Bought an M8 in pretty dire shape after someone 'tried' to do a glass only screen repair without removing the screws...
Anyways so the screen is toast and i can't get a very good connection to the usb (think prying...a lot)
Anywhere the ESN might be printed? I really dont want to tear it down if its stolen, but i will if i have to. I only paid $30 so its not a huge loss, but i want to make sure its not stolen before i put $140 into it.
First post be nice if this isn't the right place
Related
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?
(service is AT&T)
When I bought my phone, I got full warranty on it (been paying $5 for it monthly)
Its all scratched up and now I want to return it for a new phone or a refurbished one. My current phone has been flashed with a new ROM, which was against the warranty policy.
Has anyone returned a phone like this for warranty after flashing back the original software/ROM? Were they able to find out?
Also, would it be easier if I just threw my phone into the lake and just asked them for a replacement? (I'm fully insured)
flash it back to the original rom.
and restore the SPL
and.. you should be all set.. you do need a good reason to have it fixed...
I can't just say that it's been banged up and has scratches? And that I've been paying $5/monthly for this?
Also, what would happen if I said I lost it,and they send me a replacement raphael, and ended up finding my orginal one under my bed. would they be able to find out that I still have my old one?
banged up and scratched is a normal thing. unless there is something broken in some way shape and form, then you can use that warranty. that's like saying the manufacturer have to give you a new car if your car has a scratch from daily use.
dunno what you can do if you say it's lost, but your phone does has an IMEI which is a very unique and if it ever connects, they can technically make an inquiry...and you might get charged for the price of the full phone. (only a possibility, but don't leave it to chance) Live with the scratches and next time, get yourself something like Bodyguardz or invisible armor...
theomni said:
I can't just say that it's been banged up and has scratches? And that I've been paying $5/monthly for this?
Also, what would happen if I said I lost it,and they send me a replacement raphael, and ended up finding my orginal one under my bed. would they be able to find out that I still have my old one?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wear and tear is not something that's covered under the $5 a month insurance plan.
If you tell them you lost it (and that acutally DID happen to me) they'll bill you the $125 dedcutable on your next bill - and they didn't replace the SD card mine came with either (they did send me a SIM card and another wall charger though).
Once you've lost the phone, that flag the unit so it won't work anymore and yes they will find out you still have it if you try to use it by putting yer new SIM chip in it. Plus techically this is considered 'insurance fraud' which is a crime you can get in a LOT of trouble for. There was an article I read about 2 weeks ago that said these companies are now keeping an eye on forums like this one trying to catch people doing such things. I suspect if everyone was honest we'd be paying $1 a month instead of $5...
Anyway - I know you can buy replacement screens pretty cheap - heck of a lot cheaper than the $125 deductable as matter of fact.
I really want to get this thing replaced. What if I accidentally drop this on my driveway and run it over with my car. WIll they still charge me anything extra? This phone has plently scratches on the screen that it becomes annoying to use the touch screen. Also, the face plate over the home, back, call send and end buttons is coming off, and the sliding mechanism has become a bit herky jerky.
So I guess whatever happens, I will have to pay up to get it replaced or fixed, despite their "fully insured" that I'm paying?
you need a probably cause to have it replaced... not just suddenly a car ran over it. trust me.
theomni said:
I really want to get this thing replaced. What if I accidentally drop this on my driveway and run it over with my car. WIll they still charge me anything extra? This phone has plently scratches on the screen that it becomes annoying to use the touch screen. Also, the face plate over the home, back, call send and end buttons is coming off, and the sliding mechanism has become a bit herky jerky.
So I guess whatever happens, I will have to pay up to get it replaced or fixed, despite their "fully insured" that I'm paying?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Like I said - even if they replace the phone it's still going to cost you $125 for the deductable. Just spend 30 bucks and order a new screen and face plate.
I dropped my HD2 and the screen broke so rather than having a go at fixing it myself I sent it to undercutter.co.uk. This was a big mistake. Although their site states a 7-day repair and return, it took a whole month because they "ran out of parts". When calling them you will have to try for days to get though and they ignore email webform contact too.
So I finally get my HD2 back and the screen repair is far from perfect. There is glue on the speaker, covering the left LED and my call and home buttons don't click anymore. I'm pretty sure that the amount of glue that they've stuck around the screen will make it un-repairable if I ever drop it again.
Last but not least, my beautiful HD2 now has a disgusting T-mobile logo at the top - I can never look at her the same way again.
Moral of the story - get a good case for your HD2 and never take it out of the case.
What was the charge? Curiously? I know the digi/LCD are like $150. Since I just bought a brand new HD2 for $250 in the paper I have to wonder if the HD2's are even worth repairing with $80 digi's and $80 LCD's?
charge was £100 which was £60 less than another quote I had but I read in another thread, after I sent it off to them, that HTC will fix it for £80
£80 ??? seriously nice 1 would have thought it would have been the other way round with HTC being the most expensive.
JR
I could swear there used to be a forum or section dedicated to people wanting to sell their devices, but I just cant find it...
but im asking here, maybe someone has experience and might be able to help me!
Some details so you might tell me if you went through something similar:
Sprint TP2 BNIB (Never opened), got back as Sprint Repair after 3 BAD replacements... decided to screw it since my contract had been up for a few months and I wasnt paying the $10 extra per month for **** ill never use (live in the sticks, we HARDLY get 3G out here and i even have to have an Airave for 1X... strongly doubt 4G will EVER make it here), so if that doesnt tell you anything, ill spell it out: CLEAN ESN
A few extra battery's (2 or 3, in different box's gotta get them all), an UNUSED ZAGG full body kit, an extra stylus, 2 extra chargers, my old BT headset that HAS a stereo function but needs to be fixed for the extra ear piece because i broke that part (aka works fine regularly but wont work for stereo sound both ears)
thats about it really, i might have other stuff...
I was thinking eBay since my Local Craigslist sucks and hasnt produced anything (offers even when i didnt post a price)... all I want really is $250 or a BNIB SEALED TMobile HD2... (extreme i know, but i see them still going for $300+ on eBay...)...
Thoughts?
Ebay.........
So the glass may be bulletproof but underneath it not so much. I accidentally sat on my phone on the edge of the seat and bent it and cracked my lcd underneath. My question is, should I fix the screen? Pay the insurance deductable and get a new one, or see if they will put me in an inspire??
ebay anywhere from 80 - 120 $ for new screen
get the non Att one if you can.
xda search:
captivate teardown
TRusselo said:
ebay anywhere from 80 - 120 $ for new screen
get the non Att one if you can.
xda search:
captivate teardown
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
what is wrong with the att ones? no i get it less branding blah blah.. maybe you can find an armani one, and get the armani backplate. that would definately make you the cool kid on the block!
You can argue the morality of what I did, but when I cracked my screen on my first Captivate, I filed an insurance claim but rather than saying I had broken the phone I told them it was stolen.
My rationale was that I didn't feel spending $125 on a deductible AND returning my old phone to them was a fair deal for me as a consumer. Broken or not, the old phone still had a decent monetary value, and when you add its value to the $125 deductible, you're really taking it in the shorts.
So ultimately, I got the new phone for $125, and since I didn't have to send them the old one, I fixed it and sold it for $200. That $200 paid for the new screen and the replacement phone, so I wasn't out of pocket any money and I had a new phone. Food for thought, if you're an immoral person such as I.
Seamus1 said:
You can argue the morality of what I did, but when I cracked my screen on my first Captivate, I filed an insurance claim but rather than saying I had broken the phone I told them it was stolen.
My rationale was that I didn't feel spending $125 on a deductible AND returning my old phone to them was a fair deal for me as a consumer. Broken or not, the old phone still had a decent monetary value, and when you add its value to the $125 deductible, you're really taking it in the shorts.
So ultimately, I got the new phone for $125, and since I didn't have to send them the old one, I fixed it and sold it for $200. That $200 paid for the new screen and the replacement phone, so I wasn't out of pocket any money and I had a new phone. Food for thought, if you're an immoral person such as I.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'm surprised the old phone worked. Some companies when it is reported stolen, they block the IMEI from their network.
I don't know if it makes a difference or not, but ATT isn't even directly involved. They have an insurance company that handles the claims and issuing the replacements.
The truth of the matter is, it wasn't even my idea originally. I went into a local ATT store and the sales rep gave me the information I needed on how exactly to file the claim. When I asked him if they would require the old phone back, he said that they would indeed, and I told him my thoughts on the matter (in a friendly way of course.) It was the ATT sales rep who sort of cryptically said to me "You can't return a lost or stolen phone." with a wink of the eye.
Red_81 said:
I'm surprised the old phone worked. Some companies when it is reported stolen, they block the IMEI from their network.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
In the US, IMEIs only get blocked when they pose a threat to the network. Only in Europe do stolen IMEIs get blacklisted via a national EIR and that requires a police report.
no they run a scan for lost/stolen imei;s every year or 6 months...
there have been many threads on this. one day the phone just stops working, they call their carrier and find out it was blacklisted. it happens...
not saying it WILL but it CAN.
sometimes reporting lost is better than stolen!
I just got mine replaced under warranty free because the liquid screen broke after dropping it but there was no visible damage to the phone (case).
Customer service was trying to push an early upgrade on me but they transferred me to warranty people and they sent a new one out with no issues.
Sent from my GT-I9100 using XDA Premium App