Tmo Gtab 7.0+ WANT to keep but MUST return due to inadvertent calls to dead number

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MrJinx

Member
May 12, 2008
42
5
Greetings fellow G-tabbers,

I appreciate everyone's input here and am hoping to be a long-term member of this community.

I would love to keep this tablet but am thinking it's going to have to be returned before my 14 day window with T-Mobile is up.

My questions: Is it possible to set up some kind of workaround to be able to receive CONDITIONALLY FORWARDED calls via the G-Tab/T-Mobile phone number to my other T-Mobile phone (basically, set up conditional call forwarding)? According to T-Mobile they can't because the tablet plan has a code in the system blocking calls.

Or if that's not possible, is there some other way, perhaps spoofing my own cell phone number as my outbound text number instead of using the assigned tablet phone number?


I realize that there are 3rd party apps out there but I'd much rather use the native text messaging application and not a 3rd party app such as Google Voice, Line 2, etc.

Here's the background:

I am a headhunter for a Federal DoD contractor and as such, I review resumes on various job boards (i.e. Monster.com, etc). As a way to connecting with candidates (I know who they are but they do not know me yet), I send them a text message, email and then voicemail. When setting up my Data Plan, I learned T-Mobile scripted within the system "call block" or "voice barred" feature, Tier 3 tech support at Tmo is unable to set up conditional call forwarding.

As a result of this, should a candidate decide to call my text number they'll get a dead number message saying something to the effect that this phone line cannot take incoming calls.

So what happens is that the candidate things I am unreachable or worse yet that the text message was spam (unless they fully read their text and check their email account).


Thanks so much in advance for your help and consideration. :)
 
Last edited:

chrisrotolo

Senior Member
Nov 3, 2010
1,905
462
Corona, CA
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
Im assuming you have a GT-P6200 since tmobiles GTab+ doesnt have phone abilities.
Tell them you dont want/need a tablet plan becuase YOU DONT HAVE A TABLET!
tell them it IS a smartphone, have them try to put you on a smartphone plan, thats
how most of ATT guys sneak by.

at least try to find a smartphone SIM with data/voice to see if it works without issues. It should.

last resort: "bribe" a young tmobile rep to spoof an IMEI to put you on smartphone plan.
 
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MrJinx

Member
May 12, 2008
42
5
Thanks Chris! I'll try that! I am using 2 other phones (work + personal), I wonder if I set up call forwarding prior to swapping SIM cards if it'll work.

Your thoughts?
 

MrJinx

Member
May 12, 2008
42
5
Yes i think the call forwarding should stickt
Great!

I just realized that my mini Sims won't work. Have to buy an adaptor to try/test out.

Quick question... Only because I am new to Tmo and sim cards (just fired Sprint) . What is involved with spoofing an IMEI?

Thank you again for your help!

P.S. how do you use your tab? Do you have it rooted?

V/r.
 
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chrisrotolo

Senior Member
Nov 3, 2010
1,905
462
Corona, CA
Samsung Galaxy S23 Ultra
I think other people here use smartphone sims with unlimited data on tmobile. Its do-able. Next time, a good rule is to always avoid telling your carrier how you will use your device :) because you know they think they know what is best.

Anyways spoofing an IMEI, means.. they need a smartphone IMEI in their "system", so a friendly helpful tmobile rep who doesnt care much about getting in trouble or knows his way around takes an IMEI from a never used phone like a demo model, you run an application that reports your IMEI the demo, etc. Its actually probably more involved than this. And Ive heard it may well be illegal, Class C felony. What you might want to ask them is if there is a way to just enter your device as a smartphone and not a tablet, but it is probably generated by IMEI.

PROTIP: if you do have 6200, it's good idea to make 2 backups of your /efs folder (if rooted).
 
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iso1600

Senior Member
Sep 28, 2010
92
7
Montgomery, AL
Greetings fellow G-tabbers,
I realize that there are 3rd party apps out there but I'd much rather use the native text messaging application and not a 3rd party app such as Google Voice, Line 2, etc.

Google Voice is not a 3rd party app, it will completely and natively integrate with your Android stock dialer. If you were on an iOS device it would be terribly clumsy, but not on Android.
 
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kzoodroid

Senior Member
Jun 27, 2010
1,355
264
Kalamazoo
Google Voice is not a 3rd party app, it will completely and natively integrate with your Android stock dialer. If you were on an iOS device it would be terribly clumsy, but not on Android.

There is no stock android dialer in Honeycomb as it was meant only for tablets and not phones. I thought I saw a thread somewhere in here of people using Google Voice with a third party app to make calls. I think you could also use the Goolge Voice number for texting as there were threads on how to do this in my phones forum when Google Voice first came out. I think Skype will also assign you a static phone number to use if you pay for the service. I would also search the other tabs forums to see if anyone in those has a mod for it to work as a phone off a sim card from a carrier. Personally I would trade it in for the Galaxy Note if I wanted to use it as a phone and tablet.
 
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kzoodroid

Senior Member
Jun 27, 2010
1,355
264
Kalamazoo
After doing some Googleing and reading up on some GTab 10.1 threads it appears that Honeycomb 3.2 on a GSM tablet should be able to make calls if the carrier supports it. Which TMO doesn't. You could try getting a pre-paid sim card and dropping it in to see if it will work, maybe something like Virgin Mobile. There maybe something in the OS from TMO that may block other sims so not sure how that would work.

After thinking about it the tablet is more than likely locked to TMo and it has to be moded to use anohter carrier, like boost mobile. For phones its a complicated hack getting it on another network. I still think your better off getting the Galaxy Note but then you would have to pay for a second phone line and data plan to use both the tablet and your phone at the same time and then conditionally forward your calls as you suggested.
 
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MrJinx

Member
May 12, 2008
42
5
Hi,

I'm not interested in using my tab to make calls; only to send texts via the native in-built messaging app. I don't want to use other Android apps, just the stock messaging. I am able to do this to great success on Sprint. Sprint is able to go into the backend system and apply conditional call forwarding. Not the case with Tmo.

My main purpose is to NOT miss calls from people who may decide to call via reply to text as that's what appears as my callback number when it's not.

Thanks so much to everyone for your input.
 
Last edited:
Dec 28, 2010
16
4
47
Vancouver, WA
Hi,

I'm not interested in using my tab to make calls; only to send texts via the native in-built messaging app. I don't want to use other Android apps, just the stock messaging. I am able to do this to great success on Sprint. Sprint is able to go into the backend system and apply conditional call forwarding. Not the case with Tmo.

My main purpose is to NOT miss calls from people who may decide to call via reply to text as that's what appears as my callback number when it's not.

Thanks so much to everyone for your input.

.

Sorry to say, but TMO won't support this. They have silly notion that you should buy a separate phone from them if you want to make calls.
 

MrJinx

Member
May 12, 2008
42
5
.

Sorry to say, but TMO won't support this. They have silly notion that you should buy a separate phone from them if you want to make calls.
Hi,

Don't want/need to make calls. I only need for texting, however, if one of my candidate prospects (I am unknown to them at this point) attempts to call me via the link on their phone because of my text from the tablet, it'll ring to a dead number, the tablet number.

I ONLY want the calls to be conditionally call forwarded to my other Tmo cell phone which already has unlimited phone minutes.
 

MrJinx

Member
May 12, 2008
42
5
still not sure what device you have. this may be worth a shot, although I understand tmobile says its not possible, etc.

http://wiki.howardforums.com/index.php/T-Mobile_Conditional_Call_Forwarding

what is wrong with other messaging apps?, there are usually many on the market which have many more options than stock. just asking.
Hi Chris,

The reason I don't want to use other apps is if/when we move to ICS some of those apps may not be compatible for some time until they upgrade. I was burned using a VOIP app (Line 2) which worked very well and suited my needs on my older Gingerbread Tab (HTC EVO View) and when I upgraded to HoneyComb I learned that Line2 won't and never will support HC and I now know that the EVO View tab will not be upgraded to ICS.

I don't want to go there anymore, it severely impacts my ability to get my work done. I'd much rather use the native messaging app. Also because it doesn't use any data to use the native app, if I use an app from the Play Market, I'm likely going to have to use up my data plan and then I am prone to crashing, etc. Unless I am missing something are there any other alternatives?

V/r.
 

DebauchedSloth

Senior Member
Jan 27, 2008
459
76
Two options:

(1) Sign up for GoogleVoice and port your number to that. This is very easy and will give you full control over where that phone call routes.

(2) Go get a straighttalk SIM ($15) and service ($45, for unlimited) and tell TMO they've lost your business.

Or, do both.
 

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    Two options:

    (1) Sign up for GoogleVoice and port your number to that. This is very easy and will give you full control over where that phone call routes.

    (2) Go get a straighttalk SIM ($15) and service ($45, for unlimited) and tell TMO they've lost your business.

    Or, do both.
    1
    Im assuming you have a GT-P6200 since tmobiles GTab+ doesnt have phone abilities.
    Tell them you dont want/need a tablet plan becuase YOU DONT HAVE A TABLET!
    tell them it IS a smartphone, have them try to put you on a smartphone plan, thats
    how most of ATT guys sneak by.

    at least try to find a smartphone SIM with data/voice to see if it works without issues. It should.

    last resort: "bribe" a young tmobile rep to spoof an IMEI to put you on smartphone plan.
    1
    Yes i think the call forwarding should stickt
    1
    I think other people here use smartphone sims with unlimited data on tmobile. Its do-able. Next time, a good rule is to always avoid telling your carrier how you will use your device :) because you know they think they know what is best.

    Anyways spoofing an IMEI, means.. they need a smartphone IMEI in their "system", so a friendly helpful tmobile rep who doesnt care much about getting in trouble or knows his way around takes an IMEI from a never used phone like a demo model, you run an application that reports your IMEI the demo, etc. Its actually probably more involved than this. And Ive heard it may well be illegal, Class C felony. What you might want to ask them is if there is a way to just enter your device as a smartphone and not a tablet, but it is probably generated by IMEI.

    PROTIP: if you do have 6200, it's good idea to make 2 backups of your /efs folder (if rooted).
    1
    Greetings fellow G-tabbers,
    I realize that there are 3rd party apps out there but I'd much rather use the native text messaging application and not a 3rd party app such as Google Voice, Line 2, etc.

    Google Voice is not a 3rd party app, it will completely and natively integrate with your Android stock dialer. If you were on an iOS device it would be terribly clumsy, but not on Android.