[Q] Obama phone SIM in xperia z? - Xperia Z Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting

So i went to a unlocking store today and asked if i can do the cut trick to put a normal sim to a micro sim once unlocked but i showed them the obama phone and they said that those sims only work on the obama phones. Is that true? i would not think so, once you have the settings in there should be no problem right?

I did some research and it seems that most of the companies that provide "Obama phones" don't let you use their sim in another phone.
This page lists the policies of a lot of different providers.

I can't because of ethics or impossibility?

I don't know and can't guess with the very little information you provide. Why don't you ask your provider?

I have no provider that's why I want put this sim in my phone

Where did you get the Obama phone from? The service has to be provided by someone.

I applied for it about 2 years ago and I just keep it as a work phone. As for the carrier I'll take a look

It's trackfone carried by most likely at&t or possibly t-mobile.
If it's t-mobile that's my xperia z carrier. No need for unlock.

Tracfone is apparently SafeLink, that say their sim will only work in the phone they supply. This is probably controlled by only registered IMEIs being allowed to connect one of their sim cards to their network.
This is as much help as I can provide as I'm not from the US and don't have much knowledge regarding the cell providers there.

And i believe spoofing iemi is a bit "black magic"and shouldn't be done I believe.

xdarkmario said:
And i believe spoofing iemi is a bit "black magic"and shouldn't be done I believe.
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Click to collapse
It's illegal and cannot be discussed on XDA. There's no way to do it on the Xperia Z in any case.

Gotcha, well that's that then. Thanks anyways

Related

Just got off the phone with ATT CS and got an unlock code.

They told me that my code can be used five times before it is permanently locked to att service.
Is this true?
Ive never ever heard of that! Usually when the code is entered the phone is unlocked for life.
Why would you need to use the Unlock code more than once?
Once the phone is SIM unlocked, it unlocked, you can put any SIM in it...forever.
Sounds like the CS rep is demonstrating his/her usual amazing command of the technical world (caution: irony!)
You will be unlocking your SIM card only...Not your phone.
If you have a 'Tilt' the best recommendation is to re-flash to a good ROM,(Tilt is a very basic OLD bug ridden ROM) IMO the latest HTC ROM as they built the device is best!!!
Um, no. You will be SIM unlocking your phone. That means you can then use any company network SIM card (i.e. Tmo) with your Tilt. Of course as long as its GSM.
SIM Unlocking != CID Unlocking. SIM unlocking, as I said, lets you use other carrier SIM cards. CID unlocking lets you put any Kaiser ROM on the phone. Without CID unlocking, you can only use the AT&T Tilt ROMs.
You only have to enter the SIM unlock code they gave you once.
The "5 times" comment is if you screw up and mistype it 5 times, your phone will not accept the Unlock code.
jomo25 said:
Um, no. You will be SIM unlocking your phone. That means you can then use any company network SIM card (i.e. Tmo) with your Tilt. Of course as long as its GSM.
SIM Unlocking != CID Unlocking. SIM unlocking, as I said, lets you use other carrier SIM cards. CID unlocking lets you put any Kaiser ROM on the phone. Without CID unlocking, you can only use the AT&T Tilt ROMs.
You only have to enter the SIM unlock code they gave you once.
The "5 times" comment is if you screw up and mistype it 5 times, your phone will not accept the Unlock code.
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Click to collapse
Not my experience in the US with a 'non carrier' phone but what the hey!
What works for you best...
If it's a non-carrier phone then, by definition it's SIM unlocked - IE you can put anyone's SIM in it and, so long as the SIM hasn't been disabled (by being reported stolen for example) or it's a Pay As You Go with no money left then it will work.
As said before, SIM unlocking means SIM unlocking the phone.
CID unlocking means CID unlocking the phone.
Both are one-way trips.
SIM unlocking means you can use anyone's SIM.
CID unlocking means you can use anyone's Operating system that supports the hardware.
Farsquidge said:
You will be unlocking your SIM card only...Not your phone.
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No, that's not correct. You unlock your phone not the SIM card.
staryon said:
No, that's not correct. You unlock your phone not the SIM card.
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Just humour me... Try another SIM card please.
I worked there for 2 yrs and could not completly unlock my phone but it may have changed.
Farsquidge said:
Just humour me... Try another SIM card please.
I worked there for 2 yrs and could not completly unlock my phone but it may have changed.
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I'm doing it right now. I have a AT&T plan in the US and I now I'm in Spain, using Movistar.
staryon said:
I'm doing it right now. I have a AT&T plan in the US and I now I'm in Spain, using Movistar.
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Wonderful... you have just confirmed to me that there are people still on here ready to try something new. I will freely admit I do not know all and will listen to any new ideas/developements. But I will not commit to a blind view without all the facts!!!
Power to your profile!!! (cant say elbow as that only works in the UK!)
Farsquidge said:
Wonderful... you have just confirmed to me that there are people still on here ready to try something new. I will freely admit I do not know all and will listen to any new ideas/developements. But I will not commit to a blind view without all the facts!!!
Power to your profile!!! (cant say elbow as that only works in the UK!)
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Click to collapse
maybe you should read staryon's 1st post again, he disagrees with you also. As everyone else has said here, unlocking the phone is what happens when you call AT&T and request a code. The code that AT&T gives you only works with the IMEI of the phone, it has nothing to do with the sim card. AT&T isn't going to ask for the sim id, they ask for IMEI of the phone (located under the battery).
Most likely staryon has a SIM-unlocked Tilt.
Farsquidge said:
Wonderful... you have just confirmed to me that there are people still on here ready to try something new. I will freely admit I do not know all and will listen to any new ideas/developements. But I will not commit to a blind view without all the facts!!!
Power to your profile!!! (cant say elbow as that only works in the UK!)
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Click to collapse
ATT will give you the UNLOCK code for the phone.. Not the SIM card.. I have had a blackjack and an 8525 that was unlocked using the code after calling ATT/Cingular department. I took my friends t-mobile sim card, put it into my phone and via, it worked as if it was a tmobile phone to make calls. Same with the 8525 but I put a german pre paid sim card and used it for 3 weeks over there, came back to the states put my att sim card back into it and it worked on att again...
jomo25 said:
Um, no. You will be SIM unlocking your phone. That means you can then use any company network SIM card (i.e. Tmo) with your Tilt. Of course as long as its GSM.
SIM Unlocking != CID Unlocking. SIM unlocking, as I said, lets you use other carrier SIM cards. CID unlocking lets you put any Kaiser ROM on the phone. Without CID unlocking, you can only use the AT&T Tilt ROMs.
You only have to enter the SIM unlock code they gave you once.
The "5 times" comment is if you screw up and mistype it 5 times, your phone will not accept the Unlock code.
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Yeah she said that if I screw it up five times it will lock to att. I thought that was weird.
Also she said she had to change something in my international portion of my plan. she did not fully explain. does anyone know what could have been changed?
tiptoekirk said:
ATT will give you the UNLOCK code for the phone.. Not the SIM card..
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Sorry guys, I think I must be working from old info and things have changed since then.
A few years ago.... I got Verizon to unlock my US phone for a UK SIM card and all I ended up with was the capability of the phone to use just the Verizon card and my UK one. If I tried to put any other SIM in it, it would not work.
Soz again, forget my input and excuse an old 'Fart'
tresmith said:
Yeah she said that if I screw it up five times it will lock to att. I thought that was weird.
Also she said she had to change something in my international portion of my plan. she did not fully explain. does anyone know what could have been changed?
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Click to collapse
Yes, AT&T will give out free unlock codes. But to justify it, they are assuming you will need your phone unlocked because you are using it internationally. Of course, they expect that if you are in the US, you are using AT&T's network and thus have no reason to use it with any other US carrier SIM like TMobile.
So, since they make this assumption, they most likely added 1 or 2 items to your monthly bill:
1. AT&T World Connect
2. AT&T International Roaming
THe first lets you call anywhere in the world from the US for reduced (though still quite expensive) per minute rate. The rates are reduced (e.g. 2.29 to 1.99 per minute), but they charge you a monthly set fee (like $5 or so).
The second gives you special rates when roaming in other countries, while still using your AT&T SIM. Again, it just gives reduced per minute rates, that are still quite expensive. I think this one costs a monthly fee of about $9per month.
Also, they need to "provision" your phone to be able to access thenetwork outside of the US. THis does NOT cost anything, but it must be done or your AT&T SIM card phone will never get a signal outside of the US. This is a spearate step that they only give to people who ask for int'l access. Cuz if they just let everyone access int'l networks, some people might not realize the ridiculous per minute rates they charge and end up getting an extremely high monthly bill.
So, anyways, the point is: in AT&T's mind you will only use AT&T SIM for your phone in the US. And the only reaosn they let you unlock it is to use in internationally with a non-US carrier's SIM. So, since they assume that, they may have added some charges to your monthly bill. Its not 100% that they did add the charges and only added the provisioning, but you might want to check.
Go check your online account via att.com/wireless. Check your monthly services. If you see these items, and you do not need them because you arent' going to make calls on AT&T's SIM to or from outside the US, remove those items from our services and you will be credited pro-rated.
Oh, and as for theunlock code they gave you. Assuming you typed it in correctly and got your phone unlocked successfully, you can keep the code, BUT YOU WILL NEVER NEED IT AGAIN. It only needs to get typed in once. Even if you hard reset and flash your phone with a new ROM, you will not need to unlock it again. And it will NOT work for anyone else, so don't think that you can give it to 4 other people and it will work. The unlock codes are unique to the phone via IMEI number.
anybody needs to Unlock ther Kaiser,
PM me for info.
Unlock Code
What is the unlock code?
every phone has a different unlock code, one code for one phone only, it cannot be transfered of anything like it. and of course those kinds of things aint free.
jomo25 said:
Yes, AT&T will give out free unlock codes. But to justify it, they are assuming you will need your phone unlocked because you are using it internationally. Of course, they expect that if you are in the US, you are using AT&T's network and thus have no reason to use it with any other US carrier SIM like TMobile.
So, since they make this assumption, they most likely added 1 or 2 items to your monthly bill:
1. AT&T World Connect
2. AT&T International Roaming
THe first lets you call anywhere in the world from the US for reduced (though still quite expensive) per minute rate. The rates are reduced (e.g. 2.29 to 1.99 per minute), but they charge you a monthly set fee (like $5 or so).
The second gives you special rates when roaming in other countries, while still using your AT&T SIM. Again, it just gives reduced per minute rates, that are still quite expensive. I think this one costs a monthly fee of about $9per month.
Also, they need to "provision" your phone to be able to access thenetwork outside of the US. THis does NOT cost anything, but it must be done or your AT&T SIM card phone will never get a signal outside of the US. This is a spearate step that they only give to people who ask for int'l access. Cuz if they just let everyone access int'l networks, some people might not realize the ridiculous per minute rates they charge and end up getting an extremely high monthly bill.
So, anyways, the point is: in AT&T's mind you will only use AT&T SIM for your phone in the US. And the only reaosn they let you unlock it is to use in internationally with a non-US carrier's SIM. So, since they assume that, they may have added some charges to your monthly bill. Its not 100% that they did add the charges and only added the provisioning, but you might want to check.
Go check your online account via att.com/wireless. Check your monthly services. If you see these items, and you do not need them because you arent' going to make calls on AT&T's SIM to or from outside the US, remove those items from our services and you will be credited pro-rated.
Oh, and as for theunlock code they gave you. Assuming you typed it in correctly and got your phone unlocked successfully, you can keep the code, BUT YOU WILL NEVER NEED IT AGAIN. It only needs to get typed in once. Even if you hard reset and flash your phone with a new ROM, you will not need to unlock it again. And it will NOT work for anyone else, so don't think that you can give it to 4 other people and it will work. The unlock codes are unique to the phone via IMEI number.
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Click to collapse
ok I just checked my account and I don't see anything new/weird.
Thanks.

Change IMEI

I have a voice together a data plan fo my Touch HD, on the same SIM card. When I bought it the person of the cellphone company had told me that I may use the SIM on my phone and on a unlocked USB minimodem. For my surprise, I tried it and there is no signal using the minimodem. I contacted the cellphone company and they told me that I cannot use the same SIM on the minimodem. I think it's unfare. And I think the signal is blocked when I put the SIM on the minimodem through the miimodem IMEI. So, If I change its IMEI to the same of my Touch HD, I'll be able to use the SIM also on my minimodem, right? I don't think it's illegal because the SIM is mine, the minimodem is mine, the cellphone is mine and I'm not gonna use it for illegal purpses (like clone other persons phone), and because when I was just to take the plan they told me one thing and when I had taken it they told me another thing.
My question: does anyone know a way for changing my data card IMEI? It's a Huawei E156.
Thank you all!
Well - if it's legal or not is obviously going to depend upon what country you're in - but odds are it's illegal.
It is illegal to change the imei on any phone.
Whether for thievery or for innocent purposes ( as yours appears to be ), it is against forum rules to solicit help in changing imei's or other illegal behavior on this forum.
http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=276851
Wow not locked yet?
maybe im worngbut i thought the changing of imeis was illaegal only in certain countries
never the less still against board policy
stylez said:
Wow not locked yet?
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What're talking about ?

Bad IMEI Tmobile N3 on AT&T

If I buy a bad IMEI Note 3 from eBay, can I still use it on AT&T? Is there any issue with buying such phone (apart from being at risk of it being stolen) ?
ajamils said:
If I buy a bad IMEI Note 3 from eBay, can I still use it on AT&T? Is there any issue with buying such phone (apart from being at risk of it being stolen) ?
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Yeah, don't. It means it is blacklisted by the carrier and all carriers until it is cleared. I read to do that is a hassle. Also, the only way to use it outside of that is to unlock it from the carrier and use it on a different network, but I think that's only doable through a Verizon Note 3. In short, don't waste your time or money.
opasha said:
Yeah, don't. It means it is blacklisted by the carrier and all carriers until it is cleared. I read to do that is a hassle. Also, the only way to use it outside of that is to unlock it from the carrier and use it on a different network, but I think that's only doable through a Verizon Note 3. In short, don't waste your time or money.
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As far as I know Tmobile version can be unlocked as well and since I will be using it on AT&T, does it matter that it's blacklisted on Tmobile?
ajamils said:
As far as I know Tmobile version can be unlocked as well and since I will be using it on AT&T, does it matter that it's blacklisted on Tmobile?
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Yeah because T-Mobile and At&t are both gsm networks. Verizon is CDMA. The article I read in order to further assist you stated that it's easier to use a CDMA blacklisted phone on a gsm carrier. Not sure how, but yeah. Avoid it regardless. It's just stupid.
ya agree with opasha, avoid it. Tmobs and ATT share the same blacklist, and it's technically a felony to flash a new imei and an additional hassle. Only way to use it is on gsm networks, not on that blacklist (which also includes pre-pay and affiliates), which means out of the country for the most part.
ajamils said:
As far as I know Tmobile version can be unlocked as well and since I will be using it on AT&T, does it matter that it's blacklisted on Tmobile?
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Carriers share blacklisted IMEI's. They do it on CDMA networks as well. Your really off brand local carriers like MetroPCS may not block it though just because it's basically a mom and pop shop.
agent929 said:
Carriers share blacklisted IMEI's. They do it on CDMA networks as well. Your really off brand local carriers like MetroPCS may not block it though just because it's basically a mom and pop shop.
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Metro PCS is owned by T-mobile. Truthfully there aren't really any independent operators anymore.
As others have mentioned, IMEI blacklists are shared across US carriers now so you'd be better off avoiding the phone unless you plan on only using it internationally.
dawheat said:
Metro PCS is owned by T-mobile. Truthfully there aren't really any independent operators anymore.
As others have mentioned, IMEI blacklists are shared across US carriers now so you'd be better off avoiding the phone unless you plan on only using it internationally.
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Eh it was just an example. I don't know for sure what the little junk carriers are. It may be now to where it's shared with everybody. I know there's ESN checker websites out there and I'm sure these carriers have access to something even better than that.
agent929 said:
Eh it was just an example. I don't know for sure what the little junk carriers are. It may be now to where it's shared with everybody. I know there's ESN checker websites out there and I'm sure these carriers have access to something even better than that.
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Is there a reliable IMEI checker website? The IMEI number that a guy from CL gave me does not show up in Tmobile IMEI checker.
do you know anybody that has T-mobile because you could have them call the IMEI in to make sure
Att doesn't care if it's been black listed. I had a Friend on my account he stopped paying for the line I reported it stolen and he went the next day to get it activated. They even told him that it was reported stolen and still did it. I have heard that both t mobile and att do it all the time cuz they want the business.
infowars.com get the truth
ajamils said:
Is there a reliable IMEI checker website? The IMEI number that a guy from CL gave me does not show up in Tmobile IMEI checker.
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Even if you do check the IMEI and its good today doesn't mean it won't be blacklisted tomorrow.........
Quickvic30 said:
Even if you do check the IMEI and its good today doesn't mean it won't be blacklisted tomorrow.........
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So what's the suggestion? Pay $700+ and buy brand new from Tmobile?
Sent from LG Optimus G Pro via Tapatalk.
ajamils said:
So what's the suggestion? Pay $700+ and buy brand new from Tmobile?
Sent from LG Optimus G Pro via Tapatalk.
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Yes or you can buy used but make sure you meet the person at the T-Mobile store to confirm the phone is paid off.
Been through this whole scam ordeal already so I went and bought a new phone straight from T-Mobile.
ajamils said:
Is there a reliable IMEI checker website? The IMEI number that a guy from CL gave me does not show up in Tmobile IMEI checker.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You can call tmo yourself to verify the IMEI number and if it will activate.
T-Mobile and AT&T share blacklisted IMEI's? I'm not sure you guys are correct about this. You can buy blacklisted Nexus 4's all day long on Craigslist from deadbeat T-Mobile payment plans and put an AT&T sim card from AT&T or an AT&T based MVNO sim card in them and they work 100%. I have a T-Mobile no payment N4 I bought for $40 and use it with my Straight Talk AT&T sim regularly.
Unless something changed like this week, there is zero sharing among US carriers regarding their blacklist. The only people who MAY have incentive to share are T-Mobile and AT&T since they can have each others phone operate in some capacity on each other's networks. As for Sprint and Verizon, they don't share blacklists because their phones only work on their towers.
As for the comment of would I buy a phone for a considerable amount of money and hope they never in the future share black lists? Hell No. My upper limit on risking that is about $100. I'd say most of the phones on Craigslist anymore suffer from this problem of no payment on payment plans. Even when you get the phone and its working there's nothing to say that a carrier won't blacklist it in 2 weeks or a month. And trust me they won't do a darn thing, had this problem with a T989 S2 back in 2012.
aygriffith said:
T-Mobile and AT&T share blacklisted IMEI's? I'm not sure you guys are correct about this. You can buy blacklisted Nexus 4's all day long on Craigslist from deadbeat T-Mobile payment plans and put an AT&T sim card from AT&T or an AT&T based MVNO sim card in them and they work 100%. I have a T-Mobile no payment N4 I bought for $40 and use it with my Straight Talk AT&T sim regularly.
Unless something changed like this week, there is zero sharing among US carriers regarding their blacklist. The only people who MAY have incentive to share are T-Mobile and AT&T since they can have each others phone operate in some capacity on each other's networks. As for Sprint and Verizon, they don't share blacklists because their phones only work on their towers.
As for the comment of would I buy a phone for a considerable amount of money and hope they never in the future share black lists? Hell No. My upper limit on risking that is about $100. I'd say most of the phones on Craigslist anymore suffer from this problem of no payment on payment plans. Even when you get the phone and its working there's nothing to say that a carrier won't blacklist it in 2 weeks or a month. And trust me they won't do a darn thing, had this problem with a T989 S2 back in 2012.
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Click to collapse
Ya they do, sprint and verizon included. As to how efficient they are in updating their networks to reject imei's when the other network post a new one on the list, I don't know. Plenty of sources confirm it, here's one for example: http://www.theverge.com/2012/11/1/3584466/att-t-mobile-stolen-cellphone-database
babyshanks said:
Ya they do, sprint and verizon included. As to how efficient they are in updating their networks to reject imei's when the other network post a new one on the list, I don't know. Plenty of sources confirm it, here's one for example: http://www.theverge.com/2012/11/1/3584466/att-t-mobile-stolen-cellphone-database
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http://www.ctia.org/media/press/body.cfm/prid/2220
Yeah this was announced in 2012. Now of course knowing US carriers - what they said they'd do and what they should do may be very different than what they actually do.
ajamils said:
If I buy a bad IMEI Note 3 from eBay, can I still use it on AT&T? Is there any issue with buying such phone (apart from being at risk of it being stolen) ?
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Click to collapse
it wont work within the US, so if your going to try using it, it wont work.
---------- Post added at 09:56 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:55 PM ----------
aygriffith said:
T-Mobile and AT&T share blacklisted IMEI's? I'm not sure you guys are correct about this. You can buy blacklisted Nexus 4's all day long on Craigslist from deadbeat T-Mobile payment plans and put an AT&T sim card from AT&T or an AT&T based MVNO sim card in them and they work 100%. I have a T-Mobile no payment N4 I bought for $40 and use it with my Straight Talk AT&T sim regularly.
Unless something changed like this week, there is zero sharing among US carriers regarding their blacklist. The only people who MAY have incentive to share are T-Mobile and AT&T since they can have each others phone operate in some capacity on each other's networks. As for Sprint and Verizon, they don't share blacklists because their phones only work on their towers.
As for the comment of would I buy a phone for a considerable amount of money and hope they never in the future share black lists? Hell No. My upper limit on risking that is about $100. I'd say most of the phones on Craigslist anymore suffer from this problem of no payment on payment plans. Even when you get the phone and its working there's nothing to say that a carrier won't blacklist it in 2 weeks or a month. And trust me they won't do a darn thing, had this problem with a T989 S2 back in 2012.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I tried it, before it used to be cool, now it doesn't work
T Mobile Note 3 on ATT
I traded a guy an S4 plus some cash for a new T-Mobile note 3...I rooted and used region lock away to Sim unlock it...The phone has worked perfectly on ATT and it is blacklisted on T-Mobile for Non pay...I'm sure its was bought on the no contract deal and then as soon as they dumped it they just didn't pay...Its not stolen as I have checked...So it is possible to use them on ATT if the phone is unlocked...Not sure if eventually it won't work on ATT but for now it does..I guess if it stops working I will sell it or see if I can settle with T-mobile ...Just be very careful when buying them brand new in box..Note 3 and IPhone 5s are the 2 big ones that are being purchased on these pay 25-30 a month then don't pay..then Bam they are blacklisted for non pay on that network..Pretty sad but that is what's going down on CL right now...

[Q] Blacklisted Phone AT&T

Hi guys.
I went through a lot of web sites past couple of months and now I've decided to ask you by myself. I got a present from my GF. Sam Gal S5.
She bought it on a craiglist. She tried it with her AT&T SIM card and it worked. Anyway.. she gave it to me. SIM card denied. I've paid $30 to get a code to unlocked.. Great. Buy what was my surprise. After I got in and made a couple of phone calls to providers I find out that the phone is blacklisted. I tried to get ATT sim card also but doesnt work.
So I started to look for an advice... Ive done root, changed ROM etc. But now... i dont know where else to look.
Obviously it was stolen. But I feel sorry for her and she for me...
Is that just a piece of garbage or is there ANY way to fix it?
I dont even know if im able to ask here.
Any advice or opinions helps.
Thank you
Mike
I think you're kinda screwed...Craigslists scams happen all the time..best bet if your gonna buy a phone on there is to both meet at the AT&T store and go through the whole transfer process.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-G870A using XDA Free mobile app
So ... there is no way to make it work?
Unhived__Mind said:
I think you're kinda screwed...Craigslists scams happen all the time..best bet if your gonna buy a phone on there is to both meet at the AT&T store and go through the whole transfer process.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
The official reply from carriers is that once a phone is blacklisted it is impossible to undo. Whether or not it's a limitation of the technology (one-way trip) or if it's just company policy, the output is the same. You and your girlfriend have learned an expensive lesson. You can use it as a wi-fi-only device or a media player, but once a phone is blacklisted it will never be able to connect to a cellular network again.
The reason the phone worked with your girlfriend's SIM card was because the real owner of the phone hadn't called to report the phone stolen yet.
taytrlik said:
So ... there is no way to make it work?
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Click to collapse
If you have proof of purchase and go to At&t whit it they maybe able to add to your account and unblock it.
Clicking from notecable N910A
Change Carriers
taytrlik said:
Hi guys.
I went through a lot of web sites past couple of months and now I've decided to ask you by myself. I got a present from my GF. Sam Gal S5.
She bought it on a craiglist. She tried it with her AT&T SIM card and it worked. Anyway.. she gave it to me. SIM card denied. I've paid $30 to get a code to unlocked.. Great. Buy what was my surprise. After I got in and made a couple of phone calls to providers I find out that the phone is blacklisted. I tried to get ATT sim card also but doesnt work.
So I started to look for an advice... Ive done root, changed ROM etc. But now... i dont know where else to look.
Obviously it was stolen. But I feel sorry for her and she for me...
Is that just a piece of garbage or is there ANY way to fix it?
I dont even know if im able to ask here.
Any advice or opinions helps.
Thank you
Mike
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Click to collapse
Mike, your situation stinks so bad. I was in a similar spot with a T-Mobile HTC M8, which stopped working after I got it off craigslist and then subsequent IMEI checks shows that it is blocked/blacklisted from T-Mobile's network due to a balance owing from the original purchaser. However, since the phone was not reported stolen, the IMEI is not actually blacklisted/blocked from all carriers, but only T-Mobile. So I bought the SIM unlock code for a few bucks online so that I could unlock the phone for other carrier use. I have tested and verified that my phone works on AT&T, even though it is blocked on T-Mobile. So...you might consider changing your carrier or selling it to someone who can use it on another carrier (with full disclosure to that buyer, of course).

Carrier Locked? Sim Locked? UICC Locked? What state is my phone in?

I bought an SM-N960U used off of letgo about a month ago now and I have been trying to get it to work for me but I am still having a few issues.
The guy I bought it from, who himself bought it used, was using it on T-Mobile and I am able to make and receive calls okay and get internet okay with Verizon. The phone was originally a Sprint phone. It continuously gave me "Activation was Unsuccessful" fullscreen messages repeatedly until I used adb to disable com.sec.omadmspr and com.sprint.ms.smf.services.
When swapping SIMS from different carriers the phone DOES NOT ask for an UNLOCK code.
When I first got the phone I tried to call Sprint and ask if the phone was Carrier locked thinking that if there was a small amount owed or something perhaps I could pay it and UN-Carrier Lock the phone... Well, that didn't go well. Since I wasn't on the account and couldn't provide the name or phone number of the old owner they wouldn't tell me if there was OR wasn't a carrier lock on the phone. Eventually I got them to take the IMEI but they still told me nothing.
So, I've been using the phone daily for about a month now, but because of it's problems (the app that won't run) I still have to carry my old phone as well. This phone is always on Roam. One time when trying to fix it I dialed the *228 PRL update number. That was a mistake. It broke my internet to the point where NO ONE was able to fix it. I went to a Verizon stone. No help. I called customer service. No help. They transferred me to Tech Support.... finally they had me swap in one of my older SIM cards and they programmed that one to work.
TLDR; The phone works with VZW voice and data, but is always on roaming, some apps refuse to work properly, under UICC Unlock the phone says it is locked to Sprint Sims and sometimes the data connection drops and it says it doesn't work because of "Data Roaming" being disabled.
What version of locked is my phone? Is it safe to start flashing it?
ref: https://forum.xda-developers.com/ga...h-firmware-t3958791/post80093967#post80093967
you probably has nothing to do with your problem but it may be of some help if you contact the guy mentioned in this thread for the LG V20, it's a guy that works for sprint and you can contact him on the Sprint Users forums ..
He may be able to help you with the sim unlocking of your phone, there's nothing to lose I think!
give it a shot ... look at this thread and then register for an account on the Sprint Forums and look for the guy..
https://forum.xda-developers.com/v20/help/lg-v20-ls997-successfully-unlocked-oreo-t3835061
You need to contact the person who sold you the device and ask them for assistance. As they may need to contact Sprint to activate the device and unlock it for you.
kbrn said:
you probably has nothing to do with your problem but it may be of some help if you contact the guy mentioned in this thread for the LG V20, it's a guy that works for sprint and you can contact him on the Sprint Users forums ..
He may be able to help you with the sim unlocking of your phone, there's nothing to lose I think!
give it a shot ... look at this thread and then register for an account on the Sprint Forums and look for the guy..
https://forum.xda-developers.com/v20/help/lg-v20-ls997-successfully-unlocked-oreo-t3835061
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Hey thanks! I looked at this link and think maybe this guy can help. I sent him a message!
Hoping for the best!
iceepyon said:
You need to contact the person who sold you the device and ask them for assistance. As they may need to contact Sprint to activate the device and unlock it for you.
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Thanks, but the guy I bought it from bought it used, so he wont have any Sprint account info, so then I'd have to try to track down the person he bought it from... and on and on and I dont know how long or fruitful the search would be... and again... I'm on the phone right now, on Verizon with a Verizon SIM. I dont think its carrier locked... but then I dont know what's going on.
towdy said:
Thanks, but the guy I bought it from bought it used, so he wont have any Sprint account info, so then I'd have to try to track down the person he bought it from... and on and on and I dont know how long or fruitful the search would be... and again... I'm on the phone right now, on Verizon with a Verizon SIM. I dont think its carrier locked... but then I dont know what's going on.
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They don't want to make it easy for people to re-purpose stolen phones. There are things a legitimate owner can do in order to make a phone ready for re-sale, and it sounds like these things didn't happen for the phone you bought. It all sounds a bit fishy, doesn't it?
gruuvin said:
They don't want to make it easy for people to re-purpose stolen phones. There are things a legitimate owner can do in order to make a phone ready for re-sale, and it sounds like these things didn't happen for the phone you bought. It all sounds a bit fishy, doesn't it?
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Thanks, but if I thought "it sounds a bit fishy" I probably wouldn't have bought the used phone in the first place... and I certainly wouldn't have called Sprint and given them the IMEI and asked them; the people that could render my phone a useless brick, with one tiny bit of information, for help. Each smart phone I've bought in the last few years has been used because frankly to me it seems to be the best way to buy them financially. $1000 the day they come out or $200 - $300 6 - 12 months later used.
towdy said:
Thanks, but if I thought "it sounds a bit fishy" I probably wouldn't have bought the used phone in the first place... and I certainly wouldn't have called Sprint and given them the IMEI and asked them; the people that could render my phone a useless brick, with one tiny bit of information, for help. Each smart phone I've bought in the last few years has been used because frankly to me it seems to be the best way to buy them financially. $1000 the day they come out or $200 - $300 6 - 12 months later used.
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Point is, when someone is about to buy a used phone from a stranger, make sure it is factory reset and then immediately call the carrier and confirm the IMEI is clean and that it has been carrier unlocked, else, don't buy it. Obviously it's not advice for you, since you already did it the wrong way. This is a good lesson for posterity.

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