Root [MetroPCS/CDMA] SCH-i535 on Metro GSM?

[Spec2nirvash]

Hey all - a family member recently went to Metro to activate a VZW GS3 on the network. I had mentioned it's probably not gonna work, but he went in and asked anyway. Rep said absolutely no problem, somehow provisioned it, shoved a SIM into the LTE slot and sent him on his way.

The rep said LTE may take a few hours to start working, shouldn't be a problem. Well, problem. The phone will text, talk and will surf, but super slow. (Only shows edge connection)

I'm shocked it actually worked, considering Boston area Metro CDMA should have been offline for months now. But my question is, for confirmation, is this i-535 will never have working LTE right? Obviously because the phone is CDMA?

He is going back to Metro to ask what can be done; told him I doubt he'll get a refund or anything, but probably forced to buy a new phone...

Any thoughts? Thanks!

_spec

 

[confed]

The frequencies for that phone are:
"Frequencies And Data TypeLTE : Band 13 (700MHz); CDMA 1x/EVDO Rev A, Dual-band : 800/1900MHz"

With that being said, it sounds like it is picking up the EVDO Rev A. The following information was grabbed from Wikipedia:
"1900 MHz 2 GSM/GPRS/EDGE 2G In Service Most of this spectrum will/have undergone refarming for HSPA+ and/or LTE services.[67] (More Details See 4G LTE Upgrade)"

It seems as if the refarming has not yet been completed and he is still picking up the last of the Edge on the 1900 frequency. It should disappear by the end of next year although I expect it to happen sooner. I would recommend not going to the store and instead using LiveChat on the Metro website or hitting them up on Facebook/Twitter as you will be talking to someone more customer focused. I do not believe the phone will ever get Tmobile LTE. As for the Tmobile LTE on Band 12 700MHz - this may still hold true although it is almost a year old:
"There is one major obstacle, though: Digital TV Channel 51. Several of the major cities still have digital TV stations operating next to the spectrum, and within the range of the TV station, no LTE can be deployed on the Lower 700MHz A block. Most of urban California, New York, Connecticut, Michigan, Cincinnati, Indianapolis, Kansas City, and Boston cannot have LTE deployed on the spectrum because they reside in “exclusion zones” that prevent deployment until the TV stations leave channel 51."

Good luck to your family member but I'll mention it again, social media might yield the best results.

 

[Spec2nirvash]

Interesting. I was shocked to hear it actually had ANY service. I forgot to mention it comes up with a SIM error saying unknown source or something like that... Its an error that Samsung setup wizard is dumping in the notification drawer, but strangely enough the phone will not have any service without the SIM, in the LTE chip slot

I have seen Metro reps on FB give out free high end replacement phones to people who clearly do NOT deserve them due to profound stupidity... Problem is my B in law doesn't have a FB. He is gonna chance blowing up the kiosk he activated at, just waiting to hear back.

 

[killericarus]

Just to point out I'm in the metro Detroit area and metro's
Cdma is working great on my cdma s3 from metro except did the SIM card have the "Orange" instead of blue

 

[Spec2nirvash]

Just to point out I'm in the metro Detroit area and metro's
Cdma is working great on my cdma s3 from metro except did the SIM card have the "Orange" instead of blue

Blue (why I'm surprised it even makes calls)... I'm in Boston area Metro, they haven't given out the orange cards for a while, as the old CDMA network here got it's plug pulled a while back. I still haven't touched base with him about it.

I told him to drive right back to the mall where some meat stick in a MPCS kiosk told him a VZW GS3 was 100% compatible with TMO 4G, and demand an F60 or a sizable discount off of a new GS4 that actually DOES work

His patience is divine. Personally..? I'd have pushed that kiosk into an Abernathy and Crotch store with my minivan