How to Set my Verizon S5 Galaxy to AT&T ?

[bobinyelm]

I just purchased a new G900V CDMA/GSM Unlocked Samsung Galaxy S5 to replace my current Samsung G900A S5 that freezes and has slowed down.

This is my 3rd S5. The first had a bad mic connection and even though I had a receipt from an AT&T store, Samsung would not honor it, and the second now is having problems after a year. I LIKE the S5, and I am hoping that the "third time is the charm." My wife's S5 has been flawless for 4 years!

The seller (ebay) said it was 4G Compatible on Verizon/Sprint/AT&T/T-Mobile on both CDMA and GSM.

I popped my AT&T Sim into it, and when it boots it has a Verizon screen of course, the says it is NOT a Verizon Sim, but then it finds the network and my WiFi, but the Text Message App appears to be a Verizon dedicated one that would have to be changed.

I dialed some telephone numbers and it seems to work fine, but...

Can anyone tell me what I need to do to make the phone act like an AT&T phone?

I did a little digging and supposedly it is 4G LTE compatible on AT&T, but I am an absolute neophyte and know nothing about these phones as far as re-configuring anything.

So ANY help, or a link that would help someone as clueless as me set it up would be much appreciated.

I ASSUME the seller was right about it being compatible. They had a bazillion sales and a 99,5% Feedback rating.

Thanks,
Bob

 

[anon(10614692)]

It's not an ideal match. Some are struggling with mobile data and lack of 4G bands. This is worth a read and helps you change APN settings https://forums.att.com/conversation...n-galaxy-s5-with-att/5defc5c6bad5f2f6061837dc

 

[bobinyelm]

Yes, I did a Google Search and found that before posting, but hoped there was a simpler or more direct way to do it.

Perhaps I should take advantage of their no-question returns policy and find a dedicated AT&T phone for $30 more?

It sounded like the flexibility of having a CDMA/GSM phone could be a GOOD thing, but it's a hassle, maybe not!

The implication was that it was compatible with all bands and LTE, but...

Bob

 

[B. Diddy]

One of the main problems is that the phone can only access one of AT&T's 4G bands (band 4), so if that's not strong in your area, the phone won't work that well. In addition, AT&T has shut down its 2G network, so the only other AT&T bands that phone can access are the 3G ones.

www.samsung.com/us/mobile/phones/ga...-verizon-charcoal-black-sm-g900vzkavzw/#specs
https://www.androidguys.com/guides/reference-guide-to-us-carrier-bands-and-networks/

 

[bobinyelm]

To summarize what you are saying, (so you can see if I understand you),

Ah, so even though the advertisement said this is a Samsung S5 Galaxy Model G900V capable of CDMA/GSM, iand it mentioned Verizon, Sprint, AT&T and T-Mobile) it does not mean that it is as capable of being as good or versatile on GSM withy AT&T as would be a dedicated GSM phone no matter WHAT settings are changed on the phone to "reprogram" or optimize it to AT&T.

It has marginal capabilities at best, and can only access a limited number of frequencies or modes compared to a Samsung G900A.

To rephrase again, the G900V is at best a "make shift" way to get SOME limited functionality on AT&T's GSM network, but NOT truly capable as it is working on Verizon's CDMA system.

The advertisement made it sound as if it was fully capable on both systems, or that's how I read it (maybe my mistake).

As I said, I put my SWIM into it and it found my AT&T "Mini-Cell" (we have poor AT&T Cell reception at my house so we got this device from AT&T we hook to our Internet). On that it said "3G", whereas my dedicated S5 says "AT&T Microcell" where the 900V said "3G," but on the Microcell my AT&T phone is slow as molasses (sending a text with an image can take 2-3 minutes, and a long text can take a minute and often fails to send at all).

Bottom line, if I want a GOOD S5 I should definitely get a dedicated GSM version I guess?

Thank-you,
Bob

 

[B. Diddy]

That all sounds about right. That advertisement might have been a little more accurate a couple of years ago before AT&T shut down their 2G network, but it still only ever supported one of AT&T's LTE bands. Technically, it still supports AT&T, but it is in no way an ideal phone to use for AT&T. If it hasn't been too long since the purchase, you could contact the seller and request a refund or exchange, and if they refuse, dispute it directly with eBay (which protects the buyers pretty well).