So I've been hearing a lot of good things about this ROM for us vibrant users.
Nonetheless, there is yet to confirm if the 911 issue is resolved? does anyone know and/or can confirm?
I am really surprised why people would even bother taking the risk of moving around with the 911 functionality.
I'm an old fart, 58 today, and lived most of my life before 911 existed. It no big deal to me. I have my local police and fire departments numbers on my phone and the same for where my elderly mother lives as I can't get her any help with 911 anyway. I don't see any more need than that. But that's me.
Thanks for the reply.
But I was wondering what about students, working professionals who tend to work away from their area (students studying in different cities) and for individuals who are travelling. You never know when an emergency strikes (kinda like the reason it was defined in the first place)
Sincerely,
alh.titan said:
Thanks for the reply.
But I was wondering what about students, working professionals who tend to work away from their area (students studying in different cities) and for individuals who are travelling. You never know when an emergency strikes (kinda like the reason it was defined in the first place)
Sincerely,
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should check the developers section for the threads about 911, this has been discussed already, it comes down to not having official samsung source code, everything that the devs have acomplish so far has been thru reverse engineering (very amazing btw) but with out time/money/equipment the devs cant do much.
I was running build 14, tried build 15 and had real trouble with it, recommend trying 14 first or waiting for 16. Haven't tried 911.
E911 has indeed been fixed in CM7.
http://review.cyanogenmod.com/#change,11492
As long as the CM9 build doesn't have a custom libaudio for Vibrant, it should work. But, caveat emptor, as always with ROMs.
bobshute said:
I'm an old fart, 58 today, and lived most of my life before 911 existed. It no big deal to me. I have my local police and fire departments numbers on my phone and the same for where my elderly mother lives as I can't get her any help with 911 anyway. I don't see any more need than that. But that's me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So someone who lived most of their lives before seat belts were invented should be able to say that they aren't worried that their car doesn't have seat belts because they were alive for many years before seat belts came out? New safety technology is always going to be coming out. When the next thing comes out every person on the planet will have lived most of their lives before it existed but that doesn't mean that they shouldn't be using it.
Having the local police and fire department phone numbers in your phone are not a replacement to 911.
- 911 calls can be made on wireless networks that you are not a subscriber of. You're out of service on T-Mobile, but you can pick up a signal from some small company. They aren't going to allow you to call a standard number but you can call 911. If you have an old phone with no SIM card, you can't call the fire department but you can call 911.
- Your location is sent when you call 911. If you just call the police department, they will not know where you are. Because you are calling from a cell phone you could literally be anywhere. This may not seem important but there are many times when the caller is unsure of his location or is unable to communicate his location to the operator.
- 911 calls are automatically routed/transferred to the correct answering point. If you're out of town, you don't want to call your hometown fire department. Calling 911 assures you will always be connect to the correct people.
There are also other advantages but I don't really understand them well enough to explain them, but I do know that they provide many advantages over simply dialing the police department. There is a reason that the government has many laws regarding the 911 system and how it interacts with cell phones; there are many important advantages of the E911 system.
Related
So i've just signed up for a cell phone plan, they said is unlimited social networking browsing, didn't look at the fine print and they said is just for non-smart phone only...
I talked to their technical support and it looks like they check the phone's IMEI to determine what phone/model i am running... so i'm wondering if there is a way i could either change/hide my IMEI so that i can browse facebook and twitter with my current plan.
I asked the technical support what's the different between a regular phone browsing and a smart phone browsing, they said it has to do with the data compression and such... if that's the case, is there an app out there that i could use to simulate non-smart phone browser?
Changing your IMEI is illegal. It's your mobile's ID. International ID. Stolen mobiles have a 00000 etc IMEI, for instance. Some phones when wiped lose their IMEI. You can change it, but you could get in trouble. It's also very hard. Normally, only certain operator shops can reflash your phone and RESTORE your IMEI. I know this since I had an issue with that. 0'ed IMEI due to reset.
If they check your IMEI I don't think any app will solve that. But I'm not the best person to point you in the right direction.
Hum... i also have my old Samsung F488, if is possible i could use that one's IMEI, since i own both phone.
You'd be passing one phone as another. As a rule, tampering with your IMEI is illegal and operators only rarely restore it, if you have documentation proving the phone is yours. They don't change it.
When a phone is stolen, the IMEI is wiped so it can't be traced. That's why they won't change it nor restore it just like that... I doubt you'll have any luck asking for IMEI transfer...
sucks... ok thanks
You can try... I just wouldn't expect it to work. My experience comes from Portuguese operators, but it's probably the same all around.
From what i read, is legal to change it in North America. Is just lame that i'm paying for 50$ plan, but can't do zero browsing with this ****. I think i will have to roll back to some 30$ plan and only do text messaging with my smart phone lol..
Well, then you could try. Good luck then!
Yea, well the question remain, how. LOL
At least here, you need specialized shops, not all operator shops can do that, ask the nearest where your phone can be flashed to change the IMEI
codenamezero said:
From what i read, is legal to change it in North America. Is just lame that i'm paying for 50$ plan, but can't do zero browsing with this ****. I think i will have to roll back to some 30$ plan and only do text messaging with my smart phone lol..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Disclaimer: I'm not from the U.S. so I might be wrong.
After some reading, there's no law in the U.S. that even talks about IMEIs, so technically it is legal to change it, however, since most if not all carriers changer certain things based on your IMEI I think that changing your IMEI would effectively violate your service contract (if they found out), so instead of trying to change your IMEI I'd go to your carrier and ask for an unlimited smartphone plan.
codenamezero said:
is there an app out there that i could use to simulate non-smart phone browser
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The problem here is not the app, it's the internet protocols that are used by different types of cellphones, see, dumb-phones use WAP as the internet protocol, whereas smartphones use plain HTTP.
Boy, I am sick of ignorant goofballs spewing 'It's illegal' with no facts whatsoever to back their opinion up.
IF IT IS ILLEGAL, TELL ME WHAT LAW IT VIOLATES OR SHUT UP!
Seriously, this is a valid question that goes to a host of privacy and fair use issues, and I cannot believe that no one has any facts to share. I could give a hoot less if you think that just because it is a serial number it is somehow forbidden by God that you should mess with it. Personally, I would love to have a smartphone without having to pay for wireless data. The country would be up in arms if the cable company decided to charge you extra because your TV is capable of receiving HD signal, so why are we such sheep that we all pony up for data plans we don't really need? Nearly everywhere I go with my phone, even in a rural state, has WiFi. I need a data plan like I need silk boxers.
OwenW71 said:
Boy, I am sick of ignorant goofballs spewing 'It's illegal' with no facts whatsoever to back their opinion up.
IF IT IS ILLEGAL, TELL ME WHAT LAW IT VIOLATES OR SHUT UP!
Seriously, this is a valid question that goes to a host of privacy and fair use issues, and I cannot believe that no one has any facts to share. I could give a hoot less if you think that just because it is a serial number it is somehow forbidden by God that you should mess with it. Personally, I would love to have a smartphone without having to pay for wireless data. The country would be up in arms if the cable company decided to charge you extra because your TV is capable of receiving HD signal, so why are we such sheep that we all pony up for data plans we don't really need? Nearly everywhere I go with my phone, even in a rural state, has WiFi. I need a data plan like I need silk boxers.
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Click to collapse
Two things:
1) Since nobody's been anything but a nice person trying to help I think your reaction is way out of line, no need to YELL or BOLD your opinion in order to be heard.
2) If you had taken a moment to read the entire post you would've read this:
Akath19 said:
After some reading, there's no law in the U.S. that even talks about IMEIs, so technically it is legal to change it, however, since most if not all carriers change certain things based on your IMEI I think that changing your IMEI would effectively violate your service contract (if they found out), so instead of trying to change your IMEI I'd go to your carrier and ask for an unlimited smartphone plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So that answers your question in a very civil and decent way, but since you might not get it that way, here's the answer in your own style:
THERE IS NO F-ING LAW THAT EVEN TALKS ABOUT IMEI, SO NO LAW = LEGAL
I was just stating an opinion regarding the fact that changing your IMEI is kinda immoral considering that that practice is done mostly on stolen phones in order to use them on any network after they've been reported.
So to put it plainly there is no law that forbids it and it'd be nice if you read posts before attacking the posters.
While I agree that yelling is normally in bad taste, I feel strongly that someone needs to be yelling about this. In every forum I go to, every time this question is asked we get flooded with meaningless opinions, nearly every one of them saying that even thinking it is illegal. Rubbish. Up until very recently, IMEI numbers stood a good chance of not even being unique, and even now many may not be, since phone manufacturers are assigned blocks of numbers, and it is up to them to govern the assignment of the IMEI to the hardware.
As it stands, GSM operators in the US are using your IMEI number to make sure you are being charged for a data plan if you use a smartphone, even if you don't want a data plan.
I, for one, would like my provider to think I'm using a RAZR or any other dumbphone, and the only way to do it is to spoof my IMEI. I don't believe it is illegal to do so, although my provider would surely be peeved. iPhone users can do this with a bit of software.
Here is what I'd like to see from this conversaation:
1. Establish conclusively that IMEI changes are legal.
2. Discuss methods by which a new IMEI could be entered in software.
3. Avoid discussing how the carriers may feel about it. We already rooted, right?
Again, I apologize for ruffling feathers by shouting. I hope the message came across to those with opinions but no facts. This is a legitimate question of fair-use, and I'd love to hear from someone who has facts regarding the legality of this idea. Even better, I'd welcome a way to actually accomplish the change.
Thank you for your answer, I honestly thought that you were just flaming for flaming's sake.
Sadly there's not much info anywhere besides a lawyer's office, after some serious digging, most people seem to think that changing an IMEI in the US is a Class C felony, however no one knows exactly where is that law written.
I'd also advise you on asking these kinds of things in the forum 'cause I know people have been banned for asking these kinds of things. I know that's stupid but some mods in the forum think that just asking a question about something illegal in certain countries constitutes a felony in an of itself.
So, to sum things up:
1) Apparently it's illegal to change your IMEI, but I'd consult with a lawyer to know exactly where is that written.
2) People in general think that just talking about illegal activities is a felony so I'd expect much hate towards you for asking.
3) IMEI's in smartphones are not software based, meaning if you want to change it you'd need to isolate the chip on which they're located and change it with dongles and flasher tools (not software)
Sorry that I can't say anymore but I'm not from the US so that's all the info I can gather.
I do know in the uk it is a arrestable offense to change a phones imei no., dont know about anywere else.
I found a seller on eBay that changed my IMEI for $50. I bet he can give you any IMEI you want. He claims to change the mother board with that of a different IMEI but im sure he is just using the flash tools I read about wile doing google searches. The flash tools are physical items that connect into the phones usb port and or directly to the chip on the motherboard. They cost about $500. There are also ways to do it via software on some phones especially androids but there is more risk involved for the do it your selfer.
I am such a do it your selfer and after reading about it for 12 hours I decided that id have to read about it for 3 more before I felt comfortable and even then the risk of bricking was greater then having the pros do it for me. This high risk level is why you dont see much talk of the processes in the forums online. The pros know its best to use the hardware so they buy it and protect the process by not disclosing it online. The talk of its process that I did find on line involves so many abbreviations and new terms that I was heavily burdened with not understanding.
The bottom line is unless you plan on doing it for an income its not worth learning how to do.
Now back to the original question. Will the internet work on a smart phone if you change the IMEI to that of a none smart phone? Will you be stuck using the carriers dumbed down WAP internet or have no internet at all? Maybe you could run some sort of dumb phone simulator to gain access to a dumb phones web browser program?
For those of you that want to rag on me for reviving an old thread. Know that many people like my self searching google for knowledge end up here and will see my post. Thats how I got here so this thread is not so dead after all. Threads that start with a real question need more real answers.
---------- Post added at 01:26 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:20 PM ----------
Here is a software example of how to change the IMEI of a cretin android.
I doubt this app works on any other model.
http://changemtkimei.blogspot.com/
As I remember, I lost the IMEI (actually it was replaced by something like 00499010640000) on my Samsung Galaxy i9000 and Galaxy Tab P6200 when I SIM unlocked them, so at least on Samsung this is possible, the IMEI was stored in the EFS files.
I'm writing a new app that will cost users to pay a very low fee per month. It will allow them to unmask caller id that's private (such as "trapcall") and also give the user the callers name/organization (if registered) along with the state that they're calling from.
I already have the backend tested and working. I've called from private and it gives me the number I'm calling from. If the information is there it also gives me the name and location (state) of the phone.
My confusion lies with the fact that I can't figure out how the "trapcall" app forwards the number to their server. And once I figure that out, I will need to allow my server's call through and not let it get stuck in a loop. With the app, I will then need to change the callerid (name) that shows up for the new call on the user's phone (like "cityid").
Mostly, if someone could tell me how to forward calls with an android app, I can figure the rest out.
I tested the backend by running my asterisk pbx server by connecting as a user with the SIPdroid app. Then on my phone (SGS4G) I set call forwarding (manually) to the number that calls into my asterisk server. When I call my phone it gets forwarded to my server, gets processed, then I see the correct caller id on SIPdroid.
Hence, I already have everything working I just need help with parts of writing the app.
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App
Haha nevermind I figured it out.... haha... I should be releasing the app soon with a limited number of free accounts. Free accounts will be for XDA users to help me beta test
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App
Is this only available in US?
Yes and it will be available for any cell phone under most major us carriers. For services not in the us it might be slightly more difficult, but if your not in the us. Let me know your country and local carriers and I'll see what I can do
Sent from my SGH-T959V using XDA App
Virus Kingdom Sprint HTC Evo
I'd be willing to test. Running Liquid Thunderbread AOSP on Verizon with the Thunderbolt.
I would like to test as well, running cm7 on thunderbolt
I'm in, Droid Charge.
I'll beta test rooted vibrant, rooted sgs 4g, rooted mytouch4g, rooted evo4g
Questions or Problems Should Not Be Posted in the Development Forum
Please Post in the Correct Forums
Moving to Q&A
I'll beta test.
I have a rooted Dell Streak 5".
Canada, on Telus.
Just a word of caution to the OP. The last guy that made something that did what cityid did, was threatened with lawsuits from that douchebag company. I know your app does more than it, but just mentioning it. They have some sort of sham patent they claim is related to their product. Assuming you want to battle them out, you can probably get it revoked. It looked like it screamed "prior art."
I would love to test. Rooted 3g slide, yes its an old phone I'm working on that. In Texas.
yareally said:
Just a word of caution to the OP. The last guy that made something that did what cityid did, was threatened with lawsuits from that douchebag company. I know your app does more than it, but just mentioning it. They have some sort of sham patent they claim is related to their product. Assuming you want to battle them out, you can probably get it revoked. It looked like it screamed "prior art."
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, actually that's one of the reasons this beta release is taking so long... It's all working (well, mostly). I just need to find an alternative to what CityId does. I'm gonna try to incorporate SMS for details such as location of call and caller id. As far as the number being "UnMasked" that's all figured out
I've read today that all Android phones (and others) have Carrier IQ installed in them at the factory to that is capable of transmitting keystrokes, website visits, email and SMS data to the carrier.
My questions is, Can we build a ROM without it? Below is the link referring to the software.
Thanks.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-5...ets-secretly-logging-keystrokes-sms-messages/
With all of your reading you forgot to read the multiple threads in this forum about this.
No our phones don't have it right now so no we can not remove it.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I777 using xda premium
pj1000 said:
I've read today that all Android phones (and others) have Carrier IQ installed in them at the factory to that is capable of transmitting keystrokes, website visits, email and SMS data to the carrier.
My questions is, Can we build a ROM without it? Below is the link referring to the software.
Thanks.
http://news.cnet.com/8301-13506_3-5...ets-secretly-logging-keystrokes-sms-messages/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Whoever told you all android phones had it was an idiot. Only some of them do - nearly all Sprint units, only newer AT&T units like the ****rocket and the Gingerbread updates for Infuse do.
(Probably Cappy GB has it and future updates for ours might.)
From what I understand, it doesn't send anything out of phones that have it installed, it just echoes data to the debug console.
Do you really think att needs that software to know your physical location? Does att need that to read your SMS? Know what numbers you dial?
Att could probably easily identify if you tether, or load a custom ROM on your phone. Its a matter of priority, and whether its worth the effort. Everything you do on your phone runs through their services. They know everything.
A program like that may make it easier for them to get the data, but I doubt it gives them any information that they couldn't get themselves if they really wanted it.
I don't see the big deal about it. What do I care if att knows where I am, who I call, and what I text, they already know all that. If att collecting data about how I use my phone leads to a better optimised data network, or better coverage then go for it.
What's next? People upset that google may be reading your Gmail? Or Comcast knowing what you watch on TV? Your credit card company knowing where you shop?
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
quarlow said:
Do you really think att needs that software to know your physical location? Does att need that to read your SMS? Know what numbers you dial?
Att could probably easily identify if you tether, or load a custom ROM on your phone. Its a matter of priority, and whether its worth the effort. Everything you do on your phone runs through their services. They know everything.
A program like that may make it easier for them to get the data, but I doubt it gives them any information that they couldn't get themselves if they really wanted it.
I don't see the big deal about it. What do I care if att knows where I am, who I call, and what I text, they already know all that. If att collecting data about how I use my phone leads to a better optimised data network, or better coverage then go for it.
What's next? People upset that google may be reading your Gmail? Or Comcast knowing what you watch on TV? Your credit card company knowing where you shop?
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Said like a true lamb... lol
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda premium
borguesian said:
Said like a true lamb... lol
Sent from my SGH-I777 using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
By call means, enlighten me.
How should the system work? How do they deliver your message if they don't know what to send? How do they connect your call if they don't know what you dialed? How do they send you a website without knowing the web address you input? How do they route a call to you if they don't know what towers you are connected to, and where those towers are?
My point is that people are up in arms because att has has access to data that you give them on a daily basis. They need that data to serve you as a customer.
Nothing you do on the internet, or using wireless networks will ever be truly private. The only thing changing here is how the data is collected, not whether the data is collected.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
quarlow said:
By call means, enlighten me.
How should the system work? How do they deliver your message if they don't know what to send? How do they connect your call if they don't know what you dialed? How do they send you a website without knowing the web address you input? How do they route a call to you if they don't know what towers you are connected to, and where those towers are?
My point is that people are up in arms because att has has access to data that you give them on a daily basis. They need that data to serve you as a customer.
Nothing you do on the internet, or using wireless networks will ever be truly private. The only thing changing here is how the data is collected, not whether the data is collected.
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
+1 quarlow
Very well said.
I can't really post a link but it seems like it has access to more than just your general txt/call/web data
From what I read in an article from Huffingtonpost.com
"The application, which is labeled on Eckhart’s HTC smartphone as "HTC IQ Agent," also logs the URL of websites searched on the phone, even if the user intends to encrypt that data using a URL that begins with "HTTPS," Eckhart said."
and from electronista.com
"The video also shows that the software records keystrokes. It likewise records calls with network strength values, which primarily allows carriers to fix problems but could also be used to intercept data. CarrierIQ is also collecting keystrokes of incompleted calls and even random keystrokes, or more than it needs
When using Wi-Fi, CarrierIQ records website security information, including URL and even passwords sent over the ostensibly secure HTTPS. This doesn't involve Sprint, as it's on Wi-Fi, so it shouldn't be recorded, Holly concludes."
In my opinion, it's one thing to know that a carrier obviously has access to much of this information if and when they should need it for court orders and other legal reasons. It's an entirely other thing though to specifically have software installed and intertwined into the core of the phone that has the potential to feed this information in another manner which obviously isn't explained to the end user.
I don't do anything on my phone that I wouldn't want them to see for very obvious reasons as stated above. But I would like to have at least the 'appearance' that not everything I do is going to be sifted through by AT&T or a 3rd party vendor. This type of software and the relative 'hush-hush' nature of it doesn't give me that feeling. It's like a rogue app just sitting in a dormant state waiting for AT&T or whoever to fire it up and log away.
Ok I'll end the paranoia and I don't think we have a basis to point our finger one way or the other yet, but clearly it's something I think that needs to be clarified and understood better.
Back in the olde timey days when folks just had land lines with which to communicate, the FCC made it illegal for third parties - yes, even carriers - to intercept and disclose conversations of their customers to third parties. Have we come all the way around to "let them use my personal communications as they see fit since they have it anyway?" I never thought I would see relatively sophisticated users, such as several of those contributing here, say "I do nothing wrong so I don't care who uses my data and for what purpose." Yikes.
pj1000 said:
Back in the olde timey days when folks just had land lines with which to communicate, the FCC made it illegal for third parties - yes, even carriers - to intercept and disclose conversations of their customers to third parties. Have we come all the way around to "let them use my personal communications as they see fit since they have it anyway?" I never thought I would see relatively sophisticated users, such as several of those contributing here, say "I do nothing wrong so I don't care who uses my data and for what purpose." Yikes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Welcome to the Patriot act.
[Obligatory favorable statement about the Patriot Act]
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
I to agree with the carriers already know EVERYTHING we do. Whether we like it or not, that's how it works. But that takes place on THEIR end.
What I don't like is not knowing if it's secure. Main reason so many people were ticked their iphone were tracking them. Most knew it could be done, but the fact it stored that info on their phone with no encryption what-so-ever.
This is on OUR end now. The more ways to access everything we do, the greater the security risk.
If I get the choice, I'm definitely getting it off my phone. But if they prove it's without doubt secure? I still don't like it, but I'd feel a whole lot better about it. So what's the chance that will happen?
Sent from my páhhōniē
Here if yall want to know about CIQ. Good Read and good information for you to mull over. http://www.xda-developers.com/android/the-storm-is-not-over-yet-lets-talk-about-ciq/ Oh and MOST Devices that have this stupid thing on it that get root the first thing to get disabled is this little gem so I wouldn't worry about it too horribly much. I have seen a dev going around that strictly is going through phones that have it and removing it.
malickie said:
Here if yall want to know about CIQ. Good Read and good information for you to mull over. http://www.xda-developers.com/android/the-storm-is-not-over-yet-lets-talk-about-ciq/ Oh and MOST Devices that have this stupid thing on it that get root the first thing to get disabled is this little gem so I wouldn't worry about it too horribly much. I have seen a dev going around that strictly is going through phones that have it and removing it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good article...
Oh yea here is a link that I found over in the HTC Vivid section just in case CIQ ever does hit our device I would assume the same thing could be done to remove it from the SGSII....
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1370541
@Kadin
Yea good article although a bit scary when you see all this thing does.
quarlow said:
Do you really think att needs that software to know your physical location? Does att need that to read your SMS? Know what numbers you dial?
Att could probably easily identify if you tether, or load a custom ROM on your phone. Its a matter of priority, and whether its worth the effort. Everything you do on your phone runs through their services. They know everything.
A program like that may make it easier for them to get the data, but I doubt it gives them any information that they couldn't get themselves if they really wanted it.
I don't see the big deal about it. What do I care if att knows where I am, who I call, and what I text, they already know all that. If att collecting data about how I use my phone leads to a better optimised data network, or better coverage then go for it.
What's next? People upset that google may be reading your Gmail? Or Comcast knowing what you watch on TV? Your credit card company knowing where you shop?
Sent from my Galaxy S II (i777)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the carrier can do all this already then you have to wonder why they have to put something like Carrier IQ on our phones.
What's up guys! I got this pretty cool gig in Japan that I will start in mid-May that's going to last a year at the very least (the American working now with the company said they wanted him to come back for another year, but he had other things here he wanted to pursue.) Anyway, I have quite a few questions and concerns regarding my cell phone service here, as well as my future service in Japan.
Here in the US:
I am not one to resist change... hell, I'm moving halfway across the world (Hiroshima) in a couple of months... but if there is one thing I do not like doing it is most definitely getting a new cell phone number! I have a five week (paid) vacation in December, and I would like to come back to my good ol' T-Mobile HD2 for that month and if I am only on the job for a year, I'd like to come back to the same number. But that's not important, and I don't want anyone to focus on that (like I know some will initially), the question is what is the cheapest way I can go about keeping my current number? As I mentioned, I am currently with T-Mobile, so I'm thinking the cheapest and easiest way to go would be to switch to prepaid after my contract expires? Any other suggestions?
Over there in Japan:
This is the more complex situation. I'm still reading up on the wireless phone service in Japan, and it is quite a bit different from the system we have over here in the States, so if someone catches me saying something incorrect, please let me know!
Anyway, I want an Android phone. Keitai are unique and all, but when it comes down to it, I'd like to be able to keep sync my contacts to Google and use SMS (possibly) to communicate with my family and friends here in the US. The next time I'm in contact with the American who works for the company I'll be with, I will ask him what service he and his co-workers use... though I suspect it's SoftBank, because I believe he has an iPhone. If that's the case, the question of my service provider will (reluctantly) be answered as, and someone correct me if I'm wrong, SoftBank users can talk to other SoftBank users free while being charged when talking to people on other providers no matter what time of day? That being said, for those with the experience, how important is it to use the same provider as the majority of the people you talk to? According to subscription numbers, SoftBank greatly trails docomo in number of subscribers, however I have read online that most people I would likely be communicating with will have SoftBank... very confusing.
The next major question is, of course, which Android phone should I purchase? This is a difficult question because if I am only over there for a year, I would like to be able to bring the phone back to the US and use it. I also would prefer buying a phone that has a decent-sized developer community... Obviously the Galaxy Nexus and the Galaxy S II HD LTE come to mind. The international versions of the phones are able to run on UTMS 2100, which (correct me if I'm wrong) means I should be golden for 3G use with AT&T/T-Mobile AND docomo/SoftBank (I don't really care about LTE at this point of its life.) If all that is correct, then it comes down to which phone to buy... the Galaxy Nexus is sweet and all, but the Galaxy S II HD LTE is better equipped... and I'll be running CyanogenMod 9 on whichever one I buy anyway, so software is not an issue. Decisions...
Last, but certainly the most important question I have (in my opinion), is what will be the cheapest way to communicate with my family and friends in the US while I am away for a year? I haven't done much research into this yet, but what are your opinions... Skype, Google Voice... there are some Internet texting options available on the market that may give me the ability to text back and forth, but some of those apps are proprietary. Does anyone know any apps that will give me the ability to text people who don't use the app or have dumbphones? I have no problem spending a bit of money, but I'd like to find the cheapest way possible to keep in contact with loved ones.
I know this is super long, but I want to be thorough in my research and understanding of the environment I will be moving to within the next couple of months. Thanks for taking the time to read and response!
I think the cheapest way to keep your number would be to buy a dumb phone and get the most minimum plan you can. I would buy a nexus because you can use it on t-mobile when you get back. I am not 100% sure, but i think gosms is free texting that can text anyone, regardless of app use. For people with smartphones, a great voip app is viber.
Get your new number and keep your old one. then quickly blast out the new number via SMS to all your contacts. You can use something like what's app to keep in touch for free. All you need is a 3G phone while you are in Japan.
WhatsApp is great, but it's only really good for sending messages to people that have smartphones and data plans. If someone has a smart phone and data plan, you can easily convince them to install the app, because it's unobtrusive and the messages act like text messages. But it won't help you communicate with everyone.
lowandbehold
I think the cheapest way to keep your number would be to buy a dumb phone and get the most minimum plan you can. I would buy a nexus because you can use it on t-mobile when you get back. I am not 100% sure, but i think gosms is free texting that can text anyone, regardless of app use. For people with smartphones, a great voip app is viber.
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I use GO SMS right now and they have a proprietary messaging feature called GO Chat that only others with the app can use. Viber sounds almost exactly what I'm looking for, except I won't be able to use it with my mom, as she has a dumbphone.
My gripe with the Galaxy Nexus is the lack of a microSD card, another reason why I'm considering buying the Galaxy S II HD LTE, which apparently AT&T will be bringing to us over here as the Skyrocket HD. That would make purchasing one easier and cheaper than buying from overseas.
androidapk.net
Get your new number and keep your old one. then quickly blast out the new number via SMS to all your contacts.
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By new number, do you mean my Japanese phone number?
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Set up a google voice account. That's a simple way to be texting anyone you know. Just make sure they have that number. As far as keeping your stateside number, I believe Tmob has a service where you can have your line lay dormant for some period of time. I don't know how long for or what the cost is or anything like that. I think I remember that being an option when I had them.
Jesushaxyou said:
Set up a google voice account. That's a simple way to be texting anyone you know. Just make sure they have that number. As far as keeping your stateside number, I believe Tmob has a service where you can have your line lay dormant for some period of time. I don't know how long for or what the cost is or anything like that. I think I remember that being an option when I had them.
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I've done a ton of reading on Google Voice today and I may have come up with a solution, though I don't know if it will work, as I've never used Google Voice before.
It's my understanding that when a number is ported to Google Voice, it ends the service with whoever the provider is, and I do not have to renew service with another cell phone provider in order to keep my number (correct me on this if I'm wrong.) Ironically, my contract with T-Mobile ends a couple days before I am supposed to fly over to Japan.
So when my contract is up, all I simply need to do is port my current number over to Google Voice and I will have the ability to send and receive texts to and from (and here's an important question) anyone... or... only those who have data plans? Someone with a dumbphone or without Google Voice will be able to text me, right?
As for making and receiving calls, I'm look at GrooVe IP as a way to accomplish this while being able to keeping my current cell phone number. Does anyone have any experience with that app?
You can text anyone with texting on their plan from GVoice. A buddy of mine has a feature phone and he receives them just fine.
For few months now, I am getting robocalls from spoofed number, classic case of neighbor spoofing. Has anyone figured out how to address it?
I usually do not answer the calls and have deactivated voice mailbox as well, but sometimes I expect phone calls where I am not aware of the number. At that moment, I don't know if I should answer the call or not.
For example, last week, I was expecting a call back from the doctor. They have multiple numbers in the practice and I don't any of those numbers. I have central number only. The doc tried calling me 5 times but I didn't answer the call because the number was not known to me. Finally, he sent me a mail on the portal and asked me to call back. So I did. I apologized profusely and luckily, he didn't mind as he is facing same issues.
I am trying to avoid such situation again.
Apps like Robokiller and similar haven't worked in my case. I have Pixel XL, fully updated, rooted but as many claim, I never get red screen on spam calls. I am using Hiya (free) too, but it isn't of much help either. I am on at&t MVNO Airvoice Wireless, if it makes any difference.
Thanks for all ideas in advance.