Texts working but not data/calls

BBorkovec

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This is hard to explain and maybe that's why I cant seem to find an answer.

So recently AT&T took down their 3g network and with that they stopped providing me service. I had my parents talk to their support since I'm under their bill and apparently they had sent out a new phone. However I didn't want to use their phone as i have a galaxy s8 i payed good money for. So i head into the AT&T store and ask if maybe they can give a better explanation. I tell them my phone has been using 4G so i don't understand how it affects me. I also found a list on their website of phones that would continue working and mine was on there. So they're trying to figure it out while also trying to sell me an upgrade. Ultimately he ends up asking me where I got my phone from and I tell him Amazon and his answer was "ahhh that's why. I really can't help you with that phone, but here's replacement options." I tell him I will have to think about it.

Fast forward to finally arriving home with the replacement phone that was sent to my parents. I reluctantly start following the instructions so I can have a working phone. I swap the sim cards and start them up. After all the setup the new phone with my old sim card has no service and the same problems I had before. My old phone with the new sim card however works. I could send texts and make phone calls. Two days later I try to make a phone call and it instantly ends. I have my wife try to call me and it goes instantly to voicemail. I test out texting and it still works perfectly fine. Later that day I realize my phone won't load anything when not in wi-fi range so I start testing the data. It's not working at all. I don't know where to go from here. I feel like I'm being used for some reason and from all the research I'm doing my phone should still be fine.

I guess I'm just looking for some input or some explanation as to why it's not working since the best I've been able to get is it's just not working, buy this phone instead.

Thank you in advance for the help!
 

Jim Jack

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BB, I am curious if Mustang's solution works for you. I feel as though I have a very similar as you, so opted not to start a new thread. I have a Galaxy S8+ and was able to make/receive calls and make/receive texts. Now, only texting works. Calls I make disconnect instantly and incoming calls go straight to voicemail. This has been the same phone, sim and phone plan I have had for more than a year. Mobile data works fine -- I can surf the web and get on social media with wifi turned off.

Anyone, I am looking for next steps I might take in addition to what i tried. Here is where it gets lengthy.


  • I tried the existing sim in a different phone and it worked fine.
    I tried my wife's sim in my phone and had the same problem described above -- texting only.
    I then tried Reset Settings (no help), followed by Reset Network Settings (no avail), and finally Factory Rest (same problems)
    Next I downloaded a different call app than what came with the phone, and set the new app to be the default calling app .... still could not make or receive calls

Here's where it gets crazy. I have another Galaxy S8+ with a cracked screen ... which is why I got my current S8+. The cracked S8+ is basically spare parts. I took the whole thing apart. So, I hoped the solution might be to swap parts from one phone to the other, and did so starting with swapping one part at a time ... I swapped the upper and lower antenna assemblies all the way down to the upper and lower mother boards. I even swapped the blue and white wires. Again, I tried each part individually in hopes to catch the culprit, and powered up and tested the phone after every swap. The problem persisted at every attempt.

Again I had no problem switching the sim card from the cracked S8 to my current one over a year ago. The problem just materialized a couple of weeks ago. (And, the sim card works fine in other phones. It's not the sim)

There is one error message I receive in settings I cannot explain.
When I open he Phone (installed) app, click Settings>Supplementary Services I receive "Failed to read data, Something went wrong, check your sim card or network connection ..." (yet, the sim card is fine)

Also, when I go to Connections>Mobile Networks>Network Operators> and Search for ATT Micro Cell, I get a failed to connect to network message, even though I can use mobile data for most everything else. I don't know if that is related or not.

So in short, I have addressed the hardware, the sim card, and thee software. What am i missing?
 

Laura Knotek

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BB, I am curious if Mustang's solution works for you. I feel as though I have a very similar as you, so opted not to start a new thread. I have a Galaxy S8+ and was able to make/receive calls and make/receive texts. Now, only texting works. Calls I make disconnect instantly and incoming calls go straight to voicemail. This has been the same phone, sim and phone plan I have had for more than a year. Mobile data works fine -- I can surf the web and get on social media with wifi turned off.

Anyone, I am looking for next steps I might take in addition to what i tried. Here is where it gets lengthy.


  • I tried the existing sim in a different phone and it worked fine.
    I tried my wife's sim in my phone and had the same problem described above -- texting only.
    I then tried Reset Settings (no help), followed by Reset Network Settings (no avail), and finally Factory Rest (same problems)
    Next I downloaded a different call app than what came with the phone, and set the new app to be the default calling app .... still could not make or receive calls

Here's where it gets crazy. I have another Galaxy S8+ with a cracked screen ... which is why I got my current S8+. The cracked S8+ is basically spare parts. I took the whole thing apart. So, I hoped the solution might be to swap parts from one phone to the other, and did so starting with swapping one part at a time ... I swapped the upper and lower antenna assemblies all the way down to the upper and lower mother boards. I even swapped the blue and white wires. Again, I tried each part individually in hopes to catch the culprit, and powered up and tested the phone after every swap. The problem persisted at every attempt.

Again I had no problem switching the sim card from the cracked S8 to my current one over a year ago. The problem just materialized a couple of weeks ago. (And, the sim card works fine in other phones. It's not the sim)

There is one error message I receive in settings I cannot explain.
When I open he Phone (installed) app, click Settings>Supplementary Services I receive "Failed to read data, Something went wrong, check your sim card or network connection ..." (yet, the sim card is fine)

Also, when I go to Connections>Mobile Networks>Network Operators> and Search for ATT Micro Cell, I get a failed to connect to network message, even though I can use mobile data for most everything else. I don't know if that is related or not.

So in short, I have addressed the hardware, the sim card, and thee software. What am i missing?
Which microcell do you have? If it is old it may be 3G only. If it doesn't support 4G LTE or 5G, then the shutdown of AT&T's 3G network rendered it obsolete and unusable.
 

Jim Jack

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Which microcell do you have? If it is old it may be 3G only. If it doesn't support 4G LTE or 5G, then the shutdown of AT&T's 3G network rendered it obsolete and unusable.

Laura ... thank you. i believe you have identified the problem. When I go through phone settings to get to Netwrok Operators and click Search for At&T MicroCell, I get the failed to connect to network message. That matches what you desccribed. So now, I need to decide what is cheaper ... to purchase a new phone or a signal booster for home and work. There is no other fix, is there? I need a 4G+ phone it sounds like. Thanks again
 

Old Paint

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AT&T claimed to have provisioned my phone on three separate occasions over the last several days. They failed each time. They either don't know how or refuse to provision unlocked devices.
 

Laura Knotek

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Laura ... thank you. i believe you have identified the problem. When I go through phone settings to get to Netwrok Operators and click Search for At&T MicroCell, I get the failed to connect to network message. That matches what you desccribed. So now, I need to decide what is cheaper ... to purchase a new phone or a signal booster for home and work. There is no other fix, is there? I need a 4G+ phone it sounds like. Thanks again

Yes, you'll need to get a phone on their supported list. https://forums.androidcentral.com/e...ces-Working-on-ATT-Network.pdf&token=sJgzmoia
 

Laura Knotek

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aND THEy have to match exactly, correct? I have the s8+ G955U1 whereas the list of working phones is "G955U" with no "1" at the end. There is no way to force to update? Or is it related to the hardware. Thanks again

It's related to the hardware. Even if you were to flash AT&T firmware, the device would still show up as G955UI, not G955U, so they won't accept it on their network.
 

Jim Jack

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It's related to the hardware. Even if you were to flash AT&T firmware, the device would still show up as G955UI, not G955U, so they won't accept it on their network.

Laura, or others

What if I switched the upper logic/motherboard (G955U1) of my current phone with one that is listed G955U (a model compatible with 4G). Assuming they are the same dimensions, screw-hole locations the same, etc.
 

Laura Knotek

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Laura, or others

What if I switched the upper logic/motherboard (G955U1) of my current phone with one that is listed G955U (a model compatible with 4G). Assuming they are the same dimensions, screw-hole locations the same, etc.
That would not be economically feasible. It would be less expensive to purchase a compatible device.
 

Jim Jack

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That would not be economically feasible. It would be less expensive to purchase a compatible device.

Update -- it worked. I paid $33 for a G955U to replace the G955U1 board in my samsung 8+. With the swap I am now able to access 4G and 5G networks. Not too pricey. Just a little a tiny screwdriver and 2 pairs of eye glasses.

If anyone wants to know the source of the U motherboard, message me.
 

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