I read here that in addition to the European version, the Americas' version is region locked, even in the phone is SIM unlocked? Why on earth would Samsung do this?
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I read here that in addition to the European version, the Americas' version is region locked, even in the phone is SIM unlocked? Why on earth would Samsung do this?
Thanks for the link, but if you read the link in my OP, this is not what ends up happening.
It looks like several models purchased in European countries and activated the right way, as mentioned above [For example, in order to use an unlocked Galaxy Note 3 from the UK (therefore Europe) in the USA (North America), a buyer should turn on the Galaxy Note 3 in the UK with a SIM card from a local mobile operator inside before going to the USA and using a SIM card from AT&T or T-Mobile] will not work when a non-EU SIM card is inserted. Phones purchased from Germany, Netherlands, Sweden or UK and activated in those countries have failed to work with a local SIM card in Africa or Asia (Egypt and Thailand are among the markets mentioned by buyers).
Furthermore, UK retailer Clove appears to still have trouble explaining to its buyers what’s happening, and missing out on potential Galaxy Note 3 sales in the process, as Samsung has apparently failed to properly instruct the retailer on how to deal with the matter.
BTW, if this really is being done to discourage "grey market imports," it's gotta be the stupidest way to go about it. If I were a grey market importer shipping out Americas' GN3, I'd just include a $0.99 TMO SIM with instructions to activate the device using this SIM first.
Sorry, I trust Android Central more than some site that rips Android Central off. Granted, AA's post is newer so it may be newer information coming to light. It's pretty much a proper mess in any case.
Ninja edit :)
I was going to say they refer to an XDA thread, and here is a UK retailer's blog post about this issue.