Dialing *22899 will resolve most phone issues

[Montuhotep]

I thought my phone had no issues until I tried calling on it. It would make and receive calls, but neither party could hear the other. I called tech support. They had me dial *22899. This reset my phone and the issue was resolved. The tech told me I can post the number on the forum so you all can get more immediate results. It's simple and fast and won't change anything on your phone.

 

[JubbaTheHutt]

Out of curiosity, did it just update your "roaming" capabilities? From what I remember, I always use *228 in order to do this.

 

[mahers]

yeah, what jubba said

 

[mxsjw]

it says something about a feature and will not work for me, say's its unavailable or something.

 

[aohus]

*22899 is good for if you're in an area that you're normally not in, and you're getting bad reception.

*22899 adjusts your phone to the nearest cell towers (this is what verizon guy said to me)

 

[Steven58]

I hope you don't mind, but since this qualifies as a "tip" I'll put it in Tips. Thanks!

 

[mahers]

it seems like a shortcut to *228, option 1. and it didn't fix the FC for battery manager

 

[Montuhotep]

*22899 is good for if you're in an area that you're normally not in, and you're getting bad reception.

*22899 adjusts your phone to the nearest cell towers (this is what verizon guy said to me)

I wasn't getting bad reception. I could make and receive calls. We just couldnt hear each other. The tech told me dialing this would resolve most bug problems associated with OTA updates.

 

[Montuhotep]

Out of curiosity, did it just update your "roaming" capabilities? From what I remember, I always use *228 in order to do this.

No. my problem had nothing to do with reception or roaming.

 

[chippy]

Its just a shortcut to 228 option one or two, can't remember.

 

[Sauk]

did nothing for me.

 

[buckguin]

Itd be a shortcut to option 2. Option 1 is to activate a new phone, Option 2 is to update your roaming.

 

[Montuhotep]

it seems like a shortcut to *228, option 1. and it didn't fix the FC for battery manager

It's not a shortcut to roaming or activation. It's a shortcut to program your phone. It says it in the automation, AND on your phones screen.

 

[buxleyp]

It's not a shortcut to roaming or activation. It's a shortcut to program your phone. It says it in the automation, AND on your phones screen.

*22899 adjusts your phone to the nearest cell towers (this is what verizon guy said to me)

Not really. *22899 activates your phone and updates your PRL and is just a shortcut for *228 option 1 (without you having to press 1). That's what's happening to the phone when it's being "programmed"

 

[Martimus]

It's not a shortcut to roaming or activation. It's a shortcut to program your phone. It says it in the automation, AND on your phones screen.

With all due respect it is a shortcut to *228 option x. Once your phone has been initially programmed it simply updates the PRL. I know this because I've used it for a long time to update the PRL on my former Windows Mobile phones.

 

[Dismalmoron]

So, wow. I don't know if I'm allowed to cover this, but I will, and will remove it if requested.

PRL stands for Preferred Roaming List. Back in the day, when you bought a cell phone, it was essentially tethered to one tower. That tower was called it's home.

Technology progressed, and the ability to move from one tower to another was developed. This was called roaming, as the phone was roaming away from it's home. When you went from one tower to another, the call would drop.

Technology progressed some more, and the ability to keep a call connected while going from one tower to another was developed. This was called a handoff. This actually involves the phone knowing which tower it came from, which tower it is going to, and which tower it is currently on.

As more companies came out, they made roaming agreements. But how can a company like VZW guarantee service in areas that it has company-owned towers: That is, how do we (VZW), prevent our customers from using Sprint towers in areas we have adequate coverage in? (Roaming on other carriers cost a bit of money, and they do exist to make money, lol)

So they developed a Preferred Roaming List. Your phone knows what towers are in your area, which tower will provide you the best coverage, which towers to handoff to, et cetera.

All that, and it's only for the voice network.
Data runs separately. Two different networks, same towers.

*22899 Contains PRL information for the voice network. The difference between it and *228, option 2, is that *22899 contains data network information that has to be authenicated separately. This normally occurs when you make your first call on the voice (is95) network. It sends a data bracket at the beginning of the call that authenticates your esn for use on their (insert generation number here) network.

You would want to use *22899 for most data issues (texting excluded). It can also force PRL information on VZW phones with official OSes on them. It is particularly helpful to people running custom OSes (ie: Android), because it gives your phone the data information and authentication with pushing other software and updates that may brick your phone.

Anyway, hope that explains it.

 

[Nightwind Hawk]

Wonderful and helpful explanation, thank you!

 

[GrandMasterB]

Over-the-Air Programming (OTA) and what it does,

*228 option 1

-Programs the MDN, MIN and Home SID into the phone, downloads the latest PRL, and sets the lock code to the last 4 digits of the MDN.


*228 option 2,

-Only downloads the current PRL.


*22890,

-Automatically performs option 1 without having to press 1.


*22891

-Automatically performs option 2 without having to press 2.


*22899

-Automatically performs option 1, plus applies changes specific to data cards.
Note: Do not perform *22899 on any device that is not a data card.


*22888

-Unassisted OTA for Prepaid phones



GMB

 

[daddyb]

For what it's worth, the last time I had issues with callers not hearing me, and my not hearing callers (what the original poster had problems with), I did a battery pull (after shutting down) and that resolved the issue.

 

[Hrethgir]

Does this work with any Verizon phone? My wife has an LG Accolade flip phone, and it's always saying 1X, never seen 3G on it. She's never complained about call quality or anything, so never bothered taking it in to he store, but if *288 option 2 would fix it, might be worth trying.

 

[whiteka6]

Over-the-Air Programming (OTA) and what it does,

*22899

-Automatically performs option 1, plus applies changes specific to data cards.
Note: Do not perform *22899 on any device that is not a data card.


*22888

-Unassisted OTA for Prepaid phones



GMB

So what happens when I do it on a device that is not a data card? Also data card is smartphone I'm guessing... I new to this...

 

[Dismalmoron]

Data card is a term usually used to describe a device that connects a computer to the internet via a cellular network. Some come as PCMCIA cards, but most are USB now.

Dialling *22899 from a voice device usually doesn't cause any problems. BUT it can, and when it does cause problems, they aren't fun. It forcibly programs your mdn/min and your a-key. Fixing this involves calling VZW, and going through all the Tier 1 troubleshooting, then being transferred to advanced support. They will (normally)take you through all the tier 1 stuff again, then walk you through programming the a-key. After completing all the troubleshooting, sometimes it still won't work. The representative will test it to verify the issue, then file a trouble ticket. Those can take up to 72 hours to resolve.

Basically, you shouldn't perform a *22899 without being told. Chances are nothing extraordinary will happen, but it's really not worth the time and effort should this be the off chance that something screws up.

 

[Dismalmoron]

Does this work with any Verizon phone? My wife has an LG Accolade flip phone, and it's always saying 1X, never seen 3G on it. She's never complained about call quality or anything, so never bothered taking it in to he store, but if *288 option 2 would fix it, might be worth trying.

It does work on any phone (with a few, antiquated exceptions). If your wife only sees 1X, *228, Opt 2 may help. It couldn't hurt. If that doesn't fix it, check out your phone, see if you're on 1X as well - It may be a coverage area issue. Either way, calling to troubleshoot would be a good idea. Sometimes lines aren't provisioned correctly through the automated system, and it could be a quick, 30 second fix. It also gives you a chance to confirm to confirm that your account is in order.

I noticed your signature says you're a convert: Awesome! If you're new to VZW, they usually try to give you a Welcome Call to confirm your calling plan and make sure you're satisfied.

Hope that helped.

 

[Hrethgir]

It does work on any phone (with a few, antiquated exceptions). If your wife only sees 1X, *228, Opt 2 may help. It couldn't hurt. If that doesn't fix it, check out your phone, see if you're on 1X as well - It may be a coverage area issue. Either way, calling to troubleshoot would be a good idea. Sometimes lines aren't provisioned correctly through the automated system, and it could be a quick, 30 second fix. It also gives you a chance to confirm to confirm that your account is in order.

I noticed your signature says you're a convert: Awesome! If you're new to VZW, they usually try to give you a Welcome Call to confirm your calling plan and make sure you're satisfied.

Hope that helped.

I'll give that a try on the wifes phone then. I have 3G all the time on my DX, and we got her phone at the same time, it's definitely not old or antiquated. If that doesn't help, I'll just take it in to the store and see what they say.

 

[Wally World]

Over-the-Air Programming (OTA) and what it does,

*228 option 1

-Programs the MDN, MIN and Home SID into the phone, downloads the latest PRL, and sets the lock code to the last 4 digits of the MDN.


*228 option 2,

-Only downloads the current PRL.


*22890,

-Automatically performs option 1 without having to press 1.


*22891

-Automatically performs option 2 without having to press 2.


*22899

-Automatically performs option 1, plus applies changes specific to data cards.
Note: Do not perform *22899 on any device that is not a data card.


*22888

-Unassisted OTA for Prepaid phones



GMB

How do you dial out on a data card? I don't see any buttons...