HEADS UP: No WiFi calling with BYOD even if your plan includes it...

[raino]

I'm using a Samsung Galaxy S4, from Metropcs, it's unlocked and WiFi calling workes perfect, maybe because T-Mobile and Metro are on the same GSM band I guess.... I'm using the GS 4 on T-Mobile.

I think it's got more to do with TMO now owning MetroPCS. Can't be bands because I have the right bands in my GS3 for TMO but no WFC.

Were you ever a Metro customer? Do they allow WiFi calling?

 

[Almeuit]

I think it's got more to do with TMO now owning MetroPCS. Can't be bands because I have the right bands in my GS3 for TMO but no WFC.

Were you ever a Metro customer? Do they allow WiFi calling?

Metro doesn't. WiFi calling is a T-Mobile thing.

 

[Shilohcane]

Someone needs to tweet this thread to TMO's John Legere ( @JohnLegere ) that said he spends about 8 hours a day reading and responding to his tweets. I don't have a twitter account and don't want one.

 

[smilesintear]

metropcs does offer wifi calling.

 

[smilesintear]

and HD voice too

 

[boogas8]

metropcs does offer wifi calling.

Yes, they do. I just found that out a few days ago. After reading more about it, I would trust T-Mobiles WiFi calling much more than Metro PCS.

Here's the app they use:
https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...=APPU_1__67zVJuHApK1yATYn4HICA&token=UsOMLbLO

Sent from my Galaxy Note 4 via the Uncarrier

 

[bahay]

It doesn't apply to iPhone neither. I have a Verizon iPhone 5S with T-Mo sim card and have Wifi Calling

 

[Almeuit]

It doesn't apply to iPhone neither. I have a Verizon iPhone 5S with T-Mo sim card and have Wifi Calling

iPhone is different since Apple puts the software into all iPhones and it only enables when the correct carrier is being used. With Android it has to be put in my the carrier.

 

[raino]

iPhone is different since Apple puts the software into all iPhones and it only enables when the correct carrier is being used. With Android it has to be put in my the carrier.

BlackBerry does that too. But here's something that as far as I know is unique to Apple: they get to push out their own updates and WFC works automatically, or shortly thereafter. I wonder why that is.

With BlackBerry (and I'm guessing it's going to be the same with Nexus phones,) TMO controls WFC.

 

[Almeuit]

BlackBerry does that too. But here's something that as far as I know is unique to Apple: they get to push out their own updates and WFC works automatically, or shortly thereafter. I wonder why that is.

With BlackBerry (and I'm guessing it's going to be the same with Nexus phones,) TMO controls WFC.

I believe it is due to wifi calling being programmed directly in by Apple. To my understanding -- T-Mobile tells them what is needed to connect and then Apple programs it directly into the OS.

 

[boogas8]

I believe it is due to wifi calling being programmed directly in by Apple. To my understanding -- T-Mobile tells them what is needed to connect and then Apple programs it directly into the OS.

This has to be true. Apple would never allow anyone else to program their phones.

Sent from my Galaxy S6 Edge via the Uncarrier

 

[raino]

I believe it is due to wifi calling being programmed directly in by Apple. To my understanding -- T-Mobile tells them what is needed to connect and then Apple programs it directly into the OS.

Well each OS provider programs their OS--TMO doesn't do that for any of them. There's no dispute there. What I'm talking about is the acceptance part. For BB10 (and I suspect it's the same way for Android,) TMO whitelists devices (once) and WFC-approved OS builds (recurringly, as new builds are released.) But they do the latter after testing, at least in the case of BB10 and Android. But with Apple, since they push out the OS updates without carriers' say, TMO seems to automatically whitelist their releases. Why is that?

 

[DumDee2]

well hopefully it might starting being the same for windows devices with the release of the lumia 640

 

[LeoRex]

Nexus 6 wfc is added by Google... Not T-Mobile or Sprint. In fact, Google finally released the source for the Nexus 6 wfc into AOSP mainline. It won't work unless your carrier supports it, but it'll be there for all.

OEMs handle the other implementations... They just code it to T-Mobile's spec, which I'm guessing is some standardized SIP/VOIP protocols.

Apple's implementation is no different.

 

[raino]

Nexus 6 wfc is added by Google... Not T-Mobile or Sprint. In fact, Google finally released the source for the Nexus 6 wfc into AOSP mainline. It won't work unless your carrier supports it, but it'll be there for all.

OEMs handle the other implementations... They just code it to T-Mobile's spec, which I'm guessing is some standardized SIP/VOIP protocols.

Apple's implementation is no different.

Sticking with Android then, why is it that, for example, an AT&T Note 4 can't do WFC on TMO, but a TMO Note 4 can? The originator of the OS is the same (Google,) as is the OEM (Samsung.) Is it that OEMs aren't coding non-TMO variants for WFC?

 

[LeoRex]

The originator of the OS is the same (Google,) as is the OEM (Samsung.) Is it that OEMs aren't coding non-TMO variants for WFC?

Right. Samsung grabs the AOSP source from Google and (heavily) modifies it based on the model given to the carrier. An AT&T Note 4 doesn't need the Samsung developed WiFi Calling code, so they leave it out. Why would they include it?

They might both be called the Note 4, but they are different models with slightly different hardware... Samsung doesn't make universal models like the Nexus 6. If a carrier doesn't need LTE band 4 or WiFi Calling, the phone won't support it. If you have an AT&T version, you are stuck with AT&T, or one of the MVNOs that operate on AT&T's network, if you want everything to work.

That's why it's bad news to load a T-Mobile Note 4 ROM on an AT&T version... They aren't the exact same phone.

 

[raino]

Why would they include it?

I guess because it would have been less work to take it out than modify the AOSP code for TMO vs. everyone else (shouldn't be a particularly volatile piece of code?) But I am thinking with my "single OS provider, single OEM" hat on

Thanks for the explanation.

 

[LeoRex]

I guess because it would have been less work to take it out than modify the AOSP code for TMO vs. everyone else

This is Samsung, remember. When in doubt, they release another model. And with the amount they are modifying the base code, doing features for large carriers a la carte isn't that big a deal. They just develop source for a 'stock' Note 4 then start forking off code streams for each variant.... Of which there are, I believe, 24 different models just for the Note 4 alone.

Yikes.

 

[raino]

This is Samsung, remember. When in doubt, they release another model. And with the amount they are modifying the base code, doing features for large carriers a la carte isn't that big a deal. They just develop source for a 'stock' Note 4 then start forking off code streams for each variant.... Of which there are, I believe, 24 different models just for the Note 4 alone.

Yikes.

I didn't mean to necessarily single out Samsung, but point taken lol. The Note 4 was the first WFC supported phone to came to mind. Since no other OEM's non-TMO models can do WFC on TMO, it's safe to infer that they're all doing the same thing?

And are we certain that TMO does not have a role to play in approval, i.e. beyond just specifying their specific voIP/SIP parameters?

 

[LeoRex]

Well, T-Mobile has a say as to what goes in their models. But they are a carrier, not a phone manufacturer. Samsung, LG, etc, do all the development, but the carrier is involved in the overall process.

Other than the Nexus 6, if you want T-Mobile WiFi Calling, you need to buy the T-Mobile model.