yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
First, find the internal document or referenced number to the internal document which talks about the policy surrounding Fascinate returns (I thought there was a link in this thread). I didn't need this document but others are saying it came to that. Next, call tech support and inform them you are receiving at least 2-3 missed calls a day. Inform them you've heard this is a widespread problem and are looking to get out of phone. They should immediately begin to give you a choice of the three phones. If you want the Charge, you will need to go into your local VZW store. Make sure before you get off the phone, you have tech support make a note authorizing the order of the Charge. After this, go to your local store, have them access your account, and get the phone ordered. MAKE SURE you bring in the Fascinate with you BUT with original unrooted operating system just in case they want to look at it. There you go. Easy. :)
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] mrmidnight:
Thanks, I'll keep that in mind, I'm gonna see about calling them this weekend, wore out from working on the Ambulance all week...
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
Good deal. Just don't wait too long as there are rumors Samsung is working on a firmware update which could be released soon. I'm sure VZW will stop this "deal" as soon as that happens.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] strictlyphat:
http://community.vzw.com/t5/Samsung...ate-didn-t-help-PROBLEM-IS/td-p/569326/page/2

That's the link to vzw site about our problem. Refer the tech you talk to about that. Works like a charm. Got me aand my wife.new.phones last week. Got mybsister one a couple hours ago.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] jdellingson7:
Well my Charge is on the way, Verizon was really easy to deal with and very apologetic about the lost calls issue. Hopefully Charge community will grow as much as the Fascinate has. Thanks, JT, Adrynalyne, SBrissen and everyone who has made this community great. See ya all on the Charge and hopefully the SGS2 soon
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] mrmidnight:
just got off the phone with tech support, and I will be going to vzw in the morning to handle getting a charge! Thanks guys... I'm gonna miss the fassy...
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] oluchika:
I called tech support today since I placed my order early Wednesday morning and still hadn't received an email. She told me that the order wasn't placed until yesterday and that she wasn't sure why I wasn't sent the email confirmation. Plus mine didn't have a tracking number so she couldn't tell me when to expect it :(
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] iMissLayups:
Okay so I contacted tech support and they had me do the *228 thing. They can check how many times you've done it so don't lie and say you've done it already if you haven't. I told her I wasn't receiving calls and text messages weren't coming through until I turned the phone's screen on. I also complained about horrible GPS and my back button getting stuck whenever my phone's signal drops. After we did the *228 thing she connected me with a technician. He told me to do a factory reset and then he would do a few test calls. I didn't wanna wipe my phone, so I pretended to do so. I turned my phone off and struck up a conversation. He told me he currently owns a Fascinate and he's not having any problems. After about a minute I booted my phone back up and he told me. He told me to do the activation. I didn't know what the real thing was so I dialed *228 and pressed 1 lol. He asked what my screen said and I said I already signed back into my Gmail account. He said did it not show the location services and backup assistant? I panicked and said I skipped it all lol! He said he had to do a few test calls. I'm thinking oh crap it's going to work. Mistakingly, on his part, he told me that they can check to see if the call goes through to my phone or not.. He then said "Hold on one sec I'm going to do the test call." I quickly pulled the battery! (LOL) Then he said "I'm guessing that call didn't go through?" I replied with, "No, did you leave a voice mail?" Haha. He didn't attempt to call again, he told me I had a choice between a Droid X2, Droid Incredible 2, or a Droid Charge. I happily chose the Droid Inc 2. After that he said, "Did you know I was going to offer you a choice of those phones?" Hahah. I said "Excuse me? No, I didn't. I like the screen on the Fascinate but I don't want another Samsung phone right now." He was a nice guy. My new phone should be here next week. :p

Long story short:

1. Do *228 before you call.

2. Tell them you're not receiving calls or text messages and your GPS is horrible.

3. You can fake wipe the data when asked to. Just wait 30 seconds then do a battery pull.

3a. If they ask you to wipe and they ask what your phone says, tell them you did the activation and skipped the setup.

4. Pull the battery right before they call you if they decide do test calls.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] pc1990:
HAHA close call!...They had me do the *228 thing as well but when I did, I got a big x on the signal bar all together which was helpful. I was then transferred to the tech who told me this is a widespread issue and offered the 3 replacements. I took the charge personally, so we'll see how that works out...Having said that I was completely not receiving calls on either of our fascinates mind you.:rolleyes:
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] iMissLayups:
What were your reasons for choosing the Charge over the Fascinate? 4G and SAMOLED+?

I haven't had a problem with calls, but sometimes messages don't come through until I unlock the phone. It's really annoying. :(
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] strictlyphat:
Man you had a hard time. All three times it was done in under 5 minutes I just referred yto the vzw support forum and VOILA. USE IT GUYS, IT ABSOLUTELY WORKS
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] iMissLayups:
Exactly. I was hoping it would be quick and easy too, but I almost didn't call because I was afraid it wouldn't be. And of course, with my luck, I got exactly what I was afraid of ha. Figured I'd post it in case other people have the same feeling about it that I did. It's worth it in the end. :D
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] AlexDeGruven:
You guys are making it too difficult on yourselves by concocting stories and faking things.

I called on mine while running CM7, made sure my PRL was up to date, and allowed them to try test calls which all worked.

I just explained to the tier 1 person that it doesn't happen regularly, and seems to be pretty random.

Tier 2 tried a couple of things, checked the baseband, and then told me about the bulletin.

Just be honest (without giving away that you're rooted, etc, and it will be fine.

This is a Samsung action, and they are paying VZ for every non-Charge replacement, and eating the cost of the Charge when people choose that.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] lane32x:
No kidding. Or just point them to the Info Manager screen (be subtle about it!).

I told them about my troubles receiving calls, told them I didn't know it was a widespread issue until a friend told me that his was having troubles too, and told them that a guy at one of the other stores looked up "Samsung Fascinate not receiving calls" in the info manager. ...They'll do a little bit of reading and tell you what the options are. It wasn't hard.

The only difficulty I've run into so far is the fact our local warehouse has been out of Charges all week.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] arkard1:
Got my charge today. Did not come with 32 gb sd card or charger. When I called them up and asked about it they said to use the charger I have and to just use my fascinate SD card. I tried to tell them that the SD cards are different sizes and I was told that I would get a 32 gb card. I was denied and told they dont send them out with exchanges. Anyone else have similar problems?
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] xceebeex:
So yours was delivered on a Saturday? Our did you pick it up in the store?
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] mrmidnight:
I was given a hard time in store this morning. #611 last night put in my notes for store to order a charge. Dude told me I have to get another fassy. I literally said bulls+:%;. You mean to tell me that after corporate marks my account you a now required to give me a fascinate? Let me see the manager. The manager fixed me right up. I apologized for cussing at him, and my charge will be with me on tuesday.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] arkard1:
Sorry they tried to deliver it friday, I picked it up in store today.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] PeterGunz:
I am surprised to see so many people choosing the Charge over the Incredible 2. I honestly thought it would have gone the other direction. Dev community on the Inc2 is light years ahead of the Charge. Is that because it is a HTC? I might go with the Incredible for this reason alone. I need my Miui.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] xceebeex:
I did it for two reasons, I love the screen and fire the resale value since I want the SGS2 anyway.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] xHoLyx:
Screen isn't bad as i thought it would be and I don't really care about resale value as I have one year of contract left.

Loving my Nightly + Tiamat Kernel OC'd to 1.3 and no battery loss.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] PeterGunz:
Resale value would be an excellent reason. $299 with a 2 year contract is a huge chunk of change.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] PeterGunz:
I thought I wanted a charge, but when I saw how many options there are on the Incredible 2 I was floored. Also, battery life is a huge plus for me.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] strictlyphat:
Charge on any humble rom is amazing. Battery is not an issue anymore. I also went for the charge because of resale. Can't wait for verizon function, that's if it is 4.5 inch amolrd+, lte and dual core. Otherwise im good with the charge. Such a nice phone.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] PeterGunz:
I don't doubt it, just no AOSP.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
Will AOSP eventually be an option on the Charge, you think? Even if not, it's not a deal breaker for me as long as we get a custom kernel/Rom here and there. There were many TW roms I came to love on the Fassy. I especially like Voodoo sound and hope that comes available on the Charge; however, my main reasons for taking the Charge is size, lte, screen, and resale value. It's my understanding that it's wise to get grandfathered into lte now.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] PeterGunz:
Only thing that has me concerned about AOSP Charge development is that it took JT and crew 8-9 months to get AOSP to the Fascinate, and even now it isn't quite where it is on the Inc2. This is no fault to JT, but actually speaks to the amazing work he did. It was that difficult to dev for the phone. I imagine the Charge is no different.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] tnez:
I got 2 Inc2's on the way! went with the Inc2 due to it having more dev work than the charge, plus several Fascinate devs also went to the Inc2. dont care about resale value because I'll be using my upgrade for the SGSII anyways
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] Undzis:
if you use your upgrade, wont you lose your unlimited data plan and have to go to a tiered plan?
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] speedingcheetah:
No, as long you are upgrading or swapping smartphone with smartphone, you keep the unlimited data. If you remove a smartphone, say to temp activate a regular phone, then re-activate the smartphone, you will loose the unlimited.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] pc1990:
Yeah pretty much...the screen on the Charge is just awesome when I saw it at the store, even better than the retina display.:cool: Yeah and 4g is certainly something I was hearing about and wanted to try. And overall the Charge is the best phone there is currently on Verizon so it was a no brainer. I dont think the dev community is as weak as some make it out to be for the Charge. They're developing OMFGB and those roms are top notch...so I think I wont regret the Charge at all....now if my frickin' battery gets hear I can finally get it activated!:mad:

About the messages, is that a problem you had on the fascinate? or Charge? :confused:
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] Eris _2.1_2010:
Those that have taken the charge, hows that affecting your plan? And since most of us are grandfathered in what charges would i expect for that 4g phone?
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] strictlyphat:
My plan hasn't.changed afaik
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] anoninja118:
no change, you're grandfathered in with unlimited data

blazing through on my VZ Droid Charge :cool:
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] iMissLayups:
The fascinate!
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] prehistorical:
My Most Frequently-seen Droid Charge Screen Shot (stock)

1. If you are in a border 3G/4G Verizon area near a major metropolitan area, chances are that VZW already has extensive documentation on the network issues, with no solution as of yet.

And my own $ 0.02, if you are one of those truly affected by missed calls/bad reception:

2. Fascinate had relatively bad reception (compared to say, iPhone 4, ahem) regardless of ROM (stock, etc.) No amount of clever code can fix that. CM7 was really sweet and if you are running into issues after so many flashes and versions, you will get a boost by "cleaning out" using the Odin Atlas PIT + DL09 then work your way back [even] to your current CM7 version. But in my experience that will not solve the missed calls issue. CM7 was as good as it got. Deep sleep CM7 issue was <> Fascinate Missed Calls issue. CM7, CR, EF and the wonderful SC -- all good, but not a cure-all if reception in border areas.

3. Charge still has relatively bad reception (compared to say, iPhone 4, ahem again) at least with stock. Missed calls not a problem (again in "border areas") as long as CDMA mode (not LTE) is chosen + Data Packet. Missed calls happen if your phone is fighting with LTE in border areas, Worse performing by far than the Fascinate if you plan to use anything "data."

YMMV YMWV
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] seraphls:
Just had Verizon clear me to nab an X2 (lol), Dinc2, or Charge. I told them that I'd need time to decide, but my question is: will I need to unroot and/or remove clockworkmod from my fascinate? If so, is there a guide on how to do so? I just have those installed - no custom ROMs
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] strictlyphat:
I have my charge and live in central nj close to.newark:-) my 4g is constantly 4-5 bars. Never had a hiccup with 4g. I love the charge. Feel.bad for.you guys that went with other phones ( even if you don't have 4g at the.moment. all.that means is that you would be using the charge on 3g and getting.better battery life than me.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] Sister Amethyst:
Add me to the growing list of frustrated Fascinate owners (my household has 3 all with varying issues).

I was happily running UKB 2.1 with pbj -50 but after about 2 weeks I was not able to connect to wi-fi or the 3g. No data no matter what I tried or where I went, so I went back to stock (eewwww). Still no data. I made the tech call last night and got offered the trio of phones without even trying.

So now I'm researching my fanny off before the offer leaves the table and here's my question -

From day one these phones have had terrible call quality. The noise cancellation appears to be missing entirely. Which of the only 2 phones that a former Fascinate lover would even consider will give me the clearest phone calls? Has anyone here upgraded and found that friends can tell you have a new phone just by talking to you on it?

I know, I'm weird, but I really want my cool expensive toy to make phone calls as well as play games. ;)
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
There are guides and a few different packages to get back to stock. Personally, when I turn my Fassy back in, I'm going with original stock DI01 which my phone originally came with. Basically, you need Odin, Samsung drivers, and an official package (.tar) of a Verizon OS. You can find a couple here on XDA including the one I mentioned.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] PeterGunz:
http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=14731827&postcount=1

Do that, then OTA to ED04, and you should be good.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] PeterGunz:
Well, I now posses both the Dinc2 and the Charge. Not sure which one I am keeping yet. I am in prime 4G coverage area, which makes me think I should just bite the bullet and take the Charge. I am essentially putting all my hope in the OMFGB team, since outside of them I haven't heard a peep of any other AOSP development.

It would be nice to keep the Dinc2 and have access to essentially every rom you could ever want, but 4G is the future...
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] jmaher1023:
It seems to me that "Big Red" is reluctant to give out the Charge as a replacement. I called customer service Thursday to get a replacement for my wife's Fascinate and since I didn't have the phone on me, the rep told me I'd need to call back or go into a store with the phone so they could troubleshoot it. That evening, my wife and I went into one of the two corporate stores in our area and had one of the salesmen look at it. After he checked if we were current on our updates I asked if he would be able to order us a Charge as a replacement(I read a lot of posts that said they had to order them for u at a corporate store). He then told me that they were out of stock and I would have to call customer service so they could order one. So I asked if he could note our account that he had checked the phone out and that we wanted the Charge as a replacement. Friday afternoon I called customer service back and was transferred to tech support where I was told that they could.only offer me the dinc2 or x2 because the Charge was "out of stock." I proceeded to explain to the nice lady that my wife was used to the Samsung interface and that she absolutely hates having to learn how to use a new phone(which is 100% true BTW). I then asked if she could check if they would be getting any Charges in within the next couple of weeks and could.just put us on a waiting list. She then asked if I would mind holding while she checked on something. After about 10 minutes on hold she came back on with a sales rep from the other corporate store in my area who was able to send out the full kit to me! He even said he would try to get them to send a sim with it! So my wife's Charge should be arriving sometime on Tuesday via fedex!

So if anyone gets told that they don't have the Charge in stock, keep pressing them(politely), and they will probably be able to "find" one for you!
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] ckirkp79:
I called verizon tonight and the guy offered me the charge but said I have to go to the store to get it ordered...which I am doing Tom.

The fascinate was a great phone but may as well jump at a free upgrade and hope next year we have the sgs 2. I hope samsung steps their game up and starts supporting their devices.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
Not necessarily. People need to make sure they place an official (not leaked) OS on their phone or risk the possibility of having to pay for the cost of the phone you are replacing. I was warned by a nice guy at the VZW store. Unless I am mistaken, kidserious doesn't have a link to an official os in that thread.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] seraphls:
Is that going to get me fully back to stock and remove CWM? Right now I'm running EB01 (not sure if it's a leak or what).
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] tnez:
Just odin dlo9 and ota up to ED04. That will remove root and put the phone back to vzn stock froyo.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
Yes and yes. If you can find and Odin DI01, that would get you back to complete stock as well as remove root and cwm. I'm suddenly getting my versions confused, but, yes, I believe EB01 is the leaked Froyo we received a few months ago. You don't want to turn your phone in with a leaked os on it. There is a thread in Fascinate Android Development with the DI01 Odin file and some instructions. The link by Petergunz has some instructions but mainly for people going from an MTD Rom to a TW Rom. All you need to do is Odin an official Os.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
If he did this, wouldn't the radio still be dl09 and show up?
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] seraphls:
I couldn't find anything from Petergunz, but I found the one from Adrynalyne. xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=867648&highlight=di01

Just wanting to make sure that is what I'm looking for. Thanks a ton for the help and advice. If it ever comes up and I'm available, I'll definitely back you in a knife fight.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] anoninja118:
No it will be full stock ED04. That's what I did to my Fassy right before I sent it back, odined DL09 and ota'd from there. I put some common apps on there to make it looked like I used it like that, checked build/baseband and both read ED04 (no superuser app or any root apps either) so I powered it off and shipped it. Not hard just ota to ED04 and you're set

edit: I doubt they do any serious digging into whether it was messed with or not unless you're retarded and send it back with CM7 or something... I read somewhere they just check for any physical damage, power it on to make sure it works, maybe take a quick look at what build and as long as it looks legit they clear it
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] seraphls:
I doubt it too, but I'm not too keen on risking it if they're going to charge me for several hundred dollars.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
Yep, that's it. Download a copy of Odin if you don't have one. Connect your phone, check PDA in Odin, load the DI01, and you are rockin'!

I'm always glad to have a buddy in a knife fight! :)
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
Cool, man. Thanks. I wasn't sure.

Regarding them checking, the guy at the store could tell I had a leak (screwed up initially and Odin wrong OS). He let me off the hook but told me that the warehouse checks OS versions on phones and if they detect non-official, will charge customer cost of phone. Not sure if he was trying to scare me or what but I'm not taking any chances.
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] anoninja118:
yep exactly why an official build like ED04 is your best bet, its the most recent official release (and is pretty much the reason for all these swaps) so why would they question it :)
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] seraphls:
I've already got Odin. I'm actually rocking EB01 thanks to an idiot move on my part that left me with a near-brick, so I'm a little up to speed (for the record, I was having these problems before and after that little ****up - not just scamming the big red who would NEVER dream of screwing their customers)
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
How are the custom Roms for the Charge. See you are rocking one already. :D
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] anoninja118:
Lol if the guy could tell then he had probably rooted a few phones in his day (or at least seen a lot of them) cuz cosmetically EB01 is pretty much the same as official froyo... Anyway yeah I sent mine back with ED04 which I think is what they want to see given its the last official ota, I would probably get a little suspicious if I saw any come in with 2.1 eclair
[Fascinate Q&A, Help & Troubleshooting] SOTK:
Agreed, except the guy at the store put 2.1 Eclair on for me because he knew it was going to take a couple of days to receive my Charge and 2.1 will give me (supposedly) a working phone with no missed calls. He said they are recommending this to some Fascinate owners who are waiting as I am or who are sticking with the Fassy until a proper Froyo fix is released.