Database Users

N910H

Hello,
I was so excited to finally get my Note 4, I walked out with a N910H without really realizing it's an HSPA device !
I had read online that the new Exynos 5433 (finally) supports LTE so I was excited about the 64 bit processor over the S805. I wanted the Exynos badly. But, I want LTE!!
I have two questions:
1- Will it be possible to use N910U/C firmware on this device, or is there hardware difference?
2- If yes to the above, is it possible to activate LTE bands on this device somehow?
I guess if it's not possible I'll wind up selling this and moving for N910C in the future.
Thanks!

Roms for 910C work on this variant i have the same variant 910H wait untill development gets traction you will be able to do everything
Sent from my SM-N910H using XDA Free mobile app

I made the same mistake as you Karim. Now patiently waiting whether to hold on on sell. :S

[Q] Bunch of questions I couldn't find answers to! A little help.

Hi!
I've been using an international Note 2 for the last 2 and a half years and am planning to upgrade to a Note 4 soon. I won't be buying it in India since it costs quite a lot more, and I'd prefer the Exynos version.
I'm quite confused with regard to the bands, I'm leaning towards getting the N910H and am not sure if it supports all the bands in use in India. LTE isn't really important to me. I have read that not having some bands will affect battery life negatively as the phone needs to search more, will this be the case for me with the N910H?
The Samsung India website doesn't list which model they sell, but it is a Snapdragon version since it mentions 2.7GHz on the spec page. It apparently supports the following bands:
2.5G (GSM/GPRS/EDGE) : 850/900/1800/1900 MHz
3G (HSPA＋ 42Mbps): 850/900/1900/2100 MHz
4G (LTE Cat.6 300/50Mbps)
"May differ by country and carrier"?
Bands the N910H supports
2.5G (EDGE, GSM/GPRS ) MHz:850, 900, 1800, 1900
3.5G (HSPA+, UMTS/WCDMA ) MHz:850, 900, 1900, 2100
> According to a different website: Cellular Networks: GSM850, GSM900, GSM1800, GSM1900, UMTS850 (B5), UMTS900 (B8), UMTS1900 (B2), UMTS2100 (B1)
Bands the Note 2 supports:
2G bands GSM 850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900
3G bands HSDPA 850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100
Bands used in India, according to GSMarena
2G capabilities
GSM 900, GSM 1800
3G capabilities
UMTS 2100
4G capabilities
LTE 2300
I'm quite confused as to what the different versions are supposed to do, are all Snapdragons the same? Are all Exynos versions the same? Why so many variants?
There is an exynos version with LTE support, which version is this?
Is it worth switching to the Note 4 from my Note 2? I am quite happy with my phone, the screen is fine too. Are the new features worth it? Or are they just something to use for a week and then fade into oblivion?
Also :
Does the Note 4 support air view with a finger instead of the S-Pen like the Note 3/S4 did?
Is using hover wake up faster than tapping the home button?
Does it support tapping the screen to wake?
Does it have a dedicated pedometer, rather than using the accelerometer to count steps?
Dedicated chip for always on listening like the Moto X has? I've heard the snapdragon version supports always on listening for 'OK Google' , and have seen someone using a command to open S-Voice with the screen off. Does the Exynos version have this chip?
Does region matter? Can a n910h use a n910x if they are both exynos devices?
I'd appreciate any insight please, thanks!
Cheers!

Ok I will start answering:
Yes, any INTERNATIONAL Note 4 will work just fine in India (N910C, N910H, N910F and N910U). There are two Exynos models that have LTE capabilities: the N910C (which is the device I own) and the N910U. The last one is less known and I really don't know what differences have with the N910C other than it have an Intel Modem. If you want an Exynos device with LTE support, buy the N910C. If you want a Snapdragon version with LTE, get the N910F. Both are known to work fine in the place where you live.
Now the other questions:
1. Yes, it (partially) support finger Airview. It's hidden in the Settings app but it can be enabled with a Play Store app.
2. It can support double tap to wake, with the proper application. This is a workaround since it only enables the Touch support when the device is locked (which results in a battery drain since it disables deep-sleep function). if the question is "Does it have a proper sensor like the LG G3 which supports double tap to wake" then the answer is NO.
3. Yes, the Note 4 features an inbuilt pedometer, just like the S5 had. It's really accurate.
4. Yes, the Note 4 (Exynos and Snapdragon) support the "always on" feature for both Google Now and S-Voice. In S-Voice you can even customize the command and use any phrase you want to wake it up. About Google Now, I'm not sure if it supports Indian language yet (this doesnt have anything to do with the Note 4 anyway, it's just Google fault)
5. Yes, Region and CHIPS matter if you want to use a rom from a different device. If you own a N910H and you want a N910C rom, you have to delete the modem to get it perfectly working. That's because I recommend you the N910C since it supports LTE and it's international. Anyway, if the rom IS MADE for your device, then the region doesn't matter. It will just work fine.
I hope that this will help you. If you have any other question feel free to tell me. Cheers!

Really helps, thank you!
A few more if I may :
I used one in the store today, it seemed quite slow. Loading the camera or multitasking menu wasn't much faster (if at all) than my current phone, is there a fix?
Is the software good enough to not need a custom rom? I've almost always been rooted though.
Do apps need to reload when multitasking? I saw a video on youtube where games needed to reload once minimised, it wasn't recent so I'm wondering if it is still the case.
Is it worth buying for the equivalent of about 550USD? over a phone like the Zenfone 2 for about 250? Which would you get personally? Is it a worthy upgrade to something over the Note 2 for basic usage? (Clash of clans, Reddit , WhatsApp )
How many hours of screen on time do you get on average?
Thank you! I just realised your ID is galaxynote2, have you switched from it?

csmiler said:
Really helps, thank you!
A few more if I may :
I used one in the store today, it seemed quite slow. Loading the camera or multitasking menu wasn't much faster (if at all) than my current phone, is there a fix?
Is the software good enough to not need a custom rom? I've almost always been rooted though.
Do apps need to reload when multitasking? I saw a video on youtube where games needed to reload once minimised, it wasn't recent so I'm wondering if it is still the case.
Is it worth buying for the equivalent of about 550USD? over a phone like the Zenfone 2 for about 250? Which would you get personally? Is it a worthy upgrade to something over the Note 2 for basic usage? (Clash of clans, Reddit , WhatsApp )
How many hours of screen on time do you get on average?
Thank you! I just realised your ID is galaxynote2, have you switched from it?
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1.The camera loads fast enough, don't worry about it.
2.The software is good, it could use some optimization but it's good enough.
3.Depends on the game and the time you were out of the game.So basically, yes.
4.I would say that it is much more worth buying the note 4, $550 is a good price for it.And yes, it is a good upgrade over the note 2 in every aspect.

Ashatar said:
1.The camera loads fast enough, don't worry about it.
2.The software is good, it could use some optimization but it's good enough.
3.Depends on the game and the time you were out of the game.So basically, yes.
4.I would say that it is much more worth buying the note 4, $550 is a good price for it.And yes, it is a good upgrade over the note 2 in every aspect.
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Thanks again. Could you look at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=st0eS2NeLQE and tell me if the performance is supposed to be this way? The multitasking lag and relative price are the only things that keep me doubtful, i'm sorry for the bother!

csmiler said:
Thanks again. Could you look at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=st0eS2NeLQE and tell me if the performance is supposed to be this way? The multitasking lag and relative price are the only things that keep me doubtful, i'm sorry for the bother!
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It's really not that much of a lag on the note 4, it performs very good and it's ok for that price.I would go for the note 4 over the Zenfone 2.Or, you can always get the S6 which is a better performer than both of them

The s6 is quite a bit out of my price range, and doesn't have the battery life the Note offers!
Important question, I've decided to go for the N910c like you mentioned. The website I'm buying from lists an N910 with LTE and the exynos chip in it, is there any other way to check which variant it is? (I.e international (c) or some other region specific variant?)
Apparently there are a few regions which have both LTE and the exynos chipset, they sell a bunch of versions but this is the only one without a letter mentioned. Any telltale sign?

Ashatar said:
It's really not that much of a lag on the note 4, it performs very good and it's ok for that price.I would go for the note 4 over the Zenfone 2.Or, you can always get the S6 which is a better performer than both of them
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The s6 is quite a bit out of my price range, and doesn't have the battery life the Note offers!
Important question, I've decided to go for the N910c like you mentioned. The website I'm buying from lists an N910 with LTE and the exynos chip in it, is there any other way to check which variant it is? (I.e international (c) or some other region specific variant?)
Apparently there are a few regions which have both LTE and the exynos chipset, they sell a bunch of versions but this is the only one without a letter mentioned. Any telltale sign?

csmiler said:
The s6 is quite a bit out of my price range, and doesn't have the battery life the Note offers!
Important question, I've decided to go for the N910c like you mentioned. The website I'm buying from lists an N910 with LTE and the exynos chip in it, is there any other way to check which variant it is? (I.e international (c) or some other region specific variant?)
Apparently there are a few regions which have both LTE and the exynos chipset, they sell a bunch of versions but this is the only one without a letter mentioned. Any telltale sign?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The only way you could really check the device is if you go and see it for yourself.Send a link for the site where you're buying your note 4.

Hi Ashatar, I've sent to you as a message

Heed help with buying snapdragon s7 edge.

Hi. Im living in Russia and there are only exynos variant available. After using rather bad exynos note 4 (overheat, bad reception, 3g/4g battery drain, poor aosp development) i decided to buy snapdragon variant of s7 edge. I believe samsung is using superior versions of their handsets in key markets such as NA and China. But for my surprise all s7 edge sold in USA are carrier bound. My question are there unlocked s7 edge snapdragon? What carrier should i choose? Will at-t and t-mobile phones work with other gsm carriers around the world. Also i need no carrier bloatware and unlocked bootloader. As for network i need band 20 800Mhz and band 7 2600Mhz.
Thanks in advance.

TANKRED_ENDURES said:
Hi. Im living in Russia and there are only exynos variant available. After using rather bad exynos note 4 (overheat, bad reception, 3g/4g battery drain, poor aosp development) i decided to buy snapdragon variant of s7 edge. I believe samsung is using superior versions of their handsets in key markets such as NA and China. But for my surprise all s7 edge sold in USA are carrier bound. My question are there unlocked s7 edge snapdragon? What carrier should i choose? Will at-t and t-mobile phones work with other gsm carriers around the world. Also i need no carrier bloatware and unlocked bootloader. As for network i need band 20 800Mhz and band 7 2600Mhz.
Thanks in advance.
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None of the U.S. devices cover band 7 nor 20 i guess, those bands aren't used over there.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_LTE_networks_in_Europe
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_LTE_networks
Also, normally carrier locked devices won't work for other carriers unless you hack (was not possible at recent devices afaik) it or pay for unlocking it. But you could be lucky there at the s7 with it locking just at first boot. It could be, that it'll lock to your carrier instead of the one you bought it from, but you'll have to verify that it works before, also it'll only work, if it never has been booted by any employ at the carrier you bought it to ship it locked already.

Tectas said:
None of the U.S. devices cover band 7 nor 20 i guess, those bands aren't used over there.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_LTE_networks_in_Europe
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_LTE_networks
Also, normally carrier locked devices won't work for other carriers unless you hack (was not possible at recent devices afaik) it or pay for unlocking it. But you could be lucky there at the s7 with it locking just at first boot. It could be, that it'll lock to your carrier instead of the one you bought it from, but you'll have to verify that it works before, also it'll only work, if it never has been booted by any employ at the carrier you bought it to ship it locked already.
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I saw people importing note 4 sm-910c to USA because its compatible with US lte frequences Same model sold in Russia. I think device itself can support this frequnces though they are not used there.

I'd wait before presuming the Snapdragon model will be superior to the Exynos, especially in terms of things like overheat and reception. It's certainly possible it will be the better option, but there is no guarantee yet. And especially with the debacle on the 810, Snapdragon haven't exactly covered themselves in glory recently.
Hardly anyone has the Exynos model yet, whilst there are a lot of T-Mobile customers in the US who have the Snapdragon, some of who are reporting being unable to use the VR headset for more than 30 minutes without the phone complaining of overheat. Wait until next week and there will be proper comparison reviews that go beyond Snapdragon having a few extra meaningless numbers on some benchmark. That's when an informed decision can be made as to whether it's worth going through the bother of buying your device out of territory and forsaking the manufacturer guarantee.

removed

Beefheart said:
I'd wait before presuming the Snapdragon model will be superior to the Exynos, especially in terms of things like overheat and reception. It's certainly possible it will be the better option, but there is no guarantee yet. And especially with the debacle on the 810, Snapdragon haven't exactly covered themselves in glory recently.
Hardly anyone has the Exynos model yet, whilst there are a lot of T-Mobile customers in the US who have the Snapdragon, some of who are reporting being unable to use the VR headset for more than 30 minutes without the phone complaining of overheat. Wait until next week and there will be proper comparison reviews that go beyond Snapdragon having a few extra meaningless numbers on some benchmark. That's when an informed decision can be made as to whether it's worth going through the bother of buying your device out of territory and forsaking the manufacturer guarantee.
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Good point. I bother buying snapdragon mostly because of lower TDP and better 4g reception in past models. If exynos become equal in this areas i see no point in importing. And i dont wanna wait long cause if i preorder before 18 march i will get free gear vr though i dont need it xD

Tectas said:
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Note 4 have both sd and exynos variants. Its note 5 only nave exynos.

TANKRED_ENDURES said:
Note 4 have both sd and exynos variants. Its note 5 only nave exynos.
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Yes, that's why I've removed the post, mixed the numbering, sorry.
But if you take a look, at least here aren't any of those bands supported at the U.S. variants.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/s7-edge/how-to/detailed-sm-g935-s7-info-t3326180

But what about carrier software? I heard some carriers replace stock samsung apps like browser. Also is it true what at-t and tmobile phones recieve updates later than their unlocked counterparts?

TANKRED_ENDURES said:
But what about carrier software? I heard some carriers replace stock samsung apps like browser. Also is it true what at-t and tmobile phones recieve updates later than their unlocked counterparts?
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Would be the first time I hear something like the browser replaced by a carrier, but maybe possible, in common they just add stuff though and make small changes (modem, bootscreen,...). And yes, carrier devices in common get updates later, because the carriers have to incorporate their changes (which can be a few days to months, depends on the carrier), but at the european variants we're lucky with stock roms at least (or at least have been). In most cases you simply can flash a unbranded rom there through odin without second thought.

definitive FACTS on all s8 variants

I bought a Verizon SM-G950UZKAVZW direct from Samsung. I thought that I was buying a phone that I could take to any carrier. I'm hearing that might not be true. Does anyone have definitive, confirmed specs ie supported radio bands on all of the carrier variants as well as the upcoming intl version? Also I heard other reports that the hardware is identical and it's firmware that is limiting the phones. Not sure if that is true either. Samsung was absolutely not helpful.
Bottom line I need to know:
1 if I keep the SM-G950UZKAVZW, will I be able to use it with other carrier networks?
2 if I can use the SM-G950UZKAVZW with other carriers, what actions (if any) would I need to take to do that? (Other than swapping a sim card)
3 would the phone I currently possess be limited in any way if I were to use it with other carriers? (Limited is defined here as "performing differently in contrast to that carriers native S8 model variant") if so, specifically how would it be limited?
4 if I were to purchase an unlocked international model once it becomes available, would that phone be limited in any way when used on any US carrier? (Limited is again defined here as "performing differently in contrast to that carriers native S8 model variant") if so, specifically how?
If you aren't sure, please don't reply. There's plenty of people documenting their best guess already. I'm looking for the straight story.
Thanks for reading!

All of Verizon phones are Sim card unlocked and since there is really only 1 version of the S8/S8+ in the US (with different model #'s corresponding to the different carriers) using the phone on another carriers network is not going to be an issue. All you need to do is insert the sim card in.
http://www.gottabemobile.com/how-to-unlock-the-galaxy-s8/
As a quick note, if you have a Verizon Galaxy S8 congratulations. Your phone is already unlocked. Verizon Wireless no longer locks phones, regardless of what you might hear from friends or family. Simply drop a T-Mobile or AT&T SIM card in a Verizon model and it works. It may require manually configuring the APN settings though, so keep that in mind.
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The ONLY exception that might be would be Sprint since they are CDMA as well, but who really wants to go from Verizon to Sprint?????
All 4 Major US(and subsequent sub carriers) are receiving the same version of the phone(meaning same internals). From my understanding, inserting the carriers Sim card into the verizon phone just means you start going at that point and have access to all the carriers bands
If you got an international version, it most likely would be powered by an Exynos CPU vs the Snapdragon 835 so there would be some performance differences (typically Exynos models perform marginally better based on previous history)
If you're looking for a US unlocked model - wait until next month
http://www.theverge.com/circuitbrea...-unlocked-galaxy-s8-plus-pricing-release-date

I appreciate your clear response! Would it be accurate to say that I will have just as much freedom to hop from one carrier to another using the phone I have, as opposed to purchasing the upcoming US unlocked variant?
Also, I have heard the same thing about the hardware, that all of the carrier variants are the same physical model. But some folks, including the Samsung tech support rep I spoke to (unfortunately that probably doesn't mean a whole lot) seem to think that the carrier firmware is limiting the radio bands. Do you know this to be false?

I have the Verizon version and works fine on Tmo out of the box. Have to use Verizon update software through Windows though. OTA's will never come through.

I am using Verizon GS8 on att, it works but I only get HSPA mostly. No LTE, so band is definitely capped by firmware.
I didn't have any issue receiving ota with att sim in vzw gs8

I saw a review that said the s8 gets locked to the first carrier sim it accepts. Can someone confirm swapping sims of different carriers works?

Whanksta said:
I am using Verizon GS8 on att, it works but I only get HSPA mostly. No LTE, so band is definitely capped by firmware.
I didn't have any issue receiving ota with att sim in vzw gs8
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Have you tried going into the network band menu and locking it to one of the AT&T LTE bands?
This still works on the S8 (found this on the S7 and used it to lock my S7 to band 4 for Tmobile)
https://forum.xda-developers.com/tm...ng-network-t3331555/post65722081#post65722081

ElBeaner said:
Have you tried going into the network band menu and locking it to one of the AT&T LTE bands?
This still works on the S8 (found this on the S7 and used it to lock my S7 to band 4 for Tmobile)
https://forum.xda-developers.com/tm...ng-network-t3331555/post65722081#post65722081
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I am unable to access the service menu via the S7 method

Whanksta said:
I am unable to access the service menu via the S7 method
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Click to collapse
Ok forgot you were Verizon - you have to edit a setting because they block you from that access
Try this if you're daring enough
https://forum.xda-developers.com/verizon-galaxy-s6/general/enabling-using-servicemode-t3109579
EDIT Damn, looks like you have to be rooted first
---------- Post added at 12:06 PM ---------- Previous post was at 11:18 AM ----------
Whanksta said:
I am unable to access the service menu via the S7 method
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Click to collapse
You'll need to wait unti the official AT&T rom is available from Smasung and then you should be able to flash it via ODIN onto the phone and get all the AT&T carrier bands

mredamon said:
I bought a Verizon SM-G950UZKAVZW direct from Samsung. I thought that I was buying a phone that I could take to any carrier. I'm hearing that might not be true. Does anyone have definitive, confirmed specs ie supported radio bands on all of the carrier variants as well as the upcoming intl version? Also I heard other reports that the hardware is identical and it's firmware that is limiting the phones. Not sure if that is true either. Samsung was absolutely not helpful.
Bottom line I need to know:
4 if I were to purchase an unlocked international model once it becomes available, would that phone be limited in any way when used on any US carrier? (Limited is again defined here as "performing differently in contrast to that carriers native S8 model variant") if so, specifically how?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Once it becomes available? You can buy Exynos right now from other countries. Clove in UK will region unlock the phone before shipping to you in the U.S. What needs to become available?
Don't confuse the "unlocked" S8 Samsung will sell here in the U.S. in a month or so with the Exynos international variant. The "unlocked" S8 coming to the U.S. is still the bootloader locked Snapdragon version, just without carrier branding. It will be carrier unlocked but not bootloader unlocked. If you care about rooting, TWRP, ROMs, etc Exynos is what you want.
would that (Exynos international variant) phone be limited in any way when used on any US carrier?
(Limited is again defined here as "performing differently in contrast to that carriers native S8 model variant") if so, specifically how?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
NO, except if you are on CDMA-handicapped Sprint or Verizon. If you use Sprint or Verizon be aware Exynos doesn't have 3G CDMA bands to fall back on if you can't get LTE. For AT&T or T-Mobile, YES it has all the LTE/HSPA/GSM bands.
The "international" Exynos variant can be bootloader unlocked, rooted, etc. so tons of advantages. While it has Verizon LTE bands, there's no CDMA. This means you really need Verizon VoLTE to work and I don't have the answer to that. And if you can't get LTE signal on mobile network, you won't have any signal due to no CDMA fallback. Again, only an issue because of CDMA if you stay on Verizon instead of using AT&T or T-mobile (or their network affiliates). You seem like you want to switch to another carrier? So, go ahead and do so!
EXYNOS VARIANTS LTE BANDS:
LTE Bands: FDD: B1(2100), B2(1900), B3(1800), B4(AWS), B5(850), B7(2600), B8(900), B12(700), B13(700), B17(700), B18(800), B19(800), B20(800), B25(1900), B26(800), B28(700), B32(1500), B66(AWS- 3) | TDD: B38(2600), B39(1900), B40(2300), B41(2500)
GSM/GPRS
850 / 900 / 1800 / 1900 MHz
3G/HSPA
850 / 900 / 1900 / 2100 MHz

ChazzMatt said:
Once it becomes available? You can buy Exynos right now from other countries. Clove in UK will region unlock the phone before shipping to you in the U.S. What needs to become available?
Don't confuse the "unlocked" S8 Samsung will sell here in the U.S. in a month or so with the Exynos international variant. The "unlocked" S8 coming to the U.S. is still the bootloader locked Snapdragon version, just without carrier branding. It will be carrier unlocked but not bootloader unlocked. If you care about rooting, TWRP, ROMs, etc Exynos is what you want. /QUOTE]
Yeah I screwed up. I did confuse them.
I'm not interested in all that rooting stuff I just want a phone that pretty much works anywhere I want to take it and if it's slower on one network than another I wanna know what I'm getting myself into.
Click to expand...
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Whanksta said:
I am using Verizon GS8 on att, it works but I only get HSPA mostly. No LTE, so band is definitely capped by firmware.
I didn't have any issue receiving ota with att sim in vzw gs8
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey guys
I'm from Brazil and I wanna buy the Verizon's S8 but I'm afraid about the 4G.
I saw that this model has the Brazil LTE frequencies, but I read here that Verizon capped the band from the firmware.
Somebody knows if I could flash via ODIN the unlocked rom that will come with the unlocked version in USA and so get the LTE free to use in any place?
I don't want to assume the risk to have a top mobile phone but don't be able to use 4G.
Thank you very much guys

Hey mredamon. Did you ever get a clear response here or somewhere else about this?

Which is the ideal version of the S8 to buy? Dual SIM international? Snap or Exynos?

Hi folks, I browsed this forum a few times and finally decided to make an account after all the wonderful information I've read here.
I realize there's probably no simple way to answer this question. But I'd like to buy the "best of the best" S8 I possibly can. I'm interested in the S8 specifically and not the S8 Plus. It's a phone I intend on keeping for a while, so long as nothing catastrophic happens. As such, I'm open to all possibilities.
I'm based in the USA but I would like to have the one with the most available bands to get the maximum availability on networks while traveling. I read on another thread that so far there are ways to unlock the bands in the firmware after flashing the Canadian firmware to the device. (I think this was referring to the Snapdragon North American version). But features such as Wifi Calling on T-Mobile won't work after that.
Because of carrier locks, it appears that certain models of phones only have certain bands enabled depending on which provider they were released for (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, etc). This is a bit of a problem, if for example, I wanted to use an AT&T phone on T-Mobile, or wanted to pop in a local SIM while traveling.
I'm presently on Verizon, but I'm not under contract and so I'm willing to switch to perhaps T-Mobile, AT&T, or whatever other GSM carriers are available. As such, CDMA capabilities aren't really a major issue for me. It would be nice, but not a deal breaker. I also get conflicting info where some sellers say their unlocked phones won't work for CDMA carriers; while others claim that the unlocked phones have all the CDMA capabilities unlocked as well.
I'm wondering also, if the Snapdragon or Exynos is preferable? The general consensus among developers seems to be that Exynos is preferable to Snapdragon when it comes to future mods, rootability, etc. What is the downside to Exynos?
Lastly, what do you think of the DUAL SIM version? My main reason for holding off on my purchase is debating whether I should get the dual SIM version or not. It would be a nice feature to have, for a phone I intended on setting up and keeping for a while. The only hesitation as far as this goes, is warranty coverage issues.
Would the international version have all the bands enabled? I've also read the Chinese and South Korean versions have 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, which is pretty sweet.
Thanks!

TurboSloth said:
Hi folks, I browsed this forum a few times and finally decided to make an account after all the wonderful information I've read here.
I realize there's probably no simple way to answer this question. But I'd like to buy the "best of the best" S8 I possibly can. I'm interested in the S8 specifically and not the S8 Plus. It's a phone I intend on keeping for a while, so long as nothing catastrophic happens. As such, I'm open to all possibilities.
I'm based in the USA but I would like to have the one with the most available bands to get the maximum availability on networks while traveling. I read on another thread that so far there are ways to unlock the bands in the firmware after flashing the Canadian firmware to the device. (I think this was referring to the Snapdragon North American version). But features such as Wifi Calling on T-Mobile won't work after that.
Because of carrier locks, it appears that certain models of phones only have certain bands enabled depending on which provider they were released for (AT&T, T-Mobile, Verizon, etc). This is a bit of a problem, if for example, I wanted to use an AT&T phone on T-Mobile, or wanted to pop in a local SIM while traveling.
I'm presently on Verizon, but I'm not under contract and so I'm willing to switch to perhaps T-Mobile, AT&T, or whatever other GSM carriers are available. As such, CDMA capabilities aren't really a major issue for me. It would be nice, but not a deal breaker. I also get conflicting info where some sellers say their unlocked phones won't work for CDMA carriers; while others claim that the unlocked phones have all the CDMA capabilities unlocked as well.
I'm wondering also, if the Snapdragon or Exynos is preferable? The general consensus among developers seems to be that Exynos is preferable to Snapdragon when it comes to future mods, rootability, etc. What is the downside to Exynos?
Lastly, what do you think of the DUAL SIM version? My main reason for holding off on my purchase is debating whether I should get the dual SIM version or not. It would be a nice feature to have, for a phone I intended on setting up and keeping for a while. The only hesitation as far as this goes, is warranty coverage issues.
Would the international version have all the bands enabled? I've also read the Chinese and South Korean versions have 6GB of RAM and 128GB of internal storage, which is pretty sweet.
Thanks!
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Did you get your answers? I have same don't like doubts, specially related to processor and dual chip tech.
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The only "downside" to the exynos version is the lack of CDMA support. It is superior in pretty much every other regard.
If you're considering a G950U.. I believe the AT&T model covers the most LTE bands. The Verizon version lists TDD LTE bands if those are useful to you. (But lacks other important bands)
To your question, the G950F/FD is likely your best bet.

Where do I found a list of models? I saw that in Brazil we have SM-G950, but what I see is here is only SM-G950F
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I guess if you go with the exynos variant you will miss near fully playable gamecube/wii emulation. The exynos does other stuff better tho.

For the dual SIM variant, they have also just released a 6gb/128gb version, model number is SM-G9550. That's the best one you can get for the dual SIM variant: http://www.samsung.com/hk_en/business/business-products/mobile-device/smartphones/SM-G9550ZKGTGY.
Only downside is no Band 66 support though if you are planning to be on T-Mobile.
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Hi, where can i buy the S8 Plus SM-G9550 (128GB, Snapdragon, 6GB Ram)?
thx in advance

Hi mate iv always preferred going for a G9xxF/FD version since They are Exynos in-case of Root or mods Exynos gets them first and if u get a FD added advantage of the dual sim. Good Luck

Hi codex1998, i don't need root and mods. My opinion is that the SM-G9550 is the better and most powerful phone.

Hi everyone, how about official firmware updates for different models ?
Is there any difference which models receives updates, which not ?
Some of my friends use different models and here is my statistic based on their phones:
s7 edge FD (dual sim): Android 7.0, last update August 2017,
note 8 (I believe its F model): 7.1 - August 2017,
s8 FD (dual sim) - 7.0 - Oct 2017,
2x s8+ FD (dual sim) - 7.0 Oct 2017.