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SM-N910U Region Locked?

I'm considering getting a Samsung Galaxy Note 4 SM-N910U from Hong Kong and was wondering if Samsung has started Region Locking their devices in Hong Kong since they have started doing this in Europe and America?
Do I have to activate with a Hong Kong SIM card before I can use it anywhere else in the world?
Any help would be most appreciated.

DarkGuyver said:
I'm considering getting a Samsung Galaxy Note 4 SM-N910U from Hong Kong and was wondering if Samsung has started Region Locking their devices in Hong Kong since they have started doing this in Europe and America?
Do I have to activate with a Hong Kong SIM card before I can use it anywhere else in the world?
Any help would be most appreciated.
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I live in HK and bought mine here. Use it regularly with Japanese, French and US SIM cards without any issues. You should be fine.
Sent from my SM-N910U using XDA Free mobile app

Alcibiade said:
I live in HK and bought mine here. Use it regularly with Japanese, French and US SIM cards without any issues. You should be fine.
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Excellent, so I don't have to go through any device activation process with it.

I also have the hong kong version and I have used it in the USA and Colombia without any issue.
Regards
Sent from my SM-N910U using XDA Free mobile app

That's excellent thanks for the advice guys! I will let you know what I think of the device once I get it!

No lock, but be aware that in the UK you will be limited with the supported bands - for 4G you may have to go with EE or... Three? I forget now, it's been 6 months or so since I got mine.
Have a look at the supported bands, and compare to your UK supplier - I moved away from Vodafone for this exact reason.

I'm on a O2 Pay As You Go SIM , which from my research should work fine on the SM-N910U.

I'm on Rogers in Canada and my N910U works just fine. Although I seem to have constant ****ty cellphone reception that my s4 doesn't seem to have, both are on Rogers.

AFAICT O2 use 800 for 4G and 1800 for 2G, so you'll miss out on 4G if you use the N910U on O2 in the UK.
I could well be wrong, but that's what 5 minutes of googling told me.

DarkGuyver said:
Excellent, so I don't have to go through any device activation process with it.
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http://www.sammobile.com/2015/04/27/get-your-phones-unlocked-for-free-on-occasion-of-kings-day/
Just in case...

SquidgyB said:
AFAICT O2 use 800 for 4G and 1800 for 2G, so you'll miss out on 4G if you use the N910U on O2 in the UK.
I could well be wrong, but that's what 5 minutes of googling told me.
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I appreciate the info with regards to O2 and the Note 4 N910U. I did my homework too before reaching my decision If I do decide to get 4G I will switch to another network. But 2G will do me just fine for now as O2 has allot of free WiFi hotspots in the UK.

DarkGuyver said:
I appreciate the info with regards to O2 and the Note 4 N910U. I did my homework too before reaching my decision If I do decide to get 4G I will switch to another network. But 2G will do me just fine for now as O2 has allot of free WiFi hotspots in the UK.
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:good: Fair play, just so you know about the 4G bands - which you're well aware of

I do have another question with regards to cell reception on the Note 4. I've read a few comments from other Note 4 Users that they have experienced some cell reception problems. Has that happened to anybody else?

Going on Holiday to Seoul.. Buying Note 5??

Hi All
September 1st I'm flying to Seoul for holiday and really wanna pick up a Note 5.
Does anyone know where the best place to buy is? Maybe dlight store in Gangnam?
Also do the Korean versions ever get root or roms?
Thanks!

the Delight store in Gangnam, the Galaxy store in Coex Mall... any Samsung mobile retail location. They were fully stocked as of release date as far as I saw last week and this week.
The only caution I would advise is make sure the Korean version supports the LTE band/bands you will need in your home country. I ended up having to buy one in the states because my phone company here uses Band 4, which the Korean Note 5 does not support.

I think the Korean one supports H+ on my current carrier... I can get sims that will work on there though.
I will head to dlight

That should be good enough. Good luck, and make sure to post pics of your Delight spoils! I've been home for 3 days and am already jealous of your trip

I love Korea!! Amazing place.. This will be my 5th time Fly out on tuesday, going to dlight as soon as ive dropped off my luggage lol

Korea is not very tourist friendly. Hard to even buy a sim card for visitors or tourists. If you are Korean with a Korean Passport and local ID then it should not be a problem. I believe that most telecom companies in Korea only sell carrier locked smartphones with contract and you need a local ID to buy one if I am not mistaken. Also pay attention to the 4G LTE bands on smartphone if you do manage to find one that you could buy unlocked. In the city you will notice that even some taxis will not stop to pick you up if they see that you are a white person.

@desiregeek my experience was the complete opposite. It's super easy to buy a SIM card at the airport from olleh or SK Telecom. Also, carrier locking is not as common as it is here...

Kalm_Traveler said:
@desiregeek my experience was the complete opposite. It's super easy to buy a SIM card at the airport from olleh or SK Telecom. Also, carrier locking is not as common as it is here...
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You can only buy the rental sim card at the airport unless they recently changed the rules. You can not purchase an unlocked sim card at any of their carriers in South Korea. The ones at the airport are sort of like a rented SIM card. In Thailand,Hong Kong,China,Taiwan or pretty much every other Asian country one can get a SIM card at a 7-11 or telecom carrier that is unlocked of which visitors or tourists can purchase for use while in the country.

It's my 5th time in Korea lol. Never had any problems but I can speak Korean too so it helps. Posting from the note I bought now. Just trying to work out how to make a deodexed rom for the S model version

Visiting Busan
Guitarfreak26 said:
It's my 5th time in Korea lol. Never had any problems but I can speak Korean too so it helps. Posting from the note I bought now. Just trying to work out how to make a deodexed rom for the S model version
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Im also visiting Busan in October and was thinking of picking up a note 5, if I may ask how much did yours cost?

Mine was 1 million won so around 520 I paid but was 64gb. Haha just on the ktx back from busan to seoul now!

It seems Finland might not get the Note 5 at all, so if I want one, I need to pick one up on my trip.
Thanks for the info, I guess you had a nice train ride with your new Note 5, enjoy!

HK Airport Note5 Purchase?

I have a bit of an odd question. I need to pickup a Samsung SM9208 next week and am in HK for a 2.5 hour layover.... Not enough time to head into the city. However, does anyone know if one of the stores at the airport carry the 64 GB Model? I know that there are a few cellphone shops in the airport but was wondering if the 64 GB model was readily available in HK. Unfortunately, eBay isn't an option where I'm living and traveling too so window is likely all I can get to pick this up.
Thanks for all the help!

djdurance said:
I have a bit of an odd question. I need to pickup a Samsung SM9208 next week and am in HK for a 2.5 hour layover.... Not enough time to head into the city. However, does anyone know if one of the stores at the airport carry the 64 GB Model? I know that there are a few cellphone shops in the airport but was wondering if the 64 GB model was readily available in HK. Unfortunately, eBay isn't an option where I'm living and traveling too so window is likely all I can get to pick this up.
Thanks for all the help!
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It doesnt get that detailed online. Best hurry and check Nobletime and a3 while you can.

Just so that you know if there is any problem with the Smartphone they will make you take it up with Samsung in Hong Kong. If there is any scratch on the smartphone they will not replace. The smallest scratch that you could imagine and they will only fix it. I believe the return policy in Hong Kong is 1 or 2 weeks by law. In Taiwan it is 1 week by law and after that it goes to repair shop.

desiregeek said:
Just so that you know if there is any problem with the Smartphone they will make you take it up with Samsung in Hong Kong. If there is any scratch on the smartphone they will not replace. The smallest scratch that you could imagine and they will only fix it. I believe the return policy in Hong Kong is 1 or 2 weeks by law. In Taiwan it is 1 week by law and after that it goes to repair shop.
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Thanks for the heads up. I'll be taking it out of the country in less than an hour so I'm going to be stuck with this one way or another! I can't see a downside of using this over the US models. I live in Asia, travel a ton in Asia, Europe and have a T-Mobile US line that I want to keep in my phone all the time so I don't miss texts and calls while still using a "local" sim for data, etc.

I doubt HK Airport would have 64G as the rest of HK officially only has 32G models (silver and gold).
Sent from my SM-N9200 using XDA Free mobile app

kenwchan said:
I doubt HK Airport would have 64G as the rest of HK officially only has 32G models (silver and gold).
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Typical Samsung HK. So many models they only bring in the base model. Had to pick up my Note 5 64GB in Taiwan.
If you do buy run it through *#0*# (General Test Mode) before handing over the cash. Not that I have ever had a Samsung phone with as much as a single dead pixel.
Good Luck.

djdurance said:
I have a bit of an odd question.
Thanks for all the help!
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I don't know my regions and I don't know if the HK version is region locked but if it has a region sticker on the box be sure to use an HK SIM card to activate and for your first five minute phone call on it so that you do not wind up being "region locked".

mile high said:
Typical Samsung HK. So many models they only bring in the base model. Had to pick up my Note 5 64GB in Taiwan.
If you do buy run it through *#0*# (General Test Mode) before handing over the cash. Not that I have ever had a Samsung phone with as much as a single dead pixel.
Good Luck.
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Samsung had to dump their hard to sell models some where lol.. Taiwan is selling the dual sim Note 5 with 64GB :good:

I bought a silver 32GB Note 5 in Hong Kong. 10 day return policy.

Looking to get an Unlocked Note 5...Model?

I am looking to get an Unlocked Note 5 in Silver (does anyone have this or have you seen it - does it look as good in person)
My question is:
There are many unlocked versions, but I believe there are several versions that may work in the US
But I am thinking it is one of: N920C or N9200 or N920I (I am thinking it is the N920I, with the "I" standing for International?)
Can anyone tell me which works on GSM in US, T-Mobile
Thanks

eric0668 said:
I am looking to get an Unlocked Note 5 in Silver (does anyone have this or have you seen it - does it look as good in person)
My question is:
There are many unlocked versions, but I believe there are several versions that may work in the US
But I am thinking it is one of: N920C or N9200 or N920I (I am thinking it is the N920I, with the "I" standing for International?)
Can anyone tell me which works on GSM in US, T-Mobile
Thanks
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I would stay away from the N920C if you are going to use it in the US. I have the N920C and on ATT network it is getting only 3G and the signal is considerably weaker than on other phones compatible with ATT.

What does the N920C stand for. I think I need the "I" don't you.

eric0668 said:
What does the N920C stand for. I think I need the "I" don't you.
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They are designed for different continents. The N920I is for - Australia, New Zealand, Singapore. The N920C is for middle east, russia, africa, israel ...etc. If you can get the Unlocked T-mobile variant, you're good. Otherwise checkout the willmyphonework.net or the "The Ulimate Note 5 Band Guide."

Are you sure the I isnf for international.
That's what I wanna know. What one is able to be used. There is no such thing as a T-Mobile unlocked version. Yes there is one that works on T-Mobile, ATT etc. If you hear of the specific model I'd be grateful.

eric0668 said:
Are you sure the I isnf for international.
That's what I wanna know. What one is able to be used. There is no such thing as a T-Mobile unlocked version. Yes there is one that works on T-Mobile, ATT etc. If you hear of the specific model I'd be grateful.
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http://www.willmyphonework.net/

Thank you really ALot. I tried that and they got 2 blue checks and a yellow. So the same #frustrating

I bought the N920i version and work perfectly with ATT and TMOBILE. It have an amazing internet speed, i'm talking about more than 45MBPS.
Is a grate phone.

Thank you. I was thinking that was for International. Then I saw some sites (Expansys) who was selling the N9200 and was told they were the same.
thanks so much

Yes, N9200 is pretty much the same as N920i but dual sim card model. It should work in US. Be careful, this model can come from China and Google apps may be a problem.
I have ordered this model from Expansys and it should come from South Korea.

Spoke to Samsung via chat, NewEgg and Best Buy most will work to some degree here . BUT they said the one made for gsm carriers in US is the N920G. It can be had on NewEgg or Expansys but def eBay Amazon and Best Buy for $100 more than other places

just adding my 2 cents worth: i'm using a 64GB Silver SM-N9208 (Taiwan - CSC is BRI) dual SIM Note 5 on ATT & T-Mobile and it's working great. no network issues at all. 5 of the 10 people on my current project use Note 5's (including me); the other 4 Note 5 users are in awe of my device, especially the Silver color and the fact that i can make/receive calls from both SIMs at the same time.

jtOttawa said:
http://www.willmyphonework.net/
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There are so many threads dealing with this issue.
You should either use the above website or use pdadb.net to see which LTE bands a particular model uses and then compare that to the LTE bands your carrier uses (which is what the above website actually does)
Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

Both N920C and N920I should work fine in US except one 3G band for T-Mobile....but when it comes to Software updates...what do you think is first to get official updates? N920I being the Australia model, would it be after N920C? I heard sometimes its after even US models...Thoughts?

Full 4G on EE in the UK?

Hi, does it support full 4G in the UK on EE?
I'm aware of the missing band 20.
I'm looking into getting a Chinese import and flash the global rom but I'd very much need full 4G.
many thanks

Yes it supports full 4g I'm using it on EE

GmanGrout said:
Yes it supports full 4g I'm using it on EE
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thanks that's great. I'm a bit wary considering I'm traveling to Italy often and occasionally outside of big cities in the UK, however your post is surely reassuring

thanks that's great. I'm a bit wary considering I'm traveling to Italy often and occasionally outside of big cities in the UK, however your post is surely reassuring