Related
hi,
im new here and don't own an xda ii yet. a friend of mine will purchase one for me from O2 UK and have it unlocked so that i can use it at home (philippines). the question is - will there be any problems with this in terms of OS/ROM, software or usage.
what will be the advantages if i'll purchase one which is sim-free - say from singapore.
thanks
No, there will be no problem at all with upgrades.
Just buy the cheapest you can find.
All the other info you need to unlock, do ROM upgrades etc, you can find on this forum.
Grtz,
Jos
thanks jos.
i guess i'll post some more questions once i got the unit.
Thanks
Using search and such I've found lots of advice on different places to buy from, but I'm looking for some more general advice as it pertains to those of us that have to import to the United States.
1. As a US resident are there any hassles I should expect in ordering from Europe?
2. What is that VAT thing, and does it affect me? I've noticed that prices often state two amounts, one with and one without VAT.
3. I've seen people discuss getting unlocked versions, pay-as-you-go versions, contract versions and cancelling, etc. What options are available to those of us in the US? Do we have to buy an unlocked, contractless phone? Or is one of those other options involving buying a SIM, or cancelling a contract available?
4. Related to #3, I've seen mention of paying extra money to unlock the phone at some website. Will we have to do that even if we buy an "Unlocked" phone?
5. As far as warranties go, are we better off buying from a US based website or does that not matter?
6. Will our current GSM sim cards fit/work? (Yes, yes, I'm pretty much a newbie to GSM phones)
7. What's the meaning of life, the universe, and everything anyhow?
Thanks so much in advance for helping out someone new to the idea of importing a really cool phone! I've been debating between the iPhone and the Touch HD to replace my HTC BlueAngel, and I think the Touch HD is finally winning out!
sschrupp said:
Using search and such I've found lots of advice on different places to buy from, but I'm looking for some more general advice as it pertains to those of us that have to import to the United States.
1. As a US resident are there any hassles I should expect in ordering from Europe?
2. What is that VAT thing, and does it affect me? I've noticed that prices often state two amounts, one with and one without VAT.
3. I've seen people discuss getting unlocked versions, pay-as-you-go versions, contract versions and cancelling, etc. What options are available to those of us in the US? Do we have to buy an unlocked, contractless phone? Or is one of those other options involving buying a SIM, or cancelling a contract available?
4. Related to #3, I've seen mention of paying extra money to unlock the phone at some website. Will we have to do that even if we buy an "Unlocked" phone?
5. As far as warranties go, are we better off buying from a US based website or does that not matter?
6. Will our current GSM sim cards fit/work? (Yes, yes, I'm pretty much a newbie to GSM phones)
7. What's the meaning of life, the universe, and everything anyhow?
Thanks so much in advance for helping out someone new to the idea of importing a really cool phone! I've been debating between the iPhone and the Touch HD to replace my HTC BlueAngel, and I think the Touch HD is finally winning out!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just Google HTC Touch HD. You will find several US based companies selling the phone. Pick a reliable company. Anyone with a price of $300-$400 is probably a scam and want payment by western Union.
Most companies will offer a warranty program. The HTC warranty for the HD is not honored in US as far as I know, since it isn't released here. Any SIM card will work in an unlocked phone. No need for a contract is your already have one and can use
the SIM card.
I am curious about the VAT as well. No idea what that means.
VAT is a value added tax in Europe... If your located in the USA and order from Europe, then there is no VAT charge.
Greetings to you all.
THis is my first post here, and I would appreciate any help.
I am considering buying an HTC touch HD from eBay. I found that the cheapest ones are those listed in eBay.co.uk, and locked to Orange UK. However, the price difference compared to the phones which are factory unlocked made me think whether there is something wrong with the Orange UK phones.
To be specific, I have two questions:
1- Do Orange UK HTC-HD phones have different specs compared to other HTC-HD phones?
2- Are Orange UK HTC-HD phones guaranteed to be unlockable? If yes, could they be re-locked again after a ROM upgrade? will they work (after unlocking) on all GSM networks worldwide?
Again, any help is greatly appreciated.
Thanks a lot in advance.
To Orange or not to Orange!
eng_asa said:
Greetings to you all.
THis is my first post here, and I would appreciate any help.
I am considering buying an HTC touch HD from eBay. I found that the cheapest ones are those listed in eBay.co.uk, and locked to Orange UK. However, the price difference compared to the phones which are factory unlocked made me think whether there is something wrong with the Orange UK phones.
To be specific, I have two questions:
1- Is the Orange UK HTC-HD phones have different specs compared to other HTC-HD phones?
2- Are Orange UK HTC-HD phones guaranteed to be unlockable? If yes, could they be re-locked again after a ROM upgrade? will they work (after unlocking) on all GSM networks worldwide?
Again, any help is greatly appreciated.
Thanks a lot in advance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1- I believe the Orange hardware specs are exactly the same. It's just the ROM/software that they play with.
2- Every phone should be SIM unlockable. I have seen many reports in this forum that they can be. You can easily replace an Orangised ROM with a cooked one or WWE stock ROM to remove any unwanted Orange stuff.... all you'll be left with is the little orange logo on the back. There is no need to SIM unlock the phone to upgrade the ROM. Check out the HSPL / USPL threads to see what must be done and how easy it is to ROM upgrade.
I have an Orange HD (still locked) running the non Orange HK 1.19 ROM
I have a Orange handset, i use orange so im not bothered about simunlock, ive removed the orange software and put Duttys 1.7 on at moment.
i believe there are a few vendors that can provide guaranteed (or your money back) unlock codes for around 18euros
I've had an Orange Touch HD for almost two weeks now and it seems fine. I flashed it with Duttys ROM and that improved things like RAM usage and stuff, but added its own little annoyances.
Go with the Orange, you wont regret it!!
I have an orange sim locked one... but as I am an orange customer I am happy.
Dutty's v1.7 rom is the current flavour.
Thank you all for your quick response. this will definitely help me out ...
One last question before I actually make a bid: Has anyone unlocked his/her Orange Touch-HD phone and used it on a different network outside UK?
Bought a HD ORANGE (UK) on ebay, unlocked it with code (htccode) and now im usin it in slovenia
Thank you so much
I will start bidding.. will let you know if anything went wrong!
I bought an Orange one from eBay a few weeks ago. Got it for £370 with a Best Offer. I had previously won another one which was described as 'brand new in box' but had a scratched screen and obvious signs of use!
Make sure you get what you payed for!! I had to do a PayPal dispute as this person was adamant they hadn't used it... despite the pouch being fluffy, the earphones having the furry covers on, and various scratches! Needless to say, they had it back on eBay as BNIB the next day again!
Anyway - my second one arrived still with the original screen warning protector, and I got a best offer on the unlock code on eBay for £14. The code came through within a few hours, and I typed it in twice and it worked perfectly. I then updated the ROM to Dutty's - as the Orange one was a bit naff - and stuck in my O2 SIM card! As with Dutty's ROMs on my old Diamond, it instantly knew it was an O2 SIM I'd put in, and asked me if I wanted to install the settings - which I did. A simple soft reset and my WAP / MMS settings etc were all sorted!
Orange phones are definately the cheapest, as people are taking them as a free upgrade and selling them on - because they're probably the phone thats worth the most at the moment!! The only downer is the naff Orange logo on the back cover which won't come off no matter what I scrubb it with! Their old ones wiped clean with some label remover or paint stripper
Can someone please take a picture of the Orange logo on the back? How big and gawdy is it?
i dont really like the orange logo on this one either, since the back cover is the same microsatin finish as the touch dual i had, its not gonna be possible to remove it.
its not very big, but a sudden orange square kind of spoils the "blackness" of the device.
im assuming there is no free unlock solution yet....
anyone know the cheapest place to get it unlocked? if its on ebay, could you give a link to the seller? im a bit cautious cos i've had some dodgy ones in the past thanks!
Orange HD Upgrade
I got my HD free as an Orange upgrade through mobiles.co.uk this week. Was very happy to find that Orange had not been let near this phone. Haven't even got the silly logo on the back and it's unlocked. I think they get them direct from HTC.
ModernMuseum said:
Can someone please take a picture of the Orange logo on the back? How big and gawdy is it?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's 1cm square or 1 square cm!
Damn....looks like I'll be looking for an un-branded phone then....
cant u just buy a new back cover off ebay and get rid of the logo that way?
My orange logo is less than 7mm squared!
I bought a replacement battery cover from eBay about a week ago, and it just arrived the other day. It was an 'original htc HD cover' from Hong Kong for £15.
It certainly looks original, and all the stuff inside is the same - but its missing the volume buttons, the power button, and the speaker grill bit. It also comes with the camera cover as a seperate bit you need to glue on!
A waste of £15 if you ask me - unless I can send it back to Hong Kong (which will probably cost me heaps anyway!!)
I got a fairly good deal with mine on Orange (£20 /month 500min, 100txt 3 magic numbers and phone for £95) so i dont see anything wrong with buying from orange. The phone works fine and specs are the same.
I have a Orange HTC HD as well...not anymore, new ROM(original HTC) and new HTC battery cover from expansys.com. Works fine...I'm on O2, I hate Orange very much gf using orange, poor customer service and poor reception, I give them a F with a - as a Mobile Network Provider.
My baby HD works and looks great after I got it back to the original HTC look thanks to the guys at xda-developers.com
See pic of Orange logo on the back of the phone, you also get a I must admit nice Orange splash screen which I removed when installed my new original HTC ROM678
Thanks for the photo. I'd rather do without the orange logo if I had a choice.
I'm currently looking for one, but all the UK sellers require a verified UK paypal address, which I don't have. I have a UK Aramex address, but of course it's not verified since I'm abroad.
Just buy the battery cover HTC original after you buy your phone. I think I payed for mine £23. Looksa good, from HTC or expansys.com.
GL!!
I have been looking for a customized htc magic in black. I know i could get one from rogers on ebay, but it comes preloded with some rogers applications. Orange Switzerland seems to be selling one that is totally unbranded. Does anyone know where i can find one online.
Edit: I already checked ebay and they didn't have any.
Bought mine in Mobilezone (Zürich): unbranded Black HTC. They bundle it with any existing contract of yours. However, if you buy a Rogers via eBay you can flash it to whatever you like... so why worry? Maybe I didn't get the point.
Regards,
Frank
Thanks for the website, but i don' quite understand what you mean by:
feicher said:
They bundle it with any existing contract of yours.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They sell the devices and add the contract. If you subsrcibed to orange and are eligible (from orange) for a new device within your contract, you will get a discount on the branded device.
I have a black boxed (new/unused) vodafone htc magic for sale. Bought from Germany. Also considering selling mine (also black) to get the samsung i7500 so maybe also a used one for sale! PM me if interested
kkhalil76 said:
I have a black boxed (new/unused) vodafone htc magic for sale. Bought from Germany. Also considering selling mine (also black) to get the samsung i7500 so maybe also a used one for sale! PM me if interested
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thanks but i am looking for an unbranded model without vodaphone.
@feicher
i am living in the us and i am looking for a way to buy an unlocked model from overseas
toppreise.ch
Check here:
http://www.toppreise.ch/prod_170169.html
I've got an HTC Magic from Orange
Look here:
http://www.digitec.ch/ProdukteDetails2.aspx?Reiter=Bilder&Artikel=167702
And here:
http://www.digitec.ch/ProdukteDetails2.aspx?Reiter=Bilder&Artikel=162828
Both unbranded, the first one the Orange Version. But look out. The lady at the callcenter told me that they're selling both 288MB and 192MB versions.
And yes, it is, totally unbranded. Just HTC Stuff on it.
@Isilmalith
i looked at the site, and it is exactly what i am looking for. However, it is a tad too expensive. i was looking for one at about 450 CHF.
Do you know where i can find this phone locked but without a contract?
I have means of unlocking it myself.
Digitec is the cheapest source for a Phone without contract, there is no way to get a HTC Magic for 450.-, unless you find some at ebay or www.ricardo.ch (which is much more popular in switzerland).
Are you from switzerland?
no i am not in switzerland, in the US and it is not on ebay
I am in the same boat. I want a Magic that can be rooted and work in the US on TMOBILE. If anyone has one for sale or know where I can find one, let me know.
I am selling mine on ebay if you are intrested
Ebay link HTC HD2 Unlocked, brand new
This is not spam, I know tmobile has a shortage , i bought the phone tested it and decided to sell it