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[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?

Fuze Owners: ATT Warranty Service - advice?

So my ultimate goal is to try and get AT&T to give me a new phone - a Touch Pro 2. Silly, I know. But I have known many Fuze owners who got AT&T to offer them Blackberriers or iPhones after dealing with them and a few refurbished phones.
So I'd just like some advice. My 1-year warranty expires November 19th. Do you think it's possible? Or worth it? Have you done it? Any advice? I love my Fuze, but I don't want to spend another year with it when the Touch Pro 2 is out, and I'm not paying 350 dollars just to get it.
Alternative plans? Maybe speculation on when I'll be able to buy it somewhere else cheaper? Just advice in general.

thehyecircus said:
So my ultimate goal is to try and get AT&T to give me a new phone - a Touch Pro 2. Silly, I know. But I have known many Fuze owners who got AT&T to offer them Blackberriers or iPhones after dealing with them and a few refurbished phones.
So I'd just like some advice. My 1-year warranty expires November 19th. Do you think it's possible? Or worth it? Have you done it? Any advice? I love my Fuze, but I don't want to spend another year with it when the Touch Pro 2 is out, and I'm not paying 350 dollars just to get it.
Alternative plans? Maybe speculation on when I'll be able to buy it somewhere else cheaper? Just advice in general.
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AT&T will replace it with another Fuze as long as they're available.
If you want to get out of your contract with AT&T, there should be something in the fine print regarding "if AT&T changes your plan w/o notification, a person can opt out of their contract". The surcharge that they bill changes every month and they establish it so therefore its a change to your contract that they did. They will try to agrue but legally they can't.
AT&T usually charges more for their hardware than their competition.
Another thing you may want to consider is insurance. Its about $7/mo. and if you time it right, you can get an upgrade.

Not likely. My friend did make them upgrade from my tilt to the fuze. It took him nearly 6 months. I do not recommend it but this is what my friend did to upgrade to the fuze.
- You will have to damge your phone in a way they can't tell. Shoving hand sanitizer in the usb or sdhc slot will ruin it but not register any alarms.
- They will send you another one. Wait a couple months... Damage it.
- Damage the second one after a few months
- After that your on your last. Damage it.
Finally they MAY let you pick a new one. I cant say if they will offer the T2 I do know they will offer a Samsung Epix, and/or a Blackberry. FYI: This is fraud. It is illegal. I do not support or have any responsibility for what you choose to do. This is a story. This took about 6 months for my friend to complete. Up to you if you wanna risk your life.

What you do is fraud and illegal. Telling AT&T that the Fuze gets extremely hot during phone calls or internet usage is not. It's true about the Fuze. I think you can get them to take it and send it back via that. And it's not lying - it really does get egg frying hot.

thehyecircus said:
What you do is fraud and illegal. Telling AT&T that the Fuze gets extremely hot during phone calls or internet usage is not. It's true about the Fuze. I think you can get them to take it and send it back via that. And it's not lying - it really does get egg frying hot.
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if you want it hot, enable GPS, wifi, 3G, data connection....
just with GPS + iGo, power draw seems to be between 300-500mAh...

they warrantied mine cause of a wobbly slide.... kinda wiggled some, but everything else worked.... i kind of got hooked up tho... i work at a phone place near a device support center, and we send customers to each other.... so i just wore my work shirt up there, and they gave me no problems... easy to tell i dropped it some...
had a friend warranty his sony when he busted his lcd.... couldnt tell it was busted while it was off, so *someone* unhooked it during a flash, and killed it somewhat... they replaced his phone no problem, and at the retail store... so maybe flash it dead? read something about the microwave trick too... up to u whatever u do....

@ jesusishere WTF?
Scamming a company to get a new device?
It's called FRAUD, it's not acceptable.
You are not a customer but a thief!
See this as your first and FINAL warning.
EqX

[Q] advice on selling a new upgrade for profit?

I've found bits and pieces of info, but nothing really direct, so here's my situation.
I'm up for an upgrade with tmobile. There's some good black friday deals coming up, the s3 for $50, for instance (with new contract, not sure if thats an upgrade price as well). I don't really want the s3, so I'm considering buying any hot phone and flipping it so I can get what I want, maybe even buy a used mid-range smartphone and pocket some cash. I know many people have done this, but I'm worried about potential problems that can occur.
What are the chances of being caught by tmobile and being suspended? If I receive my upgrade by mail (which is most likely), do I need to worry about activating/deactivating it before I switch phones and sell it? I don't really care about opening the package, probably will in any case to remove the sim. Is there any way I can get the retail store to unlock it? Tell them I'm going to use it overseas or something? Any other issues anybody knows of?
The biggest risk is probably buying a used phone off ebay or craigslist, which, even if everything is clean and straightforward, I know can end up badly. Ideally, I would just buy one from a retailer, giving me peace of mind and a warranty. But, if the difference is spending $200 vs. pocketing $200 plus an upgraded phone (I'm still using the G1 by the way), then I would seriously consider doing any work necessary.
Anyone have some experience?

I found a phone...

I found a phone with a cracked screen and was wondering if it was worth fixing to use or just throw away. I know the IMEI number can be block from that user reporting they lost the phone to his/her carrier. The phone is a Motorola XT1080. Is it worth fixing and using?

spook30 said:
I found a phone with a cracked screen and was wondering if it was worth fixing to use or just throw away. I know the IMEI number can be block from that user reporting they lost the phone to his/her carrier. The phone is a Motorola XT1080. Is it worth fixing and using?
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The Droid Ultra is Verizon only, although thereortically it might work on AT&T or T-Mobile's networks, since it does have GSM telephony and 3G compatibility and band 4 LTE. That is, or course, if the IMEI doesn't get blocked.
A new digitizer is very cheap, but very difficult to do, even with the right tools (and I'm guessing you don't have them, so you'd have to buy them). A new screen assembly however is pretty damn expensive, running $130-145, and I have no idea how difficult this phone is to repair.
So the best outcome would be that for $130 you'd have a nice phone you can use, a dubious outcome would be that you spent that much money for a 16gb (non expandable) 5" wi-fi capable media player with Verizon bloat and bugs you to insert a compatible SIM card, and the worst outcome would be that you spent that much money on something that had damage other than the screen that you weren't aware of, or maybe you simply screwed up the screen swap.
Personally, I wouldn't risk it. If you want a touchscreen media player, you can get something like a Galaxy S2 or other older device with expandable storage for the same cost or less. Stick it in a drawer and wait a year or 2 until the price on screen assemblies are a lot cheaper. Or sell it on eBay for Swappa's Boneyard for parts.

Planterz said:
The Droid Ultra is Verizon only, although thereortically it might work on AT&T or T-Mobile's networks, since it does have GSM telephony and 3G compatibility and band 4 LTE. That is, or course, if the IMEI doesn't get blocked.
A new digitizer is very cheap, but very difficult to do, even with the right tools (and I'm guessing you don't have them, so you'd have to buy them). A new screen assembly however is pretty damn expensive, running $130-145, and I have no idea how difficult this phone is to repair.
So the best outcome would be that for $130 you'd have a nice phone you can use, a dubious outcome would be that you spent that much money for a 16gb (non expandable) 5" wi-fi capable media player with Verizon bloat and bugs you to insert a compatible SIM card, and the worst outcome would be that you spent that much money on something that had damage other than the screen that you weren't aware of, or maybe you simply screwed up the screen swap.
Personally, I wouldn't risk it. If you want a touchscreen media player, you can get something like a Galaxy S2 or other older device with expandable storage for the same cost or less. Stick it in a drawer and wait a year or 2 until the price on screen assemblies are a lot cheaper. Or sell it on eBay for Swappa's Boneyard for parts.
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Ive done a few screens on tablets already; by the way it looks, its similar. Screens/digitizers are about $15-$25 as far as I seen so far. I was just thinking to fix it and use it thats all. I just didn't know if the phone was blocked and if there was a way to find the IMEI number by taking it apart or something. I'd like to use it because its an upgrade from my LG something or rather(unlocked); also Im on Verizon so no problem there.
edit: thanks for the response.

Question Trade in lock bypass?

So I bought a S22 Ultra off Facebook marketplace for $900 I did an imei check with my carrier and confirmed it wasn't stolen or anything of that nature and we set it up on my account in store with the guy present and confirmed it worked. Fast forward a week I wake up to a nice message on my phone that Samsung has blocked my device due to incomplete trade in and that I need to contact Samsung to fix it. Cant use the phone at all. I have a $900 paper weight. Does anyone know of a bypass for this? Will rooting it give me the ability to get around this?

That's a new one to me. Sorry can't help, post a photo of the message the phone is showing.

The reason that happened is probably because the guy purcahased the phone from Samsung with a Trade-in discount. He did not send his phone in as part of the agreement. Then they tried to bill his card for the amount of the Trade-in and it didn't go through for whatever reason. After that they blocked his phone which you purchased from him. He most likely hated the phone kept his old phone and now you are screwed until you contact Samsung and resolve it. They specifically state on the Trade-in info they send you with the shipping label that if you don't send them the Trade-in phone within 2 weeeks the new phone will be locked out. The other reason they do that is if it's reported stolen. So your only two options are 1) Contact Samsung or 2) Throw it in the trash.

i think its unlikely, you could try to flash a new firmware with unbranded csc , im not saying that WILL fix it, but it wont do u any harm to try if your not planning on seeking help from samsung, i would recommend trying to fake an imei in an efs and load that, i couldnt advise you how though im afraid

That's the new way, they allow multiple trade in devices so the scumbag will select devices with the highest trade in to bring down the purchase price to the lowest possible level and sell it on arrival making hundreds in profits. Possibly the only way to avoid this would be to remove any samsung stuff BEFORE they initiate a lockdown.
We can't have nice things because of this and if it keeps up I see (Samsung) wanting to put a full purchase price hold at time of purchase and then release it when they get the trade ins. :-(

thats why i like to pre order and buy my devices for cash, no waiting and you know your phone is bnib

cpufrost said:
That's the new way, they allow multiple trade in devices so the scumbag will select devices with the highest trade in to bring down the purchase price to the lowest possible level and sell it on arrival making hundreds in profits.
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I read about this somewhere just recently. The bad guys are sure creative in figuring out how to game the system. Around here we have to be very careful of FB Marketplace. Sometimes it seems there are way more sketchy stolen items on it than legitimate items.

The other thing is you probably should get a screenshot of the persons drivers license when making a purchase for such a large amount of money. That way the Police know where they live and they got a photo as well. If the seller is not willing to provide that info to you then stay away. I am not gonna send somebody $900 on the internet and just hope they willl send me what they promised without fully checking them out first.

Nobody would accept that. They can simply say don't buy it then. How would he now you wouldn't be a dodgy guy and use his driving licence for scams? The safest way of this kind of trade in risks is to request the purchasing invoice where you could see if it was purchased with trade in option. If the seller doesn't provide it then i would recommend not to buy the phone for the first 3 months of phone's releasing date when trade in would have been completed already.

Always a risk when you guy items from individuals. The one thing for sure, if the deal is too good to be true, it usually is sketchy.

Paul_Deemer said:
The reason that happened is probably because the guy purcahased the phone from Samsung with a Trade-in discount. He did not send his phone in as part of the agreement. Then they tried to bill his card for the amount of the Trade-in and it didn't go through for whatever reason. After that they blocked his phone which you purchased from him. He most likely hated the phone kept his old phone and now you are screwed until you contact Samsung and resolve it. They specifically state on the Trade-in info they send you with the shipping label that if you don't send them the Trade-in phone within 2 weeeks the new phone will be locked out. The other reason they do that is if it's reported stolen. So your only two options are 1) Contact Samsung or 2) Throw it in the trash.
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This is the most likely reason, and the only thing you can do is to contact Samsung. You could offer to pay the trade in value discount that was applied at the time of purchase, but that could be up to £570 (here in the UK) as that was the top tier (S21Ultra) trade in if I remember rightly.
I think there must of been some genuine trade in purchase, as a valid IMEI number is required at the time of ordering the new phone....Unless there is a way of generating IMEI numbers I'm not aware of.
I would contact Samsung before doing anything else with the phone, as I wouldn't be surprised if Samsung have locked the phone through Knox or something.

That phone is locked via knox. Nothing you can do unless you contact samsung and give them proof of your transaction then from there it's either they will help you or wont care at all.

That's samsungs fault at first. Here in Turkey, you pay full price. After they receive trade-in device they refund discount amount to you. This is the only way to stop such thing.

rroyy said:
That's samsungs fault at first. Here in Turkey, you pay full price. After they receive trade-in device they refund discount amount to you. This is the only way to stop such thing.
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Right, and too, because of folks not playing nice and taking advantage of others, they will wind up doing the same thing here in USA. At the very least placing a merchant hold for the full device price on the method of payment and releasing it upon successful redemption of trade in value.

Samsung locked the wrong phone. They should be locking the new phone. Call them

Will_T said:
I read about this somewhere just recently. The bad guys are sure creative in figuring out how to game the system. Around here we have to be very careful of FB Marketplace. Sometimes it seems there are way more sketchy stolen items on it than legitimate items.
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Agree with you, FB\Meta is a mess.
I've had nothing but stellar results selling and buying using Swappa. They are pretty stringent with phone condition and both buyers and sellers.
My favorite transaction was about 4 yrs ago when I dropped a very well protected Nexus 6 just wrong while waiting on a lift, and the screen broke. If it were newer I would have replaced the screen, but 10 minutes into a business meeting I found a replacement for $150 in my city on Swappa. I pinged the seller and he was sitting across the street from me. When I got out of the meeting 30 minutes later, I walked across the street and he handed me the like brand new phone in box and waited for me to boot up! All pre-checked IMEI on Swappa for free to ensure not stolen, etc.

armst433 said:
Samsung locked the wrong phone. They should be locking the new phone. Call them
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It's an S22U. It is the new phone....

I'm hoping OP updates us, I wanna know whats going on with this rather strange story.

Parzival__ said:
So I bought a S22 Ultra off Facebook marketplace for $900 I did an imei check with my carrier and confirmed it wasn't stolen or anything of that nature and we set it up on my account in store with the guy present and confirmed it worked. Fast forward a week I wake up to a nice message on my phone that Samsung has blocked my device due to incomplete trade in and that I need to contact Samsung to fix it. Cant use the phone at all. I have a $900 paper weight. Does anyone know of a bypass for this? Will rooting it give me the ability to get around this?
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the phone turns on? it comes in wi-fi where are the wi-fi networks? if you get high is there a bar? if it exists write www.youtube.com done do glue in the copy bar open Youtube go to click and see Youtube Terms of Service in the bar write this E-FRP site addresses appear and there is e-frp click open and see for Samsung and other functions for you you are interested in ftp and test account or Samsung it would be better to have another phone active go to Youtube and in the bar write e-frp for Samsung because there are several steps. Good luck

Paul_Deemer said:
The other thing is you probably should get a screenshot of the persons drivers license when making a purchase for such a large amount of money. That way the Police know where they live and they got a photo as well. If the seller is not willing to provide that info to you then stay away. I am not gonna send somebody $900 on the internet and just hope they willl send me what they promised without fully checking them out first.
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Well the crazy part is it was a in person purchase. Dude met me at spectrum mobile and they verified it was unlocked and would work and that's when the transaction happened.