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I bought an unlocked S8 at Best Buy because it was a good deal.
However, I'm noticing AT&T is restricting Wifi calling. There isn't even an option to turn in on.
Are they preventing this? If so, can I get it turned on by them ? I'm assuming there is a ROM I could flash to get it, but I would hate nothing during flashing bricking my phone.
Any other features I'm missing? Since I have really bad coverage at my desk at work, WIFI calling is important to me. I'm considering returning the phone and going to ATT brand, but there is a $35.00 restocking fee. I feel Best Buy should have told me the downsides of an unlocked.
I didn't get any restocking fee when I returned my ATT S8. Got a full refund, no questions asked. Besides if you're just swapping out to another carrier one, I'm sure they will waive it. I have MintSim (Tmo) and WiFi calling can be enabled and works fine for me on the unlocked firmware on my Vzw S8.
AFAIK, AT&T does not allow wifi calling for non-branded phones.
Can anyone explain to my why this would be? Is there any technical reason that they cannot do this on an non branded phone or are they being difficult?
I know it could be that they are strong armming me into another 2 year agreement, but if I can't use Wifi Calling, I cannot use their service due to poor reception at work. I think it would be in their best interest to let me use this feature.
Everyone I talked to on phone and in store basically act like it should be fine.
PS Running Android 7.0
bdaoust said:
Can anyone explain to my why this would be? Is there any technical reason that they cannot do this on an non branded phone or are they being difficult?
I know it could be that they are strong armming me into another 2 year agreement, but if I can't use Wifi Calling, I cannot use their service due to poor reception at work. I think it would be in their best interest to let me use this feature.
Everyone I talked to on phone and in store basically act like it should be fine.
PS Running Android 7.0
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Click to collapse
I am slightly confident that CSC (country/carrier specific code) patch can fix this issue but you would need to look into the other section for that and I say this because it fixed VoLTE issue for some other guys...
WiFi is not possible on AT&T network with the Unlocked version of S8 phones
This may help others who are considering the Unlocked S8.
Note: As of today, no options available from either AT&T or Samsung to enable WiFi calling.
After multiple trips to AT&T, BestBuy Samsung, chat sessions with Samsung support and now calling Samsung Premium Care, I finally confirmed that the Unlocked S8 model does not have any possible software upgrade to enable WiFi calling. Why did so many not know?
Samsung:
Please revise your website to clearly state the limitation, (WiFi is not possible on AT&T network ), with the Unlocked version of your S8 phones.
What's Next?
I was told that there is nothing that Samsung can do for me but Return the phone for Refund.
Now returning this phone requires me to again pay additional cost for replacing/activating another SIM for my old phone to use during the time I process an order for my next phone. Samsung cost me hours of my time and wasted my money.
bdaoust said:
I bought an unlocked S8 at Best Buy because it was a good deal.
However, I'm noticing AT&T is restricting Wifi calling. There isn't even an option to turn in on.
Are they preventing this? If so, can I get it turned on by them ? I'm assuming there is a ROM I could flash to get it, but I would hate nothing during flashing bricking my phone.
Any other features I'm missing? Since I have really bad coverage at my desk at work, WIFI calling is important to me. I'm considering returning the phone and going to ATT brand, but there is a $35.00 restocking fee. I feel Best Buy should have told me the downsides of an unlocked.
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Click to collapse
dealing with the same thing and entirely frustrated. so much wasted time that a simple disclaimer would've saved me from.
wifi calling is a feature enabled by a carrier, not the phone brand. if you want wifi-calling, flash the relevant firmware for your carrier just like i did for VZW to get wifi-calling to work. and btw, this information was widely known by doing some research previous to purchase. i had no problem finding this out but ordered anyway with the intent to flash the firmware.
knightsfury said:
wifi calling is a feature enabled by a carrier, not the phone brand. if you want wifi-calling, flash the relevant firmware for your carrier just like i did for VZW to get wifi-calling to work. and btw, this information was widely known by doing some research previous to purchase. i had no problem finding this out but ordered anyway with the intent to flash the firmware.
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Click to collapse
i flashed it with straight up ATT, all files from here:
joe3681 said:
AT&T QF7 (latest fw)
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and wifi calling won't work. just gives me this message:
"Oops!
We can't turn on Wi-Fi Calling for your account. Think this message is a mistake? Ask the person who can make account changes to call us..."
After numerous calls to Samsung and AT&T you absolutely cannot enable wifi calling on the unlocked phone. Only phones purchased as AT&T branded are allowed the full feature set.
If in fact you DID buy an AT&T S8, you can unlock it and keep said features, but not in reverse of that. Which blows.
fremitus said:
i flashed it with straight up ATT, all files from here:
and wifi calling won't work. just gives me this message:
"Oops!
We can't turn on Wi-Fi Calling for your account. Think this message is a mistake? Ask the person who can make account changes to call us..."
After numerous calls to Samsung and AT&T you absolutely cannot enable wifi calling on the unlocked phone. Only phones purchased as AT&T branded are allowed the full feature set.
If in fact you DID buy an AT&T S8, you can unlock it and keep said features, but not in reverse of that. Which blows.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That really makes no sense.... (Not that you're lying) but there's specific firmwares for the unlocked S8's depending on carrier. the G950U1 has different CSC's depending on what carrier it's used for. Why do that if it doesn't enable that carriers features?!
joe3681 said:
That really makes no sense.... (Not that you're lying) but there's specific firmwares for the unlocked S8's depending on carrier. the G950U1 has different CSC's depending on what carrier it's used for. Why do that if it doesn't enable that carriers features?!
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Click to collapse
flashing other carriers might work (like Tmobile), but not with ATT as they are using based on the IMEI registered with ATT brand.. so flashing any CSC won't enable it as long as you spoke to their customer care and provide your No and other ATT phone to activate Wifi calling on your number.. this is not 100% working method.. search through teh CSC selection forum there people posted a workaround.
KeithDo said:
This may help others who are considering the Unlocked S8.
Note: As of today, no options available from either AT&T or Samsung to enable WiFi calling.
After multiple trips to AT&T, BestBuy Samsung, chat sessions with Samsung support and now calling Samsung Premium Care, I finally confirmed that the Unlocked S8 model does not have any possible software upgrade to enable WiFi calling. Why did so many not know?
Samsung:
Please revise your website to clearly state the limitation, (WiFi is not possible on AT&T network ), with the Unlocked version of your S8 phones.
What's Next?
I was told that there is nothing that Samsung can do for me but Return the phone for Refund.
Now returning this phone requires me to again pay additional cost for replacing/activating another SIM for my old phone to use during the time I process an order for my next phone. Samsung cost me hours of my time and wasted my money.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Time I understand. You will never get that back. The SIM card issue I don't understand. Didn't you keep the old sim card from your old phone. Yes, AT&T will have to reactivate it, but they should do that for free. The only time I've had to pay is when I needed to get a new physical SIM card because the size was wrong for the phone I wanted to use. If you kept the old SIM card, you can simply reactivate it and stick it in your old phone again.
joe3681 said:
That really makes no sense.... (Not that you're lying) but there's specific firmwares for the unlocked S8's depending on carrier. the G950U1 has different CSC's depending on what carrier it's used for. Why do that if it doesn't enable that carriers features?!
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Click to collapse
it's all tied to your IMEI, and that can't be changed. the VoLTE and Wifi Calling are non-existent unless you bought an ATT branded phone.
Guys ... I'm still looking for other options BUT this will work ....
If you have a business account you can just go in to the account and change your billing acct IMEI for your unlocked phone to an IMEI of an AT&T S8 (get one from a friend, go to the store and check out the displays, etc)
If you don't have a business acct call support , eventually you can get a person that knows what to do and they can plug in a working IMEI
This works ... works on my S7 Edge as well
Flashed unlocked phone with ATT FW. Then changed my account's imei with the imei from an ATT branded phone and that got me advanced calling options. Wifi calling will worked for about 10 seconds until ATT reads the phone's actual imei and then they turn off wifi calling. Volte will continue to work.
AT&T OTA Update Coming
All, I have just confirmed with AT&T they have made the request for an OTA update to enable WiFi Calling in the Settings Menu from Samsung. The time frame I was given as of yesterday 10/2/2017 was 14 days. So by 10/16/2017 S8 & S8+ phones should receive an OTA update that enables WiFi Calling feature.
vanornum said:
All, I have just confirmed with AT&T they have made the request for an OTA update to enable WiFi Calling in the Settings Menu from Samsung. The time frame I was given as of yesterday 10/2/2017 was 14 days. So by 10/16/2017 S8 & S8+ phones should receive an OTA update that enables WiFi Calling feature.
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Click to collapse
Very interesting! This would be a life saver. Do you trust their timeframe?
Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk
Hey. I finally found the Wifi calling settings.
Phone/ Dialer > Context Menu (the three dots on top right corner) > Settings > Wi-Fi calling > And I see my three options there.
I'm on Galaxy S8 G9500U1
Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk
aravreddy2231 said:
Hey. I finally found the Wifi calling settings.
Phone/ Dialer > Context Menu (the three dots on top right corner) > Settings > Wi-Fi calling > And I see my three options there.
I'm on Galaxy S8 G9500U1
Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hmm, I don't see them (yet?)... SM-G955U1 with phone app version 2.3.00.20. What version of the app do you have?
Sent from my SM-G955U1 using Tapatalk
Same
Sent from my SM-G950U1 using Tapatalk
So my father in law upgraded our plan last night to Unlimited Data.
Should be cool right? Lost service for about a half hour, it came back up and they said "The HTC10 associated with phone number XXXX is not a verizon device, so we can't support it"
After some arguing, I got my 4G LTE back, but my HD calling is gone. I spent an hour on the phone when I finally got told "Well there is a work around but the technical team says it will take 3-5 business days, so just wait it out"
What?...Seriously? I guess it is their new policy that if you don't have a Verizon phone, you will have LOTS of issues if you try switching your plan, even though the past YEAR has been perfect for me with HD calling etc.
Has anybody else had this kind of issue?
Welp its been a few days, nobody at Verizon can figure it out. I've been told to just buy a Verizon phone.
I'm about ready to sell this HTC10 Unlocked and never go back, it seems that Verizon has taken some kind of stand and will not or cannot activate HD Calling and advanced calling features on non verizon devices, why I have no idea...
MrTrip said:
Welp its been a few days, nobody at Verizon can figure it out. I've been told to just buy a Verizon phone.
I'm about ready to sell this HTC10 Unlocked and never go back, it seems that Verizon has taken some kind of stand and will not or cannot activate HD Calling and advanced calling features on non verizon devices, why I have no idea...
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You will never get Verizon to activate a non-Verizon phone for you, not just HTC 10's.
To get yours running, the ONLY way to do it is to have a newer VZN 4FF LTE/NFC sim activated in random newer Verizon phone with your account set to have Advanced Calling enabled on that line. Placing that working sim into an Unlocked US Ten that has had a Verizon RUU or Verizon radios flash will then work fine after a factory reset. Some roms have Advanced Calling enabled, some don't. The Unlocked Ten operates without issues on Verizon, including Advanced Calling - you just have to have the sim setup beforehand in another phone that is supported by Verizon. No other way....
G935T unlocked-running at&t firmware on att network. Can't get wi-fi calling working!
Sure would like some help from the brilliant minds on this board....
I bought an unlocked G935T a few months ago and have been using it on At&t (with the G935T firmware) for the last few months.
Recently, I needed to use wi-fi calling. Couldn't get it to work on TMo firmware so last night I flashed G935A firmware one it (QF3)
Firmware is working fine - everything seems to be working EXCEPT wi-fi calling. Damn you, AT&T!
I can use one of the free VOIP apps like Google Voice, of course, but when I call out I need to be able to use my cell phone number and really don't want to have to forward calls to GV every time I go into this particular building that doesn't have any cell reception.
Chatting with support this morning, they said it can't be done. I don't understand - if the hardware is the same across all US Variants, then why can't At&t firmware enable this feature? What am I missing??? GRRRRR
danoelise said:
Sure would like some help from the brilliant minds on this board....
I bought an unlocked G935T a few months ago and have been using it on At&t (with the G935T firmware) for the last few months.
Recently, I needed to use wi-fi calling. Couldn't get it to work on TMo firmware so last night I flashed G935A firmware one it (QF3)
Firmware is working fine - everything seems to be working EXCEPT wi-fi calling. Damn you, AT&T!
I can use one of the free VOIP apps like Google Voice, of course, but when I call out I need to be able to use my cell phone number and really don't want to have to forward calls to GV every time I go into this particular building that doesn't have any cell reception.
Chatting with support this morning, they said it can't be done. I don't understand - if the hardware is the same across all US Variants, then why can't At&t firmware enable this feature? What am I missing??? GRRRRR
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You should be able to do it, because I'm doing the opposite. I have a SM-G935A AT&T phone running a T-Mobile firmware and SIM. I'm capable of doing wifi calling/sms etc. Even though my S7 Edge is basically a T-mobile one, when I login to my TMO account it shows the phone not a TMO - due to the IMEI #. I bet the AT&T system doesn't recognize the phone as one of theirs and are unable to activate this feature.
Yeah, I went into the AT&T store today and they confirmed. It cannot be done. Well, it CAN be done, but they aren't willing to do it.
danoelise said:
Yeah, I went into the AT&T store today and they confirmed. It cannot be done. Well, it CAN be done, but they aren't willing to do it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Those bastards!..Time to move to T-Mobile?
Mr. Clown said:
Those bastards!..Time to move to T-Mobile?
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Click to collapse
Isn't TMO doing same to you? All carriers are evil
cnewsgrp said:
Isn't TMO doing same to you? All carriers are evil
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Click to collapse
Nope, I have 2 non-tmobile phones running TMO firmware and they work like charm.
Anyone know how to get VoLTE to work on cricket, with a non-branded cricket phone? Cricket is telling me it has to be a Cricket-branded phone. Does that mean specific IMEIs or could I just install Cricket S8 software?
Also, does anyone know if VoLTE will work on Straight Talk using Verizon's network? Thanks for any help.
rlsyoung said:
Anyone know how to get VoLTE to work on cricket, with a non-branded cricket phone? Cricket is telling me it has to be a Cricket-branded phone. Does that mean specific IMEIs or could I just install Cricket S8 software?
Also, does anyone know if VoLTE will work on Straight Talk using Verizon's network? Thanks for any help.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I would think flashing the cricket firmware and csc would be enough as they are not lying the prscess to convert a non cricket BYOD is rough I Tried on a verizon LG G5 And still never got it working properly
TheMadScientist said:
I would think flashing the cricket firmware and csc would be enough as they are not lying the prscess to convert a non cricket BYOD is rough I Tried on a verizon LG G5 And still never got it working properly
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will try this. Do you happen to know if Cricket is 950u or 950u1? I can only find AIO (cricket, i believe) for 950u1. Would I need to change the CSC if I use official cricket firmware?
rlsyoung said:
I will try this. Do you happen to know if Cricket is 950u or 950u1? I can only find AIO (cricket, i believe) for 950u1. Would I need to change the CSC if I use official cricket firmware?
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Click to collapse
I believe so on the csc but there is 950u1 and u2 you have to look in your settings to see which you are on the u1 or 2 is the bootloader version f it is u2 U cannot flash any U1 firmware
Verizon prepaid was great with VoLTE BYOD. All 3 of my family's phones worked (HTC U11 unlocked, iPhone 6, Samsung J7 Verizon). It was beautiful sound quality. I had to ditch Verizon, because, despite having a strong signal, 4G LTE data performance was very unpredictable. Sometimes my download speed was essentially zero at my home, even though I had 5 bars. One morning during a power outage, I had a good strong signal, but I couldn't bring up a single website using the HTC U11. The Verizon branded Samsung J7 wasn't much better. I called Verizon prepaid support a couple days later, and they had me do the usual ridiculous insulting troubleshooting where they try to blame the user/device. Also, I did hate that there was no visual voicemail app for Verizon on prepaid plans (makes no sense). That being said, I went back to Cricket in order to get normal LTE data performance, even though I get one bar of signal at my home. Now, back on Cricket, the sound quality has returned back to horrible when I call home from work, but data is pretty good. Also, I cannot stand that my unlocked HTC U11 cannot use the hotspot functionality on Cricket without my paying extra. The HTC One A9 my family member uses can serve a hotspot, probably because it's S-OFF and rooted. Verizon prepaid allowed anybody to serve out a hotspot for free. Today I tried an experiment. I called home using Google Duo. My phone and my family member's phone have Duo installed. The sound quality was incredible and sounded just like HD Voice. Essentially, it was a workaround to get VoLTE. The phone at home was on WiFi, and I was using 4G LTE. So, my poor-man's HD Voice will end up carving out bytes from my data allowance. I don't know when and if Cricket will open up all VoLTE capable phones like Verizon did. It bugs me that Verizon had this weird data issue, because Cricket seems to be game playing even more than T-Mobile and Verizon do. I was tempted to try T-MOB again, but they have this ridiculous policy with their prepaid family plan where you have to make a deposit that they keep for a year. Who does that?
If I switch my SM-950U1 unbranded to AT&T ROM, will I get wifi calling and HD voice?
I have an unbranded SM-950U1 on AT&T. The phone works fine for calling (non-HD), LTE, and everything else. The only two things that don't work are wifi calling and HD voice. If I switch to an AT&T ROM, will I get wifi calling and HD voice?
I've read lots of posts saying it should work, or that it shouldn't work, or that it might work, or that somebody had a friend it worked for, or that somebody heard of somebody where it worked for three days, and then stopped. I've heard that I need to give AT&T an AT&T branded IMEI number to associate my sim with, but that will only make it work for a week.
What is the truth? This phone has been out for over a year, somebody must have put an unbranded U1 on an AT&T ROM by now.
I know I can try it and see, but if there is a definitive answer then I know to either go through the trouble, or not bother. I'm hesitant to wipe, because I've never wiped this phone, been through the beta and oreo and everything, and it's working great, with good battery life. My only problem is that I'm occasionally in buildings with wifi coverage, but poor mobile reception, and would like wifi calling in those situations. If I can get wifi calling then it's worth the trouble of wiping, and dealing with AT&T bloat.
J M L said:
I have an unbranded SM-950U1 on AT&T. The phone works fine for calling (non-HD), LTE, and everything else. The only two things that don't work are wifi calling and HD voice. If I switch to an AT&T ROM, will I get wifi calling and HD voice?
I've read lots of posts saying it should work, or that it shouldn't work, or that it might work, or that somebody had a friend it worked for, or that somebody heard of somebody where it worked for three days, and then stopped. I've heard that I need to give AT&T an AT&T branded IMEI number to associate my sim with, but that will only make it work for a week.
What is the truth? This phone has been out for over a year, somebody must have put an unbranded U1 on an AT&T ROM by now.
I know I can try it and see, but if there is a definitive answer then I know to either go through the trouble, or not bother. I'm hesitant to wipe, because I've never wiped this phone, been through the beta and oreo and everything, and it's working great, with good battery life. My only problem is that I'm occasionally in buildings with wifi coverage, but poor mobile reception, and would like wifi calling in those situations. If I can get wifi calling then it's worth the trouble of wiping, and dealing with AT&T bloat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It all depends on if you are using AT&T's prepaid or postpaid service. If you're using AT&T prepaid, then you probably won't be able to get wi-fi calling on your phone. If you're on AT&T's postpaid service then you should be able to get wi-fi calling on your phone. I know this from my own personal experience. I had their prepaid service and couldn't get wi-fi calling to work on my phone. When I switched to their postpaid service then I was able to get the wi-fi calling to work for me.
Cindy
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
cindylike24 said:
It all depends on if you are using AT&T's prepaid or postpaid service. If you're using AT&T prepaid, then you probably won't be able to get wi-fi calling on your phone. If you're on AT&T's postpaid service then you should be able to get wi-fi calling on your phone. I know this from my own personal experience. I had their prepaid service and couldn't get wi-fi calling to work on my phone. When I switched to their postpaid service then I was able to get the wi-fi calling to work for me.
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Click to collapse
Thanks for your answer. Yes, I do have a postpaid plan. Do you have a 950U1 you converted to AT&T, or do you have a 950U AT&T that you converted from pre- to post-paid?
J M L said:
Thanks for your answer. Yes, I do have a postpaid plan. Do you have a 950U1 you converted to AT&T, or do you have a 950U AT&T that you converted from pre- to post-paid?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have a SM-950U on the AT&T network.
Sent from my SM-G950U using Tapatalk
J M L said:
I have an unbranded SM-950U1 on AT&T. The phone works fine for calling (non-HD), LTE, and everything else. The only two things that don't work are wifi calling and HD voice. If I switch to an AT&T ROM, will I get wifi calling and HD voice?
I've read lots of posts saying it should work, or that it shouldn't work, or that it might work, or that somebody had a friend it worked for, or that somebody heard of somebody where it worked for three days, and then stopped. I've heard that I need to give AT&T an AT&T branded IMEI number to associate my sim with, but that will only make it work for a week.
What is the truth? This phone has been out for over a year, somebody must have put an unbranded U1 on an AT&T ROM by now.
I know I can try it and see, but if there is a definitive answer then I know to either go through the trouble, or not bother. I'm hesitant to wipe, because I've never wiped this phone, been through the beta and oreo and everything, and it's working great, with good battery life. My only problem is that I'm occasionally in buildings with wifi coverage, but poor mobile reception, and would like wifi calling in those situations. If I can get wifi calling then it's worth the trouble of wiping, and dealing with AT&T bloat.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Did you ever get Wi-Fi calling etc. to work? I also have an unlocked S8 (SM-950U1) direct from Samsung and would like to have these features work. I've online chatted with multiple techs, received a new SIM card and still can't get it.
I've read things about changing my CSC and flashing an AT&T ROM but would also like a definitive answer.
The_Big_H said:
Did you ever get Wi-Fi calling etc. to work? I also have an unlocked S8 (SM-950U1) direct from Samsung and would like to have these features work. I've online chatted with multiple techs, received a new SIM card and still can't get it.
I've read things about changing my CSC and flashing an AT&T ROM but would also like a definitive answer.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No, I never got it to work, but I didn't try installing the AT&T rom. I did try giving AT&T the IMEI number from an AT&T branded S7, but that didn't work. After they made the switch, my phone had lots of trouble with the network for about 15 minutes, and then it started working again. My web profile at AT&T also switched from S7 back to unknown, so I'm guessing their systems picked up I was using a different IMEI.