I purchased an Essential Phone PH-1 from BestBuy. The first had issues, so I returned for another. I dropped that one and broke the screen, and got a new warranty replacement. The replacement has poor call quality, the charge LED turns green at 90% instead of 100%. I saw here that someone said that is normal Android behavior... However, the two Essential Phones prior to this one turned the charging LED green when it was 100%, not 90%. None of the other brands I've owned over he years exhibited that behavior either.
The issues plaguing this phone have me wondering if their is a difference between the retail unlocked version of the PH-1, opposed to one purchased from a carrier unlocked. I ask because, this phone that drops calls constantly, and suffers from poor call quality, has Sprint System files in the ROM, and my carrier is AT&T. Does anyone else not using Sprint as a carrier have these files on their PH-1?
To view, Touch Settings, Data Usage, Cellular Data Usage... Then touch Android OS to check for the Sprint System Files in the picture below
https://forum.xda-developers.com/album.php?albumid=14592&pictureid=56584
https://forum.xda-developers.com/picture.php?albumid=14592&pictureid=56585
Not entirely sure but I would think Sprint files are in all builds. Otherwise, there would be 2 versions of every update, system image, etc. And there's just one.
krws1 said:
I purchased an Essential Phone PH-1 from BestBuy. The first had issues, so I returned for another. I dropped that one and broke the screen, and got a new warranty replacement. The replacement has poor call quality, the charge LED turns green at 90% instead of 100%. I saw here that someone said that is normal Android behavior... However, the two Essential Phones prior to this one turned the charging LED green when it was 100%, not 90%. None of the other brands I've owned over he years exhibited that behavior either.
The issues plaguing this phone have me wondering if their is a difference between the retail unlocked version of the PH-1, opposed to one purchased from a carrier unlocked. I ask because, this phone that drops calls constantly, and suffers from poor call quality, has Sprint System files in the ROM, and my carrier is AT&T. Does anyone else not using Sprint as a carrier have these files on their PH-1?
To view, Touch Settings, Data Usage, Cellular Data Usage... Then touch Android OS to check for the Sprint System Files in the picture below
https://forum.xda-developers.com/album.php?albumid=14592&pictureid=56584
https://forum.xda-developers.com/picture.php?albumid=14592&pictureid=56585
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I remember that Pixel phone had Verizon files in the ROM as well. These are placed there in case user would be using the phone on Verizon and in your case on Sprint.
there are CSC files for every major carrier worldwide in all the ROM's
having said that...it is still possible that unlocked Sprint ones are different. Lots of problems with those, Sprint says they are working on it though.
edit: i have carrier unlocked one from Amazon and it has that Sprint file in there too. Let me check our S8 and see if it has it.
it does not
There is an OpenUS and Sprint variant. To see which, start the device in fastboot mode by holding volume down and power button during bootup. It will say. FYI, bootloader locked has nothing to do with anything (in case that cattches your eye)
If you paid full price, you should have been given OpenUS version. However, there is no hardware difference between the 2 versions other than Sprint should be locked until Sprint releases/unlock it.
Make sure you are on latest OS.
90% green is normal on all essential phones, and also Pixels. Sprint files are normal.
Hopefully you performed a factory reset before writing about your unsolved problems. Although issues with this phone exist, they are "consistent issues". Only exception is the speaker grill variance.
heov said:
There is an OpenUS and Sprint variant. To see which, start the device in fastboot mode by holding volume down and power button during bootup. It will say. FYI, bootloader locked has nothing to do with anything (in case that cattches your eye)
If you paid full price, you should have been given OpenUS version. However, there is no hardware difference between the 2 versions other than Sprint should be locked until Sprint releases/unlock it.
Make sure you are on latest OS.
90% green is normal on all essential phones, and also Pixels. Sprint files are normal.
Hopefully you performed a factory reset before writing about your unsolved problems. Although issues with this phone exist, they are "consistent issues". Only exception is the speaker grill variance.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Unless you are like me, and seem to have a PH-1 that doesn't have any specified Variant. My phone came from Sprint, is SIM and UICC unlocked (though I noticed the Variant aspect even before it was UICC unlocked), and it just says " Variant - " (just blank, no Sprint or OpenUS)
I opened a support ticket with Essential to see what they think.
Phone works great on T-Mobile, Sprint, and Project Fi (via T-Mobile). I am not sure if it is just my phone, but if I boot up (after a fresh restore) without a SIM, the phone starts up (eventually) the Sprint OMA-DM software to try and register. I thought that was interesting. If I boot up with a T-Mobile sim (after a fresh restore for instance) everything works as you would expect, no Sprint DM software starting at all.
Thank you for your opinions...
However, I'm out! Essential phone is over for me and for many reasons. I posted here to see if maybe I missed something. Despite comments on the charging LED turning green at 90% being normal, I'm here to tell you it is not based on the phone I dropped for this replacement. The phone I dropped had great reception, this replacement does not! The dropped phone was also void of those "Sprint" files. It also had a different feel and seemed to weigh a little more than this replacement phone and that isn't my imagination either. Resetting the phone to factory settings twice, does nothing for the phone's issues and Essential tech support, like PH-1 accessories, are non existent. I should have just purchased a flagship Samsung and rooted it if possible to get rid of the junk software. You live and you learn...
Thanks again,
Krws1
krws1 said:
However, I'm out! Essential phone is over for me and for many reasons. I posted here to see if maybe I missed something. Despite comments on the charging LED turning green at 90% being normal, I'm here to tell you it is not based on the phone I dropped for this replacement. The phone I dropped had great reception, this replacement does not! The dropped phone was also void of those "Sprint" files. It also had a different feel and seemed to weigh a little more than this replacement phone and that isn't my imagination either. Resetting the phone to factory settings twice, does nothing for the phone's issues and Essential tech support, like PH-1 accessories, are non existent. I should have just purchased a flagship Samsung and rooted it if possible to get rid of the junk software. You live and you learn...
Thanks again,
Krws1
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for participating, sorry it wasn't the right phone for you. For me it is a little different as it isn't my primary device (i have a S8+), but for the $150 I spent through the Sprint deal, it was totally worth it for my 2nd line/backup device. I do like Essential's goal, and agree support isn't very fast, but eventually I do communicate with them after submitting a ticket. Again, not as big of a deal of me as it isn't my primary device.
I hope the phone is successful, and that Essential gets some of these bigger bugs worked out through software.
Related
My power button has been going out the past few months, sometimes taking up to 5 times to turn it on. I'm guessing it will probably die soon enough. It probably would have died long before now if it weren't for me using trackball wake from CyanogenMod (but I still use the power button every so often such as when my hands are closer to the power button than the trackball).
Anyway, I called HTC recently and I'm going to do a swap. My warranty ends in just a few days, so I thought I'd get it fixed before then.
For those of us who bought the Nexus last January, the warranty is about to expire. Anyone else doing any service this week (or month) before it expires?
Motivated by you, I called HTC too about my power button issues. They told me swap option is not available to me (no idea why).
Since I have a few scratches on my screen too, I was looking forward to the swap option
My phone is unlocked so I did not request a repair on power button yet (I have 2 more months in warranty). I might wait and watch if the problem gets any worse.
bluezz said:
Motivated by you, I called HTC too about my power button issues. They told me swap option is not available to me (no idea why).
Since I have a few scratches on my screen too, I was looking forward to the swap option
My phone is unlocked so I did not request a repair on power button yet (I have 2 more months in warranty). I might wait and watch if the problem gets any worse.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They actually told me I was out of warranty (no idea why since I bought my phone mid-January). So he said he would put a note on it explaining that it has been less than 1 year so there's no reason why I'd be out of warranty.
Maybe call back and get someone else. If you bought it less than 1 year ago, the swap should be available. Or ask why they're saying it's not an option.
Paul22000 said:
They actually told me I was out of warranty (no idea why since I bought my phone mid-January). So he said he would put a note on it explaining that it has been less than 1 year so there's no reason why I'd be out of warranty.
Maybe call back and get someone else. If you bought it less than 1 year ago, the swap should be available. Or ask why they're saying it's not an option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Aaah, thanks for that info. I called again and the reason they gave me that replacement is not possible because Canada charges HTC custom tax on the shipped phone which is why they are only doing replacement for Canadian phones.
However, he said that if I have a US address (which I do) then they can ship a replacement device to that address. Now I'm contemplating if I should go forward with this.
The two things that worry me are:
1) I have some scratches on my screen which are not covered under warranty
and
2) My bootloader is unlocked
Will these 2 things cause my phone to be out of warranty causing HTC to charge $500 on my credit card for the replacement device they send me?
Paul22000 said:
They actually told me I was out of warranty (no idea why since I bought my phone mid-January). So he said he would put a note on it explaining that it has been less than 1 year so there's no reason why I'd be out of warranty.
Maybe call back and get someone else. If you bought it less than 1 year ago, the swap should be available. Or ask why they're saying it's not an option.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Swap is not available to him 'cuz he lives in Canada (like me ).
bluezz said:
Motivated by you, I called HTC too about my power button issues. They told me swap option is not available to me (no idea why).
Since I have a few scratches on my screen too, I was looking forward to the swap option
My phone is unlocked so I did not request a repair on power button yet (I have 2 more months in warranty). I might wait and watch if the problem gets any worse.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I did a swap by using a friends address. HTC reps didn't care, and were actually the ones who suggested it to me. So if you can, have it sent to a friend/family member in the US and go pick it up from them if possible. At worst they'll have to ship it to you, but you'll also have to ship your phone to them so they can ship it back to HTC to complete the swap. HTC will only send you a shipping label good for within the US if doing the swap.
Is there really a hardware issue with the power button? I ask because I do sometimes have trouble getting my N1 to acknowledge a power button press and wake up but have never had a problem when I push the power button to put the phone to sleep. Wouldn't it have a problem both turning on and off? Whenever I have the problem it seems like the phone is busy, usually something to do with the radio switching between WiFi and cellular. Or do I have a different problem?
I'd guess swap isn't available for AT&T N1's
bluezz said:
Aaah, thanks for that info. I called again and the reason they gave me that replacement is not possible because Canada charges HTC custom tax on the shipped phone which is why they are only doing replacement for Canadian phones.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ah, that makes sense. I didn't realize you were in Canada.
I didn't say anything about my unlocked bootloader Many people have posted and said HTC swapped their unlocked device without issue, so /shrug. Maybe they ding me, maybe they don't.
jimbobalu said:
Is there really a hardware issue with the power button? I ask because I do sometimes have trouble getting my N1 to acknowledge a power button press and wake up but have never had a problem when I push the power button to put the phone to sleep. Wouldn't it have a problem both turning on and off? Whenever I have the problem it seems like the phone is busy, usually something to do with the radio switching between WiFi and cellular. Or do I have a different problem?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeah, power button failure seems to be a common issue. Supposedly there is a little plastic piece in there that gets worn out.
You're right; I've only noticed the power button failure when attempting to turn ON the phone... Hmm.. Could be the way the contacts inside are wired, who knows?
crachel said:
I'd guess swap isn't available for AT&T N1's
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Why?
They were sold from March until around late summer. The warranty is a year long either way.
I'll be in the same boat in a couple of months. I got the ATT version the first week it was sold and my power button is completely gone out for the second time. The first time, I sent it in with Cyanogen installed and they didn't care. I opted for repair, but the repair is to swap motherboards so, if the phone isn't scratched up, there's not much difference between repair and replace.
I was going to swap after Christmas but I've been using trackball wake and Invisible Lock Widget for about a month and don't miss the power button anymore. But I'll still probably get it fixed before the warranty is out, no reason not to.
pwig said:
Why?
They were sold from March until around late summer. The warranty is a year long either way.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
right, but they quit selling the AT&T version after they shut the online store down. you could only get the TMobile from the Google Dev store, so I assume that HTC isn't sitting on a surplus of devices to swap.. just a guess, but I bet AT&T devices get repaired, not a new IMEI
fubaya said:
The first time, I sent it in with Cyanogen installed and they didn't care. I opted for repair, but the repair is to swap motherboards so, if the phone isn't scratched up, there's not much difference between repair and replace.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Since my phone IS scratched up will HTC charge me for the replacement (scratches not covered in warranty) ?
crachel said:
right, but they quit selling the AT&T version after they shut the online store down. you could only get the TMobile from the Google Dev store, so I assume that HTC isn't sitting on a surplus of devices to swap.. just a guess, but I bet AT&T devices get repaired, not a new IMEI
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe they have some stocked up because after giving them my IMEI (which is that of the AT&T model), he said if I have an address in US then I can get my phone swapped (new IMEI).
crachel said:
right, but they quit selling the AT&T version after they shut the online store down. you could only get the TMobile from the Google Dev store, so I assume that HTC isn't sitting on a surplus of devices to swap.. just a guess, but I bet AT&T devices get repaired, not a new IMEI
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
It was a few months ago but I got two swaps of my AT&T phone. The first one had a goofy screen.
bluezz said:
Since my phone IS scratched up will HTC charge me for the replacement (scratches not covered in warranty) ?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know, I just know what they said and did in my own repair experience. I asked if swapping meant I would get a new one or a refurbished one and they said it would most likely be refurbished because they rarely had new ones. This was months ago. Also, with a repair where they switch the motherboard, I think you actually get a new IMEI. Mine had a new IMEI anyway. I thought they switched phones until I read that the fix for a bad power button was to swap the motherboard, so I assume the IMEI is in it.
I had several scratches on my screen, an unlocked bootloader and chunks missing from the bottom and top of the phone where it was dropped. I did the swap option and I wasn't charged. As long as the screen scratches don't look worse than normal wear and tear I would think you would be fine.
Sent from my Nexus One using XDA App
My warranty wont be out for another year and a half I think, since Im in Austria, and European laws are some kind different. Anyway. My powerbutton hardly works and I would be very interested in anyone having experience with european htc. do they swap? do they charge? also could I send my phone to the us (friends) and get a replacement by the us htc since they seem kinda "nice". Im really not sure what to do. I get along with the lock screen widget and trackball wake but well a new phone doesnt sound bad either... so anyone knows anything about sending phones to the us from europe or replacing / repairing in the uk?
I was going to start a new thread about my experience with HTC customer service in regards to warranty but I suppose this will do just as good in here.
If you don't want to read my story a summary is at the bottom .
First I'll start of with my phone and the issues.
I bought my Nexus One AT&T version around June of 2010. Rooted it with without unlocking bootloader, ran a few different roms, then one day BAM vibration stopped working, but after a few screen on-offs or tapping my phone in my hand it would come back. After countless attempts to fix the issue such as master clears, flash back to original shipping, and finally in a last ditch effort UNLOCKED the bootloader so I had unrestricted access to rectify the problem. Nothing worked and finally had to accept the fact the little vibration motor had quit on me.
I called up HTC in December about the week before christmas and told them the problem which they agreed was a hardware issue. Not once did they ask if my bootloader was unlocked nor did I offer up that information. They offered me the two options of either a swap or send in my unit for repair. I choose the swap option for fear that they would get my phone, run tests, and not reproduce the issue since it was intermittent for me. Here is the scary part to do the swap they needed a hold on my credit card for $528.00 , risky to say the least since my bootloader was unlocked but seeing as it was hardware failure I was willing to risk it and hope the charge would drop off once they received the phone. In preparation to send my phone back I flashed back to completely stock removing root.
The next day the phone arrived FedEx . First thing I noticed was that my battery cover fit much more snug with no gaps and did not stick out just slightly above the top. Next the power button and volume buttons were much firmer. And of course the vibration was strong as an ox . Also to note it shipped with 2.2.1 (not D) and had the 5.08 radio, Hboot 35 and the AMOLED screen NOT SLCD. All in all the replacement seemed much better than my original, lol.
Now seeing as christmas was so close I wasn't able to FedEx it back to them (they provided the label) for almost a week. But once I sent it off it was overnighted to them and received without issue. Plus the hold on my credit card was also dropped!
So to sum it up I had an AT&T Nexus one with Bootloader Unlocked, bad vibration motor, got it swapped out under warranty, was not charged a dime, and am now even more of an HTC fan and happy to have a fully functional Nexus One.
darkninja157 said:
I was going to start a new thread about my experience with HTC customer service in regards to warranty but I suppose this will do just as good in here.
If you don't want to read my story a summary is at the bottom .
First I'll start of with my phone and the issues.
I bought my Nexus One AT&T version around June of 2010. Rooted it with without unlocking bootloader, ran a few different roms, then one day BAM vibration stopped working, but after a few screen on-offs or tapping my phone in my hand it would come back. After countless attempts to fix the issue such as master clears, flash back to original shipping, and finally in a last ditch effort UNLOCKED the bootloader so I had unrestricted access to rectify the problem. Nothing worked and finally had to accept the fact the little vibration motor had quit on me.
I called up HTC in December about the week before christmas and told them the problem which they agreed was a hardware issue. Not once did they ask if my bootloader was unlocked nor did I offer up that information. They offered me the two options of either a swap or send in my unit for repair. I choose the swap option for fear that they would get my phone, run tests, and not reproduce the issue since it was intermittent for me. Here is the scary part to do the swap they needed a hold on my credit card for $528.00 , risky to say the least since my bootloader was unlocked but seeing as it was hardware failure I was willing to risk it and hope the charge would drop off once they received the phone. In preparation to send my phone back I flashed back to completely stock removing root.
The next day the phone arrived FedEx . First thing I noticed was that my battery cover fit much more snug with no gaps and did not stick out just slightly above the top. Next the power button and volume buttons were much firmer. And of course the vibration was strong as an ox . Also to note it shipped with 2.2.1 (not D) and had the 5.08 radio, Hboot 35 and the AMOLED screen NOT SLCD. All in all the replacement seemed much better than my original, lol.
Now seeing as christmas was so close I wasn't able to FedEx it back to them (they provided the label) for almost a week. But once I sent it off it was overnighted to them and received without issue. Plus the hold on my credit card was also dropped!
So to sum it up I had an AT&T Nexus one with Bootloader Unlocked, bad vibration motor, got it swapped out under warranty, was not charged a dime, and am now even more of an HTC fan and happy to have a fully functional Nexus One.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That is great news. Thanks for posting.
I'm worried now because my power button isn't *totally* dead but the email they sent has the issue listed as "defective power button". So I hope they don't just press it once, see that it works, and call me a liar. I did tell the rep I spoke to that it was intermittent. Anyway, I hope my case works out like yours.
Mine is coming back from repair on Tuesday
I live in the UK and mine was piked up on the 30th Dec (phoned on the 29th) as my power button is dying slowly for the second time (first repair was in Sept '10 so not long ago!) and I was concerned that as I bought mine on the release date (5th Jan) I would be screwed if I left it any longer with only days left. That was until the lady at HTC UK told me that my warranty runs out on the 25th Dec 2011. Seems as an earlier poster mentioned that EU warranties are 2yrs which is nice for me.
I'm still wondering whats going to happen with this power button fiasco. The HTC agent wasn't aware of any known problem with them (not saying much really is it?) but said I could appeal the repair charges and some "arrangement" could be made (50% off or something to that effect). Anyway, that's just under a year away and I might start getting a bit pissed with them and start requesting that this isn't acceptable to keep sending my phone off every couple of months for 2 weeks at a time while a small part is replaced in my phone!
The first time it went back for the power button, (first time was in March for soft keys acivating when 1/3rd way down screen, got replaced for current unit with different touch screen revision) I had the phone unlocked with the infamous unlocked padlock symbol glaring at me every boot up. I sent it off and HTC just repaired the faulty button and flashed a locked 2.1 image, no questions (took almost a month to get back though!). Sweet! Now it was just a case of using one of the one-click root type apps and away I went.
Quick question guys: How likely is it that we'll get SLCD screens if we get a swap right now?
I just had to order my fourth G2 in the past six weeks.
First one developed a striated screen after a week.
Second one would not receive any LTE signal and 3G was often unstable.
Third one seems to get an LTE signal briefly when phone is reprogrammed and tries to do a profile update, but it never completes the update and LTE never shows again. Same instability when trying to get 3G. This one also keeps throwing an error message that it has a bad UICC card. Something about an invalid SIM card. No one at the Sprint store or any of the techs that I called had any idea about how to fix that last thing. And the tech manager at the Sprint Repair center was incredulous that I had found three defective G2s in a row. This last one was tested before I left the store with it due to my previous experience. When I did take it home (after ordering a new one) it was so annoying I just turned it off and re-activated my Galaxy S3.
Anyone else have any sort of experience or am I just lucky?
Your unlucky. But what if that store gave you phones that were returned previously?
Sent from my LG-D802 using Tapatalk
4 times in 6 years is doable or I should say "was doable" (Pittsburgh Steelers dynasty).
4 phones in 6 weeks is unthinkable. FOUR???
mrm43 said:
Your unlucky. But what if that store gave you phones that were returned previously?
Sent from my LG-D802 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
That's what they are telling me.
The guys at the Sprint store claim that they can't tell whether it's a refurb or not. They say it's so new that they are probably all new. I doubt it.
I'm finding it pretty unbelievable. I know it's not a conspiracy or anything, but this next one had better be perfect or there will be a bit of a scene. I'm not walking out of the there without a 100% working phone.
what are you doing rhat causes this?
skinny jeans maybe with extra small pockets and extra tension on phone?
backpocket while sitting?
I'm also on my third replacement, first one had a bad screen it kept flickering while in a call, second one had radio connection issues, and this one I currently have has the same radio problems and also gets really hot sometimes. The quality control on these phones is bollocks at best, I will never get another LG phone again. It's a shame because I enjoy the speed of the Snapdragon 800 processor, the OIS camera is good and I like the IPS display
I have my 3rd phone coming on Monday. Got my G2 1 month ago and I am going on my 3rd. I love the phone but not sure I could deal with it if it breaks again. For me, I woke up, unplugged my phone, it rebooted and that was it. No wifi, no data, and just kept rebooting. Did a factory reset, which did nothing. So I flashed the 12b on with the LG Flash Tool which wipes out your internal storage. and still nothing. Called Verizon and they are shipping me another phone! Hopefully I get more than 2 weeks out of it! Can't keep starting over every 2 weeks.......
Syst3mSh0ck said:
I'm also on my third replacement, first one had a bad screen it kept flickering while in a call, second one had radio connection issues, and this one I currently have has the same radio problems and also gets really hot sometimes. The quality control on these phones is bollocks at best, I will never get another LG phone again. It's a shame because I enjoy the speed of the Snapdragon 800 processor, the OIS camera is good and I like the IPS display
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
isnt that the proximity sensor that turns off and on screen?
tattooz305 said:
I have my 3rd phone coming on Monday. Got my G2 1 month ago and I am going on my 3rd. I love the phone but not sure I could deal with it if it breaks again. For me, I woke up, unplugged my phone, it rebooted and that was it. No wifi, no data, and just kept rebooting. Did a factory reset, which did nothing. So I flashed the 12b on with the LG Flash Tool which wipes out your internal storage. and still nothing. Called Verizon and they are shipping me another phone! Hopefully I get more than 2 weeks out of it! Can't keep starting over every 2 weeks.......
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
do you use original charger and good electrical outlet?
For the record, I never did anything crazy to them.
I only rooted the first one after the stuff started happening so that I could create a backup to try to install on the second.
Second and third never even got rooted, as I didn't want any bull about having anything that I did creating the flaws.
Each phone was never dropped and in a case it's entire life. Not a scratch. Only used stock cable and chargers (except when in the car).
My fourth one has been almost flawless and confirmed as a 100% new device.
I am having a small issue with the knock/on feature, but I think that's a result of the ROM I'm using now and the way I messed around with it. We'll see when I flash something new this weekend.
Trident said:
I just had to order my fourth G2 in the past six weeks.
First one developed a striated screen after a week.
Second one would not receive any LTE signal and 3G was often unstable.
Third one seems to get an LTE signal briefly when phone is reprogrammed and tries to do a profile update, but it never completes the update and LTE never shows again. Same instability when trying to get 3G. This one also keeps throwing an error message that it has a bad UICC card. Something about an invalid SIM card. No one at the Sprint store or any of the techs that I called had any idea about how to fix that last thing. And the tech manager at the Sprint Repair center was incredulous that I had found three defective G2s in a row. This last one was tested before I left the store with it due to my previous experience. When I did take it home (after ordering a new one) it was so annoying I just turned it off and re-activated my Galaxy S3.
Anyone else have any sort of experience or am I just lucky?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same here, 3G is commonly unstable and keep disconecting, even when connected is very slow.
I have a major issue with reception as well: 2-3 bars in areas when all other phones has full signal strenght (used to have motorola on the same operator for 10 years and never seen a single bar drop in reception) Sometimes even looses reception. !This is the worst anthena on mobile device I'vee ever seen!
It is pretty useless on mobile data, as it never gets strong enough signal to browse
WiFi limited to 72mbps on 2.4Ghz wireless N network (unacceptable)
Maybe it's Sprint? I'm on TMO and LTE and connectivity in general has been blazing and never drops. And still on my first G2.
I've yet to read of this issue until your thread, so hopefully you're able to figure it out. Good luck!
Hey guys. I'm creating this thread to share my experience with Bootloop and my G4. I'm not expecting any solutions as even this forum states the only solution is to RMA the phone; just hoped this would help raise awareness and make more people cautious (people here are already cautious, but there's always people who come to this site randomly from Google, as I was in the past).
If this isn't the right subforum, let me know please. I apologize since I'm new around here.
>Buy new LG G4 in June for nearly 600 bucks
>early model; phone not out in US yet
>bought international factory unlocked (H815) version from a United-States based seller on eBay
>this version (H815) isn't sold in the US even now that the phone is out; only G4 phones sold in the US are different models that depend on carrier
>I use Cricket wireless
>I also buy extended warranty through CPS Central - Consumer Priority Service which *conveniently* expired last month
>Phone lasts me through the summer and up until Monday the 8th of February, 2016; works great
>First day of school on monday, I'm charging the phone while in CS lab and I go to unlock it to check a text message
>Phone crashes and the screen goes black
>Shows LG (powered by android) splash screen and goes black again
>I immediately get worried
>I get home and do some research
>Turns out the issue is most likely this: *insert Android Authority article link*
>I scramble about trying to find different ways to fix it:
1. Try Recovery mode (factory reset) and hard reset; doesn't work for the most part. Even when telling the phone to factory reset it just crashes again. I was actually able to get into the OS at one point but then it crashed again and kept bootlooping :|
2. Download mode is barely accessible; I was able to get to the Firmware Updating screen but it got stuck at 0% and eventually went black again
3. Friend wasn't able to flash the phone because of this
4. Tried calling local repair shops, but all they do is software fixes
5. Tried calling LG USA, but since the model was manufactured in Taiwan and not in the USA they won't fix it (the guy offered to give me LG Taiwan's number even though he wasn't even sure if anyone there spoke English)
6. Thinking about sending it to Consumer Priority Service but they'll charge me for diagnostics and might not even be able to fix the phone (this will be an out of warranty claim too)
>Only option left now (besides possibly CPS) is to get my Taiwanese friend to possibly help me call LG Taiwan to see if I can send them my phone (which is less than a year old and has an obvious production level flaw)
>Will take months
>Stuck with temp Verizon Galaxy S4 that my friend is letting me borrow
>Thinking of shelling out money (which I don't want to shell out) for either the Nexus 6P or Galaxy S6 (Nexus 6P comes default factory unlocked but my carrier officially supports the S6)
>College student working only part time
Lessons learned:
1. Never early adopt
2. Always buy reliable protection
3. Never buy grey market
4. Don't buy on eBay (okay, maybe not)
Thanks for reading all of this.
If my phone dies I'm getting an iPhone.
I love this phone but it sucks knowing that every moment I could lose all my data... I hope it lasts until I am back from holidays so I can do a full backup.
This is going to be long, but please bear with me. I'm looking for advice on how to deal with the RMA nonsense that Google has decided to start for whatever reason. A little bit of background first.
I bought my first 6P December of 2015. Shortly after my purchase, I noticed on the right side next to the volume buttons there was a little pinch in the casing. I figured it was something I did. Almost a year goes by. During that time I start dealing with random shutdowns and significantly decreased battery life. I started an RMA for it in February. At that point, the battery had begun to swell rapidly. The volume buttons didn't work anymore. It was probably halfway through January that I noticed there a noticable swelling and that the kink in the case was caused by a bad battery. Google quickly replaced the phone with little trouble, stating that it was a known problem so they would replace the phone even though it was out of its 1 year warranty at this point.
So I got the new phone. Pretty and shiny, works great. Well I noticed that people can't hear me too well sometimes. I assumed this was just my voice, but then realized there was something wrong with the phone. I've had a lot going on so I haven't dealt with it until just recently. I've been doing research on it and have found that the noise cancellation is not functioning on this device. I can manually disable the second mic via build.prop, but this makes it pick up so much noise it is almost unusable. This also disables a major feature of the device, not to mention that I had to have a rooted device to do this. Another issue, which was acknowledged as a known issue by the rep requiring replacement, is that wifi calling is pretty much screwed. People can hear the first and last words I say, but anything in between is silence.
So there is the history, and the issue. Now on to the problem. It seems they are willing to replace the device, but they want to put a hold on my bank account for the cost of the device until they receive the old one. Not only did this require them to change the terms of the warranty service, but it seems like it would be illegal. Does nothing in the consumer warranty protection act prevent them from doing this (holding my funds or changing terms of a warranty?)
What can I do to fight back? They've given me two defective devices so far.
Does anyone know whether the warranty on the 6P is a full warranty, or a limited warranty? Why I ask: If they try to replace it with a working device x numer of times and I do not get a working device out of this, I am entitled to another replacement or a full refund, my choice.
Should I consider another carrier and device at this point? The current struggle I am having with Fi and its customer service is becoming a nightmare.
Any help would be appreciated.
Killa357 said:
This is going to be long, but please bear with me. I'm looking for advice on how to deal with the RMA nonsense that Google has decided to start for whatever reason. A little bit of background first.
I bought my first 6P December of 2015. Shortly after my purchase, I noticed on the right side next to the volume buttons there was a little pinch in the casing. I figured it was something I did. Almost a year goes by. During that time I start dealing with random shutdowns and significantly decreased battery life. I started an RMA for it in February. At that point, the battery had begun to swell rapidly. The volume buttons didn't work anymore. It was probably halfway through January that I noticed there a noticable swelling and that the kink in the case was caused by a bad battery. Google quickly replaced the phone with little trouble, stating that it was a known problem so they would replace the phone even though it was out of its 1 year warranty at this point.
So I got the new phone. Pretty and shiny, works great. Well I noticed that people can't hear me too well sometimes. I assumed this was just my voice, but then realized there was something wrong with the phone. I've had a lot going on so I haven't dealt with it until just recently. I've been doing research on it and have found that the noise cancellation is not functioning on this device. I can manually disable the second mic via build.prop, but this makes it pick up so much noise it is almost unusable. This also disables a major feature of the device, not to mention that I had to have a rooted device to do this. Another issue, which was acknowledged as a known issue by the rep requiring replacement, is that wifi calling is pretty much screwed. People can hear the first and last words I say, but anything in between is silence.
So there is the history, and the issue. Now on to the problem. It seems they are willing to replace the device, but they want to put a hold on my bank account for the cost of the device until they receive the old one. Not only did this require them to change the terms of the warranty service, but it seems like it would be illegal. Does nothing in the consumer warranty protection act prevent them from doing this (holding my funds or changing terms of a warranty?)
What can I do to fight back? They've given me two defective devices so far.
Does anyone know whether the warranty on the 6P is a full warranty, or a limited warranty? Why I ask: If they try to replace it with a working device x numer of times and I do not get a working device out of this, I am entitled to another replacement or a full refund, my choice.
Should I consider another carrier and device at this point? The current struggle I am having with Fi and its customer service is becoming a nightmare.
Any help would be appreciated.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know if there is a change in their warranty.
I have Nexus Protect and it has always been the case.
I've always expected it.
They don't actually charge the card.
I'm not sure how you can fight it.
I had an issue recently that required that I send my phone in for what I thought would be Warranty Repairs.
To be honest, the issue I had is a bizarre story in itself and worthy of a separate thread so suffice it to say, I needed Samsung to return my phone to full stock, ATT Note 20 Ultra. (when flashing an update recently, my phone was somehow switched from a Locked ATT Note 20 Ultra to a Locked Samsung Note 20 Ultra and I was not able to switch it back no matter what I did - as a result, I lost WiFi Calling and HD Voice Calls.)
Anyway - I created a Warranty claim and returned my phone following the usual protocols. After a couple of days I was contacted by Samsung saying that my phone required a repair to the Back Camera Lens (Discovered during their inspection) and because the broken lens was the result of a drop or something, I had to pay $120 for repairs) For what it's worth, the camera was fine when I sent it in - in fact the lens was covered with a Glass Screen Protector since the day I received the phone. I never dropped it or had any accidents and I really could not believe the Lens was broken. I decided to go ahead and pay for the repair despite the fact that the camera was fine when I sent it in. (I almost wonder if they removed or broke the glass screen protector on the camera during their inspection and because of that thought the Lens had broken)
In any event, Samsung is now repairing the Lens but I am still waiting to hear what the prognosis is regarding the issue I sent the phone in for in the first place. I need the phone to be fully Att Stock so I can use WiFi calling (not possible on Samsung Devices that are not branded to ATT) and Like I said earlier, there was nothing I could do to fix it, so I wait...and wait... Hopefully I will hear something from them this week.
Sounds shady AF. Hope it works out for ya
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Geekser said:
I had an issue recently that required that I send my phone in for what I thought would be Warranty Repairs.
To be honest, the issue I had is a bizarre story in itself and worthy of a separate thread so suffice it to say, I needed Samsung to return my phone to full stock, ATT Note 20 Ultra. (when flashing an update recently, my phone was somehow switched from a Locked ATT Note 20 Ultra to a Locked Samsung Note 20 Ultra and I was not able to switch it back no matter what I did - as a result, I lost WiFi Calling and HD Voice Calls.)
Anyway - I created a Warranty claim and returned my phone following the usual protocols. After a couple of days I was contacted by Samsung saying that my phone required a repair to the Back Camera Lens (Discovered during their inspection) and because the broken lens was the result of a drop or something, I had to pay $120 for repairs) For what it's worth, the camera was fine when I sent it in - in fact the lens was covered with a Glass Screen Protector since the day I received the phone. I never dropped it or had any accidents and I really could not believe the Lens was broken. I decided to go ahead and pay for the repair despite the fact that the camera was fine when I sent it in. (I almost wonder if they removed or broke the glass screen protector on the camera during their inspection and because of that thought the Lens had broken)
In any event, Samsung is now repairing the Lens but I am still waiting to hear what the prognosis is regarding the issue I sent the phone in for in the first place. I need the phone to be fully Att Stock so I can use WiFi calling (not possible on Samsung Devices that are not branded to ATT) and Like I said earlier, there was nothing I could do to fix it, so I wait...and wait... Hopefully I will hear something from them this week.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
""my phone was somehow switched from a Locked ATT Note 20 Ultra to a Locked Samsung Note 20 Ultra and I was not able to switch it back no matter what I did - as a result, I lost WiFi Calling and HD Voice Calls.)""
I can understand why @AeroSatan said it sounds shady as FK because number one Samsung doesn't HAVE LOCKED FIRMWARE! I'm on the unlocked version of Samsungs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra that I bought directly from them and if I wanted to I could easily flash ANY carrier's firmware that I chose to and then turn around and flash right back to Samsungs unlocked firmware! Why would Samsung want to lock a phone to them? That makes no damn sense! It sounds like you're trying to cover up the broken camera glass by claiming shipping broke it or Samsung broke it to try to get a free repair from Samsung lmfao!
Also you said
""I need the phone to be fully Att Stock so I can use WiFi calling (not possible on Samsung Devices that are not branded to ATT)""
Which is wrong again! If I want those features on my unlocked version of Samsungs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra all i have to do is flash the Verizon HOME CSC and then I'll have all of that and still be on unlocked firmware!!
When I sent my Note 8 back to Samsung for the screen replacement under warranty because the top half of the screens colors stopped showing up correctly and there was a very noticeable tint and when I sent the phone I sent it with my glued together s-pen because I accidentally rolled over on it when I fell asleep in bed and I super glued it back together and I never said anything about my s-pen just the screen and when my phone was returned it had a brand new s-pen in it that I never asked for or mentioned so I don't see Samsung breaking your camera glass and then trying to get payment from you for it.
This is so weird. I don't understand why you would pay for something that you didn't break. Second did you try to flash your device and things went wrong? Not being a jerk but none of this makes sense
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
MrMike2182 said:
""my phone was somehow switched from a Locked ATT Note 20 Ultra to a Locked Samsung Note 20 Ultra and I was not able to switch it back no matter what I did - as a result, I lost WiFi Calling and HD Voice Calls.)""
I can understand why @AeroSatan said it sounds shady as FK because number one Samsung doesn't HAVE LOCKED FIRMWARE! I'm on the unlocked version of Samsungs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra that I bought directly from them and if I wanted to I could easily flash ANY carrier's firmware that I chose to and then turn around and flash right back to Samsungs unlocked firmware! Why would Samsung want to lock a phone to them? That makes no damn sense! It sounds like you're trying to cover up the broken camera glass by claiming shipping broke it or Samsung broke it to try to get a free repair from Samsung lmfao!
Also you said
""I need the phone to be fully Att Stock so I can use WiFi calling (not possible on Samsung Devices that are not branded to ATT)""
Which is wrong again! If I want those features on my unlocked version of Samsungs Galaxy Note 20 Ultra all i have to do is flash the Verizon HOME CSC and then I'll have all of that and still be on unlocked firmware!!
When I sent my Note 8 back to Samsung for the screen replacement under warranty because the top half of the screens colors stopped showing up correctly and there was a very noticeable tint and when I sent the phone I sent it with my glued together s-pen because I accidentally rolled over on it when I fell asleep in bed and I super glued it back together and I never said anything about my s-pen just the screen and when my phone was returned it had a brand new s-pen in it that I never asked for or mentioned so I don't see Samsung breaking your camera glass and then trying to get payment from you for it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Honestly, It may have been a poor choice of words in how I described my problem - basically - when I got the phone originally it was lilsted in software settings as ATT/ATT/ATT - which shows it is an ATT device - and the features like WIFI Calling and other enhanced calling features will work.
After flashing and having the issue I had - my phone was now listed as XAA/XAA/ATT - the same that Samsung devices show that are not tied to a specific carrier. Because it was not an ATT recognized device any more, WIFI calling would not work and no matter what I did - flashing firmware for 986U or 986U1 - nothing helped, my service provider stayed stuck on XAA/XAA/ATT (but again, when I first purchased the phone it was ATT/ATT/ATT)
So the only thing I could do is send back to Samsung to have them revert it back to ATt/ATT/ATT or replace the phone under warrenty.
Hope that helps to clear things up ?
IN the years I have been on ATT, I have never been able to get a phone that is not recognized as an "ATT" Device to get WIFI Calling and HD VOICE. I have tried what you suggested and it has not worked for me - on any phone - except a few years ago when I was using an International device that I had rooted - this time, being Snapdragon, it can't be rooted and ATT WIFI Calling and HD VOICE would not work on my device any more. (it had worked originally when my phone was showing ATT/ATT/ATT as network provider - but when it got stuck on XAA/XAA/ATT it would not work any more)
It may work for yoiu on VERIZON - IT DOES NOT Work that way on ATT.
butchieboy said:
This is so weird. I don't understand why you would pay for something that you didn't break. Second did you try to flash your device and things went wrong? Not being a jerk but none of this makes sense
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just wanted to get my phone back sooner rather than later - and if I got into a big argument about this it would only delay that - plus, I had no proof that it wasn't broken when I sent it - it could easily become "He said - She Said" - then who is going to win that argument? They had the phone - I just wanted to try to speed up the processes as much as I could.
Regarding flashing, yes,This originally happened when I was attempting to update my phone with new firmware - something happened during the flash and it failed. I had to download new firmware and try again. The update did work this time but that is when I discovered my phone had switched from ATT/ATT/ATT to XAAXAAATT -
to try to fix this, I tried flashing every combination of firmware for this device - and nothing worked to change it back to ATT/ATT/ATT - I tried every possible option - N986U and N986U1 firmware (and even combinations of both) Nothing I did would switch it back to what it should be.
Geekser said:
I just wanted to get my phone back sooner rather than later - and if I got into a big argument about this it would only delay that - plus, I had no proof that it wasn't broken when I sent it - it could easily become "He said - She Said" - then who is going to win that argument? They had the phone - I just wanted to try to speed up the processes as much as I could.
Regarding flashing, yes, I tried every combination of flashing the firmware for this device - and nothing worked to change it back to ATT/ATT/ATT - I tried every possible option - N986U and N986U1 firmware (and even combinations of both) Nothing I did would switch it back to what it should be.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Next time, take a pick of the devices condition before sending it in to have proof that it was in one piece before being sent out. There has been shenanigans with Samsung's trade in program before where they would claim the phone you set in wasn't pristine or missing altogether. Always document these things so then they can't just upsell you for no reason for a camera which they mightve broken unpacking your phone. It sucks.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
If you are At&t and have At&t sim the firmware should have provisioned to your sim once firmware was flashed. I know its a little late to tell you this now.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
butchieboy said:
If you are At&t and have At&t sim the firmware should have provisioned to your sim once firmware was flashed. I know its a little late to tell you this now.
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know that - that is the whole problem - I purchased an ATT Device - I have ATT Firmware - when I originally recieved the phone, everything worked properly - but after a recent flashing issue, I am no longer provisioned like that - I tried everything - even went to ATT to ask for their help - nothing we did (and believe me, I tried everything) nothing worked. This is why I had to send back to Samsung and I am still waiting for word on what is wrong and what they are going to do to fix it.
Well, finally received my phone back from Samsung Support - and unfortunately, they didn't fix the primary problem I had originally sent my phone in for.
When I inserted my ATT Sim card into the device, after booting it up - everything worked properly - well most everything - I still did not have WiFi Calling. I checked in Settings/About Phone and discovered that the Service Provider was listed as XAA/XAA/ATT - that is not what it is supposed to be - it certainly is not what it was when I originally purchased the phone. (It should be ATT/ATT/ATT)
I called Samsung Support again and went thru the "whole story" reviewing what my problem was and what I needed fixed - the support person was apologetic and seemed to understand my issues - so I have resubmitted my phone and made sure it was clear that I either needed them to fix my phone or replace it - Damn, what a PITA!
Some of the Samsung Shops do run in a shady manner while other provide top class support. I had a similar experience with one of their shops while exchanging my Note 10+ for Note 20 Ultra. I generated a quote using the Upgrade option in My Galaxy app and when i reached the Samsung Shop, they refused to agree to the quote. They gave weird reasons like now the price has come down so we cannot give you that much. They offered me a price which was 200$ less than the quote on the app. After a bit of haggling, they agreed for a price which was 90$ less than the quote i had. Now the story gets even more shady, the samsung executive had to enter details of my phone in his Samsung portal to complete the exchange process. After getting all my details, he asked for the quote ID which i generated in the phone and when he was done entering, he moved far away from me pretending to talk on phone but i knew he was hiding the next screen on his phone app which would have shown the correctly approved quote. I didnt create much fuss since i was tired of waiting for my online order which was delayed by 2 weeks, so i needed to get the phone that day. But still it was an interesting turn of events to see what people do for earning few extra bucks and they dont even worry about tarnishing the image of the company they are working for.
Geekser said:
Well, finally received my phone back from Samsung Support - and unfortunately, they didn't fix the primary problem I had originally sent my phone in for.
When I inserted my ATT Sim card into the device, after booting it up - everything worked properly - well most everything - I still did not have WiFi Calling. I checked in Settings/About Phone and discovered that the Service Provider was listed as XAA/XAA/ATT - that is not what it is supposed to be - it certainly is not what it was when I originally purchased the phone. (It should be ATT/ATT/ATT)
I called Samsung Support again and went thru the "whole story" reviewing what my problem was and what I needed fixed - the support person was apologetic and seemed to understand my issues - so I have resubmitted my phone and made sure it was clear that I either needed them to fix my phone or replace it - Damn, what a PITA!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Ok. So what happens when you try to flash the regular u firmware now? Ath3 or ath4?
Oh and I should note since you made the rear camera comment. When I broke my front display and sent the phone in for repair they noted they also replaced the rear camera glass. The metal piece around the cameras was replaced too. They actually did me a favor as the original one you could see where the drill bit they used to make the bevel stopped. Actual stop marks. It was weird.
dottat said:
Ok. So what happens when you try to flash the regular u firmware now? Ath3 or ath4?
Oh and I should note since you made the rear camera comment. When I broke my front display and sent the phone in for repair they noted they also replaced the rear camera glass. The metal piece around the cameras was replaced too. They actually did me a favor as the original one you could see where the drill bit they used to make the bevel stopped. Actual stop marks. It was weird.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I flash the Stock firmware for N986U - when I boot the phone, it boots up fine - no ATT LOGO during the boot process - only Samsung - No WiFi Calling - no ATT Video Calling either. It is basically treating my phone like a Non-ATT Samsung Note 20 Ultra - but I specifically purchased the ATT Variant and when I originally received it, WiFi calling worked perfectly.
As stated earlier, I did call Samsung Support and after a long conversation, at the direction of the support people I submitted a ticket for support and have sent the phone back to Samsung. They should get the phone in tomorrow and I am hoping to have this fixed once and for all soon.
Fingers Crossed....
Geekser said:
When I flash the Stock firmware for N986U - when I boot the phone, it boots up fine - no ATT LOGO during the boot process - only Samsung - No WiFi Calling - no ATT Video Calling either. It is basically treating my phone like a Non-ATT Samsung Note 20 Ultra - but I specifically purchased the ATT Variant and when I originally received it, WiFi calling worked perfectly.
As stated earlier, I did call Samsung Support and after a long conversation, at the direction of the support people I submitted a ticket for support and have sent the phone back to Samsung. They should get the phone in tomorrow and I am hoping to have this fixed once and for all soon.
Fingers Crossed....
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I still think it's fixable by you. You just need to do the right steps in the right order.
dottat said:
I still think it's fixable by you. You just need to do the right steps in the right order.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not sure about that - and I really kind of have done that already.
From the second my phone arrived back from Samsung, in the Settings/about phone, my phone was listed as XAA/XAA/ATT - just like a SAMSUNG phone would be - but when I first bought the phone it was ATT/ATT/ATT and that is what Samsung was supposed to turn it back to.
Following the steps as you said will not change that Service Provider Indication - at least not to my knowledge. Do you know of anyone with a stock SAMSUNG phone that shows ATT/ATT/ATT in that part of Settings?
Geekser said:
Not sure about that - and I really kind of have done that already.
From the second my phone arrived back from Samsung, in the Settings/about phone, my phone was listed as XAA/XAA/ATT - just like a SAMSUNG phone would be - but when I first bought the phone it was ATT/ATT/ATT and that is what Samsung was supposed to turn it back to.
Following the steps as you said will not change that Service Provider Indication - at least not to my knowledge. Do you know of anyone with a stock SAMSUNG phone that shows ATT/ATT/ATT in that part of Settings?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In your phones current state does it allow you set the csc code by putting this into the dialer?
*#272*(yourimeinumber)#
dottat said:
In your phones current state does it allow you set the csc code by putting this into the dialer?
*#272*(yourimeinumber)#
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I don't know - I no longer have the phone in my possession - I sent it back to Samsung on Friday - hoping they fix it correctly this time - if that doesn't happen, then I will see if I can change it using that code when I have the phone.
Thanks for the tip.
Phone has been returned and works perfectly.
It has taken some time - and I actually had to send the phone back once when Samsung had returned it to me without fixing the primary issue. 2nd time around, after an indepth conversation with Service Support, Samsung has fixed my phone and returned it to me - like new.
I have been using it several days now and fallen in love again with it's speed and responsiveness. The Camera is second to none compared to any phone/camera I have owned previously.
Honestly, while I am very pleased and happy to have my phone back, I will be a little nervous about flashing U1 Firmware with CSC from the normal U - I had a flash failure previously and that is what led to my phone having problems - I really don't want to go thru that again, but I think if I am careful - I should be ok