Hey guys,
I tried searching on the topic but I'm hoping for more information specific to this phone.
I'm traveling to Germany in September. This will be my first time out of the country. I just called Sprint and requested for the phone to be unlocked for international travel. Since I've had the GS4 less than 90 days, I'm told this process will take a few days.
My questions are:
Now that my phone is unlocked, I can use international/locally bought micro-SIM cards, correct?
If I use these SIMs, will I still be subject to Sprint's high usage billing or will it operate entirely independently of Sprint's service?
If I flash a ROM, should I stick to the TW-based variants to ensure international capability? Or is it safer to leave the phone entirely stock until my trip is over?
If you have any tips and tricks for traveling (best SIM card, how to save money, the ROM you used while traveling, best apps for using minimal data, etc.) please do so! I appreciate your advice, everybody.
Thanks
-Tory
Edit:
D'oh! Thought I was in the Q&A forum. Mods, please move.
-Tory
mynameistory said:
Edit:
D'oh! Thought I was in the Q&A forum. Mods, please move.
-Tory
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you lucky and your unlocking will go through without issues that some of us here are having then you should be able to use any non-US sim cards while outside the US. You will be subject to those carriers charges only. Just don't forget to turn off CDMA roaming and switch the phone to GMS/UMTS mode.
I cannot comment on the ROMs though.
I'm currently delpoyed with the military. Had my gs4 remotely unlocked and I now use a rebelphone sim card for my local area. Just turn your phone to gsm and I turn off data because its not included in my rebel phone package. Should be all good to go once u get that done.
Oh and I use blue kabans ROM
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Please read forum rules before posting
Questions and help issues go in Q&A and Help section
Thread moved
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Possible to use US sim?
obender said:
If you lucky and your unlocking will go through without issues that some of us here are having then you should be able to use any non-US sim cards while outside the US. You will be subject to those carriers charges only. Just don't forget to turn off CDMA roaming and switch the phone to GMS/UMTS mode.
I cannot comment on the ROMs though.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is it possible to use a US sim card from another carrier in the US to check that the phone has successfully been unlocked before traveling? Sprint's told me that they unlocked my phone, but I want to be absolutely sure before I step on a plane in two weeks. I also have an update procedure to unlock the phone - I'd like to do that here in the US before I leave so that if there's any problem, I can work them in advance.
Thanks for moving Kenny!
Kate, from what I've been reading, under no circumstances will Sprint allow the phone to connect to a US GSM network using a T-Mobile or AT&T SIM card. I think this is analogous to "unlocking" the phone from its carrier, which carriers do not tolerate.
Buck, I will look at rebel phone among others. It seems data will be expensive, no matter what SIM card I choose. I expect things like Facebook updates and photo uploads should wait until I connect to wireless at hostels or my friend's place.
kate98 said:
Is it possible to use a US sim card from another carrier in the US to check that the phone has successfully been unlocked before traveling? Sprint's told me that they unlocked my phone, but I want to be absolutely sure before I step on a plane in two weeks. I also have an update procedure to unlock the phone - I'd like to do that here in the US before I leave so that if there's any problem, I can work them in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm in the same boat as you are, from what I could gather from forums and Sprint itself, the answer is NO, you cannot verify that you phone was unlock while here in the US with _ANY_ SIM card.
obender said:
I'm in the same boat as you are, from what I could gather from forums and Sprint itself, the answer is NO, you cannot verify that you phone was unlock while here in the US with _ANY_ SIM card.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey obender, when you use international SIM cards, you lose your phone number for one they provide, correct?
mynameistory said:
Hey obender, when you use international SIM cards, you lose your phone number for one they provide, correct?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, that's correct.
And does the phone need to be rooted? It sounds like maybe not for voice, probably for data? I will want both when we go to Spain in a few months. I don't have the phone yet but plan to pick one up this week - love my S3 but I can't use it internationally, and I don't think I can go back to my Photon for the trip.
RhinoDoc said:
And does the phone need to be rooted? It sounds like maybe not for voice, probably for data? I will want both when we go to Spain in a few months. I don't have the phone yet but plan to pick one up this week - love my S3 but I can't use it internationally, and I don't think I can go back to my Photon for the trip.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
People report issues with data but according to sprint once it is unlocked it should work just fine both gsm voice and data, no rooting should be needed.
You can verify your UICC(sim) slot is unlocked by sticking in any "non-Sprint" sim card... if you get an error saying "Invalid Sim" then it's not unlocked... if you see no error.. you are probably unlocked. You can further verify this by going into About Device > Status and seeing if it's reading the ICCID of your new sim card.
You can test this with domestic sims too(ATT/Tmo etc).. though you will not get service due to Samsung blocking them. But yes.. the phone will read the ATT/Tmo ICCID if unlocked.
autoprime said:
You can verify your UICC(sim) slot is unlocked by sticking in any "non-Sprint" sim card... if you get an error saying "Invalid Sim" then it's not unlocked... if you see no error.. you are probably unlocked. You can further verify this by going into About Device > Status and seeing if it's reading the ICCID of your new sim card.
You can test this with domestic sims too(ATT/Tmo etc).. though you will not get service due to Samsung blocking them. But yes.. the phone will read the ATT/Tmo ICCID if unlocked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
According to sprint what you just said is not true. It should show "invalid SIM" all the time while you are in US no matter if you unlocked or not.
obender said:
According to sprint what you just said is not true. It should show "invalid SIM" all the time while you are in US no matter if you unlocked or not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hi,
I got my sprint s4 unlocked by sprint for international use. I've got a europe orange sim, and when I put it in the phone, I don't get any error msg. (BTW, when I leave the phone without any sim card, it shows some small icon on top saying I'm missing a sim, also it won't let me go into network settings..) is it how it's suppose to be when Sprint unlock the phone for 3rd party sim (international) card? meaning If the phone was "unlocked" i would have get some error msg. saying the device "Can't access" the sim card etc.?
Thanks!
wolf1_o said:
Hi,
I got my sprint s4 unlocked by sprint for international use. I've got a europe orange sim, and when I put it in the phone, I don't get any error msg. (BTW, when I leave the phone without any sim card, it shows some small icon on top saying I'm missing a sim, also it won't let me go into network settings..) is it how it's suppose to be when Sprint unlock the phone for 3rd party sim (international) card? meaning If the phone was "unlocked" i would have get some error msg. saying the device "Can't access" the sim card etc.?
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The error message would be the same small icon but it would just say "Invalid SIM", but this is just on my phone that was supposedly unlocked by Sprint, I cannot confirm that it actually works with non US SIM card since I haven't had a chance yet to travel outside the US. Your phone can be unlocked as well or not, you, unfortunately, have no way of telling this until you travel outside the US and try it.
obender said:
The error message would be the same small icon but it would just say "Invalid SIM", but this is just on my phone that was supposedly unlocked by Sprint, I cannot confirm that it actually works with non US SIM card since I haven't had a chance yet to travel outside the US. Your phone can be unlocked as well or not, you, unfortunately, have no way of telling this until you travel outside the US and try it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Alright, If it says invalid sim after you put international card in it's definitely not unlocked. Me and me friend got the phone on the same day and called sprint about 100 time to get the phones working. After sprint told me and my buddy that phones are unlocked, we put it German sim card in and it said invalid sim, but sprint said it will change when you go to Germany. So i didn't believe them and called them another 100 times till about mid June I talked to some supervisor and she said that phone is unlocked. So I put it my German sim back in and it sent me an SMS about the rates of that German service in USA. After that my friend called those assholes another 100 times and they assured him that it will definitely work even though it says invalid SIM. Long story shor... we get there and he is screwed for 3 weeks. Even more so, he was willing to pay $10 per minute to roam in Germany with Sprint... NO SIGNAL ANYWHERE... AND my data did not work with different sim card. only calls and sms. Later i found out that it could be fixed by going to a local branch and downloading something but it was too late. SO Sprint sucks.
Here's the email I got upon requesting the unlock:
Hello Torrance,
This email is intended to confirm that Sprint has successfully processed the unlock request for your Samsung Galaxy s4 Device.* In order for the unlock to be completed, the device has to be connected to the CDMA Network or Wi-Fi connection for the update to finalize.
*Once the update has been completed, please follow the steps below to unlock the device after you have the third party SIM:
*Turn off device > Insert 3rd party SIM > go to Settings > More (tab) > System Update > UICC unlock.* You will receive the update and it should change to GSM Mode.* *
*Phone number: XXX-XXX-XXXX
*If you have any additional questions comments or concerns please contact Sprint World Wide care 24/7 at 888-226-7212
*Thank you,
Ayesha J.
Sprint eCare
tarasator said:
Alright, If it says invalid sim after you put international card in it's definitely not unlocked. Me and me friend got the phone on the same day and called sprint about 100 time to get the phones working. After sprint told me and my buddy that phones are unlocked, we put it German sim card in and it said invalid sim, but sprint said it will change when you go to Germany. So i didn't believe them and called them another 100 times till about mid June I talked to some supervisor and she said that phone is unlocked. So I put it my German sim back in and it sent me an SMS about the rates of that German service in USA. After that my friend called those assholes another 100 times and they assured him that it will definitely work even though it says invalid SIM. Long story shor... we get there and he is screwed for 3 weeks. Even more so, he was willing to pay $10 per minute to roam in Germany with Sprint... NO SIGNAL ANYWHERE... AND my data did not work with different sim card. only calls and sms. Later i found out that it could be fixed by going to a local branch and downloading something but it was too late. SO Sprint sucks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What version of the firmware are you running, is it the latest OTA MF9?
---------- Post added at 02:39 AM ---------- Previous post was at 02:29 AM ----------
tarasator said:
Later i found out that it could be fixed by going to a local branch and downloading something but it was too late. SO Sprint sucks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Could you be more specific?
obender said:
According to sprint what you just said is not true. It should show "invalid SIM" all the time while you are in US no matter if you unlocked or not.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sprint doesnt know what theyre talking about half the time. that is incorrect info.
no matter what sim you put in... if its PROPERLY unlocked... then you wont see a "invalid sim error". even att/tmobile.
if you put a sim in and it says "invalid sim" then the OTA sim unlock was not properly done and despite saying unlocked in sprints system.. it's really not.
I have both a sprint gs4 and sprint htc one. it's exactly the same on both.
I have recently received a Galaxy S5 SM-G900F (EU) as a gift, new in box. and I live in the US so i dont have access to an EU sim card. Im trying to get the phone to work with verizon and i was shown the original listing which stated it is international unlocked and it didnt ask for an unlock code when i put the verizon sim card in, but all I'm seeing under APN's are Vodafone Networks. Is there a way to get around this to make it work on Verizon Wireless? I've tried adding verizon's APN settings under "New APN" but that didnt work. Im also root friendly so if the hack or workaround requires root, throw it out there! Thanks guys!
It's helpful to do a forum search before posting. It often finds you an immediate answer and inevitably puts you in a position to pose better informed questions. There are a lot of threads where this question has been asked and answered.
Short answer, you could obtain the SIM you need from Ebay or Amazon, mail order or perhaps a colleague at work or neighbour. A regular SIM unlock code will probably remove the region lock as well. Or with a rooted phone, you can edit the region lock blacklist to effectively circumvent it. Further details and elaboration in the forum. Or search my post history as I've posted about this at length before.
Enjoy
.
hi,
couldn't find a solution anywhere, so i'm trying here, apologies if i misplaced my post.
i bought a s4 SM-S975L from wallmart (straightalk) in the US, but got relocated by my employer to israel.
now im stationed in israel/malta (rotating).
the s4 SM-S975L is locked apparently for any sim. tried to contact the company - they blew me off.
now im stuck with a phone which i cant use.
does anyone know how to "sim unlock" this one?
please?
thank you
You might want to remove your email unless you want to get harvested by a spambot.
Straight Talk Unlocking Policy
It's no surprise that Straight Talk blew you off. Your situation doesn't meet their terms and conditions in that you haven't had the phone active for one year. As to unlocking your phone, you can use either of the two methods that have already been discussed on these forums. Either going through the service menu to unlock, or using RegionLock Away and praying it works. Otherwise, you're out of luck and should send the phone to someone you know in the US so they can return it to WalMart.
thanks, but
thanks, but the mentioned dont fit.
they are not suitable for the model i have.
any other ideas? anyone?
If the methods mentioned didn't work, you'll have to purchase an unlock code from a third party. You could always put the phone on eBay and sell it, if you're not able to return it and don't want to spend any further money.
Be aware that even if you do get the phone unlocked LTE will not work in Israel as the phone doesn't have the correct bands. 3G and HSPA+ should still function.
thanks, can
thank you.
can you perhpas guide me to where i can get such a code?
3G and HSPA+ should still function - thats ok
http://www.sammobile.com/unlock/
Sam mobile doesn't support this model in the unlocking site, :/
Search the Internet as there are other places besides them. If no one can unlock it, then you have to use Straight Talk for a year and get the unlock code that way.
Hello XDA, I have been trying to find the best phone for the money and I finally found it!
I have the following:
Galaxy Note 3 Model number: SM-N900V
Baseband version: N900VVRUEOB6
I know how to get my IMEI and other information if needed.
I have a fido account that I want to use with this phone, I checked network compatibility between the phone's specs:
(searched phone on gsmarena)
and I compared it to Fido's network specs:
(searched Unlocking on Fido's website)
It seems the networks are compatible, which is great. The error I get when I attempt to use the phone is this:
"SIM card is not from Verizon" notification pops up,
I'm really trying not to waste people's time helping me with this, but this is my first time with this device and I could really use help making sure this is unlocked. I bought the phone here:
(amazon . ca website searched note 3, went to cellcow seller got phone for 230$ advertised as "unlocked")
They claimed the phone was unlocked....
The calling function and texting works fine with my Fido SIM
I cannot use any data from the Fido SIM.
I've emailed the seller, and I'm trying to speak with them to get it working, I checked another forum which said to enter a string of digits into the dialer to unlock the phone, which didn't work. What do you suggest I do to try and get the data functioning properly on the phone?
unfortunately I'm a new user and cannot upload photos or put urls or anything but I can answer as many questions as needed
Atomizer24 said:
Hello XDA, I have been trying to find the best phone for the money and I finally found it!
I have the following:
Galaxy Note 3 Model number: SM-N900V
Baseband version: N900VVRUEOB6
I know how to get my IMEI and other information if needed.
I have a fido account that I want to use with this phone, I checked network compatibility between the phone's specs:
(searched phone on gsmarena)
and I compared it to Fido's network specs:
(searched Unlocking on Fido's website)
It seems the networks are compatible, which is great. The error I get when I attempt to use the phone is this:
"SIM card is not from Verizon" notification pops up,
I'm really trying not to waste people's time helping me with this, but this is my first time with this device and I could really use help making sure this is unlocked. I bought the phone here:
(amazon . ca website searched note 3, went to cellcow seller got phone for 230$ advertised as "unlocked")
They claimed the phone was unlocked....
The calling function and texting works fine with my Fido SIM
I cannot use any data from the Fido SIM.
I've emailed the seller, and I'm trying to speak with them to get it working, I checked another forum which said to enter a string of digits into the dialer to unlock the phone, which didn't work. What do you suggest I do to try and get the data functioning properly on the phone?
unfortunately I'm a new user and cannot upload photos or put urls or anything but I can answer as many questions as needed
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
http://www.fido.ca/consumer/content/configure-unlocked-device-guide
Verizon phones are SIM unlocked
Read down about setting the APN
I am surprised fido couldn't tell you this
Sent from my Note 3 via Tapatalk
Thanks a lot! Worked perfectly, I just followed their instructions on that page
Atomizer24 said:
Thanks a lot! Worked perfectly, I just followed their instructions on that page
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Perfect!
Sent from my Note 3 via Tapatalk
So the matter goes like this -
I bought a GS 7 Edge (SM-G935F single SIM International unlocked variant) from Ebay India recently. Everything is OK with the phone except that it is unable to search and connect to any Indian mobile network. It shows "NO SERVICE" even when a SIM is inserted and do not search for networks anyhow. After some search I came to know that it is Middle East specific variant so no Indian SIM card is working in it. So I guess it is suffering from that infamous "Region Lock" issue. I know the "5-minute call in region/home network" solution but unfortunately it is impossible to me to go to middle east just for this.
Is there anyone out there who had/has this issue and got it solved anyhow (other than 5-minute call method).
Please anyone including our great forum modders and devs, I request you to help me out from this awkward situation.
I think you can just get a sim card (turkish for example) from ebay? that will cost you like 10$
Apologies if im wrong
When you insert an indian sim does it ask for a SIM unlock code?
If it doesnt then its not a region lock problem. Your phone has a defect and youshould either return it or get it checked at a service centre.
If it does, then just contact the samsung middle east through e-mail, they'll help you out with the PIN
No it does not ask for any code.
Some more questions, please can some one answer?
1. Can I flash the phone with an Asia Pacific (which is my region) stock ROM?
2. If the answer is yes and everything is successful then will it remove the region lock?
3. Does anyone know whether the region lock is a hardware or firmware based restriction?
Any help is highly appreciated.
Unfortunately nothing worked for me. I successfully flashed the phone with Indian Stock ROM but the problem persisted. As a last resort I rooted the phone and used the "Region Lock Away" app. But unfortunately it did not work either giving "Unexpected error occurred" message. Now I think I can't do anything about this other than shelling out money at a Samsung service center.
@samsung - I must say Samsung, you are not doing it right at all by region locking the devices. It is the most stupid and bad-for-business move from your part. I mean come on! A user buys your phone spending a lot then he/she must be free to use it anywhere and anyhow without any restrictions. Why on earth I spend more money buying a SIM card, you are selling phones or promoting regional network operators along with it. Disappointed as I am, I will no longer buy a Samsung phone in the future and will make sure no other in my family and circle buys one. Besides being a blogger and social media influencer I will do as much as I can to make people aware about this restrictive and monopolistic attitude of yours. You will have to pay for this.
I'm with u
i bought it from India, and back to Singapore...
cant use it alerady a week. and Singapore samsung saying they cant help. contact indian operator / samsung service centre.