yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] codesplice:
Have you considered porting your number into Google Voice? It seems like that could help a bit with the timing, and you also would never have to worry about a carrier holding your number captive as a means of enforcing good behavior. Oh, and you'd also be able to reap all the other awesome benefits of Google Voice.

There is a one-time fee of $20 to do this, but it may be very much looking into if you are attached to your current number.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] SuperiorDrift:
I thought about porting my number prior to switching. There are two things that I don't really like about the idea. SMS apparently goes to email or sometimes doesn't (I can't confirm this, I've only read). Second is that I use a different number for my craigslist email address, well, to avoid unwanted spam :). If I can port and still be able to use other GV numbers, that would be awesome. Can this be done?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] defconoi:
I think I'm gonna do it, already bought a galaxy nexus, gonna sell the sgs2 which T-Mobile sent out a refurbished device in mint condition. I guess I'll pay the etf of 380, I'll still save a few hundred bucks by the time my contract would actually end lol
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
You can port your number for $20, and pay another $20 to keep your current GV #.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] SuperiorDrift:
Wait, this is confusing. Are you saying that I would port my existing number for $20 and then port that GV # to a carrier for another $20?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] defconoi:
Will T-Mobile block the imei of the phone I sell after I cancel my contract and pay the etf. I heard they do.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] codesplice:
You pay $20 to port your number into Google Voice. If you already have a GV number, both will be active for a time - 90 days I think. You can pay another $20 to keep both numbers (in Google Voice, with individual forwarding options for each) after that 90 day period.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Raralith:
I just ordered a pair of ST activation SIM's, about to ditch AT&T (and pay the $240 ETF), but I'm still debating on whether or not I want to port my number to Google Voice. Both my wife and I have iPhone's, both jailbroken, I downloaded the "GV Extension" so I am able to natively call from GV, but I spent a good 3 hours trying to figure out SMS and I just can't get it using the "SMS GV Extension" program. Anyone know how to get SMS messages to a phone to work when texting to and from a GV number?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Cabal_:
As long as you don't buy another phone in the next 2 years. Gonna be pretty tough to resist that next Nexus phone when it comes out in 6-12 months, though...
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Doesn't happen... If you have a # for it to forward to, or have the app installed, the SMS will always go to that # or the app.

Only if you

don't

pay the ETF. If you pay the ETF you own the phone.

This is right.

Use the Google Voice app. Or just go into the voice.google.com settings and set the phone # as a message forwarding #. You don't need special apps.

That's the issue. People leave their contract pay the ETF and expect to break even in 3, 6, 9 or whatever months, then they end up buying another device :p . Gotta get out of the hole first, then you can start buying phones again.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Raralith:
I think what I can't seem to figure out is how to use the native messaging program instead of having to go into Google Voice or rather having Google Voice interface with the native messaging app. My wife is refusing to port her number over if she can't use the native apps :(

Edit: I just got it to work, it turns out my iPhone 4S had other issues. Looks like I will be porting my number to GV.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] vatsyk:
Has anyone tried Skype ( unlimited subscription with online number ) as a forwarding phone instead of Talkatone/Groove ip ? After reading this thread, I see that the last two seem to be laggy comparing to Skype.

Also, if I do a video call chat each day for one hour from my Galaxy Nexus on 3G/4G to my relatives in Europe, how fast will I run out of 5GB un-throttled allowance ? And if they throttle me, will I be able to Skype video chat from my phone & use it as my forwarding phone with no problem on Tmobile 3G/4G? Thanks.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
There may be some fancy jailbreak-required apps (I'm not super familiar with iOS in that way), but probably not going to be too elegant.

The

only

"easy" (kinda) way to use the native messaging app is to set up your carrier # as a forwarding # for GV SMS, and they'll arrive in your native messaging app. What will happen, however, is that each contact will have a new, unique phone # attached to them, which will route SMS and calls via it to their number. You'll have to add this newly assigned # to each of the contacts in order to not have it look extremely jumbled. It has to do it this way so that the phone knows whether you're sending the SMS (or call) via your GV # or your carrier #.

Like I said... just use the GV app. Or just don't port her # to GV... you can just port it to Straight Talk directly and have her use the phone normally.

Seriously, if you're not ready to use GV and you think it'll be too much hassle or don't need the features, just port your numbers straight to Straight Talk and use your phone as normal. Especially if you have iPhones IMO. I'll be the first to admit that Google Voice isn't exactly "wife friendly". Really wish Google cared about it enough to make it a real product.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Haven't tried personally but I know Skype quality will be better considering you're paying for it. They have some good codecs.

Every

day? Skype video will actually eat quite a bit of data... I'm not sure precisely but you might wanna think about using WiFi... do you not have WiFi available at home?

Googling around, I see Skype audio calls taking up about ~20mb / hour.

Skype video calls take up about ~200mb / hour

, depending on video quality. Seeing different estimates, but they're all in the 150mb - 250mb / hour range.

I don't know about this... this may be a bit sketchy. You get hard capped at 60kbps down / 150kbps up. That's just not enough downstream, even with good codecs. You can switch to EDGE ("2G only" mode) and get like 300kbps down / up, but the pings are super high (~400ms). You can't do VOIP on that either.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] vatsyk:
I have a wifi at home but at work I do not have wifi & my mom usually calls me from Europe when I am on lunch 12pm-1pm California time
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
I see, well those are the numbers I picked up. At ~200mb a day in video calls, you'd crush your data throttle point.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Mr.Mischief:
Not necessarily. On 5GBs of data, you can make 25 hours of Skype video calls. If you shorten the call time a little and try to make a few on wifi, you should be able to make it a month.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] spiritcrusher33:
LOL Im on the 5 gig 30 buck tmobile plan. 3 weeks in. only used 370 mb's of data. and 42 minutes of voice calls. 90% of my texts are used through whats app. and 90% of data is used at home on wifi.. Im a light user i guess.. but 30 bucks a month is awesome. wife and daughter are on the straight talk plans.. iphone 4/ atrix 4g.. outside of the wife not being able to send MMS. ( not jail broken ) she doesnt notice the diff from when she was with ATT. I just tell here be very careful with your phone otherwise your gonna have to shell out for a new one. lol
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Mr.Mischief:
You can get MMS working without having to jailbreak it.

http://www.geekhelpguide.com/hacks/enable-picture-mms-on-straighttalk-iphones-without-tetherme/
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Gene_Bailey:
My SIM finally arrived and I am using Straight Talk (AT&T SIM) for the first time and I'm loving it. Seriously this is awesome. Call quality is very good, I actually receive texts on time (which would never happen with Sprint) and the data is actually like 10 times faster than my old sprint phone. Very very very haply with my purchase. Also setting up the APN was easy and while I was a bit worried about not being able to set the proxy to blank it didn't give me any fuss. Now to send an MMS and make sure that's working!
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Assuming that is the

only

data he uses in the month... which I highly doubt.

---------- Post added at 11:35 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:32 AM ----------

That method specifically requires jailbreaking to be "guaranteed" successful. it just doesn't require paying $4.99 for TetherMe.

FWIW we tried the crazy long non-jailbreak method that requires editing some system (plist) files and backup/restoring the device on my brothers iPhone 3GS and never got it to work. All other reports seem to be similar. It kinda looks like jailbreak or bust for MMS.

FWIW remember you can still send/receive MMS between iPhone users because of iMessage.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Gene_Bailey:
Okay so MMS is confirmed not working for me. Just hangs on *sending*. Searching for a solution now.. would like to try and not need to use two APNs unless its recommended?

*EDIT*

So after searching for about 20 minutes I wasn't finding answers so I looked at my APN settings and just kinda stated at em. I realized one typo that I had made. I had typed for the MMS proxy HTTPS:// and not HTTP:// and that made all the difference. Its working flawlessly now.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] DOHCtor:
Welcome to the money-saving prepaid club.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Gene_Bailey:
Thank you! It feels damn good to be here! Okay so I have stumbled into hopefully the last problem I have. I can send MMS just fine. However I cannot receive them. I will edit this post with my APN settings in a second and maybe someone could tell me what to change?

**edit**

Here are my settings.

Name: Straight Talk

APN: att.mvno

Proxy: Not Set

Port: 80

Username: Not Set

Password: Not Set

Server: Not Set

MMSC: HTTP://mmsc.cingular.com

MMS Proxy: 66.29.11.33

MMS Port: 80

MCC: 310

MNC: 410

Authentication Type: None

APN Type: Not Set

APN Protocol: IPv4

Bearer: Unspecified

Now as I was typing these I did just successfully receive a picture so I'm not sure if I'm being impatient and the system needs more time to adjust to my phone or not but any input would be nice. Thank you!
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] npro1464:
Since I am seriously considering this for my next phone, I was wondering if I'd be able to survive with the "caps" or pre-paid cell service with a Nexus. On my Thunderbolt (Verizon), I get about 5-10 GBs a month, but that is on Verizon's data-hogging 4G LTE network. Would I be able to make the adjustment without too much pain on a pre-paid 3G/HSPA+ GSM network? I've heard LTE eats more data. If I ease up a little with podcasting, could I manage the $70 5GB/month on T-Mo?

Also, does anyone here run two cards at once? I was thinking, though it wouldn't be convenient, of getting the $30/month 5 GB Tmo plan and getting something supplementary with unlimited mins. It should be cheaper than T Mobiles $70/month.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Zepius:
you would have 2 sim cards with 2 different numbers.

would you want to swap out SIMs to just make phone calls and text?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] npro1464:
Not sure exactly how this all works, but yeah that's what I was thinking. I'd probably just go for the extra $10 or $15 a month just for convenience. So you phone number is tied to the card, unless you port your phone number to GV (or use your GV #)? If I make the switch, I have a feeling I'm going to be asking tons of questions on here.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Zepius:
correct. the number is tied to the sim card.

you'd have to port to GV if you wanted the same number.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] thekillingtree:
i've for years hated the major networks with their contract fees and tower maintenance. i was with tmobile for 5 yrs at one point andhad no service at my house in AZ (tempe, where ASU is..) and the tmo rep told me to move 1 mile north. anyways, i had the original G1 at that time and had wanted to get a netbook with a portable wifi card and just make calls over wifi with skype but the skype app never worked right then.

fast forward to now and i've been on virgin mobile for the past year and a half paying $27.01 for unlimited texts/data with a ****ty phone. picked up a nexus (a semi decent phone on vmobile is $200+) and a straight talk sim card.

i should've looked in the nexus forum when i decided i wanted a nexus and was looking at prepaid options. google ftw.

tl;dr, i'm continuing my no contract run and loving it. thanks for all the info in this goldmine of a thread.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Only you know if you can keep it under 5GB. If you're regularly using over 5GB now, then you're obviously gonna have to change something to stay under 5GB again.

LTE doesn't use more data. If you download a 20MB file on LTE and on HSPA, it's... 20MB either way.

If you're on a T-Mobile Prepaid plan and you hit your 100 min or your 5GB throttle, you can pay at any time to restart your month. For example, you could refill every 15 days and get 10GB of data and 200min a month.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] codesplice:
Wait, what? I didn't think that the refills had any impact on your "cycle". Applying a refill early just adds a positive balance to your account, from which your monthly charges will be deducted when the time rolls around.

Did I miss something?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Zepius:
i think its when you hit the caps, it stops the service unless you put more money on the account. unless im misunderstanding marton.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] codesplice:
I've only hit/exceeded my 5GB quota once since I've been on T-Mobile Prepaid; I had a $50 positive balance on my account waiting to be applied a week later but the throttling never went away. Similarly, when the 100 minute allotment is exceeded, additional minutes are subtracted (from the positive balance) at the rate of 10 cents per minute.

I don't know of a way to make that balance instantly apply directly to the service.

I certainly could have misunderstood something somewhere along the line...
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
That's right. Well, it doesn't "stop" data service, you get throttled. But if you hit 100 minutes and don't have any $$ on the account, calls actually will stop.

You're right, refills (adding $$ to account) and account resets (every month) are independent cycles.

Once you cap out though, you can reset your month and have it start with a new balance of minutes and data again (over the phone, at least). It'd kinda be a hassle to do every single month if you consistently need 10GB (somehow), but its doable.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] noneone:
ORLY? That is good to know .... how do I "reset my month"? Just call customer service and ask?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
I know its possible, but I'm not seeing any simple way to do it online. Probably have to call.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] UncleMike:
True, but I can't help but think there may be some services (possibly streaming) that alter the quality of the content based on the available bandwidth. Switching to a HSPA from LTE may trigger the use of lower quality content, resulting in lower data usage.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] BennyJr:
So i think im having some network problems...i cant get a stable connection. It goes from HSPA+, to HSDPA to UMTS sometimes like 3 times a minute. Im on straight talk att. I tried the newest JB radio but it hasn't gotten better. Maybe its my apn settinsg?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Gene_Bailey:
Actually my signal indicator bounces around a lot too.. it flickers between 3G and H a lot. Like once every 90 seconds or so.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] BennyJr:
Is there a reason why it does that?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Don't think this is really the case. There's nothing you can stream on a 40mbps LTE connection that you can't stream just as high quality on a 8mbps HSPA+ connection considering the highest res we could pick up is 720P.

Sure, LTE "enables" you to use more data, in the way that you're not waiting around for things in order to keep using data, but they both use the same amount for the same task.

The phone is supposed to sit on UMTS when the data connection isn't in use. It'll switch to "H" (HSPA or HSDPA, whatever) when the data connection is actively transferring.

If your phone is randomly switching around for "no reason" then you have a problem.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] BennyJr:
While im using it, it usually stays on H idk which one but sometimes it switches to 3g in the middle of loading a page or something
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Shouldn't normally happen. Does it stop the page load?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] npro1464:
Can you have you prepaid service automatically charge every month so I can kind of forget about it? I imagine calling every month gets annoying.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] cbutt:
I know straight talk has an auto renew option. However if you're using straight talk, they also offer to purchase 3/6/12 months at a time for less money as well.

I'm not sure about other prepaid services, as I have only used straight talk thus far.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] 3rdstring:
T-Mobile has an Auto-refill option too.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] s9ortner:
That coverage map is for the sprint network. If you go with a T-Mobile ST sim, you'll have the same coverage you do now.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Mr.Mischief:
I posted the wrong link.

http://www.howardforums.com/showthr...e-4-MMS-working-on-Straight-Talk-no-jailbreak
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] BennyJr:
Sometimes. It usually does it when i start to load the page, then it switches back to H. Could it be the rom im on?

And actually now i just lost data connection when i have signal :\
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jaybeeunix:
When you have the T-Mobile SIM, you should get T-mobile speeds. I'm not aware of any prepaid plans that roam on other networks. See the "other" prepaid thread: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=1646755

I believe the general consensus in AT&T has a larger, but slower network, compared to T-Mobile.

The Straight Talk terms of service say "no": It also says, "Examples of prohibited uses include, without limitation, the following: ... (iii) uploading, downloading or streaming of audio or video programming or games;...". From the chatter here in the forums, Straight Talk is pretty aggressive about disconnecting people they think are "abusing" their network.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
They don't run the software on your phone, they can't block tethering. They don't.

Yes this phone works on HSPA+ for both AT&T and T-Mobile. Basically what we're learning is you can get the AT&T SIM and they have roaming on T-Mobile. Questionable responses on whether or not you get data roaming if you have a pentaband phone.

They call it "unlimited web browsing" in their materials, not "unlimited data", this way they can lock you down at their own discretion (this is just how prepaid is, unfortunately). Conventional wisdom with this plan is still that if you keep under 2GB/month or 100MB/day, you won't be warned or anything like that. Some report using more, others report getting warned at less.

That's the tradeoff. T-Mobile has a smaller footprint and better speeds.

---------- Post added at 11:45 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:41 AM ----------

Yep that's the method we tried. Although reports were it works with the 3GS, it doesn't. YMMV on the iPhone 4.

When you start to load the page that's normal. It'll very shortly pause, kick to HSPA+, and load.

If its cutting out to UMTS while actively using data (like streaming), then that's not right. Could be many things causing this.

---------- Post added at 11:47 AM ---------- Previous post was at 11:45 AM ----------

Absolutely. T-Mobile and Straight Talk both have auto-reload features that'll just charge your CC a few days before the month ends and have the $$ ready for the next month's charge. You can also buy refills from places like CallingMart (if you go T-Mobile) and load 2 or 3 months worth of $$ at a time. It'll just sit in your account and draw down 1 month at a time.

Also, remember even if you don't use auto-refill, you don't have to refill over the phone... you can do it online, via text, or through the T-Mobile My Account app.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] canofale:
Additionally, any extra balance in your T-Mobile prepaid account will be used for $0.10 per min phone calls once your monthly allotment of minutes run out. Easy! I keep about $15 extra in the account giving myself 250 minutes per month (have the TMo 100/5gb plan). Loving the no contract, auto withdrawal and Fast HSPA+. Woohoo!
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] SkuzFoz:
Straight Talk sounds awesome, but given that it's just AT&T for half price, it seems like there should be some sort of catch that I'm missing here...

Edit: I should add that I personally use about 2 minutes of calling, 350mb of data and 200 texts per month. The data would be higher if I wasn't on Sprint, because their speeds are simply worthless and, for me, are only good enough to allow me to have WiFi turn off during sleep.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Zepius:
you gotta buy the phones out right.. none of the $99 or free phone stuff.

most people in the US are accustomed to buying the phones cheap or even free. thats why this model hasnt been popular. plus prepaid used to be just awful.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Its actually less than 1/2 the price monthly. But yes, there are "catches" to this.

You have to buy phones outright (read: full price).

You don't get any kind of acceptable customer service.

They can cut off your service if you go over 2GB.

That being said, its still beyond a great deal. Prepaid ftw. Choose your device and carrier separately, and don't deal with contracts.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] dbolot1:
Sorry if it has been asked before, I tried searching but could not find an answer... I currently have Straight Talk and my cycle 7/6 - 8/6 and I want to port my number to Google Voice, If I do it now, this should cancel my Straight Talk plan, but does it mean that I loose the remainder of my balance and have to get a new plan as soon as the port goes through?

Thanks
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] SkuzFoz:
Indeed, I was planning on purchasing a Galaxy Nexus this week, moving from an E4GT. The Galaxy Nexus is still entirely relevant, which is surprising for the price. I can see non-subsidized phones being an issue when they're new and $800, but I'm thinking maybe the Nexus line might be our way out of that trend. You might not be able to pay the $750 it started at, but look how quickly it became much more affordable. I actually will save $750 yearly, meaning I could afford a new device every year... I can only get a well-subsidized phone every 2 years under Sprint.

I'm excited to have a device which I can feel assured WILL be kept relevant for as long as possible. Can't say that about many non-Nexus devices due to driver issues.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] pdxtechdoctor:
Yes, once the port is complete the account attached the the number is closed / cancel.. it works this way whatever company you port to/from. Since it can take up to a couple of days (but not normally) I would port the number 3 - 4 days before the end of the billing cycle. You will also need to get a second sim to activate once the old number is transferred. My understanding is that once a straight talk sim is deactivated it cannot be used again. Of course this makes the port costs $35 instead of $20 because of the sim fee
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] noneone:
Just reiterating a great thing about prepaid ...... You can use ST ATT for $45 in July, and then, you can use ST TMO for $45 in August .... then ST ATT for $45 in September ... then try TMO $30 100 min / 5 gb data in October ...

and just keep switching, no penalty, no muss no fuss. Find out what is the best coverage for both data speeds and voice in the areas you frequent.

You do get a new cell number for each plan, but, if you are "all in" with google voice, people call your gvoice number, and it always gets to you, no matter what your cell number / provider of the month is.

Try it out, see what you like best.