I'm a bit confused with all the different bands and the regional lock, sim card locks, model numbers, etc.
I got this phone while away in Thailand and was hoping to use it back in Canada. The only companies with decent plans here seem to require the 1700 band which isn't listed as a supported one on the N900 by default, but I see that other models can be made to work on it even though they don't list it either.
Is there any way to use the SM-N900 (International Exynos version) on Wind Mobile?
If not, what other options are there in Canada for ~$40 with usable data allowances?
Related
Hi,
I am kinda new to the android phone and need some advice about Samsung Vibrant.
Is it possible to fully use the phone, including HSPA, after unlock in other countries, such as Singapore ?
Anybody has ever tried this ?
Btw, I am on M1 network.
I understand there's difference in GSM band and 3G band among countries.
Personally I prefer Samsung Vibrant than the Singapore's Galaxy S I9000 because it's relatively cheaper (no secondary camera, which I don't need), and it has 4 soft buttons.
Thanks for your advice.
From what I can tell, it appears that M1 in Singapore uses the 2100/1900 bands for down/up. This is very typical of most European mobile phones, and luckily, all the T-Mobile US 3g smartphones also include these frequencies.
So simply, yes, it will (from what it appears with the info I can find) work on the 3g networks in your home country.
I am typing this from Singapore on my unlocked vibrant, using a local prepaid SIM from Starhub. 3g speeds are great.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Hi,
Thank you all for the quick reply, it's really helpful
T-Mobile Vibrant here in Japan on NTT Docomo with H and 3G working like a charm.
Wow its been a long time since I've been here! I see all of you are still busy!
... so basically, I'm going to buy an S4, but I'm not sure WHICH I should buy ... and I'm not sure where I should put this question since all the models are spread all over the place, but since I'm in Canada I thought this place would be a good start :laugh:
So basically, from what I've seen, the AT&T (i337) model is quite limited in out-the-box bands, and also has a locked bootloader. From what I've come up with, digging through information about all the models and Canadian carriers, is that the two best models for use in Canada seem to be the I337M and the T-Mobile M919 ... I really wanted a Samsung branded phone, but it seems if I get the I9505 I'll be missing out on a whole bunch of radio bands ... from what I've seen however, the unlocked I337M has no branding on it though ...
So basically what I've come up with is that both the T-Mobile M919 and the Canadian I337M both have unlocked bootloaders ... and they all run on the same GSM freq.
Someone please correct me if I'm wrong here, but, it looks to me like both the M919 and the I337M also share the same LTE bands, which are LTE 700MHz (Band 17) / 850MHz (Band 5) / 1900MHz (Band 2) / 2100MHz (Band 1) / AWS (Band 4) / 2600MHz (Band 7)
(my sources are http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones/SGH-M919ZKATMB-specs and http://www.pdaplaza.ca/products/Samsung-Galaxy-S4-SGH%2dI337M-16GB--Black-Mist,-Unlocked.html - I can't seem to find a reliable source for the LTE bands the I337M has ... on samsungs website it has a * Dependent on market and nobody seems to list straight up specs for the I337M ... actually it lists a completely different set of LTE bands which I'm pretty sure is wrong ... they list 1800 instead of 1700 and 800 instead of 700 which I know is incorrect for Rogers at least)
It looks to me, like the only real difference between the I337M and the M919 is that the M919 has a AWS (1700) 3G radio band, and the I337M has a 900mhz 3G radio band instead of the AWS band ... however, I ALSO have read that the AWS band on the I337M can be enabled (again, correct me if I'm wrong!)
If everything that I have read through is correct, it would seem to me like the I337M would be the 'ultimate' North American model, supporting more frequency bands than any other version (besides maybe the i9505 which lacks some bands I would probably need) ... unless its actually possible to somehow unlock all these bands on every version, and I just didn't get that deep into reading about hacking these phones yet ...
If I got something wrong here please let me know ... I would like to buy one soon and start flashing it
Thanks!
Lets put it an easy way, if I had the choice again, I would have not got the att galaxy s4 us version, I would have got the Canadian S4 i337m. My opinion only.
Or the Google Edition but its going to run you like 700-800$
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I337 using xda app-developers app
If you're in Canada why not buy the i337m?
My i337M is completely unbranded once I installed a custom ROM and I managed to enable the AWS. Unlocking it has been a different story though :/
Well ... I just want the phone that has the most bands (its not really a cheap phone!), I'd like to get as much as I can for my money. I honestly have no idea if all the North American models have the same radio hardware or not, but at least on Samsungs website, they list the I337 (AT&T) with many less bands than the T-Mobile M919.
Funny enough, on Rogers website it lists the I337M only having 2100/2600 as the LTE bands, but on Bell/Telus it lits the I337M as having 700MHz/ 850MHz/1900MHz/2100MHz/AWS/2600MHz
It seems silly to me to actually manufacture different radio hardware for all the different North American models ... considering they almost all use the same bands except some exclude some, and there is one different one (3G AWS on M919 vs 900Mhz 3G on I337M)
I wouldn't get the AT&T US version ... as far as I know nobody has been able to unlock the bootloader. But apparently the M919 isn't locked.
I considered the Google Edition, but as someone said, it will run 700-800 (and you can't 'officially' get it in Canada)
Anyways, I found an unlocked I337M and I believe it is also unbranded ... so I bought it. If its not, I'll just flash it
I still am curious as to what they actually do with the radios though ... if they actually use different hardware or just lock the bands in the firmware (I'll take a guess the international I9505 actually has different hardware, though)
I think it would cost Samsung more to design different radio hardware for all the different North American providers (considering they almost all run the same/lots of overlapping bands) than just putting firmware locks?
ph03nix said:
Well ... I just want the phone that has the most bands (its not really a cheap phone!), I'd like to get as much as I can for my money. I honestly have no idea if all the North American models have the same radio hardware or not, but at least on Samsungs website, they list the I337 (AT&T) with many less bands than the T-Mobile M919.
Funny enough, on Rogers website it lists the I337M only having 2100/2600 as the LTE bands, but on Bell/Telus it lits the I337M as having 700MHz/ 850MHz/1900MHz/2100MHz/AWS/2600MHz
It seems silly to me to actually manufacture different radio hardware for all the different North American models ... considering they almost all use the same bands except some exclude some, and there is one different one (3G AWS on M919 vs 900Mhz 3G on I337M)
I wouldn't get the AT&T US version ... as far as I know nobody has been able to unlock the bootloader. But apparently the M919 isn't locked.
I considered the Google Edition, but as someone said, it will run 700-800 (and you can't 'officially' get it in Canada)
Anyways, I found an unlocked I337M and I believe it is also unbranded ... so I bought it. If its not, I'll just flash it
I still am curious as to what they actually do with the radios though ... if they actually use different hardware or just lock the bands in the firmware (I'll take a guess the international I9505 actually has different hardware, though)
I think it would cost Samsung more to design different radio hardware for all the different North American providers (considering they almost all run the same/lots of overlapping bands) than just putting firmware locks?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I337m has all the radio bands, handles the lowest CPU voltages while still being stable... has an unlocked bootloader, and simply kicks butt.
Simple modem firmware flash fixes any location specific, and in my case, non-existant radio band issue.
Sent from my Galaxy S4 i337m
As far as I know, Verizon is using the N900V on their network which requires CDMA band.
I bought a SM-N900W8 from Telus Canada and after having it unlocked, I was unable to have it registered under my Verizon account.
So, not wanting to pay the outragious roaming price that we have from our greedy Canadian Carriers, I purchased an AT&T Pay as you GO sim card.
TaDa!!!!
This is due to the use by Verizon of CDMA band which isn't supported by most Canadian Cellphone that requires at least WCDMA OR LTE/GSM Band.
So, if you're planning to travel the USA and are looking to get an American SIM Card, most likely, verizon will not be an option for you (they're expensive anyway)
AT & T and T - mobile supports the GSM as far as I know.
??
Im finding out that having an unlocked android phone is better than having a branded one that you are stuck with which is why I plan on getting a Factory unlocked Note 3, but, I have some issues that I cannot seem to figure out. To me, factory unlocked on a device means unlocked for use with any carrier AND no carrier branding on or in the device, which is exactly the kind of Note 3 im looking for, but having a hard time finding it. Dose anyone know what model note 3 is truly factory unlocked, no carrier branding??
1. SM-N9000 3G = International/Made for Travelers: This is the international model. This one has a dual quad core processor running at 1.9 GHz Cortex/1.3 GHz A7. The reason for the processor being change is because this phone is meant to work everywhere their is a GSM signal and kicks threw the different processors to maximize signal strength. The N9000 CAN NOT to 4G speeds of any kind. This is due to most country not having 4G signal and that a lot of county's run on different cell frequencies. By removing the 4G radios this phone can pick up way more cell frequencies then the other models. This phone is not made for people looking for Data speed this is made for travelers whom want a reliable way to have cell service no matter where they are. Don't despair about the data or processing speed this phone still has Wi-Fi connection available and can breeze though 3D games; you shouldn't even notice a speed difference when doing tasks.
2. SM-N9005 4G LTE = European Model/International: This model contains the regular 2.3 GHz Snapdragon Processor. This phone unless unlocked is Region locked to only European SIM cards, after unlocked their is no region lock. Although this phone is an LTE phone it can only get LTE frequencies while in Europe. When you take this phone out of Europe it will get international signals but will not get LTE, when this phone is in the USA is will get H+ (Reference above) signal maximum.
3. SM-N9002 3G = China Model/Select Counties: This model is not LTE or 4G compatible. This was the First generation of the Note 3 released and is considered the Beta. With all the same hardware as the LTE version this phone will still preform flawless tasks.
4. SM-N900W8 4G LTE = China Model/Select Counties: This model will only get LTE in select counties and I advise you check with your service provider to see what signal you will be getting. This model is completely subjective as to what frequencies of LTE you will be about to get. Example: Imagine you are in Europe and you are in a city and get LTE. Then you move to another city and you lose LTE this is because the first city runs on an LTE frequency the the phone can get but the second city although may offer LTE to most cell phone; does not offer LTE on a frequency this phone can't run on.
5. SM-N900A 4G LTE = USA AT&T/Worldwide: This phone is International but you need to consult AT&T to see if you city or county can get LTE service or not. This phone once unlocked will work on Straight Talk, Solavei, T-Mobile, and any other GSM based network. Note: When using T-Moble, Solavei, or other services that piggy-back on the T-Mobile towers you can get LTE service but depending on your area you may not get 3G. If you live in a 3G area consult your carrier to see is the frequencies for 3G match up with this phone. (This review for the AT&T model can change at anytime due to AT&T's bootloader)
6. SM-N900T 4G LTE = USA T-Mobile: This phone when unlocked can get all USA frequencies. Example: You will have no problems using a AT&T SIM card with this phone and even get 4G LTE threw any service whom provides is. The N900T model is the most versatile model out of them all and if you plan on getting one I recommend going to a T-Mobile store and purchasing this model outright. Unlocking this phone is easily done threw calling T-Mobile and even using YouTube for an unlocking video.
micxploed said:
...
6. SM-N900T 4G LTE = USA T-Mobile: This phone when unlocked can get all USA frequencies ...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Just to clarify - N900T can NOT get LTE from Sprint or Verizon.
micxploed said:
...
SM-N900W8 4G LTE = China Model/Select Counties
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
W8 is mostly used by some major Canadian companies and Telcel in Mexico.
First of all there are more models: Sprint and Verizon come to mind just for US market. Second of all, as far as I know all US models are carrier locked, some are easier to unlock than others but still. Third of all, my t-mobile phone had 18 entries under region lock, so I think it had been region locked at least in some places, easy to fix with region unlock, never the less not really factory unlocked. Only few markets get phones without region lock (China is one of them), but the biggest issue IMO is frequencies. It doesn't matter if your phone is locked or not, if you don't match all frequencies for all the places you'll be using it, it will fail sometimes and since no model has all frequencies, you have to go case by case, there is no best phone for all. For example above mentioned t-mo will not work on Verizon or Sprint at all, where Verizon and Sprint phones will work, at least on some T-mo towers.
Best version for AT&T?
Would then the "best" (allow custom ROMS) version for AT&T be SM-N900A ?
I've decided to jump fully over to Android and would like to get a Note 3.
Really trying not to ask a question that has already been asked, however, I'm having a hard time figuring out which version to purchase.
Thanks!
help please! Does anyone know which version samsung s5 works in s. korea and in US? any provider is fine.. (verizon, att, tmobile)
I am not very familiar with bandwidth and cell receptions. any contribution will be appreciated:good::good:
I brought my S5 from Korea to the U.S. From what I remember of my research it all depends on the carriers you want to use here and in Korea. I have T-mobile in the states and used a 900L variant through LG U+ in Korea. The bands available in this phone allows me to get perfect LTE in Korea. However, since bringing it back in the states I only get partial coverage. I am only able to get 3G. It's not ideal in my situation, but I am not worried about it. I recommend trying to figure out the available variants in Korea and the US and see which bands overlap the most.