Database Users

How do you replace Hardware Locked Vibrants?

I recently found out that my phone is hardware locked. I hear that people are getting theirs replaced because it's a defect. I tried to explain this where I got my phone about a month ago. No dice. They called up T-Mobile and I could not get a new phone. How did everyone get a replacement? Also, did you get brand new ones or refurbs? Thanks.

Just call tmobile directly. Don't tell them you bought it from someone else. Pretend as if you night it from them. I have gotten mine replaced even though I bought it from else where. The key us to sound like you know what you're talking about and to be persistent. You may get a no can do answer but call again and you'll eventually get a rep that erl return it right away cause they don't know what else to do. Btw always say you have already done a factory reset before they try to get you to do it.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

So I say that I already did a factory reset and want a replacement because I can't get into recovery mode?

just call them up and say that you can't do a hard reset and that the phone is defective... go to the tmobile store, they are a dealership and are privately owned, not by tmobile, so most of the time they'll just laugh in your face... CALL them

I wouldn't mention recovery mode. Id mention something like gps not working and you need a phone with gps for your job and that you paid for a phone and it said it had gps when it doesn't work. But still mention that you have done numerous factory resets with no success. They'll send you another. I'm getting my third one and after 3 replacements you get a upgrade to something else or you can continue with your phone.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

creglenn said:
I wouldn't mention recovery mode. Id mention something like gps not working and you need a phone with gps for your job and that you paid for a phone and it said it had gps when it doesn't work. But still mention that you have done numerous factory resets with no success. They'll send you another. I'm getting my third one and after 3 replacements you get a upgrade to something else or you can continue with your phone.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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GPS isn't a "hardware" problem, its firmware related. Don't think that would work at all. They'll probably just redirect you to a new firmware update.

How can you tell if your phone is "hardware locked"?

zephiK said:
GPS isn't a "hardware" problem, its firmware related. Don't think that would work at all. They'll probably just redirect you to a new firmware update.
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Nah itll work cause I've gotten 2 replacements but saying that. Trust me I'd you get the right repo that doesn't know they will just replace it. Plus after saying you have done a factory reset they have no more troubleshooting steps on their script. Lol! Plus whether its hardware or software related the phone should work as advertised and if it doesn't then that's their fault
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

I called tmo and told them I couldn't get into recovery using the vol up vol dow buttons and I want a replacement. The phone is supposed to be able to do this, therefore it is defective. They agreed and sent me a brand new phone. Recovery works flawlessly.

mentalex2 said:
I called tmo and told them I couldn't get into recovery using the vol up vol dow buttons and I want a replacement. The phone is supposed to be able to do this, therefore it is defective. They agreed and sent me a brand new phone. Recovery works flawlessly.
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told you that's all you had to do i did the same... the newer replacement phones that they are now sending out aren't hardware locked anymore, they finally fixed the problem in QC

That is weird. How come the recovery mode thing didn't work the first time? I think they might ask me why I would want to get into recovery mode. What do I say?

What about people who don't have contracts with them? Will they do it if I don't have a contract? That's highly doubtful.

1quickturbosix said:
How can you tell if your phone is "hardware locked"?
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I found out by trying to get into recovery mode. I followed a bunch of different methods and none of them worked.
Also:
So, I say I can't get into recovery mode and they'll agree to send me a new phone? When I send it back, do I do any kind of reset or leave it as is?

Yesterday, I fudged an install of a mod and got a bunch of TwLanuncher errors. My phone is hardware locked and after about an hour, Tmo decided to give me a new one. I simply told them and its true that I cant hard reset the phone. Only problem is that I cant flash back to stock either. Hope this isnt a problem...

Thanks everyone for posting this information, this will be very useful.
Was shipping free or not?

mmalott said:
Yesterday, I fudged an install of a mod and got a bunch of TwLanuncher errors. My phone is hardware locked and after about an hour, Tmo decided to give me a new one. I simply told them and its true that I cant hard reset the phone. Only problem is that I cant flash back to stock either. Hope this isnt a problem...
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I don't think T-Mobile will bother to check the contents of your phone. They'll just send it back to Samsung. And if Samsung discovers that your phone has custom firmware, they probably won't care either because the transaction was done already.

burntrat said:
That is weird. How come the recovery mode thing didn't work the first time? I think they might ask me why I would want to get into recovery mode. What do I say?
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That's what I want to know. They might ask why we want to enter recovery...

PSP_Hacker said:
That's what I want to know. They might ask why we want to enter recovery...
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Someone correct me if I am wrong here. Simply tell them that you cant hard reset the phone.

I think you guys are over estimating the technical-prowess of the T-Mob reps. They wouldn't know about 'recovery' modes, custom firmwares, or anything. Most of the time, they're gonna take what you say at face value; just go for the easy in. Just say your phone is hardware locked, unable to do factory resets, etc. and play dumb. You don't need to tell them about recoveries or custom roms. Pretend you're a technologically-impotent average consumer fer chrissakes.

Shipping is free unless you want express. But on your second replacement they ship it express for free
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App

[Q] g2 turns on with blank screen. please help

hello so i put my t-mobile g2 down for a while, about 15 minutes, and when i came back to it all i saw was a blank screen. so i removed the battery and put it back in and when i turn it on all i get is a black screen. my phone was already perm rooted with cyanogenmod rom 6.1. i dont know what to do now. i hope someone can help me.
does any one have any input on what to do? i just got my phone like 2 weeks ago
Thank you

As silly as this sounds, did your battery die? Try plugging it into a power source and then turn it on. See what you get.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Sv3nt3k said:
As silly as this sounds, did your battery die? Try plugging it into a power source and then turn it on. See what you get.
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App
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thanks for the reply. yes ive charged it too. i think somethings wrong with just the screen. i can blindly do random stuff with the phone. i can unlock and lock the phone because i can hear the sounds and ive also played music because i know where on the home screen the icon is. i just cant see anything on the phone for some reason. it was completely random. ive never dropped the phone

Anyone have any ideas?

Call Tmobile get a new one
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Yeah I did call. I'm gonna go to the tmobile store and exchange it but do you think they'll know that I rooted it since it does void the warranty?

indeed15 said:
Yeah I did call. I'm gonna go to the tmobile store and exchange it but do you think they'll know that I rooted it since it does void the warranty?
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Considering the screen won't turn on... No, I think you will be fine. Plus, not very many people at T-mobile even know what root is.

waffleman911 said:
Considering the screen won't turn on... No, I think you will be fine. Plus, not very many people at T-mobile even know what root is.
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yeah true that but what about after they send the phone in? Can they still do something if they find out its rooted even after the tmobile store replaced it?

Does the screen turn on while the phone is booting up?
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

indeed15 said:
yeah true that but what about after they send the phone in? Can they still do something if they find out its rooted even after the tmobile store replaced it?
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Well, say they do. I'm sure they have better stuff to do then hunt and back track and find out where that G2 came from just to return it back to you and say "No, you can't have that replacement G2. Now give it back." I just wouldn't worry about it to be honest. But that's just my $0.02

waffleman911 said:
Well, say they do. I'm sure they have better stuff to do then hunt and back track and find out where that G2 came from just to return it back to you and say "No, you can't have that replacement G2. Now give it back." I just wouldn't worry about it to be honest. But that's just my $0.02
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Lol yeah I went ahead and got it exchanged. Hope this g2 holds up. Thanks for replying
Sent from my T-Mobile G2 using XDA App

Quick warranty question

I have a MT4G here that has a bad eMMC chip. It will not boot or load any firmware but I can get to the hboot and recovery menu. I am not the original owner. Will HTC still warranty it? How would I go about getting a warranty replacement directly from HTC? Im sure somebody out there has done or tried this before.

Don't get the warranty from htc. Get it from t-mobile. It will make your life much easier
Sent from my HTC Glacier using XDA App

Will T-Mobile warranty it even though I am not the original owner and I didnt get it from the T-Mobile store? Its a phone I bought off of ebay. Also last time I tried to warranty a MT4G through them (about 4 days ago) they said they were out of stock and tried to give me a Galaxy S 3G.

I got my replacement the other day, and while I was reading through a few things, it said that the warranty does not transfer from customer to customer...might be SOL

clarknick27 said:
I got my replacement the other day, and while I was reading through a few things, it said that the warranty does not transfer from customer to customer...might be SOL
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That is why I am asking. The warranty info says it does not transfer from customer to customer but I know some people on this forum have gotten ebay or craigslist phones warrantied. I just wanna know how they did it.

Try to transfer to Technical Support when you use Live Chat. I did it on my HD7 which I bought it secondhand and still received a replacement.

I am having the same exact issue, but I happen to be the original owner of the phone. Are they not going to charge me when they find out that my phone is rooted? My phone boots the tmobile splash screen and will get into hboot/recovery, but it will not flash anything.

XPLANE9 said:
Try to transfer to Technical Support when you use Live Chat. I did it on my HD7 which I bought it secondhand and still received a replacement.
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I just want to be 100% clear on what your talking about. You mean live chat on the T-Mobile website, correct? What if they ask if its my original phone or when they receive it they notice its a different IMEI than the one I originally purchased from them?

kanman said:
I am having the same exact issue, but I happen to be the original owner of the phone. Are they not going to charge me when they find out that my phone is rooted? My phone boots the tmobile splash screen and will get into hboot/recovery, but it will not flash anything.
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If it has original hboot/recovery, and can't get past the splash screen, there's 100% no way to tell it was rooted. Someone correct me if that is wrong?

Paul22000 said:
If it has original hboot/recovery, and can't get past the splash screen, there's 100% no way to tell it was rooted. Someone correct me if that is wrong?
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I am using clockwork recovery so they will definitely notice that it has been tampered with. I guess I'm just looking for a way to get a new phone without being charged for it.

Paul22000 said:
If it has original hboot/recovery, and can't get past the splash screen, there's 100% no way to tell it was rooted. Someone correct me if that is wrong?
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Well.. there's no way to have the original Hboot and be rooted. it will say S-OFF. Yes, you can still have the original 0.86 hboot or whatever - but it will still say s off.

kanman said:
I am using clockwork recovery so they will definitely notice that it has been tampered with. I guess I'm just looking for a way to get a new phone without being charged for it.
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I am in the exact same situation. If anyone has any guidance, please post

silentsnow31802 said:
I just want to be 100% clear on what your talking about. You mean live chat on the T-Mobile website, correct? What if they ask if its my original phone or when they receive it they notice its a different IMEI than the one I originally purchased from them?
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I believe that T-Mobile only checks the order number when it processes replacements. Then again, I am prepaid so I have to send in the faulty device first before I receive the replacement so I am not entirely sure. But I know that my secondhand HD7 (bought on a contract by the original owner) was replaced by T-Mobile without any issues.

Ill talk with a tmobile rep online tomorrow. Mine has the engineering bootloader and clockwork recovery with s-off. Looks like ill be putting some extra voltage through the charging port to try and fry it so they cant even boot it. That way they cant tell it was rooted!

silentsnow31802 said:
Ill talk with a tmobile rep online tomorrow. Mine has the engineering bootloader and clockwork recovery with s-off. Looks like ill be putting some extra voltage through the charging port to try and fry it so they cant even boot it. That way they cant tell it was rooted!
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Have you tried flashing the stock ROM/hboot? [ROM]Glacier_TMOUS_1.17.531.2_Radio_12.28b.60.140e_26.0 3.02.26_M_release
If that doesn't work, you could also try flashing that and pulling the battery so it really bricks and then doesn't turn on...

kanman said:
I am having the same exact issue, but I happen to be the original owner of the phone. Are they not going to charge me when they find out that my phone is rooted? My phone boots the tmobile splash screen and will get into hboot/recovery, but it will not flash anything.
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Click to collapse
I sent my phone in with the same problem with S-off and cw recovery installed and they didnt care. They just charged me $10 for shipping.

I really feel we need to re make the unrooting guide...It has to address S-Off,tock Hboot/Radio,stock recovery, stock rom all in one place for users.

gamershadow said:
I sent my phone in with the same problem with S-off and cw recovery installed and they didnt care. They just charged me $10 for shipping.
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Can you detail how you did this? For example, did you "send it in" to HTC or T-Mobile?

Paul22000 said:
Have you tried flashing the stock ROM/hboot? [ROM]Glacier_TMOUS_1.17.531.2_Radio_12.28b.60.140e_26.0 3.02.26_M_release
If that doesn't work, you could also try flashing that and pulling the battery so it really bricks and then doesn't turn on...
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Yup tired this and get a Fail-PU. Phone is truly dead :-(
Ace42 said:
I really feel we need to re make the unrooting guide...It has to address S-Off,tock Hboot/Radio,stock recovery, stock rom all in one place for users.
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I think there is one floating around somewhere. It doesnt help when the eMMC chip stops working properly though.

Ace42 said:
I really feel we need to re make the unrooting guide...It has to address S-Off,tock Hboot/Radio,stock recovery, stock rom all in one place for users.
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I can try to put one together. I've made a few in my time (coughsignaturecough )
As soon as I figure out how to finally get my phone working without crashing/cache errors

Blocked

I have found a i9000. I have tried to find the owner but cant as it has a pettern lock. I took it to the copshop and they gave me it back a fortnight later as no one went to claim it. As i would like to use the phone how would i remove the pattern lock. Without having to sit for days tryin to guess lol
sent from samsung gt-i5800 froyo

toppertighe said:
I have found a i9000. I have tried to find the owner but cant as it has a pettern lock. I took it to the copshop and they gave me it back a fortnight later as no one went to claim it. As i would like to use the phone how would i remove the pattern lock. Without having to sit for days tryin to guess lol
sent from samsung gt-i5800 froyo
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Take it to an outlet for whatever the network it is connected to. It will say at top right of lock screen and on the sim of course.

It has no sim card so i couldnt tell which network it is on. It is unlocked because its open to any sim. Iv tried different sims and they show the provider in the corner
sent from samsung gt-i5800 froyo

toppertighe said:
i would like to use the phone how would i remove the pattern lock
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just root the phone/update firmware on it, which should allow you to factory reset it.

factory reset, through recovery will get rid of the lock pattern.
edit: I believe you don't need to flash anything. Power on device holding the Volume Up + Home + Power button

Thanks guys ill give it a try
sent from samsung gt-i5800 froyo

lucky you!!
you're in the right place... enjoy!

titijuli said:
lucky you!!
you're in the right place... enjoy!
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Not so sure about that. If it is reported lost or stolen then the IMEI will be blocked and all that it will be useful for is a MP3 player. Hence my advice to go to a network shop. Any one will help and check the phone is not blocked.

Tehpriest said:
Not so sure about that. If it is reported lost or stolen then the IMEI will be blocked and all that it will be useful for is a MP3 player. Hence my advice to go to a network shop. Any one will help and check the phone is not blocked.
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if it shows network provider for different sims it ain't blocked

Tehpriest said:
Not so sure about that. If it is reported lost or stolen then the IMEI will be blocked and all that it will be useful for is a MP3 player. Hence my advice to go to a network shop. Any one will help and check the phone is not blocked.
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you're right. that's why this is the right place, because of advices like yours

I feel sorry for the owner that lost the phone, and did not report the IMEI as being lost or stolen...
that'll be my very 2nd phone call if i lose my phone
the 1st phone call will be used to located the lost phone

Flash a new ROM But you can give it a factory reset (hold VOL UP + HOME + POWER buttons for a few seconds)
Offtopic:
I would find a SGS too

it's weird how many people "Find" SGS lately...
Honestly, on an etiquette POV, I wouldn't help anyone who "found" an SGS to unlock it... But rather help him find the owner.

thats what i was thinking...glad its not mine

I have spent nearly three weeks trying to find the owner. i handed it in to the police station but got it back two weeks later because it didnt get claimed. Which you would know if you read the earlier posts in the thread. If i lost my phone i would check the police to see if it had been handed in like most ppl who are bothered bout there phone. What does that tell you?
sent from rooted samsung gt-i5800 froyo

toppertighe said:
I have spent nearly three weeks trying to find the owner. i handed it in to the police station but got it back two weeks later because it didnt get claimed. Which you would know if you read the earlier posts in the thread. If i lost my phone i would check the police to see if it had been handed in like most ppl who are bothered bout there phone. What does that tell you?
sent from rooted samsung gt-i5800 froyo
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Ok, keep the peace, maybe a shot of police paperwork would help put peoples concerns to rest, just a peace keeping suggestion
Sent from my GT-I9000 using XDA Premium App

I decided to take the phone back to copshop and left it there. Its not worth the hassle. They just said they will recycle it. Shame
Sent from my GT-I5800 using XDA App

got a replacement phone and bootloader unlocked?

i got a new replacement phone because i broke my last s7 and when i turned it on it shows a lock on it but its unlocked and it says custom, what does that mean????

THORMUNZ said:
i got a new replacement phone because i broke my last s7 and when i turned it on it shows a lock on it but its unlocked and it says custom, what does that mean????
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I don't think the bootloader is unlocked it looks like someone rooted the phone and turn it into T-Mobile and they just mailed you. You can try to download the new firmware and flashing it and doing a reset factory to see if it will fix it.

Generally that means you can do as you please such as root and fladhing
Sent from my SM-G935T using XDA Premium HD app

THORMUNZ said:
i got a new replacement phone because i broke my last s7 and when i turned it on it shows a lock on it but its unlocked and it says custom, what does that mean????
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What does your knox say?
Send us a picture of that.
They probably fixed whatever was broken on your old one and sent it back. LOL!

THORMUNZ said:
i got a new replacement phone because i broke my last s7 and when i turned it on it shows a lock on it but its unlocked and it says custom, what does that mean????
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Boot into the bootloader and see what it says. Post pics

Lol as the local village people would say you got sloppy seconds

sonkameja said:
Lol as the local village people would say you got sloppy seconds
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:laugh: LMAO!!

newuser1984 said:
I don't think the bootloader is unlocked it looks like someone rooted the phone and turn it into T-Mobile and they just mailed you. You can try to download the new firmware and flashing it and doing a reset factory to see if it will fix it.
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I was having wifi issue with this phone and I decided to use smart switch on my PC to update it and once I did that lock logo is long gone!

sonkameja said:
Lol as the local village people would say you got sloppy seconds
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I figured T-Mobile did say "if you claim your phone as damaged you'll get a "like new" so I was aware I was getting a refurbished phone for $170

Binary100100 said:
What does your knox say?
Send us a picture of that.
They probably fixed whatever was broken on your old one and sent it back. LOL!
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I didn't see anything that referred to it being unlocked in bootloader menu I can post pics tho if you'd like

THORMUNZ said:
I didn't see anything that referred to it being unlocked in bootloader menu I can post pics tho if you'd like
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Well we can't really assume that the bootloader came unlocked unless we have something to detail the current condition of the bootloader. Right?