yashsingh1/xdaforums huggingface dataset:
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] colonelcack:
Lol. Illegal? Who's going to arrest me, the T-mobile police? Sure it's against their TOS but no it's not illegal. Even the T-Mobile rep who signed me up said he averages about 50-100GB a month on this plan. If it really was hurting their network they wouldn't be offering this plan.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
It is illegal, but no one will arrest you. There is distinct difference between criminal and civil legality and potential consequences.

When you pay for the prepaid service, you are entering a legally binding contract to comply with their TOS. This is fact, there's no argument about it.

With that said, there are very few of us on XDA who have not violated a service TOS. There are also very few of us who have suffered any consequences for it.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] 1cewolf:
What do you guys think about buying T-Mobile refills from eBay? There are a lot of people offering cards at a discount: ~$40 for a $50 card, $90 for a $100 card, you get the picture. Those are pretty good discounts.

But I'm a little wary of them because of anecdotal accounts I've read where these people on eBay supposedly refill your account with stolen credit cards, and after that happens, all hell breaks loose. They say the red flag is when a seller asks you to leave your cell number with them and refuses to give you the actual refill PIN.

I'd like to switch back to the T-Mobile $70 plan, but I won't do it without some sort of discount. Now that CallingMart has stopped offering discounts on T-Mobile refills, eBay is about the only other quasi-legitimate option I have.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
If you buy from a seller who has a long term history, you should have no issues. Avoid sellers who signed up in the last couple months or only have a hundred feedback ratings.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] zombie1991:
I recently did exactly what you are referring to. I did not get a card. I only put my phone number in. It wasn't an auction either but an eBay classifieds ad. It took around 3 hours and then I got a text that my account had $50 added to it. It worked for me..once...this time. I'm tempted to do it again. I'm a little worried that I will get scammed out of my money but with such a steep discount I'm going to more than likely do it again. Also, it was a PayPal transaction not a CC one. So I may be wrong, but there may be a little buyers protection going that route.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] rafa3L:
Oh wow I hadn't heard of that credit card scam before. Do you know if it's true? Any links to threads discussing it? Would suck if you as the buyer were impacted with your account being terminated or something like that.

I've bought two of these types of refills recently where I gave them my phone number and the refill was added by the next day.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jordanishere:
You sir, are a true patriot.

The $70 plan is the best plan ever.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] 1cewolf:
http://reviews.ebay.com/FRADULENT-CELL-PHONE-REFILL-CARDS-BEWARE?ugid=10000000021298598

But despite that, I went ahead and bought two discounted $50 refills anyway. If you buy it through Buy it Now instead of eBay classifieds, you qualify for eBay's buyer protection program, so I should be covered if something fishy goes on. There's also protecetion from Paypal.

The sellers I bought from were NOT located in China, had several hundred in positive feedback, and didn't use broken English. The money was added by the time I woke up today, and I'm officially back in business with unlimited, unthrottled everything :)
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] zombie1991:
Not sure if I believe the person who wrote up the little help file on eBay either. ANYONE can put money on your account with any means they have. I can put money on your account via your telephone number, my mom can also put money, and her friends too if they want. How in the world would you be responsible if someone put money into your account for whatever reason? I don't see how I can be ANY WAY responsible for how money gets put into my account. I will probably keep using this method until something bad happens to ME and then I will warn others what happened. Is it wrong...maybe...maybe. Is it a good deal? HELLZ YA! So I will report back to make sure you don't get burned by the seller I get burned by when/if it happens.

Caveat Emptor
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] xdp:
Does anyone know if T-Mobile $30 5 GB plan is going away with their new plan revamp?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] sdmark:
It still shows up. I hope it doesn't go away.

http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/prepaid-plans
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
My understanding is that they're revamping only the value plans, not monthly 4g. The $30 plan is monthly 4g.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] tsnstuff:
This is where I'm getting confused now. I'm on Monthly 4G but it seems they completely got rid of their other plans to make it all prepaid. There is no value plans showing up on their site anymore.

Basically now you start with a $50 basic plan, unlimited Talk & Text and 500MB of data with free HotSpot. If you want to add more data you can use the Hotspot with then you can add 2GB @ $10 (up to 12GB). Or you can add the Truly Unlimited Data for $20. Since you already have 500MB that you can tether with when you pay the $50 for the basic plan, you still get to tether those, but with the Unlimited Option that is all you can legally tether.

I've been thinking of switching to the $70 prepaid plan, so I figured since now I can legally get SOME tethering I'd like to do it, but these new options do not show up in my Monthly 4G page. So I wonder if I need to cancel that one...

EDIT:

Well I just spoke to a rep who seemed very confused. Postpaid accounts and Prepaid accounts are still considered separate and you can't turn one into the other, not easily anyway.

I almost made a new postpaid account but then I remembered it would probably be full of hidden fees. No Thanks, I'll stick to prepaid.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] lafester:
prepaid and postpaid plans are all the same now (not including the $30 5gb) except on postpaid you can finance a new device and I guess maybe roaming.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
I was pretty disappointed by the new T-mobile plans. I hoped that it would include a price reduction beyond the monthly 4g. At least the cost of breaking "contract" is now directly related to the actual cost of the device and not some arbitrary number chosen to ward off most people from leaving. This is an enormous step in the right direction and gives us all very easy access to some of the best phones in a more financially palatable manner.

The biggest problem with their pricing is that T-Mobile MVNOs like SIMple, Straight Talk BYOD, Solavei, and Walmart Family Mobile still undercut T-Mobile substantially. However, this may not be an issue as many people simply aren't aware of the MVNO options.

Despite the pricing let down, I do have to give them kudos for making tethering possible on the unlimited plan. Now it's fully clear that 70 GB per month of tethering is absolutely not acceptable unless you pay for it. That's great in my book, as it ensures that network capacity will be more readily available when I need it on my 4GB (unthrottled) per month T-Mobile MVNO.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] tsnstuff:
Well, you cant do 70GB of tethering, looks like the most you can buy is 12GB. I'm sure people will keep going around the system anyway.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
People will always circumvent the system and there will always be a way.

I'm curious if anyone has called T-Mobile yet to ask for more data? When Verizon introduced their shared data plans, there were unadvertised plans with higher data allocations. They'd be silly not to take your money if you're willing to pay.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Jasonhunterx:
Anyone have gosmart mobile I can't even make calls is there something wrong
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
You should contact your customer service. I've been taking calls on T-Mobile's network all day.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Pkt_Lnt:
My plan updates tomorrow, and I was spoiled with savings from calling mart, so I took the chance on RefillMobi for $30 value at $26.99. It processes via PayPal, so lower risk. All went well, the credit was on my account in less than 15 minutes.

They are in Asia, I am in the USA, not sure the company, "You sent a payment of $26.99 USD to 庞 颜华".
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jazzruby:
Google Translate:

http://translate.google.com/#auto|en|庞 颜华

From: Chinese (detected) To: English - Pang Ngan China,

-JR-
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] colonelcack:
Does anyone know how or if any ports can be opened on t-mobile's internet? I can get on xbox live but I can't update games or access my friends list or do dashboard updates without getting various error codes. I'm pretty sure this is due to the strict connection settings.

I've never really understood how port forwarding works, could that be used in this application?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] colonelcack:
I'm guessing this is something that's blocked on T-mobile's end, and that no amount of configuring I do locally will unblock it?

It's weird though because I was always able to fully access xbox live (although with moderate NAT) it all worked at one point. Keep in mind this was years ago, so since then either Microsoft changed something (seems unlikely, as they'd want the most peoples connections to work as possible) or T-mobile started locking down the connection more. I'm guessing it's T-mobile.

Unless anyone has any idea about the port forwarding thing, my guess is the only workaround would be to VPN to an open connection? That sucks because there's already enough latency as is...
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
Just try a proxy to see if it resolves the issue. Then at least you have an answer.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] n0obpr0:
Once I'm done with my Verizon contract I'ma go with T-mobile and a prepaid plan with a nexus 4 =D
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
Do some more research before settling on T-Mobile. You can get their same (or similar) service for a lot less if you use an unlocked phone with an MVNO. Check out SIMple Mobile, Net10, Straight Talk, Ptel, Go smart, Solavei, or WalMart Family Mobile. Each plan has pros and cons, but all are more economical than straight T-Mobile. Some even have ATT roaming.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jlczl:
This is mostly true unless you have a family plan. The more lines you have the more likely there is a TMobile Value plan that is cheaper even than their MVNOs.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jordanishere:
Or if you want real unlimited
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
Very true, the $10 per line for every line after the third is an amazing deal and would be very tempting to me if I had a need for it. It all depends on your situation. My cohabitant and I maintain individual lines, so an MVNO is the best route.

Jordanishere - you need to stop continuously crapping on MVNOs in this thread. Go somewhere else to whine.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jordanishere:
I'm glad you read all my posts.

The best mvno at this point is gosmart. 5 gigs for $45 before throttling. I use go smart (work phone) and the speeds are the same as every other mvno. I'm sure T-Mobile can prioritize its go smart traffic ahead of competitors like simple mobile or solavei.. Watch for them to lose subscribers.

Also, a question for anyone on a T-Mobile mvno: do you bother setting your APN? I didnt have to set it on simple or on go smart and data/MMS work. What is your experience.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] colonelcack:
tmobile apn is automatically defined
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] urinsane:
What speeds are you getting with Gosmart? I'm on Solavei and often hit 10mbps down, but had heard Gosmart did not allow these "4g" speeds. If that isn't true, I'll switch over to Gosmart next month.

I get full data speeds on Solavei without setting APN, but have to set to the Solavei APN's to get MMS to work.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jordanishere:
Same as simple mobile 4g. 4-8mbps down.

I got MMS w/out setting the APN either.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Mr.Mischief:
Go smart is limited to about 1MB down and up. Remember, it's 5GB at 3G speeds.

Solavei on the other hand, utilizes T-Mobile's full 42mbps 4G.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] post-mortem:
Do any of these MVNOs have unlimited data for $30/month (or better)?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Zepius:
no.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] colonelcack:
Hah, what do you think this is, europe?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] post-mortem:
Then, T-Mobile it is!

(Not that I've switched, yet...)
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] n2d551:
In Europe they have to make cell phone bills cheaper because the petrol costs too much. That way you save enough to be able to go to pay your bill!
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Telemachus13:
Yes.

http://www.howardforums.com/showthread.php/1793983-Took-the-plunge-spent-600-real-money-in-credit

The $50 plan (which you can easily get for $24 per month) throttles after 2GB, which isn't as good as the 5GB on the TMobile $30 plan, but does come with unlimited talk.

Sent from my Galaxy Nexus
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] colonelcack:
I setup a proxy with proxydroid and was able to download updates via xbl. So I'm guessing this means it's T-mobile

edit: that's weird, it worked once but then wouldn't again. I know proxies are pretty finicky but my external ip address should be the same as the proxy and I can't get it to mirror that even after trying a wide variety of proxies.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
If you want unlimited voice with unlimited data, then no. You can get close with GoSmart ($35/month, throttled). Also, if you catch a sale on a Straight Talk 6 month service card you can get down to $35/month.

Of course, T-Mobile's $30 for unlimited data (5 GB) and 100 minutes is still available, I think. It's great for some people.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] j8048188:
End of the $30 plan?

I just got an email from tmobile that looks worrying. Here's the copy of it on their website:

http://how-to.t-mobile.com/newbenefits/

and here's the pricing structure that they are linking to:

http://how-to.t-mobile.com/newplans/

I don't see any plans under $50 anymore.Could this be the end of our beloved budget plan?

EDIT: When I look at the plans that I can swap to, it looks like there isn't anything other than the 3 listed in the 2nd URL. It looks like we'll be grandfathered into our current plan.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] whitedragonz83:
http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/prepaid-plans

Still on their site.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] post-mortem:
I think you're right on both counts:
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Pkt_Lnt:
Look at the bottom left of this page.

http://prepaid-phones.t-mobile.com/prepaid-plans
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] j8048188:
Online Chat log

It looks like they'll not be accepting new people through the tmobile website.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Mr.Mischief:
Red Pocket doesn't throttle after 500MB.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] LionAR10:
You don't need to order a $45 card at time you buy the SIM, but you do need a credit card to buy the $45 refill at the time you activate the SIM.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] rock7632:
So I found out something interesting about the speedtest app on straight talk . Apparently if you remove the proxy ( proxy.mvno.tracfone.com) from the apn settings and leave that field blank the app works
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] LionAR10:
Haha, I never put the proxy info in to begin with! I haven't had any problems ..
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] bfroehlich:
Works like a charm 5.63 down/1.32 up on first run!
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
That's why I said "so if its like the other LTE phones, it'll be able to be hacked to run on 1700 HSPA+"..... obviously its not a guarantee lol. And at best it'll be a hacked radio to make it work.

Just figured that was the easiest route. Get the SIM and a refill for $60 then you can activate easily. Don't think it matters, its the same price either way. Either you buy the refill card and activate later, or just buy the SIM and buy the refill at the time of activation.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] rubiconjp:
Ahh thought that if I'd bought the refill card at the same that it'd require activation too.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] myd0n0se:
Thnkxx .)
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Buying the refill is just a code with $45 preloaded on it (like a gift card I suppose). Doesn't make a difference.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] kurtosterhage:
When you buy phones off contract or used, what do you guys do for device protection aside from the manufacturers warranty? I'm used to having the carrier or Best Buy offer a protection plan/insurance, and I'm wondering about this since I had to have my Epic 4G Touch replaced already because the radio didn't function properly.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
I don't buy extra handset insurance for my devices. Insurance is overall not worth the money (no matter where you get it) because devices like these depreciate in value so quickly. You have a manufacturer warranty for hardware issues in the first year if you need it.

There are 3rd party handset insurers like Squaretrade (and others) that'll insure pretty much anything if you want it.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] rock7632:
The recommended settings from straight talk had that proxy so I put it in but I won't put it back in now
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] rock7632:
1 thing I've noticed with this app is that its using a lot of data. I installed it earlier today and its used 13 mb of data already. is that normal?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] DOHCtor:
It shouldn't be using any data at all. If you're worried, you can always uninstall it after you use it to make changes to the file that allows video chat over mobile data.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] gh32:
Can you post your APN settings? I told the phone to reset to the defaults and it pulled them from the network, but I has no data. :(
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
Aforementioned blog post: http://andrewmartonik.tumblr.com/post/18655201465/why-i-made-jump-to-prepaid-phone-service

I have so much more to write on the specifics/troubles/awesomeness of prepaid, but I figured I'd start there. Feel free to ask any questions or give input.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] codesplice:
Great write up!
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] NardVa:
Per HTC website it states WCDMA 2100/1900/AWS/850. It appears the AT&T One XL will support HSPA+ on Tmobile bands and AT&T bands.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] xJeganx:
After getting my T-Mobile prepaid SIM in today I have to say that the outsourced customer service was the best and friendliest I ever had compared to Sprint and AT&T. It is a nice feeling to finally be in control of my phone and cell service.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] martonikaj:
The T-Mo outsourced CS isn't terrible. It's just not nearly as good as the local service you get on Postpaid.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] gh32:
Got it going well! Using Straight Talk on AT&T's network and loving it!
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Verro3:
I can't send messages on the galaxy nexus I9250 with net10 any suggestions?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] post-mortem:
Has it ever worked? Did you just start service with Net10 recently? APN settings?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Verro3:
Came from a net 10 dumb phone to the galaxy nexus the text never worked I can receive em just can't send
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] post-mortem:
So, everything worked fine on the dumb phone, but since you changed to the Galaxy Nexus you can receive but not send SMSes, right?

Have you asked Net10 about this?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Verro3:
That's correct. I can make calls and receive texts
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] KommodoreHeinz:
9 days in 20GB used and still going strong.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Reuven007:
What about Pure Talk USA?

I am planning to move my wife's and my prepaid service to Pure Talk USA. They recently upped their data to 1GB for $43.95 (unlimited talk & text).

Is anyone using them? Any pro or con? Seems like a good deal, so I wonder what the members think about them.

Thanks
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] shev7chenko:
So glad I'm on Att straight talk.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] PianoJazz:
I'm going to switch to them next week, from Straight Talk (AT&T). I'll be getting the same plan that you mentioned: $43.95/mo for unlimited calls and text, and 1 GB data.

I've had them in the past, on my sons' feature phones, but since those plans didn't include data, I can't give an opinion on that part. However, the phone calling and texting was perfect -- no complaints at all.

I would have been content to stay with Straight Talk, but they've throttled me with no explanation, no information, just nothing but stonewalling. So, I'm done with them. I hope Pure Talk does the trick.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Mr.Mischief:
I'm switching from Red Pocket to Net10. I have a Net10 AT&T sitting around, and I'll save about $15 a month.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
I recommend checking out the new ATT owned MVNO www.aiowireless.com

They are fully owned by ATT, making it appear as though it's meant to compete with GoSmart. The prices look reasonable if you need ATT coverage, though still higher than a comparable T-Mobile MVNO.

AIO is just in trials in a few metro areas at this point. Also, this makes me wonder if this is why the Straight Talk SIMs for ATT were eliminated.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] bobsbbq:
Hello to everyone, I have not posted here in a long time. I read through a few of the last pages and just wanted to share with you a few new benefits that Solavei users can expect in the near future. In addition to the current features and benefits, a social member of solavei will enable you to take advantage of the Solavei Retail which is coming soon. Details on this will be released to the public and media at CTIS in Las Vegas on Monday May 20th 2013. What this means is that as a Solavei member you will be able to receive discounts on goods and service at places you shop at every day. Many top brand merchants have partnered up with Solavei to make commerce less expensive for everyone. Some of the Solavei partners are Walmart, Safeway, Best Buy, Starbucks, Olive Garden, Taco Bell, Burger King, Publix, Petco, Gap, Sports Authority, Home Depot, Sams, Walgreen's, Ace Hardware, Game Stop, GNC, K-Mart, Sears, Gap, Kohls, Disney, and many more.

So if you can imagine the amount of money you can save by getting discounts at the places you shop at everyday just by being a Solavei member. Add this up over a month's or a years time and the amount you are saving is substantial.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Pkt_Lnt:
AT&T stopped Straight Talk over concerns of issues with Digital Millennium Copyright Act due to customers bringing unlocked phones whether unlocked legally or illegally.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jswede:
Never heard that, though it seems plausible. Where did you hear that?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Pkt_Lnt:
Many blogs / sites during the DMCA uproar a few months back. Google it, there are many results. This is where I started and followed links.

http://www.dslreports.com/forum/r27979934-AT-T-dropping-Straight-Talk-due-to-phone-unlocking-law-

There are many ideas, who knows for sure. Reading now, it might be roaming agreements expiring, or MVNO contacts changing, or AIO.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] jaybeeunix:
It's more likely about data limits: cf. https://net10data.com/ (Net10, like StraightTalk, is a Tracfone brand).
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Pkt_Lnt:
I'm not clear on why AT&T would stop selling Straight Talk SIM cards because Net10 caps data? Maybe I missed something here?
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] fham:
New Service Named Zact

I haven't seen this mentioned so far. A new service called Zact is up.

Their website is here: http://www.zact.com/

Their own description:

WE STARTED WITH A SIMPLE IDEA:

Let’s give people a new level of freedom, control and flexibility to personalize their wireless service right from their device.

Here is a write up on them from Androidguys: http://www.androidguys.com/2013/05/13/zact-enters-the-no-contract-fray-with-custom-built-plans/?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=email&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+androidguyscom+%28AndroidGuys%29

No info is given as to which major carrier they are an MVNO for. Plans are flexible with no contracts, depending on the customer's use.

Checked my savings using their calculator and they were marginal since I have a 4-line family plan with T-Mo with 2GB data each on 3 lines, unlimited texts and 2000 shared minutes.
[Samsung Galaxy Nexus] Pkt_Lnt:
http://www.androidpolice.com/2013/0...uy-and-use-cell-phone-service-for-the-better/