Greetings, I can't seem to find a definite answer or guide to this. I have a sprint galaxy s4 and once my contract was up I was looking to get off sprint and onto another contract, looking at verizon as my friends happen with them. I know they both use cdma. If I have them unlock the phone, can it be brought over and used that easily? If not, what must I do? Custom root? Find a verizon s4 motherboard with clean esn? I'm willing to do it to not spend a few hundred bucks on a new phone. I'd liketo give it to my mother and get the s6 for myself when it comes out.
Man, I'm 0 for 2 here. Anything?
bump?
Another bump. Can anyone help me?
94 views, not a peep. I thought these forums were active and helpful? Perhaps not?
All of my research leads me to believe I'd need to get a verizon logicboard with a clean esn. Maybe I can trade for one, but I would like some confirmation before I spend the 80 bucks or so. Thanks.
Dabba87 said:
Greetings, I can't seem to find a definite answer or guide to this. I have a sprint galaxy s4 and once my contract was up I was looking to get off sprint and onto another contract, looking at verizon as my friends happen with them. I know they both use cdma. If I have them unlock the phone, can it be brought over and used that easily? If not, what must I do? Custom root? Find a verizon s4 motherboard with clean esn? I'm willing to do it to not spend a few hundred bucks on a new phone. I'd liketo give it to my mother and get the s6 for myself when it comes out.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
is your phone still locked on sprint?
xDroidZz said:
is your phone still locked on sprint?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hello DroidZ,
It is. I was planning to have them unlock it. But I heard that though both are CDMA, I wouldnt have full 4g with it. I was contemplating buying a verizon (or any other carrier's logic board that I would switch to) and sell my sprint board.
Of course I'd need a clean esn right?
Another bump. Does the lack of responses mean it's harder than a logical board swap?
bump again
Bump
You can use the Sprint S4 on Verizon, assuming it's possible for you to unlock it from Sprint's network, but LTE will never work. Verizon uses standard LTE frequencies (750 & 1700MHz) while Sprint uses "Extended PCS", i.e. Spark. Totally different technologies.
You'll need a new phone to take full advantage of Verizon infrastructure, which unfortunately means dealing with an encrypted (locked) bootloader.
Strephon Alkhalikoi said:
You can use the Sprint S4 on Verizon, assuming it's possible for you to unlock it from Sprint's network, but LTE will never work. Verizon uses standard LTE frequencies (750 & 1700MHz) while Sprint uses "Extended PCS", i.e. Spark. Totally different technologies.
You'll need a new phone to take full advantage of Verizon infrastructure, which unfortunately means dealing with an encrypted (locked) bootloader.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Greetings,
Does that mean swapping the logic board with a verizon version won't fix the LTE problem? So I'd get normal 4g? I suppose I could try it. Couldnt deal with 3G. I guess I'm asking if there are any parts I could swap out to fix the problem or if I'm just screwed.
Thanks man.
Dabba
If you have a Sprint phone, you cannot simply purchase a Verizon motherboard and replace the Sprint motherboard with it. Why it won't work is because the design of the two motherboards is sufficiently different that if you tried it the Verizon motherboard wouldn't fit in the midframe.
In simpler language, you're screwed. You need a new phone if you want LTE. Whether that is a new phone from Verizon or a used device off Swappa is irrelevant, so long as the MEID is clear.
Hmm, I didnt know the motherboards were actually different. That sucks, I assumed they were more like computers. Oh well, thanks for the info though, now I know!
Again, thanks a bunch
Related
I got a Galaxy S4 for AT&T cheap so cheap I just bought to play with. Any way to make it work on my provider verizon? Can I reflash the modem, rom, activate it change the sim or something to make it work? Or should I just turn it in to a small tablet for my son. lol
hunterboy2011 said:
I got a Galaxy S4 for AT&T cheap so cheap I just bought to play with. Any way to make it work on my provider verizon? Can I reflash the modem, rom, activate it change the sim or something to make it work? Or should I just turn it in to a small tablet for my son. lol
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I dont think u can use that as verizon is CDMA and at&t is gsm
That is correct. CDMA phones and GSM phones are not interchangeable. Neither will work on the other network. If there is nothing wrong with the phone, you could always just sell it on eBay or somewhere, and given the going rate for the S4 now, you should be able to get enough money to buy a Verizon one easily. That would be a very expensive "mini-tablet" for your son. :silly:
shuddle13 said:
That is correct. CDMA phones and GSM phones are not interchangeable. Neither will work on the other network. If there is nothing wrong with the phone, you could always just sell it on eBay or somewhere, and given the going rate for the S4 now, you should be able to get enough money to buy a Verizon one easily. That would be a very expensive "mini-tablet" for your son. :silly:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Partially true. You can use a Verizon GS3/Note 2/iPhone 5 on GSM with some simple mods. To the |OP|, I would recommend putting it on swappa.com, XDA's official marketplace. Good, honest members are willing to pay top dollar for a clean phone.
I wasn't aware of that - in regards to the GS3/Note 2/iPhone 5. Thanks for clarifying!
Sent from my SCH-I545 using Tapatalk 4 Beta
I broke my sprint phone, but I can upgrade to a new phone now on Sprint. I want to use the Sprint One Up Plan for a bit, then leave the contract since I don't believe it has a contract. I plan on using the G2 as my replacement. I want to move to T-Mobile later, and I know the G2 can be used on Sprint. I also have read here that the G2 comes factory locked by Sprint, and Sprint will one unlock it for international use. Is there something that I could flash to the G2 to allow me to use it on T-Mobile when I switch?
Basically, how can I use domestic USA GSM on a Sprint LG G2?
I will at least root and unlock the phone internationally first anyway, since I need to use outside of the country. Flashing ROMs and things like that is not a problem for me.
ashraj98 said:
I broke my sprint phone, but I can upgrade to a new phone now on Sprint. I want to use the Sprint One Up Plan for a bit, then leave the contract since I don't believe it has a contract. I plan on using the G2 as my replacement. I want to move to T-Mobile later, and I know the G2 can be used on Sprint. I also have read here that the G2 comes factory locked by Sprint, and Sprint will one unlock it for international use. Is there something that I could flash to the G2 to allow me to use it on T-Mobile when I switch?
Basically, how can I use domestic USA GSM on a Sprint LG G2?
I will at least root and unlock the phone internationally first anyway, since I need to use outside of the country. Flashing ROMs and things like that is not a problem for me.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No this will not work at all.. T mobile and Sprint G2's are completely different.. If you want to move to T mobile, move.. Otherwise stay with sprint!
Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app
Sean473 said:
No this will not work at all.. T mobile and Sprint G2's are completely different.. If you want to move to T mobile, move.. Otherwise stay with sprint!
Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I saw this dicussion: http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2524771
Is it possible, after I finish with Sprint, I could flash the firmware and modem of T-Mobile's G2?
Would any of those unlock codes for the IMEI work, since it supports GSM?
Thats risky due to the fact that tmo uses different bands than sprint plus the radio waves are different and sprint is gsm and tmo is cdma
tbishop91 said:
Thats risky due to the fact that tmo uses different bands than sprint plus the radio waves are different and sprint is gsm and tmo is cdma
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sprint is CDMA and T-Mobile is GSM...
Anyway, I know the G2 supports all of the bands, so I don't see why this can't happen. Sprint has just locked away the domestic GSM capabilities. Why is flashing theT-Mobile modem such a risk then? WOuld I be able to flash it back?
ashraj98 said:
Sprint is CDMA and T-Mobile is GSM...
Anyway, I know the G2 supports all of the bands, so I don't see why this can't happen. Sprint has just locked away the domestic GSM capabilities. Why is flashing theT-Mobile modem such a risk then? WOuld I be able to flash it back?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sorry always get that bavkwards the issue is with two things the radio, which you said you could flash the modem no problem. Then the biggest issue is the sim card now im not sure if the sprint variant has a sim card slot. But from what my buddy has told me who is a tmobile phone tech they dont have away to enable your service with out the sim card. For some reason they dont do their services like most carriers and just use the phones imei number to set service. If im wrong im sorry and hopefully you can get everything switched. And thank you for the imformation i did not know the g2 has all bands hidden inside the phone. I was just worried that the radio bands would get you. And to answer your question yes you can always just flash them back.
tbishop91 said:
Sorry always get that bavkwards the issue is with two things the radio, which you said you could flash the modem no problem. Then the biggest issue is the sim card now im not sure if the sprint variant has a sim card slot. But from what my buddy has told me who is a tmobile phone tech they dont have away to enable your service with out the sim card. For some reason they dont do their services like most carriers and just use the phones imei number to set service. If im wrong im sorry and hopefully you can get everything switched. And thank you for the imformation i did not know the g2 has all bands hidden inside the phone. I was just worried that the radio bands would get you. And to answer your question yes you can always just flash them back.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No problem. If I helped give me my first thank you. I'm going to go to the Sprint Store soon and see what they say. The Nexus 5 seems to be compatible with any carrier, but I like the G2 just a bit better. Sprint has a help topic regarding replacing the SIM , so that is not an issue. Hopefully someone else can tell me if the G2 can have a different modem flashed.
I don't want to take any unneccessary risks flashing, because that is what broke my last two Sprint phones lol.
ashraj98 said:
No problem. If I helped give me my first thank you. I'm going to go to the Sprint Store soon and see what they say. The Nexus 5 seems to be compatible with any carrier, but I like the G2 just a bit better. Sprint has a help topic regarding replacing the SIM , so that is not an issue. Hopefully someone else can tell me if the G2 can have a different modem flashed.
I don't want to take any unneccessary risks flashing, because that is what broke my last two Sprint phones lol.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok so i was wrong it looks like the spring g2 does have a sim spot so all you have to do is 1 get unlock.from sprint 2 flash required firmware and modem and radio files 3 go tothe phones dailer and dail*#*#4636#*#*. This will bring up the menu shown inscreen shot. Switch your current band from evdo to what is shown in the screen shot and bam sprint branded tmo phone if i help at all pls return the favor with the thanks.
tbishop91 said:
Ok so i was wrong it looks like the spring g2 does have a sim spot so all you have to do is 1 get unlock.from sprint 2 flash required firmware and modem and radio files 3 go tothe phones dailer and dail*#*#4636#*#*. This will bring up the menu shown inscreen shot. Switch your current band from evdo to what is shown in the screen shot and bam sprint branded tmo phone if i help at all pls return the favor with the thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So where do I get the files? And can you confirm this has a good chance of succeeding?
It will not work.. Sprint doesn't unlock the phone for domestic US GSM carriers and the 2 models for Sprint and T-Mobile are completely different. You flash anything like the radios and you'll have a massive brick. If you want to move between carriers, get the Nexus 5.
Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app
Sean473 said:
It will not work.. Sprint doesn't unlock the phone for domestic US GSM carriers and the 2 models for Sprint and T-Mobile are completely different. You flash anything like the radios and you'll have a massive brick. If you want to move between carriers, get the Nexus 5.
Sent from my LG-D802 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Sprint and Tmo both confirmed yesterday that this is possible
,
ashraj98 said:
So where do I get the files? And can you confirm this has a good chance of succeeding?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As far as the files go I can search here for a thread. And I'm sorry man I will not confirm for you the chance of success because any thing can happen but before you do any thing I recommend you talk to both sprint and tmo in your area
You will not get domestic GSM service with Sprint atm. Hang it up until a solution if any will come. Even after that, it will never be fully compatible with Tmob bands. I love/hate Verizon.
tbishop91 said:
Sprint and Tmo both confirmed yesterday that this is possible
,
As far as the files go I can search here for a thread. And I'm sorry man I will not confirm for you the chance of success because any thing can happen but before you do any thing I recommend you talk to both sprint and tmo in your area
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Really? That's weird that Sprint would say that. What exactly did they say?
MetroPCS
I just flashed my ls 980 to Metro they just got bought out by T mobile!!!
ashraj98 said:
Really? That's weird that Sprint would say that. What exactly did they say?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They said and i quote just call customer service and have them unlock the phone. Once the phone is unlocked you can flash to a different carrier but you have to know what your doing.
tbishop91 said:
They said and i quote just call customer service and have them unlock the phone. Once the phone is unlocked you can flash to a different carrier but you have to know what your doing.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I may just do that, or now I could go with T-Mobile. They are buying out 2-year contracts now (a.k.a they pay your early termination fee). That is sweettttttt!
ashraj98 said:
Well I may just do that, or now I could go with T-Mobile. They are buying out 2-year contracts now (a.k.a they pay your early termination fee). That is sweettttttt!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah man I have tmo and I love them but if you go to tmo make sure to sign up for jump because the lg flex has been confirmed for the US plus you get free lookout premium and insurance
tbishop91 said:
Yeah man I have tmo and I love them but if you go to tmo make sure to sign up for jump because the lg flex has been confirmed for the US plus you get free lookout premium and insurance
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yup that's EXACTLY what i'm going to do. Great stuff at tmo from what I've heard. Thanks for all the help everyone.
I can't seem to find any legitimate way to root my G900A from AT&T.
I was with Sprint with my S4, and never had an issue. I made the switch to AT&T before buying the S5.. Was that mistake?
In all the threads I've combed through here there is one common, glaring, issue.. The G900A is not included in the supported devices.
Am I missing something obvious or am I screwed? Or am I just looking too soon?
Already gave the S4 to my daughter.
Thanks for any information or insight.
ACiD0N said:
I can't seem to find any legitimate way to root my G900A from AT&T.
I was with Sprint with my S4, and never had an issue. I made the switch to AT&T before buying the S5.. Was that mistake?
In all the threads I've combed through here there is one common, glaring, issue.. The G900A is not included in the supported devices.
Am I missing something obvious or am I screwed? Or am I just looking too soon?
Already gave the S4 to my daughter.
Thanks for any information or insight.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Here is a universal root method.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2717061
Try to talk with a recovery developer to check your partition table.
(Other variant may have matching partition table with your variant)
I guess, @PlayfulGod can help you with it.
ACiD0N said:
I can't seem to find any legitimate way to root my G900A from AT&T.
I was with Sprint with my S4, and never had an issue. I made the switch to AT&T before buying the S5.. Was that mistake?
In all the threads I've combed through here there is one common, glaring, issue.. The G900A is not included in the supported devices.
Am I missing something obvious or am I screwed? Or am I just looking too soon?
Already gave the S4 to my daughter.
Thanks for any information or insight.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
SandeepEmekar said:
Here is a universal root method.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2717061
Try to talk with a recovery developer to check your partition table.
(Other variant may have matching partition table with your variant)
I guess, @PlayfulGod can help you with it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm sure eventually a root method will come about for that model. Unfortunately tho, the vzw & att models have a locked bootloader and most likely locked down with knox as well and currently no way to boot custom recoveries or kernels.
PlayfulGod said:
I'm sure eventually a root method will come about for that model. Unfortunately tho, the vzw & att models have a locked bootloader and most likely locked down with knox as well and currently no way to boot custom recoveries or kernels.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
@PlayfulGod is absolutely right. Even if an exploit is found for the AT&T or Verizon models, it is unlikely that you'll ever have full root access - thanks to the combination of locked bootloaders, KNOX, and SELinux.
Check your contract - most carriers have a 14-day "buyer's remorse" period in which you can return your handset. You might be faced with a $35-$50 "restocking fee", but depending on how desperate you are for custom ROMs and/or Recovery, it may be worth it to you. Please note that your carrier may try everything they can to stop you from leaving (in terms of talking you out of it). Your contact with AT&T should also have a "back-out" period of 30 days (unless that's changed recently).
Couple other notes:
1) That's the primary reason I switched from AT&T to TMO when I jumped from the S4 to the S5 - I was sick of locked bootloaders. Otherwise, I really just like TMO a lot more as a company, including some of their political standpoints.
2) I've heard of several people now buying TMO S5's and taking them over to AT&T. It's a lot of money up front, but might be worth it to you.
Good luck.
Thanks guys
Thank you for the informative replies. They confirmed what I had already gathered, piece by piece, in a decent comprehensive manner so I appreciate it.
Unfortunately, this time around we gamed the system a bit and went in on this as a 'group' for the services and phones. As far as I can tell, as an individual, I don't have any options of returning the unit in favor of moving to another provider.
Besides that, I finally have good service where I live. I am in the middle of a city but my actual home was in a crap spot with Sprint. After doing research we found that we'd all have great service with AT&T. If the trade-off is no root, so be it I suppose. (Though I have heard that T-Mo has the same service in the same areas due to using the same connectivity)
The knox deal doesn't concern me so much.. This may be a bit cocky (and a little stupid), but I have yet to have to replace a galaxy since they started putting them out *knock on wood*. But it sounds like that's only one issue in a sea of others.
Long-winded story short, Thanks guys. I am much more informed on my situation than before. :good:
ACiD0N said:
I can't seem to find any legitimate way to root my G900A from AT&T.
I was with Sprint with my S4, and never had an issue. I made the switch to AT&T before buying the S5.. Was that mistake?
In all the threads I've combed through here there is one common, glaring, issue.. The G900A is not included in the supported devices.
Am I missing something obvious or am I screwed? Or am I just looking too soon?
Already gave the S4 to my daughter.
Thanks for any information or insight.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I expressly bought a G900W8 model because of the locked bootloader issue with AT&T. I've come from Verizon on the S4, and I wasn't doing the whole locked thing again - it was annoying and I just wasn't going to have it. What I did was buy an S5 from AT&T on a $25/month installment plan, turn around and sold it on Swappa for full price, and bought an unlocked W8 model the same day. I payed virtually nothing except shipping, I get a nice unlocked phone ready for AOSP when it comes out, and I didn't have to pay the ridiculous $650 price for what would be essentially a developer unlocked phone.
If your phone is still new and you think you could sell it and get mint condition pricing on it, do your research on the G900T model. That's TMobile's phone, but it has an unlocked bootloader, can be rooted/flashed/whatever you like, and if I remember correctly (please someone correct me if I'm wrong), it works on all the bands that AT&T does and will be virtually the same as far as mobile data goes. If you already have your service activated on your current AT&T phone, you can literally just swap the SIM card out and you shouldn't have any issues after that. There might be a little caveat as far as having an AT&T SIM in a Tmo phone, but as far as I've read on the forum, this is very easy to get past; you may very well not have any problems whatsoever.
You could look for the W8 model, which wouldn't have any carrier branding on it, but those were hard to come by for me on Swappa, and the unlocked listing the main page gives you is for a phone that doesn't support 4G.
So like I said, if you think you could sell it, and you find a good listing on Swappa for an unlocked phone, I say go for it. Having an unlocked bootloader is going to put your device in a good place as far as updates go, and once developers start pushing out polished custom ROMs, you'll be happy to use your device for longer than the year's use that is generally expected.
Hey gang,
I'm not as tech savvy as I used to be. Long story short, my fiancee and I got "baited and switched" into switching to Sprint (from ATT and Tmo, respectively). As it turns out, we get NO reception almost ANYWHERE around our home. My dB is normally 105-120 at home, and I use my cell as my business phone. It's cost me a lot of money.
I've tried fruitlessly to get the devices returned, but they just soak up time and give us the run-around. I'm very close to trying to sue for breech of contract or similar, not having the services we were told we would have.
Anyway...I know Sprint is CDMA. Is this S5 a tri-band phone? In other words, can I pop a Tmo SIM into it and use it with a prepaid Tmo SIM, assuming I root and rom?
Here's the info on the model and frequencies...
http://www.gsmarena.com/samsung_galaxy_s5_cdma-6338.php
Someone please help. I'm being forced to buy a SIM from another carrier and carry around 2 phones, just so I always have one that works.
Thanks in advance.
I have been doing research and searching these forums for a few days now, I'm trying to not be one of those people who ask questions that have been answered. But at this point I'm at the end of the road.
I bought a Sprint Galaxy S4, model SPH-L720.
I unlocked it using this method Sprint Galaxy S IV SPH-L720 SIM Unlock Method
Reverted back to MDC baseband and all that good stuff, just as instructed. It seemed to have went well without a hitch.
My question now is:
I want to buy one of these Verizon 4G Sim Activation Kits from walmart
Is it possible that I can buy one of those, insert the SIM into my unlocked Sprint S4, and have a working phone? I ask because I don't want to drop $50 if it doesn't have a chance of working. The instructions for this say that it will work with a VERIZON S4, but since my SPRINT S4 is unlocked, should that be okay?
I don't know much, but in my reading I found that Sprint and Verizon both use CDMA, not GSM. So I figured I had a better chance of this phone working if I go with Verizon because of this.
I am in the United States.
If you need any other information or screen shots please let me know, thank you for taking the time to help me out!!
EDIT: would it be possible to test it out, if one of my friends has a verizon phone under contract, and I took their SIM and inserted it into my phone?
Try it.
Like the guy above me said. Try it. One way to find out. Personally I don't think it would work. As the whole point of unlocking the sprint Gs4 is to use it on GSM networks. From what I know you have to flash the sprint phone to Verizon. Plus you WONT get LTE on Verizon because the bands are not supported. So you'll only get 3g.
daniel4653 said:
Like the guy above me said. Try it. One way to find out. Personally I don't think it would work. As the whole point of unlocking the sprint Gs4 is to use it on GSM networks. From what I know you have to flash the sprint phone to Verizon. Plus you WONT get LTE on Verizon because the bands are not supported. So you'll only get 3g.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
thank you for the info! i'm just learning about all of this, so i don't have a firm grip on everything yet.
in the tutorial i used and linked above, the file I used with Odin was actually titled "S4 Flasher", so I believe I unlocked it and flashed it with this? Again, Im sorry, Ive tried searching and am just looking for verification if Im correct.
I'm not worried about LTE, 3G is fine really. Also, I'm not set on Verizon, I just want my phone to work, doesn't matter what network I'm using. If it would be "safer" or a better bet to get into a GSM prepaid, I will do that instead. I was just under the assumption (incorrectly probably lol) that since sprint is CDMA, that going to another CDMA carrier would be easier.
Cricket, Net10, StraightTalk, and AT&T etc are all available at the store I think if I go GSM
Again thanks for taking the time to help everyone!
Galaxy330 said:
thank you for the info! i'm just learning about all of this, so i don't have a firm grip on everything yet.
in the tutorial i used and linked above, the file I used with Odin was actually titled "S4 Flasher", so I believe I unlocked it and flashed it with this? Again, Im sorry, Ive tried searching and am just looking for verification if Im correct.
I'm not worried about LTE, 3G is fine really. Also, I'm not set on Verizon, I just want my phone to work, doesn't matter what network I'm using. If it would be "safer" or a better bet to get into a GSM prepaid, I will do that instead. I was just under the assumption (incorrectly probably lol) that since sprint is CDMA, that going to another CDMA carrier would be easier.
Cricket, Net10, StraightTalk, and AT&T etc are all available at the store I think if I go GSM
Again thanks for taking the time to help everyone!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I unlocked my sprint GS4 and went to Cricket. And I've been happier than when i was with Sprint (service wise). I have signal in 98% of the places I go to. Which is a HUGE improvement over sprint. And even though this phone only connects to HSPA+ which is capped at 3.5 Mbps its plenty fast for all my daily activities. So I recommend a GSM prepaid.