Hey guys,
My friend bought a Nexus 4 on ebay wanted to know what to look for to tell if the phone is refurbished or used? It was listed as new but many sellers on ebay are dishonest and sell refurbished units as new.
Refurbished devices are usually just as good as new. You'll only be able to tell if there's cosmetic damage but that's unlikely
You generally can't tell between new or refurbished. Manufacturers make the look like new before reselling them or use them as replacements.
Michealtbh said:
Refurbished devices are usually just as good as new. You'll only be able to tell if there's cosmetic damage but that's unlikely
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Well she knows that refurbished devices are often just as good as new. However, refurbished devices are not sold at the same price as a brand new device. So that's why she wants to know. Because she paid full price for a brand new device so if it turns out it is refurbished then she is going to request a partial refund.
thedauntlessone said:
You generally can't tell between new or refurbished. Manufacturers make the look like new before reselling them or use them as replacements.
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Someone mentioned that one way to tell is to check RTN status. My galaxy SIII does list RTN status inside the phone if it was factory refurbished. So I wonder if Nexus 4 RTN status is located inside the phone somewhere. One thing I did with my Optimus G was simply call LG and ask if it had been factory repaired. So there's definitely ways to tell, so I'm hoping someone who knows can chime in.However, if it was "seller" refurbished then that makes it much harder than if it were factory refurbished.
I'd be more concerned that it's a fake. Be sure to verify the IMEI with Google.
estallings15 said:
I'd be more concerned that it's a fake. Be sure to verify the IMEI with Google.
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Actually there aren't any clones of the Nexus 4 yet thankfully. I've checked high and low. There's clones of lots of phones like the Note 2. But thanks for the heads up, I will definitely tell her to verify the IMEI with Google.
Related
I posted the below in response to another thread but thought I might as well create a thread to get a more definitive answer on the issue of whether or not LG/Verizon/CarrierX will honor its manufactures warranty if you bought your phone 2nd-hand through Ebay/Craigslist/ect.
Here's my OP, did I just get lucky or is this really how the warranty program really works?
If I'm correct, I hope to dispel the misunderstanding many XDA'ers may have about their warranty and have the fully functional phone they deserve. But please correct me if I'm wrong.
topurdue said:
I didn't have a choice about taking it back to Verizon. I bought it off of CL and it was probably one the original owner had replaced. So, returning it isn't an option for everybody. I tried many things that didn't work also, but this app did and it's why I shared.
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incubus2 said:
I bought my Verizon g2 on swappa so I am in the same boat. I don't know what this magic app does but works for me. Thanks for sharing.
Sent from my VS980 4G using Tapatalk
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I used to think the same thing but this is actually FALSE.
I bought my used G2 off of Ebay and was having problems with the speaker port. So I just brought the phone into Verizon, they confirmed the speaker port wasnt working, looked up my account (im sure they can see whether or not I bought it directly from them) and they had a new phone mailed out to me, no questions asked.
I believe its because the phone is still less than a year old which is covered under LG's manufacturers warranty program not Verizons. Therefore its LG's money, not Verizon's. Why wouldnt Verizon go through the trouble of keeping their customers happy when it doesnt even cost them anything.
Now it might be different once the G2 hits the one year mark. And maybe I just got lucky as I didn't volunteer any info about the Ebay purchase, cuz I was already getting what I wanted anyway. Either way, you have nothing to lose and a brand new G2 to gain if you at least try.
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My imported g2 d802, they wouldn't honour the warranty in the uk and couldn't tell me who to contact. Bought off eBay from someone who purchased it and didn't like it.
Sent from my LG-D802 using Tapatalk
I have no experience outside of Sprint, but with the way my replacement program works, I pay $11/month on my Sprint bill and no matter WHERE my phone came from, defects are fixed(or the phone is replaced) for free. 1-year manufacturer coverage doesn't matter.
If I didn't pay for Sprint insurance, I'd have to mail the phone to LG's warranty department, and I'd have to be within one year. I was told the exception to this is a "known issue", kind of like a manufacturer recall, where so many people have the same defect that Sprint will perform swaps on behalf of the manufacturer even if you don't have insurance. These are rare, I guess because the mfr has to put out a bulletin or something like that admitting the flaw.
Of course, the insurance also helps if I drop or lose the phone. Which is not manufacturer/warranty-related.
It sounds like you might be enrolled in VZ's insurance?
Sent from my LG-LS980 using Tapatalk
When you buy phone that have suffix from your country you can make "purchase agreement" and it will be taken into account if you have everything.
Hi all sorry but totally new to this bought a samsung galaxy s5 from an ebay seller out of ebay, yes i know stupid :crying:
it was for my son who has done a factory reset and the imei number is now invalied
so will not work now, it was when we checked it, but further checks now found it to be a fake a good one but still a fake
is there any thing i can do to get it working again !!!!
Sorry to hear that, but if it's a fake, you have to get help from that brand model's support team/group. No one here can help you with that because the manufacturer is unknown.
s-mart said:
Hi all sorry but totally new to this bought a samsung galaxy s5 from an ebay seller out of ebay, yes i know stupid :crying:
it was for my son who has done a factory reset and the imei number is now invalied
so will not work now, it was when we checked it, but further checks now found it to be a fake a good one but still a fake
is there any thing i can do to get it working again !!!!
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Thankfully ebay offers a warranty.Try to get your money back asap. The thing about a fake s5 is that it's fake. There is no way of knowing what's actually under the hood. They're made to pass the initial quick inspection by someone who's never owned a samsung or even android phone before.
Imagine a pinto with a Ferrari kit on it. Looks legit... but that's about it.
Get rid of it. ASAP.
mrnovanova said:
Thankfully ebay offers a warranty.Try to get your money back asap. The thing about a fake s5 is that it's fake. There is no way of knowing what's actually under the hood. They're made to pass the initial quick inspection by someone who's never owned a samsung or even android phone before.
Imagine a pinto with a Ferrari kit on it. Looks legit... but that's about it.
Get rid of it. ASAP.
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This! If you paid through Paypal and file a complaint, they will give you your money back if you can prove it is a fake. eBay is really aggressive against people selling fake stuff, so that is a plus!
Just bought a "Note 4" on Ebay and was wondering if it was legit.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/192034931671
I just wanna know if T-Mobile 4G LTE will work on it?
Looks legit but it is quite cheap so if I were you i would ask the seller to send some pictures.
But is it gonna work for T-Mobile? That's really all I care about lol
In the descriptive text the seller already warns you..."4G LTE may not be compatible with All carriers such as T-mobile".
Also he does not state which model it is...and its a seller refurbished phone whatever that means. I would have stay well clear of it despite the low price.
My experience...seller refurbished phones are phones rebuild in China with cheap non samsung parts...enough said no?
Good luck, before you flash any other ROM, check very carefully which model you have and don't trust the sticker on the back of the phone.
cfds said:
In the descriptive text the seller already warns you..."4G LTE may not be compatible with All carriers such as T-mobile".
Also he does not state which model it is...and its a seller refurbished phone whatever that means. I would have stay well clear of it despite the low price.
My experience...seller refurbished phones are phones rebuild in China with cheap non samsung parts...enough said no?
Good luck, before you flash any other ROM, check very carefully which model you have and don't trust the sticker on the back of the phone.
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Ok, thanks. I'm actually trying to cancel my order atm so I hope that goes through...
nemesis101x said:
Ok, thanks. I'm actually trying to cancel my order atm so I hope that goes through...
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Read the sellers notes. Its the korea version N910K, it wont work with tmobile 4g. Get a refund
Hi all! Want to find out if any one bought a Galaxy smartphone(Galaxy S8 as an example) from samsung.com? If yes, then I would like to know if phone's IMEI or Serial # is printed on the invoice that is included in the shipping box OR does it just say the model # of the phone and that is it?
Charkatak said:
Hi all! Want to find out if any one bought a Galaxy smartphone(Galaxy S8 as an example) from samsung.com? If yes, then I would like to know if phone's IMEI or Serial # is printed on the invoice that is included in the shipping box OR does it just say the model # of the phone and that is it?
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Just got mine today, the IMEI is on the units box as well as the unit itself.
jim262 said:
Just got mine today, the IMEI is on the units box as well as the unit itself.
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What about the packing slip, is there an IMEI there? I recently purchased HTC U11 and the packing slip had IMEI # printed on it.
Charkatak said:
What about the packing slip, is there an IMEI there? I recently purchased HTC U11 and the packing slip had IMEI # printed on it.
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No, why is this important?
jim262 said:
No, why is this important?
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The reason for this is if I buy a used device that is under warranty and seller provides a receipt for it, I just want to make sure that Samsung won't say that the device doesn't match the receipt.
I was thinking this:
If a person bought a device from Samsung(or another OEM), how does this company track if this is the device it sold to that specific person? Lest say if you bough the same model devices from 2 different places almost at the same time and deciding to return one of them, but if they are identical and you accidentally could return the wrong one to the wrong place of purchase. Upon return, the place of purchase might notice that IMEIs don't match or they don't keep track of it and as long as it the same model, color, then all is good?
In other words, do these companies track IMEI/Serial # for the devices they sell to each person?
Charkatak said:
The reason for this is if I buy a used device that is under warranty and seller provides a receipt for it, I just want to make sure that Samsung won't say that the device doesn't match the receipt.
I was thinking this:
If a person bought a device from Samsung(or another OEM), how does this company track if this is the device it sold to that specific person? Lest say if you bough the same model devices from 2 different places almost at the same time and deciding to return one of them, but if they are identical and you accidentally could return the wrong one to the wrong place of purchase. Upon return, the place of purchase might notice that IMEIs don't match or they don't keep track of it and as long as it the same model, color, then all is good?
In other words, do these companies track IMEI/Serial # for the devices they sell to each person?
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As far as I know, the IMEI is not associated with an individual users, but primarily used to track the reselling of partially paid devices in order to blacklist them.
I recently purchased 3 S7 edge G375U from ebay seller "cellitems" and my experience is far from acceptable.
Only 1 out of 3 looked new. 2 out of 3 were scratched up especially on the flash and sensor lens on the back. All 3 came with the box seals broken. When I contacted them they assured me they were new and only opened for unlocking. I was thinking what? These are factory unlocked to begin with!
I started looking more closely to these phones and it turned out all them are Sprint version G375P with G375U ROM installed. Although it works fine but I surely don't like being lied to.
If admin see this, please move this thread to the discussion. Posted here by mistake
"Although it works fine but I surely don't like being lied to."
For the principal, I'd go for a refund, or more assertive resolution that failing... and look elsewhere
Asking for a refund on 2. Keeping one for personal reason. I think ebay should have a better system in place to punish these sellers. It's said that most customer didn't know they got tricked. 1 star feedback will be given. I wish ebay can notify other buyers of this scam.
e20140 said:
I recently purchased 3 S7 edge G375U from ebay seller "cellitems" and my experience is far from acceptable.
Only 1 out of 3 looked new. 2 out of 3 were scratched up especially on the flash and sensor lens on the back. All 3 came with the box seals broken. When I contacted them they assured me they were new and only opened for unlocking. I was thinking what? These are factory unlocked to begin with!
I started looking more closely to these phones and it turned out all them are Sprint version G375P with G375U ROM installed. Although it works fine but I surely don't like being lied to.
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You must be new to eBay...
90% of everything on eBay is fake
*Detection* said:
You must be new to eBay...
90% of everything on eBay is fake
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That's not true. Im buying 3 phones in the past and not one was a fake.
I think the buyer should be more careful and reading the ratings for example. Not reading the positive ratings.. Read the negativ ratings. I didnt say its his fault... I dont like it too and hate them sellers.
To the op :
Did you Pay via Paypal? So u can Open an issue on Paypal. Until its not solved the seller didnt get his money
lladwein said:
That's not true. Im buying 3 phones in the past and not one was a fake.
I think the buyer should be more careful and reading the ratings for example. Not reading the positive ratings.. Read the negativ ratings. I didnt say its his fault... I dont like it too and hate them sellers.
To the op :
Did you Pay via Paypal? So u can Open an issue on Paypal. Until its not solved the seller didnt get his money
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Naive
Ratings and feedback mean nothing, I bought a PS3 controller from a guy with thousands of 100% positive feedback, controller was a fake
Bought iPad charger from someone with very high 100% positive feedback, also fake
You want to know how they keep their 100% positive feedback? The same way they tried to get me to reverse my negative rating by refunding me under the agreement that I could keep the item as long as I changed my feedback from negative to positive (I did not change my feedback)
eBay ratings = Nothing
You got lucky
*Detection* said:
Naive
Ratings and feedback mean nothing, I bought a PS3 controller from a guy with thousands of 100% positive feedback, controller was a fake
Bought iPad charger from someone with very high 100% positive feedback, also fake
You want to know how they keep their 100% positive feedback? The same way they tried to get me to reverse my negative rating by refunding me under the agreement that I could keep the item as long as I changed my feedback from negative to positive (I did not change my feedback)
eBay ratings = Nothing
You got lucky
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Kind of luck is always needed.
But Ive learned that there's always a trusted Shop where you can buy.
lladwein said:
Kind of luck is always needed.
But Ive learned that there's always a trusted Shop where you can buy.
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Yep, you can find hidden honest gems shops, but like I say, you have to sift through the 90% of fakes to find that 10% pot of gold
I'd rather pay the extra to buy from a real online shop than use eBay these days
e20140 said:
I recently purchased 3 S7 edge G375U from ebay seller "cellitems" and my experience is far from acceptable.
Only 1 out of 3 looked new. 2 out of 3 were scratched up especially on the flash and sensor lens on the back. All 3 came with the box seals broken. When I contacted them they assured me they were new and only opened for unlocking. I was thinking what? These are factory unlocked to begin with!
I started looking more closely to these phones and it turned out all them are Sprint version G375P with G375U ROM installed. Although it works fine but I surely don't like being lied to.
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Click to collapse
Normally I would leave this be but this is a legitimate discussion Im goin to move this thread so more can see and read
Thread moved to general and discussion
*Detection* said:
Yep, you can find hidden honest gems shops, but like I say, you have to sift through the 90% of fakes to find that 10% pot of gold
I'd rather pay the extra to buy from a real online shop than use eBay these days
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For my personal use, I ended up buying it from Bestbuy. Even Items directly from China operated store was good. Got one of those Lenovo's fastest tablet for cheap!
Recent experience of buying new phone on eBay (all local USA sellers) is horrible. Aside from S7 edge, I bought a LG G5 in the summer and ended up returning them all, 5 times total. Again, the phone was installed with unofficial ROMs.
I would like to add, buying from individual ebay sellers (not one with a store) is mostly safe.
I would like to add never buy parts from FixEZ on ebay as they claim oem quality And most def is not...
I bought a lcd and frame assembly from them and its made of reg glass not gorilla and there cust service rep cussed me out when I sent the screen shots of the website as he told me they never claimed oem.
Which they most def did...
The screen cracked in my pocket when i sat down just from the pressure in a front pocket of fairly baggy pants might i add
This was for a LG G4
There is one advantage to there being so many fakes on eBay, so long as the seller advertises them as genuine, and they are not, you can usually get a full refund along with them letting you keep the item if you complain they are breaking eBays Ts&Cs by false advertising
They'll usually try to get you to accept 50% refund & keep the item, but if you push them and tell them you want them to send you a pre-pay box to return the item for full refund & will contact eBay about their false advert, 90% of the time they refund in full and you get an automated message from eBay saying you do not need to do anything else nor return the item
And tbh, I feel no sorrow for them losing any money considering they know they're scamming so many people with fakes
*Detection* said:
Yep, you can find hidden honest gems shops, but like I say, you have to sift through the 90% of fakes to find that 10% pot of gold
I'd rather pay the extra to buy from a real online shop than use eBay these days
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Does factory sealed mean anything when buying on ebay ? Or is there a workaround for that too ? like fake seals or stickers
boydsc331 said:
Does factory sealed mean anything when buying on ebay ? Or is there a workaround for that too ? like fake seals or stickers
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Everything is possible on eBay, easy enough to buy shrink-wrap and claim it is factory sealed
Stickers have often been faked
Firmware on the phone has been faked
Model number on the back of the actual phone has been faked
Model number on the box has been faked / wrong box used
Buy new if you want 100% guarantee it is what you are buying, or make sure you have a good and sure way of being refunded if you still go the eBay route
ok so I went the ebay route. I found an individual seller, not one of those cell phone stores. I got 2 of the 930FD for $460 each. Not a great price but not too bad I thought. They were factory sealed and brand new. Thankyou all for the tips and suggestions.