Quote:
Originally Posted by Tplane37
I was under the impression that unlocking the SIM would allow my Sprint RhodiumW with the factory provided Sprint SIM Card to improve it's reception while in Global mode by using signal provided from GSM towers/satellites in the US. I did not expect to be able to run 100% in GSM mode on another carriers network without having to pay (as it seems some folks had thought). I thought it had something to do with the Global Alliance (or whatever it's called where the various carriers let customers from other carriers "piggy back" off their towers...like a Sprint customer roaming on a Verizon tower). I thought GSM had a similar setup.
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GSM does have a similar setup, but Sprint does not have roaming agreements with ATT US or TMO US. Basically, if you put the Sprint SIM in any GSM phone you're not going to lock onto a tower inside the US. The Sprint roaming agreements only come into play with foreign carriers.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Tplane37
So, since I have a Sprint RhodiumW, I am a Sprint customer with a Sprint SIM Card installed, I have no plans on obtaining cellular service from T-Mobile, AT&T, or any other GSM carrier in order to use their services. Does this pretty much mean that I had absolutely no reason to run the SIM Unlocker? Now that all is said and done, did I end up with anything from this other than the piece of mind knowing that I have donated as planned, and just happened to get a new app to play with for 10 minutes? What did I gain?
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If you only plan on using Sprint as your carrier you did not gain anything in the way of service options. You will NOT use any GSM towers in the US with the Sprint SIM. What you did gain is the ability to flash custom radio ROMs to the device.
By default, the stock Sprint radio only has support for GSM 900/1800 (Euro bands) even though the hardware supports GSM 850/900/1800/1900. When you flash Oli's WU radio to the Sprint TP2 it re-enables support for GSM 850/1900 (NA bands).
The reason that Sprint disabled the (NA bands) is because the Sprint TP2 (unlike the VZW TP2) is SIM unlocked from the factory. The VZW TP2 ships with full band support, but it is SIM locked from the factory.