Please forgive me if my post is hard to understand, as I am on strong meds for my epilepsy.
Ladies and gentlemen, I am an avid supporter of Straight Talk, as I find it has the best overall bang for my buck at $45 a month. Now that ST is offering Verizon sim cards to be used on their network (unlimited talk, text, 3GB data, throttled after 3GB,) I have decided to jump onto their towers. Coming from a Oneplus One with an AT&T sim, needless to say, I was very used to flashing nightly CM builds. The OPO is a good phone, another bang for my buck purchase, but in my rural area Verizon seems to just have better service. I picked up a new in box VZW Note 4 from Swappa for $565 tax free, and have some impressions I'd like to share.
The service:
The service is superior on Verizon. At the VA hospital, at home, and at the mall, I get seamless simultaneous data and voice service. With the OPO on ATT, this was not the case. On the OPO, I would be stuck without the ability to load a web page in many areas, even though the phone stated that it had a 4g LTE connection. I have not run into this issue on the VZW note 4. Neither ATT nor Verizon offers roaming on straight talk, but the VZW towers are so extensive, that I have yet to run into an issue. On ATT, I was unable to get service in some of the more rural areas of my state (nevada.)
The hardware:
The hardware is far superior on the Note 4 than the OPO. It sports a higher res screen, IR blaster, Wacom stylus, and all the fun features that make a note 4 what it is.
The price:
The OPO had a much better price point, but I was satisfied with the increase in services for the note 4 that I got for $200 more than what the OPO costs.
The software:
The note 4 is capable of software that has good practical use, such as a universal remote and drawing software. The OPO is not capable of such things as the hardware does not support it, however, it does have root, and CM, so all the Titanium Backup and Wifi tethering you can handle (as long as you have good service.) The VZW Note 4 is capable of wifi tethering through PDA Net, which luckily I still had a key for from when I had PDA net on my T-Mobile G1 back in the day, but it is obnoxious and makes me utilize a lockscreen pin number which serves as an inhibitor of my device since I like to casually pick it up and turn it on.
The bloatware:
Oneplus One has no bloatware, and even if it did, you could remove it with Titanium Backup. VZW Note 4 has much bloatware, and a lot of it is incompatible with straight talk. Things that will not work on Straight Talk include Caller Name ID, My Verizon Mobile, stock wifi tethering, and visual voicemail. As most of these are premium services, I don't have a use for them and hide them from my menu. VZ Navigator does work on Straight talk, and I find it a very useful GPS software.
Overall, I am satisfied with the Note 4 on Verizon. I will not revert to the OPO and/or ATT ST, and I will not move to Verizon Wireless for prepaid service as it offers less data, and I will not pay for a post-paid Verizon Wireless subscription as it makes no sense now considering the cost and the fact that I own my late model phone outright. I am disappointed that it does not have root, and I should have certainly checked that with this specific device before purchasing, but I do not believe I would have purchased any differently in hindsight. The things I need like wifi tethering have work-arounds, and I surprisingly don't miss downloading new CM updates every night in hopes that it would squash bugs in my service.
Thank you for reading
So maybe I am missing something, but where do you get Verizon Sim cards for the Note 4 on StraightTalk?
Update: Now I see where Walmart is selling them, but can't find them on Straight Talks site. Interesting. Maybe I will try one.
just wondering not that I am planning to switch to ST but how are speed tests? I helped someone move from T-Mobile to ST but that was on AT&T tho. with Moto G LTE and speedtests were around 6-8 mbps usually.
dlang123 said:
So maybe I am missing something, but where do you get Verizon Sim cards for the Note 4 on StraightTalk?
Update: Now I see where Walmart is selling them, but can't find them on Straight Talks site. Interesting. Maybe I will try one.
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http://www.straighttalkbyop.com/shop.php has sprint and vzw activation kits
patt2k said:
just wondering not that I am planning to switch to ST but how are speed tests? I helped someone move from T-Mobile to ST but that was on AT&T tho. with Moto G LTE and speedtests were around 6-8 mbps usually.
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I just got 6mb down 2mb up when I tried speedtest. I can't remember what the ATT ST was, but I am pretty sure it was significantly higher
One hiccup that I'm looking to fix is that I cannot receive MMS from my girlfriend who has ATT. I can receive MMS from myself, so perhaps verizon senders will work. VZWINTERNET APN settings are also grayed out, so I can't screw with APN settings. Any suggestions? I don't have developer edition so no root apn managers will work
I'm using mine on straight talk (tmobile) and I get download speeds of 25mbps in my area
Sent from my SM-N910V
dogredwing1 said:
I'm using mine on straight talk (tmobile) and I get download speeds of 25mbps in my area
Sent from my SM-N910V
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TMO is very generous with their data, and there are even better priced TMO MVNOs than Straight Talk. I definitely wish they had the towers in my region to provide good service, but unfortunately they don't work in much of the state.
ST has instructions for creating a new APN network when you activate the phone, in order to receive MMS and have a solid connection for data to their network. If you go to ST's website, and log into your account, it should be under one of the tabs. Alternatively, you could Google the Verizon ST APN settings, or search ST's site for them.
Hope this helps!
Kelly
Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (Verizon)
Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2
rykatemom said:
ST has instructions for creating a new APN network when you activate the phone, in order to receive MMS and have a solid connection for data to their network. If you go to ST's website, and log into your account, it should be under one of the tabs. Alternatively, you could Google the Verizon ST APN settings, or search ST's site for them.
Hope this helps!
Kelly
Samsung Galaxy Note 4 (Verizon)
Samsung Galaxy Note Pro 12.2
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It started working yesterday, must have just been a network issue from the switchover
FYI Straight Talk is a MVNO utilzing Verizon's network...
FYI Straight Talk is a MVNO* utilizing Verizon's (for CDMA phones) or AT&T's and T-Mobile's network (when using GSM phones)... assuming Verizon doesn't throttle Straight Talk, you should get identical performance, range and results since you are on the same towers.
* MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) ... essentially they are a sophisticated reseller.
jmcturnan said:
FYI Straight Talk is a MVNO* utilizing Verizon's (for CDMA phones) or AT&T's and T-Mobile's network (when using GSM phones)... assuming Verizon doesn't throttle Straight Talk, you should get identical performance, range and results since you are on the same towers.
* MVNO (Mobile Virtual Network Operator) ... essentially they are a sophisticated reseller.
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I know it's an MVNO. Apparently Verizon throttles 4g to 5mbps on Straight Talk. I wish I knew that before hand, but 3 gigs of 5mbps is more important to me than 1 - 1.5 gigs of full speed LTE on the Verizon branded prepaid for the same price. It's an unnoticeable trade-off as I haven't found anything that won't stream through Straight Talk.
The higher-speed alternative with 3 gigs would be PagePlus at $55 a month. I'm saving the $10 with ST and am still satisfied.
http://www.bestmvno.com/verizon-mvnos.html
Thanks for posting this thread. I've been considering jumping over to Straight Talk with my Note 4, and your experience with the device and the service is helpful.
I'm also using a VZW Note 4 on ST VZW SIM and find it more than satisfactory. The process of getting it on the network was a bit convoluted but I got it working. I purchased my Certified Pre-Owned Note 4 through VZW's and didn't realize they start an activation process when they ship it. I was unable to immediately use it on ST because of this. I actually had to use a month of VZW prepaid before they'd let me off. Stupid stuff man...
rickyray9 said:
I know it's an MVNO. Apparently Verizon throttles 4g to 5mbps on Straight Talk. I wish I knew that before hand, but 3 gigs of 5mbps is more important to me than 1 - 1.5 gigs of full speed LTE on the Verizon branded prepaid for the same price. It's an unnoticeable trade-off as I haven't found anything that won't stream through Straight Talk.
The higher-speed alternative with 3 gigs would be PagePlus at $55 a month. I'm saving the $10 with ST and am still satisfied.
http://www.bestmvno.com/verizon-mvnos.html
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I'll stick with ST on AT&T. I just ran a test and got 23.96 Mbps down and 13.54 Mpbs up. And I live in mountainous WV.
Thanks for the info on this. I am going to buy out the rest of my contract with VZW as soon as I can and save over half on my monthly bill while getting 1 more gig of data. No ringbacks or VVM but it's a good tradeoff.
treyjazz said:
Thanks for the info on this. I am going to buy out the rest of my contract with VZW as soon as I can and save over half on my monthly bill while getting 1 more gig of data. No ringbacks or VVM but it's a good tradeoff.
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Google Voice is a great alternative for VVM.
wesside123 said:
Google Voice is a great alternative for VVM.
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I tried it but it really screwed up my VM and it ended up rejecting all VMs from missed calls. I tried at least 3 times to set it up and no dice. I just hope when I switch I have no problem.
patt2k said:
just wondering not that I am planning to switch to ST but how are speed tests? I helped someone move from T-Mobile to ST but that was on AT&T tho. with Moto G LTE and speedtests were around 6-8 mbps usually.
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I have galaxy note 4 n910v The speed test are not that great on straight talk using Verizon towers like 5-7 download.. 1 our less upload and 90-150 on ping test I think Verizon keeps Straight talk throttled.. I put in a metro PC's sim and was getting 25 download 3-4 upload and 35 on ping test. I currently have a sim card on way from T-Mobile and will be switching to them because T-Mobile throttles metro PC's during heavy use times .
I use ST on my note 4, only gripe I have is no OTA's so I'll have to flash these updates myself.
LTE-Verizon internet is unlocked i don't why hence my phone does not support 4g even though it's note 4 SM-N910V
Litomaro said:
LTE-Verizon internet is unlocked i don't why hence my phone does not support 4g even though it's note 4 SM-N910V
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Who is your network provider? Your issue is probably just apn.
I apologise if this is in the wrong forum.
Does anyone use these two? Which do you prefer? I used to use ST, then Net10 for about the same amount of time. Now I'm going back to one of the two. And I'm debating which to go with.
Experiences with either on your N6P? Recommendations?
snappycg1996 said:
I apologise if this is in the wrong forum.
Does anyone use these two? Which do you prefer? I used to use ST, then Net10 for about the same amount of time. Now I'm going back to one of the two. And I'm debating which to go with.
Experiences with either on your N6P? Recommendations?
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Using Straight Talk AT&T. Works fine for me. Never tried Net 10
Been using ST for 6 yrs now. getting great service with ST ATT on my 6P.
I also have used Straight talk for many years. I have used ATT one, VZW one and T-Mobile one.. I'd say the ATT 5gig one is the best bang for the buck.. All though if you go to their site and go to tablet Sims you can get 1gig for 15$ and 2gig for 25$, no taxes or fees and they let you port your number and us it in a phone no problem.
I'm using a AT&T net10 sim. Great service on this phone compared to my OneplusOne which had horrible service with net10. Edit: Also I pay $95 a month for my wife and I both on unlimited 5gb data plans.
Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk
Has anyone used the Verizon version of Straight Talk with the 6P? Is wifi calling supported on Straight Talk?
Bohemus said:
Has anyone used the Verizon version of Straight Talk with the 6P? Is wifi calling supported on Straight Talk?
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Yes, I have used the VZW SIM on straight talk with the 6p.. It has several limitations. Number one is there is no VOLTE, so that means no data while you're on the phone with the 6p. Wi-Fi calling does not work, unless you use something like the hangouts dialer for outbound only... the phone will also not roam to partner networks such as US Cellular. And last but not least, the speed is capped to 5 mb x 5 mb up & down with a high latency usually more than 150 MS.. I would def recommend the AT&T SIM with straight talk.. Only limitation there is you also don't have native Wi-Fi calling. But all the other limitations don't exist with the AT&T SIM.
Great info, thanks!
crowsnestitsupport said:
Yes, I have used the VZW SIM on straight talk with the 6p.. It has several limitations. Number one is there is no VOLTE, so that means no data while you're on the phone with the 6p. Wi-Fi calling does not work, unless you use something like the hangouts dialer for outbound only... the phone will also not roam to partner networks such as US Cellular. And last but not least, the speed is capped to 5 mb x 5 mb up & down with a high latency usually more than 150 MS.. I would def recommend the AT&T SIM with straight talk.. Only limitation there is you also don't have native Wi-Fi calling. But all the other limitations don't exist with the AT&T SIM.
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I am evaluating the Essential right now, especially after seeing Best Buy's offer for $450! I currently use H2O as my MVNO. However, because of my location, I would rather use a Verizon MVNO. GSM service here using either T-Mobile or AT&T is pretty spotty. And my wife's experience using Verizon has been excellent. Can anyone tell me what their experience has been with various MVNO services and Verizon? I want to spend no more than $30 a month...unlimited talk and text with 1-2 GB of data (I don't use a lot). All opinions will be appreciated. Thanks.
rebecker said:
I am evaluating the Essential right now, especially after seeing Best Buy's offer for $450! I currently use H2O as my MVNO. However, because of my location, I would rather use a Verizon MVNO. GSM service here using either T-Mobile or AT&T is pretty spotty. And my wife's experience using Verizon has been excellent. Can anyone tell me what their experience has been with various MVNO services and Verizon? I want to spend no more than $30 a month...unlimited talk and text with 1-2 GB of data (I don't use a lot). All opinions will be appreciated. Thanks.
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I am currently on Xfinity Mobile, a Verizon MVNO. Basically there are two plans. $12/month by the GB (including unlimited calls and text), or $45/month unlimited. But there currently is no BYOD plan (XM says they plan to offer one in "the future"). So you have to buy a device from them, and you have to have Comcast internet.
The cell service is VZW. The "customer" service is Comcast, so you know what that means...
Xfinity works fine for me as well. In fact it's the only one that works well for me. Can't use my main Tmo line since neither of the essential phones I've had can hold a connection well on Tmo.
I have a VZW LG V20. It is paid off and not stuck in any contract. I have the grandfathered corporate discounted unlimited data plan and intend to keep it. I will be adding a new phone to that line. That leaves my V20 with no coverage but I would like to keep service and data on the V20 through another provider. VZW won't let me add a new line unless I switch all phones to a new much more expensive plan.
So the bottom line is I am looking for another provider under which my V20 can be fully functional. I know that T Mobile will turn the phone on but my understanding is that data service will not provide all their bands so will basically suck. Is there another provider who can provide fully functional data and phone service for my phone? I do not wish to root it.
Thanks! I appreciate your help!
Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk
I use cricket on my at&t model and it works perfectly, and as long as you can use other providers then at&t or cricket is good.
LGAGaming said:
I use cricket on my at&t model and it works perfectly, and as long as you can use other providers then at&t or cricket is good.
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Doesn't help me
Cricket is GSM . VZW CDMA.
I'm hoping Straight Talk works but I need a user to confirm
Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk
Just for grins I tried my T-Mobile SIM in my VS995 tonight and after setting up the APN, the best I could get was "H". It briefly flashed 4G LTE for about 10 seconds though...
Your best bet is to go with an MVNO that uses Verizon's network. Total Wireless has a pretty decent deal that I have been considering.
Are you in USA? I never heard of Total Wireless? Many have posted VS995 pretty useless on GSM networks.
Anybody try Straight Talk with a VS995?
recDNA said:
Are you in USA? I never heard of Total Wireless? Many have posted VS995 pretty useless on GSM networks.
Anybody try Straight Talk with a VS995?
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Yes, I'm in the US. totalwireless.com. I haven't tried it yet.
True, the VS995 is pretty useless on GSM networks.
I switched over to Total Wireless a couple weeks ago with my V20. They use Verizon's towers. Working great so far.
My phone is still stock.
mhelm23 said:
I switched over to Total Wireless a couple weeks ago with my V20. They use Verizon's towers. Working great so far.
My phone is still stock.
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Where do you get Total Wireless?
Sent from my VS995 using Tapatalk
I gave up on my earlier quest to get a Page Plus SIM working properly after finding out on other forums that Verizon MVNOs do not play nice on non-Verizon branded phones. Apparently, not being able to receive texts or use data is a common problem. So I'm thinking of switching to an AT&T MVNO if it gives me full functionality. Has anyone had success with an AT&T MVNO?
lloydsw said:
I gave up on my earlier quest to get a Page Plus SIM working properly after finding out on other forums that Verizon MVNOs do not play nice on non-Verizon branded phones. Apparently, not being able to receive texts or use data is a common problem. So I'm thinking of switching to an AT&T MVNO if it gives me full functionality. Has anyone had success with an AT&T MVNO?
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I currently use Cricket wireless. It is an ATT mvno and I don't have any problem in years.
I currently use Redpocket ( and in Redpocket they MVNO with all 4 top carriers) so if u want AT& T u need to get GSMA and it works really well with this phone.
I've been using a Straight Talk (tracfone) on at&t sim for years, had to get a new one with the Mate9, and it works perfectly in the OP6T.
Didn't have to change a thing. Talk, text, data, work perfectly.
Thanks for the replies guys. I'm gonna go with Redpocket so I can get another bare-bones plan. I only need minimal coverage for when I have sketchy TMO coverage. Hopefully, Pageplus won't make it too painful to ditch them.