Hey Everyone,
I'm going to France/UK for a month in about 3 weeks
But I would still like to get in contact with my family here in the states. I was wondering if anyone knew the best way to get service while outside of the country.
Would it be cheaper to get a sim card there and plop it into my phone or call ATT and tell them I'm traveling and that I need service there.
Lastly, if I go the sim card route, do I need to do anything to be able to use the card or do I drop it in and it works?
Thanks again!
Firstly, congratulations and I hope you have an amazing time. Last summer I went to Greece, Italy, and France so what I did was turn off my data (just the toggle in settings) and used the wifi over there for apps that let you call or text others who have the same app. At&t also has a messaging plan where you get 100 texts for like ten dollars or so I think but you can't double up -_- for some reason. Don't buy any At&t overseas data plans, they will charge you an arm and a leg.
But any ways, if you know you are going to populated parts of the country where you'll get wifi, then you should be good with that to talk to friends/family here for a really good portion of the day. (many cafes and such offer free wifi but hotels, you'll have to pay but it's super minimal- equivalent to about three dollars on average for your stay there)
Again, wishing you the best of luck.
3 possible options outside of using ATT
first call att and see if they unlock your phone for you - if not use cellularunlock (~$25) to get the unlock code, once overseas, buy a local sim and use that
if wifi is available use that - first sign up for google voice then install grooveIP and log in with your google voice account - you can not make wifi based phone calls (caveat - not sure if groove ip enabled yet in Uk or france)
use Skype - sign up for thier very cheap monthly subscriptions, and use that when in wifi range
jluu1286 said:
Hey Everyone,
I'm going to France/UK for a month in about 3 weeks
But I would still like to get in contact with my family here in the states. I was wondering if anyone knew the best way to get service while outside of the country.
Would it be cheaper to get a sim card there and plop it into my phone or call ATT and tell them I'm traveling and that I need service there.
Lastly, if I go the sim card route, do I need to do anything to be able to use the card or do I drop it in and it works?
Thanks again!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the replies guys!
I think from the look of things I'll get my phone unlocked and just get a sim card there.
I'm going to hope that there is a ton of free wi fi so I can call the family back home but I also need service to keep in contact in towns while I'm there.
Also, will unlocking the phone affect anything? Because I'm currently rooted and running TheUnofficial.
Nope. Unlocking a phone lets you use carriers overseas. Has nothing to do with os.
-Once you go NOTE, you'd say 4 inches a Joke
-iOS = inspiring Outdated Software
Hey there,
Nowadays lots of things there, you can contact your family very easy and free services. There's lots of application on the phone, you can contact through Skype, WhatsApp, IMO and there is lots of apps are available. You can easily video call with these apps. You only need a good internet connection which you can easily find in the UK. Happy journey
Thanks!
Related
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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Click to collapse
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.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
By new number, do you mean my Japanese phone number?
Please use the Q&A Forum for questions &
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Moving to Q&A
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.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
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.
my mom is here, in cambodia, visiting from the states. I'm trying to unlock her phone, so she can use the SIM here. Her phone is rooted with the stock ROM, would installing a custom ROM unlock her phone? or if there is another way to unlock her phone, without the unlock code from the AT&T, let me know. Thanks.
yeah. pay an online site for the code. does she really need to make long distance calls from her note? why not just grab a throw away local prepaid phone.
i dont think there are any free options at the moment. well there is Dell Fongo wifi calling app.
as stated, you must visit a site and pay for an unlock code. there is no custom rom that will sim unlock it. As of right now there are no free unlock options either.
Don't some ICS roms support voip? Would that be an option, and if she needs to call, just wifi tether off your phone or go somewhere with a router?
Also paying for minutes with Skype and going off your wifi
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using XDA
if you have GrooveIP, and a wi fi connection, she can call all she wants for free..
thanks for the reply. i understand your concerns but its more convenient to make local calls. she has friends and family here that she needs to call or they call her. there isn't wifi everywhere she goes. i mean she paid for her Note, she shouldn't have to spend another 10-15 bucks on a cheapo. she has every right to use her phone anywhere, even if it's not on an AT&T network. anyways, we'll try to contact AT&T.
sent from the Penh.
swift2fly said:
thanks for the reply. i understand your concerns but its more convenient to make local calls. she has friends and family here that she needs to call or they call her. there isn't wifi everywhere she goes. i mean she paid for her Note, she shouldn't have to spend another 10-15 bucks on a cheapo. she has every right to use her phone anywhere, even if it's not on an AT&T network. anyways, we'll try to contact AT&T.
sent from the Penh.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
we understand your frustration but by the time AT&T gets back to you she'll be on a plane back already. having a killer phone in hand and not being able to use it is infuriating. besides $15 is cheaper than the $30 most online unlock places charge.
yea. shes here for another week. when i called AT&T before, for my unlock code. it was quick, i just gave them IMEI number and they gave me the 16 digit unlock code. no more than 5 minutes.
sent from the Penh.
swift2fly said:
yea. shes here for another week. when i called AT&T before, for my unlock code. it was quick, i just gave them IMEI number and they gave me the 16 digit unlock code. no more than 5 minutes.
sent from the Penh.
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Click to collapse
Well!!! Good for you! About time ATT was cooperative.
Is anyone having any luck buying a Sprint Gear S WITHOUT having to activate the data plan to go along with it?
Long Story Short - Trying to buy my girlfriend the Gear S for Christmas. She is with Sprint.
I know that the Gear S can be used without the data connection- Meaning I could just buy the AT&T watch and be good to go. But I want to buy the Sprint version of the watch on the off chance that she decides that she wants to activate the data plan... I'm not having ANY luck calling Spring and/or visiting Sprint Stores.
Any one had any luck?
TeldenW said:
Is anyone having any luck buying a Sprint Gear S WITHOUT having to activate the data plan to go along with it?
Long Story Short - Trying to buy my girlfriend the Gear S for Christmas. She is with Sprint.
I know that the Gear S can be used without the data connection- Meaning I could just buy the AT&T watch and be good to go. But I want to buy the Sprint version of the watch on the off chance that she decides that she wants to activate the data plan... I'm not having ANY luck calling Spring and/or visiting Sprint Stores.
Any one had any luck?
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Click to collapse
While I can't answer your question, I just wanted to let you know that if you run into walls, and Sprint refuses to help you, you could get the ATT version, unlock it, and get her a Tmo card for 15$/month.
ATT watch and Tmo plan seem to be the best combination in terms of value, especially since she would not be tied in into any kind of contract.
xendula said:
While I can't answer your question, I just wanted to let you know that if you run into walls, and Sprint refuses to help you, you could get the ATT version, unlock it, and get her a Tmo card for 15$/month.
ATT watch and Tmo plan seem to be the best combination in terms of value, especially since she would not be tied in into any kind of contract.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thank you so much for the suggestions! A couple follow up questions for you if you don't mind.....
1. How do I 'unlock' the ATT watch?
2. Will the unlocked ATT watch with a Tmob SIM communicate correctly with her Sprint phone??
TeldenW said:
Thank you so much for the suggestions! A couple follow up questions for you if you don't mind.....
1. How do I 'unlock' the ATT watch?
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Click to collapse
If you have ever been an ATT customer, or know someone who is or was an ATT customer, you/they can request an unlock code for free. Turn around time is around 4 days. I walked into an ATT store and told them I wanted to buy it straight out and not activate it on ATT. No problem at all.
Otherwise, there is a UK Ebay seller who offers unlock codes for $16. I bought one not knowing if ATT would end up unlocking mine, because I only have a grandfathered data plan with them, but they did. That seller was recommended by someone here, and he said he got his unlock code in less than 24 hrs, so they seem to be legit. (Again, can't speak out of experience because ATT ended up unlocking my phone. I am sitting on an unlock code, debating if I should buy a cheap prepaid Samsung phone just so I can unlock it.) There are sites like unlocker.net that charge $39 for the same service.
All I did was put my Tmo sim card in, and the Gear S prompted me for the unlock code. Once entered, the device was open to use with whatever carrier I wanted.
2. Will the unlocked ATT watch with a Tmob SIM communicate correctly with her Sprint phone??
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Click to collapse
Yes. Quite a few users reported successfully using their non Tmo phones with a Gear S that has a Tmo SIM in it, be it a Tmo Gear S or an unlocked ATT Gear S (Tmo won't unlock theirs). I happen to have a Tmo voice plan, but I have not read a single report where the watch was not playing nice with a different carrier on it than on the phone.
And, if I may say, that's a really cool present for your girlfriend, especially if she is active. Great choice
I kind of hate Tmo because they refused to unlock my phone, so I HATE saying anything good about them right now. But they do have the best plan AFAIK, no ties whatsoever, and specific music streaming apps don't count against the watch's 500 MB data allotment, like Milk, which i haven't used, but which comes preinstalled. The plan also includes unlimited talk&text, btw.
ETA: Check out this very long thread about buying an ATT Gear S without a contract
I thinking about getting one of these but I rather not have to pay extra 10.00$ a month as I would usually have my phone around me. I found some unlocked ones on ebay. Now my question is if bought one and wanted to leave my phone at home could I just swap the sim cards? I have a sim card adapter to make it all work. Or ifnot could I use a pre paid sim?
Thank you
burtonfamily101 said:
I thinking about getting one of these but I rather not have to pay extra 10.00$ a month as I would usually have my phone around me. I found some unlocked ones on ebay. Now my question is if bought one and wanted to leave my phone at home could I just swap the sim cards? I have a sim card adapter to make it all work. Or ifnot could I use a pre paid sim?
Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you buy unlock gs from ebay.....just make dammm sure it will work on your gsm network. If it will, yes you can swap the sim from the phone to the gs....but the risk of breaking something is much greater...if you know what I mean. You can always go pre-paid.
Example: Pri att/unlock to use on tmobile.......it might work....people are saying they are having trouble with unlock gs and vice versa with Pri tmobile/unlock to att. But I think it is a hit and miss, cause I have a unlock att and I can go tmobile network any time with no issues.....as of now I am on pre paid h2o (att network) for when I want to go remote and leave the phone at the house while jogging.
Thank you for the reply and sorry for my late one. So ive found a few on ebay that say unlocked. So what I would need to do is get a sim from h2O as prepaid use that when I set up the watch from my AT&T s4?
With h2o you dont really need a unlock gs if you get an att gs......since it runs off the att network. You should not have an issue since your s4 is also running on the att network.
Unknown Zone said:
With h2o you dont really need a unlock gs if you get an att gs......since it runs off the att network. You should not have an issue since your s4 is also running on the att network.
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Yep. I posted on a similar thread- $10 gets you 90 days, 100 megs with H2O's cheapest pay-as-you-go. I take the watch to the gym on remote connection every few days since january-- I've used about $1.70 of the $10 credit from getting notifications and few calls routed to the watch.
Since you'll be buying the watch off contract- go ahead and submit that request for the unlock from AT&T anyway, even though h2o works on locked att devices. It'll make it worth a little more for resale down the road, plus it's free and easy to do so- you just need a non-att/h2o sim card.
btw, if there's no huge hurry for cell coverage on the watch, you can get H2o and simple mobile SIMs on amazon for one penny & free shipping. Get a simple mobile one so you can unlock the watch with it.
make sure you get a nano-sim
edouble312 said:
Yep. I posted on a similar thread- $10 gets you 90 days, 100 megs with H2O's cheapest pay-as-you-go. I take the watch to the gym on remote connection every few days since january-- I've used about $1.70 of the $10 credit from getting notifications and few calls routed to the watch.
Since you'll be buying the watch off contract- go ahead and submit that request for the unlock from AT&T anyway, even though h2o works on locked att devices. It'll make it worth a little more for resale down the road, plus it's free and easy to do so- you just need a non-att/h2o sim card.
btw, if there's no huge hurry for cell coverage on the watch, you can get H2o and simple mobile SIMs on amazon for one penny & free shipping. Get a simple mobile one so you can unlock the watch with it.
make sure you get a nano-sim
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I keep forgetting the unlock code can be asked when bought out right after the new ruling went into affect. I don't have att nor tmobile as my phone carrier and bought the att gs since it was the cheapest of them all and needed coverage as a second carrier when out of phone range (I have sprint on the note2).....also since it has a sim....it could be unlock...etc. I was telling cyper the other day.....I too was afraid of the data usage, but after 2 to 3 months the gs eats data like a bird.......I bought the $100/1yr and I am sitting at 97.00 (since Dec) cause I was not sure how the gs with going to eat data..etc. I am going to have to down grade when it is time to reboost next yr..lol. I might go with the $10/90 days next time around.
burtonfamily101 said:
I thinking about getting one of these but I rather not have to pay extra 10.00$ a month as I would usually have my phone around me. I found some unlocked ones on ebay. Now my question is if bought one and wanted to leave my phone at home could I just swap the sim cards? I have a sim card adapter to make it all work. Or ifnot could I use a pre paid sim?
Thank you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can use a family shared plan and you don't have that $10 access charge.
They do not charge extra just for a new line? Thanks though I will contact AT&T and find out now to be 100% before I shop on ebay.
2 different networks
Unknown Zone said:
I keep forgetting the unlock code can be asked when bought out right after the new ruling went into affect. I don't have att nor tmobile as my phone carrier and bought the att gs since it was the cheapest of them all and needed coverage as a second carrier when out of phone range (I have sprint on the note2).....also since it has a sim....it could be unlock...etc. I was telling cyper the other day.....I too was afraid of the data usage, but after 2 to 3 months the gs eats data like a bird.......I bought the $100/1yr and I am sitting at 97.00 (since Dec) cause I was not sure how the gs with going to eat data..etc. I am going to have to down grade when it is time to reboost next yr..lol. I might go with the $10/90 days next time around.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am looking to do the EXACT same thing you did. I have sprint, sprint version is about 399 in the store but I can get the international unlocked for 253.00 I can send you the link if anybody needs it off amazon. The challenge of course is sprints restrictive network so I have 2 questions, 1st when your phone is paired can you receive calls when tethered and talk through the watch and 2nd when you popped the sim card into the watch did you have issues using it as a stand alone device?
eternal22x said:
I am looking to do the EXACT same thing you did. I have sprint, sprint version is about 399 in the store but I can get the international unlocked for 253.00 I can send you the link if anybody needs it off amazon. The challenge of course is sprints restrictive network so I have 2 questions, 1st when your phone is paired can you receive calls when tethered and talk through the watch and 2nd when you popped the sim card into the watch did you have issues using it as a stand alone device?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, when tethered you can receive calls and talk through watch. Only at&t & T-Mobile Gear S watches have sim card slot (GSM). So if your looking to use the watch as standalone on Sprint network (not sure if your talking wifi or 3G network) , assuming your talking 3G network via Sprint there would be no SIM card required. Are you talking standalone via wifi/no 3G plan or standalone as connected to the Sprint 3G network with the $9.99 plan?
**The previous persons comments are very misleading and I think confuses anyone who reads it. In order to even use the device via Sprint 3G they will need your IMEI number NO SIM CARD.**
I paid the cost for Sprints Gear S which didn't bother me, although I'm using it connected to the $9.99 plan as well as tethered to my phone. Its also much easier to get a warranty replacement device. This thread seems so off topic I'm confused if previous poster is talking with 3G plan or not considering the OT was no plan.
well my plan is to bypass sprint all together and use a prepaid AT&T h20 nano sim card on the watch. This way I use sprint when tethered and AT&T when using as a stand alone watch phone if that makes any sense. Again this is a gamble as I ordered the international South Korean unlocked version, Ive seen one or 2 posts on this being a possibility but I will update if it does work, if so this option may save many people money and frustration of being tied to one network.
---------- Post added at 06:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:36 PM ----------
Unknown Zone said:
If you buy unlock gs from ebay.....just make dammm sure it will work on your gsm network. If it will, yes you can swap the sim from the phone to the gs....but the risk of breaking something is much greater...if you know what I mean. You can always go pre-paid.
Example: Pri att/unlock to use on tmobile.......it might work....people are saying they are having trouble with unlock gs and vice versa with Pri tmobile/unlock to att. But I think it is a hit and miss, cause I have a unlock att and I can go tmobile network any time with no issues.....as of now I am on pre paid h2o (att network) for when I want to go remote and leave the phone at the house while jogging.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am attempting to do this with a T-mobile note 4 and a South korean unlocked GS from amazon I will update if it does work. On a side note the seller had their prices listed as low as $235.00 New and the day after I purchased it they bumped their prices back up to $319.00!! (I was at the right place at the right time i guess)
eternal22x said:
well my plan is to bypass sprint all together and use a prepaid AT&T h20 nano sim card on the watch. This way I use sprint when tethered and AT&T when using as a stand alone watch phone if that makes any sense. Again this is a gamble as I ordered the international South Korean unlocked version, Ive seen one or 2 posts on this being a possibility but I will update if it does work, if so this option may save many people money and frustration of being tied to one network.
---------- Post added at 06:45 PM ---------- Previous post was at 06:36 PM ----------
I am attempting to do this with a T-mobile note 4 and a South korean unlocked GS from amazon I will update if it does work. On a side note the seller had their prices listed as low as $235.00 New and the day after I purchased it they bumped their prices back up to $319.00!! (I was at the right place at the right time i guess)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That makes perfect sense, thanks for clarifying that. Actually would like to know how that turns out for you. I just have a personal grudge against at&t/Verizon and left at&t for Sprint not long ago, so that just wasn't an option for me. How much is the line going to cost through at&t? I was thinking it was a little bit more per month unless you already have a phone line..
My wife bought me the international version of the Samsung Gear S (SM-R750W). She said that she researched and from her understanding it should work on the T mobile network. From what I've found though the consensus seemed to be it would not work, or if it did it would be spotty at best depending on the specific towers/area you were in because Tmobile utilizes different network types in different areas.
I decide to give it a shot anyway and went to the T-Mobile store where I signed up for the wearable plan and got a new nano sim card. I was crossing my fingers but as soon as they put the sim card in the watch it came to life. It looked to be working fine but as I left the store I received a text from T-Mobile stating " the SIM for your wearable devices is in an ineligible device. Services to the SIM are locked until it returned to your eligible wearable device".
I pessimistically started thinking well great, there goes that idea. But as I got into my vehicle I shut my phone down and tried to see if the watch can work on its own as a phone when unencumbered from my Note 4 bluetooth/WiFi data connections. It worked perfectly-I started calling my friends and they couldn't believe I was talking on a watch phone. Several I actually felt the call sound quality was better on the watch speaker phone compared to normally speaking on the Note 4. I called customer service but they told me they couldn't see anything and if it was working fine not to worry about it.
For the next eight or 9 hours it worked perfectly and I was using it a lot. I drove around large swaths of town and neither data nor call experienced even the slightest issue - for once I was happy to be wrong.
Eventually, as I am oft to do, I fell asleep. When I awoke this morning the watch was no longer connected to the network. It gave me a message saying it was unable to connect and did I want to scan for additional networks. I selected yes and it was able to find the T-Mobile and ATT networks. T-Mobile was selected and a "registering" notification was displayed. It took awhile but eventually said it was unable to register with the network.
I call T-Mobile and they said pretty much exactly what I expected them to say -that because it was not a T mobile device they could not ensure proper operation. But he said (and he characterized this as "good news", "light at the end of a tunnel" and "viable solution” Seriously said all 3 things.) I could either forget all about the cellular connection and just use this as a companion device OR go and buy a new Gear S from T Mobile if I really wanted that feature.
I’m truly and utterly baffled that he believed his suggestions merited the positive sayings from above. Never in my lifetime has my head been closer to exploding.
After I was finally able to speak again, I explained that it seemed unlikely to be an issue with the watch. If my Gear S was working perfectly yesterday and can still detect Tmobile & ATT networks, then something on your end seems to be preventing registration. He agree to file a ticket with the engineering team and tomorrow I should hear from them hopefully. He also told me to go and try another nano-SIM, gratis, at the Tmobile store. So today I went and as soon as I put the new card in all systems were go. I assumed that I somehow had received a bad card because here again now, data and voice are connected.
This time I didn’t even make it out of the parking lot before it notified me that that it was again unable to register with the network. There is conflicting information regarding the radio frequencies and bands that the different Gear S models have and I didn’t have high hopes. But then it actually did work, WELL, so any ideas as to what is going wrong?
Imei not recognized as a wearable device by tmo
I am also getting very discouraged with the gear s on tmo.
But I think I finally got a tech person who may have found the problem ,
He said my gear s is no longer registering because the tmo system did not recognize the Imei as a wearable, that's why when I swapped sim with a friends iPhone sim, the gear worked. Because the wearable plan will only work with that device. The rep is asking engineering to add my Imei as wearable, but it has happen yet, he did not know if they could....
perdikoylis said:
I am also getting very discouraged with the gear s on tmo.
But I think I finally got a tech person who may have found the problem ,
He said my gear s is no longer registering because the tmo system did not recognize the Imei as a wearable, that's why when I swapped sim with a friends iPhone sim, the gear worked. Because the wearable plan will only work with that device. The rep is asking engineering to add my Imei as wearable, but it has happen yet, he did not know if they could....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I guess that makes total sense, and answers my question if I could just get an Android watch phone at some point and use the same nano SIM that they gave me for my Gear S.
Could you post here if/when they added your IMEI? They were super unresponsive to my request to unlock my original Gear S (which I replaced with an ATT Gear S that ATT kindly unlocked for me), so I have little faith that Tmo are even willing to help their customers, but since I have my plan with them, I'd love to be wrong this time.
Tmo problem
Well I wish I had better news, but it is still not working, I called them back, they say they requested the engineering to add my IMEI , but who's knows if they did, they seem to have very little experience with gear s, it's very frustrating because it did work the first 2 months until I tried the sim in my iPhone. I think I have reached the end of the line ,
I might try closing acct and opening new again...
So can either buy new tmo gear s. And sell my unlocked att gear, or put mine on att,
But. I really liked the Tmo plan, and would probably had switched my other (family) lines to Tmo.
anyone have more ideas?
perdikoylis said:
Well I wish I had better news, but it is still not working, I called them back, they say they requested the engineering to add my IMEI , but who's knows if they did, they seem to have very little experience with gear s, it's very frustrating because it did work the first 2 months until I tried the sim in my iPhone. I think I have reached the end of the line ,
I might try closing acct and opening new again...
So can either buy new tmo gear s. And sell my unlocked att gear, or put mine on att,
But. I really liked the Tmo plan, and would probably had switched my other (family) lines to Tmo.
anyone have more ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe try to cancel your wearbales plan, then get one again, with a new SIM and new number?
I would not buy a tmo gear S: they won't unlock it and it costs $50 more. I use an unlocked ATT Gear S on T-mo without issues, but if putting the SIM in another device caused this for you, and the SIM itself is not the problem, they must have some kind of hold/notice on your wearables plan in your account, I think?