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

 

[ShaggyKids]

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.

I'll give this a try, thank you.

Is there a booster hubby can put in his truck? I'm now wondering if all that metal surrounding him is the problem.

 

[ShaggyKids]

It's called a Personal Cell Spot.

 

[B. Diddy]

Ok, that looks newer than mine, but I think operates on the same principle.

I'm not sure if your husband's issues are necessarily due to signal interference -- being in a truck or car shouldn't cause that much trouble, unless he keeps his phone in some metal container. I'd wonder more about the fact that it's a US Cellular phone, with the issues being related to how it was carrier-unlocked. You might consider calling US Cellular support and ask them if they can confirm that the phone is completely unlocked.

 

[Mooncatt]

Is there a booster hubby can put in his truck? I'm now wondering if all that metal surrounding him is the problem.

You can, but the good ones are very expensive, and I doubt worth the money for a trucker. They are best suited for people that go into remote areas for long periods of time, like camping in an RV. I think your husband's biggest issue is still the coverage. T-Mobile doesn't have great coverage for trucking, and much of their "coverage area" is actually roaming. Verizon, on the other hand, is pretty much everywhere. You can look at real world coverage in the tools section of this app to compare carriers.

https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=org.zwanoo.android.speedtest

The truck itself isn't likely to be making much of a difference in terms of signal.

 

[methodman89]

For otr, I recommend a Garmin InReach.
The only phones I'm aware of with true extra range on tmobile are the ones using the 600 band, such as the S8 Active.
Good luck

 

[Mooncatt]

For otr, I recommend a Garmin InReach.

Unless you're trucking exclusively in the back country of the Rockies or something, a satellite phone is WAY overkill. Lol.

 

[methodman89]

It's not a phone

 

[Mooncatt]

It's not a phone

It looked like it at first on their website. In either case it is simply completely unnecessary for most truckers in the U.S. When I was OTR, there was only one place I can remember picking up at that was so remote that there was zero cell service, and that was only for a few hours. If something had happened, there were still plant workers and other drivers around, plus my company had their own satellite based communications with my truck (very common). There are occasional dead spots, but they are short lived as you drive through it.

 

[methodman89]

To the OP, I have a cdl too, but it's immaterial. The satellite communicator is a proven lifesaver, literally. It's cost is under 500, and service can be as low as 200 a year.
Good luck

 

[blackhawkhot]

It looked like it at first on their website. In either case it is simply completely unnecessary for most truckers in the U.S. When I was OTR, there was only one place I can remember picking up at that was so remote that there was zero cell service, and that was only for a few hours. If something had happened, there were still plant workers and other drivers around, plus my company had their own satellite based communications with my truck (very common). There are occasional dead spots, but they are short lived as you drive through it.

We them had in 2010. With electronic logging becoming mandatory sat com will be standard equipment for any big rig that needs to run a log.
Sometimes being completely out of contact is a good thing... Spent a lot of time in places with no cell service.
Changes the way you think and conduct yourself... you get one shot.

 

[Mooncatt]

We them had in 2010. With electronic logging becoming mandatory sat com will be standard equipment for any big rig that needs to run a log.

Even that has been changing. We have GPS tracking, but PeopleNet, and the Qualcomm communication systems (the two biggest players in in-cab communications) have swapped to cellular based communications for dispatching and such. The cell network in the U.S. is that good now, and offers the additional benefit of working even if the satellite signal is blocked.

 

[ShaggyKids]

"- 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!"

Sometimes yes and sometimes no.

When I came back to work I found that my signal was worse on VZW than it was on TMO. I was flabbergasted. I mostly can't get images to pull up, the cursor just spins and spins.

I got the unlocked phones on swappa.com

The SIMS would be around 3 1/2 to 4 years old that's about as long as we were on TMO. Both of us got new VZW sim cards when this all started a couple weeks ago.

In the meantime, he has a new phone directly from VZW (LG Stylo6) and he's not been complaining about anything so far. I on the other hand want to throw my Note 10+ out the windows sometimes.

 

[ShaggyKids]

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.

Thanks for the heads up on this, I would have never imagined it.

 

[ShaggyKids]

MODEL SM-N975U1 but please check it against VZW because that's what we're on now. I will look for the Network Cell Info Lite app and see if I can get any info from it.

UPDATE: I found it, downloaded and installed it and all it does is continuously crash. It's not even open for more than like 10 seconds and shuts itself off. Any other app suggestions?

UPDATE 2: seems to be staying open now. I've paged through the various screens but I have no idea what I'm looking for, LOL!

 

[ShaggyKids]

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

The first part of it is in a window in the SE corner of the house and the other is almost to the NW corner. I walked around the entire house w/it before setting it up to see where the best signals were. I'm wonder if a VZW booster is going to be any better than the TMO booster? Is a home booster something that should be replaced occasionally? Is there such a thing as a booster app for my phone itself for when I'm at work?

 

[ShaggyKids]

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.

Moving the booster to the new part of the house takes it to the far end of the house away from my office where I really need it.

 

[ShaggyKids]

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.

I have the TMO booster that's it. There is absolutely no way to put the booster in two different areas of the house with a line of site. We have too many walls for that. The part of the booster that's near the NW corner of the house gets 6-9 for numbers on the face of it and my office (main part of the booster) is usually 5 bars.

What's a mesh router system and what's it typically used for?

We have no REAL internet where we live, cable doesn't exist so all we have is Direct TV or Dish. Direct TV runs off AT&T and there is noooooooo AT&T service in our area. We have things ike Hughes.net but they are too pricey and limited use.

 

[B. Diddy]

The old Cel-Fi boosters are what require line-of-sight, but I think those are being phased out. I think the newer cell signal boosters that T-Mobile provides are basically just really good routers.

Mesh router systems like Google Nest Wi-fi and Orbi are the easiest and most effective way of spreading your wi-fi network throughout your house wirelessly. You connect one of the router units to the modem, and then just set the others around the house, and each unit will latch onto the main router's wi-fi signal and spread it to the next. It's much more effective than using dedicated wi-fi extenders -- my experience with those has been poor. I have the first gen Google Wi-fi, and I'll never go back to conventional routers. I used to have to reboot routers at least once a month, but with Google Wi-fi, I pretty much set it up and forget it.

 

[J Dubbs]

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

Don't buy your phones off of Amazon, most of those sellers are very small time operations (think living room) who buy returned phones, and do whatever they can to them to get them resold :-O You're WAY better off buying them from some place like B&H video photo who sells you brand new, sealed, guaranteed factory unlocked phones at great prices. Stay away from Amazon when it comes to electronics.

 

[ShaggyKids]

Mesh router systems like Google Nest Wi-fi and Orbi are the easiest and most effective way of spreading your wi-fi network throughout your house wirelessly. You connect one of the router units to the modem, and then just set the others around the house, and each unit will latch onto the main router's wi-fi signal and spread it to the next. It's much more effective than using dedicated wi-fi extenders -- my experience with those has been poor. I have the first gen Google Wi-fi, and I'll never go back to conventional routers. I used to have to reboot routers at least once a month, but with Google Wi-fi, I pretty much set it up and forget it.

We don't have a modem because we can only do the internet with my cell phone hotspot. We have no cable tv/internet in our area and may not in our lifetime. The only thing we can get is like Hughes.net and I'm not paying prices like that when I already pay bookoodle bucks for my cell service and tv service. We have Direct TV.