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Trip report: Verizon > Cricket I was grandfathered on unlimited Verizon data, and yes I was in the top tier of users screw all y'all I used to suck down 50 gigs a month all the time (makes various rude gestures). But the overall plan came out to $100+ and screw that. So I wanted if possible to stay on unlimited data, and I thought I'd try to see if the Sprint and Verizon were abiding by the various federal rulings telling them they need to stop locking devices and AHAHHA okay sorry. Back to reality. Cricket online service is balls. I started an order, they said they were having some kind of an outage, so my order broke halfway. They had put a $0 hold on my card to verify it, but I got no emails, no tracking numbers, nothing. Disappeared into the ether. I called reps a few times over a few days, my order was still ethereal but they had it somewhere because they could pull up my info. Went to a store, took them maybe 5 minutes to unlock my phone, toss in the SIM, and I was up and running. Haven't had any issues since. Cricket is badass, get Cricket, although I highly recommend you find a store and just have them do all the legwork for you. If your online order goes through it's totally painless, but that's an if. ...I still haven't heard back on that online order.
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Jun 17, 2015 20:47
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nimper posted:MMS straight up will not work without a data connection. Loophole on some carriers: MMS can work on 2g if you can toggle that on, and a lot of places will give you unlimited* 2g. Thankfully newer phone OSs locked out that feature. I assume just because.
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Jun 19, 2015 21:35
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nimper posted:Android 5.1 lets you select your network preference. And don't those places give you unlimited data at 2G speeds? i.e. you'd stay connected to the LTE network; you'd just get throttled to 2G speed after you hit your "high speed" data cap. Huh. Looks like I'm on 5.0. Shrug.
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Jun 19, 2015 22:01
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nimper posted:Maybe you're not looking for it in the right place? Settings> Wireless & Networks> More... > Cellular networks > Preferred network type Totally different menus on my device, although maybe that's Samsung? Only options on my phone are Global, LTE/CDMA, etc.
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Jun 19, 2015 23:07
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Massasoit posted:I don't think cricket if throttling me down to the 128kbps after hitting my cap - I ran speedtest and I was at 1.68 mbps up/4.38 down. I've heard people say they throttle you based on demand and only "promise" 2g speed after the cap. Zero evidence beyond anecdotal. I know EDGE 2g can pull up to 500k or but don't know if they use it?
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Jun 25, 2015 00:02
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chocolateTHUNDER posted:Just a heads up for anyone on cricket or any other ATT based MVNO: ATT seems to be having some pretty major issues right now in the tri-state area. I'm having trouble sending texts and receiving phonecalls, and the down detector map on their website shows a giant red angry blog hovering over the area. Note that conspiracy theory nuts are out in full force: http://resistancejournals.com/2015/07/15/breaking-cell-service-blackouts-as-jade-launches/ So there may be a whole lot of really stupid people trying to hammer ATT's network so that they can make it a self-fulfilling prophecy. "ATT is down? Hold on let me call everyone I know who has ATT and tell them to chug data as hard as they can."
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Jul 16, 2015 21:20
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ThermoPhysical posted:What the gently caress...why do you know about this website? Nope, but I'm in a satirical group with a lot of reformed conspiracy nuts, so we can have a good laugh over these things. e: \/ http://www.subgenius.com/pam1/pamphlet_p1.html revdrkevind fucked around with this message at 17:09 on Jul 17, 2015 |
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Jul 17, 2015 15:19
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sweetmercifulcrap posted:So I'm currently with Virgin Mobile. I purchased an iPhone 5 through them a while ago - they had a decent deal on them - without considering the fact that they might have the phone locked to Sprint (which Virgin Mobile uses). I'm trying to switch to Cricket since it's a better deal and the consensus seems to be that they're pretty decent. I'd like to still use my iPhone 5 for a little longer with Cricket (it's A1429 so its compatible with CDMA and GSM), but I need to have the phone unlocked. I tried calling Virgin's customer service and they had no idea what I was talking about because their customer service is absolutely horrible. Any ideas on what I could do? Of course customer service reps don't always know or follow the laws but... Federal law says pre-paid carriers must be granted unlocks in order to provide service, so long as you're not currently under contract and so on. So Cricket can probably do it for you, if possible go into a store and have them do it. Carriers were also supposed to abide by this but in my experience they "just so happened" not to tell their customer service reps and/or assume nobody will sue them but you can try: https://community.virginmobile.com.au/t5/Phones-knowledge-base/How-to-unlock-your-phone-or-modem/ta-p/82 Verizon and Sprint both tried to say they couldn't unlock my phone. Cricket just asked my info and did it.
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Jul 17, 2015 18:46
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SB35 posted:Ah yes, I meant requesting a carrier unlock. The sellers on eBay sure, but I wouldn't go to an AT&T shop asking them to unlock my Sprint phone. They'd just look at me stupid and tell me to go to a Sprint store. ...even though any pre-paid seller can do this no problem. ...and AT&T is one.
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Jul 17, 2015 20:19
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Geoj posted:They are just repeaters, you don't provision them...I think the FCC just requires that you notify your carrier that you'll be operating one in case it causes interference. If you don't "register" it with your carrier you're probably just in breach of FCC regulations. There is no requirement to register but: FCC posted:Someone contacted me and said I have to shut down my booster because it’s causing interference. What should I do?
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Jul 20, 2015 21:41
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nimper posted:At the $45 level you would want either Cricket or Straight Talk's 5GB LTE plan. Wow. The only thing AT&T's prepaid has over cricket is rollover data. At a cost of $15+ more. And AT&T owns Cricket
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Jul 23, 2015 23:31
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FAUXTON posted:As I've said before, Cricket's overage cap speeds are better than Sprint's 3G speeds. Upgrades exist which can take AT&T's EDGE network all the way up to (technical, like half a meg), although it's not deployed everywhere, and the carrier could choose to throttle it. It would be interesting to see real-world speed results. Either way 128k is perfectly fine for streaming "good enough" quality audio thanks to modern CODECs. Massasoit posted:Yep. I didn't do a good job at getting my point across - even going past the high speed data limit, the slower speed is good for most things that aren't streaming, so the 8mbit limit should be more than enough for most people, unless you are a fringe case and need faster internet on your phone than I have at my house. The only thing that pisses me off is the stupid firmware on my phone won't let me turn off 3g, otherwise I could queue it up as needed and essentially have unlimited internet anytime. I've randomly used my phone for, for example, tethering due to a worksite where the internet is impossible. Having several gigs available at a moment's notice is a good thing, although yes, using 128k most of the time is perfectly fine. I need to try rooting this again sometime...
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Jul 26, 2015 04:31
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peterjmatt posted:Yup, it's ATT branded. Are folks with carrier-free devices receiving OTA updates on Cricket? https://wiki.cyanogenmod.org/w/D800_Info Semi-seriously.
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Aug 13, 2015 17:04
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chocolateTHUNDER posted:Yes, carrier-free devices receive updates when they're pushed from the device manufacturer, not the carrier. My second Gen Moto G (for example) got the 5.0 update much before the cricket branded version did. While yes you will still (generally, based on reasons) get OTA updates on Cricket or any other prepaid carrier (as if the big carriers are good about pushing out updates anyway), if you're going to jump into the deep end of owning owning a non-contract phone for the purposes of throwing off the shackles of the oppressive Military-Carrier Complex, do consider Cyanogenmod or some other ROM. At least root your phone and get any bloatware off, where applicable. This has been your regular update from the People's Wireless Liberation Front. If you're just prepaid because it's easy/cheap, probably disregard.
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Aug 13, 2015 19:31
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:Can you buy the sim cards at Walmart by themselves? Yes, and Gamestop. Oddly.
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Aug 14, 2015 17:43
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IuniusBrutus posted:I dig around a little online, find a number to call, and they activate it without any fee. FWIW I think my old attempt to activate might still be in a system somewhere from like two months ago. If possible find a store and have them just do it.
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Aug 17, 2015 16:25
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Stupid_Sexy_Flander posted:How does one go about figuring out what service covers what area? You have to just try those phones, or ask people what they use. My parents live in an area where (local area name Wireless) is an AT&T reseller, and they get the only cell reception you can possibly get in the area, but my Cricket phone gets nothing there.
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Sep 14, 2015 14:27
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Massasoit posted:I seem to be having an issue with texts/mms on cricket going back a few days. Anyone else? I'm in Boston. Yeah I'm fooling with APN settings, but may be a network issue. I can text/data, but no MMS specifically. If I find a setting that's better I'll post. On the other hand, literally every combination I can find on the reputable sites (Tomshardware) still connects and transmits data/text without issue, so the network seems fairly robust so far as that bit goes.
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Oct 29, 2015 14:32
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Saint Fu posted:I'm miraculously having no issues right now (also on Cricket) but go through periods of terrible MMS send/receive reliability. Out of curiosity can you grab your APN settings? Not that I expect it would make a difference. FISHMANPET posted:Got my 2 Cricket Nano sims yesterday, it took about 5 seconds for my cricket service to switch from the old sim to the new one. Put in the port request to port my wife's Straight Talk number, still waiting. Thankfully we've got new phones along with the new sims so she can just carry both phones until it works. Was really hoping it would be fast, because as it turns out today is her last day of ST service but I have a feeling I'm going to be paying for another month of it. By "put in a port request" do you mean you get a Cricket rep to talk to a Straight Talk rep? Otherwise, you may want to reconsider whether your request actually exists. In my experience anyway. e: Not this carrier, just generally speaking, lots of times doing things myself would hang but reps can knock it out in no time. If the reps aren't idiots, which Cricket tend not to be. I had a Verizon rep look at a refurb phone with obvious defects in the screen and hair trapped under the Quality Control sticker tell me the refurb unit is fine there's nothing they can do.
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Oct 29, 2015 17:34
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Syrinxx posted:Didn't work for me, but didn't break anything either. Saint Fu posted:Also didn't work, also didn't break anything. So either my phone is an rear end, or Cricket APN settings barely matter... hm... Is it a Cyanogen problem? I've been noticing accumulating issues, and I'm many builds behind. Been thinking about updating.
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Oct 29, 2015 19:50
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Cricket MMS woes: Seems like the Cricketwireless.net addresses are working again. Finally cycled through the usual suspects again today and this one stuck.
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Nov 15, 2015 02:03
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hitachi posted:I currently have 2 lines with Verizon and am looking to cut down on my bill. Top choice at the moment is the Cricket 5GB plan. I kind of want the ability to hotspot, not sure if that makes Cricket worse than one of the alternatives. My wife has an iPhone 5S which I think I can just make sure gets unlocked and then switch no problem, but I have a Droid Maxx so I would need to get a new phone. I am probably going to get a Moto X Pure or Nexus 6P eventually but in the meantime I was looking at the low end phones Cricket is offering for free after rebate. Random points: Root your phone and you can hotspot/tether on almost any service except when Verizon goes ridiculously illegal and keeps finding new ways to block it after every court decision telling them to stop, FoxFi/PDANet rules. I don't think there's anything especially locking your Droid Maxx, and as of ~February the carriers are legally required to unlock phones. Cricket (and other MVNO-type-services) will unlock pretty much anything that can be unlocked. The Moto E/G are amazing phones. Really good for the price, easily rooted, I'm running Cyanogen. Lovely experience all around.
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Nov 22, 2015 05:33
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There needs to be a giant neon sign outside the door of all the major carriers how they're legally required to unlock phones. I was told by both Sprint and Verizon that they wouldn't unlock phones recently, and my parents just had a similar issue with a Verizon carrier. Insane. The nice thing is if you buddy up to the people at a Cricket/MVNO kiosk you could probably get them to unlock your phone for you just out of spite. whatever7 posted:Check out the Moto G4 if you still can get it with the 50 Amazon discount. I am very satisfied w mine. True unlocked phone, work on all 4 carriers and MVNO. Quick review: Phone is magic. I'm finding it to be curiously deficient in games, like it sometimes exhibits a fraction of the power it should have. The one speaker is weak crap, but it works for normal use. I feel like back when I flirted with a Galaxy S5, which it's fairly close to in specs. My parents live in a Verizon-only-MVNO area so being able to switch between Cricket and Verizon makes me feel almost like I live in a place there phones aren't controlled by science fiction megacorporations. Highly recommended.
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Aug 10, 2016 21:20
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hotsauce posted:Sure, that's the requirement. I still don't know how TMobile requires you to use the phone on their network for 40 (?) days before they will unlock. You pay full price for the phone at the register, own it outright, and TMobile still somehow needs a month of revenue out of your before they will unlock. Parting punishment? Seems pretty sketchy. 100% illegal. Any MVNO could probably unlock you in a few minutes. Unless the claim the credit is clearing so there's a financial issue?
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Aug 11, 2016 17:05
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hotsauce posted:I don't know how they get away with it, but they won't budge. It's sketchy AF. It literally took an act of Congress(*) to give Americans the right to unlock their cell phones. The carriers will do anything to screw you. (*Claim may be slightly overblown but not by much.)
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Aug 11, 2016 19:37
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Rastor posted:But I guess for that certain consumer that insists they will never, ever, use anything other than a flip phone... It's silly if you can't T9 to type or whatever, but there are markets (in the third-and-developing world, and also rural America) where only having the touchscreen for the rare dalliance into web browsing or app usage isn't crazy. Like can you WhatsApp with it? That's all some people want.
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Oct 6, 2016 15:08
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whatever7 posted:These kind of phones only work in gold trim. Waiwaiwai it has a touchscreen on the outside too?
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Oct 17, 2016 19:51
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whatever7 posted:That's how the Japanese roll (because they don't own personal computers.) Huh. It was interesting watching the new Mechanic movie recently, basically Chinese The Transporter where they actually got Jason Statham. He opens his secret getaway bag, and it's full of clamshell phones. And all the secret spy people all have really souped-up clamshell phones that have real-time video feeds on the screen.
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Oct 17, 2016 20:26
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Audax posted:What's the cheapest I can get away with to grab a new cell phone number that I can just load up for $10-20, get my text messages I need - and just keep the number? I'm not interested in having a monthly plan with this number, just maybe a handful of minutes and some messages. Like a burner phone, basically? Or just a SIM to swap? Either way, literally anything in this thread will work. I think a lot of people are too used to being screwed by the big carriers- in prepaid land, saying "I just want a cheap plan without having to do any work" is actually the standard way things happen. I think T-Mobile is GSM network too, so you can use pretty much any non-Verizon carrier out there. Meaning pretty much anything in thread is fine for you. So the Freemium guy just before you posted some options if you want dirt-dirt cheap. Or yeah adding a line at T-Mobile is probably easiest if you already go to a shop when you refill. Cricket starts at $30 for unlimited talk and text and is highly recommended all around, no contract, etc. Pick an option that looks cool, do a search to make sure they say your phone is compatible (or that they have a free phone that you like, if this is a burner), and you're done.
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Dec 7, 2016 22:36
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cbirdsong posted:I've found a phone repair places usually have a tool to cut a SIM cards down to smaller sizes. General point that might be useful for anyone who didn't realize it. The shiny bit of the sim card is seriously all that matters (well and the almost microscopically thin bit behind it). You can just cut a sim card with scissors although be sane, use an Xacto or have someone who knows what they're doing handle it for you. In some places they manufacture the important bit on a sticker so you can just put that on an appropriately-sized mule. Point being, yes literally it's just a question of lining up the contacts inside the slot so don't worry about different sized sim cards. Even if the shop didn't have a press, you could whittle down your sim card with nail clippers if it was a matter of urgency. You can shim up a smaller card with paper if you're an insane hobo, whatever.
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Dec 19, 2016 17:25
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cage-free egghead posted:Tomorrow Cricket is upping their data allotment for plans. This takes me from thinking Cricket is the best general-purpose MVNO, to Cricket being almost suspiciously better than its competition. I watch a ton of YouTube videos on my phone and so long as I switch the basically-podcasts to 144p / turn the screen off with Red I don't have to worry about data even on the 5gb. 8 is going to be a lot of leg room.
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Jan 30, 2017 16:18
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EugeneJ posted:Consumer Reports has their annual ratings for cell plans out: Gut reaction is that this is in the ballpark when comparing one carrier to another. A little confused with the overall workup though, as trying to replicate my Cricket plan on Ting would cost infinite dollars. Looking at only my current data and my usual text/voice usage is like $100/mo compared to $45 w/ autopay on Cricket. People on contract plans seems to have very low expectations / not know the grass is greener.
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Feb 7, 2017 17:02
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Cricket: Did you do it online or in person? I did it in person, and my new phone was working before I left the mall kiosk.mAlfunkti0n posted:Understood, but this is AT&T to AT&T basically. Oh one of the big three carriers is refusing to be sensible? How odd. /sarcasm Getting a Big Three carrier to let you go the first time is often a hassle. Verizon was still claiming they didn't have to unlock numbers, and Sprint prepaid claimed it was illegal to switch carriers, before I got Cricket to do mine. Once your number is free, you'll never have that problem again. Google Voice is better at freeing numbers, as is going to a reputable mall kiosk where the guy can "call his friend" who will fix your number.
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Feb 27, 2017 16:20
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sweart gliwere posted:It's been years since I've used a smartphone that didn't have tethering baked-in to the OS as a standard feature. I don't plan to switch from T-Mobile to Cricket, but I'm curious since the topic's raised. All I know is FoxFi was blocked when I tried it once. Haven't looked for workarounds because it's not a big issue for me.
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Mar 2, 2017 17:39
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