I tried WiFi calling on FP5 in an area without mobile access, but with WiFi, on Consumer Cellular, an ATT MVNO.
I received the error message I expected.
This error has occurred on another phone with same SIM card.
Not Fairphone fault, but error message is incorrect
Hi, not sure if anyone will be able to help as seems like most people here live in the US, while Iāll just be travelling there. Iām trying to understand whether my Fairphone 4 (android 13) will work once I arrive. Pretty sure my sim (vodafone uk) should be fine, just not sure about the phone itself. And Iāll need to be in touch with my booked taxi once I land, so Iām hoping for some reassurance in advance (otherwise I need a backup plan quick!)
I would say there are high odds your FP4 would work on arrival is US. I bought my FP5 in the UK, stuck my US based SIM card in, and it worked, though I mostly used a UK-based eSIM because my usual network costs too much when outside the country. Upon arrival back in US, my SIM worked again.
Of course, you are dealing with FP4, not 5, but FP4 will soon be sold in the US, using TMobileās services.
Thanks for replying. Do you think I might need to get a US T-mobile SIM then? I guess I could sort an eSIM as a backup before I leave, but even then it doesnāt seem 100% sure to work?
You can be sure of Wi-Fi working anyway (for Internet access, Iām not talking about Wi-Fi calling).
If Vodafone say your SIM will work in the States then Iām as certain as one can be, that itāll work.
Getting a SIM would only be necessary if your contract doesnāt allow for roaming.
For the phone itself, itāll depend on the bands in operation with different carriers in the area. This is the case with any phone, but the FP4 was designed to be used in Europe, so there may be areas where it wonāt work for cellular connections. See above in this topic.
Hi! Has anyone travelled to the US recently, and did your FP4 work ok there? Iām on android 13 and vodafone uk network. From what Iāve read it will likely work on the T-mobile network but I canāt seem to get a 100% certain answer. Iāll be needing to use it as soon as I land, so Iām getting a bit nervous! Iād like to avoid getting a US sim if possible as Iāll only need it for a few days. Also, this may be a silly question, but even if my mobile network doesnāt work, will I be able to get onto public wifi, say to use whatsapp? P.S: I did ask this in the US forum, but wasnāt really applicable since they mostly live there so have local sims. Thanks
Murena is selling FP4 in the US now, so there shouldnāt be a problem with your FP4, assuming that the roaming agreement is good.
Have you begun this project yet? Iām very interested in joining!! I am in Seattle. 
Thereās nothing meaningful yet, and youāre the first anywhere nearby who has expressed an interest. Iāve only just gotten my first FP, and have discovered that I may have to switch providers to get it connected.
In other words, thereās very little to build with at this point, but thereās still potential!
I donāt think thereās any reason to rush, and Iām going to be out of town (likely out of touch here) for the next 8 days or so. Iād be happy to try and figure out what made sense to do in the area, though.
Iām up in that same area, and might be interested!
I am running a FP4 running LineageOS. Iāve had success using both T-Mobile and my preferred MVNO called Ting. I purchased my device through Murena.
Excited that we finally have access to a version with the appropriate antennas for North America!
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My SIM card blocks OTA updates from happening. I describe the problem below, as well as a workaround.
When I go to System update, I see this screen.
When I click on āCheck for updateā, I get this screen, whether wifi is on or off
However, there is a workaround.
The SIM was the trick.
I set āUse SIMā to off
And suddenly I can see
āSystem update availableā
Download is possible even with SIM turned back on.
My SIM which blocks system updates is from Consumer Cellular, MVNO of ATT. Thjs is an American SIM, not a European one, which appears to be blocked.
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I wanted to wait a bit to say anything more on my end as a potential FP user, as the new SIM I got for my existing plan didnāt actually make the phone work on the cell service Iāve had for the past few years; I am on disability, and as a result have to try and keep any recurring bills as low as I can manage.
Thankfully, the phone does seem to be function on the Mint service. I think I have now jumped all the way in successfully. On that note, I thought a photo might be cute.
The idea is there anywayā¦ it was surprisingly difficult to take a good picture with just one hand on each phone. I think thereās some kind of weird tower in the background, though.
I donāt know what makes the most sense to try and get a little community built here, but Iām definitely willing to put in a little effort.
I was going to mention a little hurdle I ran into during setup, but now canāt find the exact setting that was related; itās possible the menu options changed when one of the updates was applied. What I remember is that either cellular roaming (not data) was off by default, or I saw it and decided to turn it off. What wasnāt immediately obvious to me was that this was not about whether I was going to get extra charges for cellular access, but rather that the provider on my SIM would need to match the provider on the tower I was accessing. As my provider doesnāt maintain their own infrastructure, that was never going to happen, and so I had zero access to any service at all, even with a few bars showing on reception. Once I decided to turn that back on, everything clicked into place and worked just fine.
I donāt know when roaming was last an issue on any of my plans, but itās been more than ten or fifteen years. As a result, that may have just been the result of me changing a bunch of settings before I checked my work. I also wonder, though, whether that may have been turned off by default, since moving around Europe likely has very different implications for your service than moving around in the US.
Easy fix, when I finally ended up tripping over the solution.
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Back to WiFi calling on FP5 on ATT MVNO.
ATT is taking responsibility.
Consumer Cellular, my provider, asked ATT why WiFi calling does not work on my FairPhone 5.
ATT answer is:
āthe reason why some of the settings are not working now is that this
phone is no longer supported as of 2 months agoā
Of course, Fairphone was introduced 2 months ago. FP5 was never supported by ATT. I suspect that ATT could just add FP5 to list, but they choose not to.
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Hello fellow Fairphone owners in the US! I came to this thread from a global community with many thanks to @OldRoutard for the pointer. I have been using a Fairphone (Fairphone3 from 2019-2022, and Fairphone4 since May 2023) in NYC (phone provider: AT&T, at-home wifi provider: Spectrum) with no major issues till recently. I am turning to your support on two issues I am experiencing for the past couple of weeks.
-
Patchy wifi connection at home (Spectrum)
This started a couple of weeks ago. The phone can connect to other wifi network (e.g., at the office). I was advised to look into the compatibility of the Spectrum router (https://drupal-cms.spectrum.net/sites/default/files/2023-10/20230621%20WiFi%206%20User%20Guide.pdf). Has anyone experienced something similar? What would you suggest as a solution? -
Android system update ātemporarily available, try again laterā
This has been an issue since I got a Fairphone4 earlier this year but I could still download the updates by (per general guidance online) clearing the cache of Google Play Service/ Play Store until recently. Now the only solution (again thanks to OldRoutard) seems to be to temporarily remove the SIM. Any solution / fix you could recommend highly appreciated.
Also, would love to hear from those who has a Fairphone4 who changed the provider from AT&T to T Mobile.
Looking forward to hearing from you.
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