Database Users

Few questions before buying S4 Google edition

I am on att and want to buy S4 . But the new phones that are being given out seems to be booloader locked. I want a device that I can install roms of my choice.
Can some one answer some of the questions I have, please ?
1- Is s4 fully compatible with ATT Lte bands ? ( Seems there are few mods to be done to get it right. Am I right ? )
2- Are ASOP based S4 roms for international version compatible with S4 GE ?
3-Are TW based S4 roms for international version compatible with S4 GE ?
4- Or Can I find an ATT version that is bootloader unlocked ?
Thanks
AP

I can only answer 1 and 2. Works fine with ATT. There is no bootloader unlock for the ATT S4, however, if you can find one with MBD or MDL firmware you can bypass it with Loki to install custom ROMs.
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 4

Bootloader Unlocked Version
To answer #4, there is a developer version available from AT&T. Outright price as is G-i9505G.
It will have Touchwiz and all Samsung bloatware where GE version has what appears (UI) to be AOSP and is already on 4.3.

Locked vs Unlocked Bootloader ?

Hi all,
is there any advantages of having a unlocked bootloader over a locked.
Ive had my samsung s4 9505 since launch and i have never upgraded the bootloader. Ive only ever upgraded the gsm modem.
as development has come a long way since launch is there any benefits of having a unlocked bootloader ?
Many thanks

On a galaxy phone you don't have locked/unlocked bootloaders

minidude2012 said:
On a galaxy phone you don't have locked/unlocked bootloaders
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I wish that were true. My bootloader got locked by the 4.3 update, which came through as i was setting up my phone when i first brought it.
Didn't find out about it till i accessed the forums later the same day.

anoniemouse said:
I wish that were true. My bootloader got locked by the 4.3 update, which came through as i was setting up my phone when i first brought it.
Didn't find out about it till i accessed the forums later the same day.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know then as I've had a galaxy s4 since first came out and the galaxy s4 has never had a locked bootloader

The I9500 and I9505 shouldn't have a locked bootloader. Galaxy S4 devices for AT&T and Verizon in the United States however DO lock their bootloaders. Locking, or more accurately, encrypting the bootloader, makes it extremely difficult if not nearly impossible to load custom ROMs. Which is why you don't want one if you can help it.
In the Q&A forum there is a thread where a forum member describes purchasing what was supposed to be an I9505 off eBay. Through some detective work it was discovered that his device was a Frankenstein, in that it had the IMEI of an I9505 but the motherboard and the other components were from an AT&T SGH-I337. Thus, his "I9505" had a locked bootloader. At last report he was going to contact the seller about this. I thought about offering him a straight up swap, since he needed an I9505 and I could use his phone here in the US and get LTE, but the fact the IMEI is not what originally came with the hardware has me pausing.
If you have an I9505 and a locked bootloader, your phone may have been "refurbished" in this manner by a third party. It might be a good idea to check your phone and see what you have.

Samsung Galaxy S4 Unlock

Hi,
I have a Samsung Galaxy S4 Att with Android 5.0.1. I requested unlock code from att and the code they gave me is not working.
Can some one help me with unlocking the device.
Thanks,
Sravan.

I haven't seen anything about unlocking an S4 running 5.0.1, but you can flash the phone back to nb1 base and unlock it. Then when you flash back to 5.0.1 the unlock should stick. See this thread on unlocking, for instance. See this or this for flashing back to 5.0.1.
Disclaimer: I do not own an S4 so can not test this.
You may be able to find more information in the forum here if you search.

First of all I can't believe AT&T actually gave you an unlock code that's amazing the best bet to sim unlock your phone is to downgrade your modem then use region lock away then upgrade your modem again then boomshockalocka you will have a sim unlocked device
Sent from my i337 on dark carnage rom

Question about network unlocking on my sm-g900t

Ok so i have a t-mobile s5 900t that im contemplating buying an unlock code for, but almost every code dealer i find has some sort of disclaimer such as this one:
Please purchase only if your phone ask for Sim Unlock Pin with different carrier sim card in it.
Strictly no refund If your mobile ask for unlock through unlock app.
Please don't apply any special code to enter the unlock menu because the code will not work on devices which have device unlock app installed.
Do not order Unlock Code for your Samsung Cell Phone if your Samsung Cell Phone have "Device Unlock App" installed (even if you find a way to enter code in cell phone). These concern last version of Samsung released after June 2015 and will concern most likely all future Samsung Cell Phone. Code will NEVER work on Cell Phone with "Device Unlock App" and we'll not refund order.
Samsung T-Mobile NEWGEN 2015 versions will get an unlock code on certain models. New ones will get added as soon as they become available, but for now these are the known supported models:- Samsung Galaxy Note 4 IMEI’s starting with 3545 and 3560- SM-G900T Samsung Galaxy S5 IMEI’s starting with 3536 and 3518- SM-G386T Samsung Galaxy Avant IMEI’s starting with 3548 and 3528- SGH-T399 Samsung Galaxy Light IMEI’s starting with 3547- Some other models supported. Try IMEI’s starting with 3571, 3575 and others.Not Supported Models:- IMEI’s starting with 9900- Samsung T-Mobile models like Galaxy S3, S4, Exhibit, Note 3 and older models.Unsupported Models :- IMEIs starting with 9900 are not supported "Mobile Unlock App" installed and that are not asking for SIM Network Unlock PIN​.
The thing is, i dont have the device unlock app, even after factory resetting my device. when i try to boot the phone with a sim from another carrier (and ive tried a few different ones..), ive never been asked for the network unlock code. I bought the phone in october of 2014, and my imei starts with 3518, so going off of their requirements my phone should be supported, the only thing it doesnt do is bring ip the unlock menu when using a new sim. I just dont wanna waste money for a code that i wont be able to use. Has anyone else experienced this problem as well or have any input? I was wondering what if i were to root and install a rom; might it ask then? Any advice will be greatly appreciated. Thanks

S5 Active (SM-G870) models

I've been trying to find all the models of S5 Active using search, but there's no such thread and it makes it quite hard to get all the info I want, so instead, I'd like to ask you: what are the different models of Samsung Galaxy S5 Active? How can I tell which model is which? And lastly: do all of them have locked bootloaders?
I know there's US AT&T G870A and US Verizon G870V, and I think there's also G870F...? But I don't know where G870F can be found, nor if they have locked bootloaders.

bump. Someone, anyone?