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Help Switching to Straight Talk - what size SIM card does the photon use?

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Matticusnicholas;[URL="tel:4274849" said:
4274849[/URL]]So I recently found out that Straight talk will accept any unlocked GSM phone in their Bring Your Own Phone program.

I don't know which SIM card to buy.

My options are here:
http://www.straighttalk.com/shopsims

So which one should I get?

I'm pretty sure that outside of some serious modding,you'd have any luck @ all using the PHOTON w/STRAIGHT TALK,for two reasons:

1) MOTOROLA/SPRINT has this phone locked down for GSM use in the U.S.

2) The link you posted clearly states that SPRINT/VERIZON/METRO PCS phones will not work w/STRAIGHT TALK.

The best you could probably hope for is that voice MAY work,according to information posted in other threads in this forum on the topic.

If you're set on switching to STRAIGHT TALK,your best bet may be to sell the PHOTON & find an ANDROID that is most compatible w/STRAIGHT TALK.
 
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I'm pretty sure that outside of some serious modding,you'd have any luck @ all using the PHOTON w/STRAIGHT TALK,for two reasons:

1) MOTOROLA/SPRINT has this phone locked down for GSM use in the U.S.

2) The link you posted clearly states that SPRINT/VERIZON/METRO PCS phones will not work w/STRAIGHT TALK.

The best you could probably hope for is that voice MAY work,according to information posted in other threads in this forum on the topic.

If you're set on switching to STRAIGHT TALK,your best bet may be to sell the PHOTON & find an ANDROID that is most compatible w/STRAIGHT TALK.

Does unlocking the bootloader unlock the GSM capabilities of the phone? Could you PLEASE direct me to a way to unlock the USA portion of the GSM? I don't want to have wasted 65 bucks.
 
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Does unlocking the bootloader unlock the GSM capabilities of the phone? Could you PLEASE direct me to a way to unlock the USA portion of the GSM? I don't want to have wasted 65 bucks.


The one thing that unlocking the bootloader will do is break 4G WIMAX. That much I'm certain of.

As for being able to access U.S. GSM capabilities,from my research, there aren't any working solutions for this.
If there were, I'd guess the sales & popularity of this phone would have skyrocketed long ago.
 
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Listen to KOLIO on this. I'm more on the development side of things but bootloader unlock does break 4G and there's no verifiable way to unlock U.S. GSM carriers.

About the best you can hope for is moving to another CDMA carrier but that's a legal concern and breaks things like MMS and 4G.

Could you help me find a prepaid CDMA carrier I can switch the Photon over to?
 
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Could you help me find a prepaid CDMA carrier I can switch the Photon over to?


Just as LOKIFISH stated, flashing the PHOTON to another carrier more than likely will break SMS/MMS & possibly other features.
Not to mention losing 4G WIMAX,since SPRINT has the only 4G WIMAX network in the U.S.

I feel your pain on the $ that you may have spent on a STRAIGHT TALK SIM Card may be in vain.
If you want a PHOTON-ESQUE experience on a GSM network,I'd visit an AT&T store & take a look at the ATRIX (if it's still available) or the ATRIX2.
If you like either one of the phones,my recommendation would be to sell the PHOTON & look around for an ATRIX/ATRIX2 to use on STRAIGHT TALK.
 
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Matticusnicholas;[URL="tel:4274849" said:
4274849[/URL]]So I recently found out that Straight talk will accept any unlocked GSM phone in their Bring Your Own Phone program.

I don't know which SIM card to buy.

My options are here:
http://www.straighttalk.com/shopsims

So which one should I get?


Looks like you may have a pre-paid option after all.

SPRINT just announced today that VIRGIN MOBILE & BOOST MOBILE will be utilizing SPRINT'S 4G WIMAX network, at least until 2015.
This news was included in their quarterly earnings statement.

BRB for a link.Sprint Posts Loss, Plans WiMax for Boost and Virgin
 
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Another option is to sell the Photon and pick up an Electrify. US Cellular offers pre-paid plans. I'm not very familiar with them, since they're not offered in L.A.

So if I got something like a Samsung Focus or other AT&T phone, it would work with no modifications even if it had a bad or locked ESN?

Looking to make a trade and I want to make sure this will work. I already have the sim card and calling card.
 
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So if I got something like a Samsung Focus or other AT&T phone, it would work with no modifications even if it had a bad or locked ESN?

Looking to make a trade and I want to make sure this will work. I already have the sim card and calling card.


In short,stay away from phones that have bad ESN'S.*

As for GSM only phones,they do not have ESN's

*Phones w/bad ESN's are either delinquent on their account,reported lost,or worse,stolen.Don't walk,RUN from these phones.

You're already in for a SIM Card & airtime card,don't throw gas on the fire by purchasing a phone w/a bad ESN.
 
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So if I got something like a Samsung Focus or other AT&T phone, it would work with no modifications even if it had a bad or locked ESN?

Looking to make a trade and I want to make sure this will work. I already have the sim card and calling card.

US Cellular is another US CDMA provider. You can't swap from GSM to CDMA (in the US). I was just giving you another alternative provider that has a phone (Electrify) that is in essence the Photon without 4G, since it seems that your goal is just not to be on Sprint.

But if you're primarily looking to use the Photon on a US GSM provider, as Kolio and Lokifish mentioned...not possible.
 
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To clear things up and put this to rest, here's some things you need to know about putting the Sprint Photon on other carriers.
Will not work on GSM in the United States
May work on Boost (requires you change/clone the ESN, illegal)
May work on Virgin (requires you change/clone the ESN, illegal)
Any method that requires you change or clone the ESN is illegal
May work on Cricket (Expect certain feature like 4G and MMS to not work. I know of no developers working on this, grey area)
May work on other smaller CDMA carriers like Alaska Communications (see notes on moving to Cricket)

In the U.S. over the past couple years the legality of the above has become very vague to the average person. Sprint has, in the past, sued and won cases against smaller carriers for this exact thing. The FCC and Homeland Security have also cracked down on this in the interest on national security. Both myself and family members work or have worked in areas directly related to this subject at one level or another. I can say that I could not be paid enough to even mess with this.

Your best and legal option is to leave CDMA altogether. If you are pleased with the Photon then getting a good condition used Motorola Atrix and having it unlocked for international service would be you best bet. You may still run into issues where certain features like data may not work with certain providers. I have been told by others that have done it that on the Atrix it's simply having the right APN settings.
 
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No one cares that ESN swapping is illegal. Id love to know when information aka "text" became illegal. Every time someone ask about it they get the same answer. Makes me want to make my own site.

Android forums does not promote anything that would be illegal. If that is your intent or anybody elses, it's likely you won't receive the answer you're looking for.
 
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No one cares that ESN swapping is illegal. Id love to know when information aka "text" became illegal. Every time someone ask about it they get the same answer. Makes me want to make my own site.

Discussion of ESN swapping methods is in itself a U.S. federal offense and so is ESN swapping. From a legal standpoint this is no different than discussing bomb making methods or insurance fraud techniques. If you want to risk the jail time then please feel free to open a site discussing how to violate U.S. federal laws but if you live/host in the U.S. expect to get shut down and sent before a judge to explain why.

At this point I'd like to request that should any more illegal activities are discussed that this thread be closed.
 
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Android forums does not promote anything that would be illegal. If that is your intent or anybody elses, it's likely you won't receive the answer you're looking for.

At this point I'd like to request that should any more illegal activities are discussed that this thread be closed.

I'll be closing it now, I doubt anything more will come from it.

PM me if you really want it reopened for some reason. :)
 
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