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Unlocked Samsung s7 edge availability?

Wanting to order a unlocked Samsung s7 edge for AT&T. Don't want to get stuck with a locked down phone like the AT&T Samsung s5 I have. Been reading about the sim card locking to the network. And about getting a code to unlock the phone. Like to have the option to root/mod my s7 in the future. Am I just better off to wait it out?

First off what do you mean by locked? AT&T will unlock a fully paid phone from it's network upon request to be used on any other GSM carrier. If you want an unlocked phone with unlocked bootloader your best bet is to buy a T-Mobile variant as it has Snapdragon 820 and open bootloader. The Global unlocked version of the device is unlocked but is also Exynoss 8890 so less likely to get ROMs or root.

cepheid46e2 said:
First off what do you mean by locked? AT&T will unlock a fully paid phone from it's network upon request to be used on any other GSM carrier. If you want an unlocked phone with unlocked bootloader your best bet is to buy a T-Mobile variant as it has Snapdragon 820 and open bootloader. The Global unlocked version of the device is unlocked but is also Exynoss 8890 so less likely to get ROMs or root.
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Not every international s7 phone comes fully unlocked. Some are locked to certain regions of the world or country. Make sure to ask from a seller in email if it will work on your country before ordering. Some will have to open the box to make a call or something as part of some unlocking process. At least that was the case when I got my s6
Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk

ChuckWow550 said:
Not every international s7 phone comes fully unlocked. Some are locked to certain regions of the world or country. Make sure to ask from a seller in email if it will work on your country before ordering. Some will have to open the box to make a call or something as part of some unlocking process. At least that was the case when I got my s6
Sent from my SM-G920F using Tapatalk
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Except for the "Global" version which is g390/5F. The phone are not region locked this time but you should check the bands to make sure it's compatible with your carrier.

Thanks for the repls . I live in the Eastern US. By Unlocked, I really just want to be able to root my s7. I don't see me leaving AT&T any time soon. I had an International unlocked Samsung s4, never had any trouble with rooting and installing CROMS. Bought the Samsung s5 striaght from At&T and never could get it rooted. For me, being able to root and play with the CROMS is a big deal.

Was the article that the S7 will lock to the first Sim inserted true?

http://www.sammobile.com/2016/02/25...-will-carrier-lock-to-the-first-inserted-sim/
I know some t-mobile customers already have devices in hand (or will be getting it within a few days). Has anyone checked if the above article is true? Would be awesome to know for all US who aren't on T-mo or any major carrier (I'm on Cricket, No preorders, and no edge listed so far.)
Would be awesome to preorder the ATT version from a place like target, get those preorder bonuses (target has $100 GC + standard 5% off for target card members, so its probably the cheapest place to get it), and then use it on Cricket.
Note: This is primarily meant for US carriers and devices. not other countries, which has different laws and networks.

Yes I'm also wondering how this will work. When I spoke to sales team at CPW they said it would be completely unlocked but knew nothing about the so called locking feature which may happen to us. Uk

Good question, I'm surprised no one has posted the answer yet considering how many people are getting them.
I'm on cricket as well, and planning to get the tmobile s7 due to the unlocked bootloader (at&t is bootloader locked)... It would be nice not to have to pay some company to remotely Sim unlock it

I would like to know too. Thank you!

I'd also like to know whether the phone will download carrier software specific everytime a different SIM is inserted

Im buying mine from samsung direct so id be annoyed if they have the sim region lock in place. im sure they are selling it unlocked and this sim lock is carrier requested.

sonhy said:
Im buying mine from samsung direct so id be annoyed if they have the sim region lock in place. im sure they are selling it unlocked and this sim lock is carrier requested.
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Are you in canada? If so there is a sim lock when you put in your sim, but you're given an unlock code with the phone if you get it from a samsung store.

no not canada, well thats good to hear about unlock code, as said im pretty sure the sim lock is only for carrier bought gs7 phones.

Work for a carrier: it will lock upon first sim. If you put in a sim after initial Set up it wipes and reboots. Unlock codes are available like any other phone

CPW never lock their android phones. This feature is for carriers to lock if they want and helps Sammy to sell phones to multiple suppliers using the same SKU code rather than different variants. Anyone buying sim free won't have to worry about this and I'm 99℅ sure shops like cpw won't use this. Buying from an operator however is a different story
Sent from my XT1580 using Tapatalk

Seems like this SIM lock applies to carrier phones only and not Global/International aka Unlocked.

My guess is they do this so Samsung can provide everyone with the same standard S7 model to save hassle on carrier specific phones that are locked from the factory so the carrier can pick up any S7 and provide the sim that then locks to that network.

False.. i have 2 phones.. i just got my S7 and i have an iPhone as well ... just switched the sims and works fine...

bradbutter said:
False.. i have 2 phones.. i just got my S7 and i have an iPhone as well ... just switched the sims and works fine...
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Cool thanks for reporting.

bradbutter said:
False.. i have 2 phones.. i just got my S7 and i have an iPhone as well ... just switched the sims and works fine...
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I dont understand what you are saying...if you stuck a tmobile sim from your iphone and stuck it in your tmobile s7, its still possibly carrier locked to tmobile.
we want to know if you stick a cricket or at&t in your tmobile s7 first, will it lock to those carriers even though your on tmobile or will it require a remote unlock

I'd be curious to know that if id DOES lock, would a ODIN/reflash of stock reset it?

I would love it buying a AT&T version would work on Verizon or T-Mobile.
All this of course with the phone having access to all bands set on initial carrier SIM card boot up.

Is it possible to just flash a different version's os? Example, could i just flash the t-mo fw onto an att phone?

el7145 said:
I dont understand what you are saying...if you stuck a tmobile sim from your iphone and stuck it in your tmobile s7, its still possibly carrier locked to tmobile.
we want to know if you stick a cricket or at&t in your tmobile s7 first, will it lock to those carriers even though your on tmobile or will it require a remote unlock
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Oh well yeah in that case I'm not sure because I know my phone should be locked to T-Mobile from the start unless I pay it off in full. I highly doubt if I would have put a non T-Mobile Sim in it first that it would of even got service. You would have to ask someone with an unlocked device if another sim works because most devices from carriers are locked from the start.
Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk

bradbutter said:
Oh well yeah in that case I'm not sure because I know my phone should be locked to T-Mobile from the start unless I pay it off in full. I highly doubt if I would have put a non T-Mobile Sim in it first that it would of even got service. You would have to ask someone with an unlocked device if another sim works because most devices from carriers are locked from the start.
Sent from my SM-G930T using Tapatalk
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Best answer here. I'm not sure what the confusion is here. A phone from T Mobile IS locked to T Mobile unless one removes the carrier lock. Its always been this way (sans int. phones). The carrier unlock app is in the S7 as well and by law all US carriers must provide the unlock if requested by a customer.
So if the OP buys an S7 outright then they can request and will receive the unlock for the phone. Otherwise its business as usual.

AT&T or T-Mobile for unlocked S8+ ?

The backstory.... Preordered an ATT Note 7 and had many headaches with delivery / billing. I am now living with my old Note3 using Goggle Voice/Hangouts because of my weak signal (all carriers) at home. I'm using a pre-paid Straight Talk plan when away from home.
I've been waiting patiently for the S8+ and now need to decide between AT&T and T-Mobile for a GSM phone. I plan on paying full cash price and having it unlocked to use a 3rd part prepaid plan (Straight Talk or ?).
I considered a factory unlocked phone (Best Buy, May 9th??) but I am told that those will also have a locked bootloader. Up until the Note 7 I always ran rooted with custom ROMS. I became a big fan of Samsung Pay which I think also means a locked bootloader with no root is needed. Of coarse, bloatware sucks. I had good luck with Package Disabler Pro on my Note 7. I will be using my Google number, if only for forwarding to another number. WiFi calling is a must one way or another.
My Note 7 from ATT let me run Mobile Hotspot at the same time WiFi was enabled. This made it easy for giving my Android head unit in my car Internet access. The T-mobile version at the time needed to be turned on and off.
I'm leaning toward T-mobile only because of my bad blood with ATT. ATT coverage is marginally better in my area.
Thoughts, comments.

Either and flash the OS on it with ODIN. It is the same hardware so it doesnt matter.

mweinbach said:
Either and flash the OS on it with ODIN. It is the same hardware so it doesnt matter.
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Yes and also if the T-Mobile version is going to have an unlocked bootloader, flashing T-Mobile firmware should allow you to unlock it through the OS.
But it's highly unlikely it will have an unlocked bootloader, although T-Mobile have supported it, I don't think it's happening.

No unlocked bootloaders on u.s.a. Carriers....

SBERG117 said:
No unlocked bootloaders on u.s.a. Carriers....
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I get that if you buy a carrier phone and then unlock it. But what about the factory unlocked phones sold in the US?
I've heard that the bootloader on those phones is also locked, but not from a real good source of info. I've also heard international versions do not have a locked bootloader and do not support Samsung Pay. They also do not support CDMA (which doesn't bother me at all).

Interceptor777 said:
Yes and also if the T-Mobile version is going to have an unlocked bootloader, flashing T-Mobile firmware should allow you to unlock it through the OS.
But it's highly unlikely it will have an unlocked bootloader, although T-Mobile have supported it, I don't think it's happening.
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If I flash via ODIN does that kill Samsung Pay? What about Knox?

Phredeee said:
The backstory.... Preordered an ATT Note 7 and had many headaches with delivery / billing. I am now living with my old Note3 using Goggle Voice/Hangouts because of my weak signal (all carriers) at home. I'm using a pre-paid Straight Talk plan when away from home.
I've been waiting patiently for the S8+ and now need to decide between AT&T and T-Mobile for a GSM phone. I plan on paying full cash price and having it unlocked to use a 3rd part prepaid plan (Straight Talk or ?).
I considered a factory unlocked phone (Best Buy, May 9th??) but I am told that those will also have a locked bootloader. Up until the Note 7 I always ran rooted with custom ROMS. I became a big fan of Samsung Pay which I think also means a locked bootloader with no root is needed. Of coarse, bloatware sucks. I had good luck with Package Disabler Pro on my Note 7. I will be using my Google number, if only for forwarding to another number. WiFi calling is a must one way or another.
My Note 7 from ATT let me run Mobile Hotspot at the same time WiFi was enabled. This made it easy for giving my Android head unit in my car Internet access. The T-mobile version at the time needed to be turned on and off.
I'm leaning toward T-mobile only because of my bad blood with ATT. ATT coverage is marginally better in my area.
Thoughts, comments.
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I'm in a similar situation and my first concern is what bands both phones support. Online it seems AT&T covers both GSM providers perfectly. The info on T-Mobile and its bands is extremely lacking. My second concern is the process of unlocking either fully paid off phone for use on the other. I think I can have TMobile unlock it for me but I'm not sure how it works with AT&T. The easiest solution is the unlocked version but thats not even got a release date set in writing anywhere.

Phredeee said:
If I flash via ODIN does that kill Samsung Pay? What about Knox?
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As long you are flashing official firmware from Samsung nothing will break. Knox will not be tripped and Samsung Pay will work.

954wrecker said:
I'm in a similar situation and my first concern is what bands both phones support. Online it seems AT&T covers both GSM providers perfectly. The info on T-Mobile and its bands is extremely lacking. My second concern is the process of unlocking either fully paid off phone for use on the other. I think I can have TMobile unlock it for me but I'm not sure how it works with AT&T. The easiest solution is the unlocked version but thats not even got a release date set in writing anywhere.
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It is my understanding that all US (Snapdragon) phones cover all bands, including CDMA. That means you could even take an unlocked AT&T phone to Verizon. I'm not used to that! It even has LTE-U which TMo is supposed to be soon supporting.
I am an ex AT&T customer. They unlocked my Note 7, and again with the replacement, without issue. I seem to remember there was a wait period at first. 7 or 14 days?
The thing I'm considering is also the VR incentives for pre-ordering. I can tell you AT&T messed up my Note 7 pre-order. They shipped it on the release day by a slow method. I ended up going to a store and buying one outright and returning the unopened one once it arrived. That caused a billing nightmare that I had to call them every months until I finally turned it in and closed my account.

Phredeee said:
It is my understanding that all US (Snapdragon) phones cover all bands, including CDMA. That means you could even take an unlocked AT&T phone to Verizon. I'm not used to that! It even has LTE-U which TMo is supposed to be soon supporting.
I am an ex AT&T customer. They unlocked my Note 7, and again with the replacement, without issue. I seem to remember there was a wait period at first. 7 or 14 days?
The thing I'm considering is also the VR incentives for pre-ordering. I can tell you AT&T messed up my Note 7 pre-order. They shipped it on the release day by a slow method. I ended up going to a store and buying one outright and returning the unopened one once it arrived. That caused a billing nightmare that I had to call them every months until I finally turned it in and closed my account.
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Can you recall where you read the carrier versions support all the bands just like the unlocked versions? All the info I found from the carriers shows different bands on each model.

Phredeee said:
I get that if you buy a carrier phone and then unlock it. But what about the factory unlocked phones sold in the US?
I've heard that the bootloader on those phones is also locked, but not from a real good source of info. I've also heard international versions do not have a locked bootloader and do not support Samsung Pay. They also do not support CDMA (which doesn't bother me at all).
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You're missing what I'm saying... There will be no unlocked bootloaders on any Samsung S8 phones for the USA. You cannot get one from carrier or factory.
I think you may be mixing up Bootloader unlock and Sim unlock....

954wrecker said:
Can you recall where you read the carrier versions support all the bands just like the unlocked versions? All the info I found from the carriers shows different bands on each model.
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I do remember that it was a story about FCC approval of the factory unlocked (SIM) phone. Keep that in mind that it may be the unbranded, factory unlocked phone only, but the article did say they were all the same. The locked carrier phones may not be so flexible.
Other things I've found.. Best Buy SIM unlocked does not get the incentives. Best Buy, and their cheaper price, does not seem to offer a T-Mo phone.
The VR incentive is attractive to me, but is not a must have. At this moment, until I can find out for sure if Samsung Pay will work on an international version, I am leaning towards a T-Mo pre-order. But that is me and my preferences YMMV. I have a major dislike for AT&T.
Looking for where I read it. In the mean time this may be interesting to you.
Model numbers http://techbeasts.com/list-of-samsung-galaxy-s8-galaxy-s8plus-model-numbers/
Frequencies https://www.frequencycheck.com/models/OyqBp/samsung-sm-g955a-galaxy-s8-td-lte-samsung-dream
The link is for the AT&T model search for other models.

954wrecker said:
Can you recall where you read the carrier versions support all the bands just like the unlocked versions? All the info I found from the carriers shows different bands on each model.
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It appears that going by this information the factory unlocked and the AT&T are NOT the same https://www.frequencycheck.com/compare-devices/6MQWs05y/samsung-sm-g950a-galaxy-s8-td-lte-samsung-dream/samsung-sm-g950f-galaxy-s8-td-lte-samsung-dream
You're correct that it seems T-mo info is evasive.

Hello,
I would like to know, if it posible to buy the Galaxy S8 from the samsung web page (att version), then unlock it and after that flash the unlocked rom flashing it with odin.
Can someone help me?
thanks.

Just ordered the 955F from Clove...
I'm hoping that missing bands won't hurt my AT&T usage much. Or any prepaid sims I may throw in there.
Will see if the 955U info comes out before my phone, and will decide if I want to cancel.
:good::angel:

Unlocked Version vs Carrier Specific

I was looking to buy the Galaxy Note 8, and is it worth buying the Unlocked version over the ATT version? I know I will save a little money, and also have less bloatware. I could not find much info on the basebands of these phones, there would not really be any basebands the unlocked version wouldnt have that the ATT version has? I assume that it would just be smarter to get the unlocked version?
Someone correct me if I am wrong
Sorry this is somewhat unrelated to the S8+
Thanks

Somebody mentioned the carrier specific ones may get updates more frequently. Regardless, the only unlock that really matters to me is bootloader unlock. US Snapdragon S8/S8+ are not bootloader unlocked--regardless whether the model is carrier unlocked or not. Only the Chinese and Hong Kong Snapdragon S8/S8+ bootloaders can be unlocked so far. My recommendation is to pre-order the Note 8 as you were interested in that phone, but that if you were planning on sticking with the same carrier and wanted updates more frequently, getting a carrier specific Note 8 might be best.

I'm in the same situation. I currently with att prepaid, they have LTE+ (LTE advanced). I did speed test twice, getting 127mb down, 30mb up, 115mb down, 28mb up. I'm not sure if unlocked version note8 has all the LTE bands. I thinking of just getting att version and if I want to switch carrier in the future, I just pay for those unlock service.

netnerd said:
I thinking of just getting att version and if I want to switch carrier in the future, I just pay for those unlock service.
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Be careful about those assumptions, make sure the AT&T variant has all the bands needed for full rate.
Recently switched from ATT to Verizon, and ended up getting a new phone (not *really* complaining since it's the GS8+) because my 1 yr old GS7edge AT&T model didn't have support for the correct LTE bands to work properly with the Verizon network.

I'm planning on staying with the same carrier, I just figure I'd get update faster, have less bloat ware, and have more lte bands (with the unlocked version)
Isn't that all accurate?

ALL the US versions have the same exact hardware and support the same exact bands. The ONLY difference is the carrier specific firmware. And you can change that by flashing whichever firmware you want through ODIN.

brendan4t said:
I was looking to buy the Galaxy Note 8, and is it worth buying the Unlocked version over the ATT version? I know I will save a little money, and also have less bloatware. I could not find much info on the basebands of these phones, there would not really be any basebands the unlocked version wouldnt have that the ATT version has? I assume that it would just be smarter to get the unlocked version?
Someone correct me if I am wrong
Sorry this is somewhat unrelated to the S8+
Thanks
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I have both S8 T-mobile and S8 unlocked. They have identical LTE bands. Moreover, when inserting SIM cards from different providers the CSC is changed to that provider and some specific options are enabled. I put in T-mobile SIM card and used it without any issues. Put in Vodaphone Europe SIM card and CSC changed from TMB to XAA (unlocked) and phone still had all LTE bands available and worked. I'm sure it's the same for ATT. Also, from previous experience if you get ATT version and change providers you'll not get updates anymore unless you go to Samsung to have your phone updated, as all OTA's go through ATT servers.
Go for unlocked.

Question Does the regular unlocked version work with Verizon or do I have to buy 'unlocked' through Verizon?

Just wondering if the regular unlocked version supports mmwave or if I have to buy through Verizon. This gets on my nerves now.

Unlocked should in theory work with all carriers unless a carrier does certain odd things that couldn't be included on the "catch all" unlocked devices.
From what I can see it should work with Verizon phone and data just fine. Only the Verizon model it looks like comes with UWB (Ultra Wideband) though since that's Verizon's way of doing things if that interests you.
If you want that, will mean that you will have to have carrier injected junk though and buy the carrier version, get updates from the carrier, and have to have it unlocked by the carrier or sell it if you switch carriers. It will probably need to be unlocked by the carrier to put a custom rom on there also if you wanted to go that way. Its win and lose.

Coming from someone who just got the Verizon variant, it is indeed loaded with bloatware. It is also completely locked down from flashing roms or unlocking, verizon removed the oem unlock option entirely from their variant. So you can't even Odin flash to the unlocked firmware. Also the unlocked in the US is $349.99 right now versus $499 from Verizon directly. Although if you really want that UWB 5G then your only option is the Verizon model. Though imo not worth it. Go for the $349 one and enjoy it.

tserv95 said:
Coming from someone who just got the Verizon variant, it is indeed loaded with bloatware. It is also completely locked down from flashing roms or unlocking, verizon removed the oem unlock option entirely from their variant. So you can't even Odin flash to the unlocked firmware. Also the unlocked in the US is $349.99 right now versus $499 from Verizon directly. Although if you really want that UWB 5G then your only option is the Verizon model. Though imo not worth it. Go for the $349 one and enjoy it.
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So I got the 349 one and it works with 5G was pleasantly surprised when I saw the 5G appear on my cell. All reps said phone compatible and the 5G Sim etc etc
Transferring device was painless.
I love the phone. I'm coming from using an Axon 7 never had a samsung phone before but like it. Got rid of a lot of samsung crop but customized it the way I like.
Thanks for your reply!

This is US market specific. For the A53 5G, any of the US carrier versions (with the exception of Tracfone) SIM unlocked will work on any of the big 3 carriers. Most of the versions (including Verizon owned Visible) are A536U, which is the version with Sub-6. A536V is the Verizon version with mmWave. I don't know what A536D from Tracfone is. Yes, you can get Sub-6 5G on Verizon.
But if you want to bootloader unlock, whether you are directly purchasing from Samsung or any SIM locked versions from carrier, it is not possible. See https://forum.xda-developers.com/t/psa-there-is-no-oem-unlock-on-us-galaxy-a53s.4443189/

I can confirm that the unlocked US version purchased from Samsung DOES work with Verizon. And like b1283822 said, does have/support Sub-6 5G, no UW.