Donot buy Samsung outside India

[RaviYV]

Hi,

 I would like share my not so happy experience of buying Samsung phone outside and using it in India. My phone is a Flip 4.

My phone does not connect to Jio 5G still. I have been struggling for the past year+. I have repeatedly got in touch with Jio and Samsung helpdesk (both India and US). Samsung India says, as phone is bought in US, they'll not touch it. Got in touch with US support and they asked me to courier the phone to the US ☹️. They gave me a friendly advice of trading-in the phone and buying another in India. I have tried that too! I have tried to exchange the phone in Samsung Shop app. The app says that I can't exchange it in India ☹️. BTW, I escalated to the regional head of Samsung support. He gave me the same answer - contact US! 

 I have not got the UI 6 update still - though it is released in both in India and the US. The India support team says they would not look in to it!!! Again, I had to get in touch with US support. They are looking in to it 

 I never had this problem with Apple iphone. I bought it in the US and used it in India without any problem - got all updates on time, got all support without problem and also got 5G connectivity. Of course, they too have region based features. If so, how could they support across the regions? Why can't a big company like Samsung do the same? Looks like, they just donot want to support. 

 My sincere advice, based on my experience, is donot buy Samsung device, if you plan to move around. 

 Now, I am saddled with a costly device, which is of limited use to me. I could get the same functionality with some sub-Rs10,000 device! 

 In summary - I regret buying Samsung! 

Thanks,

Ravi

[Sivadgokul]

Brother first of all you should have read their warranty policies. Apple have international warranty, so you can buy Iphone anywhere and if problem can be repaired anywhere. But Samsung don't have that policy, it have regional policy. So if you bought in India it's come under Indian policy amd if you bought in US it will come under US policy so if any problem it can be repaired there only. It's not company's mistake it's yours. Samsung doesn't bring international warranty because Samsung is having more models than Iphone. You should have known these things before you are planning to buy Samsung in foreign countries..

[RaviYV]

Hi,
I donot think I agree with you completely. I gave an example of iPjone. But, that is not the only thing. For example, somebody gifted me a Motorola phone bought in UK. I had no problem with the support of the phone. Now, Motorola has a lot of models too.
For the time being, Let us now focus on the OS. The same OS is being tailored and supported on all these models. This support is mostly achieved by switches / macros in the S/W. Then why not support the OS across regions similarly. I have not come across any other company, need not be mobiles, for example cameras, they donot say you bought it in X country, so I can't support it in Y country!
The point I wanted to make is, they should have a platform, which would be transparent to the end user. Internally, they can do all the transfers. That is customer support.

[RaviYV]

Here is the extract from Samsung warranty
Overseas Product

 

Any product which is either purchased from outside the territory of India as a direct purchase or the products that are not sold by Samsung in India will be termed as “Overseas Product(s)”. Such Overseas Products can be repaired at the Samsung Service Centers with cost, however this may vary from product to product. There may be some overseas products which will be non-repairable in India.

[TechieUS]

The use of regional SIM locks is a complex issue with pros and cons for both manufacturers and consumers. Samsung uses it for price control and market segmentation. This avoids situations where customers buy cheaper phones from one region and use them in another potentially disrupting local pricing strategies. For apple 🍎, this doesn't matter much. Generally only taxes change. This also allows Samsung to tailor devices and software features to suit specific regional needs and carrier agreements. Mobile carriers offer attractive subsidies on smartphones in exchange for signing long-term contracts.
By limiting devices to specific regions, Samsung can streamline warranty and support services. This simplifies logistics and ensures access to relevant support providers and spare parts based on the region of purchase.
Different regions have varied network frequencies and technical specifications. Regional SIM locks can help prevent users from unintentionally purchasing devices incompatible with their local networks, avoiding potential connectivity issues and ensuring compliance with local regulations.
Regional SIM locks can potentially deter phone theft and resale across borders. If a stolen phone remains SIM-locked to its original region, it becomes less valuable and harder to use in another country.
For you I want to say that it's no use crying over spilled milk.

[RaviYV]

Hi
The issue is not with SIM lock! My phone connects to Jio 4G without problem. But, does not connect to 5G - though it has been provisioned for my SIM. I have tested the sim with another phone and it connects to 5G!

[TechieUS]

Then you have to wait for commercial 5G plans from Jio. As you, jio is giving Jio Welcome offer invitation to indian users which gjves them access to unlimited data. Your IMEI number is of US region.

[dinkar0707]

Try Airtel bro,I am getting 5g even this phone is brought from USA(XAA)

[RaviYV]

Yes. I have Airtel too. It connects to 5G N/W. Unfortunately, speed is not much. In BLR, we get about 200MBPS download. Whereas Jio is 600MBPS

[owl123]

Even google pixel is good international phone,if one does not want to go with apple