The following is a guide I put together over the course of today about flashing the Samsung Epic 4G to both Cricket and Page Plus. This will work with phones that have bad ESN's (at least, Page Plus and Cricket) -- and with phones that are totally fine and saintly, but maybe you want to go to another carrier for a cheaper rate?
https://docs.google.com/document/d/1E4nNITQnzEoEkkVp4j7k_N_yghvNh_SozuKe3az_Nx4/edit?hl=en_US
In the future, as more information becomes available, I'd like to incorporate other carriers that people are flashing (Metro PCS, Boost), as I find out more. The idea is to build a one-source guide for everything you need from start to finish.
The guide takes you from the very beginning to the very end. PRL's, etc, are all inclusive. I've flashed my Epic to both Cricket and Page Plus successfully -- just like Page Plus's coverage/quality better (and cheaper... but hardly any data -- user Wifi). Even if you don't want to flash, it still has useful things like unlocking your phone for use on any carrier that will take it.
Any comments/suggestions are greatly appreciated.
Just as a note, I'm no longer involved in the Epic community. I migrated on to a newer device. http://forum.xda-developers.com/showpost.php?p=34802383&postcount=72 If you need any help, I will still be available through PM's to the best of my ability.
The HA/AAA shared secrets for Page Plus are not "vzw", trust me. I'm running with full 3G on Page Plus right now and after many late nights I realized the only way to get it was a temporary clone to a Verizon phone so that I could get the proper keys through OTA programming. Unfortunately posting a guide to that would probably get XDA on my/your ass. With the "vzw" password you will technically get 3G but it will be throttled to 1xRTT speed (about .1 Mbps). I don't know if the same is true for cricket or not...
Nevertheless I'm sure someone out there will very much appreciate the time and effort you put into this; props!
So using this guide i can unlock the epic meaning ill still be on sprint, but if i suddenly wanted metro i can just take it to the store and have em flash it?
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA Premium App
I request a stickey
I haven't flashed to Metro, but if I can find someone that supports all the features I want, I may give it a shot and write a guide. Does Metro support bad ESN's? (Long story short, got scammed by a Samsung Epic on CraigsList, Sprint said ESN was clear, but is still linked to scammer's account, who refuses to remove, etc, and commit insurance fraud... Talked to insurance and he's in jail now, apparently, but phone will probably be forever blacklisted on Sprint).
Currently, I'm trying to find a provider who can give Google Voice support and Data... MMS I'm not so concerned about. Page Plus is my only "good" option now (a step above cricket, but limited data). Any thoughts? Metro PCS apparently doesn't support Houston, TX when I try to find a plan, either.
EDIT: I may try to give Cricket another go. I've been reading a little bit more and have learned a bit about making Cricket work. Would be nice to try the $45 plan on Cricket to save some $$$. I've talked with some people who claim MMS and Google Voice CAN happen, but it's a little more tricky. Will let you know as I figure it out (must wait a month to not lose $30 from PagePlus).
im confused i dont have these MDN and MIN and your guide says i should have gotten them when i got the phone? is this from sprint and am i supposed to call?
also i got the phone replaced by another epic today. the phone kept trying to auto activate. it still is trying to autoactivate. i swapped the epic out for a nexus the other day. what should i do. if you can pm me and talk over the phone that would be great. my mom is going to new york wednesday and i want to pageplus this phone before she leaves.
I've gotten a couple PMs regarding the HA/AAA keys so I'm going to say this. I would gladly provide them for you guys but that's just not how it works. The keys change every time I (re)activate. They are probably tied to the time and the MEID of the phone, possibly more than that. My keys wouldn't do any of you any good.
It sucks, but the only way that I know to get them is to use a Verizon phone.
duh ask from carrier. now i followed all the steps including the manual update because auto won't happen. afterwards i autoupdated but it aint working? or am i supposed to buy airtime now?
not getting any help. please someone
i completed all the instructions and i can't dial out. i have a triangle at the top. when i call pageplus they are asking for a esn. what the heck am i supposed to do
What happens when you try to dial out? Have you bought/activated your service yet?
yesh i just activated a service using crap motorola. the prl on the page gave me a triangle on the bar i switched it to an older modified one for sprint. when i dial out i get the message welcome to verizon wireless your mobile number is not active or ....
---------- Post added at 05:13 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:04 PM ----------
Poryhack said:
What happens when you try to dial out? Have you bought/activated your service yet?
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Click to collapse
i switched back to the prl on his thread. i wonder if he switched the prls from cricket to pageplus on accident? this sucks i been working all day got school soon and no help for my mom. ahh
So, the PRL isn't working for you, eh? The PRL for Page Plus is 51--- something -- Cricket is 42700.
Are you sure that your phone is unlocked? Are you sure you're reading from phone to get current settings before writing PRL, phone number, etc, back to the phone? (it should prompt you for your MSL -- which should now be 000000) Then make sure you fill out the data correctly. You should be able to get your MIN/MDN by asking for them from Page Plus. I openly told the rep on the phone I was trying to flash the phone myself and he gave me all of the information (and then a little bit more -- unfortunately, not the HA/AAA secret). I was actually originally using my Motorola Droid and asked them to try putting ONE OTHER phone on, to test it out (my Epic). Long story short, it did.
Page Plus uses Verizon's towers -- so it's OK if you're getting that. My phone apparently "roams" as well, but I have yet to have any issues. It's just what shows up.
I've heard that Cricket (prior carrier) can be configured to work 100% with the Samsung Epic for the $45 plan. When my month of minutes runs out, I'll try swapping back and seeing what all I can do... I learned a lot while working on this, so I think I have a little more expertise on this. Prior, I had never unlocked my device, so auto-activation never worked with Cricket! Eeek!
Anyway I will of course write something up about that.
terinfire said:
So, the PRL isn't working for you, eh? The PRL for Page Plus is 51--- something
yup its 51529... in short it was shiet
Are you sure that your phone is unlocked? yes
Are you sure you're reading from phone to get current settings before writing PRL, phone number, etc, back to the phone? yup(it should prompt you for your MSL -- which should now be 000000)
Then make sure you fill out the data correctly. You should be able to get your MIN/MDN by asking for them from Page Plus. I openly told the rep on the phone I was trying to flash the phone myself and he gave me all of the information (and then a little bit more -- unfortunately, not the HA/AAA secret). I was actually originally using my Motorola Droid and asked them to try putting ONE OTHER phone on, to test it out (my Epic). Long story short, it did.
Page Plus uses Verizon's towers -- so it's OK if you're getting that. My phone apparently "roams" as well, but I have yet to have any issues. It's just what shows up.
I've heard that Cricket (prior carrier) can be configured to work 100% with the Samsung Epic for the $45 plan. When my month of minutes runs out, I'll try swapping back and seeing what all I can do... I learned a lot while working on this, so I think I have a little more expertise on this. Prior, I had never unlocked my device, so auto-activation never worked with Cricket! Eeek!
Anyway I will of course write something up about that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
cool. i will stick to sero truly duly unlim 4g wimax. anyways. roaming is normal? where did you get the prl? i am using an older prl i found online. i was getting the message you might be charged for roaming prior to each call.
I do not get that message for my PRL. If I remember correctly, PRL's are just how your phone knows which tower to connect to. I've heard they vary based on where you live. In any case, since PP offers nationwide coverage, I'm not thinking I'm roaming and no charges have shown on my phone yet.
terinfire said:
I do not get that message for my PRL. If I remember correctly, PRL's are just how your phone knows which tower to connect to. I've heard they vary based on where you live. In any case, since PP offers nationwide coverage, I'm not thinking I'm roaming and no charges have shown on my phone yet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah that's what i am guessing. i flashed different prl's and i still get the same message. can you please check to see if the prl wasn't switched or renamed incorrectly or better yet can you give me the source? prl's get updated and i have an older one. too bad my parents already left for new york i hope everything works out well for them
Poryhack said:
What happens when you try to dial out? Have you bought/activated your service yet?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yeah its activated. i had your prl when i activated it and i was getting the roaming message per call. there was the roaming signal on the signal bar throughout. i switched the prl and it went away.
can you check the prl out and the source can you pm it?
Newbie question. I have an unactivated sprint epic. I can't seem to get QPST to recognize the phone. The phone shows up as a modem in the device manager but QPST appears to see something connected but doesn't see the phone as modem. I've rebooted and switched USB ports as well. Any ideas on what could be wrong?
Reboot
Keep. Trying its a pain
feihoon said:
Newbie question. I have an unactivated sprint epic. I can't seem to get QPST to recognize the phone. The phone shows up as a modem in the device manager but QPST appears to see something connected but doesn't see the phone as modem. I've rebooted and switched USB ports as well. Any ideas on what could be wrong?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you have the drivers for the Samsung Epic 4G installed for sure? What OS? May want to potentially try running as an Administrator, just in case (I don't have this issue, but I know some folks at MS have told me their hardware-heavy programs don't work when they aren't in Admin mode).
Make sure to uncheck the box in QPST about diagnostic/etc ports. Just enable all the ports you can in QPST Configuration and you should hopefully see it.
Are you absolutely sure it shows up as a Samsung Modem?
terinfire said:
Do you have the drivers for the Samsung Epic 4G installed for sure? What OS? May want to potentially try running as an Administrator, just in case (I don't have this issue, but I know some folks at MS have told me their hardware-heavy programs don't work when they aren't in Admin mode).
Make sure to uncheck the box in QPST about diagnostic/etc ports. Just enable all the ports you can in QPST Configuration and you should hopefully see it.
Are you absolutely sure it shows up as a Samsung Modem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am using XP. Under Device Manager -> Modems, it reads "Samsung Mobile Modem #2". I also installed the drivers from the Samsung support site. For ports, QPST reads "COM5-USB/QC Data Modem" in the "Add New Port" window with the box unchecked. In the "Ports" window it reads "No Phone" under the "Phone" column.
Thanks
Related
I love my mogul...is there anyway to hack the phone so that I can get it hooked up with another network?
Good for you.
Sorry. There is no way to bring the sprint mogul to the Verizon network.
You will need a new xv6800. Much better phone anyway if you ask me.
why not? verizon opened their network to all devices, he should be able to activate it with them
It should be possible – for instance I operate Sprint Mogul in our local network. I even know people here who programmed HTC devices to have phone services from one network and the data (i.e. Internet) – from another.
defaultdotxbe said:
why not? verizon opened their network to all devices, he should be able to activate it with them
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I believe they are opening up their network and this won't be available until summer.
webbstar842 said:
I love my mogul...is there anyway to hack the phone so that I can get it hooked up with another network?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The most difficult thing would be to get Verizon to activate your ESN on their network. Verizon has announced that they will allow all approved devices, but that has not yet been implemented. You might be lucky enough to find a CS rep willing to do it.
After that, you would need to flash a Verizon ROM, get an A-key and MSID from Verizon, and either port your phone number to Verizon or get a new MDN. You would need to edit EPST to reflect these numbers.
After all that is done, dial *22801 on the device to set up the data parameters, followed by *22802 to load a Verizon PRL.
If I missed anything, or misstated any of the above, I am sure someone will chime in with a correction.
Actually... Verizon has opened their networks up, as of the 18th of February I believe. I could be wrong about the date, but I know its opened.
You can flash a verizon ROM onto your 6800, then call customer service and activate your phone. It should work that way, its what I did for a friend who switched from Verizon to Sprint for the cheaper data plan...
shield001 said:
I believe they are opening up their network and this won't be available until summer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
at least some areas opened it right after the announcement, berlin wall style, lol
I know this is an old thread, but has anyone successfully done this?
Specifically Sprint Mogul activated on the Verizon network.
Thanks
Not sure hoe to delete a double post...
so has anyone done this?
How is AT&T Detecting my phone?
In my online account management you can select your phone type. Currently I have "AT&T 8525" selected (which is my phone of course). When I go to select "My Device is not listed" or something else, it will remain selected for a while, then when I log in sometime later, "AT&T 8525" is selected again.
How is AT&T figuring my phone type out? What kind of information about my phone is being automatically sent out? Is there a way to block this, or even spoof it?
Is it possible that at&t is just guessing?
I'm using WM6 w/ HardSPL loaded.
I wouldn't sweat it dude, I've had mt 8525 since June and AT&T still has my phone listed as a V3 Razor but, they have my kids phones listed right. OH, I havn't had a razor for almost 2 years.
stesul411 said:
I wouldn't sweat it dude, I've had mt 8525 since June and AT&T still has my phone listed as a V3 Razor but, they have my kids phones listed right. OH, I havn't had a razor for almost 2 years.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same. I've had about 3-4 phones since the Razr, mine still says razr
Yeah, it took AT&T three or four months to update mine when I first got the 8525. Once it even had me listed as using one of those old Nokia bricks for like two weeks, then went back to the 8525! Wierd.
Anyway, I could be wrong, but I believe your IMEI is what tells AT&T what kind of phone your using. It just seems to take AT&T's system a while to play catch up when you switch phones.
...and changing/altering your IMEI is a dangerous topic on this board, as it is an illegal practice in most countries.
Anynody else know of how they detect your phone model?
dzelaya18 said:
Anynody else know of how they detect your phone model?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
they have spies......watching you, all the time.......
the IMEI is right. that's how they do it. and the spies help sometimes too
Yes at&t can tell what IMEI is what phone. For that matter most everyone can find it, if you have the IMEI, on the Net if you look hard enough. If you go into a store and register your V3 IMEI on the account the phone should change in the Online managment page. But with the implimentation of their newest system, D.E.R(Device Eligibility Restrictions), they can tell what IMEI is being used with what phone number, even though it may not reflect on the "Online Managment" Site. More importanly, D.E.R restricts certian packages to be allowed for what IMEI is registered on the account.
For example if you have a V3's IMEI registered on your account, then the Media Net package for 15$ unlimited usage will show up and the PDA Connect for 30$ will not. This works in the oposite manor as well. This makes it harder for us to use the lower priced packages. Eventually if D.E.R catches the fact that you are using a PDA phone with the 15$ package or any of the other "Non-PDA" Packages, It may take some time, but the package WILL fall off and credits will not be given out, or atleast that is what i have come to understand.
Hope that clears it all up. I do work for at&t Mobility, im at the bottom of the totem poll (Agent), but one of my larger business accounts has already run into issues with D.E.R and credits were not given out.
I knew it! ...and my suspicions about the spies have been comfirmed... ^.-
for those who may be interested...it is possible to have your hero flashed to work on the Cricket network. it may not be for everyone, but i couldn't resist the lure of $40/mo unlimited everything with no contract. (saves around $1,000+ over the life of the contract)
here's what i did:
-buy cdma hero on ebay
-go to a cricket store and ask them to activate the phone
-usually the rep will "know a guy" who can work with htc (try a few stores or call around)
-they may charge you $30 or so to flash it and its working
wireless data, visual voicemail, and mms dont' work...but they expect to get them working soon (phone is only a few weeks old at this point)... and where i'm at, i almost always have wifi and don't care about vm or mms.
Might see if any of these guys know about xda...perhaps they just need to be pointed here to share the wealth of what they're doing.
HTC Hero Phone Code Numbers ##
if you do transfer to cricket (or perhaps another cdma carrier), a good thing to know is:
##000000#
this will allow you to edit or view EPST (change/view your Mobile Directory Number MDN and MSID)
The MDN is your current phone number, your local cricket store can give you your MSID (which also depends on your phone number).
yourmanstan said:
for those who may be interested...it is possible to have your hero flashed to work on the Cricket network. it may not be for everyone, but i couldn't resist the lure of $40/mo unlimited everything with no contract. (saves around $1,000+ over the life of the contract)
here's what i did:
-buy cdma hero on ebay
-go to a cricket store and ask them to activate the phone
-usually the rep will "know a guy" who can work with htc (try a few stores or call around)
-they may charge you $30 or so to flash it and its working
wireless data, visual voicemail, and mms dont' work...but they expect to get them working soon (phone is only a few weeks old at this point)... and where i'm at, i almost always have wifi and don't care about vm or mms.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont believe you. How could you possibly "flash it" with out root access?
Negrito said:
I dont believe you. How could you possibly "flash it" with out root access? /QUOTE]
don't believe me then...i'm sure i just imagined myself doing all those things and making phone calls without a sprint account.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
yourmanstan said:
don't believe me then...i'm sure i just imagined myself doing all those things and making phone calls without a sprint account. ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well if im just "being stupid" then you could simply prove me wrong. Put up, or Shut up!
cant wait
Negrito said:
Well if im just "beingstupid" then you could simply prove me wrong. Put up, or Shut up!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
i think he means the regular flash as in flashing the prl not flashing a cricket rom... i cant wait for a rom that i can use on cricket... i have text n voice workin but net and mms is light years away since the phone just came out... cmon guys speed it up... ive been prayin to the cricket flashing gods to give us a saviour to answer our prayers...
Not so far away
I´m in Mexico, and I have a Hero woking here with data. So far it´s 1x, but I only worked on it for about 3 hours. After this long weekend (we have monday off here) I´ll get to work on it to make Ev work.
Don´t lose heart It´ll get there.
Negrito said:
I dont believe you. How could you possibly "flash it" with out root access?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The radio is separate from the OS and the traditional CDMA tools work on the Hero like any other phone. There are plenty of other forums talking about how to port CDMA phones to other providers; especially Indian forums because there are large CDMA networks there.
Edit: when he says "flash it," he probably just means to put a new PRL (preferred roaming list) and editing the details under ##DATA to match what another provider wants.
kRutOn said:
The radio is separate from the OS and the traditional CDMA tools work on the Hero like any other phone. There are plenty of other forums talking about how to port CDMA phones to other providers; especially Indian forums because there are large CDMA networks there.
Edit: when he says "flash it," he probably just means to put a new PRL (preferred roaming list) and editing the details under ##DATA to match what another provider wants.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, thats exactly what it says two posts above yours from a week ago.
jhgas said:
I´m in Mexico, and I have a Hero woking here with data. So far it´s 1x, but I only worked on it for about 3 hours. After this long weekend (we have monday off here) I´ll get to work on it to make Ev work.
Don´t lose heart It´ll get there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
any luck jhgas?
"Broadband Workaround Trick"
Hey guys!
I'm new to the Hero (CDMA Sprint flashed to Cricket) and Android. Totally new. I'm no stranger to Windows Mobile though, I've been a pretty intense user and contributor to development on the Axim x51v. Thought it was time to update though, and here I am.
Now, I've googled my butt off (which is going to make it tough to poop later, for sure), and I just can't find much detail or step by step info on how to get internet access working on this thing other than Wifi.
I have phone/text, and I also bought a Cricket Broadband plan to go along with it.
My phone is not rooted, not unlocked, unless this was part of what they did at the Cricket store to get my Hero flashed to Cricket.
I've read some mentions in google searches about a way to use my Broadband service through my phone... but I need some step by step info on how to do this. Can anyone help? What would be handy, as a somewhat savvy noob, would be prerequisites, instructions, and info I'll need to do this.
Thanks in advance if anyone can help, and I apologize in advance if I didn't google well enough before asking... although I definitely gave it a damn good shot before asking for help!
I've never tried it, so i don't know, but i have flashed a lot of WM phones to cricket with working mms and WAP. I would think you could get the internet to work by entering first changing your msl to 000000 and then just entering in all the correct settings in your EPST like you would a windows mobile phone?
cricket wap on hero
the phone has built in proxy support so u can download anycut from the market and input "wap.mycricket.com" and "8080" in the proxy settings. however most of the internet apps dont work, but the browser does. i believe the broadband hack or possibly the html plan will help in getting the internet apps to work but havent tried yet
htc hero wap no working
.i have a sprint htc hero that had cellular south on it now its flashed to cricket.the only thing working is calling.can you walk me through getting internet.i belive my wap setting are set up,but when i try and connect to mobile network it says "standbye for connecting to mobile network then connecting and keeps repeating"i have read that iv got to root the phone.iv been trying to root with no success.and hepl please .ty
htc hero cricket
please help dont want to try anything till im shure .lol
its actually possible. my friend works for cricket and got a sprint branded touch pro working. he just has voice and mms. but its a start i guess. i needs my data lol.
so why would you want a hero that only half the features work on?
i have an htc hero...i live in laredo tx..if anyone knows how i can flash this cell phone to cricket please let me know..they have told me that they dont have the software to do so..please HELP ME!!! *TeAr* and where did u guyz flash it so i can go overthere if i cant do to here....
yourmanstan said:
for those who may be interested...it is possible to have your hero flashed to work on the Cricket network. it may not be for everyone, but i couldn't resist the lure of $40/mo unlimited everything with no contract. (saves around $1,000+ over the life of the contract)
here's what i did:
-buy cdma hero on ebay
-go to a cricket store and ask them to activate the phone
-usually the rep will "know a guy" who can work with htc (try a few stores or call around)
-they may charge you $30 or so to flash it and its working
wireless data, visual voicemail, and mms dont' work...but they expect to get them working soon (phone is only a few weeks old at this point)... and where i'm at, i almost always have wifi and don't care about vm or mms.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
hey please let me know where you flashed your htc hero....i will go to whereever to do so..LoL...im in laredo i think wer r not dat advanced n all this **** of flashing cell phones...
Some strange events happened to me yesterday. I've had my g1 since december of 2008. I bought it off someone at craigslist because I am on a AT&T family plan and didn't want to switch carriers. I unlocked the phone soon after and have been using my phone happily since then. I also do no have a data plan and make sure to remove all APN information after each flash.
I have been happily flashing roms going from 1.1 to 1.5 and to 1.6. Lately I was using "NonSense Cupcake revolution" but yesterday I decided to update to cyanogen 5. Right after the upgrade, I got a text from AT&T congratulating me on my new smartphone and telling me that I now need a data plan. 10 minutes later we found out that AT&T deactivated all our sim cards and none of my family were able to make phone calls.
Does anyone have any idea what the heck happened? How did AT&T know all of a sudden I was using a smartphone. Is there something about android 2.1 that raises a red flag? I really DO NOT want a data plan and will rather stop using my g1 than pay $350+/year on one. My current plan is to give them my old Nokia IMEI when I get my new SIM card and then pop it into my g1 after downgrading back to the 1.5 rom I was using.
Thanks for reading and I look forward to hearing your ideas.
Edit: New theory; found this elsewhere:
"Note: If an AT&T customer puts their SIM card into a Nexus One device, our smartphone data requirement policy and control rules will apply; this allows customers to enjoy the benefit of using data services from AT&T. The following welcome message will be delivered:
Your Smartphone is active! A data plan is required and if omitted, will be added to your account. For details, see your sales rep or att.com/smartphoneplans."
So AT&T thinks I put my sim in a nexus one so I think if I downgrade I should be fine. Any way to make a 2.1 rom look like a 1.6 one? build.prop maybe? I cant test anything myself until I get my new sim.
Call them and tell them you put your sim card in a borrowed phone lol. Push a build.prop from any 1.6 to change your id. For fun, open the build.prop with notepad and change g1 to Nokia 1100. If you don't use data they can't charge you
mejorguille said:
Call them and tell them you put your sim card in a borrowed phone lol. Push a build.prop from any 1.6 to change your id. For fun, open the build.prop with notepad and change g1 to Nokia 1100. If you don't use data they can't charge you
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ha we think alike; I told them exactly that yesterday. What value of the build.prop would I need to change to make it look like a nokia?
There you go=p I just changed every time it said dream, htc, or passion and changed it to nokia=p I don't think that market will work right though. You could try pushing the build.prop from a 1.6 build to cm5 but then i don't think video would work, so you will probably need to merge the 1.6 build.prop with the 2.1 build.prop.
Rename to build.prop and push to /system/
mejorguille said:
There you go=p I just changed every time it said dream, htc, or passion and changed it to nokia=p I don't think that market will work right though. You could try pushing the build.prop from a 1.6 build to cm5 but then i don't think video would work, so you will probably need to merge the 1.6 build.prop with the 2.1 build.prop.
Rename to build.prop and push to /system/
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks dude. I'll be sure to report back on Tuesday or Wednesday and tell you guys what happened.
Odd. I never had this issue.
I've been using my G1 with AT&T for some time now.
The update to 2.1 (CyanogenMod) didn't result in any variation for me.
Of course, I am using AT&T's "dumb-phone" unlimited internet... even still, there appears to be no indication on their side that I have a smart phone let alone a Nexus One.
Same with me. I am also using the $15 dumb phone data plan and a switch to CM5 did not trigger any notification from AT&T's side.
Quick update: I wussed out and flashed the backup I made of the 1.5 rom I was using. I didn't feel like risking getting "caught" again. I got to play with cyanogen's new rom for a few days and while great it did not drastically give me anything I didn't have before. I ended up giving them an old nokia imei as my phone and putting the new sim in my g1 shortly after. No texts forcing me to get a smartphone plan yet. I doubt I'm the only one that will have this problem so I'll just give a warning:
If you have AT&T with a g1 without any kind of data plan, after updating to android 2.1 they might try to force one on you.
Thanks for the help and ideas. I'll post again if they try to get me to get a plan again.
If AT&T actually offered 3G coverage in my area (a major city, imo) I might consider it. Otherwise, they can polish my knob.
This doesn't have anything to do with the version of android you are running. They can't detect that. They CAN detect your IMEI and compare it to the database to determine if it is a smartphone or not.
Alternatively, the thing tried to connect to a data service when you plugged your card into it, and they looked at the data and determined that it was consistent with a smartphone, i.e., dumbphones don't try to connect to google on port 5228.
Very likely the reason this happened so suddenly is one of the two things;
1) it corresponds to the end of their infinite data plans.
2) it corresponds to you "activating" your google account on your phone.
lbcoder said:
This doesn't have anything to do with the version of android you are running. They can't detect that. They CAN detect your IMEI and compare it to the database to determine if it is a smartphone or not.
Alternatively, the thing tried to connect to a data service when you plugged your card into it, and they looked at the data and determined that it was consistent with a smartphone, i.e., dumbphones don't try to connect to google on port 5228.
Very likely the reason this happened so suddenly is one of the two things;
1) it corresponds to the end of their infinite data plans.
2) it corresponds to you "activating" your google account on your phone.
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Click to collapse
Interesting. I'm not sure about the IMEI thing since it is a t-mobile phone runnning on an AT&T network. I just find it too much of a coincidence that the problem occured right after updating so I doubt its that. They also haven't reported anything since putting my new sim in my phone 2 days ago.
I guess you're right about them not knowing what version of android I'm running but there must be something in 2.1 that raised a red flag. I deleted an APN file from /system/ before I even booted the rom for the first time so I don't even think its possible that it tried to connect to them. Strange stuff.
d00m said:
Interesting. I'm not sure about the IMEI thing since it is a t-mobile phone runnning on an AT&T network.
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You don't think that ATT can read the IMEI from a phone sold by tmobile? I can guarantee that they can. Or if you're worried about ATT being able to link up an IMEI to a type of phone... they can link the IMEI to a lot more than that.... I'm not sure if you realize this, but the IMEI exists ***FOR A REASON*** and it isn't just to look pretty....
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Type_Allocation_Code
wikipedia said:
The Type Allocation Code (TAC) is a portion of the 15-digit IMEI code used to uniquely identify wireless devices.
The Type Allocation Code is an 8-digit number that identifies a particular model (and often revision) of wireless telephone for use on a GSM, UMTS, or other IMEI-supporting wireless network.
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Click to collapse
http://www.radioraiders.com/gsm-IMEI-TAC.php
I just find it too much of a coincidence that the problem occured right after updating so I doubt its that.
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The coincidence is that you happen to be updating your phone when ATT happened to be changing their policies.
They also haven't reported anything since putting my new sim in my phone 2 days ago.
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That's because they probably do it cyclically, or they put your account into a freeze period after a manual adjustment.
It may ALSO have related to rebooting the device -- connecting to their network that first time after they initiated a policy change may have triggered a routine.
I guess you're right about them not knowing what version of android I'm running but there must be something in 2.1 that raised a red flag. I deleted an APN file from /system/ before I even booted the rom for the first time so I don't even think its possible that it tried to connect to them. Strange stuff.
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Click to collapse
Nope. Nothing special in 2.1. In fact, it would be quite a security violation if it were to broadcast itself out to them.
So I guess it's only a matter of time before they detect my g1. Pitty since I was using my phone for over a year before all this happened. It's weird that they make you read out your IMEI to them while activating a sim card as if they can't see it. I'm just going to keep using my phone as is for as long as I can. The vibration on it no longer functions so I won't be supper crushed if I have to change phones to avoid a data plan.
I have 3-4 friends who have t-mobile branded blackberrys and android phones without a data plan on AT&T. Our school has wifi everywhere so it is truly unneeded. I guess their "check" cycle is fairly slow as none of them have had problems yet. Maybe the process isn't automated yet.
I really do appreciate the information although it's not exactly what I wanted to hear.
edit: http://androidandme.com/2010/06/carriers/att-introduces-new-lower-priced-tiered-data-plans-june-7th/
This isn't terrible. I can always do this but there's no rush I guess.
edit 2: Is it possible that an attempted apn connection (data) is what caused the detection? I said I deleted a file but looking back on it, it may not have been the correct one to prevent connections.
d00m said:
edit: http://androidandme.com/2010/06/carriers/att-introduces-new-lower-priced-tiered-data-plans-june-7th/
This isn't terrible. I can always do this but there's no rush I guess.
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Yep, that's what I was referring to.
edit 2: Is it possible that an attempted apn connection (data) is what caused the detection? I said I deleted a file but looking back on it, it may not have been the correct one to prevent connections.
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Click to collapse
It is possible.
Note that the rep you read the IMEI out to may NOT have had a read-out of the device model ID. In fact, doing that might freak some people out -- you know, the whole big brother knows too much thing.
Finally some resolution. Turns out a woman stole my mom's identity and went to a wal-mart and bought 5 blackberries under our AT&T account (probably to sell on the black market). Our SIMs where soon deactivated like I said in the OP and the smart phone text had to do with those phones rather than my phone. Upgrading to android 2.1 had NOTHING to do with it (of course). It was all just a coincidence. The strange thing is that AT&T never told us about these new numbers, even when we were reactivating our new SIMs, and we found out when checking our monthly bill.
Now we have to go to the wal-mart where the people committed fraud and try to find out who did it and file a police report. We might end up being charged $400 in deactivation fees. Well that's how it all went down. Funny. I upgraded to android 2.1 at 4:30 on that day and booted my phone at the EXACT moment they bought the fraud blackberries. Ugh. I know this is largely unrelated to android or my g1 but I thought I would let you guys know in case you were curious.
Sorry to hear about that. Your mom might have to pay the fees but as long as the individual(s) in question are found, you can always take civil action.
Surprised no one brought this up but, ATT and all the other services can't turn your service off just because you're using a smartphone and don't have a data plan. That is an optional addition to your monthly bill and as long as you are not using data, they can't charge you or force you to buy the data.
If you're dumb enough to sign a two year contract that requires a data charge monthly for the duration of the contract..well, yeah.
If the phones were added by someone other than the account owner, the service provider has no legal grounds to hold you accountable for it. Fact is that this was a failure in THEIR security and/or walmart's. The service provider should have some procedure to make sure that the person adding the phones is actually who they claim to be.
If not, then you sue ATT AND WALMART for this.
Posting here to see if anyone has heard or had this issue with their Sprint GS4. I'm currently on my *4th* GS4. The 1st phone picked up 4G perfectly and all was great until I had to change it out due to some issues (non reception related) and was given another GS4. From that phone on I have *NOT* been able to pull 4G at all. The next 2 phones were swapped out because of the inability to connect. During the hands free system setup the phone shows that it's picking up 4G just fine but as soon as the setup is over I'm sent right back to 3G and it stays there. Sprint has done EVERYTHING to the phone that they can and it still will not pull. It's not a 4G issue as we provisioned a brand new phone at the same time my GS4 was being set back up and the new GS4 picked up 4G just fine. I'm thinking there is something wrong with my account setup but tech support says they see everything as being ok. This has been going on for over a month now and I'm at wits end with Sprint not being able to correct this issue. Does anyone have an idea of what could be wrong that the phone does not pick up 4G? I have to call Sprint engineering again tomorrow so they can try and do more troubleshooting that most likely won't fix the issue. They all start out with the same excuse about 4G towers being down etc until they check and see that everything in my area is ok. If anyone has an idea of what could be wrong please let me know.
Thanks
Rico
Rican_S4 said:
Posting here to see if anyone has heard or had this issue with their Sprint GS4. I'm currently on my *4th* GS4. The 1st phone picked up 4G perfectly and all was great until I had to change it out due to some issues (non reception related) and was given another GS4. From that phone on I have *NOT* been able to pull 4G at all. The next 2 phones were swapped out because of the inability to connect. During the hands free system setup the phone shows that it's picking up 4G just fine but as soon as the setup is over I'm sent right back to 3G and it stays there. Sprint has done EVERYTHING to the phone that they can and it still will not pull. It's not a 4G issue as we provisioned a brand new phone at the same time my GS4 was being set back up and the new GS4 picked up 4G just fine. I'm thinking there is something wrong with my account setup but tech support says they see everything as being ok. This has been going on for over a month now and I'm at wits end with Sprint not being able to correct this issue. Does anyone have an idea of what could be wrong that the phone does not pick up 4G? I have to call Sprint engineering again tomorrow so they can try and do more troubleshooting that most likely won't fix the issue. They all start out with the same excuse about 4G towers being down etc until they check and see that everything in my area is ok. If anyone has an idea of what could be wrong please let me know.
Thanks
Rico
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Click to collapse
It;s a problem with the SIM card not being switched over right. They didn't do the transfer correctly when switching phones. If you could get your hands on your original SIM it would work. Since the SIMs are new to Sprint the "techs" are having issues when switching phones. It is a problem they need to reactivate the SIM or correctly switch it to your new phone in thew system.
---------- Post added at 07:20 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:17 PM ----------
I feel your pain and it's ridiculous that these Sprint employees aren't trained properly to deal with switching SIMs correctly in their system. But I guarantee thats your problem.
GiantJay said:
It;s a problem with the SIM card not being switched over right. They didn't do the transfer correctly when switching phones. If you could get your hands on your original SIM it would work. Since the SIMs are new to Sprint the "techs" are having issues when switching phones. It is a problem they need to reactivate the SIM or correctly switch it to your new phone in thew system.
---------- Post added at 07:20 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:17 PM ----------
I feel your pain and it's ridiculous that these Sprint employees aren't trained properly to deal with switching SIMs correctly in their system. But I guarantee thats your problem.
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Just out of curiosity, is there a checklist they are supposed to follow to do this or do they just do what they think is best?
GH0 said:
Just out of curiosity, is there a checklist they are supposed to follow to do this or do they just do what they think is best?
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Click to collapse
No idea I don't work for Sprint. But if there is a check list they don't follow it.
I'm not an employee but here's what I would suggest. Tell the tech, just to humor you and see if it corrects the problem, ask them nicely to assume all the information in their system is incorrect. Have them reprogram the phone completely and not use data they already have and assume it's correct. My thinking is that even though it looks okay to them, there could be something that is corrupted somewhere. If they do a full reprogram from square one, and the phone is still malfunctioning, then there's something wrong with the phone. By reprogramming from the very beginning, they can rule out that their data is incorrect somewhere along the line and determine it is the phone which is at fault. Process of elimination. Maybe their reprogramming can flush out the snafu and make the phone operate correctly? Have them assume the phone is totally borked with programming and needs to be redone completely. If that doesn't flush out whatever is wrong then I'd try a brand new s4 sim. If that doesn't work then I'd ask for a new virgin phone.
Now I wouldn't put it past Sprint to screw something up.. but it seems unlikely that the sim card and phone arent matched correctly. Sprint MEID and ICCID from sim card are tied together from the factory and put on a list... this is the list Sprint uses. If you asked Sprint what ICCID they have in the system that is paired with your phone MEID.. the two should match... and that would rule out the incorrect sim or improper setup. Unless they've asked you to keep the original sim card for whatever reason.. or a sim card that did not come with the phone.. I suspect that the MEID and ICCID in their system matches your info. You can confirm your ICCID by going to settings > more tab > about device > status.
another thing to confirm... you need your MSL/SPC.. go to ##DATA# hidden menu.. select "Edit".. scroll down to "more/others" then select "LTE APN Settings". How many APNs do you have listed in that menu? only 2? or 5? If you only have two.. then I'm 100% sure this is the issue and that for some reason or another the phone isnt being provisioned properly. If you have all 5... then it's not an APN issue. But if you do only have 2 apns listed... what I would do is hop on wifi... ##786# reset your device and try to activate over wifi after the phone reboots and erases itself. After the phone activates.. it will attempt to also upgrade PRL... and maybe even check for firmware. It may also even start to do another reset. Don't interrupt anything and just let it do its thing(while being on wifi the entire time).
If you can update anything I've asked about that may help.
GiantJay said:
It;s a problem with the SIM card not being switched over right. They didn't do the transfer correctly when switching phones. If you could get your hands on your original SIM it would work. Since the SIMs are new to Sprint the "techs" are having issues when switching phones. It is a problem they need to reactivate the SIM or correctly switch it to your new phone in thew system.
---------- Post added at 07:20 PM ---------- Previous post was at 07:17 PM ----------
I feel your pain and it's ridiculous that these Sprint employees aren't trained properly to deal with switching SIMs correctly in their system. But I guarantee thats your problem.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've been on the phone with some higher level engineering tech support 3 times today and They had me try all sorts of new things. There was no SIM swapping on any of the phones that I've had. There is no way to get the original SIM as it was 3 phones ago and that one was swapped in a different state. I'll see what they think about it being a SIM issue though.
oscarthegrouch said:
I'm not an employee but here's what I would suggest. Tell the tech, just to humor you and see if it corrects the problem, ask them nicely to assume all the information in their system is incorrect. Have them reprogram the phone completely and not use data they already have and assume it's correct. My thinking is that even though it looks okay to them, there could be something that is corrupted somewhere. If they do a full reprogram from square one, and the phone is still malfunctioning, then there's something wrong with the phone. By reprogramming from the very beginning, they can rule out that their data is incorrect somewhere along the line and determine it is the phone which is at fault. Process of elimination. Maybe their reprogramming can flush out the snafu and make the phone operate correctly? Have them assume the phone is totally borked with programming and needs to be redone completely. If that doesn't flush out whatever is wrong then I'd try a brand new s4 sim. If that doesn't work then I'd ask for a new virgin phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
We've done this several times. I was at a Sprint store on Saturday for over 4 hours as we provisioned a brand new out of the box phone which is what I have right now. New phones were pulling 4G 100% and this one would only pull during the hands free provisioning then jump right back to 3G once it was all done. I know it's something in my account settings somewhere but nobody can seem to figure it out. We even tried to set me up with a non LTE phone and then swap back to the new S4 and nothing worked.
autoprime said:
Now I wouldn't put it past Sprint to screw something up.. but it seems unlikely that the sim card and phone arent matched correctly. Sprint MEID and ICCID from sim card are tied together from the factory and put on a list... this is the list Sprint uses. If you asked Sprint what ICCID they have in the system that is paired with your phone MEID.. the two should match... and that would rule out the incorrect sim or improper setup. Unless they've asked you to keep the original sim card for whatever reason.. or a sim card that did not come with the phone.. I suspect that the MEID and ICCID in their system matches your info. You can confirm your ICCID by going to settings > more tab > about device > status.
another thing to confirm... you need your MSL/SPC.. go to ##DATA# hidden menu.. select "Edit".. scroll down to "more/others" then select "LTE APN Settings". How many APNs do you have listed in that menu? only 2? or 5? If you only have two.. then I'm 100% sure this is the issue and that for some reason or another the phone isnt being provisioned properly. If you have all 5... then it's not an APN issue. But if you do only have 2 apns listed... what I would do is hop on wifi... ##786# reset your device and try to activate over wifi after the phone reboots and erases itself. After the phone activates.. it will attempt to also upgrade PRL... and maybe even check for firmware. It may also even start to do another reset. Don't interrupt anything and just let it do its thing(while being on wifi the entire time).
If you can update anything I've asked about that may help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was confirmed today that the MEID and ICCID are 100% matched up. The 3rd person to call me and work on the issue had me check all of it and it's correct. I will have to try the ##DATA## and the rest tomorrow as I don't get service in my house (I have to use an airvana that is horrible) Once I get to work I'd be able to attempt. I will say that we've tried the entire reset and doing it on Wifi but I still only ever pull 3G after everything is said and done.
Did you pay the $10 data fee?
joe.stay said:
Did you pay the $10 data fee?
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yup! That $10 has bought me a 497ms ping, 791kbps download and a 173kbps upload. I feel like I've won the lotto
So the phone sucks ass with the 3G here and I can't access 4G. Looking at the contract to see what I can find about them breaching their commitment.
Rican_S4 said:
yup! That $10 has bought me a 497ms ping, 791kbps download and a 173kbps upload. I feel like I've won the lotto
So the phone sucks ass with the 3G here and I can't access 4G. Looking at the contract to see what I can find about them breaching their commitment.
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Click to collapse
Data speeds aren't guaranteed. It clearly states that in your contract, or I have a feeling Sprint would have been bankrupt by now.
Sent from my Sprint Galaxy S4 using Tapatalk 2
Think you could get a higher level tech on the phone maybe that could practically wipe your account completely blank and start all over? I don't remember, I might have suggested this. What if they could make a new account for you? They might have to change your number but maybe the bug is buried so deep in your settings in their computers that they can't find it.
GiantJay said:
Data speeds aren't guaranteed. It clearly states that in your contract, or I have a feeling Sprint would have been bankrupt by now.
Sent from my Sprint Galaxy S4 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not talking about a breach of contract due to speeds. More so the lack of resolving the issue for a prolonged period of time.
oscarthegrouch said:
Think you could get a higher level tech on the phone maybe that could practically wipe your account completely blank and start all over? I don't remember, I might have suggested this. What if they could make a new account for you? They might have to change your number but maybe the bug is buried so deep in your settings in their computers that they can't find it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've suggested a complete wipe if the account and was told that's not possible. Changing my number is not a possibility. I have another call with tech today at 11 and hopefully someone can figure out what's going on. Wiping the phone over and over sure isn't fixing anything.
Rican_S4 said:
Not talking about a breach of contract due to speeds. More so the lack of resolving the issue for a prolonged period of time.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Good luck.
Sent from my Sprint Galaxy S4 using Tapatalk 2
Reactivation dial code is ##72786#, I had the same problem the sprint tech couldnt get 4g, so I hung up on her and rebooted my phone into 3g and let it reactivate and worked, does the trick
Sent from my SPH-L720 using XDA Premium HD app
same
That also happend to me but it stayed like that for 2 weeks the renstalled the mf9 update then it satarted working for me it has to do with the system file
GiantJay said:
Good luck.
Sent from my Sprint Galaxy S4 using Tapatalk 2
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Click to collapse
The lady in retention was really nice and 100% on my side about the issues since it was all thoroughly documented. I was given the ok to port my # away if I choose to.
gotablunt said:
Reactivation dial code is ##72786#, I had the same problem the sprint tech couldnt get 4g, so I hung up on her and rebooted my phone into 3g and let it reactivate and worked, does the trick
Sent from my SPH-L720 using XDA Premium HD app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unfortunately we've tried all of that and it still will never pull up 4G.