How to get a Galaxy Note 5 in Europe?

[anon(9613217)]

Hey guys, Will D here, long time reader, first time poster!

Been an Andriod user for the last few years ever since I bought a Galaxy S One second hand from a friend. I'm still using this phone and it's on its last legs so an upgrade is long overdue . I've been browsing the market for more then 6 months, nearly bought an S6 but was then intrigued by the Note line's S Pen and productivity powerhouse reputation.

I had been eagerly waiting all summer as the drip feed of Galaxy Note 5 rumours built up to the August 13th Unpacked event. Imagine my dismay then when Samsung, in their wisdom, deceided not to release the Note 5 in Europe!

Just wanted to see if we can get a thread going in order to source the best info on how we unfortunate Europeans can go about getting a Note 5.

I'm currently debating whether to do the following:

- I have a friend who is travelling to Australia in the coming weeks

- I'm thinking about buying the Note 5 through Samsung Australia's own website, getting it delivered to my friend there and then her bringing it back to the UK for me. Doing it this way means the phone would at least be SIM/carrier free.

- Anyone know if the Note 5 is region locked? Would it necessary for the phone to opened in Australia and used with an Australian SIM in order to deactivate the region locking?

For me it's either the above, maybe buying from a grey market importer or possibly just going for the Note 4.

Anyone know of any potentential problems using a Note 5 in an unofficial market long term? There'll be no warranty obviously, and no carrier support either
Anyone know if the Australian/international version will work on UK networks? As best I can figure the international version's (Australia SM-N920I according to Sammobile) bands should work on UK networks but anyone know for definite?
Also, does that mean that Android Marshmallow would be unavailable too?

All comments/advice/thought welcome. If anyone has already gotten a Note 5 in Europe it would be cool to hear how they went about getting it and any issues they may have faced, as a source of info to others.

Cheers guys !

 

[pinmike]

Would also love to have an answer to this! I've found Australian Note 5's online but don't know if they're region locked and if they'll work out of the box. Can anyone provide any insight?

 

[Kelly Kearns]

I was thinking I had read the Note 5 was expected to come to the UK in 2016.. Also I think International versions get their update directly from Samsung and when the update it the region where the phone is from, you should get the update.

 

[anon(9613217)]

I took the plunge and bought a Note 5 on Ebay last week, it arrived on Monday. So far, so good, mine is the SM N920i variant and it's working fine here in the UK!

There's a thread on XDA that discusses at length which versions will work best on UK (and European) networks - the conventional wisdom seems to be that SM N920 C/CD will support almost all bands used by UK/EU carriers while the SM N920i supports a smaller range of UK/EU bands but should still work over here.

Hope that helps, any questions let me know!

This is my first Note and it is awesome!!! Why the hell are Samsung dragging their heels about releasing it in Europe?

 

[pinmike]

Do you have a link where you bought it from? Would prefer to get it from somewhere where someone has already had success..

 

[pinmike]

And so the 920i wasn't region locked or anything? Had the packaging been opened to make a 5 minute call or was it all sealed with original stickers?

 

[cmhsam]

And so the 920i wasn't region locked or anything? Had the packaging been opened to make a 5 minute call or was it all sealed with original stickers?

I have one that I used in the UK last week. It's an American version but unlocked. Used it on October network. It's white w 32gb ram. Looking to sell it. pm if interested.

Posted via the Android Central App

 

[anon(9613217)]

I got it form an EBay seller based in Texas who seems to be importing from Singapore, the seller is Never - MSRP (Google Ebay Never MSRP and you'll find them) and I would recommend them.
I had a lot of the same concerns pinmike, I happened to bump into a guy in Starbucks about three weeks ago who also had bought a Note 5 from Never-MSRP which help to allay a lot of the doubts for me:
- Mine came in the original retail packaging, all seals intact and definitely hadn't been opened. I was aware of the region lock/5 minute unlock call issue but I can only assume that SM N920i isn't region locked (maybe the international version is left unlocked for giveaways to review websites, competition winners etc)
- Since mine came from Singapore, which uses the same mains electricity supply as the UK, this meant that mine came with a UK ready 3 pin plug which charges the phone fine
- Having read the XDA website thread on Note 5s and UK network bands, I figured EE was the best bet for me (I'm not on contract or anything so could just walk in and buy a SIM). The way the networks have bought up the bands means that EE is the only real option for me with regard to getting 4G LTE on the SM N920i

 

[pinmike]

Bah, had a look but they only have black or gold and I'm after white. It does say no region lock though, not sure if that's because it's been removed or because the Note 5 was never region locked..

 

[anon(9613217)]

I feel your pain, I wanted black, had to wait about a week for the seller to restock (which they seem to do weekly!) Not sure whether the region lock is being removed somehow but mine definitely came in retail packaging with seals intact! Good luck with your purchase when you make it, it's a hell of a phone!

 

[pinmike]

Well, just bought one from ebay so will wait a week or two for it to arrive. Fingers crossed there'll be no problems! Between Paypal and my credit card provider, I should be safe in case it all goes wrong..

 

[anon(9613217)]

Absolutely, hope you enjoy it when you get it!

Any thoughts on putting a case on it? Having read the thread case on here I think it's going to be a UAG (orange colour) and either a iBlason or Supcase Unicorn Beetle case for me

 

[Markus0071]

Hey there
I am right now in HongKong and I am considering buying a Note 5 here but I am quite worried about the LTE Bands. I ll used it here with a HK Sim Card for 2 Months does this unlock all bands?
I think the version here is N9200. In Austria there are 3,7, 20 LTE Bands. And Hongkong has 7.
Does anyone has experience here?
Further does anyone know why they do not sell the 64GB Model in HongKong?