[Q] Virgin Mobile Samsung Galaxy S3 Question

[Jayfeather787]

Hello everybody!!

My friend gave me his Virgin mobile Samsung Galaxy S3 to root and install a custom ROM on. I have install the latest TWRP recovery, and flashed the Super SU. I am not rooted on stock. I was wondering how to go about installing a custom ROM. I think that the Virgin Mobile and the Sprint are very similar, but I noticed something on the ROMs posted in the development forum. For example, http://forum.xda-developers.com/showthread.php?t=2750674 shows that it is meant to work on versions with NJ2 and ND8. My S3 here has NJ3. I am wondering what this means. I have NJ3 on my S3, and I was wondering that meant. Does it mean that it is different version completely, or does it mean that it simply says that because it is Virgin Mobile and is still pretty much the same thing? That being said, would that ROM work on my S3 with NJ3?

Thanks everybody for your help and development to make this community awesome!

 

[Jayfeather787]

Okay, well I installed it anyways. It works great, but I need to find the APNs for Virgin Mobile. If someone can point that out to me, I would really appreciate it. Virgin Mobile US internet.

 

[Powered_By_Linux]

Okay, well I installed it anyways. It works great, but I need to find the APNs for Virgin Mobile. If someone can point that out to me, I would really appreciate it. Virgin Mobile US internet.

Here's the APN fix. You flash the zip in a custom recovery: http://androidforums.com/threads/vi...rgin-mobile-apn-fix-wip-cm-aosp-4-4-x.840298/ My Virgin Mobile SIII is on NJ3, and the APNs work fine. NJ3, ND8, etc is just the modem. AFAIK it allows for connecting to the network, and newer modems have better connections. Any d2spr ROM should work fine on Virgin Mobile SPH-L710 (NOT SPH-L710T, be careful) if you flash the APN fix.

---------- Post added at 09:40 PM ---------- Previous post was at 09:37 PM ----------

Hello everybody!!
I have install the latest TWRP recovery, and flashed the Super SU.

Did you use some modified version of TWRP? The normal official version can't mount partitions properly. I tried installing it and sh*t hit the fan. I had to use a gummified version of TWRP 2.8.0.0.

 

[Jayfeather787]

Thanks for the reply! I found the same problem, and I installed CWM. I did the APN fix, but mobile data won't work. Do I now have to put the APNs for the data to work?

 

[Powered_By_Linux]

No, after you flash the fix in recovery, everything should be taken care of. Sometimes you might have to flash it a few times to get it to stick, I suppose. The only thing I can think of to recommend is to make sure you follow the instructions and give the FAQs a read. That should explain evertything you need to do.

As a side note, here's a link to the Gummified TWRP that I'm using, in case you want TWRP (I personally prefer TWRP over CWM/PhilZ). You can just install it using the dd method with a terminal emulator on your phone using the instructions on the TWRP site. It's the TWRP 2.8.0.0.img. https://drive.google.com/folderview?id=0B1mtB5XM-ndHQThQX08xRWFVSzQ#

 

[Luniz2k1]

Thanks for the APN fix for Virgin Mobile. I just updated to CM12.1 on my S3 and had no data until I applied this fix.

 

[Jayfeather787]

Thanks so much, I will give that a try! I flashed it once, and it did not work. I will try flashing it a couple times in order to get it to work.

 

[Powered_By_Linux]

Are you trying to flash an android 5.1 ROM? Sh*t hit the fan on cm12.1 and all ROMs using cm as a base, and the APN fix doesn't have LTE on 5.1. If you want stability, I'd just go with a kitkat d2lte ROM. This bug is getting worked out, though. They just fixed it on cm, I think

 

[Jayfeather787]

Yep, I found that out the hard way lol. Thanks anyways, I will let my friend back it up, and I will just install kitkat on it. Thanks for your help.

 

[Powered_By_Linux]

You could also install a touchwiz ROM like wicked s5 for stability, but if you ask me, half the reason to root is to get away from touchwiz

 

[Jayfeather787]

Touchwiz must die.

 

[J-Lindo]

Hi, guys!

I have a friend who also has a VM S3, and, of course, I told him he could have a way better Android experience if he let me help him put Cyanogenmod on it. He agreed to it, liking the idea of revitalizing his phone, and I went right ahead to the XDA forums to do some research. I came across this thread (obviously), and while it was immensely helpful (thank you everyone who contributed and provided links), it has got some out of date information and a few things gone unmentioned. So, I'll briefly compile a list of everything I know here to save future VM S3 modders some trouble and headache.

1) The latest TWRP (as of right now, it's 3.0.2-0) does work on the VM S3. Whatever issue was there in older versions is taken care of.
2) It is true that one will need to flash the APN fix linked in previous comments. That will get mobile data working.
3) However, in the very article linked, one will also see a Stock MMS fix, because even with the APN fix, the stock AOSP messaging app (in our case, that of Cyanogenmod 12.1) will not receive MMS. However, as users have commented in that forum, DO NOT flash that Stock MMS fix on anything above Android 4.4.4. As I discovered the hard way, it will only result in bootloop, as well as much headache and angst.
4) So, how do we fix the MMS glitch? Directly, there's no way (that I know of/can find). What I ended up doing for my friend was, when installing GAapps, I used the Aroma installer (because why wouldn't I?), and I had it install Google's Messenger app (in Aroma, it's labeled as just "Messenger"), and I had it block the installation of the Stock CM Messenger app. MMS now works fine.
5) Not a fan of Google Apps, or specifically Google's Messenger? Well, I hear Textra is good too. :fingers-crossed:
6) For the comment by @Powered_By_Linux on the issue concerning not getting LTE, I cannot say for certain as I no longer have my friend's phone with me, and I didn't think to test it. However, I know this: the comment was made in April 2015, and the snapshot release of CM12.1 is dated for November 2015, so I imagine it's possible something got fixed in between, as he said. Also, my friend hasn't complained to me yet about any sort of service problems (only praise for his rejuvenated phone), so I'm going to assume everything's working as it should. Also, there are other users in the linked APN fix article also saying their 4G/LTE works.

Again, thank you everyone who commented and provided links, as this thread was of great help to me. Here's to keeping those S3s alive and going strong!