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What are the differences in my options for purchasing a Verizon compatible LG V20? Direct from VZW, Best Buy, US996 version from Newegg/B&H.
What are the differences in the versions available from these vendors? Do we know yet? Thanks.
The Verizon model is VS995, it is the same model if you buy it from Verizon directly or Best Buy.
The US996 is carrier unlocked and will work on most US carriers, including Verizon. But the hope is that the US996 will have its bootloader unlocked like on the Tmobile model, which could lead to possible root.
indeed. the US has a few more frequencies and bands than the Verizon one. I believe Verizon has 17 and US has 21. seems the unlocked won't be shipping until November for B and h and Newegg and who knows if best buy is going to get it. I think my plan is to get the unlocked version when available and use it with Verizon. I'm not dealing with Verizon's crap, I'd much rather have an unlocked phone again.
Sent from my Samsung Galaxy S7 using Tapatalk
I've been combing the forums and I'm still unclear on a few things and looking for help. Current AT&T customer and I plan to switch to T-Mobile soon. Any confirmation or corrections/answers to the questions/statements below would be really appreciated.
1. The 935F variant is the international model that works with all GSM carriers (and I assume without any carrier bloatware) but VoLTE and wifi calling will not work on any GSM carrier here in the US. Theres a secondary 935F model (d?)- whats the advantage there? Shopping tools that let you compare the models show no difference but always priced differently. There is something I'm missing.
2. The 935U variant is official US unlocked model for use with any carrier. Only silver. I have not seen any posts confirming that VoLTE and wifi calling works- and will continue to work if you switch carriers.
3. Lots of listings for factory unlocked 935A variants. Official AT&T version. That just means a reseller has applied unlock codes to each and resells them? I'm very unclear here. Listings always say compatible with all GSM carriers. But will AT&T bloatware, logo continue to survive? And again, will VoLTE and wifi calling work and continue to work if I switch carriers. This is also the cheapest phone to buy virtually new. But if truly GSM compatible with features that are important to me are intact among carriers- what would I get for the significant premium to get the 935U? Besides, I wanted black.
4. Black Pearl- has this been released in the US and in any specific model? I have not seen one.
Thanks in advance. Really appreciate it.
FD is dual sim. You can put 2 GSM simcards there and both are active. Can send and receive sms or calls.
Sent from my Galaxy S7 Edge Duos via Tapatalk
You can install 935U stock firmware on att/tmobile/verizon version. If used on tmobile network, you will get wifi call and volte. For att you have to install or have att stock.
xometer10 said:
I've been combing the forums and I'm still unclear on a few things and looking for help. Current AT&T customer and I plan to switch to T-Mobile soon. Any confirmation or corrections/answers to the questions/statements below would be really appreciated.
1. The 935F variant is the international model that works with all GSM carriers (and I assume without any carrier bloatware) but VoLTE and wifi calling will not work on any GSM carrier here in the US. Theres a secondary 935F model (d?)- whats the advantage there? Shopping tools that let you compare the models show no difference but always priced differently. There is something I'm missing.
2. The 935U variant is official US unlocked model for use with any carrier. Only silver. I have not seen any posts confirming that VoLTE and wifi calling works- and will continue to work if you switch carriers.
3. Lots of listings for factory unlocked 935A variants. Official AT&T version. That just means a reseller has applied unlock codes to each and resells them? I'm very unclear here. Listings always say compatible with all GSM carriers. But will AT&T bloatware, logo continue to survive? And again, will VoLTE and wifi calling work and continue to work if I switch carriers. This is also the cheapest phone to buy virtually new. But if truly GSM compatible with features that are important to me are intact among carriers- what would I get for the significant premium to get the 935U? Besides, I wanted black.
4. Black Pearl- has this been released in the US and in any specific model? I have not seen one.
Thanks in advance. Really appreciate it.
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Click to collapse
1. 935F is the European / International model. 935FD, D stands for Dual-SIM, both slots will be able to accept a GSM SIM card and are usually used, as one for work, and one as a personal number. Dual-SIM however, is not a popular concept in the US.
2. Check the 935U threads, if a CSC flash is possible, it might work. Though, I'm not sure.
3. Yes, if you have an AT&T phone, it'll still have the AT&T ROM, which will always remain the same, regardless. It will work with other carriers, meaning SMS, Data and calls are compatible, but things like VoLTE and WiFi calling might not work on the carrier that the phone isn't intended for.
4. No it hasn't. It's been released in South Korea with 128GB of internal storage. Also available in the UAE, India and some other Middle Eastern countries. Only in a Dual SIM Configuration (SM-G935FD), and with 128GB of internal storage. It's a limited edition phone, and not sure if it'll be launched in the US.
hp79 said:
You can install 935U stock firmware on att/tmobile/verizon version. If used on tmobile network, you will get wifi call and volte. For att you have to install or have att stock.
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Click to collapse
A couple of followups if thats ok:
1. So if I purchase a "factory unlocked" 935A, before I insert any SIM, I can immediately flash the 935U firmware and it will remain unlocked? I couldn't find a single post that said VoLTE or Wifi calling worked with the 935U firmware on T-mobile (AT&T- what do you have to install?)
2. Flashing to firmware is not considered rooting the device? My work will not let my device connect to the network if it is rooted.
Seems like there is no reason to spend the extra money for the 935U variant. I can save hundreds and purchase an unlocked 935A and flash the firmware. I've rooted devices before and the process looks similar.
Thanks.
xometer10 said:
A couple of followups if thats ok:
1. So if I purchase a "factory unlocked" 935A, before I insert any SIM, I can immediately flash the 935U firmware and it will remain unlocked? I couldn't find a single post that said VoLTE or Wifi calling worked with the 935U firmware on T-mobile (AT&T- what do you have to install?)
2. Flashing to firmware is not considered rooting the device? My work will not let my device connect to the network if it is rooted.
Seems like there is no reason to spend the extra money for the 935U variant. I can save hundreds and purchase an unlocked 935A and flash the firmware. I've rooted devices before and the process looks similar.
Thanks.
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Click to collapse
According to other people in verizon 935u thread and att 935u thread, volte and wifi call works on tmobile. For att wifi call and volte, it must be a ATT carrier firmware. ATT only let their branded phones have wifi call and volte while tmobile allows any phone to do this. That's why with 935U wifi call and volte will work fine on tmobile.
Every time you insert a new sim the phone will adjust settings, so there's no relation with what you can install.
Flashing is done through Odin while phone is in Download mode. There no root involved.
Hello everyone,
I am looking to upgrade from my S4 to an S7 over the next few days, and I have been trying to decide which is the better option between the Verizon model and the unlocked model. I will be using this phone on a Verizon network for now, and was leaning to the unlocked model to get rid of the Verizon bloatware. There is a chance I will be living in a different country in another year or so, so I figured the unlocked model would also give me more flexibility with my next carrier, as I had heard the Verizon model does not support all carrier frequencies. Are there any distinct advantages to going with the Verizon model over the unlocked model, or are there any other important differences I'm overlooking between these two options?
Thanks!
Unlocked how? Boot loader unlocked or carrier network (SIMM) unlocked? Verizon phones are carrier unlocked. Meaning, you can already take an AT&T SIMM and put it into the Verizon S7 and it will work.
As for removing verizon bloatware, that's only possible if you root. Unlocked is specific to the carrier only, not an unlocked bootloader. None have an unlocked bootloader that I know of.
The carrier unlocked phones also receive updates much slower than the normal ones.
https://plus.google.com/+DroidLife/posts/ENv2fH9zD7e
If you want carrier unlocked phones that get updates faster than the generic carrier unlocked phones, get the Verizon phone. As per this article, it's already carrier unlocked and it's already updated to Nougat. Might be some hoops to jump through, but it works:
http://www.androidcentral.com/yes-verizon-galaxy-s7-and-s7-edge-are-sim-unlocked
The generic unlocked ones are still on Marshmallow and there is no word on if/when they'll get Nougat. Also, the Verizon one is cheaper than the generic carrier unlocked phones. Expecially if you can find a sale going on for it.
There is a hybrid rom that is debloated and works great for all models, it is posted in the vzw amd tmo s7 forums. I'm using it on two phones myself.
The U firmware has no bloat, and has all bands available for use. The main downside is that nougat still isn't out for it, and certain apps won't work if you're from Verizon such as their voicemail app.
On the plus side you get some features that Verizon charges extra for, such as caller ID built in for free.
Regardless you can flash any firmware to any S7 so long as it's the snapdragon variant.
cadcamaro said:
The U firmware has no bloat, and has all bands available for use. The main downside is that nougat still isn't out for it, and certain apps won't work if you're from Verizon such as their voicemail app.
On the plus side you get some features that Verizon charges extra for, such as caller ID built in for free.
Regardless you can flash any firmware to any S7 so long as it's the snapdragon variant.
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Click to collapse
I've been curious about the G-930U also. If you know, please tell me if these working assumptions are correct or not: The "U" has no carrier branding on it and it has no carrier "bloat" in it (although maybe some Samsung stuff). The "U" CANNOT be bootloader unlocked because it has the Snapdragon processor and at present none of the Snapdragon variations can have their bootloaders unlocked (how I hope this isn't true!). The "U" can be flashed to carrier-specific firmware, although I don't know what the advantage would be.
I'm still mostly using an XT1575, the Motorola X Play Edition 2015. It too had no carrier contamination but it's bootloader was easy to unlock. All I had to do to get it to work with Verizon was insert my nano SIM card. Do any phones still work like that?
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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Click to collapse
Did you get your answers? I have same don't like doubts, specially related to processor and dual chip tech.
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk
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
Sent from my XT1575 using Tapatalk
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.
Sent from my SM-N910C using Tapatalk
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.
So I have a VS995 that I have been using on TotalWireless (Verizon MVNO). I took it apart to attempt to replace the battery and ever since I did I constantly loose connection to the network. I've basically given up on this phone and went back to using my M8.
I still think I want another V20 as I can't find anything else with the same value proposition and features I want...that is as long as I can find a mint one at around the $150-200 mark.
According to this site which lists all the bands the models support, the VS995 supports the following bands:
LTE Cat12 700/800/850/1700/1800/1900/2600 (Bands 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 13, 20)
Only other model that supports all the same bands is the US996
My questions are as follows:
1) When you see someone saying they are selling "GSM unlocked" that works on all carriers, does that mean the actual bands have been unlocked? I'm unsure whether the supported bands are a limitation of hardware in a model or an actual "lock" that can be removed. If you can actually unlock all bands then you technically can buy any model ??
2) If I plan to use a custom ROM, can I pretty much get any version of the phone? I assume I can't load the Verizon firmware on an H918 (T-Mobile) or vice-versa, but if I'm going to run Lineage say, does it matter?
Ideally I want the US996 unlocked, as it seems everyone does because I can't really find any used in good condition.
I suppose I could go back to the VS995 again but I'm unsure of the actual benefits (going to post another question about this one).
In short, I'm looking to find out which phones I can get that will work 100% on the Verizon/MVNO networks. I'm not necessarily tied to stock roms, but need root and would like it on a relatively up-to-date firmware.
GSM unlocked means the phone will accept a sim card from any GSM carrier. Getting a signal is another story, the bands stay the same regardless of it being sim (GSM) locked or not
( there is a possibility of crossflashing parts of other v20 model firmware (except the Tmobile and Sprint models shouldn't use or be used by any other model at risk of bricking) to unlock some bands however, check this thread)
Things like VoLTE and Wi-Fi calling often need carrier specific firmware as well.
You'll be able to root the verizon variant just fine, basically it involves rolling back to the December 2016 security patch and doing an exploit that puts an engineering bootloader on it that doesn't care if the bootloader is locked or not. Verizon root Thread with links and videos.