If you have an old Verizion (USA) unlimited data plan (or perhaps other "older" phone plans) that you've been holding onto AND you plan on buying unlocked phones you may want to read about what I learned today... This is mostly a PSA, but if anyone knows of a way to actually "fix" the issue please reply.
The short version is that apparently the old (original) unlimited data plans are setup to only work with locked down "Verizon" phones. I'm still working out all the ramifications of this and could use some help further down in this thread. What this means is that you can NOT activate a NEW sim card in an "non-Verizon" (unlocked) phone IF you're also on an original unlimited data plan (and perhaps any other older plans beyond a certain date?). You CAN; however, activate a NEW sim card in an OLD Verizon phone and after setup is complete you can then move that sim over to your new phone. This should not be a problem for NEW Verizon phone plans OR locked down phones that are considered "Verizon phones" by Verizon software.
As far as I can tell (so far), activating a new sim in an old phone and then moving to the new phone doesn't cause any issues with your service, but I could use some help testing this out in greater detail to confirm.
Here's my story:
I've been on a Verizon unlimited 4G data plan since they first offered them many years ago. I've remained on this plan through price increases and the removal of unlimited only to watch them return it (I almost switched to a new plan months ago... almost). I used to have a Droid Razr Maxx which got rooted and I enjoyed root for awhile. I eventually upgraded to the Droid Turbo (employee edition) which took a long time to gain root so I simply never tried. I decided I wanted root access again and all the joys that brings so after much research into my next phone I landed on the LG V30 unlocked edition. I got my order from B&H Photo a few days ago. I also decided that I wanted a new sim card as I've always felt my old one was "touchy". Could never put my finger on, but mostly I just wanted to start fresh with the V30.
A couple days ago I went into an official (USA) Verizon store and made my request to get a new sim activated on my V30. I didn't think this would be an issue as they sell V30s and I know others have been running "non-Verizon" phones without issues. The CS rep was supportive of this, but after inserting the new card and trying to activate it the Verizon software on his employee tablet shot back something about "this phone does not support this data plan" (or something similar). He tried to troubleshoot the issue for about 10 minutes, but then gave up since I was able to get the V30 working by using my old sim from my Droid Turbo. I accepted this and decided I'd just try again in a few days.
During this time I had no issues with the V30 using my data or making phone calls. I did eventually "kill" the V30 by exploring the band selection screen in the service menu, but a hard factory restore later and I was up and running again. Today I decided to try and get a new sim card again, only this time I decided to head to Best Buy since they sell the unlocked V30 online. My thought was "if they sell the unlocked V30, maybe they'll better understand my issue with a new sim activation"....
After finding the "sim card expert" I requested we went to work. He pulled our a new SIM, dialed up his Verizon contact number and we waited. Once the Verizon rep was on the phone we continued onto activating the sim only to be met with the same error "phone & plan don't like each other". The Verizon rep was stumped after many trial and error attempts on getting it to go through. My issue was eventually escalated to a tech that had more power to get things working and even he was stumped. After nearly 2 hours of digging into provisions and my account info he informed me that my "old" data plan was setup in such a way that it ONLY allows new activations with "Verizon" phones. Of course he suggested I move to a new unlimited data plan (with all the new fine print and prioritizations after 22GB intact of course, ha). He added that there was nothing he could do to change my plan settings to allow new "non-Verizon" phones. He was supportive of activating the new sim on my old Droid Turbo and then placing it into the V30 though. Once we did that the V30 was up and running again. On some quick tests everything appears to be working as well (would like some help to verify this though).
So there's the info I learned today, hopefully this helps someone else avoid any headaches later. How accurate this info is depends on the Verizon tech on the other end of the phone though as I'm only repeating what I was told. The tech did say that he never ran into this before (as I assume most people simply keep swapping in their old sim cards) and he did add that newer plans and phones shouldn't run into this issue and that it's strictly my old plan causing the hiccups on their system. He did check into moving me to the new data plan for activation and then putting my back into my old plan, but came back with "it's not possible".
Now then... all the above said I could use some help ensuring that my unlocked V30 is working correctly on Verizon with my current phone plan.
I've installed an run "RX Monitor", but what I notice is that I see no CDMA options listed under "operator" or "registered cells" or "Neighbor cells". All I see are "LTE" connections that seemingly only use "Band 13". I've driven between different cities from corn fields to the center of town and any time I check I see only "LTE" and "Band 13". Based on what I've read this seems odd... but I don't know enough about it to say for certain.
What I can say is that I can make phone calls (though they seem to be going over LTE and using HD Voice) and I send/receive SMS and MMS texts. I can go online and download and all the good stuff.
Is there a way to further test my phone? When I run RX Monitor on my wife Droid Turbo I can see a CDMA option and other LTE cells, but her phone does not report enough data to compare (ie, it doesn't list the band anywhere in the data) that I can see.
Is there another program or some other way to test or check this? My concern is that I've yet to see "3G" or "1x" on my V30 and I worry that if I end up in an area with more limited coverage that the V30 will simply not work vs switching to 3G or lower (something my Droid Turbo has done in the past).
Any thoughts?... and thank you.
teknomedic said:
The short version is that apparently the old (original) unlimited data plans are setup to only work with locked down "Verizon" phones.
What this means is that you can NOT activate a NEW sim card in an "non-Verizon" (unlocked) phone IF you're also on an original unlimited data plan (and perhaps any other older plans beyond a certain date?). You CAN; however, activate a NEW sim card in an OLD Verizon phone and after setup is complete you can then move that sim over to your new phone. This should not be a problem for NEW Verizon phone plans
After finding the "sim card expert" I requested we went to work. He pulled our a new SIM, dialed up his Verizon contact number and we waited. Once the Verizon rep was on the phone we continued onto activating the sim only to be met with the same error "phone & plan don't like each other".
After nearly 2 hours of digging into provisions and my account info he informed me that my "old" data plan was setup in such a way that it ONLY allows new activations with "Verizon" phones. He added that there was nothing he could do to change my plan settings to allow new "non-Verizon" phones.
He was supportive of activating the new sim on my old Droid Turbo and then placing it into the V30 though. Once we did that the V30 was up and running again.
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Thank you for all the information.
ChazzMatt said:
Thank you for all the information.
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I know it was a long read, but hopefully it made sense.
With full root access would it be possible to label an unlocked V30 as a "Verizon" V30 in software to trick the Verizon registration process into direct activation?
I don't know. The two have different FCC ID, so that would be one way for Verizon to tell the difference.
On the U.S.Moto Maxx 1225, people could unlock the bootloader, then flash Verizon firmware over it to turn it into a Droid Turbo XT1254 because they had the exact same FCC ID and were exactly the SAME device. Verizon just rebranded theirs as a "Droid Turbo" to pretend it was some kind of exclusive. It wasn't even exclusive in the U.S.!
Until Sunshine came along to unlock the Droid Turbo bootloader (a year after release), the Moto XT1225 served as the "dev" version of the Droid Turbo.
Sent from my LG-US998 using Tapatalk
I assume I'm not the only grandfathered Verizon data plan with an unlocked V30... can anyone else confirm that simply moving the sim over from another phone allows the V30 full access to the Verizon network.. CDMA, LTE, 3G, etc?
As I've said so far I only ever seen LTE with 4G. Though I did see CDMA once shortly after activation.. but then nothing
I recently got a Note 8 (at best buy, 300 off,but a down payment, and device payment plan). The sim activated on the Note 8, but my previous active sim was on an Unlocked S8 Plus (g955u1). I then activated the Note 8 Sim on my wife's back up S5, and then put the sim in my S8 plus unlocked. Inhave used the Note yet, because I dont have a glass protector yet and in case I have buyers remorse, I can return the Note 8.
If you have the grandfathered plan (which I do), you jusy simply have to get a 4g Verizon smart phone with a nano sim slot , activate it in there and put it in the Unlovked Lg v30. You should be able to get CDMA and 4g LTE connection.
Sent from my SM-G955U1 using XDA-Developers Legacy app
Hmm I've had the same sim (just shaved down) since my OG Droid. Would this make a difference?
Ooo yeah here we go
Per Verizon's agreement with the FCC when they purchased radio band frequencies, Verizon must allow any compatible device to work on their network. If your device has CDMA and the LTE bands (2, 4, 13) then it will FULLY work. You will be able to make CDMA calls, LTE calls if VoLTE is functional on your device, and use data.
It is true that they are stingy on activation and there is NOTHING the techs can do to activate an unlocked phone. They did't write any code to block it let alone are aware of it. Don't bother even trying. Just get an old Verizon phone that takes nano SIM or go to a store and find an employee willing to activate it in a display phone then give it to you.
I've been using the same SIM for years from my Droid Turbo. It's been in a Nexus 6, Nexus 5x, Moto G4 Play, and an HTC One M8 without any usability issues.
---------- Post added at 12:43 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:38 AM ----------
Charlie_Don't_Surf said:
Hmm I've had the same sim (just shaved down) since my OG Droid. Would this make a difference?
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Yes, that SIM card you have is still considered a mini SIM and will not activate in newer phones that take nano SIM.
I shaved down a micro SIM to fit a nano Sim slot. I tried to have it reactivated and Verizon was unable to. I informed the tech that it was actually a micro SIM and he activated it in a dummy Galaxy S3 and it worked.
---------- Post added at 12:46 AM ---------- Previous post was at 12:43 AM ----------
teknomedic said:
I know it was a long read, but hopefully it made sense.
With full root access would it be possible to label an unlocked V30 as a "Verizon" V30 in software to trick the Verizon registration process into direct activation?
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Verizon and probably the others use the IMEI number to check if it is a VZW or non-VZW phone before activation. Unless you obtained another IMEI number and used it, they can always tell it is a non-VZW phone. But I'm pretty sure that is illegal.
I'm on an unlocked/google Nexus 6. It wasn't purchased from Verizon. I also have an old unlimited data plan. Once a stockish rom comes out for the LG V30 I'll take the plunge and test this out. Hopefully my sim will work in the v30, since it already works with an unlocked phone.
All good info. Thanks everyone.
How could I test the phone though? Is there a way to force CDMA calling vs LTE.... Also... Using RX monitor why would I only be seeing band 13 with no CDMA listed?
I'll update here what I learn comparing a "Verizon V30" vs my B&H unlocked V30. I purchased a second V30 using the Verizon $300 off deal to combine it with the $400 rebate from LG. I know, I know.. it's locked down... but for a cheap backup phone I'm not complaining. I'll run as many comparisons for cellular service as I'm able to.
I know of RX Monitor... hopefully that will confirm or deny that my unlocked V30 is using the network in the same way as the "Verizon" V30.
Any requests or other programs I should use for comparison??
From what I understand, the grandfathered Unlimited has nothing to do with it. As far as I know, Verizon has only activated NEW sim cards on Verizon branded equipment. Once your number is provisioned on a Verizon phone, there is no issue moving the sim between unlocked phones.
Guyinlaca said:
From what I understand, the grandfathered Unlimited has nothing to do with it. As far as I know, Verizon has only activated NEW sim cards on Verizon branded equipment. Once your number is provisioned on a Verizon phone, there is no issue moving the sim between unlocked phones.
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THIS. This is what I've always been told the past few years. Recently someone said Verizon had changed their policies and they somehow activated a SIM card on a 2015 Moto X Pure, but I think that was some kind of fluke. I would still use this policy as the guiding principle for control freak Verizon.
AT&T and T-mobile don't care where your phone came from, they'll activate your phone. I'm on AT&T and have never had an AT&T branded phone. I even brought in two Moto XT1225 from other countries; the Moto XT1225 is the "international" version of the Verizon Droid Turbo XT1254. It was also basically a 5.2" version of the Moto Nexus 6. AT&T didn't have the XT1225 in their database. I said call it a Moto Nexus 6, which they did have in their database. BOOM. Activated. Two of them. And not just on AT&T, but AT&T Prepaid, because I own my phones and only want to pay for monthly service not pay an arm and a leg to subsidize some AT&T branded phone I will NEVER buy.
I'm not here to bash carriers (but I will bash most MVNOs), but the CDMA twins Sprint and Verizon are more trouble than they're worth, in my opinion. I want to use a carrier's signal, but I don't want to buy a carrier's locked down, often overpriced, devices. I don't want to have to buy a carrier phone just to be able to activate a non-carrier phone on that carrier. That's ridiculous.
Does the hot spot work out of the box on the unlocked V30 US998 on the old verizon unlimited plan?
bugswray said:
Does the hot spot work out of the box on the unlocked V30 US998 on the old verizon unlimited plan?
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yes, it does.
I have the B&H US998 V30+ on Verizon, but I gave up unlimited a year or two ago. Still not on the new unlimited yet.
Are you able to get any VM notifications on this phone?
I only get garbled text messages from Verizon, and there is no VM indication.
I have to check for missed calls and manually call *86 to see if I have any voicemail.
Other than that I think it is functioning fully. However I have never seen a 3G icon in the status bar.
I have a Verizon 4G Network Extender in my house, and I get good 4G at work.
teknomedic said:
I assume I'm not the only grandfathered Verizon data plan with an unlocked V30... can anyone else confirm that simply moving the sim over from another phone allows the V30 full access to the Verizon network.. CDMA, LTE, 3G, etc?
As I've said so far I only ever seen LTE with 4G. Though I did see CDMA once shortly after activation.. but then nothing
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I am a Grandfathered user with 450 anytime minutes and paying for text messages still. I moved from an LG G4 to an HTC 10 to an LG V30 just fine. Popped the simcard out of my HTC 10 and installed it into my unlocked V30 and it works perfectly. I don't have any wifi calling though and I'm assuming because I'm not installing any verizon apps what so ever. I don't require wifi calling so i'm good. But it drops to 3G when it has no LTE signal just fine and VoLTE works perfectly. Hope that helps you out.
dvgb173 said:
I have the B&H US998 V30+ on Verizon, but I gave up unlimited a year or two ago. Still not on the new unlimited yet.
Are you able to get any VM notifications on this phone?
I only get garbled text messages from Verizon, and there is no VM indication.
I have to check for missed calls and manually call *86 to see if I have any voicemail.
Other than that I think it is functioning fully. However I have never seen a 3G icon in the status bar.
I have a Verizon 4G Network Extender in my house, and I get good 4G at work.
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It's the same for me... just messed up text messages. I even tried to source the Verizon Voicemail app, but it refused to install... sooo... I setup Google Voice instead and after some tweaking it's working great, Google AI or whatever even gives me its best translation of the voice mail too in text form so I don't need to listen
The one thing I have noticed with Google Voice and normal voicemail is that if I let the phone ring through Google voice works perfectly, BUT if I decide to swipe the "ignore" or whatever button, then the normal voicemail picks it up. It's kinda nice in a way having two voice mail boxes... but also wish I knew how to fix that issue and force everything to google voice.
FunktasticLucky said:
I am a Grandfathered user with 450 anytime minutes and paying for text messages still. I moved from an LG G4 to an HTC 10 to an LG V30 just fine. Popped the simcard out of my HTC 10 and installed it into my unlocked V30 and it works perfectly. I don't have any wifi calling though and I'm assuming because I'm not installing any verizon apps what so ever. I don't require wifi calling so i'm good. But it drops to 3G when it has no LTE signal just fine and VoLTE works perfectly. Hope that helps you out.
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It does help, thank you.
Related
after looking on the forums and a few other places and seeing that the razr should have gsm turned on if we were to find a way to unlock the gsm and put in say a strait talk micro sim card would it still continue to run cdma with 4g lte or would it just use the gsm networks that are around cause $45 for unlimted everything would be sweet. because of were i am strait talk uses vzw networks but i also know that their gsm phones use i think att's network. but if we could do this how many of you would dump your contracts and only pay $45
no body needs to lecture me about spelling or grammer i know it is my flaw and no reason to flame for it LOL
From what i undertsand it should work with out issues.but i believe u need to be on a ics leak to have it fully unlocked.in the ics leak they made it unlocked for global know and thats what my phone is set at.it will hse gsm frequency only since u wont be tied into verizon no longer....if im wrong someone plz correct but i believe im right...
Sent from my DROID RAZR using xda premium
with the straight talk SIM card it would only work on GSM (from straight talk SIM page), yes in the past straight talk had phones that ran/run on verizons CDMA but those are being phased out and the SIM cards being sold now will only work with the GSM, I'm quite interested in this idea myself, I can't do it for more then a year and a half (not worth the cost to break the contract), so someone should be able to confirm this working before that time comes.
But it all depends on whether the razr gsm frequencies are in the same spectrum as AT&T or not, or possibly some other lockout, because in the news articles it seems to imply the global update GSM frequency won't work with AT&T for some reason and you need to be on AT&T GSM to use the straight talk SIM card.
But what would the possibility of getting them to work like the 4g devices on vzw cause I can take the sim out and place in other 4g phone and it works but strait GSM would be nice as well
Side note has any one figured out how to unlock the xt910 phones for different sim. Cards
pondwater said:
But what would the possibility of getting them to work like the 4g devices on vzw cause I can take the sim out and place in other 4g phone and it works but strait GSM would be nice as well
Side note has any one figured out how to unlock the xt910 phones for different sim. Cards
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from my understanding it won't, verizon and straight talk started limiting there interaction before LTE and the SIM cards they are selling now are LOCKED to AT&T GSM frequencies.
http://www.straighttalk.com/shopsims if you choose CDMA it says program not available, and from what I understand AT&T's 4G LTE will be on a different frequency spectrum (50 Megahertz higher IIRC) and so our verizon LTE radios will not be supported on that system.
pondwater said:
after looking on the forums and a few other places and seeing that the razr should have gsm turned on if we were to find a way to unlock the gsm and put in say a strait talk micro sim card would it still continue to run cdma with 4g lte or would it just use the gsm networks that are around cause $45 for unlimted everything would be sweet. because of were i am strait talk uses vzw networks but i also know that their gsm phones use i think att's network. but if we could do this how many of you would dump your contracts and only pay $45
no body needs to lecture me about spelling or grammer i know it is my flaw and no reason to flame for it LOL
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You could buy a GSM razr /maxx that comes sim unlocked and use it on straight talk
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA
Samsuck said:
You could buy a GSM razr /maxx that comes sim unlocked and use it on straight talk
Sent from my ADR6300 using XDA
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Not all of us have the money to buy a new phone
You can use RadioComm to unlock the CDMA/LTE Razr to work on AT&T and T-Mobile. There is a thread somewhere on XDA that shows how to do it. Then all you would have to do is pop in the Straight Talk SIM and edit the APN settings on the Razr to get data and MMS. IIRC, the Razr supports all the frequencies AT&T uses, including the ones used for HSPA+.
Sent from my DROID RAZR using Tapatalk 2
I don't think Lte will work in straighttalk, would be nice but yes straight talk its phasing out devices that use Verizons frequencies.
droid razr maxx
So can anyone confirm that the droid razr maxx will work on straight talk at all with like att sim card? That would be great news because that phone has the best battery.
Straight Talk didn't work out so well for me...
This is what I have found out from talking to Motorola.
Thanks for reaching out to Motorola.
With the release of the Ice Cream Sandwich, the DROID RAZR MAXX can now support GSM. That means it can be used with any carrier's SIM card. But the phone needs to be unlocked to use it with a different carrier aside from Verizon.
In order to unlock the phone you will need the "subsidy" code. This is a code that is unique to your phone. The code is assigned by the original service provider so that you cannot take the phone to another carrier without their permission. The business (carrier) that the phone was originally manufactured for is the only one that will have this information.
You will need to talk to a technical support person at the company for which the phone was sold, for assistance. The technical support staff will probably need to know the IMEI number off of the phone, under the battery to assist you.
We hope that you find this information useful and we look forward to assisting you in the future.
Thank you for contacting Motorola e-mail support.
Best Regards,
Maureen
ValtheBatman said:
This is what I have found out from talking to Motorola.
Thanks for reaching out to Motorola.
With the release of the Ice Cream Sandwich, the DROID RAZR MAXX can now support GSM. That means it can be used with any carrier's SIM card. But the phone needs to be unlocked to use it with a different carrier aside from Verizon.
In order to unlock the phone you will need the "subsidy" code. This is a code that is unique to your phone. The code is assigned by the original service provider so that you cannot take the phone to another carrier without their permission. The business (carrier) that the phone was originally manufactured for is the only one that will have this information.
You will need to talk to a technical support person at the company for which the phone was sold, for assistance. The technical support staff will probably need to know the IMEI number off of the phone, under the battery to assist you.
We hope that you find this information useful and we look forward to assisting you in the future.
Thank you for contacting Motorola e-mail support.
Best Regards,
Maureen
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Unfortunatelly it does not work with AT&T or T-Mobile or Straight Talk service in United States. Droid Razr / Razr Max will only work with other GSM Cards outside the US Market. Please see the findings below:
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1619563&page=30
talking w/ a geekI know that wooks for verizion
ValtheBatman said:
So can anyone confirm that the droid razr maxx will work on straight talk at all with like at&t sim card? That would be great news because that phone has the best battery.
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I went to hin earlier this month (Feb, 13) He said yeah it can be done. especially if you click on GSM when you go to your settings where you can choose between global and LTE/CDMA mode. and try clicking on GSM/ UMTS, then you should lost you data and all your bars with a red line through it. If a box pops up saying this phone does not have a GSM carrier connection, or something like that, that's even better. Now since Verizon got rid of unlimited data, and also got fined over 1.2 billion data for deleting 7 3rd party adds for free hotspot, there are more and more hotspot apps popping up all the time. I highly recommend downloading Aptoid for free so you can download any paid app for free. I haven't come across a app it does not have and just downloaded a $29.99 app today. Anyways, he said there are way's to do this without unlocking though many Verizon techs might not do it for you or even tell you how to get the info. I recommend doing and checking out a few things first. If you still have unlimited data, just order the strait talk SIM card for now until either they get rid of unlimited data all together or you don't want to pay full price for a phone anymore. Here's what you need to check into. there are many other pte-paid providers out there. And you can order blank SIM cards from out of country. check out clear.com, thats $45 bucks a month for unlimited data at home or on the go. the devices cost anywhere from 24.99-100+, but the adverage one you need is around $50. If you can conect to your computer from your phone or tablet, there are ways for to remotely send your phone internet access from you PC to you phone or computer. look it up! I don't know hoe to do all this stuff my buddy does. I am just a business owner that has used 149GB on my unlimited data plan through Verizon since January 28th till February 15th, which is on the low side for me since I used 59GB's from January 29th to February 3rd. Whatever blocks come up, there will be a way around them. these companies rely on older people like my aunt who had unlimited data on her regular smart phone + her work phone then she was paying by the GB for her Ipad. All three with with her at all times I showed her how to be able to use all three through her regular phone, Via Hotspot w/ a free hotspot app. or Via Blu-tooth, and how to direct tether. she couldn't believe she was now able to save about $150 a month in about 25 mins of a little education. Also I said there will always be ways around whatever the cell companies do. I am not going to tell you the name of the company that goes live February 21st. but $40 a month, unlimited everything and all you have to do is to get one other person to do it with after you. plus you can use whatever phone you have now. if you get two people to sign up after you it is free, $20 for every person you sign up, $10 for every person they sign up $5 for the next, but it doesn't go any further than that, It hasn't even stated yet, but I signed up in November and signed up 13 people, some of them went nuts and got a lot of people, which only like 4 of them I know and the people the people They signed up signed up alot. now my first months paycheck along with my free unlimited data talk and text will be $3,130. why? because if I didn't sign up anyone my bill would be $40, I signed up 13 and the chain when on from there. less money for the people you didn't sign up but are linked to you from the ones you did. I just found out how much money I will be getting at the end of march. Now they are getting rid of free data. I am going to push this. and you can keep you first service plan if you don't get good reception for calls, just swich out the SIM cards. Look it up, it should be hard to find
not sure
What I want to know is when If I did the following:
jrtower said:
I went to hin earlier this month (Feb, 13) He said yeah it can be done. especially if you click on GSM when you go to your settings where you can choose between global and LTE/CDMA mode. and try clicking on GSM/ UMTS, then you should lost you data and all your bars with a red line through it. If a box pops up saying this phone does not have a GSM carrier connection, or something like that, that's even better.
I got pop up window so what do I do now? I would really like to use my Droid Razor please help me:
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Is it possible to unlock the Verizon version of the S4? I'm deploying in 4 weeks and would like to use my phone with international carriers. I have an SCH-I545 build and I'm still running on stock. Thanks
I think ATT has begun to unlock phones internationally when asked.
Verizon? Not sure... one think to check is if the Verizon GS4 supports a carrier in the country you travel to.
Take a look at Leo Laporte's Tech Guy show... he has callers ask this quetion on average every other week... I think he has show notes on his site now days... techguylabs.com
Sent from my SCH-I545 using xda app-developers app
PetrichorXFi said:
I think ATT has begun to unlock phones internationally when asked.
Verizon? Not sure... one think to check is if the Verizon GS4 supports a carrier in the country you travel to.
Take a look at Leo Laporte's Tech Guy show... he has callers ask this quetion on average every other week... I think he has show notes on his site now days... techguylabs.com
Sent from my SCH-I545 using xda app-developers app
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Verizon phones are unlocked out of the box, but you have to make sure that the country you are going to has a GSM network.
After a lot of searching, I decided to ask this here:
I have a Verizon S4, but I was wondering if it was actually unlocked out-of-box or if there is something I have to do in order to use it with, for instance, Cricket, or U.S. Cellular. I have done lots of rooting/developing for Android, but have never tried to use an Android phone with a differing carrier. Can anyone help or point me to a thread that helps? (Again, did lots of Googling and XDA-searching)
furballbeethoven said:
After a lot of searching, I decided to ask this here:
I have a Verizon S4, but I was wondering if it was actually unlocked out-of-box or if there is something I have to do in order to use it with, for instance, Cricket, or U.S. Cellular. I have done lots of rooting/developing for Android, but have never tried to use an Android phone with a differing carrier. Can anyone help or point me to a thread that helps? (Again, did lots of Googling and XDA-searching)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The phone is GSM-unlocked. This means that you buy a SIM, plug it in, then add the proper APN to enable data. (Settings, Connections, More networks, Mobile networks, Access Point Names). The "+" (Add APN) button is disabled if you have a VZ SIM installed but will be enabled if you insert a non-VZ SIM.
Whoever you get the SIM from will tell you what to enter for the APN.
Whether or not it'll work and how fast a network you'll get depends on the bands that the local carrier uses.
k1mu said:
The phone is GSM-unlocked. This means that you buy a SIM, plug it in, then add the proper APN to enable data. (Settings, Connections, More networks, Mobile networks, Access Point Names). The "+" (Add APN) button is disabled if you have a VZ SIM installed but will be enabled if you insert a non-VZ SIM.
Whoever you get the SIM from will tell you what to enter for the APN.
Whether or not it'll work and how fast a network you'll get depends on the bands that the local carrier uses.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
HI k1mu,
So do you mean to say if I purchase this device with full price from VZW ~$400 (month to month plan),
the next thing I can do is take off VZW SIM and would it work on my AT&T GSM SIM in US?
malhotra.aakash said:
HI k1mu,
So do you mean to say if I purchase this device with full price from VZW ~$400 (month to month plan),
the next thing I can do is take off VZW SIM and would it work on my AT&T GSM SIM in US?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe. While the VZW version is GSM-unlocked for international use, it is unclear how well it works with US GSM carriers. Some people say they can get it to work, some say they can't. Theoretically, it should only take you putting in an AT&T SIM then plugging in the APN data for it to work, but some people still say it won't.
So, you should be able to, but going by the accounts of XDA members, it doesn't always work, which may or may not come down to user error.
joshm.1219 said:
Maybe. While the VZW version is GSM-unlocked for international use, it is unclear how well it works with US GSM carriers. Some people say they can get it to work, some say they can't. Theoretically, it should only take you putting in an AT&T SIM then plugging in the APN data for it to work, but some people still say it won't.
So, you should be able to, but going by the accounts of XDA members, it doesn't always work, which may or may not come down to user error.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks joshm.1219,
It still leaves me in a dilemma.. I do really want to get a "S4 mini" model but don't want to stuck up with CDMA providers to be true. Might want to use with ATT or Tmobile or H2O.. I visited the VZW store and the model has option under networks as
1. Global
2. LTE/CDMA
3. GSM/UTMS
Now the Qs are,
1. If this model does have a SIM card slot, how at the first point VZW has lock on it
2. When i asked the VZW associate, he was not sure whether they ever do unlock the device or not
3. If I am ready to pay off complete price of the device which is ~400, what else I would need from them to really 'UNLOCK' it?
4. Is there any means by root/flashing to make such model work for US GSM carriers like H2O or even T-mobile.
Sorry to be so annoying but m new to all these things and quite confused :crying:
many Thx in advance..
malhotra.aakash said:
Thanks joshm.1219,
It still leaves me in a dilemma.. I do really want to get a "S4 mini" model but don't want to stuck up with CDMA providers to be true. Might want to use with ATT or Tmobile or H2O.. I visited the VZW store and the model has option under networks as
1. Global
2. LTE/CDMA
3. GSM/UTMS
Now the Qs are,
1. If this model does have a SIM card slot, how at the first point VZW has lock on it
2. When i asked the VZW associate, he was not sure whether they ever do unlock the device or not
3. If I am ready to pay off complete price of the device which is ~400, what else I would need from them to really 'UNLOCK' it?
4. Is there any means by root/flashing to make such model work for US GSM carriers like H2O or even T-mobile.
Sorry to be so annoying but m new to all these things and quite confused :crying:
many Thx in advance..
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry I can't be of more help, I've been on Verizon for 10 years now, but it is by all intents & purposes, fully SIM-unlocked. It's simply unclear as to why some people report problems of using Verizon phones on US GSM carriers. If you really don't want to worry about it & are willing to pay full price, purchase a device through the carrier you want to use it on.
here is the code to choose network
you might need to change the network frequency to gsm if you wanna use it on att or tmobile and when you wanna switch back to verizon choose wcdma try dialing *#*#4636#*#*:good:
joshm.1219 said:
Sorry I can't be of more help, I've been on Verizon for 10 years now, but it is by all intents & purposes, fully SIM-unlocked. It's simply unclear as to why some people report problems of using Verizon phones on US GSM carriers. If you really don't want to worry about it & are willing to pay full price, purchase a device through the carrier you want to use it on.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had people argue with me over this, but the fact is that NO Verizon LTE phone is SIM-locked. None. Nada.
People who claim differently are simply misinformed. (My I545 comes up on AT&T when I plug in my UK SIM and switch to GSM.)
Not to say that all VZ phones are unlocked - my Inc2 had to be unlocked before it would work with that same SIM. If I remember right, it wouldn't connect in the US, either, even after being unlocked. Not so for the GS4.
I appreciate the posts here from people who know. As for me, I am switching to tmobile and will attempt to use this there. If it doesnt work out, I will sell it on swappa and get a nexus 5!
Hi,
Verizon S4 with 4.3 is international unlocked by default.
You just need to select network mode 'GLOBAL'. Then add the right APN.
I am using Indian GSM SIM with the GLOBAL mode selected. All is well for me.
I can provide screenshots if anybody wanna see.
Verizon phones are unlocked out of the box and they DO work fine on US carriers I'm running my Verizon S4 right now on AT&T and I also ran it on tmobile for short time,
even works with Walmart straight talk and Net10 as those are just subsidies of T Mobile and AT&T anyway.
so don't sweat it if you have a verizon phone that uses a sim card, you can run it on any network that uses a SIM card US or international.
baseband issue
Doesn't the MK2 baseband with jb 4.3 block US Sim cards?
Or do I just have a weird s4?
kendonsh said:
Doesn't the MK2 baseband with jb 4.3 block US Sim cards?
Or do I just have a weird s4?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Mine dont? Im on mk2,
soon as I got my verizon s4 replacement from a damaged model that I turned in,
I threw a net10/att sim card in it.
completely stock phone not even rooted nothin, and it works fine, I did get a popup that said non Verizon SIM card but it works fine
calls in and out MMS works fine
---------- Post added at 01:57 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:53 PM ----------
CafeAdrutico said:
The S4 is supposed to work globally right out of the box, as long as you've called Verizon to enable International roaming on your account. But, used that way, you'll be paying Verizon for International roaming and it's bloody expensive.
The question is, can you remove the SIM and put in a SIM for a local carrier in the foreign country where you are and use the phone on that carrier? That is what being unlocked would allow you to do. Past Verizon phones have not been unlocked to allow this. But, if you called Tech Support and told them you were going to, for example, Europe and wanted to use a local SIM, they would walk you through unlocking (at no charge).
I read a report that the S4 is not locked and that you can use a SIM for a local carrier in Europe, as it comes out of the box. But, I would not trust that. I would call VZW Tech Support and tell them exactly what you want to do - i.e. don't say "can I use my phone in Europe?" The answer to that is yes, you can, at about $1/minute. What you should ask them is, "can I travel to Europe and purchase a SIM from a local carrier and use that in my phone?" If not, they should be able to walk you through unlocking the phone, so you can do that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
to answer your question simply yes.
let's say I take my phone to Spain are somewhere in the UK, I'll go to store buy a SIM card for local network and BAM local phone number in Europe making phone calls, you can even get Data to work if you have that local carrier's APN settings
no unlocking is required because it is not locked.
other companies AT&T, Sprint, t-mobile, yes you have to get The phone sim unlocked.
k1mu said:
I've had people argue with me over this, but the fact is that NO Verizon LTE phone is SIM-locked. None. Nada.
People who claim differently are simply misinformed. (My I545 comes up on AT&T when I plug in my UK SIM and switch to GSM.)
Not to say that all VZ phones are unlocked - my Inc2 had to be unlocked before it would work with that same SIM. If I remember right, it wouldn't connect in the US, either, even after being unlocked. Not so for the GS4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is 100% correct. NO LTE phones on verizon are sim locked. They are REQUIRED to keep them unlocked because of their agreement with the FCC for their use of the spectrum they lease. NO OTHER CARRIER must abide by these rules. Only VZW. Sprint I've heard will unlock ANY phone that is capable if you ask them too, and AT&T will NOT unlock any of their phones unless it 2 years old and out of contract (which makes no sense if you have to pay them while under contract anyway). There was a big deal about the Iphone 5 when it came out with LTE for verizon. If you bought a Verizon Iphone, you could put an ATT sim in it and it works, but not an ATT on VZW because ATT keeps them locked.
The Dinc 2 above was NOT an LTE device. Therefore no sim card....and it wouldn't work on most overseas networks anyway as it was a CDMA only phone. I believe VZW tested the limits of the "unlocked" SIM with their first few LTE phones. My Rezound worked with a GSM network sim....but voice and SMS only. It took some unlocking of the bootloader and rooting to run a special Rom to get Data to work on it.
I am heading to the Caribbean in a few weeks, and I will be using a rented SIM card to be able to message back and forth with my wife (with a data based messenger service as data rates are far cheaper than SMS rate there)
318sugarhill said:
This is 100% correct. NO LTE phones on verizon are sim locked. They are REQUIRED to keep them unlocked because of their agreement with the FCC for their use of the spectrum they lease. NO OTHER CARRIER must abide by these rules. Only VZW. Sprint I've heard will unlock ANY phone that is capable if you ask them too, and AT&T will NOT unlock any of their phones unless it 2 years old and out of contract (which makes no sense if you have to pay them while under contract anyway). There was a big deal about the Iphone 5 when it came out with LTE for verizon. If you bought a Verizon Iphone, you could put an ATT sim in it and it works, but not an ATT on VZW because ATT keeps them locked.
The Dinc 2 above was NOT an LTE device. Therefore no sim card....and it wouldn't work on most overseas networks anyway as it was a CDMA only phone. I believe VZW tested the limits of the "unlocked" SIM with their first few LTE phones. My Rezound worked with a GSM network sim....but voice and SMS only. It took some unlocking of the bootloader and rooting to run a special Rom to get Data to work on it.
I am heading to the Caribbean in a few weeks, and I will be using a rented SIM card to be able to message back and forth with my wife (with a data based messenger service as data rates are far cheaper than SMS rate there)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just spent a week in the UK with an ekit.com SIM in my Verizon GS4 - no problem with getting service, no Verizon charge (even though I was on the Vodaphone network for at least some times.)
And the dinc 2, while not LTE, was CDMA/GSM - not just CDMA (yes, the dinc was CDMA-only), so it did accept a SIM card. I'm using that in the GS4 now that it's cut down to micro SIM.
That phone WAS SIM-locked, but VZ happily unlocked it. For the GS4, I didn't have to do anything with VZ to use it off their network.
bickin said:
Is it possible to unlock the Verizon version of the S4? I'm deploying in 4 weeks and would like to use my phone with international carriers. I have an SCH-I545 build and I'm still running on stock. Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
DOES ANYONE KNOW HOW TO
UNLFOK s4 UK VERSION sorry I'm new to the website
furballbeethoven said:
After a lot of searching, I decided to ask this here:
I have a Verizon S4, but I was wondering if it was actually unlocked out-of-box or if there is something I have to do in order to use it with, for instance, Cricket, or U.S. Cellular. I have done lots of rooting/developing for Android, but have never tried to use an Android phone with a differing carrier. Can anyone help or point me to a thread that helps? (Again, did lots of Googling and XDA-searching)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The phone is already unlocked for SIM and other carriers, all you need is the correct APN for the carrier. I currently have T-Mobile on my i545 and everything works on it.
Looked into Sprints Community Forum to see if they will support this device and it looks like they will not. I am getting this phone and it looks like I'll be leaving Spint.
Here is the thread to the forum. https://community.sprint.com/baw/message/1052157#1052157 Wanted to share in case anyone else is getting it in hopes that Sprint would support it.
Sprint generally tries to avoid factory unlocked phones so their bloatware stays in place.
Yep, Sprint has strict control over what is allowed access to their network. While the A7 has all the bands for Sprint usage, ZTE has said that they're working with Sprint (and Verizon) to get it approved for their networks.
I wouldn't bother too much with what Sprint_Jeffrey & co. said, they are probably in a similar position to the people within ZTE who claimed just days before the boot-loader unlock announcement that they would not be allowing unlocking of the boot-loader. Until an announcement is made by the Sprint people responsible for such things reps like Sprint_Jeffrey & co. are as much in the dark as the rest of us.
What I've heard about this phone and other unlocked phones with Verizon and Sprint support built into the hardware is.
From official channels you will get no support for the device and you can't go to the store and activate the phone.
But most of the time if you take an existing sim from your current phone and pop it in the new unlocked phone it will work just fine. It's worth a shot before leaving sprint if you like the existing service you have.
Unless you were already planning to leave for the greener pasture of GSM service, so many more device options available which is why i only consider GSM carriers myself.
Don' t know about Sprint but swapping in an active SIM from Verizon does NOT work. Been trying for three weeks. I am going to AT&T.
jaseman said:
Don' t know about Sprint but swapping in an active SIM from Verizon does NOT work. Been trying for three weeks. I am going to AT&T.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So you are disagreeing with the, probably, 50 posts I've seen with Verizon working on the Axon 7? I'm getting mine delivered today and will be trying it out tonight. I'm expecting it to work.
Eh, you won't miss Sprint. You could probably go with a cheaper service like Cricket and have better coverage, anyway. Verizon is the only CDMA carrier worth using, but you pay out the bum for the pleasure.
jaseman said:
Don' t know about Sprint but swapping in an active SIM from Verizon does NOT work. Been trying for three weeks. I am going to AT&T.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Works with my active Verizon SIM fine. Full bars Band 4 LTE, full bars CDMA, no roaming indicator (yet).
xtermmin said:
Works with my active Verizon SIM fine. Full bars Band 4 LTE, full bars CDMA, no roaming indicator (yet).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried again with Verizon and it is a no go. I hope those of you who are stuck with Verizon can get things worked out. I suppose Verizon will start to play nice in due time. I, however, have moved on to AT&T pre-paid. Took about 10 minutes for them to get my Axon 7 working properly. There were other ZTE devices in the store also. At least one other cell phone and a couple of other items. So they are already familiar with ZTE and had no trouble getting things setup correctly. Bye-Bye Verizon!
jaseman said:
I tried again with Verizon and it is a no go. I hope those of you who are stuck with Verizon can get things worked out. I suppose Verizon will start to play nice in due time. I, however, have moved on to AT&T pre-paid. Took about 10 minutes for them to get my Axon 7 working properly. There were other ZTE devices in the store also. At least one other cell phone and a couple of other items. So they are already familiar with ZTE and had no trouble getting things setup correctly. Bye-Bye Verizon!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you make sure to use the SIM1 slot instead of the SIM2/microSD slot? Only SIM1 is CDMA enabled.
I don't know why Sprint and Verizon are dicking around. Moto G4 and Google Nexus phones can run on their networks why not ZTE Avon?
rczrider said:
Eh, you won't miss Sprint. You could probably go with a cheaper service like Cricket and have better coverage, anyway. Verizon is the only CDMA carrier worth using, but you pay out the bum for the pleasure.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not if you have RingPlus. I have 5 RingPlus free monthly lines each having 6000 mins/ text/ MB waiting to be ESN swapped out to better equipments
ultrasoul said:
Not if you have RingPlus. I have 5 RingPlus free monthly lines each having 6000 mins/ text/ MB waiting to be ESN swapped out to better equipments
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have RingPlus with a "free" ($15 initial top-up) 1400 plan. And it's great that you have 5 nice plans, but let's be honest, R+ isn't the same as it was last year. Plans like that don't come up much (if ever) anymore and when they do, the hoops make it a real PITA. I'll be surprised if R+ is even around in another year.
And in any case, it's still Sprint and Sprint's network is literally the worst you can use. It's great if you never travel and don't need service outside of cities, but "free" is the only case in which I would use their network. I use R+ with my Moto E as a streaming music player when I'm on the beach or out mowing or doing something else where the phone might get trashed.
xtermmin said:
Did you make sure to use the SIM1 slot instead of the SIM2/microSD slot? Only SIM1 is CDMA enabled.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, all attempts were in SIM slot number 1 only. Constant roaming. On AT&T now and all is working great for less money. No brainer if you can do it.
jaseman said:
Yes, all attempts were in SIM slot number 1 only. Constant roaming. On AT&T now and all is working great for less money. No brainer if you can do it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Er, constant roaming is normal... it's one of the many bugs that the A7 has on Verizon right now. Just had to check "data when roaming" and you would have been good to go.
xtermmin said:
Yep, Sprint has strict control over what is allowed access to their network. While the A7 has all the bands for Sprint usage, ZTE has said that they're working with Sprint (and Verizon) to get it approved for their networks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sprint locks their RUIM/SIM cards to the MEID of the device. Verizon does not engage in this 'anti-consumer' practice.
So can I just put a Sprint Note 4 sim in the Axon 7 and it will work?
I switched from sprint to cricket when I bought the axon 7. Got a good deal for signing up for auto pay and the signal has been wayyy better (in Pittsburgh). I drive all around town for work and only ran into one (almost) dead spot.
Active iPhone Sprint SIM doesn't work in Axon 7
sounreal said:
So can I just put a Sprint Note 4 sim in the Axon 7 and it will work?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No this almost surely won't work. Though it's hard to be 100% sure as Sprint is so finicky with their different SIM card types...my Sprint phone is an iPhone 6S so perhaps the SIM isn't as friendly to Android phones (which is ridiculous but Sprint really does differentiate Android vs. iOS SIMs, which I found out the hard way)...
But I tried anyway with my FreedomPop Sprint SIM...below are some pictures of what happened. The Axon 7 showed a signal and a 4G/LTE icon, but the internet connection didn't work (it just shows a constant upload indication) and there was no 1X signal either when I checked LTE Discovery. So it seems that Sprint is effectively blocking the Axon 7 (as it would any non-Sprint MEID'd phone I believe) from making a data connection or making calls/texts.
It's a shame...Verizon doesn't do this...my Verizon SIM works great in the Axon 7...this is purely a Sprint limitation it seems, which is funny as they're the most desperate of the four major carriers and yet make it nearly impossible to do business with them even though we have a perfectly viable Sprint phone in the Axon 7.
Sprint binds the imei, icc id and phone number to the account. Everything has to match or you get no service.
Sprint is dead, move to a different carrier.
Hi all,
Thanks to all you guys who make these devices perform far and beyond, and then hold a dumbass's hand such as myself and walk me through the steps to do the same.
I have a V30 I am working on. I had a previous one but my little boy slobbered into the charge port as well as dropped it 1000 times and the touch screen finally quit. So I am working on a new one while I use the old Turbo back up.
Here is my dilemma.
I have a grandfathered VZ unlimited data plan that I pay 153 bucks a month for. Depending on the month, I may exceed 30-50 GB on my Hotspot, but it really doesn't happen very often.
With my previous V30, I was running US998. Native tethering with 998 works great but of course there is no Volte, and from what I understand I am going to have to be on VS996 by December because of the network changes. The only problem is on VS996, my hotspot doesn't pass VZ's subscription check.
Has anyone out there gotten Hotspot capabilities on VS996? I have tried every trick I can find on the forums to get it to work, to no avail. I think my situation is growing ever more unique because most people are on a newer plan and don't have to worry about the sub check. I am not going to pay VZ another 30 bucks a month for the sub, (and I have never had to thanks to you all).
So my options are:
Keep my current plan and use PDA net for computer internet and throw my sim in my old Turbo when I need to Roku, etc.
Keep my current plan and roll with US998 until Dec and then maybe try a different phone with native tethering capabilities?
Change my VZ plan. I really don't think I need the true unlimited plan anymore. I would solve my V30 hotspot issues as well as save myself about 100 dollars a month.... But dammit it's kind of the principle of the matter. I like having the ENDLESS data capacity at my disposal!
Thank you for any and all suggestions!
I understand your dilemma. Couple of choices I can think of:
1) Switch to an MVNO such as Red Pocket that will give you what you need at a better price, and which works with US998. If you really need Unlimited everything, there is the following for $60/month using either AT&T (GSMA), Sprint (CDMAS) or Verizon (CDMA) as your carrier. (These are just their names for the networks, since they're not allowed to name the carriers.)
https://www.redpocket.com/plans/add/M060
I use them (although much more meager $60/year plan) with US998 on GSMA, which works great, not throttled, tethering, VoLTE. Their plans include WiFi Calling too, but I haven't been able to make it work on GSMA unless I flash a H931 ROM. There may be a way, I'm still experimenting.
2) Get a much slimmer plan that includes only what you need on the phone, such as 3GB at $19/month or $8GB at $30/month, available on the same networks. Links below:
https://www.redpocket.com/plans/add/M020
https://www.redpocket.com/plans/add/M030
Then complement that with a separate Data Only plan for your Turbo, such as $40 for 20GB/month, although only available on GSMA (AT&T).
https://www.redpocket.com/gsma/add/b040
3) Stay on Verizon with the above plans using CDMA as network. They give you VoLTE and WiFi Calling, as long as your phone supports it, but require a VZ IMEI to activate. I would *expect* that you can get at least VoLTE and tethering working on US998, although I haven't tried on VZ. But they ARE officially included in the plans.
4) Deep dive into IMS settings on US998 (through the hidden menu) and see if you can't get VoLTE working. It doesn't show up in the Network menu, but you can enable an icon in the statusbar to confirm when it's working. See my post linked below (and the following discussion) for what I did to make it work.
https://forum.xda-developers.com/lg...tock-firmware-los-based-t4138223/post83155603
5) Get a VS996 (or Frankenstein a US998) for your phone needs and complement it with a separate Data Only plan in your Turbo instead of tethering.
In other words various combinations I could think of. The only thing I cannot tell you is if GSMA (AT&T, which I have) has good reception in your home. And if CDMA (Red Pocket on VZ) provides the same speed you're used to on VZ postpaid.
V30 remains an awesome phone for the price, but newer models may be more compatible as the carriers switch over their networks.
For what you're currently paying at VZ, you could buy another V30 every month
You might want to see if the old hack to disable the subscription check works on the VZW rom.
* Open "build.prop" in the system folder.
* Look for or add at the bottom
net.tethering.noprovisioning=true
* Reboot and see if you can enable hotspot/tether without a subscription check.
Thanks for the suggestions guys. I have tried the build.prop edit on VS99630b with no luck. I know another user @schwinn8 has had success with this trick on Oreo 20k I believe. It's looking more and more like I'm just going to give up my plan for a cheaper one. My wife and I are saving for a house and every little bit would help! Unfortunately where I live (rural Montana) Verizon is far and wide the best carrier to go through due to their coverage so looks like I'm stuck with them for now!
I may try going back to 20k and see if the build prop trick works on it because I'll hate myself if I don't at least try
kfa670 said:
Unfortunately where I live (rural Montana) Verizon is far and wide the best carrier to go through due to their coverage so looks like I'm stuck with them for now!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're NOT stuck with Verizon as far as your plan, even if they have the only network where you live. One of the points I was trying to make is that most of Red Pocket's plans are available on any of the four big networks, including Verizon.
So you could get a $60 Unlimited Everything plan using the same network you now have. That's $90 saved every month. Or you may be able to save more if you don't need 30-40GB every month, by combining a lower allotment cell plan with a Data Only plan for your WiFi/tethering needs.
If you're willing to lock in a rate for 12 months, there are annual plans which provide further savings. They're often on sale if you have patience to watch them for a while.
Really, I'm not a salesman for these guys, just a user on a low budget. My wife too
As I mentioned, TW is the winner for me - uses VZ towers and is low cost (my wife and I have unlimited calling, and 30GB "fast" data (after that it's like 1x speed or something, so it's technically unlimited, but useless at those speeds). We don't use that much, and we pay about $60 for our two lines.
As for the build.prop change, interestingly enough, I tried running hotspot on my wife's phone, and it just worked... I checked her build.prop and she does NOT have the noprovision in there anywhere. As I mentioned in PM, I didn't have it before, and when I tried to use hotspot it originally told me I had to activate that... clearly that is no longer the case. (TW allows tethering now, but they didn't originally).
Like others suggest, I say switch carriers and be happy - you'll be on VZ towers, and save cost. And not have to deal with the liars at VZ (who will likely tell you your V30 can't be used on their network, even though it can). Win-win.
Thanks again for the input. I guess ive never really researched any providers outside verizon but i know for a fact that ATT doesnt work well here but obviously we are talking other carriers that use VZ towers. Will start looking into this...
I agree verizon is a bunch of crooks.
I am now currently using the V30 with Micromods debloated VS996 pie Rom. No hot spot of course but everything is working butter smooth. Its so much faster than the Turbo its laughable but hey, that old girl gave me 5 years of solid service!
Has anyone ever tried the A.I.S ir A.I.X roms ? Where does a guy even download or acquire these? I did some brief searching but couldnt find but a few references to Telegram, which I joined and briefly tried to find where to download either one but I'm fairly tech incompetent and ran out of time... Would A.I.X be worth looking into and where would i find it?
kfa670 said:
I am now currently using the V30 with Micromods debloated VS996 pie Rom. No hot spot of course but everything is working butter smooth. Its so much faster than the Turbo its laughable but hey, that old girl gave me 5 years of solid service!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I LOVED the 2014 Moto Quark. Droid Turbo was the Verizon variant, but I had three of the "international" Moto Maxx (also sold as Moto Turbo) XT1225 which had more LTE bands (including all of AT&T's LTE bands), no CDMA bands, and all had 64GB internal memory. Some of the Verizon Droid Turbo XT1254 had 64GB, but most people in 2014 bought the 32GB version from Verizon.
Used it daily for 3 years before I got the V30. I researched for a year to find a worthy replacement and the 2017 V30 (especially the 128GB V30+) seemed to be the spiritual successor to the Moto Quark (Droid Turbo, Moto Maxx, Moto Turbo). The V30 Joan series is something the Motorola of 2014 would have made if they hadn't been sold to and cannibalized by Lenovo.
kfa670 said:
Thanks again for the input. I guess ive never really researched any providers outside verizon but i know for a fact that ATT doesnt work well here but obviously we are talking other carriers that use VZ towers. Will start looking into this...
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Click to collapse
Right. You would still be using Verizon while not directly paying Verizon.
MVNOs (Mobile Virtual Network Operators) use the major carriers towers but offer their own branded service. They are paying AT&T, Verizon, T-mobile (and now Sprint) wholesale prices, then packaging it for you. Some are carrier specific -- like T-mobile or Verizon only. Others use all 4 (now 3) major carriers.
All are not alike.
Some MVNOs try to hide the underlying carrier, as if it makes no difference (but it does, due to geographical differences). 2 years ago my mother's Net10 flip phone stopped receiving texts. (Don't freak, I know it was her phone not the service.) But rather than replace the phone, their customer service script entailed sending a new SIM card. OK... But I told them, it HAS to be an AT&T tower SIM card like she has now. They sent a T-mobile SIM card. She can't get T-mobile where she lives. Then, their replacement to the replacement never arrived. Tired of Net10's crap, I gave her one of my spare US998 V30 phones, and put her on my AT&T Prepaid account. (Lot less money than "regular" AT&T postpaid, if you already own your phone. It seems to be a well-kept secret. Just stay away from AT&T Prepaid "unlimited" plans. Explained below.)
My point, which I almost buried, is there are good MVNOs and bad ones. Some of the bad ones don't tell you clearly WHICH major carrier you are using. The good ones do and let you choose. Some that use Verizon towers may make you use Verizon branded phones (with Verizon IMEI) if you get their "Verizon" SIM card. Others don't care and will let you use Verizon as long as your phone is compatible. Like say, a Sprint LS998 V30+ Frankensteined to a US998. Or LS998 V30+ Frankensteined to a VS996.
If you have a native VS996 V30, then that requisite won't matter. But many Verizon customers bought LS998 V30+ (128GB) and converted them to US998 or bought them off eBay already converted to US998. (Those will never have Verizon-eligible IMEI.) BUT with an already-activated Verizon SIM card -- like switched over from Droid Turbo -- until now that didn't matter. :silly: (I am not sure whether your current phone is native VS996 or one just flashed to VS996 firmware?)
Since Verizon 3G CDMA is shutting down, those people are facing a choice by end of 2020:
* Run stock VS996 firmware on their non-Verizon branded V30 to get VoLTE with their Verizon SIM cards.
OR
* go to an "Verizon" MVNO which will still give them both Verizon service and VoLTE, especially if the "Verizon" MVNO allows non-Verizon branded phones.
OR
* go to another major carrier or carrier MVNO if geography allows.
Total Wireless recommended by @schwinn8 for example allows carrier unlocked phones for their Verizon SIM card and some plans have hotspot.
REVIEW (05/2020)- Total Wireless Review: Cheap Cell Phone Plans on Verizon’s Network
https://clark.com/technology/total-wireless-review/
Plans and Pricing
Total Wireless recently added an “unlimited plan” that provides 25GB of high-speed data for $50 a month.
This budget carrier also offers a number of single and family data plans. I chose the unlimited talk, text and 5GB of data plan that costs $35 a month or $33.20 with auto-refill, plus taxes and fees.
One of the volunteers at Team Clark’s Consumer Action Center made the switch from Verizon to Total Wireless. He told me that he lowered his bill for two lines of service from $130 to $60 a month — an annual savings of $840!
For those who use Wi-Fi at home and work, the 5GB data plan is probably the best choice. Customers can also buy 5GB of add-on data for $10 that rolls over from month-to-month.
All Total Wireless plans include unlimited talk and text, and some plans now support mobile hotspot.
Total Wireless supports Wi-Fi Calling on some devices, but my carrier unlocked Moto G6 didn’t allow me to test this feature.
However, I was able to try its Enhanced 4G LTE Mode, which appears to be another name for VoLTE (Voice over LTE). Once enabled, I could talk on the phone and use data at the same time.
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Click to collapse
RedPocket recommended by @TheDannemand is an excellent MVNO for AT&T (using the GSMA SIM card. The A means AT&T). Great "annual plans" for Red Pocket -- for ALL MAJOR CARRIERS -- on ebay. See this note about VoLTE on Red Pocket "Verizon". ("CDMA SIM" is their code word for "Verizon".)
Q: Is this change limited to Red Pocket Mobile?
A: No. This change effects all MVNOs using the same underlying carrier as the Red Pocket CDMA network (i.e. Verizon).
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So, seems like this will affect all "Verizon" MVNOs?
AT&T Prepaid (sold and serviced in AT&T stores) is another excellent source for AT&T. The only caveat is their "unlimited" plans are capped to lower LTE speeds, while their 8GB plan and lower is completely uncapped (70 - 90 Mbps).
kfa670 said:
Has anyone ever tried the A.I.S ir A.I.X roms ? Where does a guy even download or acquire these? I did some brief searching but couldnt find but a few references to Telegram, which I joined and briefly tried to find where to download either one but I'm fairly tech incompetent and ran out of time... Would A.I.X be worth looking into and where would i find it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A.I.X. -- based on stock LG V30 Pie -- is found on the V30 Telegram thread. It's like stock on steroids. A.I.S. was the Oreo based version. You have to ask for permission to access the specific A.I.X. thread, maintained by the dev. You have to follow the installation instructions completely. To be honest, it's not for beginners. For instance, he replaces Google Play app with a modified one and as a result you can't accept Google Play app updates until he makes a newer one. If you have any problems with the ROM, don't complain. Make sure you've read all the documentation. If you complain, the dev will ban you.
A few things I would add about Red Pocket:
1) They are not ALLOWED to name the carriers whose networks they use. I presume because the carriers consider their brands so precious, they don't want MVNOs to use them in their marketing (as in "we provide service on the Verizon network").
2) While they are indeed pretty great on AT&T (GSMA) I think their T-Mobile service (GSMT) is an even better choice for US998 users as the phone fully and easily supports VoLTE and VoWiFi (WiFi Calling) on the TMO network, with proper Network settings menus and all. On GSMA (and I presume other networks too) you have to rely on the hidden menu to configure it. Unfortunately T-Mobile has become more protective of their service and is currently not available on all Red Pocket plans.
3) I can confirm what ChazzMatt posted that you need a Verizon IMEI to activate Verizon service on Red Pocket (CDMA). I tried a few months ago to switch my plan from GSMA to CDMA using my US998 (converted from LS998) but the system refused based on the IMEI. The agent quietly confirmed that I would need to activate on a VZW phone, then move the SIM over. I wish I had made that switch last year before before their policy changed, but back then I had H932, which doesn't support CDMA. While AT&T has decent reception in my home (better than TMO) it is not as good as it was two years ago. I would expect VZW to be better.
4) When I first got my US998 early this year, I checked its IMEI on their website, and it was compatible with GSMA (AT&T), GSMT (TMO) and CDMAS (Sprint). The Device Compatibility Check is no longer on their website, so I cannot confirm it now.
5) You can switch between the different carriers available on your plan, as long as your phone supports it. You do this through their Customer Service Chat, preferably on the last day of the plan month, since you lose the remaining days of that month. You need an unused SIM card for the carrier you want to switch to. If you don't have one from a starter kit, you'll have to order it from their website ($5 free shipping). Note that old SIM cards can NOT be re-used, so if you need to switch back, make sure you have an unused SIM card.
6) VoLTE is officially provided on all networks. See this. VoWiFi (WiFi Calling) is officially provided on GSMA (AT&T), GSMT (TMO) and CDMAS (Sprint), but NOT CDMA (Verizon). See this. Of course it has to be supported by the phone on the chosen network, but Red Pocket does NOT restrict access to these features. You simply ask them to enable them on your account. GSMA (AT&T) VoLTE works on my US998, but NOT on my wife's H932 (at least not easily). I have not been able to make VoWiFi work on US998 ROM, but it DOES work when flashing H931 ROM on the same phone. Others have confirmed that both VoLTE and VoWiFi work with US998 on TMO. I would definitely try a switch to CDMA (Red Pocket Verizon) with my US998 if I had a VZW IMEI on which to activate. It might work right out of the box (again, since Red Pocket DOES provide it). Otherwise I have enough experience now messing with IMS settings that I think I might be able to make it work.
7) Tethering with US998 works on GSMA by adding "dun" to the APN type. Others have confirmed that it works on genuine Verizon, and we can assume it will work on CDMA, CDMAS and GSMT as well.
8) One benefit I haven't mentioned in previous posts is that international calling is not only supported but FREE on all their plans: As long as you have minutes, you can call most of the world on those minutes at no extra cost. OTOH, sending international SMS has always been unreliable, for some reason.
9) Starting earlier this year Red Pocket began pushing iPhone sales, and downplaying BYOD, which I find annoying. I wonder if the carriers are squeezing them and they're looking for alternate revenue sources.
Alright, there's my Red Pocket write-up. All I can think of
I am on Verizon 's unlimited data plan with my v30 vs996 Frankensteined to us998. So, I will have to permanently go to the vs996 at the end of the year, as you are. Right now we (my wife and I) use her phone as our hot spot paid thru Verizon. We do not have a router for internet services. We pay Verizon for that service. When we first subscribed to it, it was $10.00 a month (not sure what it is now). We also use my phone as a Hotspot for free until the end of the year. I will then check to see if I can subscribe my phone as a hot spot, too, hopefully for the $10.0 per month.
My unlimited plan is thru a business/government plan, though. I don't know if that is why we pay only $10/month or not.
It would be nice if we could keep it the way it is now, but it doesn't appear so.
gimpy1 said:
I am on Verizon 's unlimited data plan with my v30 vs996 Frankensteined to us998. So, I will have to permanently go to the vs996 at the end of the year, as you are. Right now we (my wife and I) use her phone as our hot spot paid thru Verizon. We do not have a router for internet services. We pay Verizon for that service. When we first subscribed to it, it was $10.00 a month (not sure what it is now). We also use my phone as a Hotspot for free until the end of the year. I will then check to see if I can subscribe my phone as a hot spot, too, hopefully for the $10.0 per month.
My unlimited plan is thru a business/government plan, though. I don't know if that is why we pay only $10/month or not.
It would be nice if we could keep it the way it is now, but it doesn't appear so.
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Click to collapse
If you have "genuine" Verizon with official hotspot, couldn't you just use the VS996 ROM and stay that way? It should give you VoLTE, WiFi Calling (I presume), and official hotspot. Something I am missing here?
Yes, I guess I could. But, it does not give me the hot spot at no cost. There is a charge for using the hot spot. ($10.00 last I looked). My wife's phone is an iPhone. Her phone does have the official Hotspot from Verizon at a cost of $10.00 per month. I have not checked the pricing, etc., in a couple of years, but my options at the time were:
1. get my internet thru another carrier at a cost, using a router (I originally had internet thru Qwest-, but, had problems with them and their support, which upset me - - another story, so discontinued them and went totally with Verizon).
2. get Verizon's hot spot device at a cost of $40 per month + a charge for the device itself ($200.00 + it seems?).
3. Use either my phone and/or my wife's phone as the hot spot. ($10.00 per month per phone).
We went with option 3. Use my wife's phone as a hot spot. That way, she always has the option to take/use it anywhere with her iPhone. I also have that option on us998 at no cost.
There are pros and cons with this option, but it's the least expensive for me right now. I do have 4 lines on my plan and pay over $240. a month for my plan.
I do not know how Verizon will work when it changes. I suppose I can have my phone as a hot spot as along with my wife's for the same charge, but have not checked. Or not. But, then if she travels and I stay home, I would be unable to connect another device to the internet (new computer or iPad).
Again, I am on a business/government plan. Which does have its perks.
Sorry for the long winded post.
I understand now. That bit about $240/month was the missing context :laugh:
Why not get a hotspot device from Verizon for $40/month to provide WiFi for the house, then get MUCH cheaper plans on Total Wireless or Red Pocket for the four phones, including only the allotments you actually need. Unless you need Unlimited Everything on all four lines, you'll still save money AND have the convenience of permanent WiFi.
Edit: Of course for the WiFi you could also get a Data Only plan on Red Pocket or TW, using a US998 or other device for the tethering.
Well, I've been on this plan for a few years now. I'm not real sure how that would work, since we have the government account. I just haven't checked. That would also affect the two other lines (not at home here).
Except for on here, I have never heard of the Red Pocket option.
And, last, but not least, I have to have the OK of my wife :>(=). She already does not trust me and my "hacked" phone. She won't let me touch our brand new computer, yet. I want to "clean" it up. (do away with bloat and advertisements, etc.).
So....
I will check into it, but, everything has to be cleared (for Verizon's part) thru our government contract person.
Anyway, I'm sorry, did not mean to hijack the thread from the OP. I thought he might check the option of using his phone as a hotspot for a minimal charge?
gimpy1 said:
And, last, but not least, I have to have the OK of my wife :>(=). She already does not trust me and my "hacked" phone.
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Ha!
As you know, your "hacked" phone gives you free hotspot (at least for now).
With my wife, it's when it's something she needs. Then she asks for my help. "I know you can figure it how to do this..."
Until then she pretends my hobbies are a waste of time.
VoLTE should work on Verizon if you have the US998...
jptV30 said:
VoLTE should work on Verizon if you have the US998...
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Click to collapse
VoLTE works for T-Mobile on US998. No one has been able to do it on Verizon with a US998 V30 that was not originally a Verizon branded VS996. Have you?
ChazzMatt said:
VoLTE works for T-Mobile on US998. No one has been able to do it on Verizon with a US998 V30 that was not originally a Verizon branded VS996. Have you?
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Click to collapse
I am on a Verizon MVNO and VoLTE has been working on my US998. I have read others who are direct Verizon customers saying the same thing. Just to be clear, I am talking about a true US998 and not a phone crossflashed to US998...
jptV30 said:
I am on a Verizon MVNO and VoLTE has been working on my US998. I have read others who are direct Verizon customers saying the same thing. Just to be clear, I am talking about a true US998 and not a phone crossflashed to US998...
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Interesting.
Yes, direct Verizon customer on native US998 and still on US998 firmware is what we're talking about.
Howdy, y'all!
I was looking at a good deal locally to get an LG V60 UW 5G, but I'm on T-mobile. I was wondering if I could get it working for T-mobile's 5G bands (71, 66, 2, etc); or if there would be some issues as it's a Verizon phone originally (that's unlocked). From what I can tell is that it should work as it does have the correct bands. Any help or further info would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks,
Loubar
5G may not work. I think the Verizon version of 5G uses an mm wave radio that is different from T-Mobile.
Best of luck to you though.
Sent from my LM-V600 using Tapatalk
It doesn't work
Don't try this as I am currently stuck in this situation. I thought it would work so I bought a Verizon LG v60 and connected to T-Mobile network. Now I only have 4G and it drops to 3G to make phone calls. ? The only hope is for T-Mobile to go mm wave soon.
I have a Verizon LG-V60 UW on T-Mobile and it worked perfect on 5G in the Missouri area. I'm almost in Arkansas and I'm still getting 5-G. It used to do the shuffle where it would go from 5G down to 3G or HSPA when I would make a call which means I wasn't getting VOLTE because if I were, then it would not need to drop to 3G or anything less than 4G LTE to make phone calls. I could be wrong, but I think it's a slim chance, I suspect the deficiency is not with the hardware, i.e., the Verizon model has enough bands to support VOLTE even on T-Mobile's Sprint-T-Mobile combination of towers, (hence the ability to receive consistent 5G) but Verizon has found a way to defy the deal they signed onto when the FCC let them come in before the doors were open to bid on spectrum privately and Verizon promised to make phones that were SIM unlocked for...ever. They have been bucking that clause in the agreement ever since, but of lately they are REALLY pushing back at the FCC by locking SIMs, and the FCC has capitulated a few times IMHO by allowing Verizon to lock them under certain circumstances such as if a device is not paid off or not on their network long enough- which begs the question, what did they get from Verizon that's any different from the rest of the carriers? That is the industry standard, but I digress. Point is they want to tether their phones to their network and they have started to decide some more thoughtful ways as opposed to just defying the FCC outright by locking the SIMs, and one of them is to deny WIFI calling if you are not on their network with the V60 at least. You are directed every time the phone powers up to put in your address for 911 purposes since WIFI calling doesn't always transmit the address to the police like the E911 would on a cellular call. This is NOT a requirement, by the way, there is no law that says you can't make phone calls over wifi without appraising the police as to where to send the cops if you ever dial 911 over WiFi. But, there is no way around Verizon's interface on the LG-V60, and, as you can guess from my rant, you will never be able to successfully update your address with Verizon if you are on TMobile, or anybody else that I've seen because it will just bounce around for a few minutes of pointless waiting to come back and tell you that something went wrong and you can try again... But don't. There isn't any purpose and they know it. You won't be able to update Verizon's databases from another carrier unless maybe you still have an account with Verizon, and that's still debatable from another carrier. So no WiFi calling on other networks. Ever. Same thing goes for VoLTE. It never provisions if you are on T-Mobile. Can't, Verizon has locked the door. It did work when I first got the phone. Then, I reset the phone and since I did not have initial access to Verizon's network, it did not provision (unlock the VoLTE). Unfortunate for me, I bought my device from the internet swap site and I checked the company's IMEI checker which green-lighted the sale by giving me the false impression that the device had no blacklists for theft or financial non-payment. Then, when I tried to circumvent the new way to prevent their Verizon customers from escaping by putting in my girlfriend's Verizon SIM in long enough to provision all the barriers aforementioned, and it locked her SIM up simply because the guy sold me a phone and Verizon told me that they can say that the IMEI is good quite a while after a person sells an unpaid phone before changing their report that the phone is clear and free to it is black listed, meaning that it is almost pointless to rely on their IMEI check because anyone can sell the phone while they owe a thousand dollars on it still and then, after you give them $900, they simply quit paying and you have all the problems of a blacklisted phone even though you were told it was a-ok when you checked with them and ran the IMEI before buying the phone. It was hell trying to get my girlfriend's phone working again after they unceremoniously shut it down for punishment of putting her Verizon SIM into a Verizon phone that someone had stopped making the payments. It wasn't stolen mind you; do not put your SIM in anybody's phone if you have a Verizon SIM because they won't tell you that it offends them, they just **** your service off and now you have to contact them and if it's on s holiday weekend like it was for me, you are screwed for a couple days. I was, and I was lost- no gps and running out of gas in the middle of nowhere. Long explanation, but it could be critical if someone owns a Verizon phone or attempts to buy one and puts their SIM in it to see if it works- God can't help you if you do.
Jeesh, all that and I forgot to mention this: I now use the 5G on CDMA, but cannot make calls. I just switch the mobile network to CDMA LTE and instantly I have 5G service but only emergency calls because VoLTE is not working. Nor video calling. But when I want to make a cellular call or see my text messages I switch back to Global mode and it goes right to 3G or HSPA (most time it flips constantly between the two over and over and over) and I get my texts and am able to make non-emergency calls. It's a hassle, but what am I going to do? Verizon is the biggest bully on the block, not even the FCC can push them around, and LG bit the bullet as far as phones are concerned. SMH...
I purchased a Verizon V60 (LM-V600VM) on ebay in late December 2021 and was told by Verizon customer service this phone's IMEI will not work on Verizon's network (likely due to original account holder's non-payment fulfillment, but that private info I'm not allowed to know). I never planned to us this V60 on Verizon's network and was 99% sure it would work on both T-mobile and AT&Ts network even though it's blacklisted on Verizon's network. Well it does work on both T-mobile and AT&T networks (on Consumer Cellular plans) until just a few days ago. It now will no longer allow incoming or outgoing calls. It still does get 4GLTE data and receives/sends text messages (with photo's too). I turned on all settings I could think of but with no luck getting calls to work. I suspect calls are no longer working due to the 3G phase out requirements by the FCC to retire this frequently to make room for 5G. I also think this Verizon V60 phone does not have built-in VoLTE capability but instead uses Verizon's built-in HD voice (as a voice over network) technology to place calls when 3G is not available and used only on the Verizon network. Since this V60 is blacklisted and can never be used on Verizon's network and it looks like the 3G frequency has been retired (dropped off the face of the earth never to be resurrected again), I'm asking if anyone knows a way around my problem with not being able to place cellular calls now. I know about Google voice but that seems like a clunky patch alternative. Does anyone know if an AT&T or T-MOBILE V60 main board (motherboard) swap into a LM-V600VM Verizon phone would work in this situation???
AndyGumpp said:
I have a Verizon LG-V60 UW on T-Mobile and it worked perfect on 5G in the Missouri area. I'm almost in Arkansas and I'm still getting 5-G. It used to do the shuffle where it would go from 5G down to 3G or HSPA when I would make a call which means I wasn't getting VOLTE because if I were, then it would not need to drop to 3G or anything less than 4G LTE to make phone calls. I could be wrong, but I think it's a slim chance, I suspect the deficiency is not with the hardware, i.e., the Verizon model has enough bands to support VOLTE even on T-Mobile's Sprint-T-Mobile combination of towers, (hence the ability to receive consistent 5G) but Verizon has found a way to defy the deal they signed onto when the FCC let them come in before the doors were open to bid on spectrum privately and Verizon promised to make phones that were SIM unlocked for...ever. They have been bucking that clause in the agreement ever since, but of lately they are REALLY pushing back at the FCC by locking SIMs, and the FCC has capitulated a few times IMHO by allowing Verizon to lock them under certain circumstances such as if a device is not paid off or not on their network long enough- which begs the question, what did they get from Verizon that's any different from the rest of the carriers? That is the industry standard, but I digress. Point is they want to tether their phones to their network and they have started to decide some more thoughtful ways as opposed to just defying the FCC outright by locking the SIMs, and one of them is to deny WIFI calling if you are not on their network with the V60 at least. You are directed every time the phone powers up to put in your address for 911 purposes since WIFI calling doesn't always transmit the address to the police like the E911 would on a cellular call. This is NOT a requirement, by the way, there is no law that says you can't make phone calls over wifi without appraising the police as to where to send the cops if you ever dial 911 over WiFi. But, there is no way around Verizon's interface on the LG-V60, and, as you can guess from my rant, you will never be able to successfully update your address with Verizon if you are on TMobile, or anybody else that I've seen because it will just bounce around for a few minutes of pointless waiting to come back and tell you that something went wrong and you can try again... But don't. There isn't any purpose and they know it. You won't be able to update Verizon's databases from another carrier unless maybe you still have an account with Verizon, and that's still debatable from another carrier. So no WiFi calling on other networks. Ever. Same thing goes for VoLTE. It never provisions if you are on T-Mobile. Can't, Verizon has locked the door. It did work when I first got the phone. Then, I reset the phone and since I did not have initial access to Verizon's network, it did not provision (unlock the VoLTE). Unfortunate for me, I bought my device from the internet swap site and I checked the company's IMEI checker which green-lighted the sale by giving me the false impression that the device had no blacklists for theft or financial non-payment. Then, when I tried to circumvent the new way to prevent their Verizon customers from escaping by putting in my girlfriend's Verizon SIM in long enough to provision all the barriers aforementioned, and it locked her SIM up simply because the guy sold me a phone and Verizon told me that they can say that the IMEI is good quite a while after a person sells an unpaid phone before changing their report that the phone is clear and free to it is black listed, meaning that it is almost pointless to rely on their IMEI check because anyone can sell the phone while they owe a thousand dollars on it still and then, after you give them $900, they simply quit paying and you have all the problems of a blacklisted phone even though you were told it was a-ok when you checked with them and ran the IMEI before buying the phone. It was hell trying to get my girlfriend's phone working again after they unceremoniously shut it down for punishment of putting her Verizon SIM into a Verizon phone that someone had stopped making the payments. It wasn't stolen mind you; do not put your SIM in anybody's phone if you have a Verizon SIM because they won't tell you that it offends them, they just **** your service off and now you have to contact them and if it's on s holiday weekend like it was for me, you are screwed for a couple days. I was, and I was lost- no gps and running out of gas in the middle of nowhere. Long explanation, but it could be critical if someone owns a Verizon phone or attempts to buy one and puts their SIM in it to see if it works- God can't help you if you do.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Can you confirm if your Verizon LG-V60 UW is still able to make and receive calls while on T-mobiles network? My Verizon LG-V60 UW for some reason can not make calls now (on AT&T network). It use to without any problems about a couple of weeks ago. It now only gets 4GLTE data and receives/sends text, but calls can't go thru anymore
KeepCodeBreakingFree said:
Can you confirm if your Verizon LG-V60 UW is still able to make and receive calls while on T-mobiles network? My Verizon LG-V60 UW for some reason can not make calls now (on AT&T network). It use to without any problems about a couple of weeks ago. It now only gets 4GLTE data and receives/sends text, but calls can't go thru anymore
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's because the V60 doesn't support VoLTE anymore if you use a version of the phone not from your carrier, even then it might not work. If you use an LG v60 T-Mobile version on T-Mobile it might work, but I would count on it.
Pls LG v60 uw has; 2, 25, 41, 66, 71 SA/NSA/Sub6?
Is LG v60 uw has only 5g 260 and 261 mmwave?
AndyGumpp said:
I have a Verizon LG-V60 UW on T-Mobile and it worked perfect on 5G in the Missouri area. I'm almost in Arkansas and I'm still getting 5-G. It used to do the shuffle where it would go from 5G down to 3G or HSPA when I would make a call which means I wasn't getting VOLTE because if I were, then it would not need to drop to 3G or anything less than 4G LTE to make phone calls. I could be wrong, but I think it's a slim chance, I suspect the deficiency is not with the hardware, i.e., the Verizon model has enough bands to support VOLTE even on T-Mobile's Sprint-T-Mobile combination of towers, (hence the ability to receive consistent 5G) but Verizon has found a way to defy the deal they signed onto when the FCC let them come in before the doors were open to bid on spectrum privately and Verizon promised to make phones that were SIM unlocked for...ever. They have been bucking that clause in the agreement ever since, but of lately they are REALLY pushing back at the FCC by locking SIMs, and the FCC has capitulated a few times IMHO by allowing Verizon to lock them under certain circumstances such as if a device is not paid off or not on their network long enough- which begs the question, what did they get from Verizon that's any different from the rest of the carriers? That is the industry standard, but I digress. Point is they want to tether their phones to their network and they have started to decide some more thoughtful ways as opposed to just defying the FCC outright by locking the SIMs, and one of them is to deny WIFI calling if you are not on their network with the V60 at least. You are directed every time the phone powers up to put in your address for 911 purposes since WIFI calling doesn't always transmit the address to the police like the E911 would on a cellular call. This is NOT a requirement, by the way, there is no law that says you can't make phone calls over wifi without appraising the police as to where to send the cops if you ever dial 911 over WiFi. But, there is no way around Verizon's interface on the LG-V60, and, as you can guess from my rant, you will never be able to successfully update your address with Verizon if you are on TMobile, or anybody else that I've seen because it will just bounce around for a few minutes of pointless waiting to come back and tell you that something went wrong and you can try again... But don't. There isn't any purpose and they know it. You won't be able to update Verizon's databases from another carrier unless maybe you still have an account with Verizon, and that's still debatable from another carrier. So no WiFi calling on other networks. Ever. Same thing goes for VoLTE. It never provisions if you are on T-Mobile. Can't, Verizon has locked the door. It did work when I first got the phone. Then, I reset the phone and since I did not have initial access to Verizon's network, it did not provision (unlock the VoLTE). Unfortunate for me, I bought my device from the internet swap site and I checked the company's IMEI checker which green-lighted the sale by giving me the false impression that the device had no blacklists for theft or financial non-payment. Then, when I tried to circumvent the new way to prevent their Verizon customers from escaping by putting in my girlfriend's Verizon SIM in long enough to provision all the barriers aforementioned, and it locked her SIM up simply because the guy sold me a phone and Verizon told me that they can say that the IMEI is good quite a while after a person sells an unpaid phone before changing their report that the phone is clear and free to it is black listed, meaning that it is almost pointless to rely on their IMEI check because anyone can sell the phone while they owe a thousand dollars on it still and then, after you give them $900, they simply quit paying and you have all the problems of a blacklisted phone even though you were told it was a-ok when you checked with them and ran the IMEI before buying the phone. It was hell trying to get my girlfriend's phone working again after they unceremoniously shut it down for punishment of putting her Verizon SIM into a Verizon phone that someone had stopped making the payments. It wasn't stolen mind you; do not put your SIM in anybody's phone if you have a Verizon SIM because they won't tell you that it offends them, they just **** your service off and now you have to contact them and if it's on s holiday weekend like it was for me, you are screwed for a couple days. I was, and I was lost- no gps and running out of gas in the middle of nowhere. Long explanation, but it could be critical if someone owns a Verizon phone or attempts to buy one and puts their SIM in it to see if it works- God can't help you if you do.
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I have an LG V60 from Verizon it worked awesome I got it when it first came out it always read 5G UW constantly never even saw 4G I lost that phone it got replaced and that phone worked perfectly fine as well now all of a sudden that phone got ran over and I'm on another replacement phone and it only reads 4G and it won't update my phone to Android 11 they told me something's wrong with my phone and I need to have the insurance company issue me another phone so the insurance company told me we can't send you another phone Verizon does not authorize replacement phones for Network signal or software issues. I talked to several texts from Verizon they had me reset the phone plug it into my laptop try to update the software that way none of it works it's stuck on Android 10 and they won't help me at all. And finally they telling me well your phone's going to search for the best signal it can get from the tires and that's all they can tell me so basically they're telling me it's getting the best signal it can which is only 4G I've had this LG V60 replacement phone for 6 months now and it hasn't read 5G once I'm so angry it sound real now I literally have to buy another one and make sure 5G UW works and make sure it can upgrade to 11 Android. Right now I don't know what to do other than at some point to buy another LG V60 it's the most unfair issue I've ever had with a smartphone device and Verizon is like the evil empire of carriers if you're not a business or corporate and y'all just a single person with an account take a care less in fact all they ever do is send me emails and texts to upgrade to a new phone so they can get more monthly payments out of me. I forgot to mention I bought the LG V60 when it first came out and I paid for it fully in cash. I swear because I'm not making phone payments did not quick to help at all