How to Use the Motorola Droid Turbo on Other Carriers (Video)
If you are looking at Verizon users with envy because you really want a Motorola Droid Turbo, there’s a way to make that green-eyed monster quieter. Even though Verizon got the exclusivity on the Motorola Droid Turbo, it doesn’t mean you can’t use it on another carrier. In fact, most Verizon devices nowadays don’t even need to be unlocked, simply put in a new SIM and it’ll just start working.
With that said, there are a few points to note (like how to setup the internet to work after you do put the other SIM in, what carriers will work with it vs what won’t, etc.). So here’s a quick video walkthrough of purchasing the new Droid Turbo for the lowest price possible, putting in your new carrier’s SIM, and how to set everything up to work properly.
I. Purchase the Motorola Droid Turbo
To begin with, you’re probably going to need the phone. You can either purchase it directly from Verizon and pay full price or search Craigslist/eBay for a used version and save some money and hassle (with just needing more patience).
1. Head to Verizon’s Site and click on the version of the Droid Turbo you want to buy.
2. Select full price from the options to the right of the device and click Add to Cart.
3. Click Continue.
4. Click Decline Equipment Protection and click Continue.
5. Click View Single Line Plans on the right side.
6. Select the lowest priced plan here ($60) and click Continue.
7. Ignore the extra features page and click Continue.
8. Ignore the Add Accessories page and click Continue to Cart.
9. Click Checkout and follow the prompts to pay, sign up, choose a number (make sure to get a new number and not port your current one), etc.
10. Pick up the device at a store or wait for it to arrive in the mail.
II. Use a Different Carrier
For other devices, you’d have to purchase an unlock code, but since Verizon stopped locking their devices, there’s no need.
1. After the device has been activated on Verizon, put your finger nail under the volume rocker and pull it off to reveal the SIM card tray.
2. Take out the Verizon SIM and put in your SIM (again, this will work with any GSM carrier).
3. After a while you should see signal on the phone. If you don’t, go to Settings > More > Mobile Networks > Preferred Network Type > Select LTE / GSM / UMTS.
III. Setup the Internet and MMS
Since the device isn’t meant to be used with any other carriers, you’ll have to setup the internet settings manually.
1. Go to my Internet/MMS Settings page, choose your country, then choose the carrier you are using to be presented for the settings you’ll need to input.
2. On the Droid Turbo, go to Settings > More > Mobile Networks > Access Point Names.
3. Tap the three dots at the top right then Add New.
4. Insert the information into the appropriate fields that you got from the internet settings page.
5. Tap the three dots at the top right and click Save.
6. Tap the dot next to the APN you just created to select it.
7. Open the internet browser and make sure you can access a website.
IV. Cancel Verizon (if you bought it from them)
Now, you just need to cancel the Verizon account you started (you might need to wait until AFTER the 14 day trial period to cancel or they might just ask for the phone back).
1. Call (800) 922-0204 and tell them you’d like to cancel the monthly contract you are on. You should be billed for no more than the first month’s bill (approx. $60).
And there you go, you paid a little over $660 for the brand new phone you wanted and got the carrier you preferred or even less if you bought it used on Craigslist or eBay. Not bad considering a Nexus 6 is about the same after taxes etc.
Hope that helps some people!
If you want to use this phone with T-Mobile make sure it has all wireless bands that TMO offers in your area.
Think I said that in the video, no? 🙂
David,
What if I ask one of my Verizon friends to buy that phone for a full price (that way I don’t have to pay that $60.00 monthly price) would that work?
That might work but I’m not entirely sure since I didn’t do it that way. Ask your friend to see if they’ll let him buy it (they’ll force him to activate it in his account though, so hell have to call back in and activate his normal phone after).
Thank you
Is the “After the device has been activated on Verizon” part required? I was thinking of ordering the turbo on a family members plan (currently on an iphone), and immediately using it on another carrier without disrupting their service (I was going to order the phone online, and just never activate it for them).. or would I have to activate it, then re-activate their old phone, then take the turbo…
You can try, but usually a Verizon device won’t let you get to the home screen without activation (although maybe that has changed?).
Dang I had almost talked a coworker into getting the Droid so I could test with my SIM prior to biting the bullet but at the last minute he opted for a ’14 X instead (which I also love — but that darn battery…)
I got mine off of Amazon. The activation failed but it let me use the phone anyway.
if i did this and took the phone to T-Mo, what would that mean for getting updated to Android 5?
Anyone know the answer to this? I’ve been trying to figure this one out myself…
This shouldn’t affect it, unless you’re rooting and romming, as you’re only breaking the carrier lock. I guess the big question is when that will actually happen…
Has anyone else tried this?
This method also works with a sim European Union ( Italy )
Thanks for reporting back that it worked!
Sorry,this is a question!
Ha. Sorry.
Yes it should but as I mentioned in the video be sure to check what frequencies your carrier uses to make sure you get LTE/4G etc.
The video is great! You think it would work in the Chicago area?
Also, any rumors on an unlocked version?
Thanks! And yes it should work but again you’d have to check it out for yourself. And no, at the moment, this seems like the only way for now.
Let me know if you do it and it works!
Yes, I believe that with other Verizon phones, unless they had a Verizon sim inside them, then software updates would not go through. Is this the case?
Hey David,
I tried it with T-Mobile. I get network but not internet at all. Tried all possible APNs, but nothing. Please help ASAP, as if this doesn’t solve then I’ll have to return the phone in next 14 days. Thanks in advance.
Made a silly error. Works just fine. Thank You. 🙂
Ha OK glad you got it to work!
Hi,
Worked fine for me. You need to make sure you put in the APN from my site in the Internet MMS section I link to. Did you do that one? Also did you make sure to select the icon next to it after saving it (it should show as selected after that) and did you restart the phone and turn airplane mode off and on?
Buzz,
I am also in T-mo. Are you able to connect to 4G LTE under T-mo or 3G H+ (what T-mo used to call 4G)? THanks
Hey David,
I’m using the phone since 2 days with T-Mobile 4G LTE. I’m experiencing heavy battery drain for some reason. Charged to 100% last night at 8.50 pm and now at 2pm it’s 8% only. I hardly used the phone for anything. The battery just ran out overnight when it was just on stand by. Any idea why this is happening? Can it be because of the carrier change or something?
Thanks in Advance. 🙂
Hmm. Shouldn’t effect it. You might want to try it with the Verizon SIM for a day and see if it changes with that to narrow it down.
Okay. I see that you have used this phone with T-Mobile network. How long did your phone last approximately?
I only used it for a few minutes to confirm it worked on the network so couldn’t tell you.
Oh okay. Thank you.
I’m going to be heading to India for about 3 months and my intention was to bring this phone as it’ll be a much better camera than I can afford and seems to be an all around great device. If I purchased insurance from VZW when getting this phone- I’m quite sure the salesman that helped me said he was putting it on because it’s a $600 phone- Will it affect my use of a local GSM card while in India? Or shall I just make sure the frequencies of the providers over there are the same and follow the steps you listed? Thanks for your help and for the video, it helped a lot when VZW was only telling me about the $1.99 a minute Global bogus they have.
The insurance won’t effect the phone itself at all. Its just for if you lose it you can pay a deductible to Verizon to get a new one. For that to work though, you need to keep Verizon for the entire time you have the phone (not sure if you are canceling Verizon or just going to keep them while you travel to India, for example, if you are coming back and use Verizon anyway while in the US).
As far as it working in India, it will BUT double check the frequencies to make sure you get 3G/4G (LTE) etc before you go.
Glad I could help!!
Sounds great thanks, what exactly should I use to make sure? Is there a specific chart that’s used and if so could you direct me to it? Also, if it only has the 3G frequency that the droid has will I notice a drastic difference? Not necessarily needing it to be super fast speeds in India.
So long as it has HSPA you’ll be fine, but LTE is always nice.
Motorola’s Specs on it http://www.motorola.com/us/droid-turbo-pdp.html#specs-droid-turbo-us
And here’s a good site for frequencies, but please contact the carrier and confirm before you go – http://www.uniquetechnologies.net/international-3g-4g-data-networks/
Know this isn’t totally connected but heading to India finally tomorrow and was wondering if you could comment on the type of adapter I’ll need if a converter is needed? Or does the supercharge box have dual voltage capabilities and only an adapter is needed? Don’t wanna fry the phone
I think you just use a normal adapter you’d use for any phone charger from the States. You just put it on the end of the Turbo charger and it converts the voltage before it gets to the charger itself, then the charger just works as normal (if that makes sense).
Hi Benjamin,
Did this work in India without any issues….
so did it worked in India?
Worked great with a basic 15 cent adapter you get there. Great time and it made for some really nice pictures and long battery if your settings are right
While it lacks the style and charm of the 2014 Moto X, the Droid Turbo is a powerhouse that manages to outperform its relative in nearly every way that matters. Sadly, it’s a Verizon exclusive so the rest of you (unless you live in Brazil and Mexico and buy a Moto Maxx) need not apply.
The rest need not apply? This video is all about how they absolutely can apply. Just swap the SIM card…
will this work on a moto maxx on verzion??
Um honestly not sure but it just might. Seems they don’t lock most of their phones…
Would this work with the sprint network?
In theory it should only work on GSM networks, BUT since everyone’s move to LTE, it might. Only way to know for sure is to put a Sprint SIM in and see.
Buy at full retail and choose new phone number— I’m worried about losing my current phone number from an existing line (non-smartphone and is tracfone prepaid) before buying the Droid Turbo at full retail and then going to straight talk. What would be my best plan of attack? Thanks for all the info. David.
Don’t port the number at all. Just buy it with a new number then go to straight talk to port your number and bring the phone with you. Don’t do anything with Verizon regarding your old number and you’re good to go. Does that answer the question?
Yes, thanks David. Wanted to make sure buying with a new number allows me to keep my existing phone number once I cancel monthly payment after 14 days with Verizon.
Was also curious, does one lose ability to receive updates for software on another carrier?
No you should still get it from Motorola’s servers. You can also manually update using Motorola’s tools.
Thanks very much, David.
will we still receive software updates for the phone with another carrier
I have the droid turbo – tmobile sim works and 4glte is good without adding apn, if add apn no internet, reset and it is back.
Correction – found typo – now got lte on apn, but still works fine without apn in place
While it lacks the style and charm of the 2014 Moto X, the Droid Turbo is a powerhouse that manages to outperform its relative in nearly every way that matters. Sadly, it’s a Verizon exclusive so the rest of you (unless you live in Brazil and Mexico and buy a Moto Maxx) need not apply.
What I would like to know is, If I buy this phone and want to use in India(permanently) will it work. Also will I get the android updates.
Yes and not sure about the updates. Depends on your carrier, you’d have to check with them on that.
I’m a person living in South Korea. So for Droid Turbo, I don’t have to buy a unlocked version to use it? And when you are talking about other carriers, does it mean carriers in any country or US only?
The point of this article is to illustrate the fact that you DON’T need to buy it unlocked. If you buy a Verizon one it’ll work with any GSM carrier. The BIG CAVEAT is that you need to make sure your carrier has the same 3G and LTE frequencies that the Droid Turbo uses. Otherwise, go ahead and find a factory unlocked version (but still check that’s frequencies to make sure that works for you too).
Can you change the frequency in the phone itself from 13 to 17 or is it a fixed setting ?
Unfortunately, no –it’s a hardware thing and can’t be changed.
I currently have Verizon but I’m going to be moving to Germany in about 2 months so I’ll cancel my account with Verizon right before I leave. I really want to buy this phone but will I be able to use this phone in Germany or will it just be a waste of money? I don’t need to do international calling on the phone to the US. I just want to be able to call, text message and get data just in Germany.
It should work but check to make sure the carrier you’ll be using in Germany is GSM and uses the same frequencies for LTE so you can make sure you’ll get LTE.
David I’ve got the Motorola droid turbo how ever their is a bill owed on it. But since it is still turned off can I still go get a nanno Sims card for strait talk I need a little help wondering if you could answer that question for me david
Hi there,
So not sure but I would assume that it would still work considering the phone is only blocked by Verizon. Does it still turn on can you use it but just dont have signal?
Worth a shot, maybe even ask a friend with T-Mobile or ATT if you can put their sim in your phone real quick. If it works to make a call after that then you’re good to go.
Let me know if it works, curious if it does!
Thanks
OK David thanks yes it will still come on but I can’t make a phone call or nothing but I can still use it on my WiFi at home. I went and looked at the strait talk bring your own phone package and it has a nanno Sims card with the package. But on the back it says your phone must be in good standing I’m not sure what that means do you David.
Again, put in someone else’s sim card and test it. If the phone is on it should work though.
OK thanks David I’ve got a friend that wanted me to ask you. He has the same phone but its still activated through Verizon does he have to have it disconnected from Verizon before getting a nanno Sims card and changing to a different carrier like the said his is still activated thanks again and let me know about this question David Cogen again thanks.
No. Just put in the sim and it should work. Follow the steps above and you’ll be fine.
OK thank you David so much
I’m just curios if Verizon locks them when they have to disconnect service you have any idea thanks again david
David Cohen I’ve got the Motorola droid turbo the question I have is this. Since their is a bill owing on it but it is still turned off. Can I still go get the nanno Sims card for strait talk and have it activated on strait talk. Please let me know if this can be done. Thanks for your time David.
I have this phone through Verizon and I’m wanting to switch to a straight talk instead. I don’t mind getting a new number but if I could keep it, that would be great. Could I just go by a straight talk phone and just switch the SIM card out? Thanks!
No need to buy a phone. Just buy a SIM from Straight Talk and put it in (http://www.straighttalk.com/wps/portal/home/shop/sims). It should work but as I mentioned in the article, check the frequencies etc. Good luck, let me know if it works!
hey, i was just wondering if we have to buy it full price on the website because i live in India and i was wondering if the 2 year contract will be fine. there is a huge difference in pricing, so i was just thinking if i could be a sly cooper and buy the contract version.
Won’t let you as you have to be here in the US and have credit here in the States.
but i have a way to buy it in the US and then get it shipped to India. will that work?
I’d suggest buying a used one on Ebay.
hi .can I bought a Verizon phone and bring it to iran without any pay ( just that 60 dollar ) and use it here??? or that phone expire if didn’t pay Verizon contract
I have MetroPCS and I have a Droid Turbo, after I go through the Sim changes how exactly would I keep my number with metro?
Same way your do it normally. Call the new company and tell them you’re cancelling metro pcs to switch to them and you want to keep your number and they’ll give you instructions on how. Has nothing to do with the phone though.
Sorry David what I should have said was I wanted to replace the phone I currently have with Metro with the Turbo I just got, I currently have a Galaxy Light and the Sim card is too big for the Turbo. So I was curious how after I switch the turbo’s Sim card to a metro PCs one would I be able to keep my same number or what steps would I need to take next. Thanks!
You need to go to the carrier and get a SIM ard that’ll fit in it. Then again just tell them you want to switch from the old carrier to them and keep the number. They’ll walk you through it. Again nothing to do with the phone
They told me it wasn’t compatible…
Right. Normally they’d be right but with this phone as I proved in the video, they’re wrong. Stop telling them what phone you have and just tell them you want to switch, you want to keep your number and you have your own phone. That’s it. Good luck.
Okay great thank you!
Gah. I just had this conversation with AT&T. We’re switching from Verizon because we can’t get service in Alaska (we moved from Ohio) They said unless my turbo was unlocked I couldn’t use it so I ordered the S5 but truthfully I love my Turbo and don’t want to give it up. I opted to keep my number so I don’t know if that makes a difference. The S5 hasn’t arrived yet so I’d like to know if I can definitely keep my Turbo and if I can do I have to walk the AT&T people through how to do it?
They said other carriers yes, but Verizon phones couldn’t switch to them
Hello. I have a Droid turbo and a Droid turbo 2. I tried to activate them with metro pcs but when I put the metro pcs sim in I get signal bars with an x. Getting no service. I have the apn all correct. And metro said they are able to be activated. If I use a Verizon sim I get 4g LTE signal. I don’t know what’s wrong with them
I’m running 6.0.1 on both of the phones. Aren’t they factory unlocked because they are Verizon? I’ve used other Verizon phones on metro pcs and never had a problem..
I wish I had seen this two weeks ago. I’m in Brazil and had my old HTC Rezound with me (world phone) and put in the Oi chip and it worked. Just added the APN and now says it can get data when not on wifi. Tomorrow I will try with my Droid Turbo from Verizon. Just wanted to thank you for this. I found the APN setting by googling “apn settings for brazil oi” Thanks.
Thanks for that!
Rick, I am going to Brazil this weekend and own a vzw droid turbo. What was your experience using it there?
I was able to put a Brazilian chip in it without modification. I don’t remember how text and data worked. It may require apn changes. I think you will be happy. Enjoy Brazil
Have my Turbo on T-Mobile and its working great. Also enjoying some Lollipop. Finally.
Great info. Switched my Turbo to ATT yesterday. Only question I have is, on my data, I’m getting H+, but not 4GLTE. Anything I can do about that? Or don’t worry about it?
Thanks
ATT uses slightly different frequencies than Verizon and T-Mobile for LTE so you might just be in an area that it can’t see the frequency being projected. You might see LTE pop up as you travel, but regardless shop long as the Internet feels fast enough for you on H+ then nothing to worry about.
I couldn’t find the link that shows all the different information for different characters.can you show them to me
https://theunlockr.com/internet-mms-settings/
Can you send the link that shows the different codes for different carriers
i have the droid turbo i cancled the line but i still owe like a little money to vzw will i be able to switch the droid turbo on other carriers
Theoretically… it should work.
Does this work without buying this from Verizon? I found a great deal on eBay that is $380.00 for the phone. Also, will I be able to update this phone on Metropcs?
I have a droid turbo from Verizon. Are the apn settings for cricket wireless the same as ATT? If not where can I find the APN settings for Cricket Wireless?.. Thanks David
You can find the settings here – https://theunlockr.com/internet-mms-settings
Will this process, or any other process work with the Turbo 2? Thanks
Its possible that they didn’t lock the Turbo 2, only way to tell is to just put a non-Verizon, active SIM in and see (preferably T-Mobile or AT&T).
Thanks for the reply David. I’m pretty sure it is unlocked but I’m not techy enough to be the one to blaze the trail. I’m sure someone will try it eventually and hopefully be as helpful as you have been.
That was actually confirmation for an issue that had me baffled. I own a droid Maxx from verizon and I had it on a 2 year contract, but I got a Job offer in the Dominican Republic and Verizon was Killing me down here, so I thought i needed to unlock the phone and tried to purchase an unlock code. I ran a test to see if it was even possible to unlock the phone so I inserted a Sim from a local carrier called Orange and BAM my phone worked just fine without even having to unlock it…I know that as soon as i cancel my verizon plan they’re gonna charge me a $300 ETF but for now my Droid Maxx works in the DR…this video confirms that somehow verizon is no longer locking their phones. Sweet video thanks.
Thanks! And thanks for confirming that it does work!
So weird that they aren’t locking them anymore but definitely a good thing to me 🙂
I think its’s awesome. I love my Droid tank and I’ve got it customized to go to a galaxy far far away if I need it to. Thanks again for the helpful video…um? how come The Dominican Republic does not come up on your APN list?
Ha ok glad it works! No one has ever given me the APN settings for DR. Do you have them? 🙂
Question, I watched your video and picked up a turbo yesterday and it started right up with my ST SIM. However, I am unable to send MMS pictures messages and have tried several APN settings. Any suggestions? Also, I am getting a “contact ATT… 611” message when attempting to use the WiFi hotspot. Anyway around this? The same SIM worked with hotspot on my GS6.
Do section III in the tutorial to get mms and data working (you can get the settings needed from here – https://theunlockr.com/internet-mms-settings)
As for the hotspot you need to have a plan that allows tethering that’s why it’s asking you to contact AT&T –so you can add it to your plan. Just tell them it’s an unlocked Android GSM don’t mention Verizon or they’ll get confused and tell you it won’t work but it does.
Good luck!
I tired those setting with no luck. I have found and used several APN’s found online including the “tfdata”, ” reseller”, and your “pta” option. Any other suggestions?
No that’s the only ones I know. I’d suggest simply contacting the carrier who’s SIM you are using and just ask them to help and don’t mention it’s a Verizon phone, just that it’s an unlocked GSM phone, like I mentioned above.
Also, you need to have a working data plan just in case that isn’t apparent…
It may be the messaging app you’re trying to use… If you’re using the Verizon Message+ app you won’t be able to send picture messages. Simply download another messaging app or use the default app that came with the phone.
Hi there, I have a question if someone could help. I would like to purchase the Droid Turbo 2, from the US motorola website, however i live in Australia. I was looking at the phones network specifications and trying to match it with our GSM network compatibilities, and there is a possibility it might work… Do you have any idea if it will for sure? Or am i taking a big risk in buying it? Thank you!!
Hi David…I think you answered my question, as i read through all the comments below…If the frequencies match then i think i’m good to go..is that right?
Correct. Just triple check that they match!
Awesome Thank you very much!….Would you consider this a good match? (Sorry about the questions, i just want to make sure- and you’re my best bet)
My network:
2G/GSM – 900MHz
3G/UMTS – 2100MHz, 900MHz, 850MHz
4G/LTE – 1800MHz, 850MHz
Motorola Droid2turbo:
CDMA (850, 1900MHz)
GSM / GPRS / EDGE (850, 900, 1800, 1900 MHz)
UMTS / HSPA+ (850, 900, 1900, 2100 MHz)
4G LTE B2 2(1900), 3(1800), 4(1700/2100), 5(850), 7(2600), 13(700)
Sorry forgot to put the 4G info!
If those numbers are correct the Turbo can see all of he frequencies your network has. Should work for sure but of course you’ll have to try it to really know! Good luck!
Does the turbo 2 work on straight talk?
So this is for the original Droid Turbo so not sure. You’ll have to just try it and see honestly.
Thank you. Well, was worth a try. 🙂
Yes
Yes it works
Regarding the Droid Turbo on T Mobile. Works like a champ… Initially I wasn’t able to send or receive picture mail… But it was because I was using the Verizon Message+ app. Simply download another messaging app or use the default app that came with the phone. Other than that…all is good.
Glad it worked! Thanks for the tip, too!
Hi Friends; how could I get the upgrade to Marshmallow if my phone, a droid turbo1 (bought from the USA under Verizon and then unlocked), has a new provider?
You would just find the Verizon update online and flash it manually.
the problem is that it’s Verizon to create the upgrade…how solve? thanks
Dear David, thanks for replying; could you tell me 1) where could I search the upgrade, when it will be released? 2) how do you flash manually a rom? Please I need a tutorial or something similar 🙂
Hello,
You’d have to find the update on your own but Googling for Verizon Droid Turbo Marshmallow Flashable Update File would help. As for the release there is no way I could know that, you’d need to check with Motorola the manufacturer (and if you have the original Motorola Droid there is no way of knowing if you’ll even get that update at all, ever). As for a tutorial, let me know when you find the file and I’ll do one for you.
Many thanks David! 🙂
Does the sim card already need to be activated prior to putting it into the phon?
It doesn’t need to be active before you put it in but obviously to use the SIM card it needs to be active.
After reading the Technology specs of the Turbo, I was wondering if I could still use it when I leave Verizon. There are better phones out there now, but this does everything I need. I had a feeling that it might just support other carrier’s sim cards – thanks for confirming this.
You’re very welcome! Just be careful and make sure the frequencies for LTE etc match up with the other carrier you want to use or it won’t get those speeds, but other than that, enjoy!
Do these steps work for the droid turbo 2 as well? Or just for the droid turbo?
Will this also work on a droid turbo 2 or a maxx 2
Not sure as I did it for the Droid Turbo originally. Maybe run into a store and try it real fast.
Im paying 152.23 a month for verizons unlimited talk, text, data . im seriously thinking about leaving them. i was looking at straight talks plans. i have the Droid Turbo. Straight talk says my phone isnt compatible with their technology. Im not on contract either. my plan is month to month and my phone is paid for. I gave service rep my IMEI and MEID and They said I needed to contact Verizon to remedy this. Any ideas?
Head to a straight talk store and ask to use one of their GSM sim cards that is active (not CDMA which is what they will try and give you).
Put that in the phone as per this tutorial and see if that works.
I put a straight talk sim in my droid turbo 2 worked right away but my boost mobile sprint sim card won’t?
Yeah, that’s what we did with cricket and it worked even though their website said it wouldn’t.
How do I get the APN for straight talk?
Check here – TheUnlockr.com/internet-mms-settings/
Hi everybody. I already got droid turbo 2 and it is work for other carriers good ,but can you explain when I am in roaming I can’t select network by my self this option just does not works also can’t make call in the roaming
Usually that’s the carrier not the phone. You need to enable roaming with your carrier. If you already did that then the normal roaming carrier might not have the right frequency for the phone (since it doesn’t have all of the usual ones built in) so it might just be a zone where you don’t get signal.
Thank you, but in my phone this option is not active , in the roaming for now I can’t choose the Carrier unfortunately https://uploads.disquscdn.com/images/373dd2d46c2b743980e7a443560f4f1403932ad4f47ee4de06d6ba459695f33b.png
That would be because it cannot find any. Sorry.
Hello. I have a Droid turbo and a Droid turbo 2. I tried to activate them with metro pcs but when I put the metro pcs sim in I get signal bars with an x. Getting no service. I have the apn all correct. And metro said they are able to be activated. If I use a Verizon sim I get 4g LTE signal. I don’t know what’s wrong with them
They might have given you the wrong sim. You need to contact MetroPCS for support regardless if they said it would work.
I used the Sim from my nexus 6and I went to the metro store and they let me try a brand new sim and neither one worked. I even tried a att sim and it also didn’t work
Well as I mentioned in the video, the frequencies would have a lot to do with it. If the carrier you are trying to use has different frequencies than what the phone can see it won’t see them and not work. Frequencies can vary by location.
Sorry I can’t help more than that. You can try a T-Mobile sim from a friend and see if that works to narrow down the issue. If it does it’s not the phone.
Hello. I have a Droid turbo and a Droid turbo 2. I tried to activate them with metro pcs but when I put the metro pcs sim in I get signal bars with an x. Getting no service. I have the apn all correct. And metro said they are able to be activated. If I use a Verizon sim I get 4g LTE signal. I don’t know what’s wrong with them.
When I put the metro sim in it has bars and says MetroPCS at the top for 2 seconds and goes back to no service so I know it’s reading the sim
David thanks for the video! Sprint sim in the Turbo 2 is not allowing outbound calls without a prepaid sim, text send fail. ..any ideas?
Welcome! So Sprint isn’t GSM it’s CDMA. You can swap SIMs on a CDMA phone unfortunately so Sprint won’t work regardless :/ See this for more info – https://theunlockr.com/2010/09/15/unlocking-101-difference-between-cdma-and-gsm/
I just bought the sim card and so far everything is good (data wise). In fact, all I had to do was insert the card and everything was ready. I did not had to change any settings like you mentioned in the video. However, I did not really test the txt or phone features on the phone, although I called T-Mobile with no problems, along with receiving a txt from T-Mobile. I will txt a couple friends, and make some phone calls to other people, along with using it in different areas for a week. If all is good, I will buy a new sim, port my number, and buy a full pre paid plan and leave Verizon!!!
Aw glad to hear it worked out the gate! If you have data and are getting texts from T-Mobile and able to make calls you should be good to go. Can I ask which Droid Turbo you are using? Want to see if this is working for the Turbo 2 if that’s what you have? Otherwise, just enjoy!
Hey David,
I currently have a plan with Verizon, and I am using the Droid Turbo — I’ve haded since it came out. Nonetheless I tested the phone out while on a train ride to LA, and it performed well in all aspects. Although, at times, it switched to H+ (which I assume is 3G?) and at times to H (2G?).
But overall it’s been good. Now I have to decide whether to get T-Mobile pre paid or Verizon pre paid (which now has unlimited data.) They slow you down of course, just like T-Mobile, after you go over your 4G data.
I have a Droid turbo 2 and inserted my Cricket wireless sim card and it powered on and everything worked fine without me doing a thing
Sprint is using a different tech and it won’t work in an unlocked phone ever. Period. See this for more info – https://theunlockr.com/2010/09/15/unlocking-101-difference-between-cdma-and-gsm/
Hey Tony, just curious, I have the same phone as you from Verizon. Everything has been working fine for me, except…I have H+ listed instead of 4G LTE. Do you have that as well or do you have the 4G? Also, I was unsuccessful in being able to download Cricket’s Visual Voicemail. Have you had success with that as well? Thanks!
Hey David,
Just curious. We have 4 phones that we switched from Verizon to Cricket. Everything seems to be working on all the phones with the exception of mine. I can’t seem to figure it out and Cricket’s customer service seems to be no help. We switched 2 Motorola droid minis, 1 Samsung Galaxy S5 and my phone Motorola Droid Turbo 2. My phone is the only one that will not complete the installation process of the Cricket Visual Voicemail. Curious if you have ran into this? I spent hours on the phone with them a d couldn’t get it figured out. Also my phone is the only one that displays H+. The other phones indicate the 4G? Thoughts and feedback please. Thank you!
Visual voicemail is one of those features that requires something in the software to work so the phone not meant for that carrier doesn’t have it of course. As for the 4G/H+ The thing is that our 4G here isn’t technically 4G. We started calling HSPA+ 4G when that came out but the rest of the world considers that 3.5G so when you have a phone that hasn’t been changed to say 4G on HSPA+ it shows H+ to properly signify that.
LTE is the only tech that the phone will show 4G (as that is the only real 4G technology according to the manufacturers). So you are most likely getting the same speed as the other phones, just a semantics thing. NOW with that said, if the other phones are getting LTE (not just 4G) and yours isn’t then that could be an issue with the frequencies (as I mention in the video).
Hope that helps and sorry for such a long delay, never got notified of this comment!
I just went with Straight Talk from Verizon with my Droid Turbo it works fine but I cannot get on the internet while I am on a call what can I do to fix this problem ?
That is a limitation of the carrier. The tech they use uses the voice and data on the same pipeline essentially, so you won’t be able to use both at the same time.
After 10+ years with Verizon, I’m pulling the plug!! Heading over to T-mobile today to move 4 business lines. Boowa-Verizon! Anyway, my wife is insistent on keeping her Droid Turbo and I’ll be handing in my Note 5. T-mobile told me that the Droid Turbo would not be able to come over from Verizon, that she would HAVE to choose a new phone. I was so happy to find this video. I used your instructions and then typed in highlighted extras you mentioned in the video. (we’re not phone techy at all) I really appreciated your link to the ‘Internet setting repository’ I had no idea of these settings. After much research and as you mentioned in video. In the US, it appears that switching to a carrier that uses your same network- GSM (Global System for Mobiles) ‘AT&T and T-Mobile’ or CDMA (Code Division Multiple Access) ‘Verizon and Sprint’ makes the BYO device switch easier. So since I’m taking a CDMA network phone to a GSM network, we’ll see if the switch goes off without a hitch. I’ll update after switch is complete. I just wanted to add a HUGE thank-you for the video and this forum. I find it horrible that after you’ve paid on a phone for 1-2 years and you OWN the phone, that any carrier can hold you hostage to their company phone plan, if you want to leave. I think it’s so great you’re taking your time to show us how to switch and then you’re coming back to answer forum questions.
Ha love it! Thanks for sharing your story here and I’m so glad that this video helped and totally agree (obviously) that we should be allowed to use our phones on whatever carrier we want instead of this antiquated locking of phones and back-door deals that the manufacturers make with the carriers, etc.
Thanks again for commenting and enjoy your new carrier!
I just put the Metropcs sim into my Droid 2 turbo. Followed all of the instructions. Not working. I checked in the about phone section on settings menu. It shows my PCS number
signal 0
cellular network state- disabled
cellular network type- Iwlan
sim -in
service state voice-out of service data- in service
can anyone tell me why I cannot get a phone signal
That sim isn’t active. Make sure you get a GSM sim from MetroPCS and it needs to be active.
U have to contact metro pcs and let them know your wanting to switch phones and removing sim from old phone to droid turbo, give them the imei number and they will register on their network, metro does not work like the other networks where you put your son into another phone and it starts working. I know cause I have metro pcs and i have to call them to register my Verizon note 5 and my Verizon droid turbo. Good luck.
David would this be useable for overseas travel? In Thailand for example local carriers sell data/cellular SIMs with short term 1mo plans in the airport. Could i just take out my Verizon sim slap in a local SIM use my phone during vacation on their network and then put the Verizon SIM back in when i get home?
It should yes. Just make sure it’s a GSM sim card overseas and that they are using the same frequencies for their 3G/4G to make sure you get the fastest speeds.
Hi David –
Thanks for making this video. I can see it has helped many people setting up their Droid Turbo with other networks. I’m trying to do that myself, but running into a challenge early on. I’m inserting my T-Mobile SIM, and am not getting the initial signal bars – so no celular connection. I’ve tried going into the cellular settings, connecting to the T-Mobile network manually, and it says the SIM cannot connect to the network. Do you have any ideas as to how to troubleshot? Mine has Android 5.1 installed in it, configuration version F14.MOT.XT1254.0. There are some other configurations I can provide – not sure if they are relevant. Thanks again!
Check to make sure the T-Mobile SIM is active and has signal first. Then make sure that the frequency they are using in your area is a frequency that it can see (see the video for more info). You dont need any settings for it to see signal bars, so something is wrong there (you only need the settings for the internet and picture messaging). Good luck.
Hi David, watched your video and it helped me understand the process better. Thank you, but the internet settings that you talk about, where do I find them? It is for TMobile. The video said that there was a link but I did not see it. Thanks Lis
Hello, check here – https://theunlockr.com/internet-mms-settings/
Hi David, I just watched the video and read the links. Do you have any info on total wireless? I’m looking to buy the droid turbo 2 off of eBay and just wondering if I need a locked or unlocked version. Total wireless uses Verizon’s network and that is who I’m currently with. Thank you for any input. John
Hi David, Going to switch my company phone (retirement gift!!) which is a Droid 2 from Verizon. Would like to go with Republic or Total Wireless..Is that possible?
Hi,
It depends on if those carriers are GSM or not. If they are it should work, but as mentioned you’ll need to check the frequencies to make sure you’ll get LTE. Easiest way to check is bring in the Droid 2 to either Republic or Total and just ask them if you can borrow one of their SIMs to put in the phone and boot it up and see what happens. Good luck!
Yes it will I have the same phone and I’m using total wireless right now no problems and no changing of settings
Thanks for responding and confirming!
hi david i have a boost mobile phone that is currently active but i hate the phone. i have a droid turbo 2 from verizon and i have followed all the instructions i could find on how to make this phone work under my boost plan. i have managed to get 3g signal by going into my settings under mobile data then selecting the three dots in the upper right hand corner and selecting cellular networks.once in cellular network settings i selected preferred network type :LTE/CDMA then it allowed me to select network once it scanned for available networks it listed at&t verizon t mobile or extended network. i selected extended network and it registered with the network i know have 3gmobile data. but i cant make phone calls. do you know of a way to be able to make and get phone calls ?
Unfortunately, Boost is a CDMA carrier, not GSM. So Boost needs to register the phone to their network to use it and they most likely won’t cause it isn’t a Boost phone. This will only work with GSM carriers so you might be out of luck using Boost: “(2. Take out the Verizon SIM and put in your SIM (again, this will work with any GSM carrier).” Hope that explains it at least and sorry!
Is this a good replacement for the Moto G4,my sister has the Moto G4 on T-Mobile and her phone won’t charge very well