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When I purchase the phone without contract will it be unlocked or will I have to pay to get an unlock code? Does anybody know? Also its 500 to buy without contract. what sort of taxes will be added to that?
Cheers guys
JD
I bought it from Tmobile off contract and I think it was like around $40 taxes. Probably still need to get an unlock code because it's a Tmobile phone
Edit: 41.60 to be exact
Nexus S
JupiterDroid said:
When I purchase the phone without contract will it be unlocked or will I have to pay to get an unlock code? Does anybody know? Also its 500 to buy without contract. what sort of taxes will be added to that?
Cheers guys
JD
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Click to collapse
It's locked to T-Mobile. Either wait 90 days and T-Mobile will then provide the unlock code free of charge, upon request within 24h or pay to get it unlocked now.
brian6685 said:
I bought it from Tmobile off contract and I think it was like around $40 taxes. Probably still need to get an unlock code because it's a Tmobile phone
Edit: 41.60 to be exact
Nexus S
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Click to collapse
Thanks Brian
Are unlock codes expensive?
JD
t-mizzle said:
It's locked to T-Mobile. Either wait 90 days and T-Mobile will then provide the unlock code free of charge, upon request within 24h or pay to get it unlocked now.
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Click to collapse
Do you know how much instant unlock is?
JD
Depends from site to site, shop around but unless they jack it up ( it's a known fact the device has AT&T HSPA+) it should be cheaper than the HDMI cable, strangely omitted from the package.
I've been asking around and several people have informed me that if you purchase the phone for full retail, t-mobile will provide you with an unlock code. I also found this on wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIM_lock#United_States
"One of the two national GSM carriers, T-Mobile,[43] will unlock handsets for those with active account in good standing for at least 40 days and no unlock code request in the last 90 days. T-Mobile will also unlock a phone if the full retail price is paid and proof of purchase is provided through a faxed document. "
nomisunrider said:
I've been asking around and several people have informed me that if you purchase the phone for full retail, t-mobile will provide you with an unlock code. I also found this on wikipedia.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIM_lock#United_States
"One of the two national GSM carriers, T-Mobile,[43] will unlock handsets for those with active account in good standing for at least 40 days and no unlock code request in the last 90 days. T-Mobile will also unlock a phone if the full retail price is paid and proof of purchase is provided through a faxed document. "
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Cool,
Thats great, thanks mate
JD
If we wait long enough they may even come up with a way to unlock the phone without an unlock code, kinda like how they did with the mytouch4g. Root brings some great things with it
Nexus S
brian6685 said:
If we wait long enough they may even come up with a way to unlock the phone without an unlock code, kinda like how they did with the mytouch4g. Root brings some great things with it
Nexus S
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Click to collapse
Im not gonna wait 1-2 months for a radio s-off with my shiny new phone, lollol,
but that is an option for patient people;P
JD
Haha
Nexus S
Having been an AT&T customer for over 10 years now, I wanted to take my recently purchased Galaxy Note 3 on a trip to Europe, therefore, I wanted to unlock it. I called AT&T and was told (basically) that my phone can't be unlocked except after the 2 year contract period expires. Oh yeah! Forget AT&T...I'm on my own. Anyone have ideas on how to do an unlock on an AT&T Note 3 reliably?
You can try region lock away by chainfire. You have to be rooted for it to work. Good luck.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using xda app-developers app
I agree with the OP. I do not believe that carriers should have any influence or say so when it comes to phones. Why do they need to control them? Like with updates for example. What a nightmare. Why does phone phone have to be locked to them. I'm paying them for service only. UGH.
Chainfire's unlock works on M19 build and baseband. If you are on MJ5, you need to restore with a M19 build / MJ5 baseband and then root, then apply the unlock.
If you don't want to root, the only option is to purchase unlock code.
MattMJB0188 said:
I agree with the OP. I do not believe that carriers should have any influence or say so when it comes to phones. Why do they need to control them? Like with updates for example. What a nightmare. Why does phone phone have to be locked to them. I'm paying them for service only. UGH.
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Click to collapse
Your not paying just for just service. When you get the phone on 2 year plan every month you paying a payment on that phone every month. That's why your bill so high. People don't realize it.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using xda app-developers app
If you don't want to have to worry about any of that then buy the phone out right and don't do a 2 year contract it like buy a car on credit you don't fully own it till you pay it off. On top of that if you don't like waiting for updates and stuff buy an unlocked Un carrier branded phone and get the update when they come out.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk
Maybe try this path?
https://www.att.com/deviceunlock/client/en_US/?
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk
I unlocked mine via a website. Cost me $30 but worked just fine. I am in the UK right now and using my note 3 with a pay as you go sim. I tried the region lock away here on xda but the sim was still locked.
Like you I was so mad when AT&T told me they no longer provide unlock codes. Once my contract expires I am done with them.
Hope this helps. Cheers.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using xda app-developers app
Just pay one of the many websites out there $30ish to get an unlock code based on the IMEI number. I did it with my AT&T N3 within a week of buying it and it works great Internationally.
I understand it costs money and people assume it should be free but it's a minimal amount of money not to have to deal with AT&T's bone head customer service.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk
All carriers are like this from my experience. Keeping the phone locked is the only form of inconvenience they can put on people who do not want to honor their contracts and steal the phone. I called AT&T 2 months after I got my Note 3 on contract to unlock and they told me the buy-out price was 198.00.
Hi I want to buy this phone, unlock it and use it for ATT.
I heard you cannot buy this phone off contract and that you must have a service with them. I hear people are just signing up for the service for one day and then cancel the day after.
Can someone explain how they did it?
pham818 said:
Hi I want to buy this phone, unlock it and use it for ATT.
I heard you cannot buy this phone off contract and that you must have a service with them. I hear people are just signing up for the service for one day and then cancel the day after.
Can someone explain how they did it?
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Pay full price for phone up front and buy the smallest package. After 40 days cancel the service. Some stores will sell it out right without a plan, but you will have to do some searching and calling. I had to go to 3 different stores before I found one that would sell it out right.
I read LTE and 4G dont work so well when you take it back to ATT. I read somewhere.
chong67 said:
I read LTE and 4G dont work so well when you take it back to ATT. I read somewhere.
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Results vary. Some say it works just as good
My LTE works perfect on AT&T.
My unlocked T Mobile Note 4 running on AT&T.
chong67 said:
I read LTE and 4G dont work so well when you take it back to ATT. I read somewhere.
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I thought the same thing. This is not the case with the Note 4. It was an issue with the Note 3 and previous devices in my experience.
martinezma99 said:
My unlocked T Mobile Note 4 running on AT&T.
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Who did you use to unlock it? im looking to pick one up and i'd rather not have to wait for tmobiles unlocking terms.
If you buy the phone out right you can unlock asap
bigmase23 said:
If you buy the phone out right you can unlock asap
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There's been conflicting reports about that.
I bought the phone outright. Paid $30 or so to cellunlocker to get an unlock code. Popped in AT&T sim and off I went. Still need to cancel Tmo service.
taphius said:
There's been conflicting reports about that.
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When you purchase the phone outright you now it and can unlock it.
I bought my Note 4 outright and purchased the lowest priced package I could. I unlocked it the first day I received it, inserted my sim card from Consumer Cellular and was up and running. However, I read that T-Mobile can and have blacklisted the IMEI of phones that don't comply with their terms of service. Since I didn't read the fine print when I bought the phone and service, I decided it would be prudent to go ahead and meet the 40 service requirement to get an unlock code (although the phone is already unlocked) rather than take a chance and have some T-Mobile manager with a Napoleonic complex blacklist the phone. Then I would be out of $800.00. I asked the customer care representative about blacklisting the phone if I didn't meet the 40 day requirement and she said it was possible. I wasn't willing to take that chance. I will pony up an additional $80.00 + dollars to have peace of mind.
cartertucker said:
I bought the phone outright. Paid $30 or so to cellunlocker to get an unlock code. Popped in AT&T sim and off I went. Still need to cancel Tmo service.
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Thanks
I preordered, got phone Monday the 13th.
I unlocked with cellunlocker.net 4 days later.
Been using it on AT&T since last friday. Called and canceled tmobile same day.
Easy as that.
Sent from my SM-N910T using XDA Free mobile app
bigmase23 said:
When you purchase the phone outright you now it and can unlock it.
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Click to collapse
Right but you make it sound like every T-Mobile store or reseller will sell you a phone outright with absolutely zero commitment of any kind like you walked in to buy a pack of gum or bought a nexus from google play store. There are conflicting reports about zero commitment purchases. The safer bet seems to be walking in with the understanding that you may have to agree to a month-to-month or prepaid contract that you can cancel a day or more later.
The best way i can think to explain it is as follows:
A few people have reported that they were able to buy it outright without service. Though many have been denied that option.
Some have implied that Tmobile then unlocked it.
A moderately safe assumption is that you can buy it with service, unlock it via third party service, and cancel your tmobile service the second u get your unlock code. This comes with the gray area of region locking and having to activate it on tmobile first to remove the region lock pior to unlocking. This can be a lengthy discussion, you might not care about region locking, I'll leave it at that, but read into it. I went this route, activated on tmobile for 4 days, then unlocked and cancelled. I say assumption because people are worried about blacklisting and T.O.S.
The most cautious method would be to wait out your 40 days per Tmobile T.O.S., in addition to the time it takes for them to send your unlock code, pay applicable fees, then cancel.
Hope this clears up the options a bit.
Sent from my SM-N910T using XDA Free mobile app
T-Mobile has the IMEI of phone they sell you in their records. I confirmed it when I called them and they read it to me for confirmation purposes. They sold the phone to you and they know everything about it. Guaranteed. If their records show the phone being used on another carrier without it being activated with them or unlocked by them then they can blacklist the IMEI of the phone. That phone will then be an $800.00 paperweight. They have done it before and a quick Google search will prove it. I'm not saying they will since that seems to be an unknown, but they can and the owner of the phone will have no recourse. I sure don't want to wake up one day and find out that my $800.00 phone is dead. I might very well be wrong, but I am not willing to take that chance after paying $800.00 for the phone. I'll pay for the 40 days of service.
I just bought my Note 4 full price from AT&T after calling about 30 stores in my area and finding one store with one black model in stock. I ended up paying less than full price because of some computer error that rung up the phone $749.99 instead of $825.99. They charged me the difference so I only paid $825 outright, after taxes. All in all, I saved almost $50 (difference in tax from $750 to $825). I still feel like it is ridiculous though that the AT&T model is $80 more expensive than TMo. Is it worth buying a TMO Note 4 with their baseball discount ($30 off) and trying to unlock it to use it on AT&T? Sorry for my long comment/question.
Bought mine from swappa in a sealed pack. Opened the phone, went to Cellunlocker.com and within 10 min had my unlock code. Works great on ATT
So pretty sure I'm a victim of just being dumb. On Craigslist, yup Craigslist, a guy was looking to trade a Note 5 (t-mobile) for a iPad Air 2. I have an extra iPad laying around that I won so was I was interested in the trade. I had done something similar with the s6 Edge. I have AT&T but want it rooted so I know the only option is t-mobile. I didn't even think, but I get home but the Note is still being financed so I'm pretty sure it's not eligible to be unlocked. I haven't called t-mobile yet, but I don't think that's gonna matter. I'm kinda screwed
Pretty sure I have an awesome iPod touch. I sent for one of those unlock code things but from what I've read that's just not gonna work. The guy was really cool, he needed to go back to an iPhone for work. I haven't tried contacting him. I obviously can but I doubt that'll go over well. Any suggestions? At the end of the day I swapped a free iPad for an awesome Note 5, but just sucks that I don't think I'll be able to use it.
Thanks
BTW it's not blacklisted, just financed. I know I could use it on T-Mobile, but I don't have the service.
What is your question? Unlock it at www.cellunlocker.net
Sent from my Gorgeous Note5
Untill its blacklisted it should still work. T mobile wont unlock it themselves till its paid off im sure but if the guy u got it from has had the service for a while he may have every intention of continuing his account and paying the bill every month. I would have passed on it myself in your situation unless it was already unlocked. Try a cheap service and get a unlock code. If it doesnt work then contact the guy back and let him know what the deal is. 50/50 chance if u contact him quick he will be cool about it.
Sent from my SM-N920P using XDA Free mobile app
The fact that its financed is not really your problem as the account holder is paying the bill. There is no reason why you can't unlock. I also use cellunlocker.net every time i need to unlock a phone
polish_pat said:
The fact that its financed is not really your problem as the account holder is paying the bill. There is no reason why you can't unlock. I also use cellunlocker.net every time i need to unlock a phone
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Okay thanks guys... How long does the unlock usually take.. I used the "unlockingcompany" and its been almost two full day. Just curious.
Thanks
Cellunlocker.net usually sends the code between 3-6 hours. Although on the 10 or so codes I ordered, one or two took about 24 hours
Sent from my SM-N920W8 using Tapatalk
Okay. I just I'll give this site a few more hours then if not I'll try your suggestion
Also if you film the unlock process and post it on YouTube you might get between 50% and 100% discount. Here is a vid i made just a few days ago
https://youtu.be/cPCFa8z-Drg
Sent from my SM-N920W8 using Tapatalk
Beware of cellunlocker.net they have poor customer service and fight you hard if you need a refund. I would verify from them that they can unlock a Tmobile Note 5 b4 you pay them a dime. With tmobiles new unlock app codes don't work anymore.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk
verks said:
Beware of cellunlocker.net they have poor customer service and fight you hard if you need a refund. I would verify from them that they can unlock a Tmobile Note 5 b4 you pay them a dime. With tmobiles new unlock app codes don't work anymore.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk
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I didn't actually try cellunlocker.net yet, however on their site it says my IMEI is unlockable and gives it the ol' green check mark. Again still waiting if "theunlockingcompany" is gonna come through before I try anything else.
verks said:
Beware of cellunlocker.net they have poor customer service and fight you hard if you need a refund. I would verify from them that they can unlock a Tmobile Note 5 b4 you pay them a dime. With tmobiles new unlock app codes don't work anymore.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N920A using Tapatalk
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Click to collapse
Thats BS. Cellunlocker have great customer service. I've been dealing with them for almost 10 years, 2-3 times a year and always had the code withing 3-6 hours with 1 exception...even on weekends and holidays they deliver. What company refunds you at least 50% of your cost just by posting a video of the process? The only reason you would ask for a refund is if you've provided them with the wrong IMEI. It happened to me once, and their terms of service clearly state that no refund will be issued if its a user mistake. Which is totally understandable because they provided me with the service, why should they pay? I had one issue with the correct IMEI being sent but process froze my phone. I called them and were able to provide me with unfreeze code over the phone and help me through the process. Their codes are also some of the cheapest on the market.
It's not because you had a bad experience that they have bad customer service. I'm sure you haven't told us the entire story either.
T-Mobile uses a Device Unlock app on it's Note5 devices; traditional sim unlocking will not work. T-Mobile does something on their end to process the unlock without entering a SIM unlock code. here's a link to an S6 thread where the OP implies he can SIM unlock your S6/Note5 device if your phone is rooted. had i known of this, i would have tried it myself. fortunately, T-Mobile granted me a permanent unlock because i paid full price for my phone. Good luck.
Hi guys, anyone know of a good method to unlock a locked T-mobile Note 5 that was bought from e-Bay? I've been using t-mobile for years, but I don't know if the 40 days of use method will work since I didn't buy my previous/current Note 5 (unlocked) from t-mobile. My new Note 5 is factory locked, and I don't think the unlock code method some third party sellers sell will work with it.
Any info?
It doesnt matter if you bought the device from Tmo or not you may have to get service for at least 40 days. and after that last payment with 40 days in mind the unlocker app will work....I went thru that with the Lg v10 when it first came out and i got it from swappa. But i dont know off hand if things have changed or not since then but third party unlockers couldnt do it then. Thats one reason i quit buying devices from tmo and having to mess with that app but after 40 days made the payment on the 42nd day and the app worked fine.....
KennyLG123 said:
It doesnt matter if you bought the device from Tmo or not you may have to get service for at least 40 days. and after that last payment with 40 days in mind the unlocker app will work....I went thru that with the Lg v10 when it first came out and i got it from swappa. But i dont know off hand if things have changed or not since then but third party unlockers couldnt do it then. Thats one reason i quit buying devices from tmo and having to mess with that app but after 40 days made the payment on the 42nd day and the app worked fine.....
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Click to collapse
Thanks for the info. As far as I've read there used to be more options in the past:
-People would flash a MetroPCS Rom to their Note 5's in order to prompt to enter an unlocking code they would buy from a third party seller.
-People would unlock the phone through the T-mobile app regardless of where they bought the phone from, after a 40 day service under t-mobile, and have the phone fully paid if they bought it through t-mobile (used to be a whole year in the old old days). Also, some people reported being able to unlock after only 4 days of use under a t-mobile line, and requesting help from t-mobile. However IF the phone was stolen, or the previous owner had pending payments, the phone would get flagged by t-mobile, and other issues would appear to prevent you from unlocking, which is why it's risky to buy used phones off not so reputable sources like eBay.
- Some people or third party sellers would offer a server based unlock that was either free or paid by donation. I read that they needed root, but would use a "ping pong" type of temporary root that would not trip Knox, which sounds amazing, but I doubt people are still doing that since a lot of users ar moving on from the Note 5 by now.
thenetvines said:
Thanks for the info. As far as I've read there used to be more options in the past:
-People would flash a MetroPCS Rom to their Note 5's in order to prompt to enter an unlocking code they would buy from a third party seller.
-People would unlock the phone through the T-mobile app regardless of where they bought the phone from, after a 40 day service under t-mobile, and have the phone fully paid if they bought it through t-mobile (used to be a whole year in the old old days). Also, some people reported being able to unlock after only 4 days of use under a t-mobile line, and requesting help from t-mobile. However IF the phone was stolen, or the previous owner had pending payments, the phone would get flagged by t-mobile, and other issues would appear to prevent you from unlocking, which is why it's risky to buy used phones off not so reputable sources like eBay.
- Some people or third party sellers would offer a server based unlock that was either free or paid by donation. I read that they needed root, but would use a "ping pong" type of temporary root that would not trip Knox, which sounds amazing, but I doubt people are still doing that since a lot of users ar moving on from the Note 5 by now.
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Click to collapse
I wasnt getting nowhere talking to tmo but went ahead and got the service with them just to unlock the device. But after that i started buying international devices, which was better since tmo is allowing bootloader lock and i prefer the exynos chips anyhow over snapdragon.
Hey, I was able to easily unlock my phone through T-mobile for free and really quick.
I bought a genuine T-mobile locked Note 5 from eBay, fearing it maybe a fake, since they still sell so many fake phones out there.
I tried the unlocking app on my SM-920T, and it said my device wasn't eligible. I called T-mobile, and a lady told me that she wouldn't know how to unlock my device past the unlocking app, so I asked her to transfer me to a tech guy, and she did.
The tech guy looked up my IMEI number, and realized it wasn't a stolen phone, or a used phone under someone's account left with a debt, so he said that was good so far, and he tried his first "unlock method" to no success... I don't know what that method was, but then he said he'd try a second method (probably server based), and he was successful. He told me to wait anywhere from 2 hours to 24 hours, and try the unlocking app.
I tried the unlocking app right away, and it worked. Overall, it took less than 5 minutes talking to T-mobile to unlock permanently.
I did this in Florida, US, with a refurbished phone that seems to be legit. I don't know how this method will vary under other circumstances.
thenetvines said:
Hey, I was able to easily unlock my phone through T-mobile for free and really quick.
I bought a genuine T-mobile locked Note 5 from eBay, fearing it maybe a fake, since they still sell so many fake phones out there.
I tried the unlocking app on my SM-920T, and it said my device wasn't eligible. I called T-mobile, and a lady told me that she wouldn't know how to unlock my device past the unlocking app, so I asked her to transfer me to a tech guy, and she did.
The tech guy looked up my IMEI number, and realized it wasn't a stolen phone, or a used phone under someone's account left with a debt, so he said that was good so far, and he tried his first "unlock method" to no success... I don't know what that method was, but then he said he'd try a second method (probably server based), and he was successful. He told me to wait anywhere from 2 hours to 24 hours, and try the unlocking app.
I tried the unlocking app right away, and it worked. Overall, it took less than 5 minutes talking to T-mobile to unlock permanently.
I did this in Florida, US, with a refurbished phone that seems to be legit. I don't know how this method will vary under other circumstances.
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Im glad you didnt go thru the crap most of us had to do with tmo unlock app...
KennyLG123 said:
Im glad you didnt go thru the crap most of us had to do with tmo unlock app...
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Hey man, just to let you know, it is even EASIER to unlock phones through T-mobile now, and for free!!! All you have to do is leave a message about it on T-Mobile's Facebook support, and leave them your IMEI.
IT DOESN'T MATTER IF YOU'RE NOT USING THE PHONE ON T-MOBILE
NO CONTRACT OR DAYS OF USE WITH THEM REQUIRED
THEY USUALLY RESPOND IN MINUTES
NO CHARGE WHATSOEVER
IF YOU ARE IN THE US, EVEN THE SIM CARD ON TMOBILE SHOULD BE FREE IF YOU NEED IT, JUST DON'T GO TO A SHADY SMALL T-MOBILE SHOP OWNED BY A THIRD PARTY, GO TO THE BIG STORES.