How to find an AT&T unlocked phone with Band 17 available for LTE?

[thontz]

I'm used to Apple iPhones where you just put in the SIM card and it works. But I wanted to switch to Android. I'm finding it very difficult though to find a phone that works on LTE for AT&T. AT&T bands are 2, 4, 5, 12, 17. But I read that 17 is the most important band to get. I've browsed a ton of phones and a few have had band 5 but that's it. On eBay I am striking out. So, on Best Buy's site they have the ASUS Zenfone 5Q and it claims to have all of the above bands including 17. But ASUS makes a Zenfone 5 that is a nicer phone, but I can't find any that have those bands! Even more confusing, the same 5Q phone that Best Buy is selling, on eBay it doesn't show the same bands! I just got done returning a Moto G6 Plus because it didn't have the right bands as advertised. Why are there all these phones out there that just won't work? I don't want another iPhone and I definitely do not want a Samsung phone so how do I find a compatible phone? The Asus Zenfone 5Q seems okay, but for $50 more I can get the Zenfone 5 with a better screen and better specs. I also like the Nokia X6 but I'm running into the band problem again. Huawei Honor 7x, band problems as well. Errrr...........

 

[methodman89]

Go to your local att store and write down the exact make, model, and version of the phones on display that you like.

 

[hallux]

Go to your local att store and write down the exact make, model, and version of the phones on display that you like.

Then go look at the Pixel devices as those support the bands in question.

 

[Rukbat]

Android phones come in carrier type submodels, so look on gsmarena.com for the model you want, then choose the carrier. The newer phones may not have bands listed yet, though. As for the Zenfone 5, look on this site. It definitely has band 17(bc). (eBay listings aren't always correct. The ZE620KL has Band 17(bc).)

Always check the exact model number. In an iPhone, iPhone 6S is all you need. In an Android phone, a Samsung N900A isn't a Samsung N900T, but they're both Samsung Note 3s.

 

[thontz]

Sorry for the LONG response. I'm shopping yet again for another phone. I got a One Plus 6 and just HATED it. Then I got a much cheaper Huawei Mate 20 Lite and LOVE it. But it won't update to Pie or to EMUI 9.0 because it's in America, and the seller said I'd get the update any day now but it sounds like that won't be happening now so I'm going to return it. Can someone please explain LTE Bands to me? AT&T uses Bands 2, 4, 5, 7, 12, 17. I can't find hardly any Chinese phones that support this. But, phones that I don't see support this, are being used all over America according to users. I use the app called LTE Discovery and I'm usually on band 2 or band 17. I keep shopping for Xiaomi phones but they only support LTE 4,5 in America. Do I need a phone to support ALL LTE AT&T bands? Does it just need to support one of them? How does this work? Tons of people say they use HONOR phones in America but according to the internet sites, the HONOR phones don't support the LTE bands in America. How does all this work?