Database Users

IMEI issue on a USA T-mobile MDA

Hi,
I just bought a MDA off ebay and the phone works great!
BUT the problem is IMEI numbers dont match ANYWHERE!!
Box, Back of phone and *#06# They are 3 different #'s
I can still make and recieve calls and go on the net.. phones works properly.
Is there anyway some1 could have changed the IMEI? Or is there a Rom flash that could have done this?
OR could a Unlock have altered the IMEI?
And is there a way i can change the IMEI to the same one as the one on the back of my phone?
The Seller has agreed to refund my money, but I want to exercise all my options b4 I return it. Bc the price was actually great!
Any help will be appreciated.
Thanks in Adv!
Brit.
:thumbup:
PS i did search for this issue and did come accross some good threads, but there was alot of "THIS IS ILLEGAL" i know this so please post somthing meaningful...

Your best bet is to get your money back. At best the phone was serviced and the guts placed inside the wrong case by accident (which would explain 3 different IMEI) but at worst there could be something hinky in the phone's history that will come back to bite you as the current owner.

I wouldn't worry about it.
1) The phone works
2) You know the phone's actual IMEI
That's all there is to it. Don't worry about it.

both of you bring up a good point.
I am leaning towards keeping theh thing b/c of the price i paid for it b/c of a mislabeling of the auction. It was a super low price..
I will check to see if the guts were changed, there probably will be a sign if the casing was opened.
Can you give signs to look for tampering?
Second, I read were some1's IMEI changed b.c of a Unlock could this have happend to my MDA?
Thanks for you replies agian!

HTC (or T-Mobile Warranty) might me able to confirm if any (or all) of the IMEIs you have are from serviced phones.
As for the Unlock changing the IMEI, I know one user reported it but I seriously the validity of their story.
I've CID unlocked 5 HTC Phones (3 BlueAngels, 2 Wizards) and SIM unlocked them also with the IMEI never being changed.
Just remember though, if there is something hinky and the phone is hot you can lose the phone and never see your money.

I would imagine that if the phone was put up for sale, sold, shipped, turned on and found to work and it is hot, the heat has probably cooled considerably. Or, in other words, if it was going to be banned by the network, I would think it would have already happened. As far as unlocking changing the IMEI, I second the above. Few things are impossible but a simple unlocking changing the IMEI has to be close. If it was my phone, I'd first look for some obvious sign of tampering. Crooks aren't very smart (they are crooks, after all) so it shouldn't be hard to find. If nothing jumped out at me, I'd shrug my shoulders and call it mine.

Cool, I will call HTC.
I just called Tmobile and they said that they dont BAN phones, they just ban simcards. but I doubt they would admit the truth.
the phone working is a Positive sign to me.
But I will call HTC and confirm. ALSO I will Call Paypal and see if i have any kind of warranty to buying a stolen item.
if all else fails i will return the phone to the seller.
Brittany

the IMEI should look exactly like the IMEI on the back of the phone rite? not shorter or longer?
i will reverify if its' shorter or something. b/c i read some where about a 17 and 15 digits are needed.
ALSO say if my MDA was stock right out of the box would the phone have these 4 lines on the top left corner in red with some numbers and stuff.. possibly rom info and model info?

Usually the stickers with IMEI numbers are difficult to forge since it requires a special paper (Nokia at least) and a special kind of file.
Although the theory of mixing boards, cases and boxes is very plausible there's still the chance that the IMEI on the back of the phone is the hot one. You can always try to change back to it (but taking note of the one stored presently in ROM for future use) and see if it gets barred/blocked or you get a visit from the authorities :twisted: In any case, this forum's posts could help to prove your innocence in court (just kidding :lol: )
As for the procedures to achieve it, get back to me via PM
cheers

Well i took it to a local Tmobile store and they exchanged the phone for me. WOOT! WOOT! this was a pure sealed one. so prob solved.. now i just have to do a CID and Sim Unlock and upgrade to the latest rom.
Any recomms? i will try to do my NEWBIE duties and search and learn, if anyone wants to make it easy for me. well hooka sista up!..lol
Brit

Wow! Not bad! If the 2.26 ROM is already on it (I got a new one a couple days ago on warrantee and that was the case), you may want to think twice before changing that. I've been real happy with 2.26 and it's gotten to where the ONLY thing I bother changing in the registry is the glyphcache and menu settings and I uninstall OZ, the DAT MailTrigger thing and the Hotspot login utility. And...bonus time....you don't void the warrantee that mayb prove handy in the future.

Moral of the story.. get 3 old phone, inter change their IMEI (e.g. stickers and box) .. go to different local store to get 3 new phones

So last night i did
1. Sim Unlock
2. CID Unlock
3. installed AIM (wifi friendly)
4. Upgraded the rom to 2.26
5. installed Agile Msnger beta verson
phone's running like butter! Thou after i installed AIM phone RAN really sluggish! but i think it was b/c i put my orig sim card with 150 entirees.
so i rebooted charged the phone to 100% and did the rom upgrade from Tmobile's webiste..
the phone runs like a charm now.. I just need to find a good Instant Messenger software, wiht profile and away msg so my friends to hit me up with a huge txt msg bill..
I came, i read, i learned, i conquered the mda!

Is there anyway to get Cingular to warranty my phone?

I wanna start off by saying thank you to everyone who helps make this forum such an amazing resource.
The question I have is I bought a Cingular branded 8525 about three months ago and it has been giving me nothing but trouble, from my keyboard randomly not working, none of the front or side buttons working, keyboard lights not working, secondary characters on the keyboard being all scrambled, and the newest addition the phone not vibrating at all. It is still under warranty but the problem is that I don't and never had ATT and i've been using the phoen unlocked. Its still under warranty with HTC and they've already tried to repair it, I think they said they replaced the main board but more and more issues keep coming up. What i'm wondering is if there is anyway to get ATT to just replace the phone like they would do for a regular ATT customer? Has anyone been successful in this? I've tried calling them but they keep saying that since I dont have an account with them they can't help me out.
Any help or guidance would be really great!!
Thanks in advanced

BUMP.... can anyone give me any advice?

unfortunately, that's the risk you take when you buy a 3rd party phone. They'll warranty it for THEIR customers. I've been successful buying an 8525 on fleabay and getting them to honor the warranty ( 4 times ), but I'm also an ATT customer. The phone was not released to Non-customers, so they won't talk to you if you're not a customer. It's nothing personal, It's just the way it is.

Bricked Ozone Help

I believe I've bricked my Ozone. It powers on and stays at the HTC screen. I've done a factory rom update with no success. What are my options? Is there anyone on the forum that offers repair?

I'm in the same boat. Got a Verizon Ozone from a someone who decided that the phone was dead for good. It would be nice to get it up and running though as I'm kind of in need of a smartphone at the moment.
What I've heard is that all he tried to do was the official 6.5 upgrade but, in the words of Dr. House: everybody lies. The bootloader reads SPL-0.44.0000 and I've been able to flash the official 6.5 CEDAIMG.nbh from an sd card but nothing changes there either; it just sits at the first HTC screen.
Of all the options I've read about, the last is a goldcard but I have also read that the Ozone/Cedar doesn't have one yet. Is that worth looking into? Any ideas what's actually going on with the phone that makes it hang?

Hit the back button... sorry for the double post. =)

That's pretty much what happened to mine. I called HTC and sent the phone in for repair.

Keep this post updated as to how that goes. If it works out, I might give them a call too. Were you covered by any sort of warranty? Any big hurdles to jump over to get them to replace the device? Any cost to you?
Fingers crossed that it works out!

So far I believe it's covered under warranty. They called me Monday and asked for the factory sim card to repair it. I wonder if it needs the sim card in to do a factory rom install? I should hear back soon.

Hmm... That's kind of weird. I wouldn't think they would need it. =/ I just called PCD today and got the address for sending my mobile in with instructions to remove all cards. Hopefully someone else gets assigned mine. =)
My friend didn't dig up the SIM since I'm planning on using the phone between Washington and Vancouver, B.C. so, hopefully they don't ask for it in my case!
Thanks for the update!

Don't ship UPS. I did, and they charged me $16 - said it was because of their address.

Well, I'm off to the Post Office to send this thing to NY. Hopefully the turnaround time is reasonable and if they can't/won't actually fix it, I can get it back in case xda discovers anything out about this problem.
Let me know if you hear anything else about you phone.

I got mine back today. According to the paper work they had to replace the phones main board. This thing is bone stock. It's carrier locked too, I don't know how to unlock it. I can't program it because it wants me to press the send key to activate which dials *228. But I need to dial *22890. Dunno how to do this when it won't let me dial anything.
Time to try to do a non factory rom and brick it again!

I think it took about 3 weeks. Did you send yours with the sim card just in case they need it?

Did any ozone users try the new verizon 6.5 rom to fix the bricking?

I did. No luck.

I can deal with 3 weeks if need be... glad to hear your phone is back though! Are you on Verizon? I assume so if you're dealing with an Ozone but can never be too sure. =) What do you mean by "carrier locked"? Are you refering to the SIM slot? The stock Ozone comes locked to their Vodaphone SIM and you have to call Verizon or pay for an unlock code. If they changed the mainboard then it's probably like a brand new phone. HTC Snap on VZW Sim Unlock
I actually don't have a SIM attached to my account right now since I moved back to my old phone and the card is boxed up somewhere... =/ If they ask for it, I'll just be telling them that I don't have plans to be using it and will SIM unlock the phone when I go to the Phillipines. My phone just hit NY so, I'll let you know what happens to me!

Rhodium500 said:
Did any ozone users try the new verizon 6.5 rom to fix the bricking?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Totally didn't catch this question up above! Yeah, I did also... using both the USB and SD card methods. The bootloader looked like it worked just fine but when the phone would go to boot for the first time, it would freeze at the first HTC screen. I mentioned this in another thread but the Sprint Snap apparently had an issue with similar symptoms which resulted in a hotfix from HTC..
I unpacked it and it looks like just a PRL. If only there was a hotfix like this for the Ozone; would have saved me a bit of time.

HD2 Stolen, Got it back IMEI changed etc please help

Im not quite sure what to do, my HD2 got stolen 3 weeks ago lucky for me I had IMEI written so i reported it to cops. Two days later I got my phone back. Cops said I was lucky the guy didnt had time to sell it. When i got it back my phone it was completly reinstalled with WM6.5 (before I had WM7.5) I noticed that volume up stopped working so i started investigating deeper and to my suprise phone IMEI has been changed! When I went into boot mode (multi color) insted of cotula hspl it said something about freebox.
Here is my questions
1. Is there a way to repair phone so my volume up works? Or at least map any other key as volume up in wm7?
2. How can I get back my phone to show original IMEI?

drsaint said:
Im not quite sure what to do, my HD2 got stolen 3 weeks ago lucky for me I had IMEI written so i reported it to cops. Two days later I got my phone back. Cops said I was lucky the guy didnt had time to sell it. When i got it back my phone it was completly reinstalled with WM6.5 (before I had WM7.5) I noticed that volume up stopped working so i started investigating deeper and to my suprise phone IMEI has been changed! When I went into boot mode (multi color) insted of cotula hspl it said something about freebox.
Here is my questions
1. Is there a way to repair phone so my volume up works? Or at least map any other key as volume up in wm7?
2. How can I get back my phone to show original IMEI?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Are you sure it is the same phone you had stolen?

I'm sure 100% it's the same phong, IMEI written on the back of the phone corresponds to the one I have on original box, but when I check IMEI from OS it's different

well if the SPL been changed then my first thought would be to put it back
So,
head on over to HTC and grab yourself an original stock ROM, flash away using the SD card method, with a bit of luck that will wipe all the crap off it, then HSPL > Radio >MAGLDR >WP7
happy to point you in the right direction for all of those or confirm your findings but its good to give it a shot yourself, a quick search will give you all you need
search for strings like
HD2 LEO SD card flash
i gather you already know how to install WP7

THIS IS IMPOSSIBLE. Unless you or someone else switch the sticker on the back of the device, or swapped the housing/chassis, it is nearly impossible to change the IMEI on a device.
If this was possible, I would of have done it so long ago to trick my device to think it was some other device.
Unfortunately, IMEI hacks are illegal. That is why developers don't go that route. It's not as simple as pirating apps (which is also illegal).

Why do I get the feeling that this is some fancy way of asking how to change your IMEI (i.e., insert sap story and request on "help" on how to change your IMEI)?

Why would you want to change your IMEI? You have your device back and different IMEI doesn't change anything. All the apps will work as they worked before etc, so I don't think you should worry about that.

PoisonWolf said:
Why do I get the feeling that this is some fancy way of asking how to change your IMEI (i.e., insert sap story and request on "help" on how to change your IMEI)?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hahahaha my thoughts exactly. He want somebody to help him change it. Never heard of anyone changing imei. It's like DNA of the phone.
Sent from my HTC_Amaze_4G using xda premium

well, I for one, would love to change the IMEI on a device so that it can bypass stupid carrier restriction (ie: use t-mobile $5unlimited internet on a mytouch4G for the 4G)
currently, it's not possible since t-mobile has blocked this device from loop-holes like that.
JUST SAYING though.......

Sorry, we don't allow discussion of IMEI changing on xda, as it *can* be used for unlawful reasons.

OnePlus 8 T-Mobile Repair Nightmare

Figured I share my repair experience here as OnePlus has set a new low in my book for customer service. Started when I sent my device (unlocked by T-Mobile) for repair last month. I was given the option of repair or replacement but chose repair so I wouldn't have to unlock again. I received it back about a week later but with no documentation as what the repair was (found out through my calles it was a motherboard replacement. I did notice the SN was the same but the IMEI was different. Used it for 3 days and called T-Mobile to have it unlocked but their system now sees my device as a non-T-Mobile phone and they can't unlock it (and they have tried 4 times since Sept 25th). Over the past few weeks I have conferenced on T-Mobile support with OnePlus support in an attempt to get it unlocked and every time I call it's like starting from scratch with OnePlus. Four times now I've been told to wait 24-48 hours so they can hear back from there repair facility, I've made 14 total calls to check status (they have never called me back once). T-Mobile has been absolutely great and were on the phone with OnePlus with me for over an hour. So for know unless a miracle happens I'm stuck with a phone that can't be network unlocked by any carrier. Looks like the repair facility perhaps used a standard motherboard and flashed the T-Mobile firmware on it from what I can determine. If you need service for a T-Mobile device ALWAYS choose a replacement if you have the option)

Rule #1: Never ever choose repair when replace is an option. XDA is rife with people complaining about repair issues with every phone manufacturer. But I think you know that now. Also, I would hardly fault OnePlus in this situation. Its a simple issue of the IMEI not being in the T-Mobile database. Thats not OnePlus' fault. Thats a T-Mobile issue. IT can be added to there database. Verizon does this but for a completely different reason. But ultimately fault is in the eye of the beholder.
Also, to further support my claim think of it this way... T-Mobile (and Verizon) request the bootloader / SIM lock. If you buy the non carrier version from One Plus this would be a mute point. Again, a T-Mobile issue, not OnePlus. If you really want to get technical fault the US Congress for allowing them to lock in the first place. Ok Ok... Way off on a tangent...
Now... Some questions for you...
Have you ran the IMEI against an IMEI check database to see what kind of device it returns as? I would be curious to see. Another way to find out if its a T-Mobile device is to check the IMEI against your last phone. If the first few digits are the same or different will support your claim of the device being different.
Have you tried to tried to toggle the bootloader unlock switch or is it gray'ed out?
Have you tried popping in another carriers SIM just for giggles?
Lastly, have you tried to unlock it yourself by using the built in unlock program in network settings?
If that fails you may want to consider sending it back to OnePlus again for replacement. I can only assume that you do not have insurance? If you do then you may want to check with them about replacement faulting the IMEI as the issue. Might be a hard sell but I'm sure it could be done.

Scott said:
Rule #1: Never ever choose repair when replace is an option. XDA is rife with people complaining about repair issues with every phone manufacturer. But I think you know that now. Also, I would hardly fault OnePlus in this situation. Its a simple issue of the IMEI not being in the T-Mobile database. Thats not OnePlus' fault. Thats a T-Mobile issue. IT can be added to there database. Verizon does this but for a completely different reason. But ultimately fault is in the eye of the beholder.
Also, to further support my claim think of it this way... T-Mobile (and Verizon) request the bootloader / SIM lock. If you buy the non carrier version from One Plus this would be a mute point. Again, a T-Mobile issue, not OnePlus. If you really want to get technical fault the US Congress for allowing them to lock in the first place. Ok Ok... Way off on a tangent...
Now... Some questions for you...
Have you ran the IMEI against an IMEI check database to see what kind of device it returns as? I would be curious to see. Another way to find out if its a T-Mobile device is to check the IMEI against your last phone. If the first few digits are the same or different will support your claim of the device being different.
Have you tried to tried to toggle the bootloader unlock switch or is it gray'ed out?
Have you tried popping in another carriers SIM just for giggles?
Lastly, have you tried to unlock it yourself by using the built in unlock program in network settings?
If that fails you may want to consider sending it back to OnePlus again for replacement. I can only assume that you do not have insurance? If you do then you may want to check with them about replacement faulting the IMEI as the issue. Might be a hard sell but I'm sure it could be done.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Same situation here, mine was unlocked did a replacement and it was locked and T-Mobile has no record of it. It took me 17 days to get the replacement and every day I checked the status I get told wait 24-48 hours. Now after I got it I'm told every day to wait 3-5 days for an update. Really one plus?

One plus sucks at anything customer service. Can you not do a warranty through tmobile?

Hi, i have the same problem. I was able to unlock my OP8 the moment I bought it. But after sending my OP8 for repair, it was locked when sent back. I got the error "server 255" when I tried to do a permanent unlock.
I contacted Tmobile and they said I need a valid tmobile account, which I don't:
"One of our mobile device unlock requirements is an active T-Mobile account. Since you don't have one you're going to need the get the unlock via a 3rd party company. Our apologies for this."
I have contacted OP 4 times now. They say they'll escalate my problem to the relevant team.
So how did u ppl solve it? Anyone tried the mtd below:
https://www.reddit.com/r/oneplus/comments/qn8dez
Thanks.

zonexo said:
Hi, i have the same problem. I was able to unlock my OP8 the moment I bought it. But after sending my OP8 for repair, it was locked when sent back. I got the error "server 255" when I tried to do a permanent unlock.
I contacted Tmobile and they said I need a valid tmobile account, which I don't:
"One of our mobile device unlock requirements is an active T-Mobile account. Since you don't have one you're going to need the get the unlock via a 3rd party company. Our apologies for this."
I have contacted OP 4 times now. They say they'll escalate my problem to the relevant team.
So how did u ppl solve it? Anyone tried the mtd below:
https://www.reddit.com/r/oneplus/comments/qn8dez
Thanks.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I hate oneplus with a passion I'm 8 months and still going with an issue they keep BS'n me on

Hi, I would like to post an update. After contacting OP support a few times thru chat, they agree to help me talk to Tmobile directly. I told them I can't use the phone, I'm overseas (really, no joke), and I contacted Tmobile but they refused to help.
After waiting for a few days, my IMEI is whitelisted and I was able to unlock the phone. So I guess if you are persistent enough and tell them tt you've exhausted your options, they will help. So I guess they're still nice ppl (kudos to Sophia!)
Hope someone with similar problem can try what I did.

Just wanted to fan the flames that OnePlus is still up to their BS. I sent my phone to repair the back glass after I recovered from unbricking my phone rooting after the Android 13 OTA. When I get it back, after all these warnings signs something was off I realized when I tried to put my unlock_code.bin and it kept failing that they gave me a new motherboard. Luckily I AM a Tmobile customer, but holy heck, what if I was not? Luckily somehow I was able to get in to get the info to request another code to unlock my bootloader even though I'm still carrier locked.

fgjruiz said:
Just wanted to fan the flames that OnePlus is still up to their BS. I sent my phone to repair the back glass after I recovered from unbricking my phone rooting after the Android 13 OTA. When I get it back, after all these warnings signs something was off I realized when I tried to put my unlock_code.bin and it kept failing that they gave me a new motherboard. Luckily I AM a Tmobile customer, but holy heck, what if I was not? Luckily somehow I was able to get in to get the info to request another code to unlock my bootloader even though I'm still carrier locked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just had my op8 repaired back with a motherboard replacement so that it can't unlock the sim as I am not a T mobile customer. I used online chat several times and complained about sim-unlock. Finally, after I gave them both old and new imei and strong complain, they unlocked my sim card. Not a good experience, but the result turned out to be good.