Zopo C3 wont connect to mobile internet

[knighty55]

Hi everyone, I have a Chinese phoneZopo c3. Quad core MT6589T processor Android 4.2 with dual sim,It won't connect to mobile internet.Wi fi is fine. I have contacted customer support but as my phone is not supported they could'nt help.  I was told by vodafone to contact the phones manufacturer fot the APN settings as each phone has different settings? I'm waiting for a reply from them (Zopo).I have spent hours searching the internet changing settings etc. All to no avail.

please help. Many thanks in advance

[Retired-Kay]

Hi knighty55, 

Have you tried following the steps on our internet settings page? This sends the correct settings to your phone although we can't guarantee it will work on a handset we don't support. 

Thanks, 

Kay

[Wil46]

I have just purchased a Zopo ZP998 and I have the same problem - it will not connect to the mobile internet with Vodafone. I have tried manually inputting the settings but this makes no difference either. In addition to my Vodafone SIM, I have a 3 SIM and a EE SIM. Both of these latter SIMs connect the phone to the internet no problem (in both cases without even having to manually input any settings). Why do Vodafone refuse to "support" Chinese handsets? What "support" is needed anyway? Why are Zopo handsets any different from, say, Samsung handsets, which are supported? Both are just computers running the Android 4.2 operating system surely? So why does the Vodafone system see them as any different from each other? In the case of my home computer, my ISP does not need to specifically "support" my desktop machine, the ISP will permit internet access with any computer, even one that I have assembled myself - it does not have to be, say, a Dell or a Hewlett Packard. All that is needed is any computer that runs Windows and it will be connected to the internet. Why is it different in the mobile situation? And, even if the situation is different, how is it that other companies, like 3 and EE, have no problem with this? Is it just a con on the part of Vodafone to get customers to give up on SIM only deals and buy a "supported" handset from Vodafone?

Anyway, I will now be cancelling my Vodafone SIM (it is no use to me after all!) I am going over exclusively to 3 - a company that affords mobile internet access that actually works!

Wil.  

[hrym]

You'll need to set the Access Points up manually - have a look here.   If it doesn't work after that, I've seen reports that setting Authenticatiion Required to NO (if it's set to YES) will fix it.   Go with the instruction in the link first, though.

Edited to add: just seen the other replies, so this may be superfluous.

[Wil46]

Thank you for your response. However I apologise for the apparent confusion. When, in the second sentence of my original post, I said "I have tried manually inputting the settings ... ", I meant that I had already tried to set up the Access Points manually (without success). Your link takes me to the page where I have already been more times than I have had hot dinners in the past couple of weeks! "Authentication Required" is already (and always has been) set to NO on my handset, so no help there either.

It is a Vodafone issue here. My experience is that if your handset is not on the Vodafone supported list, (and Zopo handsets are not) the Vodafone system will not connect your handset to the internet. It is, of course, Vodafone's prerogative to do this but they are losing business by doing so. As I said in my earlier posting, I am going over to 3, where there is no problem.

I note that no one from the Vodafone company itself has challenged my view/experience here. 

[hrym]

I'm not aware of Vodafone blocking any specific devices and plenty of people have managed to get unsupported ones connected.  The other possibility is that the one you have doesn't work on the frequencies Vodafone use.

[Wil46]

I have just checked the 3G frequency ranges covered by my Zopo phone. They are identical to the ones quoted for the Apple iPhone 5 and the Samsung Galaxy 5 (which obviously are supported by Vodafone). This is hardly surprising. The frequency allocation for 3G has been agreed internationally. There would be no motive for a global handset manufacturer like Zopo to market a phone which had restricted frequency coverage, or one which differed from the worldwide allocation in any way. To do so, they would have to have chips specially designed and made, which would be costly and the only outcome would be to restrict sales.

As regards your claim that " ... plenty of people have managed to get unsupported ones connected." Are you sure that this is the case? I accept that plenty of people have managed to get their handset connected by manually inputting the APN data but this does not mean that the handsets involved were on the Vodafone supported list. There are quite likely to be handsets on the supported list that are incapable of dealing with the APN data automatically and hence need manual input.

It remains my view and opinion that Vodafone specifically block certain handsets and/or manufacturers of handsets, as regards 3G internet connection. I can see no other explanation as to why Zopo handset will not connect via Vodafone but will connect via 3 and EE. In this thread we already have two different models of handset, from the same manufacturer, neither of which is on the Vodafone supported list and neither of which will connect to the internet via the Vodafone system.

This Forum is provided by Vodafone and presumably moderated by Vodafone but I note and say again that no Vodafone person has come on to challenge or refute my opinion here.

I am rapidly losing interest in this issue now, as I am now a 3 customer, exclusively - a company that does not have these difficulties.  

[Retired-Andy]

Hi Wil46,

The settings that hrym has linked to have been used successfully by customers.

You can also use this page to get the settings sent to you.

If this doesn’t help, try a full factory reset of the phone with the Vodafone SIM in.

When the phone goes through the set up process again, it should pick up the right settings.

Don’t forget to back up any important data first.

Thanks,

Andy

[Wil46]

Thank you for your message, Andy. However I have already cancelled my Vodafone SIM. I am happy enough with 3 - no problems with this SIM, so why should I worry about Vodafone?

That having been said, just to dot the i's and cross the t's, before signing off on this thread :-

1   I am not suggesting for one moment that the settings which hrym has linked to have not been successfully used by others. What I am saying is that they do not work for me on my Zopo 998.

2   I tried the factory reset option three times before posting this thread. It makes no difference. Ironically, on the next switch on after the factory reset, the phone does receive the Vodafone settings automatically. When you check, the settings are all there and 100% correct. So there is actually no need to manually input or change anything, although I have, of course, tried over-typing them. However, it still will not connect to the internet with the Vodafone SIM. Putting the 3 SIM back in restores internet access.

So, as I say, the best thing is to forget Vodafone and go for 3, which I have done.

Thank you to all who read/contributed to this. Thread now ended! 

[hrym]

I was specifically referring to manual entry. If the phone's not supported, that's what you'd need to do. The problem with getting help here is going to be finding someone who has experience of this particular device. The Vodafone APN settings should work. If they don't, I'd be inclined to suspect a device issue. Does the manufacturer website offer anything issue?