cant connect to mtn with vodafone huawei e220 modem

[b@ndit]

Hi
ive just bought a huawei e220 usb modem from vodacom and am able to connect to vodacom perfectly.
i am having hassels connecting to virgin mobile with this device.
its telling me "you have to be on the vodafone network to make a data connection"

Ive tried an mtn(apn:mtnvpn) and virgin mobile simcard(apn:vlive)
i can connect via my n70 to both these apn's so its definately a device thing.

now i know these devices are supposed to be unlocked.
any help appreciated.

 

[b@ndit]

sorry i meant vdata for virgin mobile.

 

[JimM]

I think that you'll find the software installed when you setup the E220 is pre-set for Vodacom. You can download other "versions" from the Huawei website.

 

[YelloFever]

I think that you'll find the software installed when you setup the E220 is pre-set for Vodacom. You can download other "versions" from the Huawei website.

Correct you get the MTN E220 software on Huawei's website give it a try and advise if you still have a problem

MTNDD

 

[b@ndit]

ive downloaded the software but how do you install it?
file is not std executable ??

 

[kaspaas]

ive downloaded the software but how do you install it?
file is not std executable ??

It is a .zip file - just rename to whatever.zip and unzip and you should be able to see the installer.

 

[YelloFever]

It is a .zip file - just rename to whatever.zip and unzip and you should be able to see the installer.

Thanks kaspaas

Looks like you beat me to it

MTNDD

 

[JJF]

I just bought one of these odafone E220's today from a Vodashop (cash). The Vodacom SIM is not active yet, so I tried to shove my MTN SIM into the thing to see if it is any good. Lo and behold it didn't work.

After searching this forum for 1.5 hours, I found this thread and downloaded the newest software from huawei. It is unbranded though, couldn't find the MTN (or VC) version.

The Mobile Connect software connects flawlessly to the VC network using my Family Topup SIM). But it still doesn't connect when I try using the MTN SIM. In fact, it does not even connect to the MTN network. There is plenty enough signal power here, on the E620 I can see full signal without any antenna connected.

The MTN card definetly works, I am using it right now on an E620. The vodacom SIM I can also use on my E620.

Apparantly these E220's were never network locked, so I am quite lost now. Maybe someone can give me some more ideas?

Regards,

JJF.

 

[YelloFever]

I just bought one of these odafone E220's today from a Vodashop (cash). The Vodacom SIM is not active yet, so I tried to shove my MTN SIM into the thing to see if it is any good. Lo and behold it didn't work.

After searching this forum for 1.5 hours, I found this thread and downloaded the newest software from huawei. It is unbranded though, couldn't find the MTN (or VC) version.

The Mobile Connect software connects flawlessly to the VC network using my Family Topup SIM). But it still doesn't connect when I try using the MTN SIM. In fact, it does not even connect to the MTN network. There is plenty enough signal power here, on the E620 I can see full signal without any antenna connected.

The MTN card definetly works, I am using it right now on an E620. The vodacom SIM I can also use on my E620.

Apparantly these E220's were never network locked, so I am quite lost now. Maybe someone can give me some more ideas?

Regards,

JJF.

http://www.mtn.co.za/?pid=272898

MTN software can be found here

MTNDD

 

[jano]

OK, maybe I'm just dumb, but I struggled for nearly 4 hours on Saturday, trying to get a MTN SIM (yes, 32K) working in a Vodafone E220. At that point I decided to call it quits and try another day...

First, I plugged the E220 (with VC SIM) into the Win2K machine. It didn't autorun for some reason, so I kicked off the Vodafone install manually. After about 10 min, the install progress was stuck at about 75%, so I rebooted and tried again. This time it worked. The Vodafone Lite dashboard came up, and after a couple of minutes it showed Vodacom 3G. I clicked Connect, and it connected and worked.

I then wanted to swap SIMs. But Win2K wouldn't let me stop the removable drive associated with the E220, even after stopping the Vodafone SW. So I just unplugged it, swapped SIMs, and plugged it back in again. Nothing happened, so I rebooted.

Several minutes after the reboot, the Vodafone SW came back to life. I tried connecting, but obviously it complained that I needed a Vodafone SIM. Fair enough. I downloaded F@stLink_Driver.zip from MTN and installed the dashboard and driver (driver took at least 5 minutes to install). Probably rebooted.

I tried the MTN SW, and the modem was detected, but I couldn't connect, since the Vodafone SW was running. But once I stopped the Vodafone SW, the MTN SW said "Invalid device". I tried some random things, until by some magic, the MTN SW connected, but dashboard showed no data flowing, although NetMeter did...?

Now I'm wondering, am I supposed to replace the Vodafone SW on the E220, and if so, how? I've tried some SW from Huawei (e220-hostb106d04sp00c03 (normal).zip) but it can't find the modem...

I've also tried the E220 on my XP laptop, and while things are a little smoother and faster, I still can't get it working.

What am I missing here???

 

[jano]

OK, I solved it...

With the modem plugged in and the Vodafone SW running, I upgraded the FW, using e220fw_11_110_05_00_67.zip (prob. not not req.)

I then tried the update in e220_11_16_01_05_67_mtn.zip, but the MTN SW said "Invalid device".

However, the mobile connect SW (e220-hostb106d04sp00c03 (normal).zip) seemed to do the trick.

I'm pretty sure the MTN SW should work, but anyway, I'm happy.

 

[ginggs]

I tried the MTN SW, and the modem was detected, but I couldn't connect, since the Vodafone SW was running. But once I stopped the Vodafone SW, the MTN SW said "Invalid device". I tried some random things, until by some magic, the MTN SW connected, but dashboard showed no data flowing, although NetMeter did...?

The E220 has two COM ports, one for the modem and the other for your dashboard or diagnostic software. The MTN software communicates on the second COM port using standard AT commands. The Vodafone software puts the second COM port into a binary mode, and once it's in that mode it seems only a reset will get it back into AT command mode which the MTN software requires. Try disabling auto-run to prevent the Vodafone software from starting when you plug in the device.

The MTN dashboard software relies on receiving notifications from the card for the data counters. The firmware on your E220 does not send these notifications, which is why it appeared that no data was flowing. By upgrading the firmware you have already fixed this problem.