# FM Chip not working in my S7, unsupported by network!



## r0bb0 (Aug 23, 2016)

I love FM, have for a long time as it was a way of escape, learning and knowledge before Internet. I've got a FM chip on my S7 & it's unsupported by the network. Matey's got an old dumbfone & he can pick up FM without any data usage. I was using TuneIn Radio and it gobbled loads of data. It's out of order that the network carriers deny this feature to us as the networks often crash in emergencies or massive crowds. The movement picked up some traction in the US,
I've asked EE (now owned by BT) mobile on their FB page and they've ignored me. I didn't expect much from them in the way of innovation as Three seemed to lead the way with allowing Skype and other innovations.
Is there a campaign like this in the UK? Anyway if you like FM please tell your network to sort it out, thanks.

Free Radio on My Phone
Today’s smartphones already have an FM receiver built in! This means that everyone could have free and easy access to radio for the entertainment they love and information they need, but those FM receivers are not activated by all wireless carriers and phone makers. Listening to radio on your phone using the FM chip instead of over the internet saves you valuable data and battery life. We need your help to send a message that free FM radio matters to you!


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## mauvais (Aug 23, 2016)

Your S7 doesn't have FM radio capability, or a chip as you put it.

Don't let that stop you though.


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## gentlegreen (Aug 23, 2016)

What a cynical ploy ... maybe that's also why they've been slow to give a decent amount of expandable storage on phones.


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## r0bb0 (Aug 23, 2016)

S7 has FM chip but is not supported by UK network carriers. I tried the NextRadio App to see it was there but not activated!

Download NextRadio - NextRadio


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## mauvais (Aug 23, 2016)

r0bb0 said:


> S7 has FM chip but is not supported by UK network carriers. I tried the NextRadio App to see it was there but not activated!
> 
> Download NextRadio - NextRadio


No, it doesn't.

The US version has a totally different chipset. Your one has an Exynos 8890 chipset, they have a Snapdragon 820, which is why they've been able to do as linked over there.


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## r0bb0 (Aug 23, 2016)

mauvais said:


> No, it doesn't.
> 
> The US version has a totally different chipset. Your one has an Exynos 8890 chipset, they have a Snapdragon 820, which is why they've been able to do as linked over there.


Ahhh chrikes . so the all dancing all singing S7 has finally let me down. Had to do a bit more digging and found this so thanks for pointing that fact out Mauvais.
Does the S7 have FM radio
What's the situation with other flagships in UK, Apple, HTC for example?


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## mauvais (Aug 23, 2016)

No idea. But I think the whole premise is suspect.

Many chipsets technically support FM. But someone would have to write software, from the radio layer up to an app you can use, in order to take advantage of it. Wouldn't be rocket science (it exists on very cheap phones) but wouldn't be trivial either. And noone has bothered, which is why it doesn't exist any more on phones.

None of this has much to do with the network operator. They have some control over the software on the phones they sell but not usually to that depth, or in the case of Apple, none. Plus on Android you could just avoid that by flashing the OEM, unbranded software.

Really what these campaigns seem to be doing is lobbying operators to lobby manufacturers to include stuff in their phones. It doesn't seem very likely to succeed.


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## gosub (Aug 23, 2016)

hybridradio.apk


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## r0bb0 (Aug 26, 2016)

There are lots of other smart phones on the market that have the fm chip. They can't all have different chipsets on them like the Sammy 7. Here, take a look and see if your device is on this list....

Supported Devices - NextRadio

If it is and there is an fm chip on your phone please hassle your network provider for the public good.


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## salem (Aug 26, 2016)

I'd not heard about this before, but it seems like the movement in the US which is a good thing.

mauvais is it the case that the stock version of these phones has it and it's disabled by the networks or that the stock version never had support at all?


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## mauvais (Aug 26, 2016)

salem said:


> I'd not heard about this before, but it seems like the movement in the US which is a good thing.
> 
> mauvais is it the case that the stock version of these phones has it and it's disabled by the networks or that the stock version never had support at all?


The latter, usually. Certainly in the case of say the iPhone where the network has no control at all.


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## Mojofilter (Aug 27, 2016)

Why on Earth would manufacturers build FM radio functionality into a phone, only to not let anyone use it? 
That doesn't make any sense. 

Closer to the truth is that not enough people care about it for manufacturers to include it as a feature. 

I find internet radio to be generally more reliable than FM as the signal is usually poor on a mobile device and it doesn't use that much data. 

Sent from my SM-T810 using Tapatalk


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## skyscraper101 (Aug 27, 2016)

I too would appreciate FM on my phone. I used to always use the function on my old Nokia and Orange San Francisco/ZTE Blade.

The lack of it is a pain in the arse when data coverage is weak and you want something to listen to.

Not an ideal solution but you can get little pocket AM/FM radios on ebay for around a fiver.


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## mauvais (Aug 27, 2016)

Mojofilter said:


> Why on Earth would manufacturers build FM radio functionality into a phone, only to not let anyone use it?
> That doesn't make any sense.
> 
> Closer to the truth is that not enough people care about it for manufacturers to include it as a feature.
> ...


Not the same manufacturer. For example Qualcomm make chipsets and then Samsung incorporate them into their phones.

For Qualcomm it's easy to add FM capability to their chipsets, as it comes cheaply once you've got Bluetooth as far as I recall.

For Samsung it's expensive as they'd have to write the software to use it, possibly add hardware like an aerial circuit, etc.


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## Mojofilter (Aug 27, 2016)

Fair enough. I still think it's just a feature that not enough people care about though. 

Sent from my Nexus 6P using Tapatalk


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## r0bb0 (Sep 1, 2016)

There's no network on a lot of the coast, anyone who likes to check in on the weather could use that info


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## keybored (Sep 1, 2016)

r0bb0 said:


> If it is and there is an fm chip on your phone please hassle your network provider for the public good.






skyscraper101 said:


> Not an ideal solution but you can get little pocket AM/FM radios on ebay for around a fiver.



This^, except it _is_ an ideal solution. If you want a radio, get a radio. It's 2016 and some people still want a phone that does everything, badly. (I remember radio on phones, you needed your headphones plugged in to act as an antennae).


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