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!

Can anyone clarify what a hard reset really does?

OK, I know that may look like a dumb question (and maybe it is!!!)
I have just unlocked my Vario 2 using the "Pof" method with both Sim and SuperCID.
Problem is, my phone needs to be sent back (long story - but basically I am getting a replacement Vario 3). Now obviously I am concerned they will tell me "sorry youve been playing with your phone sonny - its no longer under warrenty", so need to get it back to factory settings if I can.
I appreciate a hard reset will basically wipe any files I have, contacts and settings etc, but will this remove the unlocks that have been done? ie It really does go back to factory settings - or do these unlocks stay on there?
I have been searching the forum and WIKI, but not found the solution. I did think I would need to install a T-Mobile Rom - but all I could find was a hungarian version - which whilst in English, would probably look worse than as I currently have it!
Any help appreciated.
Thanks
EDIT:
For the record, if it makes any difference:
ROM Version 1.21.110.3
Rom Date 06/19/06
Radio version 1.16.00.00
Herm300 IPL-1.01
SPL 1.40.0lipro

a hard reset simply formats the internal drive on the phone and resets it to the factory settings.
generally t mobile wont bother looking at things like that, i unlocked my vario, dropped it, it smashed, they just replaced it after trying to repair it.
A few people have flashed new roms and bricked it, sent it back, tmobile are none the wiser, they are probably unaware people to this to their handsets!
we are all just stupid customers as far as they are concerned!
personally i wouldnt worry about it!

andaroo said:
a hard reset simply formats the internal drive on the phone and resets it to the factory settings.
generally t mobile wont bother looking at things like that, i unlocked my vario, dropped it, it smashed, they just replaced it after trying to repair it.
A few people have flashed new roms and bricked it, sent it back, tmobile are none the wiser, they are probably unaware people to this to their handsets!
we are all just stupid customers as far as they are concerned!
personally i wouldnt worry about it!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
OK thanks for that. So I assume a hard reset will not over write anything regarding the bootloader radio change and unlocks? I appreciated that it resets the OS - hence the question.
I agree that they probably wouldnt in most cases look into the phone and check, but they have put a note on my account about "charging if not found faulty".
The problem I have been getting is missing calls - even if I am in a strong signal area. I actually work at Waterloo Railway station - and I would doubt too many places would get a better signal! An incoming call is made, my phone doesnt ring and the caller gets a single ring, then nothing. From what I can now gather, this may be to do with the cell shaking hands but not really being connected. ie the phone/cell are duping each other. This appears to be a 3G issue (so is probably likely to still be there on exchange.) Now the silly thing I have noticed; the phone seemed fine until I got web'n'walk put back on and the problem happens once I have been online. Strangely at the moment, I dont think the problem is persisiting (ie Im not aware of missing calls - though of course thats difficult to quantify unless someone tells me!)
Anyway - I have a feeling they will be looking more into this phone as this replacement will be my 5th! (The previous had similar problems with calls being made or incoming that would just fall over before being answered and the signal being completely lost when it was happening. Slightly different this time - but sound related!)
So will there be a way to put it back to being locked and the correct bootloader etc being shown?
Many thanks

I had the same problem with rejected and dropped calls, tmobile couldnt care less from what i learned or are unaware of the problem! try this
1. lock the phone to gsm only (this solved it pretty much straight away)
2) remove the voicemail from your account
3) If you are using gprs data, you will rarely get a phone call through, and by using it i mean looking at web pages or having programs update in the background.
Downgrading the bootloader is way above my head so i wouldnt like to advise.
As regard to relocking the phone to the network, i dont think thats possible, in any event, why would they check the simlock if the phone is having problems with calls!
If its your fifth handset, you should be looking at changing the model at least because thats ridiculous.
It sounds like a network issue rather than a handset problem!

andaroo said:
I had the same problem with rejected and dropped calls, tmobile couldnt care less from what i learned or are unaware of the problem! try this
1. lock the phone to gsm only (this solved it pretty much straight away)
2) remove the voicemail from your account
3) If you are using gprs data, you will rarely get a phone call through, and by using it i mean looking at web pages or having programs update in the background.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yeh, the problems on this phone didnt start until I began using the net again. They did suggest switching off 3G, but since I bought the phone specifically on the promise of a fast connection and HSPDA speeds, that really is an unacceptable solution! I appreciate that signal varies etc - but if a central location where I work isnt good enough, then T-Mobile really shouldnt be advertising themselves as a 3G network!
As it happens, voicemail was switched off on the account. It got put back on again a week ago - and sods law - things now seem to be working, though internet speeds are still very slow.
As regard to relocking the phone to the network, i dont think thats possible, in any event, why would they check the simlock if the phone is having problems with calls!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Dunno really. Its just a concern they will and then use it to wriggle out of an exchange!
If its your fifth handset, you should be looking at changing the model at least because thats ridiculous.
It sounds like a network issue rather than a handset problem!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
When I phoned, I was just looking to get a repair, but it was them that offered a Vario 3 which I accepted. It was agreed for them to be sending the set to me (last Thursday) but all that arrived was a grey bag to send my old one back. I spoke with them at great length again last night and suggested a straight courier swap so I wasn't without a phone. They went through to their repair department, who have now flatly refused the phone change - despite it being agreed already!
Anyway I spoke to another manager who went through my "book" of notes and quoted the sale of goods act and merchandisable quality thing and he has agreed they really have to address this. He is phoning me back today and he did come across as helpful and reasonable. (The second one in 2 weeks - must be a record!!!)
I do agree though, that this issue is likely to be the network and not the phone. I would really love to use O2 as at work and home I get 100% coverage and never had any problems at all - but I ain't paying their data rates! Maybe 3 will be ok - but again, when I had them a few years back, at home they were dire so never bothered again. But one thing is pretty certain, in 5 months time, T-Mobile will be history unless they make amends in a big way and these problems become non existant.
Thanks for your help..... its appreciated.

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.

Can't get HTC HD2 working again!

Hi
Ok so my phone was working fine on a custom ROM when suddenly yesterday an exclamation appeared next to the phone signal and stopped from receiving/making calls and texts. I thought it had just crashed but after soft and hard resets and changing to a few others sims I just can't get my phone signal back.
Really strange as everything was working fine. I now have trouble flashing custom ROMs and am struggling to run a stock ROM because I'm on a mac.
It's driving me crazy as my phone is now useless.
Any ideas guys?
thanks

Quick update
I've managed to get the Leo Lite ROM running and everything is good except that damn exclamation mark next to the phone to phone, which means I can't get the phone working.
Anyone know know why this is???

Have you tried the sim in a different phone?
could just be a simple issue
And I know it a simple thing............but have you got flight mode on?

johnerz said:
Have you tried the sim in a different phone?
could just be a simple issue
And I know it a simple thing............but have you got flight mode on?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for the reply John.
Yeah currently having to use the sim in an ancient motorola and it works fine, tested with calls and texts. Also tried turning on and off flight mode but still that bloody exclamation mark stays.

That sounds like its been blocked. Theres a network there it just isn't letting it connect. Did you buy it second hand? or off ebay?

samsamuel said:
That sounds like its been blocked. Theres a network there it just isn't letting it connect. Did you buy it second hand? or off ebay?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey Sam
Do you know what, I did buy it second hand, from a reputable store in town.
However this raises more questions than answers;
1. Why would it be blocked after several weeks of normal use.
2. Doesn't some sort of message need to be displayed stating the handset has been blocked.
Does anyone know if this is what happens when a HTC HD2 is blocked? i.e. the exclamation being shown all the time.
I presume a handset is blocked for security measures like theft. I will take it back to the shop tomorrow, they will have all the details of the person who sold it to them.
However is there no way this can happen from flashing custom ROMs? Even though that doesn't really make sense cause I had a ROM that was working fine and this happened when I was out and about.

It could be a bad rom, but it certainly wouldn't be in every rom.
I think id try going back to the stock rom, radio and spl (i.e an sd card flash, do you now if it has a provider locked rom?) and see if it is still there. If it still won't work, then it's definately either hardware or network.
The reason it could have taken weeks is, , seller trades in phone for cash, waits a little while, thinks 'i know'..., reports the phone lost/stolen to claim on insurance, insurance won't pay out without the imei being blocked.

samsamuel said:
It could be a bad rom, but it certainly wouldn't be in every rom.
I think id try going back to the stock rom, radio and spl (i.e an sd card flash, do you now if it has a provider locked rom?) and see if it is still there. If it still won't work, then it's definately either hardware or network.
The reason it could have taken weeks is, , seller trades in phone for cash, waits a little while, thinks 'i know'..., reports the phone lost/stolen to claim on insurance, insurance won't pay out without the imei being blocked.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I've tried flashing at least 6 custom ROMs, all show the exclamation mark.
The phone was sold to me as being unlocked to all networks, however I never tried with anything other than a o2 sim.
Now going back to the original ROM has its own problems. First off i'm quite new at this so sorry for sounding silly. How on earth do i go about finding out what the original stock rom, radio and spl is?
When I have these I can't easily go back as I don't have a pc, using a mac. I would have to use the sd card way but I can't find an official signed .nbh file.

I have a brand new T-Mo US HD2 with similar issue (out of the box). It's like the radio will not initialize. Did hard resets, tried to force it finding a carrier, etc, and it just will not turn on the radio.
I did find out that there is a likely issue with my SIM slot. If I attempt to remove my SIM card (which works fine in other phones) it is almost unremoveable and feels jammed in. However, once removed, I get connectivity via wifi and touch response is great.
If I insert a SIM card, it takes a LOT of pressure to reinsert it (yes, inserting it in the correct orientation), and the phone cannot connect turn on the phone's radio. Also, I get random phone.exe and credential.exe error message (plus the phone becomes very slow.
Don't know if you have any of these other symptoms, but the lack of connectivity sounds similar.
Supposed to get a replacement HD2 today, and we'll see.

I had the same problem too. I got unlocked code from tmoile and everything working fine for a month. It was working great after upgrade the latest rom 3.14 from tmobile download site (i got the message from them to upgrade), until i went out off country last month then the phone could not turn the phone's radio on. It kept at airplane mode. I been try to flash back and forth all the tmobile .50 stock rom and still having the problem.
Does any one know the issue to fix it? TIA

Looks like a hardware fault. You need to open case and check bottom two brass hinges are in working order and correctly hinged to make contact with antenna which is on the rear case at the bottom.
Follow the guide of opening s HD2 on YouTube there is a factory guide to dismantling the HD2.

xlr8me said:
Looks like a hardware fault. You need to open case and check bottom two brass hinges are in working order and correctly hinged to make contact with antenna which is on the rear case at the bottom.
Follow the guide of opening s HD2 on YouTube there is a factory guide to dismantling the HD2.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Thanks for reply xlr8me. I just check the two brass hinges at the right side of usb connector. It looks fine to me. The other thing i didn't mention on the above post I was flash the dft_leo_nand android after tried all the stock rom from tmobile and the android said "no sim card", i also checked and cleaned the sim slot. Do you think any thing else to cause that problem?
One more thing without the sim or sd card the about phone show up all info of phone: imei, serial..... But with sim card in it just blank when i read the about phone hardware info. Thanks again

Did you try simcard from another carrier?

cecobald said:
Did you try simcard from another carrier?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes I did tried the sim from the carrier of the asia country i was traveling to last month, that why i call tmobile to get the unlock code before i go. When i was there and inserted their carrier's sim and it won't work, even when i get back to U.S. I been tried either tmobile or at&t sim too. The phone radio won't turn on. The rest is working ok except those above error messages "A problem has occurred with device.exe" and "Credential.exe".
Do you think i can reflash with WWE rom .50 radio instead of tmobile's official rom?
Thanks

htcphonelover,
You will have to reset the phone back to default rom from htc website. You may also need to reformat sd card but the radio should still work regardless of whether the sd card is in or out.
My only concluding thoughts are that if the above fails to work then try a different sim card and still no good then probably something with the motherboard on HD2.
Good luck and update us with any new info..

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.