with the stock KF2 poland rom and rooted that. (Since Intratech put up the original stock roms for optus, i have my backup.)
Performance is great, coverage is great and everything runs well...
Has anyone updated from Kies to KF3? Was KF3 the Aus update?
Release UK imported. Bought it from Hantec
Works 100% with NextG. Also my mates got one and his works fine aswell. All settings out of Box except changed the APN for faster speeds .
Custom Rom (keeps switching between VR and Cognition)
No problems whatsoever
Vodafail customer here... Great fone. Rooted with lighting 1.5. Dun want to go to v2 as it changes the web browser as i quite like stock. Still on 2.3.3 tried 2.3.4 didnt notice a great change. Gonna wait for cm7... maybe 8! Question.... Just say i wanted to go back to vodafail rom etc.. So it would be like when i first got ot how would i do this?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
zetsubou7 said:
From another forum:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey zetsu,
Yes my initial post did sound a little ditsy... But i have read additional articles of other software modifications Tesltra have in the works to make it a bit more unqiue - arguably, some would say really not that much difference or worth waiting for - but nevertheless I would much prefer an Aussie version of the phone and AC power without having to use a loose, dodgy international adapter to plug into an Aussie powerpoint.
I do (and did) understand this phone, whether its from Telstra or not, from anywhere around the world is quadband and works on the nextg 850mhz freq band.
Cheers.
unrealtb said:
Vodafail customer here... Great fone. Rooted with lighting 1.5. Dun want to go to v2 as it changes the web browser as i quite like stock. Still on 2.3.3 tried 2.3.4 didnt notice a great change. Gonna wait for cm7... maybe 8! Question.... Just say i wanted to go back to vodafail rom etc.. So it would be like when i first got ot how would i do this?
Sent from my GT-I9100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just check Intratech's carrier branded Rom thread and flash one from Vodafone Australia that matches what you had originally...
tjjensen23 said:
Release UK imported. Bought it from Hantec
Works 100% with NextG. Also my mates got one and his works fine aswell. All settings out of Box except changed the APN for faster speeds .
Custom Rom (keeps switching between VR and Cognition)
No problems whatsoever
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
tjj, what APN settings did you use, the ausdriod.net one?
RoOSTA
I've got an Optus branded handset, running on Telstra. I get awesome speeds, have gotten over 10Mbps download speeds!
Using the telstra.wap APN, seems to work a bit better than the telstra.internet for me.
Bought from TeleChoice outright for $750 early June after haggling with the seller. Optus branded (AllPhone wasn't selling unbranded at the time).
Rooted it with ChainFire (In case I need to unroot and not lose the warranty, I bought USB Jig from EBAY in case I need to reset download counter).
Paid for Titanium Backup to freeze Optus bloatware (that was before IntraTech released the Optus Stock ROM).
Put on SIM Telstra $49/month Freedom Connect BYO 12 month plan.
I love it when H+ (HSPA+) lights up. My colleagues are jealous, because they're either on Optus, Voda or Virgin and they can only 3G, not H+.
I used ausdriod.net APN (telstra.internet). Getting around 10Mbps in CBD. I might try telstra.wap and see if it's any faster.
Bought accessories from ExportPrive (Korean based) :
Official Samsung spare battery AUD$25
Official Samsung Anymode Charging Dock for spare battery AUD$12
SGP Stenheil Ultra Oleophobic Anti-Fingerprints screen protector AUD$11
Transcend Micro SDHC Class 4 32GB AUD$63
Samsung official car dock AUD$50
Shipping $11
@zeit: 10mbps in philipines? Best i have been able to get, using speedtest.net andriod app (on SGS1) in Melbourne near CBD was 2.54mbps on a hsdpa connection, so thats pretty poor, should be higher...and i expect as lot more with Telstra on the SGS2.
@bentothemaxx: thanks for the advice, after my SIM is inserted into the phone, all relevant MMS/net APNs are set, defaults me to telstra.iph (telstra internet). Doing it now about 20 mins drive from Melbourne CBD, telstra.iph peaked at 1.79mbps. .internet settings peaked at 2.54 and .wap settings peaked at 2.24 with the lowest ping. Upload FAAR better with.internet settings, so may stick with that.
RoOSTA
Heyas, some sgs2 tips optus (and one telstra)
I'm with Optus (tpg) in melb, unlockedmobiles uk it's good
I've had H+ once driving through lillydale, rest of the time is 3G/H or gprs cause optus is well optus
Things to do/check/change (non .au based firmware)
unrooted
disable fast dormancy ( *#9900# then disable) (is it even needed to do on telstra?)
rooted
edit /etc/gps.conf and change NTP_SERVER to au.pool.ntp.org
*** may be optional in xxkg1 2.3.4 ***
disable fast dormancy ( *#9900# then disable)
in the city i got lots of wake ups with it enabled, further out it didn't do it
edit /data/data/com.android.providers.telephony/databases/nwk_info.db
open nwkinfo and add the dormancy info if it doesn't exist
KG1 has Optus dormancy off mtu 1500 in mine
open dormpolicy and you can change the lcdon/offfdtime.
KG1 has telstra, yes optus, vodafone eu, 3telstra, one.tel in there as 0 on 0 off
the carrier numbers are in /data/data/com.android.providers.telephony/databases/telephony.db
info from the /etc/nwk_info.xml
Code:
<!-- Australia -->
<DormPolicy plmn="50502"
nwkname="Telstra"
lcdonfdtime="0"
lcdofffdtime="0"
/>
<DormPolicy plmn="50503"
nwkname="YES OPTUS"
lcdonfdtime="0"
lcdofffdtime="0"
/>
<DormPolicy plmn="50506"
nwkname="Vodafone AU"
lcdonfdtime="0"
lcdofffdtime="0"
/>
<DormPolicy plmn="50508"
nwkname="3Telstra"
lcdonfdtime="0"
lcdofffdtime="0"
/>
<DormPolicy plmn="50501"
nwkname="One.Tel"
lcdonfdtime="0"
lcdofffdtime="0"
/>
Using Telstra? enable HD Voice (wide band amr)
dial *#197328640# (optional * at the end)
go into menu 5 audio
menu 7 wb-amr settings
then 1 to enable the wb-amr on your phone
telstra hd voice is wb-amr and will be annouced as working on the sgs2 when it's released on the 26th!
Telstra
Get TelstraOne app from Android Market. It will give u unmetered access to news, sports, weather, Bigpond, and billing. See
http://exchange.telstra.com.au/2011/07/13/new-app-bring-unmetered-content-to-next-g-androids
Yes, I get 10Mbps from my desk at 101 Collins St Melbourne CBD. From my other office at 525 Collins (Rialto), I only get about 5Mbps.
Maybe the cell network at 101 Collins isn't as congested. Weird, cuz there's prolly more yuppies at 101 than 525.
I get about 6Mbps from my apartment in Kew (Inner north east Melbourne).
@sm98 Good tip about that HD Voice.
I bought mine outright from Telechoice (an Optus reseller)
All I've done is flashed mine to the KE7 UK firmware to get rid of all the Optus bloatware on it, and now the latest XSA KF3
Pretty happy with the phone overall.
sm98 said:
disable fast dormancy ( *#9900# then disable)
in the city i got lots of wake ups with it enabled, further out it didn't do it
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, I have FD disabled via *#9900# but I still get wakeups occasionally. Interesting thing is that when I was on VillianROM 1.0 / KE2 I used to not get these wakeups even with FD disabled. They only started happening after installing KG1-based 2.3.4 android roms.
I also swear I'm getting crappier battery life with KG1 roms vs the old KE2 rom when 3G data is enabled. Currently experimenting with different modems to see which one gives better battery life
I have an Optus set on the 59 Optus plan.
I've flashed Litening and Cognition with no problems. It was great to get rid of the optus bloat and customise the phone with some themes too.
Also I've used the *#301279# to set the phone to only use the 3g network, along with the *#9900# to disable fast dormancy.
Cheers.
Hi guys,
Since this is a thread specially for Australians. I'm just wondering where's your SGS2 made in?
My first one says "Made in Korea"
Then I got one for my partner and it says "Made in China"
What are yours?
Cheers
I have a Korean made KE7 Optus version. At least it was an Optus version for about 1 hour after I got home and rooted it and put Cog 1.12 on it. 1.5ghz FTW.
I came from a Nexus One so I have had every rom ever on it. Even Ubuntu. But the SGS2 is amazing.
Good data speed on Optus. No dropouts yet.
zeitgeb3r said:
Telstra
Get TelstraOne app from Android Market. It will give u unmetered access to news, sports, weather, Bigpond, and billing. See
http://exchange.telstra.com.au/2011/07/13/new-app-bring-unmetered-content-to-next-g-androids
@sm98 Good tip about that HD Voice.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
New tests today peaked at 2.34 on the SGS1 phone. Though, as i am using Telecom NZ firmware on Froyo OS, the TelstraOne and Telstra usage apps have come in handy, thanks for that; never thought to look in the market, the most obvious place!
there sees to be .WAP / .IPH / .INTERNET apn settings for telstra. Is everyone using either one of these?
RoOSTA
I find the Korean made screen better than the Chinese made screen.
Even the battery cover, korean one clicks in more stiff and the chinese one is more loose and easier to open.
Related
Hi all,
Im from India and im about to buy my HTC HD2
Okay straight on to my query....
Im planning to shift to Canada to do my MBA from there in the next 8-9 months.
I already know that the HD2 is a quad band , world phone and its frequencies are supported in Canada.
My question is :
What are the Network Service providers in Canada that i can look for a connection purchase when i go there?
Also , if someone would be so kind as to give me details/websites where i can have a good comprehensive list of Data plans for my HD2.
P.S. its already clear but ill say it anyways. Im gonna buy the Standard HD2 version.
Please help me out ppl.
To the mods : If you feel this [Q] has been opened unnecessarily , then please excuse me as i could not find any such info anywhere in the thread.
Cheers
No help ???
What no CAnadian on this forum to give some info????
please help me out....
Bumpity bump...
Tutorial How-To for pre-MBA level user(s):
Question: "What are the Network Service providers in Canada that i can look for a connection purchase when i go there?
Also , if someone would be so kind as to give me details/websites where i can have a good comprehensive list of Data plans for my HD2."
Tutorial (for pre-MBA level users only, which having the difficulty in finding it itself):
1. Open internet browser (if you are using MS Windows, it will be the icon with the blue "E" logo of the Internet Explorer by default. If you're using Linux, then likely it will be Firefox by default).
2. In the address bar, type: www.google.com
3. In the Google's search bar, type: canada mobile provider
4. When Google will display the search results, right click on the first link displayed, stating: "List of Canadian mobile phone companies - Wikipedia..." (it will be blue again).
5. Choose: open in new window
6. The new window will be opened, and then, you will find the hidden and very difficult to obtain data about the Canadian mobile providers.
Additional information: to check the data plans, on the Wikipedia page, you have to click each provider's links to go to their pages.
Hope that this tutorial will help you, and you will go to Canada to increase your education level... definitely, you need it....
@spamtrash
Wow... this really shows ur maturity level ....
Anyone can do wat u said u fool...
Im asking the ppl who use the networks in canada
ive already visited all the sites for the network providers...
and like any common buffoon , u will believe wat is stated on the sites....
Ask the fellow man who uses these networks and he will tell u which is better for reception etc....
Im not talking about data plans .... even a kid can look it up...
Im asking for first hand experience...
and as far as ur comment.... looks like u had too much time at ur hands and no brains to come up with that,....
wats the matter ??? no jobs in the UK to keep u occupied???
In the first post, you wrote:
" if someone would be so kind as to give me details/websites where i can have a good comprehensive list of Data plans for my HD2."
now, you are stating:
"Im not talking about data plans .... even a kid can look it up..."
Emm... it seems that you are the kid, who wasn't able to look it up, first.
What is more and worse, for such "consequence" I have only one answer, my friend:
You have to ask for the psychiatric advice, because it can be or sclerosis, or shizophrenia, both of which can be (in the early stage) treated.
From another point of view: to compare the reception between the different networks, you have to ask the person, which uses two or more in the same time, using different network providers, which in the order, will have to use different MVNO Networks, as for example 7-Eleven will have same range as Rogers.
Too complicated?
I have stated: pre-MBA tutorial, not: Pre-MBA in India, so it can be too advanced for you to find and to compare by yourself.
And regarding my workload, I have some things to do... I have to correct all of the mistakes and compensate the damages caused by the located in India outsourced "helpdesks", basically because of the reason described in the old joke:
An Italian, French and Indian went for a job interview in England. Before the interview, they were told that they must compose a sentence in
English with three main words: green, pink and yellow..The Italian was first: “I wake up in the morning. I see the yellow
sun. I see the green grass and I think to myself, I hope it will be a pink
day..”
The French was next: ” I wake up in the morning, I eat a yellow banana,
a green pepper and in the evening I watch the pink panter on TV…
Last was the Indian, : “I wake up in the morning, I hear the phone
“green green“, I “pink” up the phone and I say “Yellow“
but this doesn't mean that I cannot read and answer some stupid questions to have the fun about the MBA (or: pre-MBA level) in India
P.S. Could you do me one favour? Please do not send me the PM's with the requests for answers, if I will have a time and a mood to go through your version of Hinglish, I'll definitely answer you, bro
@spamtrash
ha ha ha....
youre such a fuking retard....
LOLzzzz
There... hows that for my Hinglish for u ...
Maybe, but... I know the Candian coverage, tariffs, data plans, while... you know where to feed your sheeps, my dalici friend.
ha ha ha....
man dont stop
ur sooo funny
Wow! back to subject - I use Fido at the moment Fido is owned by Rogers it is Quad band GSM. It is a little less than Rogers. I have used CDMA (Bell) in the past but personaly did not like it. There are 3 Major Suppliers Rogers, Bell and Telus. There is a newer service called Wind mobile which has very competative pricing. Not availabe everwhere yet. If your going to a major city try Wind or try Fido "City" If going to Quebec try Vodaphone
HTC HD2will not work for 3g but runs fine on edge on Fido or Rogers (no 1700/2100 bands) but will run 3g on Wind. I have HD2 on Fido and am satisfied with edge
Fido and Rogers give you EDGE, and it works great for me.
Facebook mobile page loads in less than a second running on Opera 10.
Gamespot ( a gaming site ) running on Opera 10 with flash content loads in about 5 seconds. Rogers and Fido are the same company so you get the benefits of GSM 900 and GSM 1800 with no extra charge, that means better coverage overall.
Now if you plan to go with WIND mobile, which is the lease costly choice you must get the T-mobile version. WIND is a T-mobile branch for Canada.
I have both a T-mobile and a HK version. The HK version even though Unlocked will not support any 3G bands in Canada. But my T-mobile version runs with WIND mobiles 1700+2100 UMTS band which is 3G. WIND has great deals but the coverage is not the greatest if you live outside a major city, check the their web page for full coverage.
And the other service providers will not work with any version of HTC HD2/LEO.
odrean said:
Wow! back to subject - I use Fido at the moment Fido is owned by Rogers it is Quad band GSM. It is a little less than Rogers. I have used CDMA (Bell) in the past but personaly did not like it. There are 3 Major Suppliers Rogers, Bell and Telus. There is a newer service called Wind mobile which has very competative pricing. Not availabe everwhere yet. If your going to a major city try Wind or try Fido "City" If going to Quebec try Vodaphone
HTC HD2will not work for 3g but runs fine on edge on Fido or Rogers (no 1700/2100 bands) but will run 3g on Wind. I have HD2 on Fido and am satisfied with edge
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
THANK YOU odrean....
That was a BIG! BIG! help.....
see thats wat i was askin for in the first place.... how the ppl feel about the networks available....
Ur a lifesaver man....
M grateful for ur valuable inputs
yohan_son said:
Fido and Rogers give you EDGE, and it works great for me.
Facebook mobile page loads in less than a second running on Opera 10.
Gamespot ( a gaming site ) running on Opera 10 with flash content loads in about 5 seconds. Rogers and Fido are the same company so you get the benefits of GSM 900 and GSM 1800 with no extra charge, that means better coverage overall.
Now if you plan to go with WIND mobile, which is the lease costly choice you must get the T-mobile version. WIND is a T-mobile branch for Canada.
I have both a T-mobile and a HK version. The HK version even though Unlocked will not support any 3G bands in Canada. But my T-mobile version runs with WIND mobiles 1700+2100 UMTS band which is 3G. WIND has great deals but the coverage is not the greatest if you live outside a major city, check the their web page for full coverage.
And the other service providers will not work with any version of HTC HD2/LEO.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you yohan_son
Looks like EDGE gives you good speeds on ur HD2....
see im on vodafone in my country and frankly speaking the egde isnt that great... the speed is ok but the charges a are a little too expensive....
How do u feel about the data usage charges??? are they reasonable for Fido or Rogers??
Thanks a ton for your feedback man....
I really appreciate you inputs
P.S. : even i am an avid follower of GAMESPOT
Hey guys can u also list a decent GPS app that works well in CANADA ???
Cheers
I have the Australian Telstra version and I get 3G/HSDPA on Rogers
I'm most likely moving to Dubai in a few weeks time and, of course, I want to take my SGS2 with me! (Company offer iPhone4 as a business phone.. No thanks! )
I have an unbranded UK handset currently flashed with:
PDA: WKE2
Phone: XXKDJ
CSC: XEUKD1
Am I good to go as soon as I pop a SIM card in or is there anything specifically I need to flash?
I'm thinking my current CSC might give me problems...
Does anyone know if this is the case?
Hi there thanks for PM,
You are welcome to Dubai, It will be bit hot for you though
I have myself bought mine from UK online and have no problem with CSC, i am currently on KE7, before on KE2, KE1, KDD (all UK firmwares/CSC).. no problems with anyone.. I am able to use Mobile provider internet without any special settings (you can manually add if not working).. 2 mobile service providers in UAE
1. www.du.ae
2. www.etisalat.ae
UK mobile works here no problem.. same frequencies. BBC iplayer/ Music hub will not work here as its for UK/ EU..
SGS2 is not officially released yet in UAE and therefore no firmware is released either.
Hope this helps
BoogWeed said:
I'm most likely moving to Dubai in a few weeks time and, of course, I want to take my SGS2 with me! (Company offer iPhone4 as a business phone.. No thanks! )
I have an unbranded UK handset currently flashed with:
PDA: WKE2
Phone: XXKDJ
CSC: XEUKD1
Am I good to go as soon as I pop a SIM card in or is there anything specifically I need to flash?
I'm thinking my current CSC might give me problems...
Does anyone know if this is the case?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you for your reply! That's a great help..
Do you recommend Du or Etisalat? Which one is better for high speed mobile internet?
Dear,
it all depends on you as both are similar in few aspects, both are owned by Govt. Etisalat has more coverage since its old company.. Du covers all Urban areas and rural areas are routed through Etisalat towers. recently, after coverage agreement, I can say both are almost same in coverage.
if you work is in remote areas (no road/ cities.. mean desert) Etisalat is better but otherwise du is alright.
Du is good as it charge you per second call. Du is new so tries to give better offers..both are having trial of 4G..Du system is new and speed seems better. both have rubblish Customer service.. I changed from Etisalat to Du as it suits me for Price, got TV/Landline/Broad band from them.. one website to pay all..
off topic: Du covers all freezone, new Dubai for broadband connections/ TV/LL services and rest in Etisalat... once you are here you will know more..
BoogWeed said:
Thank you for your reply! That's a great help..
Do you recommend Du or Etisalat? Which one is better for high speed mobile internet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Great, thanks for the info!
If you are willing to shift abroad then you can rely on the international services. This service will help you to shift completely without any strain of things being not packed up.
So I have the US Galaxy S II variant which is an amazing phone but it's not the GS2 I fell for in February. I managed to flip (sell) my phone for a hefty price which is more than enough to buy the International version but in your opinion -- is it worth it?
I know the Nexus Prime, Razr, etc are being announced in 24 hours but I don't care -- for now. If I get the GS2 off or Amazon will it have NFC compatibility when it gains ground in the US? Is the home button really as flimsy as people make it out to be? All of your opinions are welcome.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using XDA App
What about the international version do you like so much better? They are nearly the same.
They are the same, minus home button.
Only nfc-ready place I've been to is starbucks. That's like having an lte phone but no lte connection in your city
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
Maybe because I've had the original Galaxy S and am not fond of the capacitive button layout, and I had numerous issues with the search button freaking out on the Captivate. The international version looks a lot better IMO, but lack of NFC is a drawback. The bad thing is someone already bought my At&t version.
re: i777 vs i9100
ErebusRaze said:
So I have the US Galaxy S II variant which is an amazing phone but it's not the GS2 I fell for in February. I managed to flip (sell) my phone for a hefty price which is more than enough to buy the International version but in your opinion -- is it worth it?
I know the Nexus Prime, Razr, etc are being announced in 24 hours but I don't care -- for now. If I get the GS2 off or Amazon will it have NFC compatibility when it gains ground in the US? Is the home button really as flimsy as people make it out to be? All of your opinions are welcome.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are a lot more differences than just the front mechanical button which everyone talks about.
#1: the i9100 has a built-in FM stereo RDS radio
#2: the i9100 has three front buttons one of which is mechanical
#3: the i9100 is factory unlocked (it was NEVER locked to start with)
#4: the i9100 has slightly thinner & smaller housing dimensions
#5: the i9100 weighs a few grams less
Here are the size/weight specs for each:
Samsung Galaxy SGH i777: Dimensions 126 x 66 x 8.9 mm Weight 121.9 g
Samsung Galaxy S II i9100: Dimensions 125.3 x 66.1 x 8.5 mm Weight 116 g
Most likely there are other slight differences which I have not yet investigated.
Check it out yourself at GSMARENA on their website.
faill quote 10 char
designgears said:
faill quote 10 char
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The man himself...
I see you traded your S II and have the At&t version at the moment. A reason you settled on this one (though your phone repertoire is pretty extensive)?
ErebusRaze said:
The man himself...
I see you traded your S II and have the At&t version at the moment. A reason you settled on this one (though your phone repertoire is pretty extensive)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
There are only three things that are in any way advantageous in choosing the ASGS2 over the ISGS2:
1) Subsidized pricing
3) Warranty with overnight replacement from AT&T
3) The ability to buy insurance from AT&T in case its lost or stolen
You can say NFC's an advantage but everyone will probably be on their next phone by the time you'll be able to do anything meaningful with it.
What you give up: (note: a lot of these are meaningless if you root/ROM)
1) Updates directly from Samsung
2) 2 year vs. 1 year warranty
3) FM Radio
4) Features and settings removed by AT&T
5) Multi-purpose hardware home button
6) $10 unlimited fake-4G
The ISGS2 was my first non-subsidized phone. I'll never buy another carrier molested phone again. I travel overseas a lot so don't have the luxury to root/ROM because every device I've modified always had problems registering on foriegn networks.
[email protected] grams and less than 1mm even worth mentioning...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
re: grams
ngocdao said:
[email protected] grams and less than 1mm even worth mentioning...
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
116g to 121.9g equals just about 6 grams difference, not 4
lol .. even at 6 grams. seriously, i cant even tell the phones in my hand or in my pocket. How light and how thin do you really need your phone to be?
i hope you dont weigh your order of french fries too fearing a few missing fries.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
BarryH_GEG said:
2) 2 year vs. 1 year warranty
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
None of the international versions have any warranty in US. You will have to deal with someone outside the US or the seller for any warranty work.
I'm in Bangkok all week w\ my SGSII (AT&T) and the thing that drives me absolutely INSANE is that AT&T blocks the ability to select which network you want to use. I have a local Thai SIM (DTAC), but I have to let the radio\ROM auto-select the network, which bugs the sh#$ out of me, because many countries have the ability to roam on several networks, and not being able to chose annoys me.
I was at the market today and they sell the SGSII International version for $516 USD, I think I may take the plunge. The US version doesn't nor never will have the number of accessories available as the international one does, so I think I'm good there, and I know I can sell my ATT version for $450-500, so likely I'll pick one up tomorrow. Good idea? For $516 it's a good price I think.
---------- Post added at 04:54 AM ---------- Previous post was at 04:52 AM ----------
ngocdao said:
How light and how thin do you really need your phone to be?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're the guy on the plane next to me who pulls out the 17" Dell from 4 years ago that's 4 inches thick aren't you?
ngocdao said:
i hope you dont weigh your order of french fries too fearing a few missing fries.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Although congrats for the worst analogy of the day!
re: network selection
bella92108 said:
I'm in Bangkok all week w\ my SGSII (AT&T) and the thing that drives me absolutely INSANE is that AT&T blocks the ability to select which network you want to use. I have a local Thai SIM (DTAC), but I have to let the radio\ROM auto-select the network, which bugs the sh#$ out of me, because many countries have the ability to roam on several networks, and not being able to chose annoys me.
I was at the market today and they sell the SGSII International version for $516 USD, I think I may take the plunge. The US version doesn't nor never will have the number of accessories available as the international one does, so I think I'm good there, and I know I can sell my ATT version for $450-500, so likely I'll pick one up tomorrow. Good idea? For $516 it's a good price I think.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
All you need to do if you want to be able to select different networks
is to unlock the AT&T phone........
As far as accessories you are right!
Misterjunky said:
All you need to do if you want to be able to select different networks
is to unlock the AT&T phone........
As far as accessories you are right!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's absolutely incorrect. You can NOT select network just by unlocking, that simply allows you to use the sim's default network. The manual network selection does NOT become usable after unlocking (I know from personal experience with the ATT SGSII AND the Infuse 4G). The only way to manual select on Infuse was to flash Rogers radio and install custom rom. Unfortunately no alternate radios are avail for i777 yet (if ever)
bella92108 said:
That's absolutely incorrect. You can NOT select network just by unlocking, that simply allows you to use the sim's default network. The manual network selection does NOT become usable after unlocking (I know from personal experience with the ATT SGSII AND the Infuse 4G). The only way to manual select on Infuse was to flash Rogers radio and install custom rom. Unfortunately no alternate radios are avail for i777 yet (if ever)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course you need to put a different sim chip into the phone if you want to
change service providors with an unlocked phone.
The advantage of a unlocked phone is just that, the ability to use different sim
chips from different service providors as long as they use the gsm networks.
Misterjunky said:
Of course you need to put a different sim chip into the phone if you want to
change service providors with an unlocked phone.
The advantage of a unlocked phone is just that, the ability to use different sim
chips from different service providors as long as they use the gsm networks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand that. Tell ya what. Unlock your phone and pop in a t-mobile SIM and try to access the network selection screen. You CAN'T. I've been through this time and time again. AT&T LOCKS the menu. So unless you replace the radio AND install a custom ROM (ie on my Infuse I had Infused 2.3.3 and Rogers Radio), you CAN NOT even get into the manual network selection screen regardless of what sim you put into the phone.
re: network settings
bella92108 said:
I understand that. Tell ya what. Unlock your phone and pop in a t-mobile SIM and try to access the network selection screen. You CAN'T. I've been through this time and time again. AT&T LOCKS the menu. So unless you replace the radio AND install a custom ROM (ie on my Infuse I had Infused 2.3.3 and Rogers Radio), you CAN NOT even get into the manual network selection screen regardless of what sim you put into the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You are right, getting into the manual network selection with a locked or
unlocked phone depends on which rom you are using, some roms let you
do that others don't. CyanogenMod 7 roms do have that feature and some
other custom roms have it too.
But changing the network selection settings is not a very good idea even
if we can do it.
But what's the point in getting into the network selection if lets say you have
an AT&T or T-mobile sim card? With an unlocked phone both of these two
sims will work fine without needing to change the network selection.
The unlocked phone will automatically detect the correct network settings
for any sim card which it's compatible with.
Misterjunky said:
You are right, getting into the manual network selection with a locked or
unlocked phone depends on which rom you are using, some roms let you
do that others don't. CyanogenMod 7 roms do have that feature and some
other custom roms have it too.
But changing the network selection settings is not a very good idea even
if we can do it.
But what's the point in getting into the network selection if lets say you have
an AT&T or T-mobile sim card? With an unlocked phone both of these two
sims will work fine without needing to change the network selection.
The unlocked phone will automatically detect the correct network settings
for any sim card which it's compatible with.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You don't travel much internationally, I see.
Yeah, if you are in Los Angeles with an AT&T sim it's likely going to find it's way onto the AT&T network, obviously. Try roaming across to Japan... you'll find that AT&T has roaming agreements with NTTdocomo, and SoftBank. NTTdocomo is great if you're sitting at Narita airport, but you may want to venture outside the airport, to say, downtown Tokyo, where Softbank dominates in coverage and reliability in parts of town. You can't switch because the ATT ROM\Radio will ALWAYS favor NTT, why? Because ATT likely has a more favorable roaming rate negotiated (ATT doesn't have customer experience first priority as you likely already know). Not being allowed manual selection means you take what ATT gives.
Now take an international SIM... say you go to Thailand, where I am this week. I go home with the SIM and I want to use it in the US. ATT's ROAMING list they force on me will allow me ONLY to use it on ATT... but wait, my SIM I bought here in Thailand doesn't roam with ATT, only T-Mobile... so I'm fu$#ed... see what I mean? If I had manual network selection, 2 clicks and I'd select t-mobile. To take that right away from a customer is 100% anti-customer, and demonstrates what a regional carrier ATT really is. The people who control these things don't leave their cubicle in Dallas, so they don't get it that someone might just want to not be screwed without phone service when they travel because the furthest the programmer geek has travelled is the $5 happy ending massage shop at the edge of town, lol
bella92108 said:
You don't travel much internationally, I see.
Yeah, if you are in Los Angeles with an AT&T sim it's likely going to find it's way onto the AT&T network, obviously. Try roaming across to Japan... you'll find that AT&T has roaming agreements with NTTdocomo, and SoftBank. NTTdocomo is great if you're sitting at Narita airport, but you may want to venture outside the airport, to say, downtown Tokyo, where Softbank dominates in coverage and reliability in parts of town. You can't switch because the ATT ROM\Radio will ALWAYS favor NTT, why? Because ATT likely has a more favorable roaming rate negotiated (ATT doesn't have customer experience first priority as you likely already know). Not being allowed manual selection means you take what ATT gives.
Now take an international SIM... say you go to Thailand, where I am this week. I go home with the SIM and I want to use it in the US. ATT's ROAMING list they force on me will allow me ONLY to use it on ATT... but wait, my SIM I bought here in Thailand doesn't roam with ATT, only T-Mobile... so I'm fu$#ed... see what I mean? If I had manual network selection, 2 clicks and I'd select t-mobile. To take that right away from a customer is 100% anti-customer, and demonstrates what a regional carrier ATT really is. The people who control these things don't leave their cubicle in Dallas, so they don't get it that someone might just want to not be screwed without phone service when they travel because the furthest the programmer geek has travelled is the $5 happy ending massage shop at the edge of town, lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just have to correct you on something, the $5 Happy ending places are NOT on the edge of Dallas, they are on Harry Hines near downtown... Not that I would know anything about that.
Hi everyone
I'm new here and I have Galaxy S2 on Virgin UK network. I would like to ask S2 owners or anyone who can help me about advice. I spent hours in many forums and I still can't truly get what is wrong with my phone.
The problem occurs when my phone is working in automode (gsm/wcdma). When I get to place without proper 3G network coverage my galaxy s2 goes in to 2G and never comes back from it to 3G (in automode). When I want to come back to 3G I have to reboot my phone or toggle it manually to WCDMA only for a second and switch it back to automode. Whenever I do it I'll have 3G (or H) to the next time when I'll go to the place without 3G coverage.
Is there anyone who owning galaxy s2 on Virgin UK with working 2G - 3G switching in automode (gsm/wcdma). Anyone even in other UK networks or it's just normal behavior for galaxy s2? I know at least 2 people who have the same problem with S2 and Virgin.
I've tried many different roms and a lot of modems too (even orange UK, 3UK, T-mobile UK stock modems), Juice Defender beta, other software switchers and wigets.
Help, please
Not on virgin, but a UK user on 02. Never experienced the issues you are describing, so it seems network specific.
Thanks mate. I need all your opinions before I'll complain to the Virgin.
Possible its the masts you are picking up from .
SGS2 and 1 bothy worked fine on Virgin for me >> have you entered the correct settings from the web site .
CSC for Virgin i always used the CPW carphone warehouse one as some UK csc do not have Virgin settings .Virgin of course runs on the TMobile network .
MASTS
http://www.sitefinder.ofcom.org.uk/search
I've tried many different roms and a lot of modems too (even orange UK, 3UK, T-mobile UK stock modems)
That will of course have invalidated your warranty from Virgin .You need to restore if sending the phone back .
jje
JJEgan said:
That will of course have invalidated your warranty from Virgin .You need to restore if sending the phone back .
jje
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Of course. I came back to stock firmware 2.3.4 last night anyway.
Thanks I'm going to check CPW carphone warehouse. Settings are from Virgin website and I'm picking up signal in BT4 1QF area now.
EDIT:
Well
I flashed GT-I9100_CPW_I9100XWKF3_I9100XXKE7_I9100CPWKD1 - CPW carphone warehouse with factory restet before of course.
Phone started in 3G obediently. I switched from automode to gsm (what occurs when I'm in place without 3G) and I switch it back to automode again to check whether in goes in automode from 2G to 3G or not. It was last time when I saw 3G icon on the screen. No luck. Still doesn't work. Absolutly the same.
I've heard similar stories on other threads, It may be coincidence, but Virgin runs on the T-Mobile network, and they have just recently started sharing their 3G network with Orange.
There may be some hiccups in the switch over, that's affecting Virgin.
I could be totally wrong, but the dates coincide with the similar Data issues that I have seen discusssed on other threads.
I would call Customer service personally.
Regards and good luck.
I just finished my conversation with customer service. They said that It can happen in places where 3G signal is weak and 2G strong. If there is strong 3G signal switching should work. It should but it doesn't. Thats what I known now. But I'm afraid I knew it before already . They said I can try to replace sim card or mobile.
buzzboy said:
I've heard similar stories on other threads, It may be coincidence, but Virgin runs on the T-Mobile network, and they have just recently started sharing their 3G network with Orange.
There may be some hiccups in the switch over, that's affecting Virgin.
I could be totally wrong, but the dates coincide with the similar Data issues that I have seen discusssed on other threads.
I would call Customer service personally.
Regards and good luck.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've noticed this a bit with my galaxy S2 and its quite annoying, i used to get the T-Mobile network all the time which provided me with 3G quite often but for some reason the switch has left my phone connected to the orange mast with no 3G. I might ring up as well.
arj154 said:
I've noticed this a bit with my galaxy S2 and its quite annoying, i used to get the T-Mobile network all the time which provided me with 3G quite often but for some reason the switch has left my phone connected to the orange mast with no 3G. I might ring up as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I upgraded another device with Orange last week, and they provided a new SIM card. I'm wondering if that's due to the switch.
Good luck.
Regards
I'll try to replace sim next week
Not seen this problem (for me) on my SGS2
SGS2-XXKL1-Hyperoid 5.2.21/Siyah-2.6.7 - Virgin UK.
Although my Virgin Blackberry has the very same problem? time for a customer service call...
Well I sorted out my problem pernamently and I now what is going on. This is network problem. Go to your network settings and change your network from Virgin to virgin I spent 1,5 hour speaking to Virgin support and they couldn't help me. The didn't know. They told me that virgin with small v it's orange in fact but we can use this network that's why it is also named virgin.
Regards
Check your connectivity with calls. My wife is with Virgin but can't get signal at work or home. Their signal on data is only the second usage of T-mobile which is not the best.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA App
Looks like this new EE network is now T-Mobile and Orange. What are Virgin using to do their data?
Well I have 2 unopened Samsung Alphas sitting in front of me.
1. SM-G850F (International from Germany)
2. SM-G850M (Unknown Origin)
I have Many sim cards that i am using. But the main one i want to use is the T-mobile USA.
What i have gathered reading is the F has the custom recovery where as the rest A,W(QuadCore) Y(Asia ?) do not.
All of them seem to have Root.
Version A is tuned for AT&T
Version W is tuned for T-Mobile USA LTE (But is a Quad)
etc etc
But the info on the M Bands is very vague, as in the Band listing on the website is always different listed for the M.
So what are my advantage of picking one over the other (M of F) for T-Mobile USA ?
As far as i know every other version than the A has exynos chipset with the octa core cpu and the A has qualcomm with quad core cpu and thats why almost every other version has root and the A dont.
Sent from my SM-G850F
Why the hell are they doing this ...
So how different is the M from F ?
I cant find any info regarding the M having custom recovery also.
Germanese said:
Why the hell are they doing this ...
So how different is the M from F ?
I cant find any info regarding the M having custom recovery also.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Havent really looked into it.
Sent from my SM-G850F
Well i just took a bite xD
SM-G850M on Tmobile USA
I have 4G Stable aka LTE
Very happy with my outdated discontinued phone hahahahahah
I agree the Bands Info on 850 M is vague or conflicting .
But it seems that you should have the
1700/ 2100 LTE Bands for Tmobile 4G LTE and the 1900 band for 3G
needed with the M Version.
Are you getting full performance on 3G , 4 G and LTE on your Alpha ? ?
Yes i am getting all bands 2g 3g 4g H+ LTE depending where i am at sometimes E. Though during a call i only get lte or h if non of those my data doeent work during a call
SM-G850M (Vodafone) = Branded
SM-G850F (Europe) = Non Branded
cqdiep said:
I upgraded to 5.02, then did factory reset. That fixed it and I'm getting LTE on ATT.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you tell me if the G850M is carrier-branded in any way? I know the G850F isn't, and I was wondering if the same is true for the G850M. Basically, I would like to receive Android updates directly from Samsung without carriers getting in the way, and I would like free use of the Portable WiFi Hotspot/Tethering feature (even without having it as part of your plan). I know Nexus phones allow you to do this.
Thanks!
unif said:
Can you tell me if the G850M is carrier-branded in any way? I know the G850F isn't, and I was wondering if the same is true for the G850M. Basically, I would like to receive Android updates directly from Samsung without carriers getting in the way, and I would like free use of the Portable WiFi Hotspot/Tethering feature (even without having it as part of your plan). I know Nexus phones allow you to do this.
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
850M is not carrier-branded...it's unlocked and sold by Vodafone. I rooted mine, so can't get updates through Samsung anymore.
I did use it to create a Wi-Fi hotspot to tether my laptop. It works well, and I do not pay extra for this feature on ATT.
cqdiep said:
850M is not carrier-branded...it's unlocked and sold by Vodafone. I rooted mine, so can't get updates through Samsung anymore.
I did use it to create a Wi-Fi hotspot to tether my laptop. It works well, and I do not pay extra for this feature on ATT.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks very much for your responses! I greatly appreciate it.
I found a 850M on eBay for $89.99 couldn't believe it, excellent condition like new. I rooted it, installed another XDA members 4.4.4 ROM but couldn't notice any difference from stock, works fine on Cricket (At&t) prepaid, 4G same speeds as my previous S5 Mini At&t version phone, around 8mbps down, 4mbps up, half that when on a call. I cannot find many 850M's on the market, it's amazing. I want to buy at least 1-2 more, these are one of the best phones Samsung produced, especially one of the last good phones with removable battery! There are more 850F's on eBay but may not have as fast data with At&t as they are EU version. After my experience with S5 mini on 5.1.1 ROM I noticed much faster battery drain and prefer 4.4.4 performance. Hope my post helps someone=) -Aje
ROM
newaje said:
I found a 850M on eBay for $89.99 couldn't believe it, excellent condition like new. I rooted it, installed another XDA members 4.4.4 ROM but couldn't notice any difference from stock, works fine on Cricket (At&t) prepaid, 4G same speeds as my previous S5 Mini At&t version phone, around 8mbps down, 4mbps up, half that when on a call. I cannot find many 850M's on the market, it's amazing. I want to buy at least 1-2 more, these are one of the best phones Samsung produced, especially one of the last good phones with removable battery! There are more 850F's on eBay but may not have as fast data with At&t as they are EU version. After my experience with S5 mini on 5.1.1 ROM I noticed much faster battery drain and prefer 4.4.4 performance. Hope my post helps someone=) -Aje
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you provide a link to the ROM you installed and instructions? Thanks!
---------- Post added at 06:16 AM ---------- Previous post was at 06:16 AM ----------
Can you provide a link to the ROM you installed and instructions? Thanks!
Here is the link to the ROM.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/gal...m-rom-lukrangelo-v1-brazil-zto-4-4-4-t3116098
However I didn't notice any difference from the stock ROM, was surprised to see the same original games included which I consider bloatware. Anyway the phone works great after rooting and uninstalling a lot of things, although it did suddenly crash and restart yesterday while on a phone call, first and only time in about a week I've had it. I love this phone and the size is perfect.
Really wanted to try this ROM but DL link is no longer working and no one is replying lately.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/gal...m-kf-rom-kk-v1-1-18-04-2015-sm-g850m-t3086594
CM for 850F works on other 850?
Probably not as they have different radio's and frequencies, I wouldn't try it. Still trying to get someone to share the slim rom for 850M.
newaje said:
Probably not as they have different radio's and frequencies, I wouldn't try it. Still trying to get someone to share the slim rom for 850M.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It works! http://forum.xda-developers.com/galaxy-alpha/general/unified-exynos-g850f-m-thread-t3515138