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Hey guys,
I've come across something interesting and need the community to help me investigate.
I recently flashed my EVO to cricket, after porting my number to Google Voice and Sprint canceling my contract. Using Google voice, I have noticed a lag time via long distance. However here is the interesting part, the lag time is greater using sprint and cricket, than it is on AT&T and T-Mobile.
Give it a try. Here is a phone number that will echo anything you say 909-390-0003. Dial the number (it doesn't ring, it just picks up).
Using different service providers count 1-2-3-4-5.
I have noticed that Sprint (CDMA) has a longer response time than Att/Tmobile. Using google voice adds a small lag as well.
What i've decided is that Sprint + Google voice make the lag time so long its unusable, but Att/Tmobile + Google voice is acceptable.
Can anybody verify this for me?
Only time I did this was through gizmo5 and gv callback its seemed acceptable
I made a quick video for anbody that wants to see it.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G_xj5sCT5ck
I cant believe more people didn't find this interesting. Its not a cricket thing, its a sprint think (i tried both)
It's called, "Google Voice got partnerships with the voice providers that made the most sense to, and stuck their SIP gateways directly into the local POP for those carriers"
AT&T and Verizon are the nation's biggest carriers, and T-Mobile is the biggest Android carrier. Sprint and Cricket? Pfft.
I have gone through three Verizon Samsung Galaxy Tab 10.1's in the past two days (since the Verizon release).
PLEASE NOTE: this only pertains to Verizon devices while trying to access Google pages using your device's DATA PLAN.
EVERYTHING works fine when you are connected via WiFi.
The first time I opened the browser, it tried to auto-log me into the default Verizon/tablet Google webpage. It never got there. I tried to access other pages in Google until I tired myself out. I tried installing Dolphin, Firefox, etc and still no go. I then tried connecting to WiFi and was able to access Google, so I figured this was probably a 4G issue. So I decided to call Verizon as I was somewhat sad about my new toy. Verizon had no notes or information at the time except for wiping my device a few times. Nothing worked. I was advised to return it, as it was deemed defective by Verizon's Tech Support.
I brought my device in and swapped it out. This one did the exact same thing. I tried logging onto Yahoo and it worked though. I showed the Verizon staff inside the store (because they had been fiddling with it for over an hour) and they were very happy to see that I found a way to make it work. I then tried accessing other sites and it also worked. About 10 minutes later, the staff had checked their Tech Notes on their Intranet or whatever they use, and a note popped up about a very large number of other customers reporting this problem.
Verizon said that they had a server issue and that was why this was not visible in their "notes" earlier. They said they are working on the problem and should have a way to fix the problem very shortly. One of the Techs their said I would be lucky if it happened in the next update. So we will see what happens.
Again this is only affecting a small portion of the Verizon Tab 10.1 4g LTE users at this time. And only when you are connected to CDMA or 4G. If you are having these issues with Google while on CDMA 4G (your data connection), just use your WiFi and everything should work just fine.
Don't cry. It will all be okay.
PS: I would like to apologize in advance if this post is not in the proper section. I am sorry.
-h3lls
Droid X-Droid X2
Xoom-Galaxy Tab 7-Galaxy Tab 10.1
Verizon Wireless
thanks for the info. BTW do you have Gtab wifi other than verizon Gtab. If yes any difference in functionality?
tabing said:
thanks for the info. BTW do you have Gtab wifi other than verizon Gtab. If yes any difference in functionality?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I personally do not have a Galaxy Tab (WiFi Only) for either the 7 or 10.1.
But my ex-wife has the WiFi Only version and she says that there is not as many processes running in the background on her WiFi Only Tab (compared to mine). I would have to guess that this has to do with the Provider, but I could be totally wrong.
-h3lls
Droid X-Droid X2
Xoom-Galaxy Tab 7-Galaxy Tab 10.1
Verizon Wireless
I have the same issue...
I wanted to chime in on this post to let you know what I've found out and to also give you a background on the experiments I've conducted both locally and with the Verizon techs.
I purchased the new Samsung 10.1 4G LTE tablet 2 days ago and have the same issue where I can't access google.com or anything related to the google domain via a browser when connected to the cellular network. Over wi-fi it works fine, but not over the 3g network.
That being said, I called Verizon tech support (no one had been aware of any issues with the tablets), and explained what was happening. I was escalated to a very good tech who walked me through several tests. In addition, I had two people in my office that had other tablets (a Verizon Xoom and an iPad2). This setup the perfect test bed.
Here's what we found out:
1. My Samsung 10.1 4G LTE can connect to google.com via wi-fi (both via a router and cellular hotspot).
2. My Samsung 10.1 4G LTE cannot connect to google.com via the cellular connection.
3. We did a factory restore on the tablet but that had no effect.
4. I turned on the Samsung 10.1 hotspot and had the other tablets try to connect to google.com using my cellular connection to see if it was something on their server blocking the domain. Both their tablets connected successfully.
5. I downloaded both Firefox and Dolphin browsers to see if it was in the default browser. Both didn't load google.com.
6. Tested all the google apps on the Samsung and all worked via wi-fi and cellular connection.
The only thing I couldn't try was to load google.com inside a 4g network. I live in South Texas and the closest 4g network is 2 hours away.
So...
I was told to take back the device to where I purchased it and exchange it to see if it was the device. It took about an hour to see the local tech, so in the meantime, I though I would try the display tablets in the store to see if the problem existed with those.
All the Samsung 10.1 4G LTE devices didn't load google.com over the cellular network.
I felt like I had reached the limit of what could be done, but I still was interested to see if it would work in a 4g network.
So...
I had one of the techs call another Verizon store in San Antonio (a 4G environment) to have them load google.com.
IT WORKED!!!
My conclusion is that there is an issue with the tablet's software that is preventing google.com from loading via a 3g cellular connection. This explains why some people can get it to work (4g network) while others can't (3g network).
The tech went ahead and exchanged my device for a new one (which by the way, still didn't load google.com as expected) so he could send it back to Verizon and start the process of getting this rather embarrassing situation fixed...hopefully.
The ironic thing is, this only affects loading google.com and no other website. Being a google supported device, I would expect this to be resolved quickly.
I hope this has been helpful.
UPDATE: My 10.1 is working FLAWLESSLY now.
Thanks for the chime in. As I had said, the Tab worked fine with Google when connected to wifi, just not when connected to the Verizon network. That was the whole issue. The software issue seems to be a part of the issue, BUT I HAVE LEARNED THAT THE 4G LTE SIM CARDS MAY WELL ALSO BE A HUGE ISSUE (ALSO HOW THEY WERE INSTALLED).
The way the SIM card is installed could have been an issue, but there also could have been an issue with certain "batches" of 4G LTE cards that Verizon was given. To be perfectly honest, the first tablet I had that had this problem, I returned immediately and asked them to just replace my device and give me the card to take home so I could install it myself (I had been the only customer that day [opening day] to pickup a 10.1 and nobody there really knew how to set them up. They know the type of work I do and had no issue with it. I followed directions exactly as described, and still had the same issue.
It really disturbed me though when I had brought my first 10.1 back and they spent an hour into closing trying to figure out what was wrong (all 5 employees). The man who installed the card in the first place really wasn't even that sure if he had done it correctly. I don't think everyone was really too up-to-date on how to get these Tabs up and running with the LTE out of the box.
Verizon later told me that problems with the SIM cards themselves could be corrected without having to manually service the device.
Who knows.... All I know is that the issue is no longer a problem for me. If anyone is still having problems in this area, please try and give me any details you can besides what has already been said. This way I can forward the information to my colleagues at Verizon and Motorola and update them further.
PS: I had also just learned that if you lived in an area where 4G was not available, but was suppose to be in the very near future, you could have also had some "issues" with your 10.1. Nothing too specific, but there could be a handful of odd issues concerning new and upcoming 4G locations. That's about all I can really say.
-h3lls
Droid X-Droid X2
Xoom-Galaxy Tab 7-Galaxy Tab 10.1
Verizon Wireless
Sent from my DROID X2 using Tapatalk
Chiming in here. I've had the same issue with not being able access Google sites while on CDMA (LTE coming in November locally) since I purchased the GTab 10.1 LTE a week and a half ago. I have read posts on several forums with others having the same issue. After seeing this post today I tried once more using CDMA and it works. I have not made any changes or messed with the SIM card on my Gtab. Verizon must have done something on their end.
Okay, I'll start with a little background. I'm a Verizon Wireless employee, and the store's resident Android nerd. That said, I'm stumped on something.
With the recent government ruling about sim-unlocking phones, we've seen an influx of devices from other carriers. Honestly, we've not been trained on how to handle these. Popping active sims into the phone typically activates them just fine, but we've been running into issues with SMS pretty frequently. Also, having AT&T firmware on a Verizon device is weird too, and can result in some odd behavior with baked in features.
With regard to the SMS issues, my immediate first thought was to edit the APN settings. Those are greyed out on a lot of devices I've seen though. So now I'm thinking something needs to change in the firmware. We do not have the ability to flash firmware* though.
We recently had a customer come in and activate 12 sim-unlocked US Cellular GS5s.They report that everything is working except SMS. What do I do?
*We do have an unapproved laptop laying around, and I do have Kies installed on it. I've never used it though, and nobody in the store wants to be liable for bricking a phone. With the right customer, I'd be willing to try it through Kies if that's something it is capable of. But as a large store, that's not a viable solution for most customers.
YamiYaiba said:
Okay, I'll start with a little background. I'm a Verizon Wireless employee, and the store's resident Android nerd. That said, I'm stumped on something.
With the recent government ruling about sim-unlocking phones, we've seen an influx of devices from other carriers. Honestly, we've not been trained on how to handle these. Popping active sims into the phone typically activates them just fine, but we've been running into issues with SMS pretty frequently. Also, having AT&T firmware on a Verizon device is weird too, and can result in some odd behavior with baked in features.
With regard to the SMS issues, my immediate first thought was to edit the APN settings. Those are greyed out on a lot of devices I've seen though. So now I'm thinking something needs to change in the firmware. We do not have the ability to flash firmware* though.
We recently had a customer come in and activate 12 sim-unlocked US Cellular GS5s.They report that everything is working except SMS. What do I do?
*We do have an unapproved laptop laying around, and I do have Kies installed on it. I've never used it though, and nobody in the store wants to be liable for bricking a phone. With the right customer, I'd be willing to try it through Kies if that's something it is capable of. But as a large store, that's not a viable solution for most customers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would defer to my boss or VZ corporate lest I get fired for doing the "wrong thing", which I learned on an internet forum!
UNBELIEVABLE
Sent from my SM-G900V using XDA Free mobile app
YamiYaiba said:
Okay, I'll start with a little background. I'm a Verizon Wireless employee, and the store's resident Android nerd. That said, I'm stumped on something.
With the recent government ruling about sim-unlocking phones, we've seen an influx of devices from other carriers. Honestly, we've not been trained on how to handle these. Popping active sims into the phone typically activates them just fine, but we've been running into issues with SMS pretty frequently. Also, having AT&T firmware on a Verizon device is weird too, and can result in some odd behavior with baked in features.
With regard to the SMS issues, my immediate first thought was to edit the APN settings. Those are greyed out on a lot of devices I've seen though. So now I'm thinking something needs to change in the firmware. We do not have the ability to flash firmware* though.
We recently had a customer come in and activate 12 sim-unlocked US Cellular GS5s.They report that everything is working except SMS. What do I do?
*We do have an unapproved laptop laying around, and I do have Kies installed on it. I've never used it though, and nobody in the store wants to be liable for bricking a phone. With the right customer, I'd be willing to try it through Kies if that's something it is capable of. But as a large store, that's not a viable solution for most customers.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No offense, I'm actually trying to do the opposite and move my Verizon S5 and S3 to T-Mobile. (Verizon phone reps, through six separate phone calls, gave me six different stories of how to unlock my phone. I'm experiencing hiccups as I go - T-Mobile gave me some misinformation as well.)
They were able to change a lot of settings for their network, there are still SMS issues and other random odd issues. Maybe that's the nature of it?
I haven't looked into this in over a year, but I was under the impression that Verizon operates on an IMEI white list, i.e. ONLY Verizon branded phones are allowed on the network. When a user attempts to activate a phone on the network, it's IMEI is checked against the list of IMEIs for every phone Verizon has sold. If it's IMEI is not on that list because it's a non-carrier branded phone or it's another carrier's version of the phone it will not be allowed on the network regardless of hardware compatibility.
From what I recall, this was also the reason that Nexus 7 LTE buyers were screwed by Verizon. Verizon was advertised as supporting the tablet because legally they had to due to the open access provision they agreed to when they purchased their LTE spectrum. Up to that point Verizon had operated with a white list as I described above. They were able to get away with this despite the open access provision because they run voice and text over the older 2G and 3G networks on which they have not agreed to open access. When the tablet came out, for months Verizon had no system in place to activate it because the IMEIs were not on the white list. Users were able to successfully connect to the network with a SIM activated in another tablet proving that it was not a hardware issue.
Has this changed in the last year? If so that great news!
---------- Post added at 12:25 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:58 AM ----------
I just Googled it, and based on information from November when the Nexus 6 came out, Verizon still operates on a white list, but it's only for activating NEW LINES. Verizon will not allow you to activate a new line with a non-Verizon branded phone, however, once the SIM has been activated, if it is placed in a non-white listed phone, that phone will be allowed on the network.
Some people suggest that you can take the IMEI of a floor model at the Verizon store and enter that when you order a SIM CARD, and that will allow for activation. I cannot personally verify this as I'm not a Verizon customer, and I'm not sure if the SIM activation process requires an actual phone with a white listed IMEI.
---------- Post added at 12:51 PM ---------- Previous post was at 12:25 PM ----------
Also OP, have you verified that the handsets with SMS problems support all of Verizon's 2G and 3G network frequencies? From what I recall, Verizon still runs voice and SMS over its legacy 2G/3G networks. I'm not sure if they've implemented Volte yet, but it's likely that older handsets and even some newer ones don't support it, especially if they don't have a Verizon ROM. It's possible that a handset could support only Verizon's LTE frequencies or support everything except it's 3G frequencies for example. If it supports only the LTE frequencies, data could work while voice and SMS don't. If voice and SMS are run over different frequencies it's possible that only one of the two will work.
Information on supported frequencies can be tough to find for phones sold in the US. The information is readily available for the same phones sold anywhere else in the world. The most plausible explanation is that this is because the US carriers insist upon it. They've been forced to start unlocking phones that in the past they've been able to permanently lock to their own networks for domestic use. To combat the emergence of a free marketplace where customers are free to move to a carrier offering a better deal, the carriers have started specifying that their carrier branded versions of the phone be shipped with firmware (possibly also hardware variations) that does not support the frequencies of other US carriers. That way, the phone is "unlocked," but it still won't work on other US networks, so they've managed to sidestep the legislation and continue screwing over consumers.
If the supported frequencies aren't listed on the manufacturer website, you can find them in FCC testing documents.
If customers do have a problem where voice or SMS doesn't work because the frequency isn't supported, they could use a Google voice number for calls and SMS over the data network using the Hangouts app. It works great for me. Your employer definitely would not approve of this suggestion though, since it compromises the way they've artificially limited their technology to force consumers to pay more. All calls and texts to/from a Google voice number are totally free when you're on a Wifi network, and the number is device agnostic, so there's no barrier at all to switching phones or carriers. Verizon wants to use your phone number to make switching as inconvenient as possible, so they don't want you using a cloud based phone number.
Anyone currently using this on Google Fi? How do you like the service and how is the phone performing?
LG G6 (VS988 Verizon Variant BOOOO) but on Google Fi
The service is awesome. I switch back and forth between T-Mobile and Google Fi SIMs. My phone is a bad example because even though I paid for it outright and I left Verizon only after my contract ended, I cannot install an unlocked bootloader or root my device and as far as I know this is a Verizon thing only, (meaning Verizon special crafted the Android OS before putting it out so as to prevent people from actually having that 100 percent ownership feeling.) However the data and everything is good. Start out slow, order your SIM through Google Fi (if they ask say you have the LG G7, trust me, they'll refuse to activate the G6 so I had to call back and lie and sure enough it worked. After I got my SIM in the mail (all over the web via the Fi website,) I popped it in, my phone asked for a restart because it has a new SIM, restarted phone and installed the Google Fi app from Play Store, a few seconds later and one more restart and the APNs all changed themselves, phone was in Global mode and zooming away. And...tsk tsk...I haven't paid for service yet but maybe it's because my phone is all locked up to Verizon but they are not recording any data usage for me neither so I have free service through Fi. THAT BEING SAID, I am a huge fan and patron to Google and their services so I'm going to call and get this issue resolved. I'm sure it's just that they need my IMEI or something of that sort. If you have any other variant of the LG G6, first off, congrats for not going through Verizon like I did and never being able to root/ADB bloatware and etc., and two, give it a shot. You can get your SIM and start using the service (talk/text at least) before paying anything and of course it's month to month so no commitment.
Oh ya! I also noticed, rather this is intentional on Google's part or not, that my Mobile Hotspot feature works as well If you have anymore specific questions feel free to let me know!
Thanks for the reply. I'm guessing that you started before November as they have now opened the program up to other phones including the G6. (Mine is an unlocked T-Mobile one, which I am on now, so should work fine as I will still be using T-Mobil's towers.)
I realize this is an old post, but wondering if you are still using fi with the LG G6. I am wondering if root will give me the ability to auto-switch between the 3 networks. It's a deal breaker for me if I'm stuck with just TMobile's network. I have the US Cellular variant.
Thanks.
Hello,
I am new to this site, and have a burning question I am trying to find an answer for.
So AT&T has been my carrier since about 2014. In July of 2019, I purchased an unlocked S8 from Amazon for about $350 Description says it is: Samsung Galaxy S8 64GB Factory Unlocked Smartphone - US Version (Midnight Black) - US Warranty - [SM-G950UZKAXAA]. In the settings, the model number is listed as: SM-G950U1.
Recently, I received a message from AT&T saying that they are shutting down their 3G network in February of 2022, and that my phone will no longer work on their network. I went into one of their stores and showed them that my phone operates on LTE, but I was told that is for data only and voice operates on 3G. I could not remember the VoLTE name at the time, but mentioned that my phone had the capability to operate on LTE. They refused to go thru settings with me, and told me that my phone will stop working in February. Period. End of story. Also, I was told the same thing that the message states, that they are sending me a new phone and will be deactivating my phone after 30 days.
Now some of my friends are laughing at me saying, "Dang free phones!" But I do not want a 5G phone (which is obviously what they are sending). I have my reasons and this is not what I wish to discuss here.
The issue is... I love my telephone!! It does exactly what I want, and I don't need anything new. Not to mention that I paid for it entirely, with no subsidy from AT&T. I specifically bought it unlocked with intentions of avoiding contracts and having the ability to switch carriers if I so choose.
I am pretty sure that I saw VoLTE mentioned in my settings a while back. But now a search on my phone finds nothing. I assume a firmware update hid this info from me.
So... what gives? Does anybody here know if this particular device can make/receive voice calls using VoLTE - on AT&T (or any other carriers) - simply by changing settings in the phone? Do I have any options to make my phone continue to operate as intended? With any carrier?
Sorry for the long post. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Steve
willnotbecontrolled said:
Hello,
I am new to this site, and have a burning question I am trying to find an answer for.
So AT&T has been my carrier since about 2014. In July of 2019, I purchased an unlocked S8 from Amazon for about $350 Description says it is: Samsung Galaxy S8 64GB Factory Unlocked Smartphone - US Version (Midnight Black) - US Warranty - [SM-G950UZKAXAA]. In the settings, the model number is listed as: SM-G950U1.
Recently, I received a message from AT&T saying that they are shutting down their 3G network in February of 2022, and that my phone will no longer work on their network. I went into one of their stores and showed them that my phone operates on LTE, but I was told that is for data only and voice operates on 3G. I could not remember the VoLTE name at the time, but mentioned that my phone had the capability to operate on LTE. They refused to go thru settings with me, and told me that my phone will stop working in February. Period. End of story. Also, I was told the same thing that the message states, that they are sending me a new phone and will be deactivating my phone after 30 days.
Now some of my friends are laughing at me saying, "Dang free phones!" But I do not want a 5G phone (which is obviously what they are sending). I have my reasons and this is not what I wish to discuss here.
The issue is... I love my telephone!! It does exactly what I want, and I don't need anything new. Not to mention that I paid for it entirely, with no subsidy from AT&T. I specifically bought it unlocked with intentions of avoiding contracts and having the ability to switch carriers if I so choose.
I am pretty sure that I saw VoLTE mentioned in my settings a while back. But now a search on my phone finds nothing. I assume a firmware update hid this info from me.
So... what gives? Does anybody here know if this particular device can make/receive voice calls using VoLTE - on AT&T (or any other carriers) - simply by changing settings in the phone? Do I have any options to make my phone continue to operate as intended? With any carrier?
Sorry for the long post. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Steve
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same issue with crickett (att).
got that txt msg, recently maybe december there was a firmware update that greyed out my network settings and hid some items.
i cant even change my prefered network, 3g 4g lte etc, its locked..
I have the 950u1 also
HOWEVER I have a s8 950U that I think has all these unlocked.
Im going to backup and odin flash the U firmware to the UI and see if it works.
Thats bull**** about doing this. greedy ****s..
I go with somone else if I have to.
willnotbecontrolled said:
Hello,
I am new to this site, and have a burning question I am trying to find an answer for.
So AT&T has been my carrier since about 2014. In July of 2019, I purchased an unlocked S8 from Amazon for about $350 Description says it is: Samsung Galaxy S8 64GB Factory Unlocked Smartphone - US Version (Midnight Black) - US Warranty - [SM-G950UZKAXAA]. In the settings, the model number is listed as: SM-G950U1.
Recently, I received a message from AT&T saying that they are shutting down their 3G network in February of 2022, and that my phone will no longer work on their network. I went into one of their stores and showed them that my phone operates on LTE, but I was told that is for data only and voice operates on 3G. I could not remember the VoLTE name at the time, but mentioned that my phone had the capability to operate on LTE. They refused to go thru settings with me, and told me that my phone will stop working in February. Period. End of story. Also, I was told the same thing that the message states, that they are sending me a new phone and will be deactivating my phone after 30 days.
Now some of my friends are laughing at me saying, "Dang free phones!" But I do not want a 5G phone (which is obviously what they are sending). I have my reasons and this is not what I wish to discuss here.
The issue is... I love my telephone!! It does exactly what I want, and I don't need anything new. Not to mention that I paid for it entirely, with no subsidy from AT&T. I specifically bought it unlocked with intentions of avoiding contracts and having the ability to switch carriers if I so choose.
I am pretty sure that I saw VoLTE mentioned in my settings a while back. But now a search on my phone finds nothing. I assume a firmware update hid this info from me.
So... what gives? Does anybody here know if this particular device can make/receive voice calls using VoLTE - on AT&T (or any other carriers) - simply by changing settings in the phone? Do I have any options to make my phone continue to operate as intended? With any carrier?
Sorry for the long post. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.
Sincerely,
Steve
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
press phone icon, then top right corner hit the 3 vertical dots.
select settings and it should be in there if you havent updated lately... they ****ed us and locked out network and volte settings.
djmdesign said:
Same issue with crickett (att).
got that txt msg, recently maybe december there was a firmware update that greyed out my network settings and hid some items.
i cant even change my prefered network, 3g 4g lte etc, its locked..
I have the 950u1 also
HOWEVER I have a s8 950U that I think has all these unlocked.
Im going to backup and odin flash the U firmware to the UI and see if it works.
Thats bull**** about doing this. greedy ****s..
I go with somone else if I have to.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Please let me know if this works. I thought about doing the same thing, but have not gotten around to trying it. In theory, it sounds like a solid plan. But I have a couple of concerns.
During a recent phone call, AT&T told me their system has flagged my IMEI and that my phone will stop working very soon. So, if the system flagged an IMEI as an unsupported device, will it even matter which firmware is installed? Or will their system just deactivate the phone at some point?
Second, if you install the 950U firmware in place of the 950U1, will the device become carrier locked at this point? That would really suck if it did.
BTW, I was able to lock preferred network to “LTE only” by dialing *#*#4636#*#* and entering Device information screen. Unfortunately, my phone would not complete a call when using LTE only setting. VoLTE provisioned toggle is greyed out, along with others. Seems to me that if a guy could self provision VoLTE, this would solve the issue.
I called AT&T tech support and spent 45 minutes trying to get them to provision VoLTE, but they could not, or would not do it. At first, they kept telling me that my phone is a 3G phone. I argued that I could change the radio to “LTE only” and that my sim card status showed LTE for “mobile voice network type”, which proves that the phone is indeed LTE capable for voice calls - but that it will not complete a call because it is not provisioned to do so. Eventually they told me that their system would not allow them to provision VoLTE for me, since it is flagged as an unsupported device. Which leads back to the first part of this post.
I also found some stuff on reddit about putting the phone into “engineering mode” and something about a Samsung tool that unlocks additional dialer codes. Have not tried this, tho.
At this point, I am just completely fed up with AT&T for this whole S8 situation, as well as other unrelated issues. I will most likely switch carriers for principle’s sake, even though I know other carriers play similar games.
Anyway, I am interested in whether or not you find a solution and would very much like to hear about it. Thank you for the response!!
willnotbecontrolled said:
Please let me know if this works. I thought about doing the same thing, but have not gotten around to trying it. In theory, it sounds like a solid plan. But I have a couple of concerns.
During a recent phone call, AT&T told me their system has flagged my IMEI and that my phone will stop working very soon. So, if the system flagged an IMEI as an unsupported device, will it even matter which firmware is installed? Or will their system just deactivate the phone at some point?
Second, if you install the 950U firmware in place of the 950U1, will the device become carrier locked at this point? That would really suck if it did.
BTW, I was able to lock preferred network to “LTE only” by dialing *#*#4636#*#* and entering Device information screen. Unfortunately, my phone would not complete a call when using LTE only setting. VoLTE provisioned toggle is greyed out, along with others. Seems to me that if a guy could self provision VoLTE, this would solve the issue.
I called AT&T tech support and spent 45 minutes trying to get them to provision VoLTE, but they could not, or would not do it. At first, they kept telling me that my phone is a 3G phone. I argued that I could change the radio to “LTE only” and that my sim card status showed LTE for “mobile voice network type”, which proves that the phone is indeed LTE capable for voice calls - but that it will not complete a call because it is not provisioned to do so. Eventually they told me that their system would not allow them to provision VoLTE for me, since it is flagged as an unsupported device. Which leads back to the first part of this post.
I also found some stuff on reddit about putting the phone into “engineering mode” and something about a Samsung tool that unlocks additional dialer codes. Have not tried this, tho.
At this point, I am just completely fed up with AT&T for this whole S8 situation, as well as other unrelated issues. I will most likely switch carriers for principle’s sake, even though I know other carriers play similar games.
Anyway, I am interested in whether or not you find a solution and would very much like to hear about it. Thank you for the response!!
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Hi, I'm Newbie around here. I'd like to share my experience with ATT and my beloved S8+ this past few months:
Much like you and many others I started receiving texts from ATT by mid 2021 saying my phone would not work after Feb '22. Yes, every time they suspended my line I wasted 30~ 40 mins on the phone, listening how they would insist my S8+ was a 3G phone. It didn't matter that I offered to send them screenshots of my device showing the "VoLTE option" and "4G LTE" while both in the USA and Mexico. Thing is, they only based their saying on a st....id whitelist and all the reps are just talking heads.
I use an S8+ international version which is NOT on the dreaded list. and I am on the 300/year prepaid plan which allows roaming between Mexico and USA with no 50/50 usage limit.
I bought this phone on amazon for 350-ish bucks a couple of years ago and I love it!
I have to cross the Mexico/USA border very frequently and I need two separate numbers one on each country for business reasons so dual sim is a must. On the other hand, I receive lots and lots of phone calls while driving, this made me crave for android 8.1 when call recording was allowed by google, not the case anymore. None of these 2 features are available on the S8/S9 US based phones. I do not need 5G, I do not use social media nor watch videos on my phone but do get to use Pandora, Spotify, MLB radio and so on......... Enter SM-G955F/DS. I was able to change Samsung's CSC code to Israel so call recording is active for all those notes I cannot write down while driving and I get to carry just one device with 2 separate numbers thanks to a dual sim.
Ok, so back to my phone not being on the f... list :
Around Feb 10th, I got yet another email and SMS telling me it was my last opportunity to change or I MAY be disconnected after 2/22/22 ( funny choice of date huh?). I noticed that words on email and text messages had been changed from WILL NOT on Jul/2021 to MAY NOT work on Feb/2022. Since I know for a fact that my phone is VoLTE capable, I figured my S8+ would work as long as AT&T did not intentionally disconnected my line.
So, I took a crappy phoenix ATT phone and updated it's IMEI on my account via the ATT prepaid webpage. After getting "approval" from ATT's system, I put the SIM card in and used it for a full weekend. After that, I put the SIM card back to my S8+ and it is still going strong to date.
Today is March 1st, and I have been weary of ATT sneaking me out of their system but fortunately it has not happened yet. Needless to say, I have not updated my S8's IMEI on ATT's webpage and do not intend to do so.
Now, This "proves" that my phone is indeed capable of using VoLTE and HD , and all those things ATT said it would not do is just plain B.S.. if they disconnect me down the road I would definitely move to T Mobile although I would have some issues with the 50/50 international roaming and I still have 8 months left on my prepaid annual plan with ATT so, keeping my fingers crossed.
AT&T just wants to make more money out of selling new 5G devices while getting rid of their stocked 4G phones.
I wouldn't mind if they just plain out stated " If you do not buy from ATT then ATT will not support your device and will not sell service to you" then again, it would probably be a PR nightmare for them although they do that for WIFI calling anyways.
Ain't it funny how 2/22/22 is coincidentally a paycheck's time ( 2 weeks) after a new flagship phone (S22) was made available for purchase ?
Anyways, enough for ranting and conspiracy theories lol...
I have taken out and put back to my S8+ the SIM card two times in the past 9 days after 2/22/22 and my service is still in good standing.
Maybe if you got a new replacement phone that you don't like, you may swap back your SIM card and it MAY work just like mine is even if it is NOT ON THE INFAMOUS WHITE LIST.
Oldschoolguy said:
Hi, I'm Newbie around here. I'd like to share my experience with ATT and my beloved S8+ this past few months:
Much like you and many others I started receiving texts from ATT by mid 2021 saying my phone would not work after Feb '22. Yes, every time they suspended my line I wasted 30~ 40 mins on the phone, listening how they would insist my S8+ was a 3G phone. It didn't matter that I offered to send them screenshots of my device showing the "VoLTE option" and "4G LTE" while both in the USA and Mexico. Thing is, they only based their saying on a st....id whitelist and all the reps are just talking heads.
I use an S8+ international version which is NOT on the dreaded list. and I am on the 300/year prepaid plan which allows roaming between Mexico and USA with no 50/50 usage limit.
I bought this phone on amazon for 350-ish bucks a couple of years ago and I love it!
I have to cross the Mexico/USA border very frequently and I need two separate numbers one on each country for business reasons so dual sim is a must. On the other hand, I receive lots and lots of phone calls while driving, this made me crave for android 8.1 when call recording was allowed by google, not the case anymore. None of these 2 features are available on the S8/S9 US based phones. I do not need 5G, I do not use social media nor watch videos on my phone but do get to use Pandora, Spotify, MLB radio and so on......... Enter SM-G955F/DS. I was able to change Samsung's CSC code to Israel so call recording is active for all those notes I cannot write down while driving and I get to carry just one device with 2 separate numbers thanks to a dual sim.
Ok, so back to my phone not being on the f... list :
Around Feb 10th, I got yet another email and SMS telling me it was my last opportunity to change or I MAY be disconnected after 2/22/22 ( funny choice of date huh?). I noticed that words on email and text messages had been changed from WILL NOT on Jul/2021 to MAY NOT work on Feb/2022. Since I know for a fact that my phone is VoLTE capable, I figured my S8+ would work as long as AT&T did not intentionally disconnected my line.
So, I took a crappy phoenix ATT phone and updated it's IMEI on my account via the ATT prepaid webpage. After getting "approval" from ATT's system, I put the SIM card in and used it for a full weekend. After that, I put the SIM card back to my S8+ and it is still going strong to date.
Today is March 1st, and I have been weary of ATT sneaking me out of their system but fortunately it has not happened yet. Needless to say, I have not updated my S8's IMEI on ATT's webpage and do not intend to do so.
Now, This "proves" that my phone is indeed capable of using VoLTE and HD , and all those things ATT said it would not do is just plain B.S.. if they disconnect me down the road I would definitely move to T Mobile although I would have some issues with the 50/50 international roaming and I still have 8 months left on my prepaid annual plan with ATT so, keeping my fingers crossed.
AT&T just wants to make more money out of selling new 5G devices while getting rid of their stocked 4G phones.
I wouldn't mind if they just plain out stated " If you do not buy from ATT then ATT will not support your device and will not sell service to you" then again, it would probably be a PR nightmare for them although they do that for WIFI calling anyways.
Ain't it funny how 2/22/22 is coincidentally a paycheck's time ( 2 weeks) after a new flagship phone (S22) was made available for purchase ?
Anyways, enough for ranting and conspiracy theories lol...
I have taken out and put back to my S8+ the SIM card two times in the past 9 days after 2/22/22 and my service is still in good standing.
Maybe if you got a new replacement phone that you don't like, you may swap back your SIM card and it MAY work just like mine is even if it is NOT ON THE INFAMOUS WHITE LIST.
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Yep... AT&T is full of it. I got sick of wasting my time and energy trying to fight this. I eventually just switched over to TMo, and I have been running around with my S8's radio set to LTE only. No issues whatsoever. Great cell service, $30 bucks a month cheaper, all fees included in the flat rate, and a free Netflix account, to boot.
See ya AT&T!!! I hope some group with the the gumption and time takes you to court for your deceptive trade practices. I hope you lose lots of customers, time, and money for your douchery!!!
Has anyone looked into potentially using ODIN to use AT&T's firmware on the unbranded G950U1 without rooting to see if it adds the VoLTE software feature? Does anyone know if that flashing will disable (permanently break) samsung pay? I don't want any rooting since that will permanently break samsung pay on the hardware.