Database Users

does anyone know the sprint hero price without contract?

I'm looking to upgrade from my dream to the hero.
The phone from Sprint is 180 w/ contract.
I want to get the phone and unlock it.
Does anyone know how much the phone Withought the contract is?
Thanks in advance

Sprint is a CDMA network. It doesn't use SIM card, and the user data is stored on the phone. You cannot use it on other networks.
So getting it without contract is just... without contract. You need to be on Sprint's network for it to work.

well looks like im switching to sprint lol
sorry for my ignorance

tsekh501 said:
Sprint is a CDMA network. It doesn't use SIM card, and the user data is stored on the phone. You cannot use it on other networks.
So getting it without contract is just... without contract. You need to be on Sprint's network for it to work.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ummmm.... JUst cause it's a CDMA network, doesn't limit it to Sprint. It can be unlocked & flased to Metro PCS, US Cellular, Page Plus, Virgin, Verizion and numerous other local or regional CDMA networks. Just need to have the know-how.

$599
Bestbuy`s going to charge $599 to buy it out right. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9509784&type=product&id=1218120547637

JBachman said:
Ummmm.... JUst cause it's a CDMA network, doesn't limit it to Sprint. It can be unlocked & flased to Metro PCS, US Cellular, Page Plus, Virgin, Verizion and numerous other local or regional CDMA networks. Just need to have the know-how.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Theoretically you can swap the radio chip inside and add a sim card slot too add GSM support too. I don't want to waste time arguing with you on that, but if you do know how to unlock a Sprint CDMA phone to use on Verizon yourself, congrats, you can make big bucks with that knowledge.
BTW, to those who are considering getting onto Sprint for the Hero, note that Sprint's network cannot do voice and data simultaneously, so if you are downloading stuff, you won't be able to receive. It's like the GPRS problem on GSM network, it's just that current Sprint network faces that problem even on 3G.

tsekh501 said:
Theoretically you can swap the radio chip inside and add a sim card slot too add GSM support too. I don't want to waste time arguing with you on that, but if you do know how to unlock a Sprint CDMA phone to use on Verizon yourself, congrats, you can make big bucks with that knowledge.
BTW, to those who are considering getting onto Sprint for the Hero, note that Sprint's network cannot do voice and data simultaneously, so if you are downloading stuff, you won't be able to receive. It's like the GPRS problem on GSM network, it's just that current Sprint network faces that problem even on 3G.
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Click to collapse
that's not true, if you are downloading something and someone calls the download stops and the call is recieved. atleast that is how it has worked with my touch pro, vogue, and titan.

pknyo said:
Bestbuy`s going to charge $599 to buy it out right. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9509784&type=product&id=1218120547637
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yah I'm just going to add a line, cancel my current line with the Palm Pre and good enough. Gotta love Google Voice.
Figure I can maybe sell my Pre for the cost of the ETF. Although there isn't much demand for them for obvious reasons.

JBachman said:
Ummmm.... JUst cause it's a CDMA network, doesn't limit it to Sprint. It can be unlocked & flased to Metro PCS, US Cellular, Page Plus, Virgin, Verizion and numerous other local or regional CDMA networks. Just need to have the know-how.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As I understand, CDMA networks need to register the ESN of your device to their network, but most CDMA networks (at least Sprint and Verizon) no longer allow the registration of ESNs that were originally registered to other networks. Apparently Verizon used to allow 3rd party ESNs, but no longer do this, but I cannot find any "official" confirmation of this.
i.e. if you have a Sprint phone, it will have a Sprint ESN and Verizon would refuse to add this to their database.
I believe there are methods to clone another ESN onto a new phone, but I've no idea how "legal" this is.
Regards,
Dave

foxmeister said:
As I understand, CDMA networks need to register the ESN of your device to their network, but most CDMA networks (at least Sprint and Verizon) no longer allow the registration of ESNs that were originally registered to other networks. Apparently Verizon used to allow 3rd party ESNs, but no longer do this, but I cannot find any "official" confirmation of this.
i.e. if you have a Sprint phone, it will have a Sprint ESN and Verizon would refuse to add this to their database.
I believe there are methods to clone another ESN onto a new phone, but I've no idea how "legal" this is.
Regards,
Dave
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I never made mention of the legalities of the process.... I was just stating that it can be done. I do it for Metro phones all the time. I also "heard" it is possible to unlock unlimited data for smartphones on Metro as well.....

tsekh501 said:
BTW, to those who are considering getting onto Sprint for the Hero, note that Sprint's network cannot do voice and data simultaneously, so if you are downloading stuff, you won't be able to receive. It's like the GPRS problem on GSM network, it's just that current Sprint network faces that problem even on 3G.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
A lot of people don't care about that, so stop trying to pee on Sprint and claim it's raining. Geez... If i'm Youtube(ing) and a call comes in, fine, i take the call, finish the call and then continue what i was doing.

pknyo said:
Bestbuy`s going to charge $599 to buy it out right. http://www.bestbuy.com/site/olspage.jsp?skuId=9509784&type=product&id=1218120547637
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Click to collapse
This is BestBuy's modus operandi..which is charging more (lots more) than even Sprint's MSRP. So if one is considering buying at full price without contact, go to Sprint directly. The flip side is that they usually have better new/upgrade-contract prices than Sprint since BestBuy doesn't do mail-in-rebates, they make it instant.
Some folks on spintusers.com are claiming $429.99 Sprint full price.

LordLugard said:
This is BestBuy's modus operandi..which is charging more (lots more) than even Sprint's MSRP. So if one is considering buying at full price without contact, go to Sprint directly. The flip side is that they usually have better new/upgrade-contract prices than Sprint since BestBuy doesn't do mail-in-rebates, they make it instant.
Some folks on spintusers.com are claiming $429.99 Sprint full price.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, Sprint is charging $429.99 full retail. At least according to their own website.
http://www.sprint.com/hero (read the fine print)
And why the F is Best Buy charging so damn much??!! That is just rediculous! Doesn't best buy do price matching?? Couldn't I go into a store and say hey, sprint is only charging 429.99, hook me up?

.........$429.99.........

Free, with a catch
(I know this is a shameless plug, however)
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- We will continue to add content to the section and looking for any developer feedback on this
Announced Extensive Plans to Showcase Android at our upcoming Sprint Developer Conference:
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being held the evening of Oct 26. Mark Murphy of CommonsWare will
lead the Android platform training session. Murphy has published three guides on Android development and writes the “Building 'Droids” column for AndroidGuys and the “Android Angle” column for NetworkWorld.
3: Google will be presenting at the Sprint Developer Conference, Wed Oct 28 from 8:30am - 11:00am. Topics covered will incude the Android Marketplace as well as Android Technical SMEs discussing development best practices.
We look forward to seeing you all at the conference, and look for any feedback on developing on the Sprint Android devices

ATT wants to charge me for 3G now

This morning I got a SMS from AT&T (USA) saying that they have identified my device as a "smartphone" and they will now be charging me $30 per month for data. (I checked and have used about 400MB of data in the last month)
(previously I was on a $10 data unlimited + $5 (forced messaging) plan (EDGE).
When I called to ask, they said that the only way I can use the EDGE data unlimited plan was if I went back to my SE w810 phone. (Note that it has a full browser and IM capability too)
I'm shocked how they can force me to pay more by using their ignorance of data technology (diff between EDGE and 3G) as an excuse.
Some questions for the community:
1) has this happened to you and what did you do ?
2) which are the other providers that provide EDGE? (the ATT rep stated as a matter of fact that t-mo DOES NOT have a EDGE-only plan, but I have read that t-mo does have it)
3) do you think I should return my phone and wait for the ATT version?
4) which 3G band is more common around the world? (UMTS Band 1/4/8 2100/AWS/900 ) or the bands on the upcoming ATT N1 ?
ps: I'm thinking of calling them back and saying that my phone is not a smartphone. (coz its a superphone )

Switch your phone to "use only 2g networks" (under settings>wireless networks) and tell them that they are wrong and your phone is incapable of 3g connectivity. I'm on tmo and I don't think they have a 2g (edge) only plan...

so....
you have a nexus that gets at&t 3g? how is that possible?

britoso said:
This morning I got a SMS from AT&T (USA) saying that they have identified my device as a "smartphone" and they will now be charging me $30 per month for data. (I checked and have used about 400MB of data in the last month)
(previously I was on a $10 data unlimited + $5 (forced messaging) plan (EDGE).
When I called to ask, they said that the only way I can use the EDGE data unlimited plan was if I went back to my SE w810 phone. (Note that it has a full browser and IM capability too)
I'm shocked how they can force me to pay more by using their ignorance of data technology (diff between EDGE and 3G) as an excuse.
Some questions for the community:
1) has this happened to you and what did you do ?
2) which are the other providers that provide EDGE? (the ATT rep stated as a matter of fact that t-mo DOES NOT have a EDGE-only plan, but I have read that t-mo does have it)
3) do you think I should return my phone and wait for the ATT version?
4) which 3G band is more common around the world? (UMTS Band 1/4/8 2100/AWS/900 ) or the bands on the upcoming ATT N1 ?
ps: I'm thinking of calling them back and saying that my phone is not a smartphone. (coz its a superphone )
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They are not "using their ignorance of data technology as an excuse". I am sure that AT&T knows more about the technology behind their service than you or I. They are not using any "excuses" they are going by policy. If you have a smart phone on their network they require you to have a data plan. It is really in your best interest to pay for the unlimited plan. It prevents you from having insanely large bills. And if you can afford to by the Nexus One, you can afford the $30 plan. I had to pay for the data plan when I had my 8525 on AT&T and they didn't even have 3G in my area at the time.

thewayne01 said:
If you have a smart phone on their network they require you to have a data plan.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You're missing the point. THEY get to decide what is a "smartphone". Even though there are two levels of service (EDGE and 3G), they force you into paying for 3G even if your phone does not support it.
An analogy is a gas station forcing you to fill premium gas even though your car runs fine on regular. The gas station's excuse is that you have a shiny car so as per their policy you can only fill up on premium.

britoso said:
You're missing the point. THEY get to decide what is a "smartphone". Even though there are two levels of service (EDGE and 3G), they force you into paying for 3G even if your phone does not support it.
An analogy is a gas station forcing you to fill premium gas even though your car runs fine on regular. The gas station's excuse is that you have a shiny car so as per their policy you can only fill up on premium.
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Click to collapse
LOL at the analogy. How about drop the bucket of loss that is AT&T and go with TMobile????

j2eubank said:
LOL at the analogy. How about drop the bucket of loss that is AT&T and go with TMobile????
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i second this lmao

b1337 said:
you have a nexus that gets at&t 3g? how is that possible?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this .

Are you on contract? If you are tell them to go eat a ****, or free you from your contract because they are changing the terms on you.
If you're not on contract, then well, it's really up to them to change terms as they see fit, and they get to decide how you use their network.

I'm not in contract, been with them (Cingular) since 2003.
What are my options for voice+EDGE only.
I will surely miss my rollover minutes.

I could be wrong, but I don't think data plans are ever Edge or 3G specific. You are paying for data based on smartphone usage expectations. They think smartphone users will use a larger bandwidth than someone who uses a feature phone regardless of what the phones 3g/edge capabilities are.
If you are interested in checking out tmobile, you would be suited perfectly do to one of their even more plus plans (no contract, no subsidy) which range from $59.99 for 500 min with unlimited data/text (or ~$55 for no text) up to $79.99 for unlimited everything...
Depending on where you live you may only get edge, or GPRS so make sure to check the coverage maps etc...
Edit: IIRC DFW is supposed to well covered by tmo...

rossiscatch said:
You are paying for data based on smartphone usage expectations.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So browsing on EDGE on my old sony w810i uses less bandwidth than browsing the same websites on my N1 ?
There is NO cap on the EDGE-only "data unlimited" data plan.
In the past they have forced people who used more than 2GB/month to switch. I'm not even close to that number. All they have right now is that i'm on a phone they classify as a "smartphone".
So those rates are for t-mo 3G correct ?

Damn that sucks that they're forcing you to upgrade >.< unfortunately, it's the same with t-mobile so it's up to you if you want to switch carriers
I had the "total internet add-on" data plan with t-mo with my dash, i only got edge on it though since the phone didnt support 3g. When i got my N1 i had 3g working for about 2 weeks just fine but one day it stopped working altogether, so i called them up and they said the same thing, "We have detected that you are using an android smartphone so you'll have to upgrade to the android internet plan"
Now i'm paying $25/month.
That's not too much of a difference than ATT's $30 but if you switch you'll actually be able to use 3g, and t-mobile's pretty cheap too so it shouldnt be too bad for you

britoso said:
So browsing on EDGE on my old sony w810i uses less bandwidth than browsing the same websites on my N1 ?
There is NO cap on the EDGE-only "data unlimited" data plan.
In the past they have forced people who used more than 2GB/month to switch. I'm not even close to that number. All they have right now is that i'm on a phone they classify as a "smartphone".
So those rates are for t-mo 3G correct ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup, T-mobile is essentially going for an "all or nothing" pricing structure.
Basically three options, X Minutes voice, text, data.
I hope they roll text and voice together soon.

britoso said:
So those rates are for t-mo 3G correct ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, the rates listed are for tmobile 3G (there is no EDGE plan on any carrier as far as I know), and you can take a closer look at tmobile.com. If those prices are good to you you should at least test tmobile out for a couple of weeks... 3G is definitely much more fun on the nexus than edge, and if you are going to be paying $30 a month more on At&t anyway you have nothing to lose. Also, you wouldn't be signing a contract, so you'd be in about the same position as you are now but with 3G capabilites.
With regards to data plans, I am not saying I agree with their logic; In fact, I think they should have 3G and Edge specific data plans. You would think AT&T would also welcome this to alleviate some of the 3G congestion for users who don't demand 3G speeds, or who's phones are not capable. I would even welcome a tiered package, for example, a 1GB hard cap for $10-15 or something.
Anyway, I think (total guess here) that they believe there is more use of push email, etc and apps that constantly update and grab data on phones like the iphone and nexus, so those are the capabilities I am referring to, not simply browsing the web.

There's no reason for them to have edge/3g data plans, that's not what they're charging you for. they charge more for smartphones because they use more bandwidth since they're able to load actual websites and do more than a basic cellphone with mobile web browsing. They may have a poor way of explaining the situation if they're saying it's because you've accessed their 3g networks (which as somebody has already pointed out is impossible with an N1), but it's simply because a smartphone accesses the data network more than a basic cellphone.

Why do you want EDGE only? Thing is the unlimited voice plans on tmobile are so cheap you don't need roll over. I used to be on AT&T as well and always felt more like I was the one doing the rolling over.

j2eubank said:
Why do you want EDGE only? Thing is the unlimited voice plans on tmobile are so cheap you don't need roll over. I used to be on AT&T as well and always felt more like I was the one doing the rolling over.
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Click to collapse
I dont need more than EDGE. (gmail, gvoice, IM, occassional web lookup. thats all I use the web on my phone for)

original iphone (2g) users when they acquire a 3g or 3gs iphone receive emails and texts from att letting them know they have a 3g capable device (even if they have 3g disabled on the phone) and need to upgrade their plan to reflect this.
My girlfriend broke her 2g and adopted my iphone 3g when I moved to the n1. About a week after the migration, texts and emails started rolling in from ATT telling her to upgrade to a 3g data plan. I called ATT and they were less than friendly about the entire thing. I explained why she was on a 3g device and that if they checked their records, she was not using it. After a manager began to talk down to me I let them know she was in contract for the services offered for the iphone 2g and if they were adamant about the forced upgrade, they were free to let her out of her contract at not additional cost...so far the emails and texts have stopped. Keep in mind that she has 3g turned off on her phone so it's not like she is attempting to use a service that was not in her original plan.
It seems to me that they do actually offer an edge/2g only data plan if they are this persnickety regarding edge vs. 3g data usage.
...seriously lame if you ask me.

If the rumors about an upcoming AT&T N1 are true, then AT&T is probably gearing up to be able to detect the 3G N1's on their system and force them to upgrade. That would at least make some sense, even though I think they should be gearing more off of amount of data rather than type of data.
So, if they are gearing up for that - perhaps the current N1's are coming up in their system as "rogue 3G smartphones" even though these particular N1's are not accessing their 3G? They probably use IMEI numbers so it would boil down to whether HTC uses separate ranges for the different forms of the N1 or not - or whether they report the ranges with such fine granularity to the carriers.
My take on the "smartphone data" plan distinctions is that they really want to charge more for higher volumes of data, but any plan that includes a limit has such a bad public reaction these days that instead they make all of the plans "unlimited" and bank on how easy it is for the device to use the data to throttle the customers rather than a hard limit. In the end, the result is that they classify your device instead of your usage to appease the other customers and then you may pay in circumstances which seem unfair - all to save the "we don't like limits" crowd from rebelling...

Fooling T-mobiles data plan

I had a touch pro2 for a while and used the web connect data plan with it. I had full 3G and push email. When I transferred the SIM to my vibrant, I get redirected to a web2go page saying my phone is incompatible with this plan. How does Tmobile verify this?
Google search works, almost everything else doesn't. My touch pro2 is just as much as a smartphone as the vibrant under Tmo's eyes. So I think I wasn't supposed to have been able to use the data plan that I had with it. My TP2 was unlocked if it matters at all.

oldarney said:
I had a touch pro2 for a while and used the web connect data plan with it. I had full 3G and push email. When I transferred the SIM to my vibrant, I get redirected to a web2go page saying my phone is incompatible with this plan. How does Tmobile verify this?
Google search works, almost everything else doesn't. My touch pro2 is just as much as a smartphone as the vibrant under Tmo's eyes. So I think I wasn't supposed to have been able to use the data plan that I had with it. My TP2 was unlocked if it matters at all.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Tmo has a separate data plan (Which is basically the same as the other) for Android devices. My brother took his sim out of his Touch Pro 2 with 3g data plan and placed it into my G1 (after I got my Vibrant) and it didn't allow him to be able to use data on my G1. He had to call and they had to swap his data plan over to the Android plan.
Now on the flipside of that, my Fiance took her sim out of her myTouch 3g and placed it in his Touch Pro 2 and data worked perfectly. So it looks like the Android data plan trumps all data plans.

Android smartphones are not supported with their old Web Connect plans which are being phased out anyway. You may be able to get T-Mobile to give you a discount on the Android Data Plan given that you're an existing customer, but that's about it...

Awe.
Well thats no fun... I find browsing on the TP2's opera mini and Tethering on it to be just as enjoyable as my vibrant. I wonder how they figure out what you are using.
I was asking because I have a web only plan... I pay 40 dollars for unlimited data, period. I thought I was going to get away with it on android too.
I would have to pay 70 Dollhairs if I want internet on my android! because I would also need a talk plan. thats no fun.
I have been doing research and I've found speculation that T-mobile uses the IMEI number to tell whether your phone is android or not. I don't think this is true given the fact that Tmobiles site depends on user input rather than automatic detection to know what phone the person is using.

@Oldarney: I've got a T-Mo unlimited data plan for Android and I don't pay anywhere near $70 (USD). Not even close. Barely more than what I was paying for Blackberry service.
I should add that I've been with T-Mo forever and have a sweet, "loyal customer" voice rate. Maybe I'm getting a break of some kind on data too.
Edited after re-reading: Your $70 _includes_ the voice. Okay. I gotcha now. Never mind.

Tmobile is building there phones with special hardware so that it can detect when you're using an android phone on there network with the wrong plan. That's why your old plan wouldn't work. Its the same for blackberry phones/data plans
Sent from my SAMOLED Vibrant using XDA app

Op systems
Depending on the op system on the phone the company has to configure their end. So, if you have an android the account needs to be sync'd for that type of op system. If you have an winmo 6.5 then it has to be sync'd with that system by TMO and if you have rim (blackberry) you have be to sync'd with that. I know this from personal experience no biggie

oldarney said:
Well thats no fun... I find browsing on the TP2's opera mini and Tethering on it to be just as enjoyable as my vibrant. I wonder how they figure out what you are using.
I was asking because I have a web only plan... I pay 40 dollars for unlimited data, period. I thought I was going to get away with it on android too.
I would have to pay 70 Dollhairs if I want internet on my android! because I would also need a talk plan. thats no fun.
I have been doing research and I've found speculation that T-mobile uses the IMEI number to tell whether your phone is android or not. I don't think this is true given the fact that Tmobiles site depends on user input rather than automatic detection to know what phone the person is using.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It does use an auto detect. My fiance bought her Vibrant out of contract and when i checked our account online, both my line and hers showed the Vibrant as our default devices. So yes, it does update it through IMEI.

ELStiko said:
It does use an auto detect. My fiance bought her Vibrant out of contract and when i checked our account online, both my line and hers showed the Vibrant as our default devices. So yes, it does update it through IMEI.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I bought my phone out of contract as well & it didn't update. I'm thinking the rep at the store you bought it from must have updated it.

tjhart85 said:
I bought my phone out of contract as well & it didn't update. I'm thinking the rep at the store you bought it from must have updated it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
when did you check cause it can take up to a week to update the imei to the account. but that's how it works (getting the device's imei), insurance also bases coverage on the imei. some stores update the imei manually when you upgrade, but that's a waste of time because it will happen automatically.

creglenn said:
Tmobile is building there phones with special hardware so that it can detect when you're using an android phone on there network with the wrong plan. That's why your old plan wouldn't work. Its the same for blackberry phones/data plans
Sent from my SAMOLED Vibrant using XDA app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No they aren't. They are simply doing IMEI filtering - no help hardware used or needed.

Depending on the op system on the phone the company has to configure their end. So, if you have an android the account needs to be sync'd for that type of op system. If you have an winmo 6.5 then it has to be sync'd with that system by TMO and if you have rim (blackberry) you have be to sync'd with that. I know this from personal experience no biggie
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I think it is something along these lines, perhaps being oversimplified a bit. I believe it may have to do with how the OS on the phone makes the data connection with Android being more like a true "always on" connection (more akin to ethernet) and WinMo using a type of PPP or similar that is in effect "always on." The mobile operator has to have their back-end set up for this and there are probably different settings (IP addresses, connection types, etc.) built into ROMs for Android and WinMo. That being said, I really don't know if they track it by IMEI or not, but I imagine they certainly could.

kmdub said:
I think it is something along these lines, perhaps being oversimplified a bit. I believe it may have to do with how the OS on the phone makes the data connection with Android being more like a true "always on" connection (more akin to ethernet) and WinMo using a type of PPP or similar that is in effect "always on." The mobile operator has to have their back-end set up for this and there are probably different settings (IP addresses, connection types, etc.) built into ROMs for Android and WinMo. That being said, I really don't know if they track it by IMEI or not, but I imagine they certainly could.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
there are different internet packages for each phone os, not entirely sure what the technical differences are, though. and they do track by imei, i know that for sure (i used to work for tmob and my wife still does).

Dude, I work for tmobile! And the data stick is just data and SOC that its on it is just a data SOC but the vibrant requires an android data specific SOC. that's why you can't use that sim with the vibrant!
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

stafly17 said:
Dude, I work for tmobile! And the data stick is just data and SOC that its on it is just a data SOC but the vibrant requires an android data specific SOC. that's why you can't use that sim with the vibrant!
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was using the Rhodium ANdroid hack for windows mobile and The internet worked fine... maybe there is something to that. I gave up on it... I using the web interface to jump me to talk plan and then back to the a data plan, this time android.

they use the imei to check what phone you have. but for some reason, it's still showing me as a G1 so yay! i've had this phone for more than a couple months now i think.
also, i only pay 20 bucks per month for UNLIMITED data. i dont know why you're paying 40..... they offer a 30 dollar plan for regular users.... and i dont know where you got the $70 figure... that's just rediculous. i dont even pay that much for home internet.

At one time I had both a Vibrant and a Nexus One. I lost the Nexus while I had my sim in my Vibrant. I placed a claim with Asurion. They asked me to call T-mobile and find out what the last date the SIM card was in my Nexus One. Tmobile gave me a date that was exactly correct. I don't think I even placed a call that day with the Nexus.
So they know what phone your sim is in. Whether it is reporting IMEI number or Build Number or whatever. If they have a list of IMEI's in their system it is easy for them to know, IMEI filtering, like another poster stated.
IMEI numbers are unique and tied to each phone, not really a huge mystery.

IMEI is like the MAC address that PCs use

except that you can change your mac address while you can't change the IMEI address on the vibrant, and if you know how then let me know.
On another note I am really getting the hang of this swype thing.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

A lot of confusion
This is way easier than explained in here. Basically, data transfer has to follow a protocol. So, if the firmware/software does not contain say an android language based compiler, then the unit is unable to send or receive the check sum...or ... in other word it can not make sense of what it is reading. T Mobile does this for just really one basic reason, It make the data transfer smaller and more efficient, which, in turn, makes all the data on the system smaller and easier to manage. It is a function of saving cost and improving speed. This is kinda a standard ever since 3G
T Mobile runs slightly different protocol for the different op systems:
Win mobile
Android
Blackberry
I know this to be true as I have migrated from Black berry to win mobile to android and each time i had to call and they send a sync signal and then the phone is recognized and everything works correctly. There has never been a cost just associated doing this.
That has been my experience. my 2-cents

HD2 on AT&T

Hey everyone!
First post, woo-hoo!
Anyway, I am still rocking a Motorola RAZR v3 and currently looking to upgrade. The HD2 seems to be everyone's favorite phone around here, and the flexibility looks awesome. My question is, will AT&T force me to buy a data plan? Can I turn off EDGE? (I know I can not access 3G, but wifi is fine).
Thanks!

firesnowball said:
Hey everyone!
First post, woo-hoo!
Anyway, I am still rocking a Motorola RAZR v3 and currently looking to upgrade. The HD2 seems to be everyone's favorite phone around here, and the flexibility looks awesome. My question is, will AT&T force me to buy a data plan? Can I turn off EDGE? (I know I can not access 3G, but wifi is fine).
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Used to be on AT&T and they will not force you on a data plan as long as you don't tell them you are using a smartphone. Just make sure to get an unlocked HD2 and slip your RAZR SIM card into the HD2 and you should be good to go. You will only be in EDGE and not have access to 3G. Not sure if you are able to turn off EDGE. 3G you can turn off.

i just did this yesterday.. i went out and bought a cheap 15 dollar go phone
that had internet on it and just slapped my sim in it and of course no internet
so had to call them and they set me up with the 10 dollar unlimited plan
from the 25 dollar smartphone plan
the funny part was the guy kept saying do you have a blackberry i was like um no i have a fuze and this cheap samsung a197 ..he says the imei is coming back to a crackberry
so i read off the a197 imei and he got it registered ..so im thinking the hd2 shows up as a crackberry so just dont call them LOL and yes only edge works and make sure you check use only 2g network

Ok so heres the deal on this. I was to cheap to buy data plan when i had my iphone. I bought it off a buddy. so when i got my hd2 and unlocked it thru some website. i slapped my sim card into it. still did not have a data plan. it connected to edge and updated weather horray.....not so much. so now i was dreading buying a data plan.
well i went on line to check what my options were and my phone was not listed. it says i have some old ass nokia. legitly.....(i think this is becouse its a t-mobile IMEI number or sumthing) non the less i went on to the add a plan online. and it offered me the 15 dollar a month unlimited data plan for all att crappy phones!!! YESSSHHH
i was so happy.
The only complaint i have is that the US Tmobile branded HD2 the one i own, has the same freq for edge(2g) but a dif freq for 3g. sooooo if you are using this phone on att. you will never ever have 3g service, the hardware wont even support it. there are HD2s that support it but not the tmobile ones.
Best of luck. and i hope my deal with att isint a fluke, it makes sence that They dont have the IMEI. Like how they can track iphones and smartphones and rape you for cash. but they cant with a tmobile phone.
haha

I am on ATT and you can have them BLOCK DATA for you
If you own your phone outright and it is not an ATT phone, you can request them to block data(and texting if you want to). I have been using my HD2 for about a year with the data plan blocked and wifi only for data.
I recommend going into a store, I have found them to be very helpful.

its dead easy to turn off data completely, (and leave mms working)
most roms have a power widget which has a data toggle, or you just delete the apn.
For networks that use single data/mms apn's, just change the APN type to only say mms, so it only uses it for mms, and perhaps delete the username/password/apn entries so that it cant connect even if it tried, but leaving the mms settings intact.
For networks with one apn for data, one for mms, just delete the data one.
However, when you are only getting edge, the network handles it more like voice rather than data anyway, (think dialup vs broadband) so they wont mind as much that you dont have a proper smartphone plan in the same way they would if you had hsdpa clogging up their network.

I just switched to AT&T from T-mobile, Only cause i call mexico a lot, and they're the only ones to offer a decent plan for mexico. Anyways, I had an HD2, i went with the Inspire, cause it's basically the same phone just with soft keys, and a better camera, but if i'm not mistaken, everything under the hood is the same. It comes with Android, and should you ever want data, it's there.
But, I'm pretty sure you out to be able to just buy one and put your sim in it, and they'll never care right? I haven't priced them, i bought my inspire while switching over. But then you just tell it to only use 2g networks and you should be fine i would think

koekiemonsterjr said:
I just switched to AT&T from T-mobile, Only cause i call mexico a lot, and they're the only ones to offer a decent plan for mexico. Anyways, I had an HD2, i went with the Inspire, cause it's basically the same phone just with soft keys, and a better camera, but if i'm not mistaken, everything under the hood is the same. It comes with Android, and should you ever want data, it's there.
But, I'm pretty sure you out to be able to just buy one and put your sim in it, and they'll never care right? I haven't priced them, i bought my inspire while switching over. But then you just tell it to only use 2g networks and you should be fine i would think
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
nope if you bought a inspire locked to att it will automatically register as a smartphone and they will nail you with the 25 dollar 2 gb plan

Have questions for StraightTalk/Net10/Tracfone?

I was once a tech/sales/fraud/CustSvc support for ST/NET10/TF
then im now on AT&T tech
anyways, if you want to have some clarifications, questions about the said brands, you can ask me, i cannot guarantee to answer everything but go ahead
I do not represent nor am I anymore connected with Tracfone Wireless Inc on xda nor do my posts and opinions reflect those of the company, management, and or its subsidiaries
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Click to collapse

The most obvious one, what is the true data limit to the "unlimited" data. How do they determine if you're using too much data, or how do they determine if you're streaming or tethering?
Sent from my GT-N7000 Samsung Galaxy Note "Go big or go home" using XDA app

it actually depends upon the network of the area,
we have tools to check how much bandwidth is allocated in the area
if we detect serious network impact then we know what phone number caused such,
we dont own a network we "rent" from other large telecom companies
but mostly its 2GB - 3GB before it was 5GB but due to complaints recieved by TMO/AT&T/Sprint/Verizon about our subscribers affecting the performance of their network we reduced it to 2GB - 3GB,
some though get away with having as much as 8-10GB per month, im not sure how that happens
and analyze thier marketing strategy its unlimited "web browsing" they never said downloading, tethering, streaming, internet just "web browsing"
one funny experience was when a customer said, "whats the use of having one of your android phones if im prohibited to download stuff from internet with my 'unlimited' plan"

deathnotice01 said:
if we detect serious network impact then we know what phone number caused such
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Click to collapse
Knowing this, any idea how much tethering one can get away with before ST takes action?

about 2GB - 3GB actually,
depends also on the bandwidth you are allocating

Does Straight Talk using AT&T's network have the same speed as AT&T? Or does it cap it at 500kbps like AT&T GoPhone does?

ST SIMs run in ATT & TMO towers based on what i know we have HSPA+ for our contracts, you can have as much as 1-1.7Mbps

deathnotice01 said:
ST SIMs run in ATT & TMO towers based on what i know we have HSPA+ for our contracts, you can have as much as 1-1.7Mbps
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hm. Well in my area AT&T gets me around 3.5-4Mbps downstream and 1-2Mbps upstream. T-Mobile was much faster most of the time but unfortunately they started compressing all images through mobile data so...

synaesthetic said:
Does Straight Talk using AT&T's network have the same speed as AT&T? Or does it cap it at 500kbps like AT&T GoPhone does?
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Click to collapse
Hi, I just signed up because this is the same question I 've been searching for.
I'm now looking for a prepaid to save money since I'm just a student so cannot afford to try both straight talk and gophone. which one between these two has the fastest download speed? I have a 4G capable phone and just signed up for att's gophone service today with 1GB data, but the speed I'm getting is 1.7 to 2mb/s at best. would straight talk be faster than this speed?
I just heard the gophone offers throttle 3G, so it's around 2 or 2.5G, whereas straight talk does not throttle, so they are around 3.5G, is that true?
the only reason why I chose to try gophone because straight talk's 45 dollar plan doesn't allow international sms. but I can think of an alternative if straight talk is faster.
Thanks in advance!

ST now actually has a unlimited international voice/sms + local unlimited web browsing for $60, and ST runs on AT&T HSPA+ network so you can have as much as 1-1.7Mbps (at least thats what we know but some can get 4g speeds)

iPhone 4S on Straight Talk
I am very curious about using an Iphone 4S on Straight Talk. Hubby's contract with AT&T is up next month and I really want to get all the iTards off my plan So, what am I going to have to do to his phone to get as many (hopefully all) of the features he currently uses to function?
#1 requirement is tethering. He tethers (& yes, I pay AT&T their F***ing extortion fee) so he can telecommute--no downloading--just connecting to his work pc.
#2 requirement is the "Find my Friends" feature so he can keep track of all his iTard buddies & kids. Why anyone would want this, ahem, feature is beyond me.
#3 is there going to be any problem with iTunes or the Ap Store? He and the iTard kids will throw the biggest hissy fit ever seen if they can't get to the latest American Idol downloads & Tap Tap Revenge.
Thank you!

How can I keep my number when switching from AT&T to Straight Talk using my own phone? The only number transfer option they offer requires I purchase a Straight Talk branded device.

Thanks for answering my earlier question.
Since the amount of data you can use seems to vary from location to location, is there any way to check exactly how much one can use - *before* getting warned?

BKrenning said:
I am very curious about using an Iphone 4S on Straight Talk. Hubby's contract with AT&T is up next month and I really want to get all the iTards off my plan So, what am I going to have to do to his phone to get as many (hopefully all) of the features he currently uses to function?
#1 requirement is tethering. He tethers (& yes, I pay AT&T their F***ing extortion fee) so he can telecommute--no downloading--just connecting to his work pc.
#2 requirement is the "Find my Friends" feature so he can keep track of all his iTard buddies & kids. Why anyone would want this, ahem, feature is beyond me.
#3 is there going to be any problem with iTunes or the Ap Store? He and the iTard kids will throw the biggest hissy fit ever seen if they can't get to the latest American Idol downloads & Tap Tap Revenge.
Thank you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
1.) if you are on our BYOP plan, you can tether all the hell you want, as long as we don't detect major bandwidth allocation affecting the carrier
2.) any feature that uses the internet inside your phone is compatible, you don't need to unlock your phone since you will have a AT&T sim under StraightTalk
3.) nope not at all,
synaesthetic said:
How can I keep my number when switching from AT&T to Straight Talk using my own phone? The only number transfer option they offer requires I purchase a Straight Talk branded device.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
LOL, who told you that?, you can keep a AT&T number and still use the same device, we just give you a SIM (we need to program the SIM to your number and re-register it in the AT&T network), call ST and tell them to activate the SIM, the process takes 24hrs-2 business days, or maybe they have a new policy about phone number change, it was 2 months since i worked there, but that was the process before i left
luftrofl said:
Thanks for answering my earlier question.
Since the amount of data you can use seems to vary from location to location, is there any way to check exactly how much one can use - *before* getting warned?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
there was a code entry before, darn i forgot the code, it was used by us to check data/voice/SMS usage using the subscribers phone incase our tools go down. we use manual check to inform about the data changes

Nobody told me, but the website didn't allow for a number port option when buying just a SIM.

synaesthetic said:
Nobody told me, but the website didn't allow for a number port option when buying just a SIM.
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Click to collapse
I just got my sim card yesterday. I phoned straight talk to activate it. They can port a number over when you call them or on there website. I however did not port my number over yet because I want to test there service before canceling my att
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I717 using xda premium

I use on average around 1-1.5GB per month with AT&T. Occasionally I come close to my 3GB cap. I've never gone over it. Would this be a problem for ST? I know they say "unlimited" but I am pretty sure it's not actually "unlimited" since nothing really is anymore.

synaesthetic said:
Nobody told me, but the website didn't allow for a number port option when buying just a SIM.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah, they don't disclose that unless customer requests, because ST pays AT&T or other carriers to port the number into our database
synaesthetic said:
I use on average around 1-1.5GB per month with AT&T. Occasionally I come close to my 3GB cap. I've never gone over it. Would this be a problem for ST? I know they say "unlimited" but I am pretty sure it's not actually "unlimited" since nothing really is anymore.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
in thier marketing its not unlimited internet its unlimited web browsing
its hard for us to detect bandwidth usage, but we can easily detect bandwidth allocation,
stupid terms and conditions are as follows
Straight Talk Unlimited talk, text and data plan Features cannot be used: (1) for access to the Internet, intranets, or other data networks except as the device’s native applications and capabilities permit, or (2) for any applications that tether your device to laptops or personal computers other than for the use of Wireless Synch.
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Click to collapse
the system of ST (provided by tracfone wireless) rely on AT&T, Verizon, Sprint, TMO systems, we sync data together with thier systems
and its f****** slow to sync with thier databases using our system

I know this is not about the pre paid, but I have a unlimited data non-smart phone plan and I would like to know if AT&T just does not care that I use 5+GB a month on it or if I am just lucky?
The best part is, my speeds are the same as the store phone's with the right plan's. I even have LTE were I live and when I went to a store to run some speed test I got 6.5 down and 1.5 up on H+ vs the store S2 geting about the same thing and the one x geting 8 down and 7.5up on LTE.
Thanks

well if your phone is not a smartphone under a AT&T plan we do give unlimited data with no caps, just for ordinary and classic phones,