Database Users

New Sim card

So after having problems with the new Radio i called up t mobile to just give them BS and they were like maybe it is your 7 year old SIM card causing you the problems. I didn't think it mattered that much at all. So they told me to go get a new SIM card in the store. Free of charge. After getting the new SIM card, i have full 3G all the time no matter where i am at in the twin cities in MN. Not sure why the new SIM card fixed it but it did.

Thats cool. I had the same problem with my g1 the sim just died 2 nights ago. I went into the store they told me $20. But I had 2 old sim cards at home. I called them up actived it and it was free

Wow, that is one old sim card...I didn't even know tmobile has been in the usa that long. Mine is 3 years old and has not had any 3G issues.

well i have been with t-mobile since they were called voicestream. which if i remember right means i have been with them for over 7 years now.

Prod1702 said:
So after having problems with the new Radio i called up t mobile to just give them BS and they were like maybe it is your 7 year old SIM card causing you the problems. I didn't think it mattered that much at all. So they told me to go get a new SIM card in the store. Free of charge. After getting the new SIM card, i have full 3G all the time no matter where i am at in the twin cities in MN. Not sure why the new SIM card fixed it but it did.
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In general, the SIM card does very little, but it does have some info on it, and so forth. ie, AT&T 3G only works if you have an AT&T 3G sim card... I do not know the technical reasons behind it, but old sim cards can cause issues, especially with 3G.

I too have been with them for 7 years now, and I get 3G. But now I am wondering if I'm not getting it in certain areas, or getting less than perfect connection because of my old sim card?

Prod1702 said:
well i have been with t-mobile since they were called voicestream. which if i remember right means i have been with them for over 7 years now.
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I have been, too. And it's really annoying that it says "Vstream" in the carrier field on the lock screen...
Does yours do that?
My last two phones (SE P900 and SE P1i) both were smart enough to pull the actual carrier information and displayed T-Mobile (or whoever I was roaming on)... how can this phone not see that?
I've been pulling my hair out trying to figure out what file in the ROM translates the carrier info to the text.. where the hell does it pull that from?
I'm assuming if I go over to Tmobile I can get a new SIM that will have the proper carrier info, but... hell... I'm lazy and I'm not having any 3G issues... and I dont' want them to charge me.
Any ideas? So far you're the only other person I've seen that's also been a Vstream member.
Oh and.. yes... I started with Voice Stream by importing the very first color phone (AFAIK).. the SE T68i. I bought it in spring 2002 right when it came out http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=116
So... I've had this sim card for just shy of 8 years.

mikebeatrice said:
I have been, too. And it's really annoying that it says "Vstream" in the carrier field on the lock screen...
Does yours do that?
My last two phones (SE P900 and SE P1i) both were smart enough to pull the actual carrier information and displayed T-Mobile (or whoever I was roaming on)... how can this phone not see that?
I've been pulling my hair out trying to figure out what file in the ROM translates the carrier info to the text.. where the hell does it pull that from?
I'm assuming if I go over to Tmobile I can get a new SIM that will have the proper carrier info, but... hell... I'm lazy and I'm not having any 3G issues... and I dont' want them to charge me.
Any ideas? So far you're the only other person I've seen that's also been a Vstream member.
Oh and.. yes... I started with Voice Stream by importing the very first color phone (AFAIK).. the SE T68i. I bought it in spring 2002 right when it came out http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=116
So... I've had this sim card for just shy of 8 years.
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Holy Crap I remember that phone!

pjcforpres said:
In general, the SIM card does very little, but it does have some info on it, and so forth. ie, AT&T 3G only works if you have an AT&T 3G sim card... I do not know the technical reasons behind it, but old sim cards can cause issues, especially with 3G.
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Click to collapse
I can tell you that you don't need a "3G" USIM to use the AT&T UMTS network. They way you're supposed to build a 3g network is by requiring 64K or better encryption on SIM cards. 2G Sims are 32K. AT&T, being the lazy cheapskates they are hacked it into their deployment so that they didn't have to give everyone new cards. It's stupid because they tell all their front line staff to give people new cards anyway.
In my years working for them, I can count on one hand the number of people who have had 3G issues "caused" by a 2G card. In all of those cases it was probably a coincidence. I. Fact I never had any reception issue fixed by a new card. OTA updates? Yes, of course. You don't need to waste your time fetching a new card. Just a phone call and it's done.
So if you're concerned, have a customer service agent update your SIM profile. A new card is a waste of time, the only time you might see a benefit is when changing a card triggers the OTA sim update.

ATnTdude said:
I can tell you that you don't need a "3G" USIM to use the AT&T UMTS network. They way you're supposed to build a 3g network is by requiring 64K or better encryption on SIM cards. 2G Sims are 32K. AT&T, being the lazy cheapskates they are hacked it into their deployment so that they didn't have to give everyone new cards. It's stupid because they tell all their front line staff to give people new cards anyway.
In my years working for them, I can count on one hand the number of people who have had 3G issues "caused" by a 2G card. In all of those cases it was probably a coincidence. I. Fact I never had any reception issue fixed by a new card. OTA updates? Yes, of course. You don't need to waste your time fetching a new card. Just a phone call and it's done.
So if you're concerned, have a customer service agent update your SIM profile. A new card is a waste of time, the only time you might see a benefit is when changing a card triggers the OTA sim update.
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Interesting... I know that SIMs very rarely are the true source, and the only time I had heard of it being so was when people had a 2G SIM when using a 3G device; ie the 32K versus 64K encryption. I thought there was no way around it, for technical reasons beyond my knowledge base. My limited understanding was that the 32K SIMs were missing certain technical protocol for a 3G network to recognize them as part of the 3G network, essentially.
I work for a carrier, btw, and am one of the few sales agents in my area that even knows how to refresh services and what not... actually, I used to have to call up CS and explain to them what needed to be done until my manager gave me the power to do it myself.

pjcforpres said:
Interesting... I know that SIMs very rarely are the true source, and the only time I had heard of it being so was when people had a 2G SIM when using a 3G device; ie the 32K versus 64K encryption. I thought there was no way around it, for technical reasons beyond my knowledge base. My limited understanding was that the 32K SIMs were missing certain technical protocol for a 3G network to recognize them as part of the 3G network, essentially.
I work for a carrier, btw, and am one of the few sales agents in my area that even knows how to refresh services and what not... actually, I used to have to call up CS and explain to them what needed to be done until my manager gave me the power to do it myself.
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Click to collapse
I stopped in Tmobile today and they replaced my SIM for free since it was nearly 8 years old (and was saying Vstream, which was annoying). Pretty sure it was a 32k sim. I didn't think I was having 3G/2G connectivity issues, but I'm pretty sure after I got the new SIM in there it started locking onto 3G signals faster and stays there steadily. I noticed it mainly on my train ride home where I would regularly drop to 2G... seemed like it didn't happen nearly as much.

mikebeatrice said:
... Oh and.. yes... I started with Voice Stream by importing the very first color phone (AFAIK).. the SE T68i. I bought it in spring 2002 right when it came out http://www.phonescoop.com/phones/phone.php?p=116
So... I've had this sim card for just shy of 8 years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Off-topic but LOL. SE T68i... I still have mine as a "backup" phone (SIM unlocked). It's small and it still works... Was actually a great phone.
Cheers,
Kermee

Kermee said:
Off-topic but LOL. SE T68i... I still have mine as a "backup" phone (SIM unlocked). It's small and it still works... Was actually a great phone.
Cheers,
Kermee
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Click to collapse
I gave mine to my friend when I picked up the P900. He's gone through another phone since then (treo 650... he managed to put it in the clothes washer within 6 months of getting it) and is now back on the T68i.
Those SE phones are REALLY solid. I've always had a great experience with them, I just got sick of importing them to the US (and in the case of the P1i, not working on Tmob's 3G network.. bastard)... of course they announce the X10 coming to the US on Tmob like a week after I get the Nexus... ah well.
But.. yea.. T68i... one tough little bastard of a phone. The original battery is finally starting to not hold as good of a charge. Not too shabby for an 8 year old phone that's been used almost every day.

4g simcard?

I'm currently using a 3g simcard i had for my g1 and it does seem to work on the mytouch, but should i be using (or do they even recommend using a 4gsimcard) for the device to improve data speed?

I've been using the same sim card for probably close to 6 years since when I had the dumbest of the dumbphones. It shouldn't be necessary to switch them out, but go to T-mobile and see if you can get a new one anyways. It can't hurt.

There is a "New generation" sim card. They will switch it for you for free. I suggest you do it. Cant hurt. I also know the contact area on the newer ones look different. (by contact i mean the physical sim card, not your phone book contacts lol)

Thanks (both of ya) Ya i'm thinking the new generation simcard is what i heard awhile back and wanted to make sure if it was correct or not to use fo rthis phone, thanks again for the quick reply's (great feedback on this forum)

I have never had speed issues with my old SIM card, but I have a Sensation coming in the mail and I will activate the new SIM card that comes with it and put it in my MT4G to see if there is an increase in my speeds.
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

I actually did an experiment with this. On the T-Mobile forums, right after the MT4G came out there was some debate over 3G SIM vs 4G SIM. My SIM was 6 to 8 years old, from before there was 3G. It worked fine in my MT4G, but as an experiment I did some signal and speed tests in multiple locations, then switched to the SIM that came with my MT4G and repeated the tests. I found no measurable difference. As far as I know, the SIM registers you to the network, but otherwise has nothing to do with what the radio in your device picks up.

The only the difference i notice with the new sim that came my 4g was that the lock screen no longer says 'get more' which was bothering me anyway. I believe the new sim can hold more text messages for phones that don't store texts on phone memory.
[via XDA premium]

GPS sim card fix

Chatted with some tmobile agent online today. Regarding the gps issue, he suggested I replace my sim card because the one I have right now is 2G. Whatever the hell that means. Apparently it's a new trouble shooting step now. I can replace it for free at a tmobile store. Question is, it sounds like fresh dung. Has anyone else tried this?
Sent from my T959 using XDA App

sam-san said:
Chatted with some tmobile agent online today. Regarding the gps issue, he suggested I replace my sim card because the one I have right now is 2G. Whatever the hell that means. Apparently it's a new trouble shooting step now. I can replace it for free at a tmobile store. Question is, it sounds like fresh dung. Has anyone else tried this?
Sent from my T959 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
I've had them tell me the same thing for other network issues they had. I think it is just a way to get you into the store so they can try to sell you an upgrade. When I got to the store to trade my 2G SIM for a 3G SIM for T-Mobile network issues they tried to tell my I would have to pay for it. Even though they told me it would be free. 45 min's later with T-Mobile on the phone and they finally agreed to switch them.
Either way, it didn't do a damn thing, and If I had not stopped at the store 2 mins before closing I know for sure they would have tried to sell me a different phone since I have never been to a T-Mobile store where they didn't, aside from this last one.

Raistline, I'm sorry for you that you had such a negative experience with the T-Mobile store. I've been lucky I guess, I've ALWAYS had excellent service from them. In fact, I got the same advice from T-Mobile tech support regarding 3G, so I went to the T-Mobile store, and within 15 minutes had a new, 3G capable SIM card. No hassles, no pressure, no cost, just quick and pleasant customer service. Did the 3G SIM do anything for GPS? Of course not, and it was never suggested to me that it might. Maybe I'm lucky with the service I get because I live in the Portland, OR area, I dunno, but I'm not complaining.

What else is new with the 3g card?
My old sim card will not hold email or home address, just name and number.
Can you hold that in the new 3g Sim Cards?

[Q] Antenna Drop, Edge Only, Tmo

I have not had any issues that i've seen other have on the forums but there is one issue i am having...
After the first few hours of use the antenna has either cut out completely and I see "no service" or only Edge is available.
Rebooting + open/close sim tray does not fix the problem. I am on T-Mobile.

I had to call in and have them "reset" the data on my line in order the get h+ speeds again. Also my buddy said they told him the Sim card that came with the phone, if from t mobile, could be a different type and if I keep getting issues they recommended to go into the store and request a new one. He also is having terrible speeds on t mobile. We are both seeing about 600kbs down and 1000kbs upload speeds. Used to be much better with my galaxy nexus....so I will check with them tomorrow again
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

I have a similar problem but for me the H icon never goes away. It works for a good time but then all of a sudden it doesn't load anything. It comes and goes and it's really annoying.
Did you guys cut your sim card into micro or is it a real micro sim card?

My reception is pretty poor. It drops pretty randomly at times which can be frustrating, something that my Galaxy Nexus never did. I typically only see 2G speeds though due to my area.
Sent from my Nexus 10 using xda app-developers app

I cut my Sim and having the same issue... Guess I have to get a real micro sim
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

I am using a microsim ... the one that came with the phone since I purchased through T-Mobile online.
I think it is the sim card because it looks like there are scratches on it after I had swaped it back to my vibrant with a microsim adapter.
I will go to the store today when they open and get a new sim. Hopefully this will fix this issue. It was working perfectly fine earlier.

My N4 is dropping calls and losing network connection like crazy. I'm using the same Sim that was in my SIII. It had no such issues.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

I haven't had your problem, but I did cut my SIM to a microSIM, and the first 2 times I put it in, the N4 would not recognize it. Since then, I've put it in 2 more times and it's been fine. Did you cut your SIM into a microSIM? Maybe the phone is extra picky about placement.

SOLVED
Got a new MicroSIM and It works perfectly. My original microSIM did get scratched too hard when using a MicroSim to SIM adapter (i was testing the microsim on my old phone)
I'm happy now

javacody said:
My N4 is dropping calls and losing network connection like crazy. I'm using the same Sim that was in my SIII. It had no such issues.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app
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Click to collapse
Did you set up your APNs?

Robert_W said:
Got a new MicroSIM and It works perfectly. My original microSIM did get scratched too hard when using a MicroSim to SIM adapter (i was testing the microsim on my old phone)
I'm happy now
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NVM. Same b.s just happened again with the new sim. Idk whats going on here. The antenna is randomly choosing to be on HSPA, EDGE, or nothing... I'll wait it out for a day or two.. see if things change

Why would I have to?
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

EDIT:
called up. they did a reser on their end. didnt work. They will call me when the Nexus4 becomes available again. Mine is labelled as "defective" in the system

Robert_W said:
called up. they did a reser on their end. didnt work. I am now getting a new one now.... waiting on hold listining to christmas music
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Click to collapse
Let us know how it goes ,
this issue is very frustrating.
Sent from my Nexus 4 using xda app-developers app

Ugh. That sucks. Sorry to hear.

what really sucks is that I dont have any other issues with it. Every problem that i see on the forums is not existant on my nexus. I am scared that if it ever gets replaced that the new one may not be as perfect as this one is

I'm Having the exact same problem, except on AT&T. Coming from an Atrix 4G, cut the sim down to micro size, only had a network connection for the first 30 seconds after a reboot. I just got off the phone with a AT&T CSR to activate a new micro sim i picked up earlier today, he said IMEI showed up in their system as Unknown, according to him because "it's an unlocked device, so it shows up on our systems as unknown." After doing the switch anyway, connection held for about 5 minutes, and now i'm back to square one. Maybe APN settings? Is this a problem with the N4, or the service?

Absent Crysis said:
I'm Having the exact same problem, except on AT&T. Coming from an Atrix 4G, cut the sim down to micro size, only had a network connection for the first 30 seconds after a reboot. I just got off the phone with a AT&T CSR to activate a new micro sim i picked up earlier today, he said IMEI showed up in their system as Unknown, according to him because "it's an unlocked device, so it shows up on our systems as unknown." After doing the switch anyway, connection held for about 5 minutes, and now i'm back to square one. Maybe APN settings? Is this a problem with the N4, or the service?
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Click to collapse
I would think it may be an issue with the N4 since some people are perfectly fine with their connection, but then there's others like us who can't get it too work all the time =(

i think its a manufacturing defect

I'm thinking definitely manufacturing defect now, I went into a t-mobile store and tried one of their sim cards - same result. I even tried flashing everything completely back to stock, but the problem remains. Am I the only one experiencing this? I can't find any similar results..
EDIT: You guys think I should hold off on sending it back in until they have more in stock? So I'm not completely N4-less for 3 weeks?

All Nexus 4 devices faulty?

Hello,
I am from India and I'm using Idea Cellular.
I've been using N4 since Jan, initially it had 4.2 on it, after that I updated to 4.2.1 and later 4.2.2
For the last 6-7 weeks most of my calls were getting dropped, sometime just after connecting.
I tried a lot of solutions:
1. Switching off mobile data
2. Switching off wifi
3. Device reset
and then making calls.
None of the above solved the call drop issue. I finally requested for a replacement device and received it today.
So I put my sim in new phone, copy all my data from Google Play and I make my first call, 12 mins and the call drops again.
Now if this was a hardware issue, the odds of me again getting a faulty device should have been very less. But well here we are - one more faulty device.
If its not, is there any software fix or anything other way of solving this?

Did you try checking with a different SIM?

Hardware issue with your particular phone. RMA

Maybe is your sim cause I can talk for over a hour and nothing happens

xsreality said:
Did you try checking with a different SIM?
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Click to collapse
I've been using the same sim in my iPhone for 1.5 years, never had any issue with it.

sagarpatil86 said:
I've been using the same sim in my iPhone for 1.5 years, never had any issue with it.
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Click to collapse
Where did you get replacement in India mate..?
Sent from The Beauty - Xperia S

-Harsh- said:
Where did you get replacement in India mate..?
Sent from The Beauty - Xperia S
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Click to collapse
Got it on my HopShopGo US address and shipped it to India. Had to pay Rs 2776 for Customs/Octroi and some $28 for shipping.
Google has blocked $350 on my card and will reimburse it once I send them my old device back.
So disappointed with Nexus 4.

sagarpatil86 said:
Got it on my HopShopGo US address and shipped it to India. Had to pay Rs 2776 for Customs/Octroi and some $28 for shipping.
Google has blocked $350 on my card and will reimburse it once I send them my old device back.
So disappointed with Nexus 4.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yea today is my second day but have to say lost t charm.. Lost signals, wifi stops working and call issues..
Sent from The Beauty - Xperia S

-Harsh- said:
Yea today is my second day but have to say lost t charm.. Lost signals, wifi stops working and call issues..
Sent from The Beauty - Xperia S
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've had mine for about a month and have not experienced any of these issues. Yes, I've had a dropped call or two but it's been in areas that have a weak signal and my previous phones would also drop calls. I'm on the T-Mobile USA network.

It might as well be a problem with your service provider, and it might be temporary, you should check that possibility. If not, then the SIM card might be faulty as well, try it in a different phone and see if calls are dropped.

Tried switching already.. No avail..
Main things that bug me is wifi.. Don't know what the heck is wrong with it..
Sent from The Beauty - Xperia S

Using N4 since 3 months in Mumbai with Vodafone never had problem like that. May its your device or SIM or network is getting worse at this time in your area.

High Hopes
I feel ya, man. My phone usage pattern is pics, video, and browsing mostly. The Nexus 4 has failed me on multiple occasions with dropped data and terrible reception. I have tried changing my APN settings, I've even called ATT and confirmed with them that I had the correct data plan allotted.
I know it's the Nexus 4 and not my carrier because my husband, who uses a half-broken iphone 4 on the same network gets better reception and network connectivity in the same places and at the same times. I found myself using his phone a lot of the time to do simple tasks like browse online because I'm tired of re-connecting on my Android.
I still don't want to go back to iPhone because I'm bored with iOS at the moment, so now, when I'm researching my next Android phone, I'm going to make sure to consider radio signal quality.

sagarpatil86 said:
I've been using the same sim in my iPhone for 1.5 years, never had any issue with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have seen issues with SIM working on one phone but acting weird on another. Try checking with 2-3 different SIM cards of various service providers. If all fail, you will know the device is faulty.
FYI, I am on Airtel MH Nexus 4 and haven't faced any issue.

I have the same issue, the call drops when making or receiving a call, and it happens after 20 seconds to 1 minute... The odd thing is I didn't have these problems when I was using it in the states.. Just had them when I went back home..
Sent from my Nexus 4 using Tapatalk 2

ksavai said:
Using N4 since 3 months in Mumbai with Vodafone never had problem like that. May its your device or SIM or network is getting worse at this time in your area.
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Click to collapse
+1
No issues for me too. From Mumbai, on Vodafone network. In fact the reception is better on Nexus 4 than my previous phone which was a Motorola Electrify.

i'm from Mumbai, using Tata Docomo, and have no problems with my nexus 4!

Try your sim in another phone now.. Might well be your carrier

Issue with getting 3G AirTel on Nexus 4
xsreality said:
I have seen issues with SIM working on one phone but acting weird on another. Try checking with 2-3 different SIM cards of various service providers. If all fail, you will know the device is faulty.
FYI, I am on Airtel MH Nexus 4 and haven't faced any issue.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have recently swapped SIM on Nexus 4, from BSNL to AirTel. When I was using BSNL, 3G was working fine. Once I switched the BSNL SIM with AirTel SIM. I got 3G the first day (14th March 2013) and after that I was never able to get 3G till now. I even got a duplicate SIM thinking that earlier SIM might be the problem as I had converted it to micro by cutting it. But new micro SIM doesn't seem to be helping either.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.

my prob
i am in india . i got my N4 from the USA in mid feb . i started using it after i reached india . my phone makes a creaky sound at the top left part when pressed slightly . and also there is this weird sound from inside the phone when i shake it . sounds like some really tiny part is loose inside it .i have never dropped my phone and there is no damage externally . i am considering getting a replacement . so how should i go about it ?
please help fast because a friend will be going there soon so ill send it with him .
thank-you