SIM restrictions on unlocked European Note3

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dxzh

Senior Member
Sep 16, 2010
136
134

That CSC file name could be broken down (source: http://forum.gsmhosting.com/vbb/f20...heck-firmware-compatibility-language-1621171/) as follows:

* OJV - Algeria, Egypt, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Morocco, Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, South Africa, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey
* M - 2013
* I - September
* 2 - Version 2

The ambit of that CSC appears to extend to Nigeria (which is apparently blocked in the MCC list in that CSC file) and South Africa. As neither Nigeria nor South Africa is mentioned in the legal notice stuck on the shipping box for the Middle Eastern region Note 3, perhaps there will be separate CSCs for Note 3s sourced in those 2 countries which have no region lock. Also presumably there may be separate CSC(s) for the remaining countries listed on the Middle Easten region lock sticker (namely UAE, Qatar, Bahrain, Yemen, Western Sahara, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Afghanistan and Libya) and those CSCs may have the same or a similar list of blocked MCC codes for that region.
 
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krooksrocks

Senior Member
Sep 26, 2013
69
15
Pune
Indian Version Exynos Octacore is it unlocked?

So I visited a Samsung Cafe shop in India to get a demo of Note 3

3 observations from the visit

1) Demo Unit is a Snapdragon 800 powered N9005,(without the sim kit installed) as compared to Exynos Octacore N9000 not sure why this is
2) Demo Unit becomes quite hot, when i launched Camera and clicked pictures, took videos
3) The device does not have a sticker which says "Region Locked"

Now does this mean that the India version of 3g N9000 Note 3 would work in Europe?
I am traveling to Europe in a couple of weeks from now and really want to use a Note 3 there

Although I am really skeptical of a company which showcases a different demo product from the actual product sold in the region.
Is it possible that Exynos is not showcasing similar performance (at least to the naked eye) as compared to Snapdragon?

Can someone post a review of N9000 note 3 ? and also tell us whether it is Region free?
 

non1oson

Senior Member
Feb 14, 2012
700
98
So I visited a Samsung Cafe shop in India to get a demo of Note 3

3 observations from the visit

1) Demo Unit is a Snapdragon 800 powered N9005,(without the sim kit installed) as compared to Exynos Octacore N9000 not sure why this is
2) Demo Unit becomes quite hot, when i launched Camera and clicked pictures, took videos
3) The device does not have a sticker which says "Region Locked"

Now does this mean that the India version of 3g N9000 Note 3 would work in Europe?
I am traveling to Europe in a couple of weeks from now and really want to use a Note 3 there

Although I am really skeptical of a company which showcases a different demo product from the actual product sold in the region.
Is it possible that Exynos is not showcasing similar performance (at least to the naked eye) as compared to Snapdragon?

Can someone post a review of N9000 note 3 ? and also tell us whether it is Region free?

http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2463143&highlight=review
 

senectus

Senior Member
Dec 14, 2004
1,324
175
Perth
So I visited a Samsung Cafe shop in India to get a demo of Note 3

3 observations from the visit

1) Demo Unit is a Snapdragon 800 powered N9005,(without the sim kit installed) as compared to Exynos Octacore N9000 not sure why this is

The exynos chip doesn't support LTE yet. Snapdragon is for 4G/LTE networks.

Sent from my GT-N7105T using Tapatalk 2
 

thmlwin

Senior Member
Jul 16, 2010
51
9
European Region Locked phone can unlock with the code from puman.ru website with 25$

Hi all,

I would like to share my experience regarding European Region Locked Note 3.
I bought two Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (SM-N9005) from Mediamart and Saturn electronic shop in Germany, it have European sim only sticker(something like that I can;t read german language exactly).
One of staff said that I must activate german sim first so that I opened and made one call to other phone(not hanging up, just drop after getting ringtone from other).
After that I went to Thailand and put Thailand sim card. I can; t use my phone and asking unlock code.
If I dismiss the code, I can use everything except phone call( showing invalid sim card ).
I send to Samsung Official service center and they also don;t know how to do.
So no way for me, I am trying to unlock my phone and a couple of studying from internet,
I just founded from http://puman.ru/ can unlock Note 3 with 25 $ per phone.
I send my IMEI code and money to his paypal account and 2 hour later he sent the code.
After putting his code, I got " Network sucessfully Unlocked " and I can use every sim card in Thailand and also in Myanmar.
So I am very happy now that why I want to share my experience for whom suffering like me(bought 699 Euro each phone).:victory:
Good luck all.

Note: my english is not well, forgive me for a long story.:good:
 

krooksrocks

Senior Member
Sep 26, 2013
69
15
Pune
The exynos chip doesn't support LTE yet. Snapdragon is for 4G/LTE networks.

Sent from my GT-N7105T using Tapatalk 2

I do understand that, my question was , doesn't it look weird that the demo piece is N9005 (snapdragon) and the actual sold piece is N9000, customers would get the first feel on the demo piece , so all the naked eye and sensory touch perceptions get created there.

So if the device is fast or hot it is the demo that I am holding not the actual (Exynos 5 octa core)

Also the indian thread here : http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?t=2438431&page=44

states that the N9000 lags on WhatsApp and SlowMo feature.

If you do a basic conversion of currencies you can figure out that Euro rates for Snapdragon version(550-600 EURO) is similar to an Indian/HK version (50k INR/5500-5700 HKD)

So why is Asia getting an inferior processor than Europe/US at almost a similar price(+- few based on regional taxes) ? Also why is the Europe/US Region locked? (So that Asians can't purchase it there and use in their own countries)

I travel around the world, I don't care about 4G but this kind of price skimming really makes me cynical about the real motives of Samsung
 
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mathieulh

Senior Member
Jan 9, 2008
468
195
Paris
Hi all,

I would like to share my experience regarding European Region Locked Note 3.
I bought two Samsung Galaxy Note 3 (SM-N9005) from Mediamart and Saturn electronic shop in Germany, it have European sim only sticker(something like that I can;t read german language exactly).
One of staff said that I must activate german sim first so that I opened and made one call to other phone(not hanging up, just drop after getting ringtone from other).
After that I went to Thailand and put Thailand sim card. I can; t use my phone and asking unlock code.
If I dismiss the code, I can use everything except phone call( showing invalid sim card ).
I send to Samsung Official service center and they also don;t know how to do.
So no way for me, I am trying to unlock my phone and a couple of studying from internet,
I just founded from http://puman.ru/ can unlock Note 3 with 25 $ per phone.
I send my IMEI code and money to his paypal account and 2 hour later he sent the code.
After putting his code, I got " Network sucessfully Unlocked " and I can use every sim card in Thailand and also in Myanmar.
So I am very happy now that why I want to share my experience for whom suffering like me(bought 699 Euro each phone).:victory:
Good luck all.

Note: my english is not well, forgive me for a long story.:good:

We can easily confirm that there is no such thing as an "activation" process and that peole that successfully "Activated" are simply using SIM cards that aren't the in the MCC lock list.

Basically you need the unfreeze or the NCK to properly unlock the device without rooting it (and losing warranty)

Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
 
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DEPUIS 60

Member
Aug 22, 2010
6
1
We can easily confirm that there is no such thing as an "activation" process and that peole that successfully "Activated" are simply using SIM cards that aren't the in the MCC lock list.

Basically you need the unfreeze or the NCK to properly unlock the device without rooting it (and losing warranty)

Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
And I think that after entering the unlock code, the system stops check address to the black list. However, there is the no fact that after the OTA update will need to enter this code againfor example.
 

RbbCHan

Senior Member
Jun 21, 2011
80
24
Chengdu, China
I called Samsung Korea and got this info

1) the sim restriction is only and only for the FIRST SIM Card and registering.
2) Once the note 3 is registered ONE TIME in the area which is shown on the sticker on the box, it can freely be used in ANY country with ANY simcard (of course only if the frequency for that card in that country is supported).

3) ALL Samsung Service Centers can and will unlock your note 3 if there is a problem.

that's what they told me. And the guy I talked to was a channel manager, he seemed to be well informed. So global usage on your vacation or business trip should not be a problem if you want to use local SIMCARDS

Still I can't guarantee for it.
greetings
From Sichuan, China
 

mathieulh

Senior Member
Jan 9, 2008
468
195
Paris
1) the sim restriction is only and only for the FIRST SIM Card and registering.
2) Once the note 3 is registered ONE TIME in the area which is shown on the sticker on the box, it can freely be used in ANY country with ANY simcard (of course only if the frequency for that card in that country is supported).

3) ALL Samsung Service Centers can and will unlock your note 3 if there is a problem.

that's what they told me. And the guy I talked to was a channel manager, he seemed to be well informed. So global usage on your vacation or business trip should not be a problem if you want to use local SIMCARDS

Still I can't guarantee for it.
greetings
From Sichuan, China

That's Samsung's PR talk, that's also proven not to be true.

Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4 mobile app
 

Chiron43

Member
Sep 29, 2013
6
1
1) the sim restriction is only and only for the FIRST SIM Card and registering.
2) Once the note 3 is registered ONE TIME in the area which is shown on the sticker on the box, it can freely be used in ANY country with ANY simcard (of course only if the frequency for that card in that country is supported).

3) ALL Samsung Service Centers can and will unlock your note 3 if there is a problem.

that's what they told me. And the guy I talked to was a channel manager, he seemed to be well informed. So global usage on your vacation or business trip should not be a problem if you want to use local SIMCARDS

Still I can't guarantee for it.
greetings
From Sichuan, China

Thanks for your input.
Since some customers seem to experience problem on point 2) then they need to go to step 3) and the problem is as we can see on previous reports in this thread that when they go in Samsung Service Centers they got a lot of different replies including some saying "no we won't unlock it for you!" or "what unlock feature are you talking about?".

It's nice to see here and there people/blogs/journalists reporting that they have been in contact with some Samsung Marketing/PR managers and received from them this similar reply but WHEN IS SAMSUNG GING TO RELEASE AN OFFICIAL STATEMENT THAT EVERYBODY CAN READ FROM FIRST HAND?
And then customers in need can print it if necessary so that they can bring the document to the Service Center and claim to be in their right to ask for help to unlock their Note 3.
 
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RbbCHan

Senior Member
Jun 21, 2011
80
24
Chengdu, China
summary

the posts in this thr are not so unisono.........
can s.b. summarize in two lines what's now the situation?
How and when is the note 3 blocked?

How can they dare to restrict my travel in a world of globalisation?
I am German, live in China at the moment and have to travel to Singapore, Australia and Europe several times a year. I have 4 different SIMCARDS!!!

this is a real no go for me.
 

dxzh

Senior Member
Sep 16, 2010
136
134
3) ALL Samsung Service Centers can and will unlock your note 3 if there is a problem.

Much appreciated. My concern though is that I find myself hundreds of miles from a local "samsung service centre" on vacation or a work trip and "there is a problem" with a new Note 3 (or in future my current SGS3 upgraded to Kitkat) as a result of the regional lock. I then face a possibly time-consuming and expensive journey to a local samsung service centre (if any) to try and explain the issue in the local language and have the problem corrected there and then.

I assume that Samsung Global is not going to commit, by putting something in writing to the world, that their service centres worldwide will unlock and as importantly reimburse a locked-out SIM user for that user's time-cost, roaming costs, travel costs and unlock costs while on a trip abroad trying to sort the unlock out - which seems to put the risk, and potentially serious inconvenience and cost, of a region lock squarely on the phone user.

Samsung is allocating the risk to the purchasers of its phone who are having to hang on the words of PR firms and individual channel managers against whom there is no come-back. A clear Samsung Global statement in writing available to all customers providing plain reassurance would go a long way to sorting this.
 

RbbCHan

Senior Member
Jun 21, 2011
80
24
Chengdu, China
Samsung answered me again

Guys
I got really nervous about this issue so I called a friend, who is working for Samsung Korea.
And I called Samsung Germany.
Here the result: BOTH Korea and Germany confirm that this is OFFICIAL:

http://allaboutsamsung.de/2013/09/s...ndische-sim-karten-sind-benutzbar/#more-22806

it is in German, but: for the the English speaking world I can state that the content of my first post is the description of the situation:
means: one has to UNBLOCK and register the phone in a country which is on the sticker. Then it will work world wide.

they say also: some only some phone may block in some regions. But they said again. Once your phone has been unlocked in a region, the Samsung service worldwide CAN and WILL unlock your phone again if it blocks in another region. But this should happen only with some phones (also some S3 S4.....)
Hope this is true now ..................

---------- Post added at 05:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:24 PM ----------

as I said it is vital for me to know about the simlock of the note3.
So I asked my friend in Hong Kong to buy my new note3 ( I always buy HK models as the Chinese models do have restrictions for Google services, and the HK models worked for me fine since many years) . He did so, put in his HK SIMCard (I only have Chinese, German, Singapore and Australia) unlocked the phone for me. After that I used my German SIMCARD and it worked as well as my other Chinese SIMCARD.
So, it seems to me....problem solved.....
 
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dxzh

Senior Member
Sep 16, 2010
136
134
I have just been speaking to Samsung UK customer service (+44 330 726 7864) again. Samsung UK say they will send me a statement direct about the use of SIMs following activation. If they do, then at least I personally can rely on it which is a start.

At the moment I draw less comfort from a local German PR firm statement sent to various blogs. It is not in writing on any official Samsung website as far as I am aware. This is slightly worrying as an earlier forthright written statement by Samsung Switzerland last week playing down the region lock issue seemed to have been disowned and withdrawn from Facebook over the weekend.
 
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mathieulh

Senior Member
Jan 9, 2008
468
195
Paris
Guys
I got really nervous about this issue so I called a friend, who is working for Samsung Korea.
And I called Samsung Germany.
Here the result: BOTH Korea and Germany confirm that this is OFFICIAL:

http://allaboutsamsung.de/2013/09/s...ndische-sim-karten-sind-benutzbar/#more-22806

it is in German, but: for the the English speaking world I can state that the content of my first post is the description of the situation:
means: one has to UNBLOCK and register the phone in a country which is on the sticker. Then it will work world wide.

they say also: some only some phone may block in some regions. But they said again. Once your phone has been unlocked in a region, the Samsung service worldwide CAN and WILL unlock your phone again if it blocks in another region. But this should happen only with some phones (also some S3 S4.....)
Hope this is true now ..................

---------- Post added at 05:38 PM ---------- Previous post was at 05:24 PM ----------

as I said it is vital for me to know about the simlock of the note3.
So I asked my friend in Hong Kong to buy my new note3 ( I always buy HK models as the Chinese models do have restrictions for Google services, and the HK models worked for me fine since many years) . He did so, put in his HK SIMCard (I only have Chinese, German, Singapore and Australia) unlocked the phone for me. After that I used my German SIMCARD and it worked as well as my other Chinese SIMCARD.
So, it seems to me....problem solved.....

The HK model isn't region locked to begin with, end of story. Only "Unlocked" models sold in continental Europe, middle east, and South America are region locked so far.

P.S. The only variant sold in HK right now is the 16GB version so it might not be such a good idea to purchase a note 3 there.


Sent from my SM-N9005 using XDA Premium 4
 
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  • 21
    give me a N3 and we will see...

    i don't get what all the fuss is about, people in israel keep getting USA phones that are locked and just unlock them to sim free
    no one ever said a thing about it, USA cellphone is locked to a single operator is OK for every one
    now samsung made it locked to all EU operators but did the mistake and called it "unlocked" and not "eu unlocked" or "eu locked" big deal

    i unlocked USA phones and will unlock EU phones, the earth still goes on.... no one died


    why?

    The reason people are nervous is straightforward:

    1) The phones claim to be "Unlocked' - they are not.

    2) There is no evidence that traditional unlock methods will work -
    a) I have discussed this with my source for unlocking phones by code - he unlocks about 100,000 phones a year, and has access to all the databases. He has never heard of such a thing, and is not confident that codes will be available.
    b) Software solutions may or may not be available. Even so, not everybody is technical enough (or wants) to start butchering their phones. Further, we have customers who need these phones unlocked for network-testing purposes. They are aware of the software-unlock methods and do not want that as they claim it messes with the phone's firmware.

    3) No one was informed of this before they purchased the device. Even the largest distributors (10s of thousands of phones - not retailers) only found out about it today.and have no answers

    This is totally different than just purchasing an AT&T phone from the USA and getting it unlocked in Israel. Everybody knows how to do it and where to get it done. However, nobody knows how to do this phone, or if it even can be unlocked as this is a new type of lock that nobody yet understands or has successfully unlocked.

    We also have these phone on our website, and we had to call each one of our customers that pre-ordered and explain the situation. Some didn't mind, and some were really pissed off and cancelled the orders.

    I hope you are correct, and we can all pay our $20.00 and get the code. However, that remains to be seen.

    And, on an OEM, carrier-unbranded device that can cost $900, and claims to be "factory unlocked" but is not, it is just bad business IMHO.


    Dovid Feldman
    On The Go Solutions, Inc
    16
    From my Twitter ...

    Aaaaand.... I just region unlocked my Note 3. FU Samsung.

    ( I locked out my current carrier, tested I could no longer make phone calls, then unlocked it again, et voila )

    I need a tester (with root) who has a SIM card that isn't working in his or her Note3. For verification. Then, app incoming.

    'nuff said !
    15
    There'll be an app release soon enough.

    If you don't want root for other reasons, it is indeed unfortunate you currently need it for this. Rooting (via CF-Auto-Root) does void KNOX warranty (irreversable), however, if you use the unroot option in SuperSU, and flash back a stock kernel and recovery, OTAs will work again. Note that it is possible to root without tripping KNOX warranty using a customized system partition, I'm sure someone has made or will make one sooner or later.

    It is theoretically feasable to do this without root, but a lot tougher to make and maintain, with the information I currently have. I'm certain there is a way to improve this, I just haven't found it yet - and as I'm a full on root user, I doubt I will spend more time looking for it.
    14
    Latest News - Oct 9th 2013 - Clove, who specialise in sim-free/unlocked phones have suggested
    that the Russian unlocking service at:
    http://puman.ru/?selectlanguage=English
    may be a solution for those concerned about the regional lock.
    More info in the Clove blog at:
    http://blog.clove.co.uk/2013/09/25/samsung-galaxy-note-3-sim-limitations/


    Whether or not the Note 3 Verizon (US) "Developer Edition" will be regionally locked remains to be seen,
    At least the bootloader will, according to reports, be unlocked.
    More skimpy details at the Samsung/Verizon page at: http://www.samsung.com/us/mobile/cell-phones/SM-N900VMKEVZW

    More Recent News - Oct 6th 2013 - Chainfire appears to have created an app to
    get round region locking for the Galaxy Note 3 SM-N9005 (MI7 firmware) and rooted
    You can buy Chainfire a beer (£1.99) by downloading the app from the Play Store at:
    http://pkg.to/eu.chainfire.regionlockaway

    There is also a thread started by Chainfire at: http://xdaforums.com/showthread.php?p=46187852 where meanies(!) can download it free.


    Recent News (01:30 Oct 3rd 2013)
    Android Authority: Galaxy Note 3 region lock is an issue after all, Android 4.4 update may lock older Galaxy handsets http://goo.gl/KjgVwc


    Previous news (1st Oct 2013)

    A significant number of users still claim they can't use "out of region" sims despite having first used a sim for the region the Note 3 was intended for which is the way Samsung have said is the way to 'unlock' the regional sim lock.

    A number of users in this thread who found their Note3 was still region locked despite following the Samsung advice have successfully unlocked their Note3 regional lock using a Russian unlocking web site at http://puman.ru/ Although I am the OP of this thread, I do not have an out of region Sim to test this out myself - so no guarantees but read the posts!

    Pics say it all. The Note 3 "unlocked" models are still locked to regions like DVD's and thus not very attractive to globetrotters or international purchasers who are being asked to pay £600 or so for a crippled device.
    u5abydaz.jpg

    qe3atyge.jpg
    9uja6y5e.jpg
    13
    Health warning: the message below is worrying.

    I spoke yet again to the Samsung UK customer service team (+44 330 726 7864) this afternoon (at 5:40pm GMT) as I had not received the email I had been promised this morning with a statement on the region lock. A different rep spoke to me and had the following news to report to me:

    - the Samsung UK telephone staff have had problems sending out emails today and therefore have not sent out the statement to me - which was fine by me as these things happen.

    - the SIM limitation sticker really is meant to mean what it says - the N9005 is not meant to be compatible with SIMs issued by operators outside the European region - I believe at least some owners are using the Note 3 with SIMs issued by operators outside the EU but the rep was adamant that the Note 3 was not intended by Samsung to be used with SIMs issued by operators outside of the European region, even following first activation.

    - the European region Note 3s are only meant to be compatible with SIMs issued by operators from the European region, and this applies equally after activation - I asked repeatedly her to confirm this which she did each time. I tried practical examples too and it got worse: So if I go to Australia I must use a European region SIM in my Note 3 even if I buy the Note 3 SIM-free for £620? Yes according to the rep. So I asked if I go to Florida on vacation, I have no choice but to use a European region SIM in my Note 3? Yes again according to rep.

    - it makes no difference if here in the UK I buy the Note 3 from Carphone Warehouse, Phones 4U, EE or Clove.

    - I could buy another phone if I wanted to use a SIM from an operator outside the EU in my mobile - the rep volunteered this to me as it never occurred to me that they might seriously suggest such a policy.

    - the rollout of Kitkat is to extend the regional lock to existing SGS3s and Note 2s - I asked if my existing unlocked SGS3 bought unlocked over a year ago is to be subject to the same regional lock if I upgrade. Yes according to rep. So I would not be able to use a SIM from outside the European region in it when travelling? Yes according to the rep.

    - no statement can be sent in an email to me by the Samsung UK telephone team to confirm this in writing.

    - I can email uk.help@samsung.com with any questions but it might take up to 24 hours to respond. When I pointed out to the rep that I had already done just this, emailing uk.help@samsung.com on Friday evening (27th) and not had a response in over 50 hours (including after checking my spam folder), I was told that sometimes the email team are very busy and she could not say for sure when I would receive a response to any question.

    I have asked to get a call back from the Tier 2 rep who I spoke to on Friday (27th) but in the meanwhile I can only stand gobsmacked by the apparent madness of this corporate policy. For example:

    - Samsung cannot even implement a draconian region lock policy (if that is what they really intend) properly and consistently - given that some European Note 3s with the European regional lock sticker are reported to be being activated and then successfully used outside the home region with SIMs issued by operators outside the home region - while others are able to activate with home region SIM but not then able to use out of region SIMs when travelling.

    - Samsung (whether through its local offices, PR companies or employees) can brief against itself so that some Samsung offices will say one thing and others possibly within the same office, something completely different, on the same day, and day after day.

    - the utter, utter lack of leadership from Samsung Global (Electronics) to coordinate and communicate their own policy (whether that policy is good or bad is almost irrelevant) clearly, consistently and transparently - or to communicate it at all.

    - complete confusion among retailers, and among Samsung reps talking to retailers, here in the UK as to Samsung's region lock policy, to the extent they are even aware in the first place of the region lock policy and how it operates - which, from first hand exerience, I can say many are not.