Help please - is my phone compatible with /e/?

[Cernekus]

Hello,

I am an American who is very happy to have discovered /e/! However, I need help determining if my phone will work with /e/ on an American network.

I see that the supported phone models under Samsung are all international models. These international models, though, will not work on my current carrier. Specifically, here is what I want to do: buy a used Galaxy S8 phone and install /e/ on it and use it with my current carrier. The Galaxy S8 model G950U is not listed as supported (U means it’s modeled for USA); however, can I still install /e/ on this model and will it work? What exactly does “supported” mean? Essentially, I want to keep my current USA cell phone carrier (US Cellular - great service for where I live in the Midwest) and I want to have an /e/ phone.

It is hard to find anything on /e/ being installed on American phones. Any help from you all is greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Regain your privacy! Adopt /e/ the unGoogled mobile OS and online services

[Cernekus]

I just saw this thread (Compatibility of S9 and Note 9 model #s ending with U instead of F - #6 by strx3r) which seems to answer this question.

I suppose my next question is what can I do as an American besides buy the TerraCube phone? What options exist for me? Again, any help is greatly appreciated!

[aibd]

Hi @Cernekus welcome to the forum. It seems generally Samsung is not a good choice for USA! This search for Samsung + USA might give some more insights. There are some solid secondhand phones that might be a good choice. Smartphone Selector

Bon chance

[Cernekus]

I found these articles helpful too:

Samsung S9 in the USA - it can be done

If you’re in the USA, here are a couple of tips to get a Galaxy S9 working. Make sure you have either of these versions of the phone: SM-G960F or SM-G960F/DS - the chip/hardware for US versions of the S9 will not run it, i.e. /e/ OS is more of an EU focused product as far as I can tell. Whether or not the phone’s IMEI will be compatible with your carrier is something you should check beforehand if possible. If your goal is to de-Google yourself, make sure you do not rely on apps that need Goog…

New Samsung S6 USA user - installation experience and hopefully some helpful hints!

It took me a few tries to figure that out, the installer and documentation was not exactly clear on this. I just used Odin and was able to get into TWRP, etc.

It looks like the US is sitting the bench right now in the /e/ game…

[Cernekus]

Thanks for the links! It looks like a Motorola phone might work better - hat’s my next research project.

I wish someone from the USA who has done this successfully would put together a tutorial!

[Taurus]

Once you find a model that has either an official /e/ build or an unofficial one, it should be no problem to find the instructions here in the forum to install /e/ on it, and to also get help from other forum members.

It’s easier to do than you probably think. Just stay away from Samsung, as has been said. I installed /e/ on my Sony and it was fairly simple; I had never installed a custom ROM before.

[Cernekus]

Thanks! Are you in the States as well?

I am looking at these phones: Info about Motorola Moto G4 - athene, Info about LG G5 (International) - h850

Do you think those will work fine? They are actually supported by my network too!

[Taurus]

Yes, I’m in the U.S.

Best to search each specific model number here in the forum and see if there’s a build. You’ll need to check the full model number, in case there are different variants (or different network technologies) for different international regions.

If there’s no build here, you can create a “device request” post. Maybe there’s someone already working on it.

Also, know what USCellular’s VoLTE requirements are, or soon may be, for normal coverage or when roaming on other carriers. With 3G shutting down everywhere, you want to make sure the device you choose can use VoLTE, unless USCellular says you won’t need it. (If you ever have to roam on another carrier, one that no longer has a 3G network, then without VoLTE you probably wouldn’t be able to make or receive calls.)