Not all Verizon 4GLTE smartphones are usable on other carriers out of the box (even recent ones)

dpham00

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There seems to be some confusion with regards to Verizon's 4GLTE smartphones. First, some of their older phones are sim locked. But even if it is factory sim unlocked like my Verizon Moto E 2nd gen,verizon locked out the setting for usage on another carrier out of the box. Luckily there was a hack requiring ADB that allowed me to enable usage on T-Mobile. However, it could be tricky and you would have to wait for someone to find a hack, depending on phone, and software version.

So as a fair warning, not all new Verizon 4GLTE smartphones are usable on other carriers out of the box. And then there are some phones that don't have any GSM radios outside of LTE that are compatible with other carriers, such as the LG Transpyre which was released late last year.

So saying that all new Verizon 4GLTE smartphones are factory sim unlocked while correct, is imo extremely misleading. Now I believe that all new POSTPAID Verizon 4GLTE smartphones are factory sim unlocked AND have the radios for usage on other networks (though in some cases limited) AND aren't blocked from usage on another carrier.

Let me know your thoughts on this.
 

Rukbat

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Always check the bands the carrier you want to be on uses (Cellular frequencies - Wikipedia) against the ones in the phone (GSM Arena usually lists all current phones). Make sure you're checking the frequencies in the Verizon model of the phone (or whichever carrier the phone came from).

Unlocked just means that it won't reject a SIM card from another carrier - it has nothing to do with whether it will work on that carrier's network.
 

dpham00

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Always check the bands the carrier you want to be on uses (Cellular frequencies - Wikipedia) against the ones in the phone (GSM Arena usually lists all current phones). Make sure you're checking the frequencies in the Verizon model of the phone (or whichever carrier the phone came from).

Unlocked just means that it won't reject a SIM card from another carrier - it has nothing to do with whether it will work on that carrier's network.

But that's exactly the point of this thread. The Verizon moto e 2nd gen is factory sim unlocked but a Tmobile sim is blocked out of the box. It will not work. You need to use adm to change the network settings so that it would accept a Tmobile sim. Of course there is the issue of compatibility, but the phone is compatible with Tmobile's network (just maybe not fully)
 

dpham00

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Well wtf how do I get my Verizon sim card to work in my blue 5.0??

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Not familiar with that phone. It probably doesn't have the appropriate radios for usage on Verizon. Though, if it did, you can change the apn settings and it should woek
 

hallux

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Well wtf how do I get my Verizon sim card to work in my blue 5.0??

Posted via the Android Central App

Not familiar with that phone. It probably doesn't have the appropriate radios for usage on Verizon. Though, if it did, you can change the apn settings and it should woek

I believe that is one of these
Amazon.com: BLU Studio 5.0 D530 Unlocked GSM Phone with Android 4.1 OS, Dual SIM, Dual-Core Processor, 5.0" LCD Touchscreen, 5MP Camera + Secondary VGA Camera, Video, Wi-Fi, Bluetooth and microSD Slot - White: Cell Phones & Accessories

If so, it does not have the radios to support Verizon as noted by dpham00 It even says the same right on the Amazon listing - will not support Verizon, Sprint, Boost or Virgin.
 

ColbyJvonBrown

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But that's exactly the point of this thread. The Verizon moto e 2nd gen is factory sim unlocked but a Tmobile sim is blocked out of the box. It will not work. You need to use adm to change the network settings so that it would accept a Tmobile sim. Of course there is the issue of compatibility, but the phone is compatible with Tmobile's network (just maybe not fully)

Here is another forum that says he did it with just an app. http://forums.androidcentral.com/showthread.php?t=543571

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bigmatt503

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I think that Verizon prepaid phones are locked because Verizon requires the prepaid (verizon packaged) phone to be active for a minimum of 6 months on Verizon prepaid service and the they will allow the phone on post paid. Possible? Maybe?

Sent from my Verizon LG G4 from my couch in Portland, Oregon
 

dpham00

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I think that Verizon prepaid phones are locked because Verizon requires the prepaid (verizon packaged) phone to be active for a minimum of 6 months on Verizon prepaid service and the they will allow the phone on post paid. Possible? Maybe?

Sent from my Verizon LG G4 from my couch in Portland, Oregon
That is Verizon's policy. However, as part of that terms of the 700MHz auction which Verizon won, they have to have the open devices and open apps