Problem: ATT unlock code only partially unlocks Samsung SGH-A437

Hello @mrossarr,

I’m sorry to hear your SIM card is not being recognized. This would certainly prevent you from using your phone. I’ll be happy to help you get this corrected as soon as possible.

Removing the SIM card from the phone and re-inserting it again should be the first step of our troubleshooting. We have a great resource called Device Support which includes instructions on how to locate and remove the card. Please visit the link above and select your phone from the list. Then click the Tutorials tab, and on the left side select Insert SIM & memory card. Afterwards please restart the device.

I will also be sending you a private message to your Forum’s Inbox. This is to ensure the phone has been unlocked from our network, so please keep an eye out for it. I appreciate your patience, and understanding. Have a great day!

Donna, AT&T Community Specialist

@mrossarr

The phone is GSM only.  What carrier are you trying to use?   The phone will not work with Verizon, Sprint or their MVNOs

Yes, GSM only, no 3G data - EDGE only for Quad-band use. The Red Pocket SIM is labeled as ordered GSMA, for ATT network. The SIM is recognized apparently to display "Welcome to Red Pocket", and creates a menu entry for Smartchip Applications for Red Pocket ILD PIN2.

But no service, no network access - the no network icon at top of screen. Other ATT fones here are in service - so ATT network is here and working. The SIM works in another cellfone, a
ZTE smartfone. The Samsung shows a handset icon with a red-line slashed through - no network - at the top of the screen. RP says fone is locked. But it seems to me RP may be the problem, despite the SIM working in a 2013 vintage ZTE Open Firefox OS Android-clone Smartfone I have.

The SIM does not work in any other fone I have, all older 2009 vintage basic fones. Nokia 2320 Classic. Does RP have trouble serving older basic fones?

Is there an unlock problem with all ATT fones - even of a certain vintage, an era. Does ATT lock fones after discontinued service? Are there multiple locks not known?

I know about 12 potential locks for this Samsung fone, all display "inactive" when I interrogate. Are there more?

Is RP SIM activation valid? Buggy? How can I check or fix RP issues?

Does RP have the network access turned off? How? The SIM was just bought and paid for via VISA before shipment - and loaded - ready to use RP said. Just activate online via Red Pocket webpages. RP tech support could not fix the issue as soon as it was discovered, prior to ending activation. RP tech declared the fone locked.

The Best To You And Yours, Thanks, M.RossARR

Did you read everything I wrote? No. -- Yes, I know it is 2G, as I wrote before - it is not 3G, it is EDGE - 2G only. But that I understand is data only. I would expect it to work as a GSM voice fone, irrelevant the data network. And RP was asked and replied they could support the fone once unlocked. They were given the IMEI number to verify, and I checked their webpage verify service. So I unlocked it, here via ATT - an ATT unlock code was provided! And the process reported Restriction Disabled. And further interrogation reports Not Personalized - so it is supposed to be totally unlocked on 12 different locks the fone reports on. Are there more locks than 12? Is the GSM part of the fone also dead as a result of 3G data network shutdown? This is a quad-band fone to boot. Edge 2G is only the data portion. Am I misinformed?

I made a typo in my previous post about 3G network shutdown, it is 2G, irrelevant now.

I did not understand why you were telling me about unlocking ATT fones, I thought I covered that - these fones were unlocked here via ATT codes, only one fone failed with a Code Error - which at this point is moot.

And yes, I am aware RP is only selling network time on other networks like Tracfone does. Lots of those services today. Only 4 networks exist, if you call Sprint a network at all.

But, thanks to you, I am now aware ATT 2G GSM voice network is shutdown. I Did Not Know That! I am surprised. I thought only the 2G Data networks were shutdown. That issue needs exposed more to stop unlocking fones for use via third party SIM cards. I doubt T-Mobile will last long now anyway, for several reasons - like Sprint merger. But so it is.

And that kills both Samsung And Nokia fones I am dealing with, lest they can be flashable or hardware upgraded reasonably. I doubt that. So forget it. Thanks for that info.

I would not have tried to unlock these fones if I knew of 2G GSM shutdown. So ATT needed to warn me to avoid all of this, and causing their own agents to waste time trying to fix an impossible to fix problem.

And T-Mobile does not work down in these parts of Fla.

And I know Verizon and Sprint are mostly CDMA; though they seem into a conversion, as new Verizon and Sprint fones are split CDMA and partial GSM to support 4G and LTE networks. 

Why did ATT not tell me of the 2G shutdown in troubleshooting the problem? I am dealing with two different ATT agents to fix these unfixable problems. I told them all of this.

And why is RP selling SIM cards for ATT 2G GSM network? I cleared both Samsung and Nokia IMEI numbers with them for ATT use before attempting to buy SIMs. RP continues to be a bad service. Unreliable for several reasons. No local purchase here either; online only.

Thanks Again, Liz, you cleared it up now. It is all over unless these fones can be upgraded by the manufacturers. Doubt it. Not reasonable anyway. Not worth the cost. M.RossARR vfemail.net

That issue needs exposed more to stop unlocking fones for use via third party SIM cards.

 

 

Theres no real reason to stop people from unlocking their phones, just because 2g doesnt wok on att doesnt mean 2g is down everywhere.

So ATT needed to warn me to avoid all of this, and causing their own agents to waste time trying to fix an impossible to fix problem.

They more than likely didnt know RP is using only att towers, they are not owned by att. Atts responsibility is unlocking the phone, not working with another company to insure products work on other companies. 

> I’m not sure why you involved ATT when you bought RP service.  

Because RP would/could not unlock the fones, and insisted they be unlocked. I asked if they needed to be unlocked, RP said yes. RP checked the IMEI on all 3 fones, and approved them. When the SIM failed to work, RP tech said fone was locked. That brought me here to find out if another lock was involved. I received an email from RP, they will refund the SIM/service cost. I did not ask, just pointed out what they did in approving the fones. I did not know if the fones could be used or not. ATT agreed to unlock them, only one Nokia fone had CODE ERROR, irrelevant now.

> Att has no reason not to unlock 2G phones if possible.   They assume you are going

> elsewhere for service.  Where is not their business, and I doubt they care if your not their

> customer. Many place in the world  still have 2G. 

ATT is glad to be rid of them. I tried to reactivate one of the Nokia 2320s last August/Sept, and ATT refused without notice why; (ATT: "Do not recognize IMEI number" or something). I used the automated service, no voice contact. That should have been the warning to me something was wrong, but I never thought 2G voice was dead.

> US carriers are shutting down 2G because most people want faster data and smartphones,

> not flip phones.  

I read recently there is a demand growing for older designs, flip-fones and other. People are tired of complicated toys - with complications just to make a quick call or send a quick text. High speed not required to talk or send text. And why is it most all government agents use Blackberry? Well other than security? They want a real keyboard to type on. Touch screens are junk. And Androids are like Hemorrhoids, a pain in the ars.

> 5G is already working in select areas and should be fully deployed in 2 years.  

Expect 5G fones for sale soon. And Richard Branson of Virgin Communications EU is putting up space craft and satelites for cheap fone/data service, soon I read.

> There are plenty of 3G flip phones.  There are even 4g LTE flip phones. 

Yup, but I am looking for a qwerty kb, flip-down, slide-out, something. I see a few nice, but some too limited. None seem to offer a trackpoint. And few can run Linux, ARM is not good, X86 needed. I want to chose what software I use. Ubuntu is on to it.

Thanks again. Ross