Teacher
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17 Messages
Why is ATT disabling visual voicemail on Pixel phones?
So my girlfriend just got her brand new pixel 3, unlocked straight from google. We have friends who are on Verizon who also did the same (went the unlocked route, and bought directly from google as well.)
However, in the dialer app, we noticed something strange: our friends phones had a dedicated tab for visual voicemail; my girlfriends phone did not.
The only option we have is to download att's proprietary visual voicemail application...even though google builds visual voicemail in natively into android, much like apple does with the iphone.
If i bought an unlocked iphone, apple's visual voicemail solution would still be accessible to us. In fact, I know it is, because I've purchased and used unlocked iphones in the past on my account without any sort of barrier to using that portion of the phone....the option to enable visual voicemail on her pixel is totally missing from her phones options, which means that its being disabled based upon the sim that's currently inserted into the phone.
I have a well over 200 dollar phone bill with att.....and I'm kinda starting to get the gist of whats going on here, but I'd like to see if there is solution to the problem...I mean for that price, or any price, does it not make sense that if we spend money on a device that we get to use its built in capabilities?
Why is att going out of their way to disable this? Where do i sign to get that ban lifted? And is there any reasoning behind that decision, outside of wanting unnecessary amounts of control on android devices on att's network? (because they certainly don't take the same approach to iphones)
pgrey
Master
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3.5K Messages
5 years ago
@eldaino Yeah, if you get a GV number, and use it to forward to, for VM, it'll work near-perfectly.
Not only is the mechanism dead-consistent (as long as you have *some* kind of data connectivity), but the translation part works a lot better, to-boot.
With the ATT VVM app, I can VERY rarely simply go to it, after a call, and see the VVM part. I usually have to open it, refresh, wait a bit, sometimes refresh again, and then if everything lines up, I get some halfway-decent text.
It's easier just to call and retrieve my messages, in most cases.
It's hard to get a number now though, in our 3 surrounding area-codes, they've been eaten-up by all kinds of VOIP providers, of "varying types" ;-]
I used my original GV number for a "part time Fi device", and still regret it. Sure I could get a GV number in some random AC, I just don't want to, so I need to "queue up" again for a local one (hopefully I can still get another one, under the service-agreement).
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Mikebosco28
Tutor
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4 Messages
5 years ago
them. Pixel was not made for AT&T. If you only have used AT&T you're
missing out.
I switched to AT&T for business reasons and regret it. Going to take my 200
phones back to Verizon to for the Pixel experience.
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GLIMMERMAN76
ACE - Expert
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23.8K Messages
5 years ago
The pixel 3 works just fine on att as does the pixel 3a.. all advanced features work like they should
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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113.1K Messages
5 years ago
We have a pixel 3 xl on each Verizon and At&t network. Sorry, disagree, it’s a tie. Actually, I don’t get VVM at all as verizon prepaid doesn’t allow call forwarding. In other ways the phone works perfectly on both networks.
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Mikebosco28
Tutor
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4 Messages
5 years ago
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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113.1K Messages
5 years ago
So what? It still works.
Considering it doesn’t work at all for me on Verizon prepaid, with zero work around, big whoop. At least With At&t prepaid you can forward to google voice.
I don’t get the objection to At&t VVM app. I only have to push one thing to open It. Bingo. All VM are right there. I dislike having to open an app and then push things, making a one step into 2 steps. It was actually a turn off to branded phones for me. The At&t app may not be pretty, but it works. And the app still has transcription.
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DrewLucey
Tutor
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4 Messages
5 years ago
Objections to the AT&T VVM app?
1. It's a separate app (it's a gripe, but any company that ignores user preferences will, in the long run, fail).
2. The interface is dated and slow to load. It looks like something designed for the iPhone 3G.
3. All messages stop playing after 3 seconds and then must be resumed
4. Transcription accuracy is horrendous
5. iPhone and Windows Phone users can get this feature integrated on unlocked devices not sold by AT&T, but Android BYOD customers can't?!
6. Notifications only provide message counts as opposed to the individual messages
7. Notifications do not consistently pop when there are new messages
8. It's needlessly substituting system functionality with a poorer experience than the stock experience
You're not required to agree with those of us who want AT&T to get out of our software and just focus on being a competent service provider, but you're just trolling if you can't understand why we would so adamantly want AT&T to give us the option to use a feature that is built in to stock Android (not just Pixel phones)
@ATTCares does not care, so I will be surprised if this does ever get addressed, but that won't stop me from campaigning to not be saddled with subpar experiences. Yes, I could jump ship and go with another carrier, but I've been with AT&T for nearly 2 decades and have a billing plan that works far better for me than anything I can get as a new customer with another company. So until I get truly fed up with AT&T (which I have come very close to over the past year or so), I am going to keep pushing to get the best experience I can out of them.
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Mikebosco28
Tutor
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4 Messages
5 years ago
2 and get back to us. AT&T VVM app is a joke.
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GLIMMERMAN76
ACE - Expert
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23.8K Messages
5 years ago
VVM is not that big of deal sorry its just not. If you want a real VVM you need iPhones. Sorry to say they just work. Also remember the pixel series is now on Tmobile sprint and USCC.
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formerlyknownas
ACE - Sage
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113.1K Messages
5 years ago
I’m paying $45 ($48 with tax) for 15 gigs, just to get the coverage from Verizon that I sometimes don’t with AT&T. Not willing to double the payout just for VVM.
If Verizon could match AT&T for my family plan, I would switch back. They lost me in 2014 when they wouldn’t let me switch all my out of contract lines to the new, cheaper More everything plan, unless I bought all new phones with installments. A policy they were forced to change in a few months when the exodus to At&t cost them half a million connections in less than a quarter.
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