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PSA - Sprint Models - Factory reset can cause phone to relock / invalid sim card.

PSA for Sprint Moto z3 Play. After the last software update to Build OCW28.70-47, a factory reset caused my phone to no longer read my sim card and appears to somehow have relocked the phone to Sprint. Prior to this software update and reset, the phone read my T-Mobile sim card fine and connected to the network. Calling Sprint verified that my device was already sim unlocked. Calling T-Mobile and they can't do anything on their end. Lastly calling directly to Motorola, and they confirmed that they have already received other calls and that they are working on a software update to fix this glitch. For now, this leaves me with a phone I can't use until this software update fixes it. So just sharing here so others in this situation won't be in the same boat.

LBN1 said:
PSA for Sprint Moto z3 Play. After the last software update to Build OCW28.70-47, a factory reset caused my phone to no longer read my sim card and appears to somehow have relocked the phone to Sprint. Prior to this software update and reset, the phone read my T-Mobile sim card fine and connected to the network. Calling Sprint verified that my device was already sim unlocked. Calling T-Mobile and they can't do anything on their end. Lastly calling directly to Motorola, and they confirmed that they have already received other calls and that they are working on a software update to fix this glitch. For now, this leaves me with a phone I can't use until this software update fixes it. So just sharing here so others in this situation won't be in the same boat.
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Quick question, did you unlock it through Sprint? How's the service and reception on it?
I'm on T-mobile and thinking of buying a Sprint variant to unlock and use with T-mo.
Thank you

I got this phone from a reseller already unlocked thru Sprint. For the short time it worked on T-Mo before it got relocked, service and reception was fine. But my advice is Don't Do It! Buy yourself the fully unlocked version, don't bother with a Sprint model to unlock as it is not worth the hassle; plus the fully unlocked version has 64gb versus 32gb on the Sprint version. Unless you are on Sprint, don't get the Sprint model!!! My story is similar to hundreds of other people with other phones having much difficulty in getting a Sprint model unlocked to work on other carriers (e.g. Essential phone has lots of similar problems).
UPDATE: Was able to go to a Sprint store, get a sample Sprint sim, insert and request the UICC unlock code and it got pushed through again so now my X3 is again unlocked for any carrier and now works with my T-Mo sim. So you need a Sprint sim to get that unlock code pushed thru, won't work just on wi-fi without that Sprint sim!

have an update for us to hear? this xt1929-3 still unlocked...
we bought this model (sprint) as a cheap gamble off ebay and it was the best thing. put in my redpocket gsm-t sim this morning and it says in the system update setting under uicc unlock "the device is unlocked for any sim card". that was even after unlocking the bootloader last night. thought we were going to need to do some modding to get away from sprint but didnt have to! so thrilled we will have this nice phone for the wife to enjoy.

Caller ID missing on s10? Smart call app available, not functioning as before

Does anyone know what happened to the Smart Caller ID with the S10? I've went through the settings and seemingly enabled everything relating to it, but am possibly missing something? I had it previously on my note 8 and certainly miss having it. Any help is greatly appreciated.
Here's a link to what I am talking about: https://www.samsung.com/global/galaxy/apps/smart-call/
I do not have the toggle below blocked calls as noted in this webpage, but I do have 'Smart Call' as an app and permissions enabled. Not sure if it's a Verizon block or something?

I have it with my unlocked s10 on tmobile.

Yeah, sadly I do not have that in call settings. I'm thinking it has to do with Verizon blocking it for some unknown reason, likely to push their premium plans. Really miss having that feature and would be willing to flash if need be to bring it back.

Upon looking further, it appears my thinking was correct, Verizon disables this feature. Interestingly enough, my phone was purchased from Samsung.com in full, no contract pricing, so it comes with the U1 firmware installed. Apparently something must've taken place when I setup the phone and Verizon installed it's own profile. Anyone know of a way to disable this or best method to avoid this so my phone appears as an unlocked phone? Would hate to have to flash via Odin seeing as I am running the U1 firmware already, just have Verizon somehow messing with the unlocked nature of the device.

On 3 in Denmark, I enable it and come back later and it has been disabled again.

iOSNick said:
Upon looking further, it appears my thinking was correct, Verizon disables this feature. Interestingly enough, my phone was purchased from Samsung.com in full, no contract pricing, so it comes with the U1 firmware installed. Apparently something must've taken place when I setup the phone and Verizon installed it's own profile. Anyone know of a way to disable this or best method to avoid this so my phone appears as an unlocked phone? Would hate to have to flash via Odin seeing as I am running the U1 firmware already, just have Verizon somehow messing with the unlocked nature of the device.
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Does your phone boot up with the Verizon logo?

Delete.

thecarp1975 said:
Does your phone boot up with the Verizon logo?
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Yes it does.

I work in a cell carrier in Canada, when you first put a sim in an unlocked samsung it downloads and reboots with their customizations.

your Verizon phone is NOT preloaded with U1 firmware!
your Verizon phone comes unlocked.

Used to have 'free hotspot.' Is that because my bootloader was unlocked?

Hi guys. My goal is to be able to use my AT&T phone/service as a 'hotspot' again, which I have been able to do with my Note 8, but can't get it to work on my Note 9 now. I'm familiar with the technical stuff (thanks to you guys over the years), but need to have an idea of what will solve my problem. Facts first, then what I think might be the issue...
I've been using a Note 8, which I bought overseas, here in the States with my AT&T account which does NOT have the hotspot feature included. It just works though. I put in my SIM and it all boots up fine (with no ATT branding during boot) and my Note 8 has a hotspot feature, which I turn on and it works just like it's supposed to. No issues at all.
Now, I have an unlocked T-Mobile Note 9 that I want to use instead of the Note 8 I bought overseas. When I put ANY US carrier SIM in it, it forces a reboot, and when it boots up it shows whichever carrier's SIM I put in it. If I put a Verizon SIM in it, it reboots and starts showing the Verizon logo during boot, and the same with ATT, etc.
I don't mind that, HOWEVER, now when I try to use the hotspot feature, I get a warning saying something like 'your plan doesn't have the hotspot feature. Please go to to our website to choose a plan that does' and the hotspot feature is blocked completely.
Is it blocked on this unlocked T-Mobile Note 9 because it installs any SIM's bootloader each time or something? I am assuming that allows/forces the carriers to install all their own stuff each time I put a new SIM card in it, which would allow them to also block the hotspot feature on my ATT account, since it's not included in my plan.
If this is the case, is there a way to 'fix' this? I know it's unlocked because it works with other carriers, but I'm thinking maybe the bootloader is locked or something, and if I'm able to unlock it I could put a new OEM flash on it, and maybe it would work just like my unlocked Note 8 that I bought overseas which allows the hotspot feature.
Please advise, if you have any ideas for me. (Unlocked T-Mobile Note 9 SM-N960U)

I would hazzard a guess AT&T is blocking you. I have mobile hotspot in my plan and it works fine on my note9.

You need to flash the u1 firmware for hotspot to work.

Thanks for the help. I'll update this later if it still doesn't work after flashing.

sethsmaxx said:
You need to flash the u1 firmware for hotspot to work.
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^^^^ this, all day, er'ry day ^^^^
DanDroidian said:
Thanks for the help. I'll update this later if it still doesn't work after flashing.
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youll need the patched version of Odin to flash cross carrier firmware. Not a biggie, just know that regular Odin will fail. Not might, will.

Galaxy note 9 at&t unlocked cant update using tmobile sim please help!

I have had a Galaxy Note 9 (SMN960U) that is AT&T unlocked for the past couple years. I only used a T-Mobile SIM since I am in a Family Plan and have not been able to update the phone at all since 2018. I've contacted both Samsung support as well as AT&T support and they told me that they would need to lock the phone back to AT&T for the updates to be installed. Is there anyone who has had this issue before and can help me update the phone to Android Pie? I've read some possible solutions is to insert an AT&T SIM into the phone or flash an unlocked firmware version but I'm not familiar with either. Please reply as soon as possible for anyone that can offer assistance.

Instead of writing a long how to, go to YouTube and search flashing firmware with Odin
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk

butchieboy said:
Instead of writing a long how to, go to YouTube and search flashing firmware with Odin
Sent from my SM-N986U using Tapatalk
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Do you know by any chance if inserting an AT&T SIM will allow me to update the phone then reinsert my T-Mobile SIM?

I can't speak for AT&T, but I can say that the inverse works. I had an unlocked Note9 that I moved from T-Mobile to AT&T, and could no longer receive updates. I inserted an active T-Mobile SIM, rebooted, and was immediately able to update. It had to be an active T-Mobile SIM, or the switch wouldn't work. I just did it right now, so could work for you. It's a lot easier than trying to flash firmware.

circlecircletriangle said:
I can't speak for AT&T, but I can say that the inverse works. I had an unlocked Note9 that I moved from T-Mobile to AT&T, and could no longer receive updates. I inserted an active T-Mobile SIM, rebooted, and was immediately able to update. It had to be an active T-Mobile SIM, or the switch wouldn't work. I just did it right now, so could work for you. It's a lot easier than trying to flash firmware.
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Do you have any idea if ordering a prepaid AT&T SIM and activating it would also help receive the updates on the phone?

KingAirman said:
Do you have any idea if ordering a prepaid AT&T SIM and activating it would also help receive the updates on the phone?
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I would assume it would work if that SIM has service, both of the SIMs I used were prepaid. You'll know if it recognized the SIM, as after the reboot it'll show the AT&T splash on startup. If it doesn't, then the current state of the AT&T SIM won't work. That happened to me, I first tried a T-Mobile SIM whose service had lapsed.
If you do update, just make sure to keep going through the update process repeatedly. You have to install an update, let it reboot, and check for updates each time. You can't just jump directly to the latest version, which I think is part of the problem.

circlecircletriangle said:
I would assume it would work if that SIM has service, both of the SIMs I used were prepaid. You'll know if it recognized the SIM, as after the reboot it'll show the AT&T splash on startup. If it doesn't, then the current state of the AT&T SIM won't work. That happened to me, I first tried a T-Mobile SIM whose service had lapsed.
If you do update, just make sure to keep going through the update process repeatedly. You have to install an update, let it reboot, and check for updates each time. You can't just jump directly to the latest version, which I think is part of the problem.
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Yup just inserted a prepaid SIM, activated it, and now going through the several updates I have missed in the past 2 years lol. Thanks for the assistance.

SM-G973U VoLTE

I recently bought an unlocked Galaxy S10 SM-G973U on Amazon. Got new SIM card from a Verizon MVNO and activated phone. The phone downloaded Android 12, One UI version 4.0. Firmware Build number SP1A210812.016.G973USQS6HVA1. Service provide Software version SAOMC_SM-G973U_OYN_SPR_12_0007 SPR/XAA/VZW. The problem is there is no menu option to activate/switch on VoLTE which means when I'm on a call there is no internet. I've talked to the MVNO tech support multiple times and was told they couldn't see any problems on their side, or that the SM-G973U does not support VoLTE which is not true. I found on one of AT&T's sites that the SM-G973U needs a software patch to enable VoLTE. I also found a couple of USSD codes but they either didn't work or didn't get me to the right setup screen to turn on VoLTE. I even stopped by a Samsung store and they weren't any help either. They said they could re-flash a stock firmware but it would revert to being locked to a carrier which is apparently also not true based on what I've read on this forum. Anyone know how I can turn on VoLTE or know of an apk file or software patch to enable VoLTE?? Does one of the firmware versions posted online have the patch to turn on VoLTE??

I think the issue is that your phone is showing SPR/XAA/VZW. You say you're on a verizon MVNO (who, by the way?)... but your phone isn't seeing that. It's actually saying it's active for SPRint. The second one, XAA, means it's not able to detect the SIM type... and the third was that it was originally VZW, which you can't change and isn't really relevant. (That's just what the phone was "born" as).
Bottom line, your phone isn't seeing VZW or an MVNO as the active CSC nor the SIM card. In the past, the easy thing was to change the CSC to what you need, but I haven't found a way to do that actively. What's supposed to happen is that the CSC should update based on the SIM card and cell signal you're getting... but this doesn't always happen. I bought two phones - one switched with no issues, the other I could not get it to change no matter what I tried.
That said, the easiest thing is to clean flash the phone with ODIN to a VZW or your MVNO's ROM, so that (hopefully) the CSC updates automatically. You could also consider flashing a U1 (unlocked) ROM, as yours is not technically an unlocked ROM (U means it's a carrier ROM... which may be why it's not switching over?)
Again, I tried all of these on the second phone I bought, and nothing would switch it (my carrier is Total Wireless, which is a VZ MVNO, and actually shows up as Tracfone (TFN). I had to return that second phone and get another with TFN already activated, and that worked fine... so be sure you do this before you drop out of your return period.
Bottom line, you should be able to get this all working... my VOLTE/VOWIFI works fine... just a matter of getting you there.

Thanks. My carrier is Straight Talk which is now VZ. The SIM card they sent me has the wording "Verizon Compatible" written on it. I finally found a document that explains how to interpret the CSC codes and your explanation clarifies my understanding of it. Sound like I'll have to re-flash it. Since it was originally a VZW phone I'm thinking I should flash it back to VZW to see if that works before trying U1.

Dumb question as this is my first time flashing a phone. (I've flashed quite a few other things but never had to worry about CSC codes and bootloader versions, etc.) I don't see VZW firmware on samfirms or sammobile. I see Sprint, T-Mobile, and one listed as USA without carrier info but I don't see one for VZW. Can someone point me to the correct location to download SM-g973U and U1 firmware for VZW? Greatly appreciated and thanks for putting up with my lack of knowledge!
Edited: Found the files on sammobile. Will try the U1 (VZW) first. I'll keep my fingers crossed.

schwinn8 said:
I think the issue is that your phone is showing SPR/XAA/VZW. You say you're on a verizon MVNO (who, by the way?)... but your phone isn't seeing that. It's actually saying it's active for SPRint. The second one, XAA, means it's not able to detect the SIM type... and the third was that it was originally VZW, which you can't change and isn't really relevant. (That's just what the phone was "born" as).
Bottom line, your phone isn't seeing VZW or an MVNO as the active CSC nor the SIM card. In the past, the easy thing was to change the CSC to what you need, but I haven't found a way to do that actively. What's supposed to happen is that the CSC should update based on the SIM card and cell signal you're getting... but this doesn't always happen. I bought two phones - one switched with no issues, the other I could not get it to change no matter what I tried.
That said, the easiest thing is to clean flash the phone with ODIN to a VZW or your MVNO's ROM, so that (hopefully) the CSC updates automatically. You could also consider flashing a U1 (unlocked) ROM, as yours is not technically an unlocked ROM (U means it's a carrier ROM... which may be why it's not switching over?)
Again, I tried all of these on the second phone I bought, and nothing would switch it (my carrier is Total Wireless, which is a VZ MVNO, and actually shows up as Tracfone (TFN). I had to return that second phone and get another with TFN already activated, and that worked fine... so be sure you do this before you drop out of your return period.
Bottom line, you should be able to get this all working... my VOLTE/VOWIFI works fine... just a matter of getting you there.
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Success! Was able to flash U1. VoLTE is now working. The CSC now shows TFN/TFN/VZW. Much appreciated!!!

Awesome, glad to hear that fixed it easily!
And TFN... I'm a fan there, too!

Hi! I'm having a similar issue with the same model and happy to see someone was able to enable VoLTE. However, most of what you said above is a foreign language to me. Would one of you be willing to give me a crash course in what you did?
Here's my specific situation. Last week (~1/4/23) Tracfone shutdown 3G. My Samsung Galaxy S10 (SM-G973U) says my network is set to LTE/3G/2G. I've read LTE is 4G, but still can't make or receive calls/texts, but data and 911 calls still work. Their tech support is no help.
From reading online it sounds like I may need VoLTE, not just LTE. Hence finding this thread. If one of you would be willing to spare some time to walk me through what you did I'd really appreciate it. In the mean time I'll try to figure out what "flashing" mean in a context that doesn't involve showing body parts
Thank you in advance!!

I'm on Tracfone (they were bought out by Verizon, BTW) - I was on Total Wireless before, which is now Total by Verizon. You might try contacting support again, as they are now VZ, and may have more help to offer.
My S10+ is running 975U1 now, and it works for VOLTE/VOWIFI properly. You may consider getting a U1 ROM installed, and maybe even the VZW (or TFN) version if available - that may get you working.
Did VOLTE ever work for you before on this or any other carrier? What is your CSC right now?

schwinn8 said:
I'm on Tracfone (they were bought out by Verizon, BTW) - I was on Total Wireless before, which is now Total by Verizon. You might try contacting support again, as they are now VZ, and may have more help to offer.
My S10+ is running 975U1 now, and it works for VOLTE/VOWIFI properly. You may consider getting a U1 ROM installed, and maybe even the VZW (or TFN) version if available - that may get you working.
Did VOLTE ever work for you before on this or any other carrier? What is your CSC right now?
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Thanks for replying! I'm not entirely sure if VoLTE has worked previously. I bought this phone 6/2021 and have only haver had tracfone service for it. I did find in my setting that VoLTE calling is set to on so it seems like it should work. Of note, the 4Glte in my status bar has always been grayed out (I went back and looked at some old screenshots).
My current CSC is VZW/XAA/ATT.
I spoke with tracfone customer service yesterday and they had me reset my network setting and now I don't even have data and the 4Glte in my status bar that was previously gray has now completely disappeared.
Their customer service refuses to talk to me now (literally no one answers when it transfers to an agent) or they hang up on me, and no I haven't been rude, but I have told them I'm recording the call.
I bought a mint mobile package last night because I'm beyond frustrated with Tracfone. I'm worried I'll have the same problems with Mint. I'm not sure if my settings are screwed up or if it's just Tracfone. In any case things are worse now after talking to customer service yesterday.
I also notice there was no APN setting on my phone so I updated it today and restarted but no difference.
Thanks for any input!! Much appreciated. Sorry for the novel.

Ok, so based on your CSC, the phone is not seeing the SIM's carrier - it's showing XAA which means it's using the default settings, which is probably why your not getting VOLTE. The active CSC of "VZW" may be ok... depends on which carrier you're on with Tracfone. I think they're VZW only, but I'm not completely sure.
You may want to just get a new SIM card and get that activated. HOWEVER, the problem you'll likely face is that the phone was born ATT (last CSC). This means the IMEI won't match a "compatible" phone to Verizon, and they will flat out refuse to activate it (even though WE al know it will work fine). If you still want to do that, you will have to activate the new SIM on a VZ "compatible" phone, then you can swap it to the S10. Note that VZ complains about this when you talk to them... so don't tell them you're doing this... but I've done it many times and it works fine.
If your actual behind-the-scenes carrier is ATT, then you can do the activation with your phone without issue.
If none of this works for you, you can switch carriers to an ATT MVNO and you should be good to go.

schwinn8 said:
Ok, so based on your CSC, the phone is not seeing the SIM's carrier - it's showing XAA which means it's using the default settings, which is probably why your not getting VOLTE. The active CSC of "VZW" may be ok... depends on which carrier you're on with Tracfone. I think they're VZW only, but I'm not completely sure.
You may want to just get a new SIM card and get that activated. HOWEVER, the problem you'll likely face is that the phone was born ATT (last CSC). This means the IMEI won't match a "compatible" phone to Verizon, and they will flat out refuse to activate it (even though WE al know it will work fine). If you still want to do that, you will have to activate the new SIM on a VZ "compatible" phone, then you can swap it to the S10. Note that VZ complains about this when you talk to them... so don't tell them you're doing this... but I've done it many times and it works fine.
If your actual behind-the-scenes carrier is ATT, then you can do the activation with your phone without issue.
If none of this works for you, you can switch carriers to an ATT MVNO and you should be good to go.
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OK some of that was still over my head. I'll see what happens with the Mint Sim... one f/u question now though. You said the ATT means my phone was "born" ATT. I bought my phone off backmarket and it was sold as "unlocked". Was that not true? How can I be sure in the future if I buy a used phone that's not from my carrier that it will actually be compatible?

Unlocked just means it's not locked to a carrier. That is true in your case, otherwise you wouldn't have been able to install ANY non-ATT SIM. So, you did the right thing to get an unlocked phone, and that is what you got.
The issue with compatibility is just the asshole carriers spreading lies. They do this to try to get people to buy THEIR phones, for no reason other than to make money and confuse consumers. The "born" CSC has no bearing on anything, really... neither does the carrier-specified IMEI. In your case, the XAA is good, which means it's a multi-carrier ROM, which works with all USA carriers.
Mint is a good idea - being an ATT carrier (IIRC), that should work and they should help you get it up and running even if they have to activate it. Good luck!

Awesome! Fingers crossed!! Thank you for your time and all the info❣
I'll try to remember to give an update in a few weeks for future readers

Goldie8709 said:
Awesome! Fingers crossed!! Thank you for your time and all the info❣
I'll try to remember to give an update in a few weeks for future readers
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UPDATE: Switching to Mint worked like a charm! Once my number ported and I put the new SIM card in, service was instantaneous! I've had Mint for 3 weeks now and the service is so much better than with Tracfone! My calls go through nearly as soon as I hit call, the internet is faster.
I didn't need to do a thing either. No making APN settings, etc. I'm betting it has to do with what you said about my phone being born ATT. So funny because the software(?) is Verizon - shows the Verizon when I restart/power up. I still love my bastard phone
So thankful I didn't buy a different phone!!! Again thanks for all your help @schwinn8

Thanks for reporting back and letting us all know, and I'm glad it worked out well!
Yeah, the carriers pull this nonsense all the time... it's BS. The phones are all the same, only the ROM changes. If we can change ROMs (which we can) then there should be no reason to force users to specific IMEIs. But we know why they do this - follow the money. I encourage people to write to the FTC and FCC about this (I have).