Related
Should this make or break my decision whether to purchase one or not? I'm new to this scene and I'm not too sure what the differences are besides the carrier-installed apps.
Evo 4G63 said:
Should this make or break my decision whether to purchase one or not? I'm new to this scene and I'm not too sure what the differences are besides the carrier-installed apps.
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Click to collapse
Hey. Unbranded vs Branded matters only if you don't want to wait for updates to be released since carriers have custom firmware whereas unbranded handsets will be able to apply new firmware as soon as the manufacturer releases it.
However, since your a member on XDA, this shows you may be interested in custom roms and modifying your phone. The above therefore does not matter because as soon as a new update/firmware is released, XDA have it and we can all (unbranded/branded) install it...
If you know that you won't be modifying your phone and sticking with stock then go for the carrier option as this is usually subsidised and cheaper than the unbranded 'sim-free' option... however updates will take longer than those with unbranded phones...(however as I said above... you don;t have to wait for updates if your part of XDA)
Either way, you could buy the branded version and debrand it by installing an unbranded stock rom and then installing a custom rom/kernel if you like.
If the phone is physically branded (e.g. The phone has a T-Mobile logo printed on it) I would always go for the sim-free / unbranded one in that case because for me it ruins the look of the phone.
Also your point about carrier bundled apps... carriers usually bundle bloatware/crapware with there branded phones... however you can easily uninstall these applications so its no big deal if it saves you money buying a carrier branded handset.
To add something to the above post from jUsT2eXy.
You can always get the branded version cheaper, change the back cover since most Carrier put their logo on the bottom back side and unlock it.
Worth the extra hassle? Can't say since I never done it.
jUsT2eXy said:
Hey. Unbranded vs Branded matters only if you don't want to wait for updates to be released since carriers have custom firmware whereas unbranded handsets will be able to apply new firmware as soon as the manufacturer releases it.
However, since your a member on XDA, this shows you may be interested in custom roms and modifying your phone. The above therefore does not matter because as soon as a new update/firmware is released, XDA have it and we can all (unbranded/branded) install it...
If you know that you won't be modifying your phone and sticking with stock then go for the carrier option as this is usually subsidised and cheaper than the unbranded 'sim-free' option... however updates will take longer than those with unbranded phones...(however as I said above... you don;t have to wait for updates if your part of XDA)
Either way, you could buy the branded version and debrand it by installing an unbranded stock rom and then installing a custom rom/kernel if you like.
If the phone is physically branded (e.g. The phone has a T-Mobile logo printed on it) I would always go for the sim-free / unbranded one in that case because for me it ruins the look of the phone.
Also your point about carrier bundled apps... carriers usually bundle bloatware/crapware with there branded phones... however you can easily uninstall these applications so its no big deal if it saves you money buying a carrier branded handset.
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Click to collapse
Thanks a lot for the replies!
I usually would buy branded phones from the carrier, but I live in the US and the SGN isn't available here yet. Since I'm still new to this, I don't think I'll be doing any kind of software modifications yet.
Someone mentioned that they received an e-plus branded unlocked SGN. I was just a little confused about what that meant.
If I do have an unlocked, let's say, e-plus branded SGN, would I still be able to receive updates even if I'm not running on their network?
Since I'm going to go out of my way to order a SGN from overseas, I might as well get an unbranded one right? The problem is, I already ordered one from Germany and I'm not sure if it's unbranded or not. It should be coming in tomorrow morning. If it is branded, do you think it's worth the hassle to return/sell it back out and order an unbranded one?
If you could please provide a link of where you bought it we might able to provide better assist/advice to you.
koniakki said:
If you could please provide a link of where you bought it we might able to provide better assist/advice to you.
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Click to collapse
I bought it on eBay from this guy: http://www.ebay.com/itm/200670239165?ssPageName=STRK:MEWNX:IT&_trksid=p3984.m1497.l2649
I am considering buying a Galaxy Note but I have a dilemma so I hope you will be able to help me out with it.
If I decide to buy it I will probably have to buy it through a mobile carrier meaning that I will have to unlock it to run it on a different network. I have someone to do it for me so I don't know what kind of software they will use.
Since I am new to Android, I would like to keep away from the rooting as long as possible so I am talking about stock software here.
Therefore, I would like to ask this:
1) Have any of you unlocked their Galaxy Notes? Are there any side-effects or it feels totally SIM-free?
2) Am I going to be cut-off from the official software updates (ICS and so on?) or it will be totally like a SIM-free experience?
3) Are all the splash screens, apps and other carrier-related stuff gone after the unlock?
Thank you in advance!
This doesn't answer your questions, but why would you buy a carrier phone and use it on another network? Why not buy unlocked?
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
If you plan to get the ATT one, I dont think it will get 3G/+ on Tmo. The intenational one I have definitely does not have that band. Unless there is another unlocked version that has those bands. And my international version does not have LTE as well.
And why would you sign a contract with ATT and want to use it on another n/w? Doesnt make any sense whatsoever.
Eborg said:
I am considering buying a Galaxy Note but I have a dilemma so I hope you will be able to help me out with it.
If I decide to buy it I will probably have to buy it through a mobile carrier meaning that I will have to unlock it to run it on a different network. I have someone to do it for me so I don't know what kind of software they will use.
Since I am new to Android, I would like to keep away from the rooting as long as possible so I am talking about stock software here.
Therefore, I would like to ask this:
1) Have any of you unlocked their Galaxy Notes? Are there any side-effects or it feels totally SIM-free?
2) Am I going to be cut-off from the official software updates (ICS and so on?) or it will be totally like a SIM-free experience?
3) Are all the splash screens, apps and other carrier-related stuff gone after the unlock?
Thank you in advance!
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Click to collapse
I live in Europe so I am talking about an international version.
Technically I wouldn't be buying it directly from a carrier, I just wanted to keep the discussion simple. I would buy it from a store but they get it abroad, unlock them and sell them legally. It's the only way I can get it where I live.
Ordering from Expansys or similar sites would mean that I would have to pay import customs which would probably amount to 200-300$ or more.
Where are you from? There are more retailers than expansys
Sent from my GT-N7000 using xda premium
I live in Bosnia & Herzegovina. Since it is not yet a member of the EU, you have to pay customs fees for this kind of stuff.
I will be going to the UK in a few weeks and thought about buying it there but that would mean that I wouldn't have any warranty. Most sites do not offer warranty outside the UK or EU. Also, even if I found one seller that offers worldwide warranty, I would still have costs shipping the phone to the UK or wherever and back (still EU issues) if needed.
Buying the phone locally should give me a 2-year warranty so that's why I am thinking about that option.
if you get it sim free fromthe uk then you woudl be paying more than you woudl in say germany - sim free in the uk are about £500+
sim free means it isnt locked to a carrioer that doesnt stop anything regarding updates to ics, you wil lstil lget them just might be at alater date than other countries
unlocking is not the same as debranding which would remove the software and logos etc
mine is sim free whcih i bought on a 2 year contract and it is no different to any other note locked on the networks
Eborg said:
I am considering buying a Galaxy Note but I have a dilemma so I hope you will be able to help me out with it.
If I decide to buy it I will probably have to buy it through a mobile carrier meaning that I will have to unlock it to run it on a different network.....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
buying it through a carrier does not mean that the phone is locked to that carrier anyway. have you asked your carrier or the store you want to buy from if they sell the Note locked?. my Note is bought from German Telekom/T-Mobile and has no sim or netlock. i just tested the Note with simcards from other German and foreign carrier and they all work flawlessly. so maybe you can purchase a Note at your side that is also sim/netlocked free.
All Galaxy Notes available locally were on foreign carriers. The guy at the store could only confirm that it works will all SIM cards, not that the particular phone had to be unlocked or not, but it was definitely on a foreign carrier when they got it.
I am not sure if the phones are debranded or not. Is that something that I can do on my own without rooting the phone?
So, you guys can officially confirm that unlocked (and optionally debranded) Galaxy Note will act as if they were SIM-free in regards to official updates, apps and so on? No worries there?
As for getting it abroad, it wouldn't be the best solution since I would have to send it to the UK, Germany, Italy or wherever if something is wrong paying 100-200$ of customs fees every time if something goes wrong.
I'd just like to confirm that it is possible to update the firmware automatically with an unlocked Note. Cheers!
Richy99 said:
sim free means it isnt locked to a carrioer that doesnt stop anything regarding updates to ics, you wil lstil lget them just might be at alater date than other countries
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Quite.
Also to keep in mind : in the EU, the carrier must agree to unlock phones after at the most 6 months.
And regarding ICS upgrades for the Note, they're apparently fairly messy at the moment. Locally (France) my carrier and the local Samsung branch are apparently more or less pointing at one another for a botched upgrade (at the end of June, note that it was announced as "we're fixing a few things, should be any day now" in March) where they apparently managed to brick a number of user phones. Samsung tends to communicate fairly poorly on the issue.
Other than the updated stylus apps, I'm not really sure the upgrade is worth it. And I discovered the whole "Kies" crud when I got this phone which really annoyed me since I don't normally run Windows (or Mac OS) and some operators apparently like to push their stuff only through that channel.
---------- Post added at 01:16 PM ---------- Previous post was at 01:08 PM ----------
Eborg said:
I'd just like to confirm that it is possible to update the firmware automatically with an unlocked Note. Cheers!
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Click to collapse
There's no reason why you couldn't. Possibly you'd get the Samsung update instead of the one from the original carrier (not guaranteed). But unlocking phones is fairly standard procedure.
Actually I got an update from the previous carrier from which it was unlocked from judging by the bloatware installed with the update.
On the verge of getting a new phone. I can deal with 2GB of ram if the cost of a phone is 180, and maybe even 240 for the 4gb version. Once I get up to spending 230 for 2gb and 300 for 4gb, I think there are better phones that arent too far away in terms of cost.
Does this phone look like its getting the bootloader of the prime version unlocked? Im on the fence on which one to order, or if I should just spend more and get either the OP5 for $480 or the S8 for 525 with a trade in. Ive heard rumors, but not too sure if they were true.
It's all personal choice. It may be unlocked tomorrow, it may never be unlocked....
lourivellini said:
On the verge of getting a new phone. I can deal with 2GB of ram if the cost of a phone is 180, and maybe even 240 for the 4gb version. Once I get up to spending 230 for 2gb and 300 for 4gb, I think there are better phones that arent too far away in terms of cost.
Does this phone look like its getting the bootloader of the prime version unlocked? Im on the fence on which one to order, or if I should just spend more and get either the OP5 for $480 or the S8 for 525 with a trade in. Ive heard rumors, but not too sure if they were true.
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Click to collapse
If you are in the US you could try what someone else did in another thread and go to your local Best Buy and try to do a price match. I'm kicking myself for not thinking of it myself. Otherwise I'd stick to non-Amazon. The price difference is not worth the hassle.
I've not seen a 'hack' here that unlocks the normal bootloader; afaik everyone has to get the code from Motorola. So it's very unlikely you'll see a hack that unlocks the Amazon phones. Just my amateur opinion though.
So the Amazon version bootloaders can be unlocked with Motorola codes? -- I read "no" elsewhere. Of no, Amazon is as bad as Verizon.
I want a $200-300 good phone I can root and play with custom Roms that everything works on Verizon and it seems the G family phones do this best from what I can tell. I have no issues voiding a warranty on $200-300 which is less than half the cost of a flagship device which cost so much for features and technology I neither use nor can notice. I'm pretty much done with overpriced flagships. any opinions on best non-flagship Verizon phone with unlockable bootloader? (nexus 6p is a bit too old of a device for me).
kb1afu said:
So the Amazon version bootloaders can be unlocked with Motorola codes? -- I read "no" elsewhere. Of no, Amazon is as bad as Verizon.
I want a $200-300 good phone I can root and play with custom Roms that everything works on Verizon and it seems the G family phones do this best from what I can tell. I have no issues voiding a warranty on $200-300 which is less than half the cost of a flagship device which cost so much for features and technology I neither use nor can notice. I'm pretty much done with overpriced flagships. any opinions on best non-flagship Verizon phone with unlockable bootloader? (nexus 6p is a bit too old of a device for me).
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So technically both the Amazon and non-Amazon version come locked. The difference is that with the non-Amazon version, you can get the unlock code directly from Motorola's site. The Amazon ones could technically be unlocked if Motorola provided the unlock code, but as per their agreement with Amazon, they will not.
It is possible that this will change in the future (likely not until the next version comes out), but I wouldn't really bet on it. What is still unclear is whether getting the Amazon version and then paying to have the ads removed will ever allow you to unlock the bootloader. Currently I don't believe it will, but in reality all Amazon would have to do is provide the IDs to Motorola of which phones had paid for this service. I don't see Amazon in a rush to do this though.
willclein said:
So technically both the Amazon and non-Amazon version come locked. The difference is that with the non-Amazon version, you can get the unlock code directly from Motorola's site. The Amazon ones could technically be unlocked if Motorola provided the unlock code, but as per their agreement with Amazon, they will not.
It is possible that this will change in the future (likely not until the next version comes out), but I wouldn't really bet on it. What is still unclear is whether getting the Amazon version and then paying to have the ads removed will ever allow you to unlock the bootloader. Currently I don't believe it will, but in reality all Amazon would have to do is provide the IDs to Motorola of which phones had paid for this service. I don't see Amazon in a rush to do this though.
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Click to collapse
OK thanks for the info...I figured as much. I will just avoid the Amazon versions.
kb1afu said:
So the Amazon version bootloaders can be unlocked with Motorola codes? -- I read "no" elsewhere. Of no, Amazon is as bad as Verizon.
I want a $200-300 good phone I can root and play with custom Roms that everything works on Verizon and it seems the G family phones do this best from what I can tell. I have no issues voiding a warranty on $200-300 which is less than half the cost of a flagship device which cost so much for features and technology I neither use nor can notice. I'm pretty much done with overpriced flagships. any opinions on best non-flagship Verizon phone with unlockable bootloader? (nexus 6p is a bit too old of a device for me).
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Click to collapse
I don't understand why everyone thinks unlocking bootloader automatically voids the warranty...
Motorola will honor any hardware defect, despite an unlocked bootloader. Anything software related it's not covered after an unlock.
1. This is a law
2. Motorola has stated this.
3. Google search shows previous devices were still fixed or replaced, due to 1. and 2.
JoRocker said:
I don't understand why everyone thinks unlocking bootloader automatically voids the warranty...
.
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Probably because it is all over the interwebz that rooting and unlocking BL triggers tamper flags and voids the warranty with most manufacturers, or perhaps maybe people are concerned about the software somehow affecting the warranty if they send it back to Moto as bricked or with some half-baked ROM on it. Because you know, many folks go and root but don't know how to unroot or reset tamper flags, so they become confused or worried about warranty status on their $700 - $1000 device. LOL, I don't know what the big deal is either..... but anyway, on a sub-$300 mid-range phone I'm not buying it for the warranty.
For anyone landing here with the Amazon Ads inquiry... there exists a thread on how to remove amazon ads with varying results and conditions - knock yourself out.
For Black Friday 2017 - the Moto website had 64/4 version for $225 and then Moto direct and Target had the 32/2 version at $169 which was cheaper than amazon version. I jumped on the 64/4 direct from Moto $225.
Yeah, it took me a few months to pull the trigger, but I am glad I was patient. The G5+ IPS is good enough, and I never used NFC anyway, and once I saw 64bit ROMS working on G5+ and then at this price, it was a no-brainer for me.
JoRocker said:
I don't understand why everyone thinks unlocking bootloader automatically voids the warranty...
Motorola will honor any hardware defect, despite an unlocked bootloader. Anything software related it's not covered after an unlock.
1. This is a law
2. Motorola has stated this.
3. Google search shows previous devices were still fixed or replaced, due to 1. and 2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1. This depends where you live... the only place I know of that has this "law" is the EU
2. Only for areas where the law requires it, otherwise look at: Legal Terms for bootloader unlocking on Moto's global support site, it is quite clear and unmistakable that just obtaining a lock code, even if never used, voids the warranty for the entire device, hardware and software.
3. Again, see #1
(EDIT: Sorry, I see someone else dug up this old thread after I posted this... Sorry, wasn't trying to rehash an old subject)
I'm sure by now anyone with an Amazon Prime account has seen the advertisements for the $399.99 LG G6 and G6+ which is a great deal, and it's enough of one that I'm getting ready to retire my iPhone SE and make the switch over...especially since I can lengthen the warranty to two years total. What I cannot find out is which version Amazon is selling when it's released November 9th, 2017 and if T-Mobile and/or AT&T users will still have the normal functions like WiFi calling (which I rely upon) and VoLTE on each respective carrier. I'd rather not buy a Prime device only to discover that it doesn't have the same features as a carrier-specific device has and this has me worried. Buying a brand new unlocked G6 would give me the two years of full warranty on the device and hopefully all of the T-Mobile features offered on the carrier-specific model even if the bootloader isn't unlocked. Heck, I'd attempt a FlashFire to get new firmware onto the phone if it were made possible just to regain WiFi Calling/VoLTE but wanted input from others before I decide to go this route. I'm also not opposed to grabbing something like the LG V20 from BHPhotoVideo as well since this is the route I want to go. If you guys have any knowledge that I haven't been able to figure out in the last week of research I'd appreciate it very much. Cheers.
They go in depth with this story,not sure if it helps at all.
That's one of the articles I managed to find, and it did help out in figuring out which phone I wanted to invest in but I didn't get much more info on the device itself. Because it's an Amazon device we already know that it's not going to be able to have an unlocked bootloader which really stinks but that's the cost of buying a subsidized phone through Amazon. I considered just buying the LG V20 through BHPhotoVideo for cheaper so there are no integrated Amazon advertisements and it has a better internal camera (as far as specs go) but having 12MP+12MP vs 16MP is a little too close of a call to make any kind of speculation, although having 64GB of storage with the V20 would be nicer than the included 32GB in the LG G6. At least we have a micro-SD slot to have more storage in both models, which means that if we can get the phone rooted then App2SD won't be a problem.
I just know I'm ready to retire and sell this crappy iPhone SE and move away from the insane Apple prices to get a better device with a less restrictive environment. My only hope is that the LG G6 has the same characteristics as my iPhone SE, such as WiFi calling and VoLTE. I know it has all of the right LTE bands so that won't be an issue, and later on I'll probably just give Amazon more money to ditch the advertisements. I just wish that I could find a $450 LG G6 brand new that I could unlock the bootloader on, and that's my conundrum. It seems that if you want the subsized Prime version it's only $399 but if you want an subside-free G6 you still have to shell out $200 more.
P.S. Thanks for the quick response.
im already planning on getting this but i wont be able till at least black friday at the earliest. it fills all my needs now that the U11+ wont be available in the US. the model number for the 6+ is LGUS997U so im hoping that rooting will be possible along with custom ROMs. l hope someone else takes the plunge first.
droidbot1337 said:
im already planning on getting this but i wont be able till at least black friday at the earliest. it fills all my needs now that the U11+ wont be available in the US. the model number for the 6+ is LGUS997U so im hoping that rooting will be possible along with custom ROMs. l hope someone else takes the plunge first.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm taking the plunge and it'll be here the day of release. Knowing Amazon's history with locking bootloaders it's already pretty apparent that unlocking it will not be a possibility but will still check irregardless in hopes that I'm wrong. At least I hope it can be rooted some how and figure out how to ditch all of the bogus Amazon advertisements without paying them another $50 to remove them from my device, and will report all of that information that I can find out on my own as well. The LG V20 directly from T-Mobile was my original go-to replacement but for the same amount of money I'd rather have the slightly faster LG G6 even if it is hampered by Amazon's crap. Considering I'm moving up from an iPhone SE this thing is going to be a massive upgrade.
EDIT: I've independently confirmed it will indeed have T-Mobile WiFi calling and VoLTE built into the firmware because Amazon did the same thing with the Moto G5s firmware that they molested. They might have injected it with Amazon bloatware but they did also include WiFi calling and VoLTE from each of the providers so there's a very strong chance anyone who uses this device on their home network will still have those features included with the LG line of phones.
bmurphr1 said:
I'm taking the plunge and it'll be here the day of release...........
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YES!!!! im so envious of you!! i hope that they can be unlocked as the price is just far too tempting. im going to try and contact LG USA and see what i can get from them. good luck and please keep us informed, cheers!!
I'm looking at the LG G6 also. I've been a Nexus user and am still using the N5X. Now that Google has went overboard with their pricing and are no longer making any devices that are good values, I'm looking elsewhere. I've always been an LG fan. I'm looking at the LG G6 as the price on it is excellent. There are a good number of carrier unlocked devices available for just over $400 and I think we will see some good sales between Black Friday and New Year's.
I was also considering the Amazon version but I'm not sure how difficult it will be to get rid of them afterwards.
gorilla p said:
....I was also considering the Amazon version but I'm not sure how difficult it will be to get rid of them afterwards.
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?? all it has is a few bloat apps but all you would need to do is flash another ROM. thats considering it can be rooted. im still debating on the 6+ or waiting for the HTC U12 which should be better than the U11+ or at least i hope.
Phone has arrived, is model US966, and even though is the international model still has VoLTE and WiFi Calling baked into the ROM. I've verified that it does indeed work as it should for T-Mobile as I have the Hanset + WiFi logo in my top left notification tray. So far it seems Amazon really did make this device into the most universal of all of the LG G6 devices that exist (aside from being unable to unlock the bootloader.
Amazon really put this firmware through the ringer..it does have mountains of bloatware that we can work around, but it works with T-Mobile WiFi Calling, VoLTE, and HD Voice (all confirmed by moving a dead zone in my house where I received full WiFI but could not obtain any indoor signal of any kind. I had several conversations that all sounded like I was standing right next to the person, and I had no cellular service at the time the call was made. Just as I suspected, they molested the G6 just like they did the Moto G5s into forcing it to support T-Mobile's feature sets and most likely the same for the other three providers as well.
bmurphr1 said:
Phone has arrived, is model US966, and even though is the international model still has VoLTE and WiFi Calling baked into the ROM. I've verified that it does indeed work as it should for T-Mobile as I have the Hanset + WiFi logo in my top left notification tray. So far it seems Amazon really did make this device into the most universal of all of the LG G6 devices that exist (aside from being unable to unlock the bootloader.
Amazon really put this firmware through the ringer..it does have mountains of bloatware that we can work around, but it works with T-Mobile WiFi Calling, VoLTE, and HD Voice (all confirmed by moving a dead zone in my house where I received full WiFI but could not obtain any indoor signal of any kind. I had several conversations that all sounded like I was standing right next to the person, and I had no cellular service at the time the call was made. Just as I suspected, they molested the G6 just like they did the Moto G5s into forcing it to support T-Mobile's feature sets and most likely the same for the other three providers as well.
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Click to collapse
Do you know if it's possible to pay to remove the lockscreen ads? Also, are the ads just on the lockscreen or do they show up in other places?
I know you can pay to remove Kindle ads at https://www.amazon.com/mn/dcw/myx.html
Joe USer said:
Do you know if it's possible to pay to remove the lockscreen ads? Also, are the ads just on the lockscreen or do they show up in other places?
I know you can pay to remove Kindle ads at https://www.amazon.com/mn/dcw/myx.html
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Click to collapse
Ads are on lockscreen and on the desktop, but the desktop widget no problem. When you unlock the device using your fingerprint though you never see the advertisements so it's not bothering me that much. I have yet to figure out if we can purchase the removal of advertisements though as I've only had these few short hours with the device, but every T-Mo function that you'd find on a carrier-branded device works on the Amazon Prime variant. If I can pay an extra $50 or so to get rid of the advertisements I probably will do just that.
In the mean time I tried to sign up for the second year of the LG G6 free warranty program, and since the phone is a US996 model device you can't complete the registration page. I e-mailed the help desk to see if we'll be able to register for the free second year of service as an Amazon agent said that there should be no reason that it shouldn't work. I will respond back once I get word from the LG team regarding the additional free year of warranty coverage.
EDIT: You can legitimately remove ads from the phone through Amazon but they want an extra $100 to just remove them. I'll wait on someone else to figure out how to hack the ads away from the firmware. I dig the LG interface though as it's similar to the iPhone layout and makes it easier for me to understand rather than having an app drawer like my Fire tablet does. The phone is definitely worth $399...not $499 though once you buy the removal of advertisements.
congrats @bmurphr1!! im happy it works well since like you i too am a tmo user. also, the model number is listed as 997U but you said its US996, is that right? anyway, i hope the bootloader can soon be unlocked because that would make this phone an amazing device.
droidbot1337 said:
congrats @bmurphr1!! im happy it works well since like you i too am a tmo user. also, the model number is listed as 997U but you said its US996, is that right? anyway, i hope the bootloader can soon be unlocked because that would make this phone an amazing device.
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Click to collapse
I did, but it's actually US997 according to what I'm looking at right now on the Hardware info screen. My initial statement was a typo because I was in a rush to get this phone up and running since I'm moving over from the iOS world. Model number is confirmed US997 and the bootloader from what I've been able to ascertain so far is that LG is not unlocking the bootloader for the phone because they were strong-armed by Amazon to lock it down so that it couldn't be altered in any way - thus making people pay the $100 just to have advertisements removed from the device.
bmurphr1 said:
I did, but it's actually US997 according to what I'm looking at right now on the Hardware info screen. My initial statement was a typo because I was in a rush to get this phone up and running since I'm moving over from the iOS world. Model number is confirmed US997 and the bootloader from what I've been able to ascertain so far is that LG is not unlocking the bootloader for the phone because they were strong-armed by Amazon to lock it down so that it couldn't be altered in any way - thus making people pay the $100 just to have advertisements removed from the device.
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ugh!!... so its useless for those of us that want custom ROMs then? that sucks! i really hope someone finds a way to unlock it. i might just wait to see what the HTC u12 looks like. thanks for the info.
Just figured out how Amazon neutered this phone from being tampered with by individuals like us...they went and jacked around with the bootloader so that it freezes as soon as you boot into it. I'm very experienced when it comes to using fastboot on Android devices and I can tell you this bootloader has been tampered with. What happens is when you run "adb reboot bootloader" it reboots into the neutered bootloader and just freezes so that no commands can be sent or received from the device. If we could get the device-id then we could put it through the LG database, but Amazon found a way to mess with it just enough so that it crashes every single time you try to boot into it using the Android debugging bridge. That's how they crippled this phone so that no one would be able to flash new firmwares to the device or jack with it and remove their new found glory in LG devices. I'd love to be able to flash a non-Amazon bootloader only over to this phone to see if I could unlock it and catch on to something new but I'm too afraid to jeopardize my only working cell phone at the moment so I'd be worried about doing that. If the bootloader would unfreeze though and give us the code for a full bootloader unlock we could say byebye to the entire firmware OS and switch over to something like Lineage or better...assuming somebody has a kitchen that would work on an Amazon-molested US997 LG G6.
droidbot1337 said:
ugh!!... so its useless for those of us that want custom ROMs then? that sucks! i really hope someone finds a way to unlock it. i might just wait to see what the HTC u12 looks like. thanks for the info.
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I saw this on the latest Amazon Fire tablet and that's why I returned it. Now you see why I was hesitant.
I'm having a hard time deciding now, but I'm going there will be some solid $399 deals between Black Friday and Christmas. Otherwise, I might just get a OnePlus 3T.
gorilla p said:
I saw this on the latest Amazon Fire tablet and that's why I returned it. Now you see why I was hesitant.
I'm having a hard time deciding now, but I'm going there will be some solid $399 deals between Black Friday and Christmas. Otherwise, I might just get a OnePlus 3T.
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Click to collapse
Amazon got smart and neutered all of their Prime-branded devices so that they can't be bootloader unlocked any longer. The only hope we have of actually achieving custom firmware on this device is by using something like FlashFire to perform a hot-flash on the device to move it to a non-Amazon firmware, which is what I did on my Fire 2015 (Ford) tablet that I still use occasionally at the gym to watch Netflix and YouTube when I steal their WiFi. If you wanted to buy the phone just to unlock the bootloader unfortunately you're SOL, but there's still a chance something could be in the works for this device.
Honestly, I'd rather see either a complete removal of the advertisements from the stock US997 Amazon Prime G6 or someone who was able to successfully flash a ZIP file using FlashFire to the G6 without completely killing it along with WiFi Calling/VoLTE/HD Voice. The first one isn't out of the realm of possibility, but the second one is just a pipe dream since I essentially require WiFi calling and VoLTE. We're gonna need to find a way to root this firmware and I haven't found a way to do so as of yet, though it is running Nougat 7.0 with the September security update.
gorilla p said:
I saw this on the latest Amazon Fire tablet and that's why I returned it. Now you see why I was hesitant.
I'm having a hard time deciding now, but I'm going there will be some solid $399 deals between Black Friday and Christmas. Otherwise, I might just get a OnePlus 3T.
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Click to collapse
why the 3T and not the 5T? my brother has the 5 and loves it. i refuse to buy a device without expandable storage so that leaves me with few options....... well, few good options. im just gonna wait till leaks of the HTC U12 start to circulate. if that sucks ill just buy the regular G6.
droidbot1337 said:
why the 3T and not the 5T? my brother has the 5 and loves it. i refuse to buy a device without expandable storage so that leaves me with few options....... well, few good options. im just gonna wait till leaks of the HTC U12 start to circulate. if that sucks ill just buy the regular G6.
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Just the cost. OnePlus is upping the price with every release and I don't think the OP5 is that much better than the OP3T. Especially since I don't use my phone for anything crazy. My N5X still performs more than good enough for me. I have the GPU underclock and touchboost disabled to improve battery and still no lag at all. I really wish there was another affordable Nexus device. They should've come out with an Android One premium line featuring The 820 or 822 chipset.
I also received my Amazon us997 G6 yesterday. As mentioned earlier, the lock screen ads aren't very intrusive unless there are no other notifications at the time. If there are personal notifications like email, text message, missed phone call, etc. then the Amazon ad takes up about 15% of the lock screen. If no notifications are present, the entire lock screen is an ad. However, also as mentioned before, the double press of the finger print button makes the ads visible for the amount of time it takes to double press.
I run nova launcher and have not been bothered with any ads either.
Coming from big red on their lg g4 and having that special old plan, I did a SIM card chop with some cutlery scissors and made it a nano. Without getting too involved, an app like Foxfi is not needed on this phone. I will be keeping this phone primarily because of this. The price point, limited intrusive ads, 2 year warranty and not needing a special app previously mentioned have made this my newest phone.
Now i just hope lg has rid themselves of the nightmare Bootloop plague that has hit every lg phone that my family has owned.
My Essential PH-1 phone got left in a washer and destroyed. Sad. But on the other hand it gives me a chance to get a phone I don't have to carry a dongle around to get good audio quality. And a bigger screen is nice. I will miss Android P though.
So the question is which version to get? I need At&t for work (12 hours a day) but I want to be able to use TMobile in the future. Is there a particular model necessary for bootloader unlocking or rooting? Concerned about future updates. Or any to avoid?
Thanks.
I found a listing on Walmart for 250$ it's an att unlocked phone, and I'm currently using it rooted, on T-Mobile