I got a Photon 4g, and I wanna know if there's anyway I can have simultaneous voice/data on 3G, I know its possible over "4G" (Wimax), and I really don't wanna buy a new phone outright. Will SVDO work on the Photon anywhere?
DiamondJay20 said:
I got a Photon 4g, and I wanna know if there's anyway I can have simultaneous voice/data on 3G, I know its possible over "4G" (Wimax), and I really don't wanna buy a new phone outright. Will SVDO work on the Photon anywhere?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
To my knowledge this is not possible. Would be hella useful though.
only way is if "voice" if via VOIP such as google voice, skype or SIP provider.
I do it all day! WiFi and I talk and di email and FB! L
Sent from my MB855 using xda premium
i still don't get it, how in the world is this actually useful? should you focus be to the other person you're talking to?
A2CKilla said:
i still don't get it, how in the world is this actually useful? should you focus be to the other person you're talking to?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Smartphones have so many features nowadays that it is honestly difficult for any given person to make use of every one of them. Hence, there are some features that are diamonds to some and useless to others. Just because you in particular don't have a use for said feature, it can be be extremely useful to someone else. For instance, my girlfriend now lives a good 150 miles away. So a lot of our casual conversations are done for long periods of time over our phones. Should I be focusing on our conversation? Sure. Do I also wanna check xda, read an article with her to keep the conversation rolling, maybe watch a funny YouTube clip or something? Definitely. My point is, its not a feature that is visibly useless for everyone. You just don't have a use for it.
A2CKilla said:
i still don't get it, how in the world is this actually useful? should you focus be to the other person you're talking to?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
you might have an email, or be in your car using it as the GPS with the phone on speaker or bluetooth, or wanna check an email you're talking to someone about, etc. A lotta times, when I've been on the internet with the Photon, I've missed calls, and that includes using my Strava cycling app, which simply maps where I'm going.
Calls/texts will interrupt downloads which is annoying when trying to download large files over 3g
Sent from my Kitchen Sync'ed MoPho!
As others have mentioned, if you have VoIP service independently of Sprint, there's nothing to stop you from using it on your phone. You can do a complete end-run around Sprint and cobble your own adhoc SVDO-ish work-around today. Your battery life will totally suck, and you'll be paying more money for VoIP from some thirdparty provider, but you can do it. Just run the client, forward your calls to your VoIP number, and you're in business.
So, why can't SPRINT do it? Simple. The service we all call "Call Forwarding" is heinously inefficient. It was invented ~25 years ago, and only works for its intended purpose (adhoc forwarding of calls to arbitrary numbers) because there are just a few people using it at any given point in time. If EVERYBODY (or even a large plurality of Android owners) tried doing it at once, Sprint would hit a hard limit beyond which no more users serviced by a given switch could forward calls until somebody else discontinued forwarding to free up a circuit (remember, ESS voice calls are circuit-switched, regardless of any packet-switched magic that might occur at the backhaul and trunk level. You'd be amazed how much metaphorical WD-40 and duct tape still gets used behind the scenes at Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, and T-Mobile to glue 21st-century wireless and 19th-century wired phone circuits together & make wireless calls look like landline calls to the PSTN).
To implement large-scale SVDO that's cost-effective, scalable, and sustainable, Sprint has to make much bigger changes that involve their switches (enabling them to terminate calls directly to VoIP instead of relying on adhoc ESS-type call forwarding) and signaling (sending notifications via the same mechanism used now to notify the phone of incoming calls, deliver text messages, and carry Google & Apple's push notifications). That way, instead of forcing your phone to establish and maintain an EVDO or LTE connection 24/7 and use it to poll for incoming calls, it can still use the more power-efficient 1x method, and simply notify the onboard VoIP app that there's an incoming call when it happens.
At the end of the day, it's one of those cases where it's easy for nimble, tech-savvy, and highly-motivated individuals willing to spend a few days learning and experimenting to take matters into their own hands and hack something into working for themselves, but it's a much bigger job to make it viable for the unwashed masses who want it to "just work" transparently without disclaimers, gotchas, and devastated battery life. It's the same reason why iPhones don't have wimax on Sprint. Apple point blank refused to even consider implementing something where users have to toggle it manually and be aware of their connectivity options at all times to really make it work right. Think I'm kidding? Find a nontechnical Sprint customer with wimax-capable phone, and check out their 4G settings. 95 times out of 100, they'll have 4G disabled, even in cities where there's been 4G service for more than a year. They went to the Sprint store, complained about not being able to "surf the web" (WE know their phone was probably thrashing back and forth between 3G and 4G & kept spending 5-20 seconds at a time in "no network connection" limbo), the employee toggled 4G off, handed the phone back to them, and they never had any clue what the employee actually DID. They were just happy that their phone quit endlessly saying they had no internet connection. ;-)
Related
A friend of mine has a wifi enabled samsung phone with T-Mobile so when he goes to jobs or his house where he doesn't have any T-Mobile range he can enable the wifi and once connected all calls in or out are handled by VoIP and the mobile service is disabled. This way his same T-Mobile Number is used. Is there a way I can setup my phone to work this same way? I am moving to a farm out in the country where there is no cell coverage so I want to setup my phone to go wifi around the farm.
Thanks,
mr.ellsworth
The response to this question is overwhelming.
mr.ellsworth said:
The response to this question is overwhelming.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is T-Mobile's UMA.
http://www.umatechnology.org/overview/
mr.ellsworth said:
A friend of mine has a wifi enabled samsung phone with T-Mobile so when he goes to jobs or his house where he doesn't have any T-Mobile range he can enable the wifi and once connected all calls in or out are handled by VoIP and the mobile service is disabled. This way his same T-Mobile Number is used. Is there a way I can setup my phone to work this same way? I am moving to a farm out in the country where there is no cell coverage so I want to setup my phone to go wifi around the farm.
Thanks,
mr.ellsworth
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i havent tried lately, but the last i heard, VoIP on the titan only worked via speakerphone.
dcd1182 said:
i havent tried lately, but the last i heard, VoIP on the titan only worked via speakerphone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, I felt semi-idiotic while holding a phone backwords to my head while I was overseas, but it got the job done..
jerason said:
Yeah, I felt semi-idiotic while holding a phone backwords to my head while I was overseas, but it got the job done..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
haha!
were you using MS VoIP with Schap's setupvoip.cab or did you install skype or something?
when using VoIP program on the titan, can you use the headset or a bluetooth head set?
dcd1182 said:
haha!
were you using MS VoIP with Schap's setupvoip.cab or did you install skype or something?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was using Skype lowcpu cab.. they could hear me clear as day, but I ended up with a choppy reception of them.
One more weird thing was I couldn't get GPS to lock while I was over there.. It'd pull up the sats, but I'd never get a triangulation.
when using VoIP program on the titan, can you use the headset or a bluetooth head set? sorry i leave to japan this weekend and i am curious to know if anyone has had a good experience with this.
thanks
Although this is Not mogul specific it is a similar thing that you plug into your router and use your internet connection to create a viop cell based mini cell tower works with all sprint cdma phones. So if you will have broadband out @ your farm you can get this. As long as you are in range of your airave box you will not get charged usage minutes, however you are not allowed to use data off of the airave just voice i don't know if that means you won't get text messages or not as it does not say in the brochure or video, it just states that you cant download or use the web on your phone when in airave range. The service can be added to any sprint phone for $15 a month and you get unlimited min while talking off of the airave signal. Any sprint phone can use it up 2 3 phones @ a time but if you don't have the airave on your plan you will get charged cell min based on your plan. If you have a windows mobile phone with wireless the data part of this should not be an issue as we can browse the web off of our wifi on the mogul.
check the site out if you have sprint its similar to T-Mobiles approach but this service will work with any sprint cdma phone as it basically is a mini cell tower that uses your internet to connect to the sprint network to make calls over your cdma bands. T-Mobiles service requires a phone that is compatible.
http://www.sprintenterprise.com/airave/
After reading up on some of the FAQ's I noticed you can use data as normal but it is charged according to your plan and is offered @ the same performance level of current sprint internet no mention of EVDO speeds
Can I use all my normal phone functions like voicemail and text messaging with AIRAVE?
Yes. All the voice functions you enjoy with your Sprint CDMA handset can be used while you are within the AIRAVE coverage area. And while data applications are accessible, they are provided at the same performance level as is currently available through Sprint Vision. In addition, data usage is not part of the unlimited plan.
What is the range of the Sprint AIRAVE?
The coverage radius is up to 5,000 square feet.
Does a wireless call I make within AIRAVE coverage continue once I leave the coverage area?
Yes. Calls originating inside the AIRAVE coverage area transfer to the Sprint Nationwide Network once you leave the AIRAVE coverage area.
Note: you will be billed at your regular wireless plan rate for the portion of the call that has been transferred to the Sprint Nationwide Network.
Does a wireless call that starts outside of my home transfer to the Sprint AIRAVE coverage area when I arrive home?
Calls made outside the AIRAVE coverage area are not transferred to the AIRAVE device even though you may be within the coverage area. If you wish to take advantage of the unlimited calling feature of AIRAVE, you must end the call that was placed outside of the coverage area and initiate a new call on the AIRAVE device.
Can I restrict who has access to my Sprint AIRAVE?
Yes, you can limit who has access to your AIRAVE device by creating a list of approved Sprint phone numbers (up to 50 phone numbers). You can create your list by calling Customer Care at (888) 211-4727.
Can other Sprint customers use my Sprint AIRAVE?
All Sprint customers with a Sprint CDMA handset can use the AIRAVE device. However, the customer must have the unlimited calling plan on their account in order to take advantage of the unlimited calling plan.
some of the more important questions that the FAQ answers
Thanks, I will check into this.
I installed Skype from the website, but I get no sound when a call connects. Can anyone help? Also where did you get the Skype lowcpu cab?
Skype Low CPU cab.. it's the only one I've got to work decently with the Titan.
http://rapidshare.com/files/122979389/Low_CPU_2.0.0.51.zip.html
Sorry about the rapidshare. I tried to upload it here and it kept failing.
Thanks I got it to work. Appreciate your help.
mr.ellsworth said:
A friend of mine has a wifi enabled samsung phone with T-Mobile so when he goes to jobs or his house where he doesn't have any T-Mobile range he can enable the wifi and once connected all calls in or out are handled by VoIP and the mobile service is disabled. This way his same T-Mobile Number is used. Is there a way I can setup my phone to work this same way? I am moving to a farm out in the country where there is no cell coverage so I want to setup my phone to go wifi around the farm.
Thanks,
mr.ellsworth
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
interesting question, and i would like to mention that what you want is basically, all the same cell phone shebang, but over WiFi, am i correct?
If this is so, id probably imagine its a Carrier given feature. I would like to divulge on this more, as i would love this as well.
Yes, its a carrier-specific feature. T-mobile basically has a VOIP service back end into their system as well as the GSM front end.
That way, your phone can switch between using GSM towers or the internet, and either way reach T-mobile.
Since Sprint, Verizon, AT&T, etc... do NOT have such a back end in place, you can't call with your normal phone line over IP.
what you CAN do, however, is set up an additional line with some voip carrier such as broadvoice, freedigits, vonage, skype, etc... and then run that second line from your handset over IP.
I used to do this in my office where I had no cell reception- I'd have my calls forwarded to a freedigits line, which has free incoming calls over IP. The caller would be transfered to my other number without knowing. The problem is, if I called them back, it would be from some number that they wouldn't recognize as my own.
I wrote about it over a year ago here:
http://mobile-enthusiast.blogspot.com/2007/04/how-to-never-miss-call-with-your.html
dcd1182 said:
VoIP on the titan only worked via speakerphone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes. that's true....
michaelm91 said:
when using VoIP program on the titan, can you use the headset or a bluetooth head set?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, you can...
jerason said:
Skype Low CPU cab.. it's the only one I've got to work decently with the Titan.
http://rapidshare.com/files/1229793...doesn't work.
Am I missing a step somewhere?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
glenl said:
When I installed this cab on Sprint Mogul DCD 3.2.5 3.42.50 radio, I couldn't get the program to load up. I would press the Skype program icon and see the rainbow spinner telling me the phone is thinking, then nothing. Even after multiple reinstalls and soft resets, it still doesn't work.
Am I missing a step somewhere?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No. I had this working somewhere around dcd 3.2.1, but since I upgraded to 3.2.2 and now 3.2.5 it isn't working anymore. It worked well with older dcd versions though, but don't quote me on the 3.2.1. It might have been before that but I'm pretty sure it was 3.2.1 if you really want to give it a shot. I would soft reset after Skype install before launching it.
Ive had many "not registered" errors when trying to place a calls over WiFi and called in for support to TMo many times. The third week and the fourth or fifth "PDA" service guy went all out and then gave up and turned me over to "Loyalty". Its like getting switched to the inquisition. THEY told me, 'bad news' Vibrant can't make calls over WiFi. SO I confessed it only worked 50% of the time.
When I agreed to take the phone, TMo said it would support UMA. In the mean time I think they decided they would not support UMA. I can call TMo phone mail no problem and the phone rings and then disconnects. It will make a call from "voice" but shows the not registered error when I dial a number. It has to be TMo router settings. They offered to send me a 3G Curve which they said would support UMA telephony, but they had no other phones - oh yah maybe the "Shaddow" was available but even they wouldn't go so far. I'm SOOOO sick of RIM, really, really sick. So I rejected that. So now I'm making calls and receiving calls over WiFi, but not reliably and with no support.
I'm fairly certain this is the tip of the big iceberg. My Vibrant was very early pre-purchase, so it might not have had all the TMo down mods. Never the less, it seems crazy that I would pay them to use my own DSL/WiFi as I seem to be doing with my HTC Incredible/Verizon phone. It works great, but of course I pay.
TMo gave me some questionable information regarding using Vonage, which I found does is not suposed to work with the Vibrant. They also said no Android phone will work with TMo hot spots, which I am inclined to accept. It appears all the carriers will do anything to keep a branded hand set off of free WiFi telephony. So I'm trying Google Voice. It registers, but I have so far not recieved a call to my new Gvoice phone number.
Do I need to root the phone? Are there apps that will help? Does any one out there think the 2.2 upgrade with the TMo holy water has a ghost of a chance of making WiFi phone calls without a TMo charge? My Incredible/Verizon still tethers on PDA-net and I think that is not charged. But I'm not clear on that either.
I just pre-bought a Tab through Cell Phone Hut. I will see if a device free of TMo tweeks will route telephony over WiFi. All I really need is a cheep pre-paid SIMS card for OTA. It's nuts thinking to pay 3G or 4G OTA data rates when the same data is free over WiFi. There will be many Android apps to do all your data I/O when you are in range.
cheers all... thx for any light on this!
Umm what? You're able to make calls on wifi 50% Of the time. You can make Google voice calls over wifi? You were told the vibrant would have uma? ?? Maybe I'm misunderstanding you but....
Google voice is NOT a voip service so i think you're misjudging its use.
Vibrant was never said to have wifi calling, just like every other android.
An app called kineto was recently announced that does wifi calling but its not uma. it doesn't hand off to cell network. Its announced to be available for the new mytouch n moto defy.
Also, tmo uma will no longer give you 'free calling'. It takes from your minutes so its only real advantage is to extend coverage.
I'm a woman. Stop assuming everyone on this forum is a bro, dude, or man. Sent from my Vibrant.
The Vibrant hasn't been confirmed to ever get Wifi calling but it was demo'ed on a Vibrant running 2.2. The feature could possibly be added to the vibrant once it receives the 2.2 update.
This is strange. We've had our vibrants about a week. When I'm home I have the Wifi turned on. The signal bars drop to zero. I have just assumed that my voice calls were going over Wifi to our DSL modem over the Internet.
Note: We happen to have a T-Mo wireless router from back in the days when we were using it with our Blackberries to keep the minutes down. Subsequently T-Mo switched us to an unlimited plan, but we still use this router for one hard-wired home line.
KnottyBitz said:
This is strange. We've had our vibrants about a week. When I'm home I have the Wifi turned on. The signal bars drop to zero. I have just assumed that my voice calls were going over Wifi to our DSL modem over the Internet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Signal bars dropping to zero is just a visual indicator; doesn't necessarily mean there is zero signal, just not enough signal to flip the visual indicator. This happens to me quite a lot - I have no signal, but someone calls me and the call quality is fine.
In any case - basic logical fallacy - correlation does not necessarily imply correlation. Although it would be super nice to make calls over wifi!
<------ Tmo Retail Rep
There is no Android phone that supports UMA at the moment. The only Android that will have UMA that has been announced so far is the myTouch HD. Not sure why someone would tell you the Vibrant has the feature.
Not only that, 0 bars doesn't mean no service. The circle with a slash means no service
I'm a woman. Stop assuming everyone on this forum is a bro, dude, or man. Sent from my Vibrant.
Where was it ever said that the Vibrant would have UMA? Its one thing if a rep was mistaken but no slick, ad, spec sheet, or anything else that I recall ever implied that UMA was going to be available. I came from a Blackberry to the Vibrant so I felt I was aware that UMA was not available.
UMA in Android NOT
Apparently Android has no UMA support, but a lot of people want it:
Check out Issue 6242 - Google's board for android code / issues.
I am thinking about moving to vibrant and tmobile. the only thing that is stopping me is the lack of uma support on the vibrant. Does anyone know whether this is capability will be added with the 2.2 update??
Have you guys not tried any of the new leaked froyo roms? They all have wifi calling and it works, although its not uma and doesn't hand off it works great. This is actually a Godsend for I have had Tmobile for 7 years and I get no service in my house, finally a solution. I'm not sure this will be released in the upcoming froyo update or it was just pulled from the Mytouch4g and they made it work for our phones.
I did a quick search and didn't see this mentioned anywhere here... so I wanted to give out this little tip because I've found it incredibly useful.
When I was doing some research into T-Mobile's wifi calling, I came across a press release that stated WiFi calling would not use your plan minutes... I was quite confused as I use WiFi calling all the time and it certainly did deduct from my 500 Whenever minutes. So I did some more research!
What my research led me to find was that the 'free wifi calling' is a feature that T-Mobile doesn't add to new accounts. It seems like this is an undocumented feature that T-Mobile goes out of their way to NOT advertise or even display on their My Tmobile website, you can't add it yourself. Oh, and it's only available to people on the classic plans (or so i've read) that have a minute allotment (I have the 500minutes/month classic talk package).
You can get this feature added by simply calling t-mobile, or through their live chat on their website (available 24/7).. I emailed TForce, who also awarded me 150 bonus minutes.. not even sure why haha. All you have to do is ask that the "Free WiFi Calling" feature be added to your account, and best of all it's FREE!
Once this feature is added, all calls placed over WiFi will not use your minute allotment. They will appear on your usage as "T-Mobile HotSpot minutes" which are unlimited.
I have found this INCREDIBLY useful.. because with only 500 minutes I really wasn't able to use the phone as a land-line replacement... But NOW I can... because I'm connected to wifi a good 80% of the time.
TL;DR: If you call/live chat/email t-mobile and request the 'free wifi calling' feature be added to your account, all calls placed over WiFi will not use any of your anytime minutes. You effectively have unlimited minutes while connected to wifi.
You CANNOT add this feature using the T-Mobile website. You can't even really find any evidence of its' existence on the site.
Another cool 'feature' is that while abroad, you can use your new unlimited WiFi calling to save on costly roaming charges...
Sorry if this was already 'well known'... it came as a very pleasant surprise to me. Hope this helps some people!
ericdjobs said:
I did a quick search and didn't see this mentioned anywhere here... so I wanted to give out this little tip because I've found it incredibly useful.
When I was doing some research into T-Mobile's wifi calling, I came across a press release that stated WiFi calling would not use your plan minutes... I was quite confused as I use WiFi calling all the time and it certainly did deduct from my 500 Whenever minutes. So I did some more research!
What my research led me to find was that the 'free wifi calling' is a feature that T-Mobile doesn't add to new accounts. It seems like this is an undocumented feature that T-Mobile goes out of their way to NOT advertise or even display on their My Tmobile website, you can't add it yourself. Oh, and it's only available to people on the classic plans (or so i've read) that have a minute allotment (I have the 500minutes/month classic talk package).
You can get this feature added by simply calling t-mobile, or through their live chat on their website (available 24/7).. I emailed TForce, who also awarded me 150 bonus minutes.. not even sure why haha. All you have to do is ask that the "Free WiFi Calling" feature be added to your account, and best of all it's FREE!
Once this feature is added, all calls placed over WiFi will not use your minute allotment. They will appear on your usage as "T-Mobile HotSpot minutes" which are unlimited.
I have found this INCREDIBLY useful.. because with only 500 minutes I really wasn't able to use the phone as a land-line replacement... But NOW I can... because I'm connected to wifi a good 80% of the time.
TL;DR: If you call/live chat/email t-mobile and request the 'free wifi calling' feature be added to your account, all calls placed over WiFi will not use any of your anytime minutes. You effectively have unlimited minutes while connected to wifi.
You CANNOT add this feature using the T-Mobile website. You can't even really find any evidence of its' existence on the site.
Another cool 'feature' is that while abroad, you can use your new unlimited WiFi calling to save on costly roaming charges...
Sorry if this was already 'well known'... it came as a very pleasant surprise to me. Hope this helps some people!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for sharing this, great post to read!
For international usage, you can use WiFi Calling regardless if you have the free "hotspot" minutes or not. All calls made internationally using the WiFi Calling feature are treated as a domestic call.
I used my phone in Mexico over WiFi at no additional cost.
haha, wait till your first bill.
WiFi calling is a free feature available to ANYONE with a wifi calling capable phone. I does deduct from your minutes.
This is not a secret feature.
I work here and we go out of our way to mention it to every customer. It solves most issue of in home signal strength.
PER TMOBILE WEBSITE
What is Wi-Fi Calling?
Wi-Fi Calling is a free feature for T-Mobile customers with a Wi-Fi capable phone. Wi-Fi Calling is an excellent solution for coverage issues in and around the home or wherever cellular coverage is limited. Minutes used while connected to the Wi-Fi network count against available rate plan minutes.
mikeschevelle said:
Minutes used while connected to the Wi-Fi network count against available rate plan minutes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What he is talking about is there is a free WiFi Unlimited Option you can add to WiFi capable phones that does not count against available rate plan minutes. I added it yesterday and got it back dated to my previous billing cycle. I checked it today and it does exactly that.
I didn't know about this. Thank you bic boi
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using XDA
I figured being on T-Mobile, they all just had unlimited everything for either 59.99 or 79.99 based on classic or value
http://www.tmonews.com/2011/05/t-mobile-bring-unlimited-wifi-calling-back/
mikeschevelle said:
I will again say that there no secret option for free unlimited minutes.
Wait for your bills guys
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Accidentally thanked you. But aanyways, its not secret. Lol. I talked to a tmobile rep earlier and he said that its unlimited to call any mobile carrier here in the U.S without using minutes as long as its through WIFI.
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using XDA
its available to all plans including value plan.
It being free is just a feature that they have to add, as in not automatically added when you sign up.
Our old plan was 3000 minutes and unlimited texts for 3 lines. We used about 700 to 1100 minutes per month. With free wifi calling on the value plan we were are able to share 1000 minutes and get 3 phones at and $15 per month each and add data for all 3 for about the same price we were paying before.
None of the other 3 major carriers come close to tmo on price. The one complaint I do have though is that they have so many plans and plan options that even their employees seem confused most of the time. It took a meeting of 3 reps, 15 minutes, and a computer to confirm that you can use wifi mintues without them counting on my plan.
I would use it more if the latency wasn't terrible almost all the time. I know bandwidth isn't the issue, it's latency and jitter, but I'd expect better from Comcast paying $100/mo for a 50mbit Internet connection.
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using xda premium
mikeschevelle said:
haha, wait till your first bill.
WiFi calling is a free feature available to ANYONE with a wifi calling capable phone. I does deduct from your minutes.
This is not a secret feature.
I work here and we go out of our way to mention it to every customer. It solves most issue of in home signal strength.
PER TMOBILE WEBSITE
What is Wi-Fi Calling?
Wi-Fi Calling is a free feature for T-Mobile customers with a Wi-Fi capable phone. Wi-Fi Calling is an excellent solution for coverage issues in and around the home or wherever cellular coverage is limited. Minutes used while connected to the Wi-Fi network count against available rate plan minutes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That wouldn't be the first time there was something on T-Mobile.com that was tragically outdated Intel wise. I'd be extremely careful about representing yourself as a t mobile employee on forums. It sucks, i know, but it is a pretty serious offense. There was a time several years ago where all I was doing was helping some customers out on T-Mobile support forums and they suspendednmy account for presenting myself as a t mobile representative. Acknowledging yourself as being an employee of t mobile is a gray area. I think they're more sensitive about circumstances such as this (that I was guilty of before I was aware) where you say "I work for t mobile and let me tell you..." Etc etc.
I would give you the link if I could, but (not trying to argue, only educate) what you posted is true of OLD WiFi calling features, yes. there was a change (sometime a little less than a year ago I think) that occurred that once again provided free minutes over WiFi, which is still in effect today.
As far as being billed for calls over WiFi (now addressing the op and everyone in general) - its not possible, at least not on the Amaze at any rate. If you dont have the feature, you're not actually making any calls over WiFi at all. There are two types - those that have the feature built into the settings of their phone (this is the case with the amaze) and those that require an additional WiFi calling app that t mobile included on certain models.
It is possible to be billed minutes for calls over WiFi for the latter of the two.
With the amaze and most other new models (the ones that have the feature built into their settings itself), provided that the feature is enabled (on ICS its settings > more > WiFi calling and WiFi calling settings) it automatically connects to the network and gives you a blue or red notification depending on if it was able to connect to the network over WiFi. If you dont have the feature, it won't connect and there's a very obvious red notification that appears informing you of sich. I'm thus a bit surprised that you were under the impression that you were making WiFi calls and hadn't noticed that notification.
The feature itself is more of a provisioning feature than anything. If its applied and you have a compatible simcard... It will work and you'll have a blue notification. If you don't have the feature, the system rejects the connection over WiFi, you get a red notification and your voice services continue to be connected over the network. While your data itself is all that's connected to WiFi. If this feature isn't offerred to you when you activate or buy your new phone, the rep is probably pressed for time (hustle and bustle makes it hard to remember every last detail sometimes), neglectful, or lacks the knowledge necessary to properly present the service. Everyone is human guys, give your reps the benefit of the doubt. No one is out to get you. From my experience, most of t mobile's workforce is full of genuine, honest people who believe in the company they work for. T mobile tends to attract people with a much higher caliber of values since the company's operations in general tend to be much more customer advocate based than other cell phone companies. I've actually known more than a few people in the industry who want to work for t mobile more than any other company and who have stayed with t mobile when other more lucrative opportunities have presented themselves because of T Mobile's high standard for recognizing their customers as people and not another metric to be achieved.
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using xda premium
AndroidAutobot said:
That wouldn't be the first time there was something on T-Mobile.com that was tragically outdated Intel wise. I'd be extremely careful about representing yourself as a t mobile employee on forums. It sucks, i know, but it is a pretty serious offense. There was a time several years ago where all I was doing was helping some customers out on T-Mobile support forums and they suspendednmy account for presenting myself as a t mobile representative. Acknowledging yourself as being an employee of t mobile is a gray area. I think they're more sensitive about circumstances such as this (that I was guilty of before I was aware) where you say "I work for t mobile and let me tell you..." Etc etc.
I would give you the link if I could, but (not trying to argue, only educate) what you posted is true of OLD WiFi calling features, yes. there was a change (sometime a little less than a year ago I think) that occurred that once again provided free minutes over WiFi, which is still in effect today.
As far as being billed for calls over WiFi (now addressing the op and everyone in general) - its not possible, at least not on the Amaze at any rate. If you dont have the feature, you're not actually making any calls over WiFi at all. There are two types - those that have the feature built into the settings of their phone (this is the case with the amaze) and those that require an additional WiFi calling app that t mobile included on certain models.
It is possible to be billed minutes for calls over WiFi for the latter of the two.
With the amaze and most other new models (the ones that have the feature built into their settings itself), provided that the feature is enabled (on ICS its settings > more > WiFi calling and WiFi calling settings) it automatically connects to the network and gives you a blue or red notification depending on if it was able to connect to the network over WiFi. If you dont have the feature, it won't connect and there's a very obvious red notification that appears informing you of sich. I'm thus a bit surprised that you were under the impression that you were making WiFi calls and hadn't noticed that notification.
The feature itself is more of a provisioning feature than anything. If its applied and you have a compatible simcard... It will work and you'll have a blue notification. If you don't have the feature, the system rejects the connection over WiFi, you get a red notification and your voice services continue to be connected over the network. While your data itself is all that's connected to WiFi. If this feature isn't offerred to you when you activate or buy your new phone, the rep is probably pressed for time (hustle and bustle makes it hard to remember every last detail sometimes), neglectful, or lacks the knowledge necessary to properly present the service. Everyone is human guys, give your reps the benefit of the doubt. No one is out to get you. From my experience, most of t mobile's workforce is full of genuine, honest people who believe in the company they work for. T mobile tends to attract people with a much higher caliber of values since the company's operations in general tend to be much more customer advocate based than other cell phone companies. I've actually known more than a few people in the industry who want to work for t mobile more than any other company and who have stayed with t mobile when other more lucrative opportunities have presented themselves because of T Mobile's high standard for recognizing their customers as people and not another metric to be achieved.
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using xda premium
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Before I added the 'Free WiFi Calling' feature, WiFi calling worked fine, but it deducted minutes from my 'Whenever' minutes. I use the HTC Amaze with the WiFi calling built into the settings.
After adding the feature, the only change is calls that are placed over WiFi now use "T-Mobile Hotspot minutes" instead of my "Whenever" minutes.
I'm 100% positive that I was making calls over WiFi before adding the 'Free WiFi calling feature'. When I go into my Usage on the t-mobile website, the calls are have a "U" next to them, indicating they were placed over WiFi, but they were deducting my Whenever minutes.
If you dont have the feature, it won't connect and there's a very obvious red notification that appears informing you of sich. I'm thus a bit surprised that you were under the impression that you were making WiFi calls and hadn't noticed that notification.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This wasn't my personal experience. Before adding the feature, calling over WiFi worked fine (i don't get ANY t-mobile signal in my house), but it did deduct my whenever minutes. After adding the feature, the only change is that it now uses the unlimited "T-Mobile Hotspot minutes". I'm positive I was making calls over WiFi before the feature, though. I can confirm this because looking in my online call log I see plenty of calls labled as "WiFi (U)" that definitely deducted my whenever minutes.
When I signed up for my account, the sales rep informed me that WiFi calls still use my "Whenever" minutes and did not inform me of this feature at ALL... thus why I complained to TForce who awarded me the 150 bonus minutes as well.
mikeschevelle said:
haha, wait till your first bill.
WiFi calling is a free feature available to ANYONE with a wifi calling capable phone. I does deduct from your minutes.
This is not a secret feature.
I work here and we go out of our way to mention it to every customer. It solves most issue of in home signal strength.
PER TMOBILE WEBSITE
What is Wi-Fi Calling?
Wi-Fi Calling is a free feature for T-Mobile customers with a Wi-Fi capable phone. Wi-Fi Calling is an excellent solution for coverage issues in and around the home or wherever cellular coverage is limited. Minutes used while connected to the Wi-Fi network count against available rate plan minutes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm confused why you said 'wait for your first bill' when you can login to my.t-mobile.com and clearly see your usage. Before adding the "Free WiFi calling" feature, any calls I placed over wifi clearly deducted from my Whenever minutes. After adding it, those minutes are now in a new column "T-mobile hotspot minutes"... I checked this a couple of times.. placed a call using WiFi before adding the feature and my used Whenever minutes went from 55 to 60. After adding the feature, I have talked for hours and my whenever minutes are still at 60.
Yes. Minutes used deduct from your rate plan UNLESS you add the "Free WiFi calling" feature by either calling t-mobile or using their live chat. That's the 'secret feature'. The sales rep definitely did NOT go out of his way to tell me about this feature.. the sales rep actually told me what you are saying, that WiFi calls use my plan minutes. I never claimed that WiFi calling itself is a 'secret feature'. The 'secret feature' is the "Free WiFi calling" service addition that gives you unlimited minutes using WiFi calls. You can use WiFi calling JUST FINE without "Free WiFi calling" added as a service, at least I was able to.. it just uses your plan minutes.
Now, after adding that feature, all of my wifi calls are being billed as "T-Mobile Hotspot minutes" (check my screenshot in OP) which are unlimited. I'm surprised that you claim to work for T-Mobile yet are unaware of this feature. All you have to do is hop on the live chat and they will tell you all about it if you ask.
Wonder if I should call tmo and ask about this.. I've been paying $10 a month for the last couple of years for the [email protected] There are 4 lines on my account tho.. 2 g2's, 1 amaze, 1 mt4g
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using xda premium
Got it added
Based on this thread, I just did the T-Mobile website chat and got this added to my account. Will report how we go from here when I get a bill. Certainly, the rep didn't seem at all surprised, and explained that this meant I could use wifi without drawing minutes from my rate plan.
My apologies, thought you were talking about any wifi calls.
CC is only supposed to add that feature to those with signal issues, not talking to much issues
ericdjobs said:
I'm confused why you said 'wait for your first bill' when you can login to my.t-mobile.com and clearly see your usage. Before adding the "Free WiFi calling" feature, any calls I placed over wifi clearly deducted from my Whenever minutes. After adding it, those minutes are now in a new column "T-mobile hotspot minutes"... I checked this a couple of times.. placed a call using WiFi before adding the feature and my used Whenever minutes went from 55 to 60. After adding the feature, I have talked for hours and my whenever minutes are still at 60.
Yes. Minutes used deduct from your rate plan UNLESS you add the "Free WiFi calling" feature by either calling t-mobile or using their live chat. That's the 'secret feature'. The sales rep definitely did NOT go out of his way to tell me about this feature.. the sales rep actually told me what you are saying, that WiFi calls use my plan minutes. I never claimed that WiFi calling itself is a 'secret feature'. The 'secret feature' is the "Free WiFi calling" service addition that gives you unlimited minutes using WiFi calls. You can use WiFi calling JUST FINE without "Free WiFi calling" added as a service, at least I was able to.. it just uses your plan minutes.
Now, after adding that feature, all of my wifi calls are being billed as "T-Mobile Hotspot minutes" (check my screenshot in OP) which are unlimited. I'm surprised that you claim to work for T-Mobile yet are unaware of this feature. All you have to do is hop on the live chat and they will tell you all about it if you ask.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I understand now. The feature the people who activated you was the old feature. Perhaps your activation took place before the free WiFi calling feature became available. That would seem to make the most sense because there's nothing really secret about it. "Free WiFi calling" is listed in the features of the activation system and does not deduct from minutes. If you activated before this current feature was available, it would make perfect sense that they were able to add the older feature to your account instead and it would also make perfect sense that they told you it would use minutes. I might be wrong about the time frame. Perhaps it was late last year that this became available. There's currently no way of implimenting the wrong WiFi calling feature from the billing system. It's simply impossible.
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using xda premium
Man, I wish this was the case last year when I was on a 750 minute family plan and I was in a bad signal area and always used Wi-Fi calling. Sure enough it always came out of our dedeucted bucket of minutes.
Now I am unlimited....go figure, lol!
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using Tapatalk 2
OR, You can do it the other route,
which is downloading GrooveIP, and setting up your Google Voice number to Groove, and you can make UNLIMITED calls, and texts from your Google Voice number on both Wifi, 3G AND 4G.
I'm on the Walmart 100 minute, Unlimited 4G plan for $30 bucks, and I use Groove to make most of my phone calls. So i never really use minutes unless I'm too lazy to use Groove.
I'm sure that this problem is not unique to me. I live in a small community with poor cell service. I have a vzw booster, it's placed in my living room. That way I get good service in my yard. The problem is that most people in my town have become aware of it. We have some really questionable people that have become quite a nuisance, the type of people who you don't want to know when you are home or not. It's really starting to bother my wife. We can't even sit in our living room anymore with the windows shades open. I know that this probably the best place to post this. Can anyone help me out with blocking numbers or something. I'd hate to have to unplug it, I've searched for the answer. But have officially given up. :'(
I mean really? I paid for it, shouldn't I be able to control access just like a router?
Unfortunately it is just extending the cell service frequencies. All the same rules apply that apply to a cell tower. I'm sure Verizon could control roaming of phones on the device, but any low level tech would probably deny the possibility. They probably just don't have a easy one click solution. But i would call them and complain. Tell them you have limited data on your home internet and you don't want the whole neighborhood using your service.
There is also the possibility that your extender could be a repeater of the closest tower to you, in which case you could never deny any phone service because it would also cut that phones service from the tower.
Good luck, please post any info you gather.
Sent from my SCH-I535 using xda premium
XxStechxX said:
I'm sure that this problem is not unique to me. I live in a small community with poor cell service. I have a vzw booster, it's placed in my living room. That way I get good service in my yard. The problem is that most people in my town have become aware of it. We have some really questionable people that have become quite a nuisance, the type of people who you don't want to know when you are home or not. It's really starting to bother my wife. We can't even sit in our living room anymore with the windows shades open. I know that this probably the best place to post this. Can anyone help me out with blocking numbers or something. I'd hate to have to unplug it, I've searched for the answer. But have officially given up. :'(
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I found this in the FAQ, it may pertain to you.
Can I manage and secure access to my Network Extender?
Yes. Only the Network Extender account owner can sign in to My Verizon to manage device settings. You can set your Network Extender for Open Access or Managed Access.
Open Access allows any Verizon Wireless phone within range to use your Network Extender.
With Managed Access, you can prioritize access to your Network Extender to up to 50 Verizon Wireless callers you select. Where a compatible tower is unavailable, callers that do not appear on your Managed Access list may access the Network Extender when not in use by priority callers. All callers may access the Network Extender for emergency (E911) calls.
Also Section 2 in the manual it also mentions this.
http://support.verizonwireless.com/pdf/network_extender_user_manual.pdf
Everything I find says I can set a priority list for 50 phones, but not block. Idk
Curious what you guys feel the best VOIP method/app is for free calls to other phones is. I don't want to include solutions that require both parties to have the same app installed, so only VOIP that allows you to call phone numbers.
All I personally know about is GrooveIP and Talkatone.
I'd like whatever gives the best overall call quality over 3G, and when on WiFi, hopefully sounding like a perfect call.
I appreciate any input. Thanks all!
Any input at all, guys? VOIP can be very handy at times, even with unlimited talk. I have a friend in the NY area who cannot get signal due to towers being down, but his wifi a home works fine. He used Talkatone with some success, but I'm wondering what out there is better.
xiton said:
Any input at all, guys? VOIP can be very handy at times, even with unlimited talk. I have a friend in the NY area who cannot get signal due to towers being down, but his wifi a home works fine. He used Talkatone with some success, but I'm wondering what out there is better.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I use Google Voice (GV) for most of my VOIP communcations, and even have my home phone linked to GV via an Obihai OBI100 adapter, which costs about $40 one time on Amazon. So far, calls to the US and Canada have been free, but that gets updated by Google on annual basis. I don't think anyone knows for sure yet that those calls will continue to be free in 2013, but here's an Obihai forum thread discussing that and the concensus seems to be that they will. I can't understand why people pay $25-$40 per month for a VOIP service like Vonage when they can get the same thing for a $40 one time cost, but I guess ignorance is bliss.
On my phone I use Groove IP (paid) when I want to make phone calls over Wi-Fi, mostly with my backup phone which is not currently activated, and it works very well as a front-end to GV. I use Skype too, but unless it's a Skype-to-Skype call I've found the GV connections to be higher audio quality.
Here's a pretty good article on VOIP alternatives for Android devices.
ramjet73
Yes. Keep all my old android phones around as wifi only house phones with 2 apps. Google Voice and Groove IP