No option for video calling, unlocked note 10+

[userZtmMmgLPzH]

I have an unlocked Note 10+ I bought through Samsung. Whenever I make a audio call there is no video call option. No settings for it anywhere. I have crickett as my provider could that be why?

[Leinz · Accepted solution]

Video calling is a feature routed thru the carrier, rather than Samsung. The carrier and branded variants don't run the same firmware bit for bit, and certain features are whitelisted at the IMEI level. That means the string supercedes fw on the device. 

Cricket/ATT allows their own devices to use VC with each other. Why is unclear, though that might be a question for Mr. Stephenson's team instead of me, haha. In any event, Samsung cannot force the availability of carrier features like RCS, video chat, etc. 

Aside from getting an ATT model you could try speaking to a rep from Cricket. Sometimes resolution is sought by reaching the right rung on a ladder. 

[userZtmMmgLPzH]

Thank you, everything was starting to point to talking with Crickett. I'll see what they say thanks again!

[OBYourThirst]

so your saying buying a phone straight through samsung, we will not have video call?

[Charkatak]

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@userZtmMmgLPzH wrote:

I have an unlocked Note 10+ I bought through Samsung. Whenever I make a audio call there is no video call option. No settings for it anywhere. I have crickett as my provider could that be why?

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This is with pretty much any carrier.  If you rely on these features, carrier branded phones would give you the best of both worlds.  Example: If I buy an unlocked Note10(which I do have) and use it on T-Mobile, here are the things that will be missing on the phone(feature wise):

1) Video call

2) Advanced Messaging(similar to RCS)

3) 4G LTE(which I like better) instead of just LTE in the status bar

4) I would say better support/compatibility for T-Mobile network and their bands: 12, 66 and 71

[SilentSunXIII]

@Charkatak 

While I understand this thread is a year old now, this is not 100% true. T-Mobile has only used unlocked phones for quite some time now, there is no such thing as a T-Mobile branded phone anymore, this is why it's so easy for you to either leave or join them. And part of the reason Best Buy dropped them, they can just sell the phone outright if you go to T-Mobile, why lose some of the profit to a carrier? They don't believe in locking their devices. Hence why my S7 had RCS messaging way before Google announced they would be doing such a feat on their messaging app. Imagine my shock, when I had to switch to Verizon for business reasons, and my RCS feature was now gone.

In all honesty, if you are going to purchase an unlocked device it is better to go through T-Mobile than any other carrier.  My spouse's phone currently has RCS, Video Calling(though only with T-Mobile users), Call & Text on other device support, all from an unlocked S10. My $1,200 Verizon locked Note 10, could not video call without a Verizon app, no RCS support, no ability to use call & text on other devices(rendering my Tab S6 features useless), and they denied use of all Samsung Cloud options in order to force you to use Verizon Cloud.

Now, why in the world would I want to pay over 1,000 dollars, and half of the phone's capabilities are denied to me? It would truly be a waste. I decided to upgrade to the Note 20, unlocked, still on Verizon sadly, but I have never felt more freedom. I can now re-access my Samsung Cloud backups, I have RCS messaging, still have Wi-Fi calling(something else people swear you lose), Call & Text on other Devices, and I'm not being routed/forced to use Verizon's bloatware. I paid 5 dollars a month for their visual voicemail, unlocked phones can do it for free, something iPhone has been doing for quite some time now. 

So don't blame Samsung for the failures of the carriers. It's all about money, and they don't make as much when you buy the phone direct from the manufacturer. Not having access to Verizon's video calling is fine as I can use Google Hangout as an alternative. If you have an android phone, you more than likely have a GMail account, as it's the only one to access the play store, so just download Hangout and the problem is circumvented.

[userQFSlQ0QCMb]

There is no option for it at this point as samsung has to put a software update for the carrier to activate it for you...absolute bull.

[Samsung_VRqrQf5]

I agree - had I known I would have nev er purchased through Samsung.

[SilentSunXIII]

@Samsung_VRqrQf5 It isn't Samsung's fault. This is entirely because of carrier greed.