Nexus 6 bought on T-Mobile use on Verizon

[Jojii]

I figured I would post up my experience today. I walked into T-Mobile this afternoon and told them that I wanted to buy a Nexus 6 off contract. I also asked them to cut down my Note 2 sim card to fit a nano sim tray. They have a special device for this in the store. After that I popped in the sim card and after about 3 minutes it activated and I had full service on Verizon. The phone has been working fine ever since. Pretty simple. Also, they did not make me sign up for service or buy a pre-paid sim. I just bought the phone and had them cut down my sim card. Then I left =)

 

[anon(5061193)]

I bought a 6 from Sprint and just popped the SIM out of a Verizon Droid Turbo and away I went... Working Perfectly and didn't have to call or do anything

 

[GoldPaintedLemons]

I'm having different (bad) luck. Hoping someone can suggest what I need to do. I was a T-Mobile customer, it sucked, and I wanted a nexus 6 for verizon. So, in my last couple of weeks of service on tmo, I ordered the N6 from them, paid outright and had my number ported to VZW. They activated a regular sim for an older phone (Droid bionic). I bought a sim cutting tool and cut it. Now on my N6, I can place calls, send texts, receive some texts, and get 3g (cdma) data. I cannot get an LTE signal even after switching over the network type preferences, rebooting, re-seating, etc.

I put the sim back in the droid bionic (w/ an adapter) and it works, gets LTE, and calls/texts. So, the sim still works. Just not in my N6. Obviously I'm beginning to regret this decision.

Anyone have an idea how I can get this?
Do I need an inactive ??? sim and only do the activation via the N6?

 

[Solid_Droid]

I'm having different (bad) luck. Hoping someone can suggest what I need to do. I was a T-Mobile customer, it sucked, and I wanted a nexus 6 for verizon. So, in my last couple of weeks of service on tmo, I ordered the N6 from them, paid outright and had my number ported to VZW. They activated a regular sim for an older phone (Droid bionic). I bought a sim cutting tool and cut it. Now on my N6, I can place calls, send texts, receive some texts, and get 3g (cdma) data. I cannot get an LTE signal even after switching over the network type preferences, rebooting, re-seating, etc.

I put the sim back in the droid bionic (w/ an adapter) and it works, gets LTE, and calls/texts. So, the sim still works. Just not in my N6. Obviously I'm beginning to regret this decision.

Anyone have an idea how I can get this?
Do I need an inactive ??? sim and only do the activation via the N6?

Is the wireless network type on your N6 set to global or LTE?

 

[GoldPaintedLemons]

Is the wireless network type on your N6 set to global or LTE?

LTE.

I think I'm having a very different type of problem. Let me talk to verizon and tmobile tonight and I'll come back for updates. Turns out I'm NOT receiving incoming calls when the sim is in my old droid bionic, so it appears my number is not fully switched over from tmobile. unfortunately I threw away the tmo sim, so I have no way to prove that... but I'm pretty darn sure that's the issue.

It is curious however that I get LTE on the bionic and not on the N6.

 

[GoldPaintedLemons]

I've spoken to verizon & tmobile and got the voice & text issues figured out. I now get voice, text & 3g data, but no LTE. It's not connecting to the LTE network at all even though the network type is set to LTE (instead of global). Sim card still picks up LTE in another device (droid bionic, no way I'm using that...)

Has anyone else done exactly this?
1)bought an N6 from t-mobile
2)activate on tmobile
3)activate a verizon sim in another device
4)place that sim card in the N6

Also, has anyone else done this and CUT their sim card? I had to cut mine from standard to nano.

 

[Solid_Droid]

I've spoken to verizon & tmobile and got the voice & text issues figured out. I now get voice, text & 3g data, but no LTE. It's not connecting to the LTE network at all even though the network type is set to LTE (instead of global). Sim card still picks up LTE in another device (droid bionic, no way I'm using that...)

Has anyone else done exactly this?
1)bought an N6 from t-mobile
2)activate on tmobile
3)activate a verizon sim in another device
4)place that sim card in the N6

Also, has anyone else done this and CUT their sim card? I had to cut mine from standard to nano.

Did T-Mobile make you activate the phone in order to buy it? You factory reset the N6 right?

 

[GoldPaintedLemons]

They did not make me, but for reasons not worth explaining, I activated it on tmobile before switching over to verizon. They were not aware I was going to drop them, so they didn't really have the to threaten me with that or anything. I have however, FDR'd it about 5 times since then after each progression in my status w/ verizon has changed.

What I found super interesting... and I need to test this again ... is that I stuck the cut SIM in my wife's verizon branded moto x (2014) and the same thing happened; service, but no LTE connection. I'm going to test that one more time to confirm that's still going on, at which point I think I can pin the issue on the cut SIM. If so, I'm going to go down to the store and get a new SIM. Hopefully I can bribe someone into giving me a nano even though my "verizon approved" phone takes a regular SIM.

Does anyone know if I'd run into issues by showing them the phone/IMEI of my wife's moto X in order to be issued and activate a nano SIM? In other words; can two sims be "tied" to the same IMEI? Specifically, two that are on the same billing account?

 

[GoldPaintedLemons]

So, trying to resolve this with a new SIM, I ran into some interesting information. according to a verizon tech support rep, there are different types of nano SIMS ... this is news to me. This may explain why the "cut-into-a-nano-sim" was not getting me LTE.

Here's what happened: I went to the store and copied the IMEI off a moto x 2nd gen since the nexus is so close to it, and then I went to a "certified retailer" and purchased (they r'd me for $20, whatever) a nano sim. I had the above mentioned rep tie that sim to the IMEI of the moto x from the store but the system told them they are incompatible. I know for a fact that moto x in the store took nano sim. He's shipping me a new one that is moto x (and hopefully nexus 6) compliant. I said "really? the nano sim fits in my phone..." and he claims there are nano sims which are device manufacturer specific, he cited samsung for example. Obviously this is still a little concerning as the sim I had originally cut was from a moto droid bionic.

So, I'm hoping this is my issue. I had, both times, a nano sim which is not "motorola compliant". Gonna go home and try my wife's moto x sim in my N6 just to verify this is going to work later when mine arrives. Will return w/ updates.

 

[GoldPaintedLemons]

So, trying to resolve this with a new SIM, I ran into some interesting information. according to a verizon tech support rep, there are different types of nano SIMS ... this is news to me. This may explain why the "cut-into-a-nano-sim" was not getting me LTE.

Here's what happened: I went to the store and copied the IMEI off a moto x 2nd gen since the nexus is so close to it, and then I went to a "certified retailer" and purchased (they r'd me for $20, whatever) a nano sim. I had the above mentioned rep tie that sim to the IMEI of the moto x from the store but the system told them they are incompatible. I know for a fact that moto x in the store took nano sim. He's shipping me a new one that is moto x (and hopefully nexus 6) compliant. I said "really? the nano sim fits in my phone..." and he claims there are nano sims which are device manufacturer specific, he cited samsung for example. Obviously this is still a little concerning as the sim I had originally cut was from a moto droid bionic.

So, I'm hoping this is my issue. I had, both times, a nano sim which is not "motorola compliant". Gonna go home and try my wife's moto x sim in my N6 just to verify this is going to work later when mine arrives. Will return w/ updates.

Appears this is the issue. Wife's Moto x sim card in my N6 picked up an LTE signal immediately. So, good thing I ordered a sim based on the IMEI from a moto x in the store. I'm thinking if I'd picked up a LG or sony or somthing I'd be dissappointed again. So, I'll be back in two days to post confirmed results and hopefully I can ascertain what the difference between the two types of nano sims are. Really hope this can be a lesson others can learn from if they run into the same issue.

wondering if this has something to do with the device/sim being "XLTE enabled" ... which I always thought was just marketing, but maybe there's actually some technology progression there.

 

[crackers8199]

I figured I would post up my experience today. I walked into T-Mobile this afternoon and told them that I wanted to buy a Nexus 6 off contract. I also asked them to cut down my Note 2 sim card to fit a nano sim tray. They have a special device for this in the store. After that I popped in the sim card and after about 3 minutes it activated and I had full service on Verizon. The phone has been working fine ever since. Pretty simple. Also, they did not make me sign up for service or buy a pre-paid sim. I just bought the phone and had them cut down my sim card. Then I left =)

Where are you located? Lol none of the stores in my area (central PA) have been willing to sell me the phone without activating TMo service...

 

[GoldPaintedLemons]

Appears this is the issue. Wife's Moto x sim card in my N6 picked up an LTE signal immediately. So, good thing I ordered a sim based on the IMEI from a moto x in the store. I'm thinking if I'd picked up a LG or sony or somthing I'd be dissappointed again. So, I'll be back in two days to post confirmed results and hopefully I can ascertain what the difference between the two types of nano sims are. Really hope this can be a lesson others can learn from if they run into the same issue.

wondering if this has something to do with the device/sim being "XLTE enabled" ... which I always thought was just marketing, but maybe there's actually some technology progression there.

Thought I'd share the specifics once I got this all figured out; again, I'm just trying to help anyone else out from hitting some pitfalls if they try to do this. My phone is 100% working now other than of course being an unrecognized device.

I do want to say that one method suggested way earlier in this thread is troublesome: getting the IMEI off of a verizon store phone so that they ship you a SIM. First, as I mentioned, this can catch you if it uses two diff sim types (which I'll explain later) and then they'll ship you the sim tied to that IMEI... so, when you go to activate, it will not allow because you've put it in the wrong device (unless you go activate in the store on that phone, ha). I had to call up, have them associate my wife's moto x's IMEI with my new sim, activate it in her phone, then move it over to my N6, and of course put hers back in. Now we're all set.

There ARE at least two different nano sims based on part number (on the cards they pop out of): here are some that I've used and failed with:

DIRECTSIM4G-D - this was the full size that I activated in the droid bionic, cut and failed to receive LTE

BULKSIM4FF-A - this is the nano sim that I could not get activated in any device including other nano sim devices due to compatibility. They simply wouldn't let me associate "incompatible" IMEI numbers to it.

DFILL4FF-NFC-A - this is the nano sim that I activated successfully in a moto X and move to N6 w/ perfect success. The inclusion of the letters "NFC" is interesting as yes, both the moto X and N6 have Near Field Communication connectivity... not sure if that's a coincidence as I have no idea what that has to do w/ a sim card.

Hope this clears a lot of for someone thinking about and/or trying to do this. Basic lesson is, yes it can be done, but you must have a specific type of sim already activate in another, similar device. So, you need to own/have access to a pretty recent device it seems. I'm not sure what other phones use this specific type of nano sim, so my advice to others is to only bank on this working if you have one of the phones someone in this thread is working, or if you can find a resource somewhere that lists all verizon phones that use the DFILL4FF-NFC-A nano sim.

I'm surprised by some these success stories and would like to have some of them confirm that they have ALL services including LTE working without issue.

 

[diesteldorf]

Just wanted to share my experience.

I decided to actually try TMO for a few months and suspended my existing Verizon service.

Part of the reason was I didn't want to have to pay for TMO service, as a condition to get the phone, and not use it.

This past weekend, I was finally motivated to try it on Verizon, mostly because I wanted to watch NFL Mobile on my "Big Screen" LOL

This phone is a little weird, because it configures the network settings and options, based on whatever sim was used at the time of initial activation.

I decided to do a full factory reset before activating on Verizon. After the phone powered down, I removed the TMO sim, inputed an active nano sim from my 2013 Moto X. After I powered the phone on and booted it up, it activated in 1-2 minutes.

I cut the cord 6-7 months ago, so NFL Mobile has been a lifesaver. There is a big difference while watching on a 4.7" screen and a 6" screen.

Since I activated this phone on Verizon initially, after doing a factory data reset, it doesn't even give me the options for Global or LTE. The sim talked to the phone during setup and configured it from there.

When the same phone is activated on Sprint, it too has cellular and data options specific to Sprint and Sprint activation.

Assuming you could get the AT&T one unlocked by them or through a 3rd party, it too should work on any of the other 3 carriers. However, if you are planning to switch, I recommend doing a factory data reset for best results.

 

[Jimmie McCraw]

T-Mobile nexus 6 will work on Verizon... But the phone has to be unlocked(which you can do fairly easily) and you have to activate a nano sim in another working Verizon device and then swap it into the nexus 6. Just did this and it is now working great... At first I tried getting a nano sim and activating it in the nexus and Verizon basically said they didn't like my imei number... You just have to fool the system a little. Thanks for the activation advice

 

[Sam Smith12]

You have to factory reset then after it boots put in Verizon SIM...easy

 

[Dubbayoo]

I returned my first N6 due to the black screen bug. Motorola sent me back a T mobile phone. I swapped the included sim for my Verizon one, booted up and it activated fine.

 

[heath patrick]

I am looking to trade for a T-Mobile nexus6 to use on Verizon. I checked the imei and it says it is under contract [not Fully paid for] so my ? Is what if I get it and they cancel their service without paying it fully etc... Would it stop working for me on Verizon? Or because it's a T-Mobile phone I will be ok.

 

[heath patrick]

I am thinking it would be ok but doesn't matter now. I called T-Mobile gave them the IMEI and they said the phone had a balance on it and hadn't been paid lately. So I'm not gona bother with it.