US Talk & Text Add-on not working

[hammy01]

The last two times I purchased a US Talk & Text Add-on it didn't work. What a waste of money and inconvenience. The Add-on didn't work in Kalispel, Montana, Houston, Texas, Dallas/Fort Worth, Texas, Myrtle Beach, South Carolina, Atlanta, Georgia. What am I doing wrong that the add-ons won't function?

[Meow]

@Phil_Adelphus This is great explanation and clarification. Thank you!

NOW, if PM would update their FAQ and let its customers what or not to expect in USA many, many customers will be much happier.
But since PM will NOT do that there will be at least dozen posts 'service not working in USA' on a daily basis.

[Phil_Adelphus]

@Meow  It is not you, it is weird PM collaboration with Americanos.

I think the problem has more to do with PM's limited VoLTE whitelist.  There's nothing PM could have done about the USA shutting down all their 3G networks in 2022.  The Canadian carriers sent out notices to customers two or three years ago in advance saying that if your phone is non VoLTE then it will no longer work for roaming in the USA.  I had a VoLTE capable phone on one of the Tier 1 carriers (not Telus) and got a notice that it was deemed no longer usable in the USA (not on their whitelist).  In at least some cases American carriers actually sent their customers a replacement VoLTE phone for free in preparation for the 3G shutdown.  Since Canada still has 3G it's not an issue here so anyone not aware of the change in the USA would be unsuspecting, especially since PM's FAQ's are out of date and imply that some 3G is still available in the US when it's not.

[hairbag1]

@hammy01 

a short term alternative is download free voip app such as TextNow. You'll be able to talk and text most any Cdn or US number using TextNow and your local wifi or separely purchased data. Wifi is available at most every cafe, motel, McD's, libary...even just available free in some city centers. If you have a US address you can request a TextNow sim ($1) and get a free US number for free calling and tetxting while in US.

[Phil_Adelphus]

@hammy01   A non-VoLTE phone can only make calls on 3G (or 2G) but the USA no longer has any 3G therefore it simply won't work.  I think there is an FAQ somewhere on the PM site that is out of date on this, if that's where you're getting the information that PM says you don't need VoLTE.

Edit, found the out of data info " If there is no VoLTE coverage or if customers don’t have a VoLTE-Roaming enabled device, customers will continue roaming on the 3G/HSPA".  This did apply before the end of 2022 but not any more.

[Meow]

It is not you, it is weird PM collaboration with Americanos.

You should read Community post when massive number of customers have issue with US service and look for different solution. Free voip app, local sim, etc.

[hammy01]

According to Public Mobile I do not need a VoLTE phone. No upgrade needed according to them.

[hairbag1]

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@hammy01 wrote:

I did enable roaming and tried connecting manually to T-mobile but it didn't work. I don't have a VoLTE enabled phone. I tried auto connecting to a 2G/3G Network, still nothing.

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In my case, I found that my non-volte phone could complete a call as long as I was very close to a tower. You may have to manually select 2G for service as well as T-Mobile.  It worked sorta ok in town but service quickly diminished as I moved away from town. (Eastern Wa state) Once I upgraded to a new volte enabled phone..well..that made a huge improvement.

[Chalupa_Batman]

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@hammy01 wrote:

I did enable roaming and tried connecting manually to T-mobile but it didn't work. I don't have a VoLTE enabled phone. I tried auto connecting to a 2G/3G Network, still nothing.

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You just answered your question there. No VoLTE, No Service. Time to upgrade your phone to VoLTE!!  

[Phil_Adelphus]

@hammy01   A non-VoLTE phone won't work for voice calls in much of the USA, all US customers had to get a VoLTE phone if they wanted service after 3G shut down at the end of 2022.  That leaves you with T-Mobile's 2G which is also being shut down and isn't available or reliable everywhere in the USA.  

[hammy01]

I did enable roaming and tried connecting manually to T-mobile but it didn't work. I don't have a VoLTE enabled phone. I tried auto connecting to a 2G/3G Network, still nothing.

[fixin1]

@hammy01 - I was using a roaming Talk / Text / 3GB data add on in Kalispel and it worked on AT&T and T-Mobile last year.

[golfball]

You need to have data roaming enabled, a VoLTE enabled phone and make sure you're not connected to Verizon. If you're connected to 5G you should give 4G/LTE a try instead. If it still doesn't work then you should try manually connecting to T-Mobile 2G to make calls.

[hTideGnow]

HI @hammy01 

getting text should be relatively easy, I think you didn't connect to the proper network

please try to manually connect to T-Mobile and AT&T and test.   and turn off 5G, use Automatic or LTE

if voice is the only issue,  try T-Mobile with Automatic network mode first.  Still not work, then try T-Mobile with 2G network mode

[Phil_Adelphus]

@hammy01   What phone do you have?  Voice calls in the USA require a VoLTE enabled phone otherwise the only option is T-Mobile's 2G network where it still exists because the USA shut down their 3G networks.  If your phone is trying to connect to anything other than T-Mobile or AT&T then it won't work.  You may also need to turn on data roaming even though you aren't looking to get data.