HTC Incredible S

[MrCrowley]

I need some help getting this phone unlocked. I won this phone from the Sept give-away and there is no carrier assigned to the phone so they (Bell or Virgin) will not help because the IMEI number doesn't show in their system. I called HTC and the guy told me that the phone came from Europe based on the IMEI. In order to get an unlock code online most sites are asking for a provider, which there is none. I want to use this phone on Telus but it is telling me that the phone is SIM locked. Can anyone help point me in the right direction? Thank you!

[MattyMattMatt]

Essentially you need to hook it to a computer and run dev code. I see no other way to figure out the MCC (the thing you need to figure out the provider).

protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);

TelephonyManager tel = (TelephonyManager) getSystemService(Context.TELEPHONY_SERVICE);
String networkOperator = tel.getNetworkOperator();

if (networkOperator != null) {
int mcc = Integer.parseInt(networkOperator.substring(0, 3));
int mnc = Integer.parseInt(networkOperator.substring(3));
}
}
Googled the code s I cnnot recll off the top, found it at stackoverflow, go there if you need more specifics.

At least I think this work without a sim... never tried.

[xperiax10]

I need some help getting this phone unlocked. I won this phone from the Sept give-away and there is no carrier assigned to the phone so they (Bell or Virgin) will not help because the IMEI number doesn't show in their system. I called HTC and the guy told me that the phone came from Europe based on the IMEI. In order to get an unlock code online most sites are asking for a provider, which there is none. I want to use this phone on Telus but it is telling me that the phone is SIM locked. Can anyone help point me in the right direction? Thank you!


Try searching your model number online to see which version of the phone you have, if that doesnt work you can try xda forums where you can debrand, S-OFF your phone so you might not have to do SIM unlock at all. Use XTC Clip to s-off your phone it should remove SIM lock also.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1028

Personally i would run cynamogen on that phone , but if you just want stock here are all the carrier firmwares you can flash to phone .

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1033922

[MrCrowley]

Try searching your model number online to see which version of the phone you have, if that doesnt work you can try xda forums where you can debrand, S-OFF your phone so you might not have to do SIM unlock at all. Use XTC Clip to s-off your phone it should remove SIM lock also.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=1028

Personally i would run cynamogen on that phone , but if you just want stock here are all the carrier firmwares you can flash to phone .

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1033922

Thanks xperia10, I have been reading since I knew I won this phone, but HTC phones are so darn confusing compared to the Fascinate 4g. I am on Telus so those carrier firmwares, I don't think will work. It's kind of a bummer the phone is locked at all, I just wanna try this phone out. LOL.

[MrCrowley]

Essentially you need to hook it to a computer and run dev code. I see no other way to figure out the MCC (the thing you need to figure out the provider).

protected void onCreate(Bundle savedInstanceState) {
super.onCreate(savedInstanceState);

TelephonyManager tel = (TelephonyManager) getSystemService(Context.TELEPHONY_SERVICE);
String networkOperator = tel.getNetworkOperator();

if (networkOperator != null) {
int mcc = Integer.parseInt(networkOperator.substring(0, 3));
int mnc = Integer.parseInt(networkOperator.substring(3));
}
}
Googled the code s I cnnot recll off the top, found it at stackoverflow, go there if you need more specifics.

At least I think this work without a sim... never tried.

I have no idea what any of this means, but Thanks for passing it along, I am sure it will make sense at some point. LOL!

[xperiax10]

Mr crowley I don't think it matters what carrier you are with and what firmware you have installed , only thing it matters is what radio band your phone supports eg. 850 mHz or 2100 for 3g . I'm running a roger xperia with Finland firmware. if you check on gsm arena there are two versions of incredible s one for Europe and one for north America . you said your was from Europe ,and if that turns out to be the case it might work for voice and 2 g data but not 3g . post your model number together with any letters and ill help you in searching what version you have , this info should be under the battery when you take it out.

[MrCrowley]

Mr crowley I don't think it matters what carrier you are with and what firmware you have installed , only thing it matters is what radio band your phone supports eg. 850 mHz or 2100 for 3g . I'm running a roger xperia with Finland firmware. if you check on gsm arena there are two versions of incredible s one for Europe and one for north America . you said your was from Europe ,and if that turns out to be the case it might work for voice and 2 g data but not 3g . post your model number together with any letters and ill help you in searching what version you have , this info should be under the battery when you take it out.

I hope this is what you are looking for, PG32120 Incredible S. I can use the phone on wifi with no sim card and I was looking around the pre-installed apps one of which is a bell pvr app.....which means this should be a North American version and it is locked to bell? Not sure what the HTC guy was talking about.

It has HSPA/WCDMA (850/1900/2100)
GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900)

I think I should be able to get 3g with Telus with this phone as Telus uses Bell towers in my area. I don't do a lot of youtube watching while off a wifi connection so I probably won't notice a big difference with my 4g Fascinate to this only being 3g.

[MattyMattMatt]

Well, if you hve the Bell PVR instlled then its running the bell firmwre/os. Seeing as its exclusive to bell/virgin in canada, you might as well spend 15-20 bucks on an unlock code and hope it works. If they dont have the imei in their list, then you should get your money bck either way. The stuff I posted, its code. Android dev stuff. You execute it to find the info you need.

[xperiax10]

I hope this is what you are looking for, PG32120 Incredible S. I can use the phone on wifi with no sim card and I was looking around the pre-installed apps one of which is a bell pvr app.....which means this should be a North American version and it is locked to bell? Not sure what the HTC guy was talking about.

It has HSPA/WCDMA (850/1900/2100)
GSM/GPRS/EDGE (850/900/1800/1900)

I think I should be able to get 3g with Telus with this phone as Telus uses Bell towers in my area. I don't do a lot of youtube watching while off a wifi connection so I probably won't notice a big difference with my 4g Fascinate to this only being 3g.

There is a very easy way to find out if its runing bell firmware just go to any bell store, or big stores like bestbuy or futureshop, ask them to put in a sim to see if it works and you will have your answer. That model number PG32120 is tied to all the incredible s phones released, can u go into phone settings , than about phone , than tell me what it says for "model number" , "software version" , "firmware version" ... bell specific model number is s710

Again i would spend some time reading the xda forums and just do sim unlock through flashing for free, it would be a hassle if you haven't done that sort of thing before.

[MrCrowley]

There is a very easy way to find out if its runing bell firmware just go to any bell store, or big stores like bestbuy or futureshop, ask them to put in a sim to see if it works and you will have your answer. That model number PG32120 is tied to all the incredible s phones released, can u go into phone settings , than about phone , than tell me what it says for "model number" , "software version" , "firmware version" ... bell specific model number is s710

Again i would spend some time reading the xda forums and just do sim unlock through flashing for free, it would be a hassle if you haven't done that sort of thing before.

Software info is

Android version
2.2.1

Baseband version
20.23.30.0802U_38.02.01.17_M

Kernel version
2.6.35.9-g89aa373
htc-kernel@and18-2 #1
Mon Feb 14 18:08:04 CST 2011

Build Number
1.37.666.3 CL336284 release-keys

Software number
1.37.666.3

Browser version
WebKit/533.1

[xperiax10]

Mr crowley as you pointed out earlier it is a bell incredible s based on all the info you gave me , now the good news is that bell is the only carrier to release the gingerbread update for incredible s , it is a ota update so you will need a bell sim to receive it , I would get the update first than Pay for unlock code I'm not sure if the unlock will get wiped once you install gingerbread , better safe than sorry. to receive over the air update go into settings > about phone

[MrCrowley]

Well I am not paying bell a cent, they want over $200 to give an unlock code. F them. Just spent 3 hrs with someone from xda and nothing will get "in" this phone.

[xperiax10]

Well I am not paying bell a cent, they want over $200 to give an unlock code. F them. Just spent 3 hrs with someone from xda and nothing will get "in" this phone.

I didn't mean for u to pay bell , just find someone with a bell sim and use it just to upgrade . its strange that you weren't able to flash different firmware from xda they got everything on there .

[MrCrowley]

I didn't mean for u to pay bell , just find someone with a bell sim and use it just to upgrade . its strange that you weren't able to flash different firmware from xda they got everything on there .

I live in a Bell hate area. LOL. I can't upgrade this phone if I want to unlock it without paying Bell. I'll upgrade with custom ROM's and Kernels after. The phone was free so it really is like a toy (no investment, no money lost etc). So far the things over at xda are for everything except the Incredible S, not sure why but I haven't come across a sure fire way to unlock this phone, then root it.

[alpinepetey]

I live in a Bell hate area. LOL. I can't upgrade this phone if I want to unlock it without paying Bell. I'll upgrade with custom ROM's and Kernels after. The phone was free so it really is like a toy (no investment, no money lost etc). So far the things over at xda are for everything except the Incredible S, not sure why but I haven't come across a sure fire way to unlock this phone, then root it.

I saw your post on xda. I'm guessing the next step for you would be trying to make a goldcard to sim unlock your phone. Have you tried that yet. Here's the xda thread that might help ya out

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1104226

[MrCrowley]

I saw your post on xda. I'm guessing the next step for you would be trying to make a goldcard to sim unlock your phone. Have you tried that yet. Here's the xda thread that might help ya out

http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=1104226

That's way over my head at this point, still reading and learning about this phone.

[xperiax10]

Mr.crowley why don't you do a review of your experience with the incredible s ,all the good and bad things since you had it for a week or two now , it might help someone who's is wondering what phone to get .

[MrCrowley]

Mr.crowley why don't you do a review of your experience with the incredible s ,all the good and bad things since you had it for a week or two now , it might help someone who's is wondering what phone to get .

I really haven't used it that much because there are some problems with it that I don't like. When I press phone it populates a list of contacts from every social app that uses phone numbers even though I only have sync contacts already in lists checked. Another thing, this phone will not send picture or video messages, it fails to send because of a generic network failure every time.

I like the weight of the phone, the camera and the screen I find comparable to the Samsung screens when brightness isn't at full.

Overall if I was buying the phone, I would have returned it. HTC isn't very helpful they just pass the problems off as network or user mistakes. Because the phone is unlocked, Telus won't help with in depth troubleshooting.

[xperiax10]

It's odd that its not sending picture mmessage, mms settings are not the same as internet settings , you have to input the separately. The contacts problem could be part of settings for sense not Android itself. Did you try posting this problem on xda to see if anyone can shed some light on this.

Try this as a possible fix for picture message issue
http://androidforums.com/incredible-support-troubleshooting/81621-unable-send-picture-texts-mms-culprit-quick-settings-app.html

[MrCrowley]

Here is a strange one, I tried the mms settings that show on my Samsung but it it actually made the mobile data stop working. I was sent a new HTC Desire HD to compare with my Samsung, I put those settings in for mms and it still fails. I am not sure if it's because the phone is 3g or if it's because the phone is unlocked. I really don't have a lot of extra time to spend on this phone. I am going to try this Desire HD and compare with the Incredible S.

[xperiax10]

That is so odd, i never seen a phone do this because it was unlocked or 3g, usually the settings are to blame.

you said you got desire hd sent to you , whats the difference when you compare it to incredible s, like screen quality , responsivnes...

[MrCrowley]

Well good news, a factory reset and re-keyed the APN info and working awesome now. Only been in full function for 48hrs now but so far it is a very nice phone. Even with the smaller amount of ram compared to the Fascinate 4g this thing I find has less lag. The camera is a huge improvement over the Fascinate 4g. I am still not 100% sold on Sense yet, it has some quirks that would seem like an easy fix for HTC but yet nothing seems to be in the works to fix it. I'll do a little better opinion more in depth after I have had the chance to play with it more, it's mostly been installing things with some texting and phone calls. Haven't tried all I want to try yet.