About Unlock G1 - G1 General

I just gave a call to Tmobile for request a unlock code. The rep. did it for me but she told me that I will not be able to update over the air and use instant messenger after unlock. I am just wondering is it true and why.

That's mostly BS I'm afraid.
1. Updates are sent via Google, not T-Mobile. Mine received updates whilst I was only connected via WiFi. Note that if you want to "root" your phone, you will be switching off OTA updates anyway.
2. Unlocking it and of itself won't stop IM working, but changing the SIM to a different carrier might. The built in MSN client is designed such that it will not work over cellular data (e.g. GPRS, UMTS etc) and uses SMS messages to communicate when not connected via WiFi. If you have a non T-Mobile SIM card and are not connected to a WiFi network, it will complain that it cannot read the phone number from the SIM card and fail to log in to MSN. Meebo on the market is one way round this, but this isn't everyones cup of tea.
Regards,
Dave

Im on at&t and can use IM without issue. Granted I am on ADP instead of RC33 which may have an impact since I only have gtalk but I just wanted to report my findings.

Above responses are correct. Of the four IM providers listed in the IM app, only GTalk communicates to its servers via data. The other three use customized sms gateways (i.e. they will eat up your monthly sms allocation rather than using the dataplan) and thus probably won't work outside of T-Mo. There are plenty of third-party IM apps that can connect you to AIM, YIM or MSN using the dataplan though.
Unlock away!

I unlocked my g1 using the T-mobile requested unlock code and everything works just fine. I don't think that person knew what they were talking about (but then it seems that they rarely do).

Related

Live Messenger on T-Mobile UK - is it blocked?

Hi all,
I am just wondering is the Live Messenger on T-Mobile UK blocked?
What it is, I just upgraded to the latest LVSW WM6 release from original T-Mobile WM5, and also installed the final Live Messenger cabs (from Black 3.0.1).
When I try to use sign in, it says there is a problem with my internet connection and won't connect. But it does trigger to GPRS connection, and also my IE and other programs can connect to the internet correctly.
So, I am wondering is Live Messenger blocked? Or is it a problem with my settings/installation?
Thanks.
wywywywy said:
Hi all,
I am just wondering is the Live Messenger on T-Mobile UK blocked?
What it is, I just upgraded to the latest LVSW WM6 release from original T-Mobile WM5, and also installed the final Live Messenger cabs (from Black 3.0.1).
When I try to use sign in, it says there is a problem with my internet connection and won't connect. But it does trigger to GPRS connection, and also my IE and other programs can connect to the internet correctly.
So, I am wondering is Live Messenger blocked? Or is it a problem with my settings/installation?
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Im thinking yes, since i cannot connect to IRC over tmobile either.
still working
I'm using live messenger with faria rom and i just tried it and still working
Below is T-Mobiles small print for their web'n'walk service, taken from this link:- http://www.powerupmobile.com/info-WebnWalk.htm
Subject to connection to Flext + web'n'walk. Minimum term contract and credit check apply. **Compatible handset required. Subject to coverage. Provides unlimited browsing on mobile handsets in the UK. Not applicable to connection via CSD. To ensure a high quality of service for all our customers a fair use policy applies. T-Mobile defines fair use as total UK data (both sent and received) of up to 1GB per month. T-Mobile may contact customers who exceed 1GB of data and ask them to reduce their usage. If data usage is not reduced, notice may be given, after which network protection controls may be applied. Not to be used for other activities (including but not limited to) : modem access for computers, internet based video/audio streaming services, peer to peer file sharing, internet based video downloads, internet phone calls and instant messaging. If such use is detected, notice may be given after which network protection controls may be applied. The application of network protection controls will result in a reduced speed of transmission.
Yea I think we are well-aware of this.
But you need to actually sign in to Messenger to check your Hotmail account!
And they never used to block it, although I had tried for 2 weeks until now.
I'm assuming T-Mobile are cracking down on "misuse" because I used to be able to use VoIP (SIP based) but it is now blocked. :-(
Im on WnW and can connect to live messenger fine, no problems.
Imp
Impossible said:
Im on WnW and can connect to live messenger fine, no problems.
Imp
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What GPRS settings do you use?
And is it the £7.50 WnW or the more expensive one?
If they are blocking Live Messenger then I'm very happy I didn't change to T-Mobile! Sounds like it's a bit of a con to me.
Yea but what else can you have with unlimited usage?
Think we need to find a way to run it off port 80 like the desktop version can do.
To be honest I get 16Mb with Orange for £4 which doesn't have any restrictions on it. It nearly always lasts me a month.
can anyone confirm this is the case at the moment as i am unable to test...
Would be intersting to know exactly what their attitude towards this is..
D
Looking at this forum:
http://www.allaboutsymbian.com/forum/showthread.php?t=60741
it would seem that T-Mobile are cracking down on their T&C. I'm on WnW Plus and all seems to be working for me (I can still log on to Live and send messages). I haven't got around to installing Skype since flashing Black Dymond but shall probably give it a go tomorrow to see if that still works.
I'm not positive, but I think this isn't a problem with your carrier. I'm having this same problem with my Wizard. However, it only happens when I flash certain cooked ROMs. I'm trying to connect over wifi though, and am getting the same error and I just can't connect.
So, I was thinking that it might be certain builds of WLM that we are flashing on our phones. Any thoughts on that?
...this is stange as i have no problems at all. i'm on w n' w lowest plan using agile messenger/live messenger- the only thing they switched off is the ftp which i already ask them about.
i'm using lvsw's rom.
Well, maybe we should start listing our Windows Live builds. Be sure to mention if you have this problem or not. Maybe we can narrow it down that way. I'll start...
10.6.0026.1400
Who's next?
I just noticed my IRC is getting blocked too, on T-Mobile... it connects and disconnects right away. One way to figure out T-Mobile is trying via WiFi to compare.
This kinda sucks. For comparison, I am on the OLD Web'n'Walk 2GB plan before they revamped it with all the Plus/Max nonsense.
I'm running live messenger on WM5 and it connects with no problems whatsoever, i use it every day! (on it right now too). I am on the cheapest WnW plan. Not sure what version of Live I am using , as there seems to be no 'about' option on any of the menus!. If someone could tell me how else I can check the version i'd check.
In essence, I can say for fact that T-Mobile are NOT blocking Instant messaging.
Surely if they block it they're falsly advertising WnW?
I signed up to the £7.50 WnW package because it was being advertised as "the whole internet from my phone". Obviously there's going to be some restrictions because of bandwidth and hardware capabilities, but TMobile blocking things is something else.
-Edit-
Just re-flashed to Elf 2.1 and Live Messenger is working fine... I'll keep an eye on it though.

T-Mobile Tech Support Really Sucks...

Man I really hate T-Mobile's tech support. I called them to ask a simple question:
If I cancel my Total Internet Package which is just 20$ more on by phone bill that I don't really need to be spending, will I be charged for using the WIFI on my phone when I am at home?
I have Comcast cable internet at home and can pick up the router's signal with my MDA even with the sim card out and browse the internet.
They turned around and told me that I would be charged per Kb if I canceled my Total Internet Package and then used my WIFI to pick up my home internet service.
By the way this was T-Mobile's Windows Mobile Department that told me this...
-------------------------------------------
Ok now I have 2 questions for all of you.
Is what T-mobile told me true?
Is there a cheaper way to get unlimited GPRS internet than T-Mobile's $19.99 Total Internet package?
The only time I use my GPRS is to update WeatherPanel and when I am using the OZ Instant Messenger. All other time I spend on the internet is with WIFI turned on and GPRS turned off.
Please, all help will be greatly appreciated and well received.
Thanks in advance, your friendly neighborhood computer geek, Dan.
Well I hope I can help answer your question somewhat.
I do not pay for the GPRS service through Tmobile, I try not to use it at all. If I pull data through it then I am charged. But if i use a wifi hotspot then Tmobile will not charge me. In truth they should have no way of telling if and when I use a WiFi connection. The reason the rep told you this was really a twisting of the truth. He can probably get away with telling you this because it will cut your access to Tmobile HotSpots which you get access to with the data plan. Sneaky sneaky bastards, you should post this little tale on http://consumerist.com/ .
To answer the second if Tmobile is your carrier then NO I dont believe you can get GPRS data from another carrier. Unless your phone is sim unlocked and you choose to use another carrier to get your data through, but this will need you to switch sims out. Either way your gonna pay for it. I would hold out till 1-2 quarter of 2008 Tmobile will start its HSDPA role out, providing upwards of 3Mbps for data. Of course you will need a phone capable of HSDPA, but such is life.
If I am uninformed of another method maybe someone here will be so kind as to enlighten us.
ritalin said:
Well I hope I can help answer your question somewhat.
I do not pay for the GPRS service through Tmobile, I try not to use it at all. If I pull data through it then I am charged. But if i use a wifi hotspot then Tmobile will not charge me. In truth they should have no way of telling if and when I use a WiFi connection. The reason the rep told you this was really a twisting of the truth. He can probably get away with telling you this because it will cut your access to Tmobile HotSpots which you get access to with the data plan. Sneaky sneaky bastards, you should post this little tale on http://consumerist.com/ .
To answer the second if Tmobile is your carrier then NO I dont believe you can get GPRS data from another carrier. Unless your phone is sim unlocked and you choose to use another carrier to get your data through, but this will need you to switch sims out. Either way your gonna pay for it. I would hold out till 1-2 quarter of 2008 Tmobile will start its HSDPA role out, providing upwards of 3Mbps for data. Of course you will need a phone capable of HSDPA, but such is life.
If I am uninformed of another method maybe someone here will be so kind as to enlighten us.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I figured T-Mobile was full of S**T... I know I can access the internet via WIFI even without a sim card in the device. I only use it at home or in hospitals anyway. Like I said though, the GPRS for me, is just for WeatherPanel. That's why I am trying to find a cheaper way...
Thank you for your help though. Not the answer I was hoping for but very grateful non the less.
Dan.
You won't get charged for using wifi. If weather panel is all you really use GPRS for then go to the 5.99 plan. That's what I use and have no problem using weather panel or even browsing the web. The other day I even streamed video over it, although GPRS is way too slow to be any use for that but I wanted to see if it worked. The only apps that I know of that do have problems are mostly IM apps since they have most of the ports that those programs use blocked on the 5.99 plan.
Just realized that you said that you use OZ IM, I'm not sure if that will work or not, I can't seem to get it to work with WM6.
You will not be charged per kilobyte, whoever told you that was either new or retarded. The only difference you will see is that your instant messaging will go thru text messages instead of wifi, charging you per message, to log in, to log out, etc. That's due to the way the OZ instant messaging is written. The 5.99 has been working for a lot of people, but it was a glitch in the system that is slowly being fixed market by market, so don't get upset if it doesn't work for you or if it suddenly stops working, as it was never meant to work. If you connect thru wifi, you won't pay anything as it's your connection thru wifi to your phone's wifi, and the T-Mobile network is nowhere in the mix. Again, the Instant Messaging will be billed as text messages.
johnny12times said:
You will not be charged per kilobyte, whoever told you that was either new or retarded. The only difference you will see is that your instant messaging will go thru text messages instead of wifi, charging you per message, to log in, to log out, etc. That's due to the way the OZ instant messaging is written. The 5.99 has been working for a lot of people, but it was a glitch in the system that is slowly being fixed market by market, so don't get upset if it doesn't work for you or if it suddenly stops working, as it was never meant to work. If you connect thru wifi, you won't pay anything as it's your connection thru wifi to your phone's wifi, and the T-Mobile network is nowhere in the mix. Again, the Instant Messaging will be billed as text messages.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is really good to know. Can you tell me or direct me to a thread that explains the real difference between the 5.99 plan and the 19.99 Total Internet Package?
i don't know about the question you had, but I've had the other extreme as far as Tmo's customer support/tech support... always been great to me. Even after 2 refurbs.
Whoever told you that you'd be charged using Wi-Fi was either full of it or was ASSUMING you would then be accessing T-Mo services...why would you? Just use whatever service you use from home.
I use my MDA with Wi-Fi in my house ALL the time and it has NOTHING to do with T-Mobile. It's not EDGE/GPRS--it's a totally different technology, just like hooking your wireless laptop up to your home router.
Furthermore, you can use the Wi-Fi with T-Mobile Hot Spots if you have that subscription with ANY Wi-Fi computer you have--no reason to have more than one Hot Spot account--many hotels now have it, not just Starbucks.
T-Mobile NOW forces you to pay for Hot Spots with Internet Service as a bundle but they are different technologies.
The Internet Service is EDGE/GPRS and that is a CELLULAR service and is programmed into your SIM chip. I use that too. My MDA can hook into eMail and web sites without a Wi-Fi connection via the cell modem. But it's not nearly as fast.
I actually have 2 SIM chips with this service--I got one for my old IPAQ6315, but that's in the MDA. The one in the MDA is in my notebook computer--it has a Cingular Sony Ericsson cellular modem that I got the unlock code for, and put the chip from the MDA in there--I ALSO can use my notebook with EDGE/GPRS, or Wi-Fi (or even RJ45) connections.
I have the eMail for my regular eMail routed to my MDA--no messing with another address. So it's working a lot like a Blackberry as well.
Finally, you asked if there's a cheaper alternative: There is. It's called "T-Zones" and it's T-Mo's WAP service, for $6 or $7/month. It gives you the limited access you get on cell phones, and you already have it with the fancier internet access--click on T-Zones and you'll see it.
Generally, with T-Mo, service is a waste of time till you get to Level 2. But if you get to Level 3, then you get the techs that really know their business. The PDA support can be similar. But you got to jump through a lot of hoops to reach that level and that can take 30-45 minutes on the phone. Be persistent.
dharvey4651 said:
That is really good to know. Can you tell me or direct me to a thread that explains the real difference between the 5.99 plan and the 19.99 Total Internet Package?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
the 19.99 plan gives you your actual connection to the GPRS/EDGE(and in 4 test markets 3G! T-Mobile bought a whole lot of 3g network up recently.) network (internet2.voicestream.com), by connecting thru this route you are given access to the ports required to get to full websites, as well as email servers, etc.
the 5.99 plan is your basic wap access, t-zones and other wap sites. It's what is used by motorola's, samsungs, basic phones. Gives you access to your account information from T-Mobile's wap sites (but not on an mda running less than wm6 and having had the tzones applett installed), accuweather's website, and other wap websites. By connecting thru the wap APN, you are directed thru a filter that doesn't allow you full access to normal websites.
Now, T-Mobile has a glitch in their system where every now and then you get 5.99 internet and your number isn't put into the filter, so the ports that were supposed to be closed off to you never were, and you can browse and email just as if you had the 19.99 feature. The only problem? They know of the glitch and are closing it market by market, which has been taking the better part of 7 months now, but it's not that far from being finished.
Almost all programs you have installed on the mda that are third party will default to what ever internet connection is available, however, the OZ instant messaging program from the MDA and almost all other T-Mobile PDA's is written specifically to use the SMS (short message system) as the next backup if you aren't connected thru the internet2.voicestream.com, or blackberry.net apn if you are using a blackberry, so if you are connected thru wifi, then you will be charged text for each message.
Hope this helps, if not, let me know.
Johnny

Problems with Windows Live Messenger on 3UK

Just installed Windows Live Messenger on my Hermes with WM6 and when I try to sign in I get this message:
"There is a problem with the server. Please try again later"
I can log in using eBuddy. Is this a problem with WLM or is it 3UK?
Cheers
---
3 Mobile Broadband
No Landline, No Hassle.
www.3mobilebroadband.com
www.3mb.co.uk/forums
I've got the same problem with my Trinity on swedish 3.
I just called their tech support, and according to them it should be working just fine...
I've had a call logged with Three for weeks now, and to be frank, their Indian call centre makes a chocolate teapot in the middle of a Sahara desert look like a positively sensible idea.
They keep coming back saying that they can’t help, because the TYTN II isn’t a “3G” phone (meaning a THREE BRANDED PHONE) (they don’t seem to understand the difference between “Three” and “3G”)
So, as a first off, (as this is the only reproducible easy error I’ve found so far), can I ask you to try going to www.zdnet.co.uk and see if you get a web page or and error. If you get the same error as me, which is “Request Error (Invalid Request)” then it will give me a bit more evidence to go and beat them up over again as H3G are ADAMANT that they do not block ports and don‘t monitor traffic, however, I believe they have a bluecoat proxy server monitoring everything, and they are notoriously easy to stuff up if you don’t know what you are doing with them.
Anyway, on to the Messenger problem…..
From my testing so far…….
Test 1
If you have even so much as a whiff of a Three SIM in the phone, it won’t connect to messenger over the Three Data connection OR over Active Sync.
If you connect it up over active sync or wireless with either the radio (i.e. phone) disabled, or without a Three SIM card, Messenger WILL connect using your alternative data connection (e.g. ADSL connection)
Conclusion - A Three SIM card some how stuff’s messenger (Seen a similar thread with a Vodafone SIM, but I don’t have one of those to test with).
Test 2
If you pop a T-Mobile or Orange SIM in the phone and perform the same tests, messenger is fine over either active sync, wireless or the Mobile operators data connection. Conclusion - This backups the previous conclusion that having a Three (H3G) SIM in there kills messenger.
(At this point, if anyone from marketing at T-Mobile or Orange is reading, if either of you will offer the same data mobile broadband data tariff (obviously in a working format) as Three on PAYG, we will ALL drop H3G quicker than that chocolate teapot will melt).
Test 3
Three are various custom versions of WindowsLive.cab knocking around and some of the earlier ones will actually connect (even with a Three SIM card installed) and actually work, however the Live Mail part then gets stuffed, as its not got all the features of the current Live, with the Push Mail, and the download options, but it does give a Conclusion that earlier Live messenger clients will connect.
The later ones (including Dutty’s ones) still fail to connect, so Dutty, if you are reading, and have any ideas, please feel free to chip in.
Test 4
MSN Mobile (NOT live version)
I found an earlier version of MSN Mobile, and this seems ok ish (i.e. messenger will connect, but again, you lose the nice push mail functionality)
Other Tests,
I’ve tried various combinations of various Radio and OS Rom’s and live.cab installs, without success.
Tests I’d like to try, but don’t have the hardware for
The one test I haven’t been able to try yet (and would like to) is seeing if messenger can be made to connect from a non Three device (i.e. my TYTN II, or your Hermes) whilst using a proper Three Connection.
i.e. Messenger on my TYTN II, going through Active Sync to a laptop, which in turn is connected to the Internet via a Three branded phone or USB Dongle. If That fails to connect, then it’s a fair conclusion that Three do in fact block ports, as the Dongle would be doing the connection. If it worked, then it would be fair to say that the actual SIM is causing the problem. Either Way, it would be really good solid evidence to go and get support to actually take notice.
Which would lead onto another Test, which is if there are any Three Users out there who it works, for, trying you SIM in either of our devices to prove if its some Three SIMS that are actually causing the problem.
(In techie speak, does anyone know if its possible from a SIM card to have a hosts file, or do port redirection ON THE SIM?)
I work up in London, so if by any chance, you are in that Area, please PM me, and maybe we can meet up to try and come up with ideas.
Hi gjbird999,
well i have done a few tests as suggested by you:
www.zdnet.co.uk returns "Request Erroe (invalid_request)"
WiFi ON/phone function OFF/3UK sim in - MSN messenger fails to connect.
WiFi ON/3UK sim removed - MSN messenger connects successfully!
WiFi ON/phone function OFF/3UK sim back in - MSN messenger connects successfully!
WiFi off/phone function ON/3UK sim in - MSN messenger fails to connect.
i guess this kinda proves that 3UK is blocking the ports either by mistake or deliberately the thing is MSN Live can connect to my hotmail mailbox ok to check email etc, just won't connect to MSN messenger.
I have tried calling the 3UK customer service for some other problems before and lets just say that it was amuzing enough to try get them to understand the problem let alone sorting it....
i hope you can get somewhere with them! keep us posted please!
In a sweidish TyTn II forum we are alot of people that gets the error msg There is a problem with the server. Please try again later..
Its been like this for 3-4 weeks..
I have Tre and its still not working
I have a Swedish Tele2 business telephone subscription and i can connect to MSN Live without any problems. However I got a nag about 30 days trial when starting MSN Live the first time, isn't MSN Live for free?
Edit: Tele2 is the part of Comviq used mainly by business users...
I get the same message on 3UK, strange that a sim cardstops you from using MSN when your connected via wifi!
southeastblue said:
I get the same message on 3UK, strange that a sim cardstops you from using MSN when your connected via wifi!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
well i am not entirely sure about this because I did managed to connect after reinstalling the sim with the phone boot up without the phone function on, but if i just switch the phone function off then try connect with WiFi without rebooting the phone, it won't connect
using WiFi is not so much use for me because if i can access wifi, it would probably means i am at home already! I guess i can always use the webmsn but that kinda sucks...
Three tech support is on hold, and I'm back to M$ basing at the moment. But I'll try to get into the local 3 store and see what zdnet does on their "open access" 3g Cards that are totally unresticted
hiya, just wanted to post up as im in the exact same boat, 3uk contract using my own htc hermes. having the exact same problems with live as has been described here. so good luck ! if you want any help with anything i'll be happy to help
same problem in italy!!
Ive got live installed on schaps rom -
It seems MICROSOFT now want to charge me for using it - I keep getting a message saying I can use for 30 days trial period and then will have to BUY a pass to keep going.
Cmon ms Btards whats going on.
Anyone else getting this.
will think twice when upgrade time comes if it isnt free
Jon
After first emailing me back saying there were no problems, and was all my fault for not setting up the phone properly M$$$$$$$ admit there MIGHT be a problem their end (or at least with their crappy software)
Thank you for writing back to Windows Live Mobile Technical Support. This is Sheila and I understand that you are still unable to connect your HTC TyTn II device to Windows Live Messenger. I am sorry for the frustration and inconvenience.
****USERNAME****, this issue you have with Windows Live Messenger has been identified by the product team as high-priority and we want to assure you that we are working seriously on a fix for this problem. Due to the complexity of this matter we currently project weeks of testing for our engineers to resolve this issue. We understand the importance of this and we are doing everything within our means to correct the situation.
We cannot commit to a specific timeframe as to when the fix will be released. Please do bear with us regarding this matter and thank you very much for the patience you have shown. You may check with Windows Live Mobile from time to time for updates.
We appreciate your continued support as we strive to provide you with the highest quality service available. Thank you for using Windows Live Mobile.
Sincerely,
Sheila
Windows Live Mobile Technical Support
I'm also on 3UK. I was using windows live messenger fine on my E65 (not the crappy version they give you) up until about a month ago. and since switching to my hermes, I also haven't been able to use msn messenger.
i suspect its all down to 3UK.
i only say this because on my E65, no updates were installed, it just one day stopped working
just want to make an update, my SPV M3100 on 3UK network is now able to connect to MSN again, I haven't changed any settings on the phone at all, so i guess it is either 3UK sorted out their porting issues or MS did... just glad it is working again!!
As is mine

Tmobile claims no tethering? Mine works, with questions.

I had the orig Dash, and have had the 3g for several months now. To explain my issue and pose questions I must give brief history...
With my original Dash I could, as tmobile advertised use it tethered. Everthing worked fine except for my company Cisco VPN client. The utility would connect but no web pages would work. Upon calling support I worked with a guy who "fixed it" and 6 hours later it all worked. Something about how the Cisco VPN could detect dynamic IP's and he needed to provision a static one.
Fast forward and I got the 3G version. Tethering worked fine (even though not listed as a function) but the same VPN issue occured. I made several LONG calls to tmobile (their support was clueless) unitl I got them to give me to the same dept I had spoke with before, the modem team in Seattle. The tech informed me and read direct from tmo documents that tethering did not work, was not supported period. When I explained that it worked fine, they said maybe for a while but not for long. In asking what the prev tech had done to get my last phone to work with VPN, there were no notes and the tech said that it must have been a non-tmobile supported hack.....
Consequently when I swap in my sim to the old phone I can hit the VPN just fine.
A few hours later I get text messages from tmobile with the following message:
<sispWJ9fQmdGCQ3FF4N:1:1>https://snapinprod.msg.eng.t-mobile.com/;764;15033171774;IcKxmDmVuMy6OuNNip8DSb8hwhHX/6lR
I opened it on a computer and nothing comes up. I have a feeling that this might disable my tethering ability?
Here are my questions:
1. How will Tmobile disable this function? Can they push out code? Hide in an update? Is their a reversal for this?
2. Any ideas on what they did or what I can do to allow me to use my VPN?

IMAP stops syncing intermittently

Greetings. I am a new user to XDA but a longtime reader and geek who uses and is well familiar with multiple desktop and mobile OS's. I say this because the problem I am writing about is possibly the most confusing I have ever faced. In fact, if it wasn’t happening to me personally I would swear it was impossible, so please read on. I would be grateful for any – any – ideas. I will attempt to describe the problem and my troubleshooting steps as clearly and concisely as possible – but it’s a weird problem so needs some discussion.
PRECIS: Samsung Galaxy S II intermittently loses ability to connect to and sync with IMAP servers, BUT ONLY intermittently and ONLY on one particular mobile network. Much testing has been performed as detailed in this post.
HARDWARE / OS: Galaxy S II originally purchased on contract from Three UK, unlocked, and currently running Android 2.3.4, debranded to XXKG5 firmware and generic CSC XEU.
SIMs USED: Roshan (Afghanistan) pay-as-you-go and AT&T (USA) contract with unlimited international data.
SYNOPSIS: I have good data connectivity (slow EDGE, but generally reliable) from the local Afghan provider Roshan using my PAYG SIM. I am able to set up both of my IMAP accounts, have them log in, sync, send mail, etc, but after an indeterminate amount of time, routinely lose the ability to connect at all. However, all other data services and syncing continue to work fine (web browsing, Gmail, calendar, contacts etc) – only IMAP connectivity is broken. No errors appear, but mail just stops coming. Once this has occurred, the only thing that seems to correct the problem is time – it will eventually start working again, but is by no means reliable. Changing how often the accounts check for new mail has no effect. A change to Wi-Fi restores connectivity to the IMAP servers immediately, but then the problem returns over the Roshan mobile network. Yet, I can swap in my AT&T SIM and all works fine immediately, reliably, and never displays the problem. The IMAP connectivity issue exists only with my Roshan PAYG SIM, and only after some amount of time.
HARDWARE TROUBLESHOOTING: The phone and IMAP have worked fine on multiple networks in multiple countries. In the UK, on 3UK and Orange. In the UAE, on Etisalat and du – all with good HSDPA connections. In Afghanistan, the AT&T SIM connects usually to Etisalat but other networks as well, all with EDGE data where available. (Unfortunately for scientific testing, AT&T does not allow connection to Roshan.) And also in Afghanistan, my PAYG Roshan SIM works fine with everything EXCEPT the IMAP problem. Altogether, it seems the GS2 itself works as advertised.
MOBILE NETWORK (ROSHAN) TROUBLESHOOTING: The exact same PAYG Roshan SIM which causes the problem in the GS2 allows a reliably-syncing connection (and servers automatically detected, BTW) over the same mobile network to the same servers using my old iPhone 3G running iOS 4.2.1. Likewise, my boss has perfect service to these servers using this same network with his Roshan PAYG SIM in my old Nexus One on Android 2.3.4. And, my GS2 does fine on this network for all except IMAP.
ANDROID OS TROUBLESHOOTING: In an effort to troubleshoot a potential glitch in the OS, I have flashed multiple versions. The Roshan/IMAP problem exists on both the 3UK-branded H3GKF4 2.3.3 as well as generic XXKG5 2.3.4. And again, a Nexus One running 2.3.4 on the Roshan network does fine also – incidentally also in my office, so at least theoretically connected to the same cell path.
EMAIL CLIENT TROUBLESHOOTING: In an effort to isolate a fault with the Samsung email client, I purchased and installed Enhanced Email, with both 2.3.3 and 2.3.4 installed. Same results: fine on Wi-Fi, fine with AT&T, unreliable in both clients with Roshan PAYG SIM.
(LACK OF) CONCLUSION: Can it be possible that I have uncovered a ridiculously obscure bug? How can just one data service type (IMAP) be affected on just one network (Roshan) yet all other services are fine, and the IMAP problem does not exist with other SIM’s and/or networks? Is there anything something like a traceroute I could run to see what’s happening to my IMAP requests?
If you’re still reading, thanks for staying with me this far. I’m completely baffled, and frankly, more than a little frustrated that what is meant to be the best smartphone in the world can't reliably get my mail on the network I need it to, while a tired old iPhone and Nexus do so all day long. Any ideas?
Kind regards,
Adam
UPDATE: Did nothing, started working
All --
For the past two workdays, IMAP email has arrived in both the Samsung Email client (set to check every 5 minutes) and Enhanced Email (set to check every 10) on the Roshan mobile network. I have done absolutely nothing to cause this to happen.
Of course I am very pleased all is working as advertised, but the episode has still somewhat tarnished my previously stellar opinion of this phone and diminished my trust in it to a degree. Regardless, I'm glad. If the problem resurfaces, I will repost here.
I suspect the reader will agree that "it just started working" isn't a very satisfying fix, so if someone else experiences a similar issue with IMAP and/or knows more about how it works, I would really like to learn. Feel free to drop me a line on <<[myxdausername] at gmail dot com>>.
Kind regards,
Adam

Categories

Resources