Database Users

[Q] Which version of Samsung Note 4 phone is a better buy?

Hello,
I'm trying to make sense of the LTE frequencies, so maybe you can help.
The situation: I'd like to buy the phone and use it on AT&T LTE in the US, but -- very important -- also use it for data when traveling outside the US. Also, I'd like the ability switch providers in the US (that's why I'm not buying a subsidized phone from AT&T).
The question: The Note 4 model SM-N910W8 has more LTE frequencies than the model SM-N910A. I assume it means that the SM-N910W8 is more likely to perform well in foreign countries and on other US carriers. If so, that's a better purchase than AT&T model of the phone (SM-N910A). Is this correct?
The data:
According to GSM Arena, the "North American" model SM-N910W8 supports
LTE 700 / 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1800 / 1900 / 2100 / 2600 (Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17)
According to Samsung website, the specialized AT&T version of the phone SM-N910A supports
2G GSM : 850/900/1800/1900;
3G WCDMA : Band I/Band II/Band V;
4G (LTE Cat 4 150/50Mbps) : B2 / B4 / B5 / B12 / B17
(the system won't allow me to provide links to the data sources, but PM me if you'd like them)

I was also confused about all the band stuff. I am on AT&T myself and I just purchased a note 4 sm-n910c. it is the exynos version (some people don't want that) but it supposedly works great with AT&T lte. The phone arrives on Wednesday soo I personally don't know. But I did alot of research before purchasing.
My current att branded note edge (i assume same as note 4) supports
4G FDD LTE: B1(2100), B2(1900), B3(1800), B4(AWS), B5(850), B7(2600), B17(700), B20(800);
And the 910c supports:
LTE 800 / 700 / 850 / 900 / 1700 / 1800 / 1900 / 2100 / 2600
(Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 17, 20)
You may also want to look into the sm-n910u

Thanks! So according to the source below, a "band" is simply a range of radio frequencies. That's why there's an overlap between "radio frequencies" and "LTE bands".
radio-electronics.com/info/cellulartelecomms/lte-long-term-evolution/lte-frequency-spectrum.php
My impression is that the more frequencies a device has, the better it performs across carriers, when roaming. And of course, any carrier is better off selling a device that's customized to its own network, thereby making switching carriers more difficult. I guess that this is why the AT&T model has fewer frequencies than the non-AT&T model.
By the way, the seller of the SM-N910W8 assured me that the device is capable of the same LTE speeds at a SM-N910A.

Right every carrier uses specific bands of frequency. Some work on multiple carries. For instance the t-mobile note 4 work on ATT network.
I don't know much about the 910w8 but yes the more bands it supports the more universal it will be across carriers. Of course GSM phones will not work on CDMA networks like version and sprint

Craleb said:
Right every carrier uses specific bands of frequency. Some work on multiple carries.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's right. And my hunch is that carriers limit their branded phones (the subsidized phones they sell). This way, the phone will perform best only on their network. At least in the case of AT&T, I can't find another explantion why their branded phone (SM-N910A) supports fewer bands than a non-AT&T branded phone (like the SM-N910W8).

Does iPhone have these restrictions... Just curious

magichoward said:
Does iPhone have these restrictions... Just curious
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, the iPhone is also frequency restricted. Manufacturers do it to help carriers (which are their big customers, not us retail customers). Carriers use the frequency restrictions to curb cross-border sales and limit your ability to switch to a competitor, even if you paid for your device.
Iphone 6 A1522 (GSM)
LTE (band 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29)
Iphone 6 A1524 (CDMA):
FDD-LTE (band 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, 29)
TD-LTE (band 38, 39, 40, 41)
(I found the data in "Galaxy Note4 Firmware - All Models")

The version that ends in W8 is the Latin American version. The T-Mobile version is compatible with most bands.

Att has locked boot loader, as well as vzw. If your into rooting and flashing custom Roms, stay away from those phone's.

jaxenroth said:
Att has locked boot loader, as well as vzw
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks! I didn't know that. So now the AT&T version (SM-N910A) is definitely off the table. It's down to two models. Both will support all of AT&T LTE bands, but one adds full support for European LTE and the other adds full support for T-Mobile US.
SM-N910C, which has Exynos CPU and supports 800 Mhz and 4G band 20, which one of the three bands common in Europe.
SM-N910W8, which has Snapdragon CPU and supports 4G band 12, which means full support for T-Mobile 4G.

arjun90 said:
The version that ends in W8 is the Latin American version. The T-Mobile version is compatible with most bands.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes, the T-Mobile version (which I see is the one you one) has the same bands as the 910W8 and the same CPU. The advantage (for me) is that I can buy it from T-Mobile and receive warranty.

The T-Mobile version is the appropriate one for you, especially since you will receive warranty from Samsung USA.
NYCgirl said:
Yes, the T-Mobile version (which I see is the one you one) has the same bands as the 910W8 and the same CPU. The advantage (for me) is that I can buy it from T-Mobile and receive warranty.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse

V model use on other carriers?

Ok so Verizon is the only one available in 32gb I guess. Is anyone using a Verizon s5 on at&t?

spankmatic22 said:
Ok so Verizon is the only one available in 32gb I guess. Is anyone using a Verizon s5 on at&t?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
16gb is all I've ever heard of at least for a retail phone.

You should be able to use any Verizon 4G phone on ATT or another GSM carrier, provided that the phone is hardware capable (and the S5 is). See Verizon's unlocking policy (just Google "verizon wireless unlocking", and it's the first link).
I have 2 G900V's in the mail that I should get this week, one for my wife, one for me. I plan on putting one on Cricket, and the other on Page Plus. I go on a road trip vacation in 2 weeks, so I will have lots of fun comparing ATT coverage vs Verizon coverage.
See quote from Verizon's unlocking policy:
Postpay Device Unlocking Policy:
We do not lock most phones or tablets that are activated with our postpay service, either during or after the term of your service contract or Edge installment sales agreement.
We do not lock our 4G LTE devices, and no code is needed to program them for use with another carrier.
We do not lock our 3G devices, other than our non-iPhone Global Ready 3G phones, and the simple code to program such 3G devices for use with another carrier is either “000000” or “123456.” If the user guide for your device does not provide instructions to access the programming menu, you can contact us at *611 from your Verizon Wireless phone, or (800)922-0204, for assistance.
The SIM cards used in our non-iPhone 3G Global Ready phones are locked. We willl unlock those SIM cards at your request.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Actually, I want to add some more info regarding the "hardware capable" bit. The G900V is only capable on LTE bands 4 and 13. However, the G900A is capable on LTE bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, and 17. From what I have read, ATT uses bands 2, 4, 5, and 17 for LTE, with band 17 being their primary, and they only use bands 2, 4, and 5 if they aren't licensed for band 17 in a particular area. Conversely, Verizon mainly uses LTE band 13, and only uses band 4 as the "extended LTE" that they market to rural areas. Therefore...I expect that if you get a G900V and put it on ATT's network, you may get limited LTE coverage, depending on where you are, and if you take a G900A and try to put it on verizon's network, you will get limited LTE coverage.
On the bright side, The G900V is capable for all the same 2G and 3G bands that the G900A is, so you should have no problem with less than LTE speeds on ATT's network with the G900V.
On the downside, the G900A is not capable on the CDMA bands that Verizon uses for 2G and 3G. So, while you may be able to take a G900V onto ATT and call it mostly successful (but not up to parity with G900A), you will probably not get much luck taking a G900A onto Verizon's network.
Interesting comparison: the iPhone 6 (both the "GSM" and "CDMA" versions) are all capable on LTE bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 13, 17, 18, 19, 20, 25, 26, 28, and 29. Wowzer!

Wow great info I really appreciate your reply

Not fully LTE Compatible

The Moto Z Play GSM unlocked releases tomorrow in the U.S., and it's not fully compatible with AT&T LTE. So basically its a T-mobile phone. What the hell! I'm so angry they did this. Anyone know where I can pick up the mexican or brazilian model from the States?

What makes you say its not compatible with AT&T?
Sent from my ASUS_Z00A using Tapatalk

According to GSM Arena, the only supported bands on AT&T are 2 and 4. AT&T uses Bands 17, 5, 2 and 4

I think the odds are that is not correct, but I can't guarantee that.

it is correct unfortunately... I already called them. Like I said. Super pissed about it. I really really wanted this phone because of the battery life. Looks like I have to go with the one plus 3 now.

You're right — the Moto US website shows 4G LTE (B2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 13)
If you're interested in getting the Mexican version, send me a private message.

My US Moto Z Play works perfectly with AT&T, LTE Detector shows that I am connected using band 17. https://imgur.com/a/V16ip
How accurate the app is i dont know, but LTE does infact work fine.

People assumed what Moto had for the supported bands was correct, but people have gotten their phones and all the bands for ATT are there with the GSM model.

metalmike6 said:
The Moto Z Play GSM unlocked releases tomorrow in the U.S., and it's not fully compatible with AT&T LTE. So basically its a T-mobile phone. What the hell! I'm so angry they did this. Anyone know where I can pick up the mexican or brazilian model from the States?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It supports LTE band 17, in fact all bands for AT&T. It was mentioned on the box. I got it yesterday and its working just fine. On Best Buy and Motorola website its bad copy paste job from Moto Z Droid.

Going to be picking mine up from best buy in a bit... I will also report back my findings. Hoping everyone is correct about the bad copy pasta

LTE bands confirmed for unlocked gsm model

metalmike6 said:
LTE bands confirmed for unlocked gsm model
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Awesome, I actually didnt notice that on the box when I got it. Hopefully not too many people got scared away by the misunderstanding.

I just bought my phone from ebay, the language on the box is spanish, i am guessing its from Mexico.
On the phone itself it says "MODELO:XT1635-02", TYPE:M1D64
I am in Houghton, Michigan right now and am on an H2O network, which uses AT&T networks.
I am checking network info repetetively, and HSPA is displayed in the settings and not LTE.
Dail *#*#4636#*#* in your phone's dailer for more info on your network.
I tried choosing "Only LTE" here and upon choosing this, the phone doesnt catch any network!
Is the US version same as the Mexican version?
Is the Mexican version same as the International version?
WTF is this bull**** and why Motorola have this in the first place?
Anyone with additional info please reply ASAP, because if this mexican phone wont catch LTE, i will give it back to the seller and buy a new US version of the phone,
(provided the US version is compatible with AT&T networks)

Confirming again, us model does have band 17. Just got mine today.

Ak Ankit said:
I just bought my phone from ebay, the language on the box is spanish, i am guessing its from Mexico.
On the phone itself it says "MODELO:XT1635-02", TYPE:M1D64
I am in Houghton, Michigan right now and am on an H2O network, which uses AT&T networks.
I am checking network info repetetively, and HSPA is displayed in the settings and not LTE.
Dail *#*#4636#*#* in your phone's dailer for more info on your network.
I tried choosing "Only LTE" here and upon choosing this, the phone doesnt catch any network!
Is the US version same as the Mexican version?
Is the Mexican version same as the International version?
WTF is this bull**** and why Motorola have this in the first place?
Anyone with additional info please reply ASAP, because if this mexican phone wont catch LTE, i will give it back to the seller and buy a new US version of the phone,
(provided the US version is compatible with AT&T networks)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The Mexican version of the phone should be 100% compatible. Make sure however you dont have the euro model or the Peru model.

Works with att lte here but not as good as my s7e att phone. But i still get lte in areas
Sent from my SM-T280 using Tapatalk

jon7701 said:
My US Moto Z Play works perfectly with AT&T, LTE Detector shows that I am connected using band 17.
How accurate the app is i dont know, but LTE does infact work fine.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just bought the unlocked US Moto Z play from best buy and can't get on the LTE network. I live in a major US city too, philadelphia. Can you maybe share your APN settings with me? What else could it be?
Thanks!

Using LTE Discovery, I can see I'm currently connected to band 17 on my unlocked Moto Z Play. It appears the specs on Moto's website are incorrect.

Motorola updated their website
Network Bands - US GSM Unlocked:
GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
UMTS/HSPA+ (850, 900, 1700, 1900, 2100 MHz)
4G LTE (B1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 19, 20, 28, 38, 40)
People confirmed that volte works on tmobile
Unsure about volte on att, or wifi calling on any network
Now, im going to complain about the lack of band 66(aws-3)

paperWastage said:
Motorola updated their website
Network Bands - US GSM Unlocked:
GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
UMTS/HSPA+ (850, 900, 1700, 1900, 2100 MHz)
4G LTE (B1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 19, 20, 28, 38, 40)
People confirmed that volte works on tmobile
Unsure about volte on att, or wifi calling on any network
Now, im going to complain about the lack of band 66(aws-3)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
So there are 2 model numbers for the moto z play. XT1635-01 and XT1635-02. I believe 01 is the US version and 02 is an international version. 01 doesn't seem to come w/ a usb type A to type C cable, and 02 seems horribly inconsistent where the versions shipped to india do seem to come w/ a usb type c cable and the versions to the EU don't seem to have said cable.
According to the box on -02 imgur.com/wBTrUhY, it does support band 17.
Has anyone that has -02 tried cyanogen 14.1 yet? Curious to know if they had any issues w/ flashing twrp or cyanogen to -02. Also curious if -01 takes a full size sim or only a nano-sim.

Any H870DS users getting LTE?

Hi Folks,
I thought I had found a gold-mine here in the United States in the H870DS because it has the quad-DAC and the bands look to be compatible with AT&T and T-mobile. The seller listed band 2 LTE and sadly, according to the box, it is not supported and this is one of AT&T's main bands in my area in California. It still has band 12/17, so, I figured I'd be okay. I cannot for the life of me get it to connect to any LTE though. I've checked and re-checked the APN settings, the network settings (4G preferred) and am out of ideas. Does anyone have this phone and have you successfully gotten it to connect to LTE in the United States? I don't have a T-mobile SIM anymore to try.
-Collin-

I believe AT&T SIMs have issues with LTE on non-AT&T devices until the device IMEI is added into their system.
I am not an AT&T user so I forget the specifics but people often have to call in and have the device IMEI added to their account.. or sometimes this happens automatically after a few hours.
What bands are listed on the box? The thread on XDA listing all the bands shows your model as having B2 LTE (Possible the thread is not correct though) https://forum.xda-developers.com/lg-g6/how-to/info-lg-g6-models-bands-t3571221

I have searched some of the AT&T user forums, it is because different areas have different coverage and certain bands are not licensed properly, so you might not get any LTE signals. I do not know if that is true. But my G6 sure does not have LTE whatsoever.

Thanks for the replies guys. Well, I managed to pick up Band 4 when I walked down the street. I still cannot get 17/12 which is weird because it's the primary LTE band for AT&T. The bummer is that now that I know LTE is working, I can 100% confirm that LTE Band 2 is missing. The eBay listings are wrong and the XDA listing is wrong. I've attached a photo of the box. Oh well
-Collin-

I was interested in picking up an 870DS unit myself. I noticed the discrepancy when it comes to band 2. That had me worried, so I did not pick it up. The 870 DS box shows that band 2 is missing. I have to assume that is correct, so I did not buy.

Sorry to hear that i was thinking of picking up the Korean version myself but if I can't get reliable LTE on att no thanks. I wonder if you could return it to the seller since its technically false advertisement

Well this is unfortunate. I just got mine from Ebay today and was wondering why I couldn't get an LTE signal. The seller did list Band 2 so I'm hoping they will refund my purchase or there is a way to edit the radio.

Sorry for the off-topic question but could anyone tell if the H870DS would support 3G simultaneously on both radios (or 4G on one and 3G on the other simultaneously)? If so it would be worth mentioning here as well.

inquisitor said:
Sorry for the off-topic question but could anyone tell if the H870DS would support 3G simultaneously on both radios (or 4G on one and 3G on the other simultaneously)? If so it would be worth mentioning here as well.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am using T-Mobile SIM at SIM 1 and my home country carrier's SIM at SIM2.
It is getting LTE at SIM 1 and UMTS (roaming at AT&T network) at SIM 2.

Fi (T-mobile) is working perfectly for me, full LTE. Cricket (At&t) is hspa+ but no LTE.
For the price I am not unhappy even though I usually use cricket as my primary data sim. It's not what I expected but I knew going in I was shooting craps as there just wasn't a ton of information out for this H870DS variant. It's not a huge upgrade over 3t, just needed to switch it up for a while. I am quite enjoying the screen, camera, and HiFi dac without losing my 2 sim setup.
Edit: Sim one does have full LTE while Sim 2 does not.
The references definitely need to show that there is no B2, B17, or B30 for ATT users though, pretty much a let down there.

solver404 said:
Fi (T-mobile) is working perfectly for me, full LTE. Cricket (At&t) is hspa+ but no LTE.
For the price I am not unhappy even though I usually use cricket as my primary data sim. It's not what I expected but I knew going in I was shooting craps as there just wasn't a ton of information out for this H870DS variant. It's not a huge upgrade over 3t, just needed to switch it up for a while. I am quite enjoying the screen, camera, and HiFi dac without losing my 2 sim setup.
Edit: Sim one does have full LTE while Sim 2 does not.
The references definitely need to show that there is no B2, B17, or B30 for ATT users though, pretty much a let down there.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I actually got Band 4 to connect on AT&T, but it's pretty sparse and not reliable. I switched that line over to T-Mobile and it works perfectly just as you describe.
I like the phone a lot more than I thought I would. It feels so solidly constructed and the camera I really missed from the V20. I prefer this camera to the one on my S8 9 times out of 10. It's a hair slower to focus, but everything else is better for me.
What's odd is that on AT&T Band 12 is supposed to be compatible with Band 17. On T-Mobile, I connect to Band 12 just fine, but not on Cricket. Oh well, my Cricket line has been canceled anyhow
-Collin-

I'm in San Francisco and unable to get LTE on AT&T or T-Mobile on the H870DS. These LTE bands are listed on the box: 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 26, 28, 38, 39, 40, 41.

Hi there,
I'm in new Mexico on a at&t go phone plan and on a h870ds.
and I'm defenetly getting LTE.

Does the LG G6 actually reveal the used channel and so the frequency band?
On many Android phones this information will show up after dialing *#*#4636#*#* and tapping "Phone Information" - on the very bottom of this screen you will find a list of available cells including their channel number (called EARFCN for LTE/4G, UARFCN for UMTS/3G and ARFCN for GSM/2G). You can then lookup to which frequency band the EARFCN/UARFCN/ARFCN belongs, e.g. at http://niviuk.free.fr/lte_band.php

Take a look at the 'LTE Discovery' app. The free version will probably have what you need.

pocketfox said:
I'm in San Francisco and unable to get LTE on AT&T or T-Mobile on the H870DS. These LTE bands are listed on the box: 1, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 20, 26, 28, 38, 39, 40, 41.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I can confirm the lack of LTE on T-Mobile in Southern California as well. Very odd as others are reporting success getting LTE on TMO in other geographic locations. :crying:

uid_0 said:
I can confirm the lack of LTE on T-Mobile in Southern California as well. Very odd as others are reporting success getting LTE on TMO in other geographic locations. :crying:
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Doesn't seem odd at all considering that according to frequencycheck.com, some key bands are missing:
T-Mobile LTE Bands
B2 (1900 PCS)
B4 (1700/2100 AWS 1)
B12 (700 ac)
B66
ATT LTE Bands
B2 (1900 PCS)
B4 (1700/2100 AWS 1)
B17 (700 bc)
B30 (2300 WCS)

kurtbird said:
Doesn't seem odd at all considering that according to frequencycheck.com, some key bands are missing:
T-Mobile LT seeE Bands
B2 (1900 PCS)
B4 (1700/2100 AWS 1)
B12 (700 ac)
B66
ATT LTE Bands
B2 (1900 PCS)
B4 (1700/2100 AWS 1)
B17 (700 bc)
B30 (2300 WCS)
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
As noted on the box as well as other first hand accounts, the H870DS does support both B4 and B12 required for T-Mobile. My G3 and my wife's previous 860N both connect(ed) with B4.
On top of this, I now have a solution to the problem via updating the APN settings. The magic change was simply adding ”xcap” to the APN Type setting and setting the Network Mode for SIM1 to GSM/WCDMA/LTE auto radio button.

uid_0 said:
As noted on the box as well as other first hand accounts, the H870DS does support both B4 and B12 required for T-Mobile. My G3 and my wife's previous 860N both connect(ed) with B4.
On top of this, I now have a solution to the problem via updating the APN settings. The magic change was simply adding ”xcap” to the APN Type setting and setting the Network Mode for SIM1 to GSM/WCDMA/LTE auto radio button.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It's possible that if you're in an area where only T-Mobile B2 or ATT B30 is available then you wouldn't have LTE.

Was finally able to get 4G LTE in AZ on Band 4. Create a new APN with these settings and make sure network is GSM/CDMA/LTE Auto.
Edit: Also, I had AT&T update their system with the IMEI number of this 870DS that I'm using. That might have something to do with it. It took a couple of weeks too.

ZB631KL - What USA LTE bands does this device support?

ZB631KL seems to be the only readily available device in North America, I am wondering which LTE bands it supports exactly, as descriptions are contradicting.
ASUS very own tech specs page for the phone lists "B Version" as having B version Bands 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 7, 8, 12, 17, 18, 19, 28 but AFAIK there is no way to take a device and check what it supports; all I learned was that you can use s/w to see what band you're currently on...but not what the hardware supports.
Anyway, does anyone know for sure? I believe I ordered one of these https://www.amazon.com/ASUS-ZenFone...l&qid=1571320153&sprefix=zb631,aps,172&sr=8-1 and the one that showed up indicated it was an Indonesian model, though, it worked with my USA T-Mobile SIM without issue.