Disappointed 1st Time Unlocked phone purchase

[ShaggyKids]

Hi there,

I purchased 2 unlocked phones from 2 different sellers a few weeks ago and now I'm sorry I did. I don't know if it's my fault, if there's something I can do to fix this or what so I'm hoping someone here has some answers.

We already replaced the sim cards that were in our old phones per TMO when I called them and explained the problems we're having. Hubby is screaming to go back to VZW but they're too expensive and have too many limits on their plans.

First Phone: Note 10+ and I verified that this phone was *factory* unlocked. My TMO connection isn't any better than it was with my V30 and perhaps I'm misinformed but I *thought* because this phone is 2 1/2 or so years newer it's range would improve. I still have the same dead spots in the house that I had before. We already have the signal booster that TMO sent us to use.

I'm on a call and suddenly there's only dead air but the call is still connected. I move to another location and the call returns sometimes. Other times it will drop. I pick up a call and it's "hello" "hello" "hello" like there's nobody there. It's about 4 years old now, should I maybe ask to get this replaced?

Second Phone: LG G8 ThinQ replaced hubby's V30. It said it was unlocked so it would work on the other services. Strange thing is every now and then you'll get a flash of "US Cellular" on the screen. Stupid me should have verified it was *factory* unlocked I guess. It sure doesn't seem to be if we're seeing US Cellular on it. This phone basically has the same other issues that I mentioned I'm having on my Note plus what I think the US Cellular shouldn't be there. Hubby is a trucker and he's having a heckuva time with dropped calls and calls like I mentioned with my Note. I totally spaced out and forgot to ask if this phone was factory unlocked or not.

I also noticed that the LG phone came with numerous games on it which is not something I expected. Is this typical of an unlocked phone?

Does anyone have any suggestions of what I can try to do? Like maybe change some setting or ??? I can't return them, it's past the 30 days.

Thank you,
Deb

 

[Morty2264]

I'm sorry this is happening to you and your husband. Some ideas:

- contact your carrier/network providers and ask if your husband's phone is indeed locked to the desired network. It's strange that it will randomly show that it's "connected" to US Cellular.

- did you say your SIM cards were on the older side? It may be time to get new ones - sometimes, when SIM cards are old, they malfunction.

- does your signal quality improve when you, yourself, are out of the house? It sounds like your husband has poor cell quality wherever he has his phone. Sometimes things like cement walls will impact signal strength - perhaps that is true of your Note 10. Since your LG V30 had a similar issue, I'm wondering if it's signal- or network-related. Though, since TMO gave you a signal booster, that makes things confusing and frustrating, I'm sure!

- from where did you buy these unlocked phones? Was it from a store like Best Buy? Were they new?

 

[blackhawkhot]

I'm sorry this is happening to you and your husband. Some ideas:

- contact your carrier/network providers and ask if your husband's phone is indeed locked to the desired network. It's strange that it will randomly show that it's "connected" to US Cellular.

- did you say your SIM cards were on the older side? It may be time to get new ones - sometimes, when SIM cards are old, they malfunction.

- does your signal quality improve when you, yourself, are out of the house? It sounds like your husband has poor cell quality wherever he has his phone. Sometimes things like cement walls will impact signal strength - perhaps that is true of your Note 10. Since your LG V30 had a similar issue, I'm wondering if it's signal- or network-related. Though, since TMO gave you a signal booster, that makes things confusing and frustrating, I'm sure!

- from where did you buy these unlocked phones? Was it from a store like Best Buy? Were they new?

Sim cards can and do fail.
They can be damaged by ESD (static electricity), handle them using ESD protocols. ESD exposure can cause delayed and erratic failures. This happens more than you would think... best to handle them like a stick of RAM.

 

[B. Diddy]

What's the exact model number of the Note10+? Just want to make sure it supports all or most of T-Mobile's bands. If it only supports a few, then reception may still be poor in your area if the local towers don't have those bands.

Also, there's a difference between a carrier-specific phone that has been carrier-unlocked, and an unlocked "carrier-agnostic" phone sold directly by the manufacturer. The former can be still be glitchy, especially if the carrier-unlock wasn't done by the carrier themselves (i.e., if the person who unlocked it used some 3rd party unlock code). In addition, the carrier-specific phone variant might also support fewer bands than the carrier-agnostic version.

Use an app like Network Cell Info Lite to figure out which band your local tower is using.

 

[mustang7757]

What's the exact model number of the Note10+? Just want to make sure it supports all or most of T-Mobile's bands. If it only supports a few, then reception may still be poor in your area if the local towers don't have those bands.

Also, there's a difference between a carrier-specific phone that has been carrier-unlocked, and an unlocked "carrier-agnostic" phone sold directly by the manufacturer. The former can be still be glitchy, especially if the carrier-unlock wasn't done by the carrier themselves (i.e., if the person who unlocked it used some 3rd party unlock code). In addition, the carrier-specific phone variant might also support fewer bands than the carrier-agnostic version.

Use an app like Network Cell Info Lite to figure out which band your local tower is using.

The Note 10 has the bands for all 4 carriers, even its unlocked model . Im using my Note 10+ on tmobile with wifi calling and all. Could be OP area bad reception on tmobile there.

 

[B. Diddy]

The Note 10 has the bands for all 4 carriers, even its unlocked model . Im using my Note 10+ on tmobile with wifi calling and all. Could be OP area bad reception on tmobile there.

Thanks for clarifying that. @ShaggyKids, is there anything about the areas in your house with poor reception that might contribute? Are they in the basement, or in other areas that are relatively tightly enclosed?

 

[Mooncatt]

As a trucker myself, I certainly sympathize with your husband's desire to go back to Verizon. When it comes to traveling and network coverage, Verizon is hands down the best there is. I would double check prices, though, as they have become more competitive and I'm not sure what restrictions you are referring to.

As for the signal strength issues, not much has changed over the years. Some phones are better than others, but it's rarely a big enough difference to matter.

 

[mustang7757]

You didn't properly quote @B. Diddy or Morty

 

[ShaggyKids]

Thanks for clarifying that. @ShaggyKids, is there anything about the areas in your house with poor reception that might contribute? Are they in the basement, or in other areas that are relatively tightly enclosed?

Now that you mention it, our bedroom cement or brick walls it's in the old part of the house which is an old school like from Little House on the Prairie era. I'm told it was Laura Ingles mother's Aunt who taught here. Half the house is the old school other half was added onto many years ago, maybe 30 to 40 years. There are dead spots here and there all around inside.

 

[ShaggyKids]

You didn't properly quote @B. Diddy or Morty

Ugh.

 

[mustang7757]

Ugh.

You using chrome?

 

[B. Diddy]

Now that you mention it, our bedroom cement or brick walls it's in the old part of the house which is an old school like from Little House on the Prairie era. I'm told it was Laura Ingles mother's Aunt who taught here. Half the house is the old school other half was added onto many years ago, maybe 30 to 40 years. There are dead spots here and there all around inside.

I think that may be the main reason right there. Where's your signal booster located?

 

[ShaggyKids]

You using chrome?

No

 

[mustang7757]

No

Ok

 

[ShaggyKids]

I think that may be the main reason right there. Where's your signal booster located?

In my office in the old part of the house. I followed the instructions in the box for placement.

 

[ShaggyKids]

Ok

I use Tapatalk

 

[mustang7757]

I use Tapatalk

Gotcha , try Android Forums App based off taptalk

 

[Morty2264]

In my office in the old part of the house. I followed the instructions in the box for placement.

Is it possible to move the signal booster to the newer section of the house?

 

[ShaggyKids]

Is it possible to move the signal booster to the newer section of the house?

Ok I just realized I didn't finish my post.

One part of the booster is in the old part and the other in the new part opposite ends of the house. I'm sorry.

 

[B. Diddy]

If you have one of the older Cel-Fi signal boosters (like I have), then the two parts of it work best when they have a reasonably good signal "line of sight" that's not blocked by lots of walls -- so it might not work well if you put one of the parts in the bedroom. But worth giving it a try.

Are both phones capable of wi-fi calling on your carrier? If so, make sure wi-fi calling is turned on, and make sure the bedroom has good wi-fi signal -- you may need to look into a mesh router system, since wi-fi extenders can be more problem than they're worth.