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O2 Atom - UK Sources?

Hi
Just wondering if anyone knows where I can get an O2 Atom from in the UK (except for eBay of course).
I'm in London so does anyone know if any shops on Tottenham Court Road stock them or can order them?
Also, I've noticed a lot of eBay ads for PDA phones recently from Chinese sellers with random names and no feedback, not accepting paypal! I reported them to eBay to check out but didn't hear anything back (against their policy apparently). Has anyone successfully ordered anything from one of these sellers, or had any bad experience? Look out if you spot any deals that are too good to be true!
Cheers,
Joe

I don't buy things costing more than 20 dollars from anybody who doesn't take PayPal! Very simple reason: They're usually, not sometimes, crooks! And I don't buy anything costing more than 50 dollars from anybody who doesn't have a bunch of good feedback either. Doing so is just setting yourself up for a big, expensive fall.

Insurance

I don't normally bother getting insurance when I get a new phone, but considering I just spent close to £500 this time I'm thinking it might be a good idea. Unfortunately Handtec (the company I bought the Touch Pro from) didn't offer me any insurance with it and I've enquired with my credit card company if purchases are insured because I know some credit card companies offer this service - unfortunately mine doesn't!
So does anyone in the UK know how to go about getting my Touch Pro insured against loss/theft/accidental damage for the next year or so, and what would be a reasonable price to pay?

OK never mind, I've just been doing some googling. I found several sites that wanted £7.99 a month (probably all the same company as they all had very similar wording) which seemed quite expensive even though they all give you a free battery after a year (another reason why they're probably all the same company).
Then I found Gizmoguard: They only want £24 per year and are underwritten by AXA so I chose to go with them. The only slight glitch is that they only insure items up to a value of £500 and most sites are selling it for more than this. I don't think this will be a major problem though, even if you paid slightly more than £500 for it, they should still give you £500 back so you wont be too much out of pocket if you need to claim.

A lot of people don't realise that their phone is often covered on their household insurance. Even when lost/damaged/stolen while out and about.

finisterre said:
A lot of people don't realise that their phone is often covered on their household insurance. Even when lost/damaged/stolen while out and about.
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Very true but the excess could be quite high. Mine's not, but I have to specifically inform my insurer of any items worth over £500 that will regularly be taken outside the house. Then they up the premium by about 50p per month...

It says in the Gizmoguard FAQ that
7)Are there any items you cannot cover?
The maximum cover for any one item is £500. You cannot insure an item with a value of over £500 with Gizmoguard.
We cannot cover mobile phones.
Did you still manage to insure your phone?

I just checked on that site and it covers blackberrys and ipaq's so would presume it would cover the Touch Pro

mtbmtbmtb said:
It says in the Gizmoguard FAQ that
7)Are there any items you cannot cover?
The maximum cover for any one item is £500. You cannot insure an item with a value of over £500 with Gizmoguard.
We cannot cover mobile phones.
Did you still manage to insure your phone?
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As duke748 just (sort of) said, the Touch Pro isn't a mobile phone! It's a PDA with a "phone" feature
Although I've already purchased a policy, I have just sent them an e-mail to make sure that my cover is definitely valid cos I did pay more than £500 in total for mine, but I bought it from Handtec bundled with TomTom software and my argument is that the device on its own without the software is sold on the same site for less than £500 (just about). Seeing as it's only the device that I want to insure, and not the software as well, I should be OK. I told them to cancel my policy and give me a refund if I'm not covered, but I don't see why I shouldn't be.

I asked them:
You say you don't cover mobiles, but you do cover Blackberry. Do you insure other smartphones besides Blackberries? Eg the HTC Touch Pro?
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And got back this response by email this morning:
No sorry we do not cover smartphones, we cover blackberries and other devices that have the function of a mobile phone but not mobile phones that have other functions.
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I guess the question is, when is a device a phone with PDA features (not covered), vs a PDA with phone features (covered). As the Touch Pro is probably one of the most advanced smartphones in terms of non-phone features, and definitely more PDA-featured than a Blackberry, it's not obvious to me that it's a "phone with PDA features" - but with insurance it pays to be unambiguous otherwise you'll end up not covered (it's the underwriter's job to make sure that all conditions of the policy are met before paying out so).

zanewilson said:
I asked them:
And got back this response by email this morning:
I guess the question is, when is a device a phone with PDA features (not covered), vs a PDA with phone features (covered). As the Touch Pro is probably one of the most advanced smartphones in terms of non-phone features, and definitely more PDA-featured than a Blackberry, it's not obvious to me that it's a "phone with PDA features" - but with insurance it pays to be unambiguous otherwise you'll end up not covered (it's the underwriter's job to make sure that all conditions of the policy are met before paying out so).
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Hmm... I just checked my e-mail and I got this reply:
Hello
Thank you for your e-mail.
If you are happy to cover your item without the software/accessories so that the total value insured is £500 or less then that is fine to do this and you would not be affected in the event of a claim.
We trust the above will prove to be satisfactory however please do not hesitate to contact us if we can be of any further assistance.
Kind regards
Customer Service
Insurance4Living
JLT | Online - virtual insurance solutions
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I definitely won't be deleting that message in case I need it in the future

I asked gizmoguard the following:
"I would like to insure a device I have purchased (HTC Touch Pro) and would like to clarify two things:Firstly, I bought the product for £518 although most shops sell for £499. Would this be insured OK for £499 despite the price I purchased at?
Also, the policy mentions that mobile phones are not covered. The HTC Touch Pro is a PDA with phone capibilities - would this pose a problem?."
Their reply was:
"Thank you for your email. Unfortunately we do not cover PDA’s where it is also a phone, however if you contact a specialist mobile phone insurer they should be able to assist you further."
This obviously conflicts with previous posts here so I guess it depends on how you word your queries! I'll be using household contents insurance because nowhere seems anywhere near as reasonable as Gizmoguard.

TheDave said:
I asked gizmoguard the following:
"I would like to insure a device I have purchased (HTC Touch Pro) and would like to clarify two things:Firstly, I bought the product for £518 although most shops sell for £499. Would this be insured OK for £499 despite the price I purchased at?
Also, the policy mentions that mobile phones are not covered. The HTC Touch Pro is a PDA with phone capibilities - would this pose a problem?."
Their reply was:
"Thank you for your email. Unfortunately we do not cover PDA’s where it is also a phone, however if you contact a specialist mobile phone insurer they should be able to assist you further."
This obviously conflicts with previous posts here so I guess it depends on how you word your queries! I'll be using household contents insurance because nowhere seems anywhere near as reasonable as Gizmoguard.
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I'd be tempted to reply to that and ask why they cover Blackberries if they don't cover PDA's where it is also a phone and see what they say.
After all, do you know of any Blackberry devices that can't be used as a phone? I Don't!

[Q] General Question about Verizon/Ebay

If I buy a NEW phone on ebay (example HTC Touch Pro or Blackberry Storm), and it is defective, could I go to a Verizon store and return or exchange it without a receipt (assuming I still have the box).
Does anyone know if this is possible?

Hi. Keep in mind I'm sure they track serial #'s / ESN's & such so even if they are nice enough to exchange it (which I've never had the gonads to try) you run the risk that the phone was reported stolen, is under contact on someone else's account or who knows what, you're standing there with your pants down. Then again I suppose they wouldn't let you activate the phone on your account if those were true.. (Sorry I've been in the GSM world too long where you move your SIM as needed.) Anyway I'd say you're taking some big chances there since they surely link phones with accounts or service it was purchased with. I'd love to hear of anyone who has succeeded in this.. It's not like you're buying a toaster & returning it to Kmart for a merchandise credit or something. lol
Bill

by the phone being on someone else's account, does that mean for example they bought the phone at the 2yr contract price only to turn it around and sell it on ebay for profit?
The ebay buyer did nothing wrong in that case, the ESN was clean and ebay purchased cells are easily activated.
thanks for responding.

Yeah that's what I meant but you are assuming best case scenario.. As I said who knows, the phones could have been stolen from a reseller or dealer (I do computer support for a sprint/nextel dealer & they've had many stolen even by employees who turn around & sell them on ebay. The store definitely figures it out eventually & they get reported as stolen & flagged. Maybe within days or weeks or months.) or who knows. That is one of biggest risks of buying off ebay. You may not know the history. Not trying to scare you just saying remember you'll be the one in the store holding stolen merchandise. Again, you risk the same trying to add the phone to your account so I guess they'll track you down either way. lol
As far as your original question, I wish I could say I knew but I don't. I assume there is virtually 0 chance of a return with refund and only a slight chance of an exchange assuming the phone is not flagged & you have a good story. Maybe someone else could chime in who has tried it. Again we are talking expensive phones normally bought with a contact linked to an account so easily traceable so don't be surprised if they scan it in & call you by the name of the guy who sold it to you. lol
Bill

It's just amazing that Verizon makes it so hard to upgrade your phone before your contract is up (even if you're willing to pay full price!!). The only way you can really do it is by buying a phone off of ebay and activating it yourself.

Yeah I'd imagine. That is one nice thing about GSM: Just move your SIM, assuming the phone isn't locked to another carrier which is usually pretty easy to get unlocked. I have bought about 50 phones off ebay (That would have been like 2 had I needed to call AT&T every time I wanted to switch! lol) & for the most part I've had pretty good luck with some duds. (Incompatible model missing 850 band, broken or more worn than expected) If you are in a pinch you might not have much choice but just make sure you buy from someone with high & good feedback & you should be OK. Better yet make sure they have a good return policy or even their own warranty. Not sure if the trick will work for you but I've bought 'Pay as you go' phones & put my SIM in when I needed a phone quickly. Maybe verizon has such a thing too but the prepaid phones are usually pretty awful. Of course there is a chance they'd refuse to add it to your account too. Buy yeah I wouldn't chance buying something on ebay hoping you can return to the local store if needed. I'd say buy new & hopefully sealed, not used (especially for expensive phones unless you want to risk it. Of course you can always try selling back on ebay if needed) from a good seller like I mentioned above & you should be fine. Btw the other thing to consider is go to an authorized Verizon dealer (vs a real Verizon store). You might find them much more likely to work with you on selling you a phone without a contact. I know they make big bucks signing up people but if you're willing to pay retail for a phone I'd imagine they won't turn you away especially if you suggest you'll be back when renewal time comes.
Bill

Ok, so believe it or not, I called Verizon and the rep told me that even if you don't have the original receipt, the verizon store uses the proof of purchase barcode to tell when the item was purchased. If your item is defective you can exchange it, and she even said in some cases they'll even let you put the money towards a new phone, although they prefer to have a receipt.
I'm shocked as I thought they would have a very strict return policy.
Also, any cell purchased in the last month is returnable until Jan 15, which means blackberry storms and htc touch pros and omnias bought on ebay can simply be returned to a verizon store if they are defective!

Wow! Did you get that in writing? lol Guess they have a very lenient return policy. Sounds like they do track them big time but instead of holding it against you they actually HELP you with the info. Geesh, if that really works I'd say they have some killer customer support policies! Makes me want to break a phone to try it & see. Then again I'm on ATT & they'd prolly laugh as they escorted me out the store. :|
Good luck with that, I'd love to hear follow up if you end up needing to try it but then again I'm sure you'd rather NOT have to try. Anyone else ever actually do this with any carrier?

Did anyone buy from chinamobile?

Hello everyone,
I found a man called Kenny Taylor that sells phones,and I compared prices,
he`s prices are ridiculously low,
he`s saying that he works at chinamobile as a sales rep,
though I really couldn`t find any information about him or about phones in the site,I could manage to see only blackberry`s there.
He claims that the phones are brand new,in original box and with all accessories and they are not china clones.
He`s quotes for the phones I wanted -
iPhone 3GS 16GB (unlocked) - 300$
iPhone 3GS 32GB (unlocked) - 350$
HTC Hero - 250$
HTC Nexus one - 230$
International shipping via Fedex/USPS - 60$.
The prices here are 300$ less than the MSRP,and I don`t know if I should buy from him - maybe it`s a scam or something.
If anyone knows the person/company,and did buy from one of them - it would be nice to hear about that.
*if the thread is not in the right section of the forum,it would be nice if you could move it to the correct one*
**this thread is not about advertising the company/the guy,just for information matters**
Lots of thanks,
Danny.

100% SCAM!! Those prices are ludicrous, no way in hell are those real, most likely you will get nothing at all. and FYI, mobiles and pretty much all electronics are more expensive in China than in the US, and China Mobile shops are the MOST expensive places. STAY AWAY!

Thank you mlalahoi, actually I was going to buy the nexus one from him,
knew I should ask in here first.

Quick update -
I have got an answer from the company,I have to say that it sounds very believable..
Thanks for your mail.
This person that you are talking about i don't no him but he can be a
scammer too that want to you buy from him...
So i will advice you to buy from us to try and have believe in the
company...we no that there is alot of scam out there.
We are not scam we are real company that as been in business for more
then 8 years now...once we confirm your payment we are going to ship
the phone to you at your home address.
The reason the price is so low is the we buy direct from the company
that product the phone in bulks and right now we are running promo in
the company for buy 3units and get 1 for free.
So if you are going to buy the Htc Nexus one only the payment is via
western union not paypa...because is too low for the payment
condition.
Below is the condition about that payment
Any orders form $100usd to $3000usd=== via western union.
Any orders form $3000usd to $4500usd=== via bank transfer.
Any order form $4500usd above is via paypal.
So you are going to pay the money via western union money transfer.
So get back with your shipping address information so that we can
started packing and label your order ready for shipment.
Regards
Sale Rep.
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dany74q said:
Quick update -
I have got an answer from the company,I have to say that it sounds very believable..
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That's not believable at all if you know what to look for. First, the grammar and spelling is atrocious. Any real company would take the time to actually write their correspondence letters in a professional manner. Secondly, a legitimate, respectable company would never use Western Union to transfer money, no matter the amount. Every money transfer scam I've ever seen uses Western Union, since it's not traceable or reversable. I would not buy from any seller selling new devices at those rediculous prices; even if bought at wholesale prices, they would lose a lot of money selling that cheap. My advice is to stick with a reputable seller so you don't end up losing a few hundred dollars and not get anything in return, as I can guarantee you won't get what you order from these people.

Thank you for your answer Dave,I`ll stay away.
Once again - thank you all for your time.

dany74q said:
Thank you for your answer Dave,I`ll stay away.
Once again - thank you all for your time.
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It's not that bad, heh, but there are a few things you should keep in mind:
do not buy "genuine" stuff from China, either you're gonna get a fake or worse: nothing
go with established stores like DealExtreme or FocalPrice
use only PayPal, only scammers use Western Union
engrish is somewhat the norm, even with bigger stores :/
if you're getting a phone from there, choose one which has been properly reviewed, DealExtreme is very good in that regard as they have a very active forum and users , so you know what are you buying

If she reaches for a handful you'd better have the energy!

[Q] Has anyone found this cradle anywhere

http://www.mobilefun.co.uk/deluxe-htc-desire-hd-desktop-charging-cradle-p26571.htm
I am looking for this cradle from anywhere that accept Paypal but except mobilefun.co.uk.
I haven't managed to find any though. If anyone found one or similar (but with audio jack and headphone external jack like that one), let me know.

Yeah my eye also on this cradle. Unfortunately I haven't found it on ebay either. Mobilefun only has it. I hope Chinese guys wake up immediately and see this

mobilefun will stock it in 2 days but I'm not willing to buy anything from a shop which uses discrimination policy (higher price for non-UK buyers) when others sell at the same price. Since they are all Chinese, let's wait and see, maybe they appear somewhere else as well.

andreasy said:
mobilefun will stock it in 2 days but I'm not willing to buy anything from a shop which uses discrimination policy (higher price for non-UK buyers) when others sell at the same price. Since they are all Chinese, let's wait and see, maybe they appear somewhere else as well.
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Hey! We're just getting our own back. Normally we (in the UK) pay MORE than non-UK peeps for the same thing. The usual story is that something that costs $10 in the US will cost £10 here. When the exchange rate is £1=$1.50!!!!
And I can't see the different pricing. I put one in my 'cart' and asked for international delivery and it was just a few pence more than delivery in the UK .... and they HAVE to charge more for international delivery than UK delivery seen as how they're a UK company.
Or have I missed something?
Dave

dvhttn said:
Hey! We're just getting our own back. Normally we (in the UK) pay MORE than non-UK peeps for the same thing. The usual story is that something that costs $10 in the US will cost £10 here. When the exchange rate is £1=$1.50!!!!
And I can't see the different pricing. I put one in my 'cart' and asked for international delivery and it was just a few pence more than delivery in the UK .... and they HAVE to charge more for international delivery than UK delivery seen as how they're a UK company.
Or have I missed something?
Dave
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You are missing something.
Of course delivery price will be higher depending on the destination. The price difference I mention is not in regards to exchange difference. I mean that you buy a DHD for example which is shown GBP470, if I buy it from outside UK, they will convert it to somewhere around GBP560 although this is not the real exchange rate. I contacted them and they state this as a policy. mobilefun and expansys does this so I am not shopping from them. handtec and a few other shops don't do this. I bought my DHD for GBP470 form them at that price and the loss of currency convertion will be something that I either win or lose during payment from my bank account and it wil not be so significant, maybe a few pounds.

andreasy said:
You are missing something.
Of course delivery price will be higher depending on the destination. The price difference I mention is not in regards to exchange difference. I mean that you buy a DHD for example which is shown GBP470, if I buy it from outside UK, they will convert it to somewhere around GBP560 although this is not the real exchange rate. I contacted them and they state this as a policy. mobilefun and expansys does this so I am not shopping from them. handtec and a few other shops don't do this. I bought my DHD for GBP470 form them at that price and the loss of currency convertion will be something that I either win or lose during payment from my bank account and it wil not be so significant, maybe a few pounds.
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Oh, I see what you're saying. But that's just what we Brits have had to put up with for years so I have no sympathy for that particular problem. Hope you get the best deal you can though.
Dave

Was interested in this but £20+ seems quite steep for a piece of plastic, a USB cable and a battery connector.
cgi.ebay.co.uk/SYNC-CRADLE-USB-DOCK-W-BATTERY-CHARGER-FR-HTC-DESIRE-HD-/150526608448?pt=UK_MobilePhones_MobilePhoneAccessories_MobilePhoneChargers&hash=item230c15c440
I'm sure this is the same if not a similar product if your looking for a Paypal compatible seller.
Anybody know of a cheaper version of the product without the extra battery charger?
I've seen a lot of...
cgi.ebay.co.uk/DESKTOP-DOCK-CHARGING-STAND-SYNC-HTC-DESIRE-HD-/180599138626?pt=UK_Mobiles_Accessories_RL&hash=item2a0c8c2942
these floating around eBay but worry about the transfer speed / reliability of the product.

xp79 said:
these floating around eBay but worry about the transfer speed / reliability of the product.
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as an experienced ebay user in both selling and buying, you will be hard pushed to find something cheap that is shipped quickly AND is of good quality, better to spend more and get it from a reputable supplier