Galaxy SII working in the US - Galaxy S II General

Would anyone happen to know-
if I buy a Galaxy SII from Europe, would it work in the US? specifically with T-Mobile?

As I understand it, yes. But only with the EDGE network. 3G and 4G frequencies are probably different. Could be wrong.

This is the band T-Mobile USA uses: AWS, or UTMS. I don't think it would work, seeing the Galaxy S II's specs. I believe it has to be capable of both. I think best case scenario, it works like an unlocked iPhone and you can get Edge, but not 3G, much less "4G."
While the Galaxy S II supposedly works in both bands, I believe that in order to fully function with T-mobile USA's network it has to support both at the same time. Like I mentioned before, that's called AWS, and it seems to me it would have to be explicitly written in there as a supported band.

So what other carrier would support this device?
btw, thanks for the info!

HG! said:
So what other carrier would support this device?
btw, thanks for the info!
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It has at&t's 3G bands

r4d14n7 said:
As I understand it, yes. But only with the EDGE network. 3G and 4G frequencies are probably different. Could be wrong.
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Completely wrong.
At&t uses 850 & 1900 for data.
The SGS2 has 850, 900, 1900, and 2100.
It should work on t mobile, but I don't know the network bands off the top if my head.
Sent from my Captivate.

T-Mobile uses 1700 so you wouldn't be getting 3G.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App

I had to post because I saw alot of misinformation.
The GS II will certainly work in the United States.
It is a Quad Band GSM phone w/ EDGE data. It will also work on the 1900 WCDMA 3G band. At&t, Telus and Bell ALL function on the 1900 WCDMA band.
So yes the GS II will work with 3g on the 1900 WCDMA band here in the states and in Canada. You only need one 3g Band either 850 or 1900 will do. Best to have both so check your coverage area. I have a Galaxy S and have constant 3.5G HSPA signal with 1900 WCDMA only band.

inurb said:
I had to post because I saw alot of misinformation.
The GS II will certainly work in the United States.
It is a Quad Band GSM phone w/ EDGE data. It will also work on the 1900 WCDMA 3G band. At&t, Telus and Bell ALL function on the 1900 WCDMA band.
So yes the GS II will work with 3g on the 1900 WCDMA band here in the states and in Canada. You only need one 3g Band either 850 or 1900 will do. Best to have both so check your coverage area. I have a Galaxy S and have constant 3.5G HSPA signal with 1900 WCDMA only band.
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Jeezus someone who actually knows that 2g and 3g bands are different.

Carne_Asada_Fries said:
T-Mobile uses 1700 so you wouldn't be getting 3G.
Sent from my Nexus S using XDA App
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I looked up the network bands. This is how it is:
Voice/calls/texts/etc. will work 100% fine on both of them.
As for 3G:
SGS2: 850, 900, 1900, 2100
AT&T uses 850 and 1900. 3G will work perfectly.
T-mobile uses 1700 and 2100. Apparently their network is retarded and you need both.
Sent from my Captivate.

Wrong again
T-Mobile uses 1700 paired with 2100 commonly referred to as 1700. A phone with 2100 will not work on T-Mobile... A phone must have 1700 to work on the T-Mobile USA 3G network anywhere in the USA. This phone will work on the 2G network and IF T-Mobile has any 1900 3G towers it could connect to those (I'm not aware of any at this time).

Related

Bell's Vibrant is tri-band HSDPA!

Alright, I saw it on the box, so I can confirm with certainty: Bell's Vibrant is tri-band HSDPA 850/1900/2100. I think I'm gonna get me one right away. (Might it be smarter to wait for deals from FS?)
Before seeing it on the box, noone could confirm that: I had called Bell tech support (highest tier), Samsung Canada tech. support, noone! I just can't believe how incompetent these guys (and gals) can be! Samsung tech support didn't even know what HSDPA is! Go figure! Who pays these guys?
yes 3 band data as mentioned above
and quad band voice 850/900/1800/1900
who cares about the voice, the 850/1900/2100 range is what we wanted anyways
now i can go to Brazil visit my >beeep< or go to europe and still have good data reception (using local sim cards of course)
Is the bell's vibrant different from t-mobile's???
felipehcampos said:
Is the bell's vibrant different from t-mobile's???
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Yes, it's a full-on I9000 complete with FFC and physical Home button.
confused about Bell's Vibrant 2G and 3G networks
For reference the Samsung I9000 Galaxy S has:
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 900 / 1900 / 2100
What about Bell's Samsung GT-I9000M Galaxy S Vibrant? Which 2G Network? Which 3G Network?
I'm asking that because I'm confused:
Aqua1ung said:
Alright, I saw it on the box, so I can confirm with certainty: Bell's Vibrant is tri-band HSDPA 850/1900/2100
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But both Best Buy and Future Shop says "3G 900/1900/2100" for Bell's SGS specs?!
AllGamer said:
yes 3 band data as mentioned above
and quad band voice 850/900/1800/1900
who cares about the voice, the 850/1900/2100 range is what we wanted anyways
now i can go to Brazil visit my >beeep< or go to europe and still have good data reception (using local sim cards of course)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is it like AT&T's (and supposedly Rogers') Samsung i897 Captivate:
2G Network GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G Network HSDPA 850 / 1900 / 2100
Does that means Bell's SGS has GSM quad band built-in? But Bell's network is CDMA, not GSM?!
It's a pretty big deal if it has 2G GSM network compatibility, because as you said that means it's possible to use it with both European and Canadian cell phone carriers (once unlocked).
The 3G 850 / 1900 is necessary for Canada, and 2100 for France but that's assuming you stay in big cities where 3G networks are deployed. But what about going to the countryside? In that case we need to rely on the GSM 2G networks to get voice and data connection, am I right?
gaelynx said:
It's a pretty big deal if it has 2G GSM network compatibility, because as you said that means it's possible to use it with both European and Canadian cell phone carriers (once unlocked).
The 3G 850 / 1900 is necessary for Canada, and 2100 for France but that's assuming you stay in big cities where 3G networks are deployed. But what about going to the countryside? In that case we need to rely on the GSM 2G networks to get voice and data connection, am I right?
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actually that's why for some people like myself the 850 is a pretty big deal, so that we can get 3G on the country side, otherwise we'll only get Edge or 2G
gaelynx said:
But both Best Buy and Future Shop says "3G 900/1900/2100" for Bell's SGS specs?!
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The 3G 900 in the specs must be wrong. Only Australia, New Zealand and maybe Iran use that band (src). And Future Shop is a sub-division of Best Buy so maybe that why they both have the same error?
AllGamer said:
actually that's why for some people like myself the 850 is a pretty big deal, so that we can get 3G on the country side, otherwise we'll only get Edge or 2G
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So 3G 850 and 1900 are enough to cover cities and countryside for voice+data in Canada? There is no CDMA technology in the Bell Vibrant?
And we have a good 3G coverage for worldwide use thanks to the popularity of the 2100MHz band.
Some part of the countryside in France (including where my family lives) doesn't have 3G coverage. So I would like to know the 2G Network capabilities of the Bell Vibrant.
if it has Quad-band GSM then its only difference with the I9000 is the 850 3G band instead of the 900 3G band?! and the difference with the Samsung i897 Captivate is the external design and the front camera?
After additional google-ing I found an official news from Samsung (June 30th) that says:
The first Samsung Galaxy S™ device to launch in Canada will be the Samsung Galaxy S Vibrant™ and it is scheduled to launch this summer on Bell Mobility’s state-of-the-art HSPA+ network – the fastest and largest wireless high-speed network in Canada.
Canadian consumers can anticipate the release of additional Galaxy S™ smartphones throughout the rest of 2010.
[..]
Network: HSPA/Quad Band GSM/GPRS/EDGE
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and I could find one confirmation on XDA (without source):
Croak said:
Quad band GSM and 850/1900/2100 UMTS.
Sent from my GT-I9000M using XDA App
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So that means the Bell Vibrant doesn't relies on Bell's CDMA network, only on its HSPA+ network.
I see no point in waiting for Rogers to release the Captivate, unless we don't mind the lack of Front Facing Camera and prefer the other external design...
the Canada version of Vibrant operates at all those bands on both 2G and 3G also for Voice, so you got it all covered.
the only thing left is to get it unlocked after you buy it.
it is also compatible with the i9000 firmware upgrades without any changes

[Q] question for 3G frequencies in Canada

I have a tmobile vibrant phone (hardware only). According to the phone specs i SHOULD be able to get 3g signal with my fido sim card since the phone seems to support all the same frequencies as the Canadian i9000.... but i only get edge.
If you guys are getting 3G with fido or rogers sim cards, did you have to set anything special in the phone settings?
Thanks!
Vibrant T-mobile 3G runs on 1700
that is why you only get EDGE (2G)
Fido, Rogers & Bell runs on 850 & 1900 for 3G
On my way to work today this is what i saw in the network box.
inside my house - EDGE
Outside my house - 3G
back country roads to work - i saw just G or no signal (normal i loose signal with my iphone and blackberry on there)
at work - back on edge
So i DO get 3g somehow! or is it just teasing me by showing 3G?
i read somewhere that the t-mo vibrant does have 1900 as one of its 3g bands, so this is why your phone has been able to pick up 3g at times. the problem for you is that rogers/fido mainly use the 850 band. i had the nokia n97 mini that had the 1900 but no 850 and while driving around most of the gta i would get 3g, but when i went into buildings, houses, etc, it would drop to edge.
Maybe your phone supports 1900 and not 850 MHz? Or the oposite? That would explain why you would get bad UMTS coverage.
@hondaguy you were faster than me
boravr6 said:
I have a tmobile vibrant phone (hardware only). According to the phone specs i SHOULD be able to get 3g signal with my fido sim card since the phone seems to support all the same frequencies as the Canadian i9000.... but i only get edge.
If you guys are getting 3G with fido or rogers sim cards, did you have to set anything special in the phone settings?
Thanks!
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Click to collapse
To my knowledge the T-Mobile Vibrant does not support the major Canadian 3g bands. It is quad band 2g, which is why you are able to get edge but it is only 2 band 3g, at least according to this spec sheet:
http://pdadb.net/index.php?m=specs&id=2439&c=samsung_sgh-t959_galaxy_s_vibrant
T-mobile uses the 1700 and 2100 UMTS bands for 3g, Bell/Rogers/Telus/Virgin/Fido use 850/1900 UMTS bands for 3g. Therefore the 3g radio on the Vibrant is not compatible with these networks.
However, WIND mobile uses the 1700/2100 UMTS bands for 3g and you can use unlocked T-Mobile phones to their full ability on Wind's network. Wind is only in major urban centres though so this may not help you if you're not in the city. Hopefully you are as Wind has a pretty sweet unlimited data plan!
http://shop.windmobile.ca/
On the other hand according this this article from Engadget:
http://www.engadget.com/2010/08/22/confirmed-galaxy-s-unlock-codes-are-stored-in-your-phone-vibra/
If they're right that the Vibrant is somehow capable of AT&T 3g, it would mean the phone has to be tri-band UMTS: 850, 1700, 2100 (or 1700,1900,2100) as AT&T uses the 850/1900 bands like Rogers/Bell/Telus.
This doesn't make sense to me why T-Mobile would do this. The 850/1900 bands are really only used in North America on competing carriers, so it doesn't give the phone "world" capabilities, the 2100 band does that. Why they would add a feature who's only purpose is to make the phone work on competitors' networks is a mystery to me but Engadget seems to have a picture that confirms it. If this is true than an unlocked Vibrant should technically be able to work on Rogers/Bell/Telus/Fido/Virgin 3g, but only if it is unlocked. I'm pretty sure that T-Mobile sells their phones SIM locked to their network, have you unlocked yours?
~Edit if it does have 1900 as the third band the above posters are correct in that you will get minimal 3g coverage as 850 is the primary in Canada.
yeah i wanted to switch to Wind Mobile for the $35 true unlimited data plan, until i found out they don't work with normal 850/1900/2100 phones
only 1700 / 2100

data frequencies once unlocked?

I have my phone unlocked but am trying to figure out was frequencies we can use for 3G on other carriers?
T-mo uses UMTS 1700 and 2100. But people who have unlocked and inserted a AT&T sim have been able to get 3G speed. Is the Vibrant able to get 850 and 1900 UTMS once unlocked?
It has 1900. In menu shows option for 850 also, but the hardware doesn't support it.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
As said above, the Vibrant supports 1700/1900/2100 for 3G. AT&T uses 850 and 1900, so in 1900 areas, you can get 3G on AT&T.
In case anyone cares, the AT&T Captivate (AT&T's Galaxy S) supports 850 and 1900, so it will not receive 3G speeds on T-Mobile's US network.
The worst thing about t-mo network is that they require both 1700 AND 2100 to get 3g speed while ATT only needs one.
jackhuny said:
The worst thing about t-mo network is that they require both 1700 AND 2100 to get 3g speed while ATT only needs one.
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Not challenging you, just asking. How is TMO different than AT&T? I would guess that TMO is 1700 in some areas and 2100 in others, and so to get full coverage, you need both. Likewise, AT&T is 850 in some areas, and 1900 in some area, and to get full coverage, you need both.
Is this not actually the case?
cparekh said:
Not challenging you, just asking. How is TMO different than AT&T? I would guess that TMO is 1700 in some areas and 2100 in others, and so to get full coverage, you need both. Likewise, AT&T is 850 in some areas, and 1900 in some area, and to get full coverage, you need both.
Is this not actually the case?
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Click to collapse
No its not.
T-mo uses AWS(Advanced Wireless Services) which require both 1700 to upload and 2100 for download (or reverse).
On the other side of things... I would think that way of doing things (dual channel) would potentially be more effective
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Palhaitus said:
On the other side of things... I would think that way of doing things (dual channel) would potentially be more effective
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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I think verizon would disagree on that.
Is it half duplex or full duplex? That would matter as far as having 2 channels for simultaneous upload and download.

[Q] Will Euro Tab work on US 3G?

I haven't seen any specs for North American Galaxy Tab so I don't know if the AT&T version will have UMTS 850. I have ordered a Euro version that has UMTS 1900 so I presume it "should" work on AT&T 3G but I'm worried because what I can find on this subject implies UMTS 850 is essential for AT&T 3G. Can anyone with experience in US tell me how well the UMTS 1900 only works? Thanks.
Yes
To be more specific, it will if your city still has the 1900 mhz band. Check here: http://www.cellularmaps.com/att_850_1900.shtml
Funk2641 said:
Yes
To be more specific, it will if your city still has the 1900 mhz band. Check here: http://www.cellularmaps.com/att_850_1900.shtml
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Click to collapse
Thanks for the quick response and the maps (first time I've seen coverage maps by frequency, since AT&T no longer offers them) Very helpful and I feel better about haven ordered the Euro version.
Are there any owners of cellphones using the Euro 900/1900 UMTS frequencies on US 3G networks who can share their experience?
I live in the SF Bay Area and here the network is mainly 1900Mhz so the device works very well.
If you live in a market that got 3g fairly early, your network in probably 1900Mhz.
If you live in a market that only recently (1-2 years) got 3G, you might be on a 850Mhz network.

Will the Nexus S work on Telus?

The Nexus S supports these networks
Quad-band GSM: 850, 900, 1800, 1900 Tri-band HSPA: 900, 2100, 1700 HSPA type: HSDPA (7.2Mbps) HSUPA (5.76Mbps)
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Telus supports 1900/850 MHz frequency bands. More detail at telusmobilityDOTcom/en/ON/network/about.shtm
BTW, AT&T and all other major Canadian providers use these bands.
Edge yes, 3G no
There are definitely a lot of people curious about whether they will release a rogers/AT&T band version. My guess is probably not, AT&T probably won't be interested in picking it up and it would be hard to justify it otherwise.
Ughh I really want to get one but no 3G on at&t is a dealbreaker
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
smitty5569 said:
The Nexus S supports these networks
Telus supports 1900/850 MHz frequency bands. More detail at telusmobilityDOTcom/en/ON/network/about.shtm
BTW, AT&T and all other major Canadian providers use these bands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
canada now has 3 providers using the AWS (1700) like T-Mobile. Wind, Mobilicity and (I may be wrong here) I believe Vidéotron
It will NOT work on Telus or Bell, period. It doesn't have the right 3G frequencies and Bellus doesn't have a GSM network.

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