What's the "best" GSM Mega 6.3 for use with T-mobile?

[Little-Acorn]

Vague question, I know. But there's some history behind it.

I once had an iPhone 3GS, that was unlocked and I was using it on T-Mobile. Reception wasn't that good, and I often could get no service. Finally found that the 3GS wasn't sold for the T-Mobile network, and so It lacked some of the hardware to get a really good signal.

Later got an iPhone 5c, which WAS sold for T-Mobile as well as the other providers (the first iPhone that was available on T-Moble). It worked much better on T-Mobile than the older 3GS did.

My eyes aren't what they used to be, and I'm considering getting a Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3.

I understand that some of these are CDMA phones and won't work at all on T-Mobile, which is a GSM network. But some 6.3's are GSM phones, and I've seen posts saying that those will work with T-Mobile.

Well... years ago I had an iPhone 3GS and an iPhone 5c. Both worked on T-Mobile's GSM network, but the 5C worked better than the 3GS did.

So my question: Will some GSM Mega 6.3's, work better on T-Mobile than other GSM Mega 6.3 phones? Which model would be best? I don't want to wind up with one that only "sort of" works, like my iPhone 3GS did.

Thanx all!

 

[B. Diddy]

Don't get the CDMA version--the LTE bands it supports aren't compatible with T-Mobile. Stick with the GSM version.

CDMA: Samsung Galaxy Mega (CDMA) Specs, Features (Phone Scoop)
GSM: Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200 - Full phone specifications

 

[Little-Acorn]

For example, the i9200, i9205, and i527 are all listed as GSM phones, and are supposed to be compatible with T-Mobile.

In my first post I described how I found that an unlocked older iPhone 3GS doesn't pick up T-Mobile as well as a newer iPhone 5C, though both are "compatible".

Of the three MEGA 6.3 models listed above, does one have any significant advantages over the other? Would one pick up T-Mobile any better than the other?

 

[B. Diddy]

You actually mentioned in your first post that the 5C did work on T-Mobile:

Later got an iPhone 5c, which WAS sold for T-Mobile as well as the other providers (the first iPhone that was available on T-Moble). It worked much better on T-Mobile than the older 3GS did.

Phones will work on T-Mobile if they support T-Mobile's bands, which are 2 (1900 MHz PCS), 4 (1700/2100 MHz AWS), and 12 (700 Mhz lower block A). You can check the specs of a phone online and see if it supports those bands.

The i9200 will work on 2G and 3G, but not 4G LTE: Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 I9200 - Full phone specifications
The i9205 will only work on 2G: Samsung Galaxy Mega 6.3 LTE GT-i9205 8GB Specs and features - Phone More
The i527, which is from AT&T, should also work on T-Mobile for 2G, 3G, and 4G: Specs - AT&T Cell Phones SGH-I527 | Samsung Cell Phones

 

[Little-Acorn]

Thanks B.Diddy, good info!