Hi. I am using an unlocked T-Mobile HTC HD2. I purchased it unlocked so I don't have the unlock code. Is there a way to retrieve it from the phone? I thought I might be needing it since there's a new ROM update for T-Mobile HTC HD2.
As far as i know, once this phone is unlocked, it will always be unlocked. Its not like the iphone where every time you get a new update, you have to re-jailbreak and unlock the phone.
adamhlj said:
As far as i know, once this phone is unlocked, it will always be unlocked. Its not like the iphone where every time you get a new update, you have to re-jailbreak and unlock the phone.
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Thanks. I'll do a ROM update later today and I hope you're right or else I'll have to pay for an unlock code again. BTW, are there instances when we might need to re-enter the unlock code?
haydendo said:
Thanks. I'll do a ROM update later today and I hope you're right or else I'll have to pay for an unlock code again. BTW, are there instances when we might need to re-enter the unlock code?
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Once the phone is SIM unlocked it will not get relocked when flashing a stock rom.
An unlocked phone is nothing illegal (since you can get the code from the carrier). I really don't see the reason to have the code.. If you are sending the phone in for repair, that should not be an issue unless you have a cooked ROM installed.
I can confirm that you can EASILY unlock a HTC Hero on ORANGE without having the go thru the tricky procedure of installing the Modaco Custom Rom also known as rooting.
I bought a brand new HTC Hero on eBay locked to Orange, when I recieved it I noted that it was not running the latest Orange ROM 2.73.61.66 so I updated it, this was fairly straightforward as I had an Orange PAYG sim to hand which I got for FREE also on eBay which allowed me to check the version.
The only problem I had was related to Windows 7 64bit (and possibly Vista 64bit) in that I kept getting error 170 when trying to install the new Orange ROM, I ended up doing it on my Windows 7 32bit netbook instead.
Once updated I purchased an unlock code for £ 6.50 on eBay which was to unlock Hero on T-Mobile but unlock codes are specific to the IMEI not the supplier so it worked with the Orange.
SUCCESS!
Rooting and unlocking are two very different things offering radically different functionality
cbailey said:
Rooting and unlocking are two very different things offering radically different functionality
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I know but previously with an Orange locked phone you HAD to root in order to unlock it, which is quite an undertaking for the less technical amongst us.
Since February 2010 Orange ROM update 2.73.61.66 was released all you now had to do was update the ROM to the latest Orange ROM 2.73.61.66 which is much easier proposition. This fact is not mentioned on the HTC site or on Orange info about the update.
I am not saying rooting is still no beneficial its just there does not seem to be much regarding this new easy way to unlock the Orange out there.
My first google searches returned posts many of which dated back to 2009 and after a quick search I had come to the conclusion that unlocking an Orange Hero was not really feasable.
It was only because I won an auction for one on eBay which did not have the simlock mentioned in the listing which turned out to be an Orange that I started to look into it further and found a few references to the fact that the 2.73.61.66 ROM update solved the problem but info was still pretty scarce.
If you search this forum for HTC orange unlock there is very little information there, hopefully someone searching in future will find this and have the confidence to buy Orange locked Heros or be able to lock theirs should they already have one.
You never had to root it before you unlocked it! I unlocked my first hero the day i got it, i never rooted that one. I rooted this one and havent unlocked it
bonesy said:
You never had to root it before you unlocked it! I unlocked my first hero the day i got it, i never rooted that one. I rooted this one and havent unlocked it
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Exactly
Some Orange handsets never gave the option to input the network unlock code. Can't remember which ROM version it was now. But yeah, some had to downgrade or update to get that option. Same as mine.
I've unlocked 4 Heroes on Orange using different ROM versions..
Just to clarify - untill the release of the February Orange ROM Update 2.73.61.66 it was impossible to unlock the ORANGE variant of the HTC Hero without installing the Modaco Custom Rom first (aka rooting) which was a tricky proposition for those who did not want to get their hands too dirty.
Heros locked to other networks never had this problem and it was possible to unlock them with any ROM. The ORANGE variant needs the 2.73.61.66 ROM update to enable relatively simply unlocking.
Like I said I just updated my brand new ORANGE locked Hero from an older ORANGE ROM to the latest 2.73.61.66 ROM available on the HTC Hero UK Site and was able to unlock the phone after purchasing a £ 6.50 unlock code from eBay which was for a T-Mobile phone but the unlock is based on the IMEI not the brand so any properly generated unlock code will then work.
EDIT: I think some early HTC Heros from Orange had a ROM which did allow unlocking but that was replaced by a further set of updates which disabled unlocking untill the February 2.73.61.66 ROM update enabled unlocking once again, this may explain why some people say they had no problem unlocking their early Orange HTC Hero.
nlel said:
Just to clarify - untill the release of the February Orange ROM Update 2.73.61.66 it was impossible to unlock the ORANGE variant of the HTC Hero without installing the Modaco Custom Rom first (aka rooting)
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I thick your getting things a little mixed up here, for a start Installing a Custom ROM such as MC will not root your device, the fact is you need to have the device rooted (and have a recovery image installed) before you can install it.
In fact I had my device rooted for several months on the stock Orange UK ROM.
And there was never a problem whereby you could not unlock an Orange branded phone without flashing a custom ROM, I did it on the old Orange ROM (pre-feb update).
Believe me there was a problem with some Orange ROMS and unlocking, a method employed was to root the phone, installing a Modaco Custom Rom was part of the rooting process after which you could unlock.
What happened was that it would ask for the unlock code and when you entered it, it said unlock successfull but you would get a no service message when you tried a SIM other then Orange in the phone.
After rebooting the phone the unlock message would appear again and if you entered the code again the same thing would happen.
Apparently the phone would hang with a message saying unlocking so the unlock did not actually go through despite it saying it had completed successfully.
If you do a google search you will find multiple instances where people had this problem. You can also get the no service message on a phone that has been unlocked successfully (with the 2.73.61.66 ROM for example) but that is usually because the IMEI has been blocked on some (if not all) networks.
There were definitely Orange Heros that couldn't be unlocked without installing another ROM.. (you technically didnt need to root however)
I have one. I cant even remember which ROM it had when I bought it.. but the code I bought didn't work.. I changed to a custom ROM.. and it worked fine. (Quite a lot of unlocking sites tell you to do this)
Orange do seem to do it quite often as they apparently change the algorithm a bit.. they do it on nokias as well, as I tried to get orange to unlock one for me a few years back.. and Orange themselves couldnt unlock it as id flashed a non-orange ROM to it so the codes they generated (for a phone they supplied) didnt work any longer and it had to be reflashed by nokia first back to the orange rom.. so they could unlock it for me (i had to post it in to Oranges technical people in newcastle) and then i had to reflash it back to the ROM i wanted.
sambartle said:
There were definitely Orange Heros that couldn't be unlocked without installing another ROM.. (you technically didnt need to root however)
I have one. I cant even remember which ROM it had when I bought it.. but the code I bought didn't work.. I changed to a custom ROM.. and it worked fine. (Quite a lot of unlocking sites tell you to do this)
Orange do seem to do it quite often as they apparently change the algorithm a bit.. they do it on nokias as well, as I tried to get orange to unlock one for me a few years back.. and Orange themselves couldnt unlock it as id flashed a non-orange ROM to it so the codes they generated (for a phone they supplied) didnt work any longer and it had to be reflashed by nokia first back to the orange rom.. so they could unlock it for me (i had to post it in to Oranges technical people in newcastle) and then i had to reflash it back to the ROM i wanted.
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As you quite rightly point out you did not need to flash a custom ROM, if you downgraded to one of the earliest Orange ROMs on which unlocking was possible then you could unlock successfully. The thing is the older Orange ROMs might not have been available or people just did not know which of the oldest Orange ROMs allowed unlocking so a fair few of them installed custom ROMs to get around the problem else they put the phone back on eBay. All you have to do now is install Orange ROM 2.73.61.66 as to whether future Orange ROM updates will still allow unlocking to work is another matter.
The problem was that the phone on certain Orange ROMs would hang at the "unlocking SIM" stage, it was regarded as a firmware bug and perhaps had something to do with the algorithm as you pointed out - even unlock codes provided by Orange themselves would not work.
nlel said:
I can confirm that you can EASILY unlock a HTC Hero on ORANGE without having the go thru the tricky procedure of installing the Modaco Custom Rom also known as rooting.
I bought a brand new HTC Hero on eBay locked to Orange, when I recieved it I noted that it was not running the latest Orange ROM 2.73.61.66 so I updated it, this was fairly straightforward as I had an Orange PAYG sim to hand which I got for FREE also on eBay which allowed me to check the version.
The only problem I had was related to Windows 7 64bit (and possibly Vista 64bit) in that I kept getting error 170 when trying to install the new Orange ROM, I ended up doing it on my Windows 7 32bit netbook instead.
Once updated I purchased an unlock code for £ 6.50 on eBay which was to unlock Hero on T-Mobile but unlock codes are specific to the IMEI not the supplier so it worked with the Orange.
SUCCESS!
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Hi Nlel
I have a htc hero orange uk branded. I wanted to unlock it so i can use my o2simcard. How can i do this? and where did you buy the code for £6.50 on ebay?
Can you please provide a link if possbile?
Thanks in advance
Fame123 said:
Hi Nlel
I have a htc hero orange uk branded. I wanted to unlock it so i can use my o2simcard. How can i do this? and where did you buy the code for £6.50 on ebay?
Can you please provide a link if possbile?
Thanks in advance
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Its simple, first you must make sure you update to Orange ROM 2.73.61.66 which is available at http://www.htc.com/uk/supportdownloadlist.aspx?p_id=283&act=sd&cat=all its the 2010/02/04 ROM update. This is needed to unlock the phone as many older ROM versions had a problem when it came to unlocking this particular brand of phone.
New phones from Orange may already have this update you can check which version you currently have in the Settings/About Phone/Status. At the moment there is no guarantee that future ROMs will still allow unlocking so its best to flash the latest (as of today) 2010/02/04 2.73.61.66 Orange ROM update to be sure.
After you have flashed the phone you can then buy an unlock code for £ 6.50 on eBay (from any seller) I used this eBay seller http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Unlock-HTC-Hero-Lock-T-Mobile-UK-/290421723982?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item439e7bd34e don`t worry that it says T-Mobile the code provided will unlock an Orange as well and in fact any brand of Hero just follow the instructions carefully. Simply insert your O2 sim and enter the unlock code provided when prompted - jobs a goodun!.
Once you have unlocked the phone it stays unlocked forever so you can flash future ROM updates without fear of it becoming locked again.
nlel said:
Its simple, first you must make sure you update to Orange ROM 2.73.61.66 which is available at http://www.htc.com/uk/supportdownloadlist.aspx?p_id=283&act=sd&cat=all its the 2010/02/04 ROM update. This is needed to unlock the phone as many older ROM versions had a problem when it came to unlocking this particular brand of phone.
New phones from Orange may already have this update you can check which version you currently have in the Settings/About Phone/Status. At the moment there is no guarantee that future ROMs will still allow unlocking so its best to flash the latest (as of today) 2010/02/04 2.73.61.66 Orange ROM update to be sure.
After you have flashed the phone you can then buy an unlock code for £ 6.50 on eBay (from any seller) I used this eBay seller http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/Unlock-HTC-Hero-Lock-T-Mobile-UK-/290421723982?cmd=ViewItem&pt=LH_DefaultDomain_3&hash=item439e7bd34e don`t worry that it says T-Mobile the code provided will unlock an Orange as well and in fact any brand of Hero just follow the instructions carefully. Simply insert your O2 sim and enter the unlock code provided when prompted - jobs a goodun!.
Once you have unlocked the phone it stays unlocked forever so you can flash future ROM updates without fear of it becoming locked again.
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Hi nlel
thanks for the prompt reply, really appreciated
But are you definately sure that it will work with orange uk bcz in the description it says:
***Warning: We DO NOT UNLOCK HTC HERO ON ORANGE and following Network Provider***
So does it still work?
Thanks.
Fame123 said:
Hi nlel
thanks for the prompt reply, really appreciated
But are you definately sure that it will work with orange uk bcz in the description it says:
***Warning: We DO NOT UNLOCK HTC HERO ON ORANGE and following Network Provider***
So does it still work?
Thanks.
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Yes it works, the reason why they say they do not unlock Orange is because of the problems I mentioned with some older ROMS and they do not want/need comebacks from uninformed people on Orange struggling to unlock.
When you buy the code you do not actually have to tell them which network its locked to but if you do just say its an Orange phone that has been rooted, thats what I told them although it hadn`t actually been rooted just flashed to the Orange ROM 2.73.61.66 2010/02/04.
You will notice they have exceptions to the NO Orange rule in that if you ROOT the phone then they will support an Orange unlock. Rooting is no longer necessary once you flash the Orange 2.73.61.66 ROM 2010/02/04 and they do not know this.
Hope this clears up any final hesitations.
what are you guys saying..i'am having a htc hero which is locked to orange.It is running on villain12.0 custom rom.is it possible to unlock the phone without buying the unlcok code from sites like unlock-now or unlock2go..?
rosemolr said:
what are you guys saying..i'am having a htc hero which is locked to orange.It is running on villain12.0 custom rom.is it possible to unlock the phone without buying the unlcok code from sites like unlock-now or unlock2go..?
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No, you need to buy a code but villain 12 should support unlocking as it's based on a plain unbranded rom
rosemolr said:
what are you guys saying..i'am having a htc hero which is locked to orange.It is running on villain12.0 custom rom.is it possible to unlock the phone without buying the unlcok code from sites like unlock-now or unlock2go..?
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No we are not saying this - it will never be possible to unlock a HTC Hero without an unlock code (which can be bought for only £ 6.50 on eBay).
If you could find some way of generating a valid unlock code for free perhaps by using some kind of generator then maybe it would be possible to do it for free.
But at the moment I know of no way to generate a free unlock code therefore had to pay £ 6.50 for one on eBay.
We were just talking specifically about how to go about unlocking a HTC Hero on Orange using an unlock code bought from eBay.
Hi
I have had the hero for a month now which is locked to orange
i have tried various things such as Turbo Sims, codes and etc
They didnt worked out for me. i have been looking for ages for a code.
Currently i bought a unlock code for £12, however it says "Incorrect pin"
I am currently on the Villian Rom 12.
Can any 1 help
Thanks in advance
Hi
Im new to this forum as this is my first post in this forum.
I recently purchased a HTC Hero phone in ebay locked to Orange UK. I still didnt receive the phone yet. and I have a small doubt in unlocking.
I heard that orange users are having issues in unlocking Orange Hero.
Saw that i need to update the firmware to 2.73.61.66 inorder to unlock the HTC Hero.
My doubt is do i need an Orange sim inorder to update the firmware or without a sim will I be able to unlock the phone. because i live in Sri Lanka and i dont have a sprage orange sim.
No no, don't worry, you will be fine to unlock and install custom ROMs without an Orange SIM.
ddotpatel said:
No no, don't worry, you will be fine to unlock and install custom ROMs without an Orange SIM.
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thanks for the reply
but can you mention how to do that without a orange sim?
cz when comes to android im a complete noob and this is my 1st android OS phone.
You dont need any SIM card to be able to flash custom ROMs. And to be able to input a network unlock code you just need a non-orange SIM if the phone is locked to orange.
ddotpatel said:
You dont need any SIM card to be able to flash custom ROMs. And to be able to input a network unlock code you just need a non-orange SIM if the phone is locked to orange.
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thank you for the information, ill update this thread again with my experience when i get the phone.
Hello all,
I have a little bit of an issue. I have bought an unlock code for my Hero and when using it, despite the fact that he says "Unlock successful", I still can't join the network and when restarting the phone, he asks me again for the code.
I think it may be because I am running a custom ROM, Elelinux special edition that somewhat the unlock code doesn't take.
Anyone can confirm that it is indeed the case? What is the best ROM to run to unlock and where to find it otherwise?
Cheers,
L
Actually, I have just worked it out. Just needed to flash an old Modaco Rom, unlock and now it works with any rom..
I have a similar problem. I tried to unlock my HTC Hero with a code and it didn't work. The phone has all original firmware and has not been rooted at all. My carrier is Orange Romania and the phone was boght with a subscription so it's locked...
Someone told me that I need to unlock it with a special cable that I do not have...
Sorry for the n00b questions
Hey guys, my phone comes with the folleong firmware - LG-E900AT-00-V10b-505-02-OCT-07-2010
I live in a country not described in the following thread ( Fiji, yep, i live in fii, but i bought the phone from australia, but will use it in fiji)
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=935578
So any suggestions to which one i should flash it to?
ok, so no one has any feedback? :C what about this, anyone here flashed a phone bought from Australia or New Zealand and flashed it to Europe Open?
hey guys one more question, the roms on this page
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=935578
if i was to flash to one of those, will i get mango applied with it or is that a separate procedure i have to do? i am so confused
flash with the one you feel more comfortable with, go for an open rom, it will work with any operator in any country of this world.
hey thanks for geting back to me, just the second question still lingers, does this upgrade my phone to mango as well or is this just a 'bios' upgrade?
if i was to use the australian optus firmware, will the phone become locked to that carrier?
i know these are basic questions, but i thought i would check before i flash cos i dont want to brick anything
took the dive and flashed to australian optus. worked awesome, thanks
just incase anyoneis interested in knowing, i dont have any battery issue with this mango upgrade and it didnt lock my phone to any carrier