Defective phone, replacement process? - Sprint Samsung Galaxy S 4 Q&A, Help & Troubleshoot

I've come to the conclusion after unrooting/changing to stock rom that my WiFi and Bluetooth is defective, cause it shows very little access points compared to other S4s and Bluetooth is intermittent cutting in and out.
It's been over a month since I've received the phone, would I still be able to bring it to a Sprint Store and exchange for a new one, or would I have to ship it in to Samsung. Also, would I have to stock recovery/unroot before I give it back to them?
Anyone who works at Sprint or have done this before, please let me know!
Thanks!

tinkleondabeach said:
I've come to the conclusion after unrooting/changing to stock rom that my WiFi and Bluetooth is defective, cause it shows very little access points compared to other S4s and Bluetooth is intermittent cutting in and out.
It's been over a month since I've received the phone, would I still be able to bring it to a Sprint Store and exchange for a new one, or would I have to ship it in to Samsung. Also, would I have to stock recovery/unroot before I give it back to them?
Anyone who works at Sprint or have done this before, please let me know!
Thanks!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You must unroot. You must flash stock mdc odin 1 click restore and wipe fully. They will laugh at you if you dont.

Put it completely back to stock. Reset the counter and binary to official. Odin the MDL full stock with data wipe. Wipe/format the internal storage. Remove the SD card. Do full factory reset and format internal memory. Pray. Don't act like you've been mucking around with the phone. They might want to do a factory reset and or flash the rom to official stock again. Take it back the next day and tell them it's still malfunctioning. Hope they put in an order for a refurb. If you can replicate the problem, show them. Sometimes one repair center might be less likely to get you a replacement. Find another repair center. When I went to a different place with a previous phone, they were more inclined to just order me a replacement. I had to go back three times within a month to get a fully working phone, because the replacements were defective. Don't be a jerk towards the employees.

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I believe that it's a hardware defect maybe a loose wifi antenna. Went to sprint store and they're holding my phone right now, they said they'd charge $50 for repair if it's a defect but checkup is free.. I told them about a warranty and they told me that I'd have to go through Samsung to get that. Would it void my warranty if I opened up the phone myself?

If you have the TEP insurance a replacement would be free of charge.
You only have 14 days to return a phone if it is defective if the device was a new act or upgrade. A replacement without insurance is $50.
Your situation is difficult though. If the tech can verify the issue it is fine. Verifying your issue is not easy at all.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using xda app-developers app

supercholo said:
If you have the TEP insurance a replacement would be free of charge.
You only have 14 days to return a phone if it is defective if the device was a new act or upgrade. A replacement without insurance is $50.
Your situation is difficult though. If the tech can verify the issue it is fine. Verifying your issue is not easy at all.
Sent from my SPH-L720 using xda app-developers app
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If the tech can verify the issue I'm still charged the $50 right? I assume the free warranty process through returning to Samsung would take like a month without a phone right?

tinkleondabeach said:
If the tech can verify the issue I'm still charged the $50 right? I assume the free warranty process through returning to Samsung would take like a month without a phone right?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I was told around 2 weeks when I asked Samsung about replacing my phone because of a screen defect. Can't go that long without a phone though so I'm just dealing with my screen defect. I'll maybe get it replaced before I sell it or the year is up. Whatever is first.

Yeah I hate Samsung and Sprint, I'm probably going to have to pay $50 for a refurb'd replacement cause the phone they gave me is defective.
Does anyone know if I will void the warranty if I were to open up the casing of the s4?

tinkleondabeach said:
Yeah I hate Samsung and Sprint, I'm probably going to have to pay $50 for a refurb'd replacement cause the phone they gave me is defective.
Does anyone know if I will void the warranty if I were to open up the casing of the s4?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Yes you will void the warranty if you open it up.

Related

two probs with phone

My phone was rooted and running a lag fix and was working fine untill i saw a cool theme that i wanted. I tried to flash it but it bricked my phone enstead. I was able to get it back buy following some instructions using odin. I got it back but without avitar, sims, and media hub. Now it also restarts over and over when i have my wifi on. I turn wifi off and it stays on. Is there a fix for what is going on? and is there any way i can get back avitar and the media hub. If not im going to take the phone back. Its not rooted anymore so it should not be a problem. What kinda of warrenty does to phone have i bought it the day it came out?
you get a one year warranty against factory defects. just call t-mo and tell them your phone keeps boot looping. they'll send you out another one in no time
orells said:
you get a one year warranty against factory defects. just call t-mo and tell them your phone keeps boot looping. they'll send you out another one in no time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Maybe people should take responsibility for their actions instead?
Can I just go to tmo store and get a replacement or is it something I need to call on
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
If you're past the two week grace period you can go into a store, but they will just order one for you there. Even with insurance they won't hot swap you at the store.
Use Odin again and QUIT MESSING WITH YOUR PHONE. Why are you all encouraging the op to get a replacement?
spacecasespiff said:
Can I just go to tmo store and get a replacement or is it something I need to call on
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You did this to yourself, YOU are responsible! don't try to scam T-mo into giving you a new device for something YOU did.
spacecasespiff said:
Can I just go to tmo store and get a replacement or is it something I need to call on
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
You would be committing fraud which is a crime. Anyone who advises you how to do it would also be committing a crime.
How about you ask how to fix the problem and I'm sure people well versed in Odin will walk you through the fix.
Thanks for helping to drive up the cost of the phones, much appreciated. You VOIDED the warranty by rooting it, deal with it, not expect the rest of us to subsidize your phones.
do people not read disclamers? the devs clearly tell you that your phonw might blow up, so take responsibility for what you do to your crappy phones and man up.
orells said:
you get a one year warranty against factory defects. just call t-mo and tell them your phone keeps boot looping. they'll send you out another one in no time
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Will t-mo replace defect unit if you bought it from ebay?
people REALAX. I went to tmobile and told them what i did and they said the root that i had done DID NOT MESS WITH THE WARRINTY. And that i should have brought the phone in before doin anything to it. I have INSURANCE and I will get a new phone tomarrow. Now the guy that helped my had the same root on his vibrant and that he would not have done it if it did mess with the warrinty. So I come on here for some help and you guys toss me under a bus. I never said i was going to LIE TO TMOBLE i would not do that. I still had to pay 130 bucks any way.
Yea, so suck it you war mongers. LOL
Sent from my Vibrant using the XDA app.
Your friendly neighborhood tmobile hacker boy may have taken it back but the policy has always been very clear that rooting your phone will void your warranty. Regardless of whether they took it back or not, the fact remains, you broke it and you want someone else to eat some of the responsibility for your actions.
I told them that i was the one that messed it up so i did not lie to them. I filed a claim with the insurance and they said as long as the type of root that i did was a small one that even though i messed it up there concearn is the warrinty of the phone. its not like all of you are these saints. I did nothing wrong.The insurance could have declined the claim but they did not they just said that i problably should not do it again and that if it did happen again for the same reasone that they would reject the claim. So i did not have any friends at tmo or the insurance. So im all done with this now. Beside all of you have rooted any way so let my say that i hope it does not happen to you.

[q] sprint service rep messed up my phone!

so I took my epic to a sprint store to get a new screen. got it back and turned it on. found out they deleted a few games and my task killer. and for some reason, my phone could not get an service whatsoever. it says I am in roaming with no bars and I know that's wrong because I get full bars in my house. also, I cannot send or receive calls or texts. after n hour on the phone with sprint, they couldn't fix it and they finally just switched my service to an older phone. I will go to a sprint store at a current date but I'm on vacation and don't have a chance to go to the store.
so, any ideas what mightve happened? and ideas how I should go about talking to sprint to get this issue fixed?
thanks in advance.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
We will need to know more about the phone. Are you running stock ROM or not? Are you rooted? I am guessing that since you took it into the store that you were running it stock and unrooted. Give us some more details and we might be able to be more help.
It looks like you might need to factory reset, but you can d/l a backup program to save all the .apks for the apps you have gotten from the market, or you can root the phone and get a better backup program. I would not recommend using clockwork recovery as, I believe, it will back up everything and might just restore the phone to its unusable state. That being said it couldn't hurt to try Clockwork recovery and if you just have to wipe the phone again you can.
It's really annoying when you take a phone into Sprint and they just make matters worse. One time I took a phone it for an issue with the screen and they actually broke the screen further and then refused to figure out a way to fix it.
I'm rooted and I'm running the latest epic experience based off of dk28. was not able to odin completely back to stock before taking it to the store. they never said anything about it being the wrong firmware.
when I returned home, it was too late to actually do anything about the issue, so I called tech support. the woman worked me through some tests and nothing indicated what was wrong and therefore there's no solution to it. she finally just said that its a hardware malfunction, which it could be. only way to get that fixed is to go to the sprint store whenever I'm able to, which might not be for a while.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Yeah I don't think it's a hardware issuer personally. If you haven't tried wiping the phone and starting fresh that would be my first step. The fact is that if it's hardware you will end up with a fresh phone anyhow, so why not factory reset the phone and see if it fixes the problem...also maybe uninstall the last few apps you downloaded. They might be messing with your radios.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Did they choc the screen? If stop I guess it's possible that they messed up your radios at thst point.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
I actually think this is a hardware issue. Better flash back to stock before you bring it in for any issues or they can deny your replacement. Sprint corporate repair centers have advanced testers specifically for signal related issues and without an antenna it will fail for sure. You may want to explain the issue started when your screen was replaced.
When they replaced the screen they may have screwed up the antenna internal. Generally, a tech will not do anything with the firmware/software when they are fixing hardware so I am not sure what happened with your apps.
Also, the part was likely harvested from another phone... If they brought the antenna from the other phone it could be defective (which is possibly why it was there to harvest from). It's also possible that your antenna is not actually in your phone.
wait I thought if you were within your first year they had to give you a new phone anyway?
I would definatly be raising a stink! Look you paid good money for the phone and hopefully you paid for insurance. dont let them give you second rate service. Go ask for a new phone and just transfer all your stuffto that one.
boominz28 said:
wait I thought if you were within your first year they had to give you a new phone anyway?
I would definatly be raising a stink! Look you paid good money for the phone and hopefully you paid for insurance. dont let them give you second rate service. Go ask for a new phone and just transfer all your stuffto that one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Not if he rooted and flashed a non apporved update and they see it
GituSum Epic
As stated above, odin to stock, and ***** till its resolved. IDK if another sprint store is an option, but that can help, also calling into tech support and getting an appt with the repair center seems to help. Was just in today and should be getting a 'replacement' Monday, I have a purple line of what appears to be stuck pixels along the bottom or left side of screen. First sprint store, the brilliant techs tried to tell me it was a 'cosmetic flaw' and that they could fix it for 35 bux, knowing I have TEP... got home, called in, tech support guy was really cool, and also noticed that 35 bux applies to people w/o TEP, the only way money would be involved would be water, loss, etc... got an appt for today, and yeah... hoping the replacement is new... but whatever. Anyways, you have a 500 dollar phone, don't take any BS... the first guys even said to call sammy for a warranty.... idiots.
thanks for all the replies.
part of the tests included doing a factory reset. and that didn't work. I can't believe that doing a repair could completely mess up my phone even more. of course I'll ***** and complain until I get my way. I'm used to it with sprint.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
They probably didnt reconnect the antenna. I had to get my 3.5mm headphone jack replaced on my epic and when the sprint rep handed the phone back, I went outside and couldnt get any signal whatsoever. I immediately took the phone back and the rep reconnected the antenna in a matter of minutes.
dee32181 said:
They probably didnt reconnect the antenna. I had to get my 3.5mm headphone jack replaced on my epic and when the sprint rep handed the phone back, I went outside and couldnt get any signal whatsoever. I immediately took the phone back and the rep reconnected the antenna in a matter of minutes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
this sounds almost exactly like what I'm experiencing. as soon as I return home or find spare time, ill go back to sprint and see if they can reconnect the antenna.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Definitely could be a simple issue with the antenna being plugged in. If it was reset already then its likely not software BUT... they will not replace it if it needs to be replaced if they notice that its rooted.
I had same issue after camera button failed. Antenna wasnt put back on properly. I had crazy signals.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
So you haven't tried odin yet...? Just a fw? What if your modem is just buggy...
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
boominz28 said:
wait I thought if you were within your first year they had to give you a new phone anyway?
I would definatly be raising a stink! Look you paid good money for the phone and hopefully you paid for insurance. dont let them give you second rate service. Go ask for a new phone and just transfer all your stuffto that one.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wrong. Sprint doesn't HAVE to give you a new phone. Its a fix/replace policy and if you don't have insurance it will cost you $35. That's a recent policy change. You can go through Samsung if your looking to excersise your one year warranty...but good luck on a rooted phone.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
unfortunantly, my laptop is down right now. so I cannot odin back to stock. no, I've never had this problem before and judging by a few others, it seems that this is a common problem.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Quis89 said:
Wrong. Sprint doesn't HAVE to give you a new phone. Its a fix/replace policy and if you don't have insurance it will cost you $35. That's a recent policy change. You can go through Samsung if your looking to excersise your one year warranty...but good luck on a rooted phone.
Sent from my SPH-D700 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I will disagree with you, I do beleive that within the first year of you buying that phone they have to give you a replacement, But I will research this further and post my results.
I'll help with the policy, If you don't have a service and repair plan, or TEP, then they will charge you 35 for a repair, regardless of if the phone is in warranty or not. 35 bucks includes everything except board damage, phone coming in the store in two pieces, or liquid damage. I.E. something that can't be repaired anyway by anyone, I.E damaged beyond repair.
If you have the service plan, then you don't get charged the 35 bucks.
If the store can't fix the issue, they order a refurb phone that usually shows up in one/two business days at the store or to your house, your choice.
The only time you get a NEW phone is when you've had the device for less than 30 days, you can return it any time in that period or get it swapped out for a new one if there is a issue and the store can't fix it. You can return it for any reason as well during this time.
Anyway, like everyone stated, the issue with the phone is that the antenna is probably not hooked up. It's at the bottom of the phone, and is connected with a cable that has two connects on it, one at each end, at the antenna and at the main board. One or both of them is off the phone, and that could be fixed by anyone with a screw driver and a butter knife in about 5 minutes.
hdnet1 said:
I'll help with the policy, If you don't have a service and repair plan, or TEP, then they will charge you 35 for a repair, regardless of if the phone is in warranty or not. 35 bucks includes everything except board damage, phone coming in the store in two pieces, or liquid damage. I.E. something that can't be repaired anyway by anyone, I.E damaged beyond repair.
If you have the service plan, then you don't get charged the 35 bucks.
If the store can't fix the issue, they order a refurb phone that usually shows up in one/two business days at the store or to your house, your choice.
The only time you get a NEW phone is when you've had the device for less than 30 days, you can return it any time in that period or get it swapped out for a new one if there is a issue and the store can't fix it. You can return it for any reason as well during this time.
Anyway, like everyone stated, the issue with the phone is that the antenna is probably not hooked up. It's at the bottom of the phone, and is connected with a cable that has two connects on it, one at each end, at the antenna and at the main board. One or both of them is off the phone, and that could be fixed by anyone with a screw driver and a butter knife in about 5 minutes.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well that stinks if i buy a almost 600 dollar phone and say 2 months goes , if they send me a refurbished , im gonna raise a stink.

T-Mobile Vibrant replacement cost lowered

I found out some info from TMO customer care yesterday that is interesting and worth knowing.
TMO cut the cost to replace a rooted vibrant down to $115 on April 1st, but the insurance still costs $130. So if anyone finds themselves in my situation (totally and utterly bricked in every sense of the word and still rooted) or a similar situation, it would actually be cheaper to just send it in without insurance, even if the damage indicator is red.
However, if they don't get the phone back within 7 days, then the price is still $455 to replace the phone.
This info is for T-Mobile USA. I have no idea if international branches of T-Mobile have adopted the same policy, and I have no idea if this applies to other phones as well (I am just restating what the customer care rep told me.)
So I can crack my screen completely and it will only cost 115 still? Or is that just for rooted devices? Because if you hard-brick the device, TMobile has no way of knowing that it was rooting considering they can't even turn it on.
Also just got mail that the insurance is increasing by $2 to $7.99 but you get free Mobile Security from Asurion included in that....Samsung Vibrant is only included in PLAN D of the insurance which is $130 deductible and a claim limit amount of $1000.
Confused. So hypothetically if I destroy my phone to the point it doesn't even power on, I can call them and send it in to get a refurb one for $115?
Does it apply only if its bricked? If it's broken physically...like screen or something internal, can I still do that?
Mine says LOSS THEFT DAMAGE or MALFUNCTION...Drop in water COVERED..Keypad stop working COVERED..etc etc..
Okay, I can see how my 1st post could have been a little confusing. Here's what you should do if you need to send in your vibrant.
First and foremost, if you CAN flash back to stock, DO IT. That is still the only sure-fire way of not having to pay anything and still get a new/refurbished Vibrant out of it.
Second, T-Mobile will charge you the $115 if they find that the phone has hardware damage (red damage indicator, damaged screen, exc.), but can still be repaired. So, if your phone has a cracked screen, for example, it's a better idea to send it in without insurance because insurance costs $130 plus an additional $8 per month. (NOTE: The FFC mod is an irreversible mod. You have cracked open the phone and therefore T-Mobile considers that "physical damage." You cannot swap out the camera for the stock one and re-paint the camera hole and lens.)
Third, T-Mobile will charge you the $115 if they find that the phone has been rooted or modded in any way in terms of software.
However, the chances of T-Mobile finding anything out about software modification is unlikely. At the T-Mobile processing center, they have some magic way of taking out the internal SD card without triggering the damage indicator. After they have done that, what they are SUPPOSED to do is attempt to find any data on the internal SD card that would reveal whether the phone was rooted or not (working superuser app, exc.). However, this process is long, tedious and boring as hell so what a lot of employees do is just skip the part where they examine the internal SD card and just format the thing without looking at it. To prove it, when I sent in that hard-bricked vibrant, it had a GT-I9000 bootloader on it plus CM7 and numerous ROM.zip files on it. I was not charged anything for that Vibrant.
Moral of the story: Don't buy the insurance for the Samsung Vibrant under any circumstances. Unless it goes down in price (which I seriously doubt it will), it is a complete waste of money. You will save money by going uninsured. Also, don't freak out if your Vibrant has software on it that you can't get rid of for some reason. In all likelihood, T-Mobile won't find anything.
Second moral of the story: DO NOT think that you will only get charged $115 if you choose NOT to send the broken Vibrant back to T-Mobile. They will charge you the ridiculous amount of approximately $455.18.
P.S. If anyone finds out the way that T-Mobile is able to open up the phone without tripping the damage indicator, PLEASE TELL US! If that info gets out, then I will do that FFC mod so fast you won't know what hit you!
I just walked in my tmobil store and told them my phone was messing up. And they sent me a new one. No cost at all to me except for that 8.00. So in my opinion insurance is good. For us if we have the old insurance is fantastic.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA Premium App
Do you get a brand new phone as a replacement if you have insurance?
Refurbished, most likely previous phones that were sent in from people like yourself and fixed up.
yah mine was refurbished, but brand spanking new! in my opinion the insurance is the best deal tmobile has!
I actually prefer the refurbished units since they are actually tested and everything should work on it (including GPS, mine locks 8 birds within 3 seconds).
30000 said:
Okay, I can see how my 1st post could have been a little confusing. Here's what you should do if you need to send in your vibrant.
First and foremost, if you CAN flash back to stock, DO IT. That is still the only sure-fire way of not having to pay anything and still get a new/refurbished Vibrant out of it.
Second, T-Mobile will charge you the $115 if they find that the phone has hardware damage (red damage indicator, damaged screen, exc.), but can still be repaired. So, if your phone has a cracked screen, for example, it's a better idea to send it in without insurance because insurance costs $130 plus an additional $8 per month. (NOTE: The FFC mod is an irreversible mod. You have cracked open the phone and therefore T-Mobile considers that "physical damage." You cannot swap out the camera for the stock one and re-paint the camera hole and lens.)
Third, T-Mobile will charge you the $115 if they find that the phone has been rooted or modded in any way in terms of software.
However, the chances of T-Mobile finding anything out about software modification is unlikely. At the T-Mobile processing center, they have some magic way of taking out the internal SD card without triggering the damage indicator. After they have done that, what they are SUPPOSED to do is attempt to find any data on the internal SD card that would reveal whether the phone was rooted or not (working superuser app, exc.). However, this process is long, tedious and boring as hell so what a lot of employees do is just skip the part where they examine the internal SD card and just format the thing without looking at it. To prove it, when I sent in that hard-bricked vibrant, it had a GT-I9000 bootloader on it plus CM7 and numerous ROM.zip files on it. I was not charged anything for that Vibrant.
Moral of the story: Don't buy the insurance for the Samsung Vibrant under any circumstances. Unless it goes down in price (which I seriously doubt it will), it is a complete waste of money. You will save money by going uninsured. Also, don't freak out if your Vibrant has software on it that you can't get rid of for some reason. In all likelihood, T-Mobile won't find anything.
Second moral of the story: DO NOT think that you will only get charged $115 if you choose NOT to send the broken Vibrant back to T-Mobile. They will charge you the ridiculous amount of approximately $455.18.
P.S. If anyone finds out the way that T-Mobile is able to open up the phone without tripping the damage indicator, PLEASE TELL US! If that info gets out, then I will do that FFC mod so fast you won't know what hit you!
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Well I didn't get insurance to replace my phone in case of damage via rooting. I got insurance to repalce my phone if I lose it, drop it in water, or if it gets stolen.
Also, what damage indicator are you talking about?
anthonys2r said:
Refurbished, most likely previous phones that were sent in from people like yourself and fixed up.
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Click to collapse
Thanks, I have the insurance but haven't used yet. If you get a refurbished phone after paying deductible then its not with it for me, might just cancel mine
Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk
SamsungVibrant said:
Also, what damage indicator are you talking about?
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Click to collapse
it's the liquid damage indicator. it's the white square underneath the battery right by the battery connection. it turns red if it gets wet.
VICosPhi said:
Thanks, I have the insurance but haven't used yet. If you get a refurbished phone after paying deductible then its not with it for me, might just cancel mine
Sent from my SGH-T959 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
If you pay deductible, you get a new phone not refurb. Only time you might get refurb is when you do a warranty exchange. Warranty exchanges are at no cost. Insurance is 7.99 a month but like any insurance, its there in case you need it. You loose, break, get it wet or it gets stolen then you are covered. Just like car insurance, you could pay insurance for years and never use it, but then again if you are in a wreck or it gets stolen, then you are happy u did. Without insurance, you are screwed. Remember warranty is only for a year w/o extended warranty. Insurance extends your warranty for life of phone
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
+1 on what he said!
funeralthirst said:
it's the liquid damage indicator. it's the white square underneath the battery right by the battery connection. it turns red if it gets wet.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I know about the liquid indicator, but that's not what 30000 was talking about. 30000 was talking about a different damage indicator.
30000 said:
30000 said:
At the T-Mobile processing center, they have some magic way of taking out the internal SD card without triggering the damage indicator.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
What damage indicator?
Marvlet said:
If you pay deductible, you get a new phone not refurb. Only time you might get refurb is when you do a warranty exchange. Warranty exchanges are at no cost. Insurance is 7.99 a month but like any insurance, its there in case you need it. You loose, break, get it wet or it gets stolen then you are covered. Just like car insurance, you could pay insurance for years and never use it, but then again if you are in a wreck or it gets stolen, then you are happy u did. Without insurance, you are screwed. Remember warranty is only for a year w/o extended warranty. Insurance extends your warranty for life of phone
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
This is not true, there is a 95% chance that you will get a refurb. All T-mobile reps will tell you that you will either get a refurbished or new device. They will also tell you right after that, that you will most likely get a refurb. I've talked to them for hours and fought with supervisors and such just trying NOT to get a refurb. I know most people think that the refurbished phones are inspected, this is also a load of bs. They are not inspected, they fix the problem that was there and make sure that and ONLY that is fixed. They do not check any other part of the phone.
mugenfiji0327 said:
This is not true, there is a 95% chance that you will get a refurb. All T-mobile reps will tell you that you will either get a refurbished or new device. They will also tell you right after that, that you will most likely get a refurb. I've talked to them for hours and fought with supervisors and such just trying NOT to get a refurb. I know most people think that the refurbished phones are inspected, this is also a load of bs. They are not inspected, they fix the problem that was there and make sure that and ONLY that is fixed. They do not check any other part of the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Insurance and warranty exchange are 2 different things. With warranty exchange its new or refurb, cant guarantee one or the other. Most times its refurb. With insurance which is NOT thru T-mobile but thru Assurion, when you file a claim and pay the deductible, you get a new phone.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
Marvlet said:
Insurance and warranty exchange are 2 different things. With warranty exchange its new or refurb, cant guarantee one or the other. Most times its refurb. With insurance which is NOT thru T-mobile but thru Assurion, when you file a claim and pay the deductible, you get a new phone.
Sent from my SGH-T959 using XDA App
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Click to collapse
Nope failed again. I will call Asurion right now and go through the process of having my phone replaced and record it just to prove it to you if you would like me to. They do not send out new products man, I know this for a fact. Think about it man, if they sent out new devices everytime someone called in for a problem, none of the companies involved would make any money on that phone which is what they want, MONEY. That includes T-mobile, Asurion and Samsung. Every electronics store I have ever bought from uses them as their insurance program. Best Buy,Verizon,T-Mobile etc. Every time I've had something replaced through any of those companys it has and ALWAYS WILL BE a refurb. I work for Verizon and guess what, everytime someone comes in for us to call Asurion for them or even if they call themselves they still get a REFURB. I used to work for Best Buy and on top of that I worked in the Geek Squad for Best Buy and did most of the insurance claims when people came through. Guess what, all of my customers got REFURBS. I'm done arguing with you and I think I have made my point.

[Q] HTC's Repair Department (ARE YOU KIDDING ME!?)

I had a rooted Evo. A few weeks ago, I began experiencing random reboots, and random unmounts of my SD storage volume. I unrooted completely (with S-ON) to a stock Froyo build. I didn't even install any apps, and the problems still persisted.
So I got myself an RMA and sent the phone into HTC for repair, as it's still under warranty. I had given the phone rep a very detailed description of the issue, and also instructed them NOT TO UPGRADE TO GINGERBREAD. I also included a very visible note in the package instructing them to do the same. I even went as far to detail the issues on another sheet of paper in the package, just for peace of mind.
HTC receives the phone on a Friday afternoon. On Monday, around noon, I receive an e-mail that the phone is on its way back to me, but with no information about the resolution. I called to inquire, only to find out that they couldn't find anything wrong with my phone, and shipped it back unchanged.
I received the phone last Thursday, powered it up, and much to my dismay, those numbskulls upgraded me to Gingerbread!!! So now I can't even root my phone, and restore my app data with Titanium Backup... which I f*ckin' paid for! To make matters worse, as the phone begins to sync my contact/calendar data from Google, the phone reboots.
Way to go HTC... buncha crackerjack a$$hats!!! Your sh!tty repair process cost me:
* a week without my Evo
* $9 to ship my Evo
* Use of Titanium Backup, which I paid for
* Use of my SSH daemon, which I paid for
* Participation in the Swype 3.0 beta program (since I can't uninstall Sprint's stock Swype 2.x app)
* Ability to resize my partitions, and use A2SD. I'll probably need to ditch a few apps now.
* Obvious ability to root and customize my phone to my liking
On top of all this, my phone is still broken, and still covered under a completely useless HTC warranty.
Or.... maybe HTC is this awesome company that would refuse to return a defective product to a customer while it's still under warranty. Therefore, I can only assume the phone was damaged by FedEx... but there's no way I'm opening that can of worms.
So I just technically received a factory-refurbished phone from HTC. It's my same phone, but it went thorugh their Q.A. processes. I guess my best option is to sign up for Sprint's rip-off protection plan at $7 a month, and then pay $100 to have them replace the phone. What a sham!
Anyone got any better ideas?
BigMatza said:
So I just technically received a factory-refurbished phone from HTC. It's my same phone, but it went thorugh their Q.A. processes. I guess my best option is to sign up for Sprint's rip-off protection plan at $7 a month, and then pay $100 to have them replace the phone. What a sham!
Anyone got any better ideas?
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Umm you HAD the better idea buddy, the freakin' Sprint protection plan. No it wouldn't have cost you $100 to fix that problem, they would've handed you a new phone with no problem. If the new/refurb phone was busted, they'd have gave you a 3rd phone, no problem.
Unless you lose it, accidentally call Asurion or severely damage the phone, then it'll be $100... or $35 if the screen is busted. Otherwise the $7 per month is all it costs.
Here's the thing not many people know about the insurance. You must sign up for it within two weeks of purchasing the phone. Otherwise, they won't add it. My friend learned that the hard way.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
MicrosoftBug said:
Here's the thing not many people know about the insurance. You must sign up for it within two weeks of purchasing the phone. Otherwise, they won't add it. My friend learned that the hard way.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
They open it up from time to time but yes you're right.
Really, there's no good reason to NOT have the insurance.
Oh no! Almost 2 gallons of gasoline a month.
MicrosoftBug said:
Here's the thing not many people know about the insurance. You must sign up for it within two weeks of purchasing the phone. Otherwise, they won't add it.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I just called, and they let me add it. Woohoo! I told them the truth... that the phone just came back from HTC after repair process, and that the warranty period is almost up.
Unfortunately, none of this is going to bring my root access back any time soon
Noiro said:
Umm you HAD the better idea buddy, the freakin' Sprint protection plan. No it wouldn't have cost you $100 to fix that problem, they would've handed you a new phone with no problem. If the new/refurb phone was busted, they'd have gave you a 3rd phone, no problem.
Unless you lose it, accidentally call Asurion or severely damage the phone, then it'll be $100... or $35 if the screen is busted. Otherwise the $7 per month is all it costs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I've walked in and had my screen replaced for free for that little white hot spot that some people have had issues with. Left it with them for a few hours and bam, new screen no charge. Have also walked into a Sprint store to get a replacement battery cover and they just handed me one wrapped in plastic, no questions asked.
I can't imagine why one would ever want to deal with HTC directly, honestly.
Same however, after talking with tech support sprit and htc I kinda knew from past experance they just read a script. So I did not send the phone back instaed reloaded 3.7 stock RUU with old radio rerooted and now it sits on "prof the dead walk" gingerbread rooted stock. I pacitencly await the updates.
good luck
Noiro said:
No it wouldn't have cost you $100 to fix that problem, they would've handed you a new phone with no problem. If the new/refurb phone was busted, they'd have gave you a 3rd phone, no problem.
Unless you lose it, accidentally call Asurion or severely damage the phone, then it'll be $100... or $35 if the screen is busted. Otherwise the $7 per month is all it costs.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Didn't realize that part, so I enrolled. Thanks.
BigMatza said:
I just called, and they let me add it. Woohoo! I told them the truth... that the phone just came back from HTC after repair process, and that the warranty period is almost up.
Unfortunately, none of this is going to bring my root access back any time soon
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I am sorry for your loss. It's kinda like a turd wrapped inside a lollipop. You have a working phone, but you can't customize it to your liking. I hope they root GB soon. I am currently rooted running MikG 2.15. I called Sprint yesterday to ***** about the crappy 3G in my area (don't even hit 1Mbit) and they told me to take it to a corporate repair store to have it looked at. I told the lady on the phone it's not an issue with my handset, it's Sprint's crappy network. She then preceded to speak to another tech who informed her that I wasn't running the latest firmware. I assured her I was, it's just I'm rooted but was running the updated 4.24 software. She then told me I still needed to take it to a store before they would send someone to look at the towers. [email protected]&$*... I said FINE. What about me being rooted I asked. She then told me that Sprint doesn't care about rooting anymore. So I take it to a store, where the tech and the manager tell me they can't look at it because it's rooted and my warranty is voided. [email protected]&$?.. So long story short, the tech felt bad for me and wrote some notes asking them to look at the towers. I haven't called today yet to ask them to send someone to the towers, though I am dreading it.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
MicrosoftBug said:
I am sorry for your loss. It's kinda like a turd wrapped inside a lollipop. You have a working phone, but you can't customize it to your liking. I hope they root GB soon. I am currently rooted running MikG 2.15. I called Sprint yesterday to ***** about the crappy 3G in my area (don't even hit 1Mbit) and they told me to take it to a corporate repair store to have it looked at. I told the lady on the phone it's not an issue with my handset, it's Sprint's crappy network. She then preceded to speak to another tech who informed her that I wasn't running the latest firmware. I assured her I was, it's just I'm rooted but was running the updated 4.24 software. She then told me I still needed to take it to a store before they would send someone to look at the towers. [email protected]&$*... I said FINE. What about me being rooted I asked. She then told me that Sprint doesn't care about rooting anymore. So I take it to a store, where the tech and the manager tell me they can't look at it because it's rooted and my warranty is voided. [email protected]&$?.. So long story short, the tech felt bad for me and wrote some notes asking them to look at the towers. I haven't called today yet to ask them to send someone to the towers, though I am dreading it.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I'd be shocked if Sprint actually calls you to report their findings for something like that. Please stop back and let us know if they do!
MicrosoftBug said:
She then told me I still needed to take it to a store before they would send someone to look at the towers. [email protected]&$*... I said FINE. What about me being rooted I asked. She then told me that Sprint doesn't care about rooting anymore. So I take it to a store, where the tech and the manager tell me they can't look at it because it's rooted and my warranty is voided. [email protected]&$
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Wow, sorry man. This was a trap, never... I repeat NEVER trust what a rep says without a 3rd opinion.
Anytime you return a phone, just flash the stock "rooted" ROM onto the phone, freshly wiped with the SD card out of the phone.
Noiro said:
Wow, sorry man. This was a trap, never... I repeat NEVER trust what a rep says without a 3rd opinion.
Anytime you return a phone, just flash the stock "rooted" ROM onto the phone, freshly wiped with the SD card out of the phone.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
I already had to do that with an insurance replacement.
Sent from my PC36100 using Tapatalk

[Q] Warranty voided but sent for repairs

Hi I never dropped my galaxy s4 but it was on my bed on the blanket and didn't know it was there flipped the blanket and it fell on its corner onto the floor, and the screens pixels were busted it wouldn't display image but everything was fine. had the phone for 2 weeks brother went in and got it replaced and there sending it in for repairs, but what they don't know is that the phone is rooted so warranty is voided? Will they end up calling me back when they get to fixing it and rebooting it... and charge me a fee even though I ahve a brand new galaxy s4?
From what I was told last week when I inquired about my cracks unsuccessfully was that they will send the phone in for repairs and inspect it separately. If they find anything that breaks the terms with AT&T (physical cracks after 2 weeks, or anything else), they have the "right" to charge you the price of a new phone (even though you may get a refurb). Also, it makes their location look bad for taking in a ineligible phone. Heck, the place that referred me to the AT&T warranty location wanted the name of the rep that referred me to them "to keep on record". I took it more as "to school them to do a better job at identifying problems".
In this case, it potentially might, as they can't simply just do a factory reset, repair the phone, and sell it back as a refurb. They would need to go all out to restore everything back to normal.
My opinion, be ready for a $600+ bill, or a call saying, "yeah, we can't cover it anymore". Sucks, but I wouldn't doubt AT&T does that.
alex6speed said:
From what I was told last week when I inquired about my cracks unsuccessfully was that they will send the phone in for repairs and inspect it separately. If they find anything that breaks the terms with AT&T (physical cracks after 2 weeks, or anything else), they have the "right" to charge you the price of a new phone (even though you may get a refurb). Also, it makes their location look bad for taking in a ineligible phone. Heck, the place that referred me to the AT&T warranty location wanted the name of the rep that referred me to them "to keep on record". I took it more as "to school them to do a better job at identifying problems".
In this case, it potentially might, as they can't simply just do a factory reset, repair the phone, and sell it back as a refurb. They would need to go all out to restore everything back to normal.
My opinion, be ready for a $600+ bill, or a call saying, "yeah, we can't cover it anymore". Sucks, but I wouldn't doubt AT&T does that.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Do you think it will happen to me im from canada and my phone company is bell mobility
unf0cus said:
Do you think it will happen to me im from canada and my phone company is bell mobility
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
No idea ... hopefully they're a bit more forgiving.
alex6speed said:
No idea ... hopefully they're a bit more forgiving.
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Hey man I think I got an idea though
what if they call me about it the fee and I just say I never knew this would void the warranty and stuff and I didn't even know about warranty till my family told me, just like bs my way through it, tell them i got a friend to root my phone and stuff.
Then if that doesn't work just try and bargain with them or something, saying can I just pay the repair fee and trade back for my old phone(not rooting this phone yet...) and stuff?
You think any of these idea's will give me a shot
rooting does not void hardware warranty..how many times do we need to go over this.. they need to prove that rooting has anything at all to do with a hardware failure.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
lgkahn said:
rooting does not void hardware warranty..how many times do we need to go over this.. they need to prove that rooting has anything at all to do with a hardware failure.
Sent from my SAMSUNG-SGH-I747 using Tapatalk 2
Click to expand...
Click to collapse
Is this true, I mean, I thought just rooting voids warranty because NOT just cause a hardware failure can happen, but because its just modifying the phone in a way you aren't suppose to or something like that. Every time I see something about rooting everyone mentions it voids warranty,
now to my main point on this though, I came across something from bell, and just want to clarify with your guys opinions.
Here's the link http://support.bell.ca/Mobility/Rep...rs_warranty_for_my_Bell_Mobility_device_cover
It says around in the middle that:
The manufacturer's limited warranty does not cover defects or damage caused
improper storage
damage from liquids
unauthorized modification
misuse
neglect
abuse
accidents
alteration
improper installation
abnormal operating conditions
events outside of human control, such as natural disasters, for which no one can be held responsible.
The key word here is caused
Now lets say my phone screen stopped working due to rooting and doing something you can with rooting the phone, warranty is voided.
Now lets say this for what really happened in my situation. My phone is rooted, but the screen is not damaged because of the root, it is damaged because I dropped it -- but they don't know that I just told them it was a defect that the battery screwed up the screen.
So technically I never voided warranty?! Thoughts?
You should be fine. Warranty should not be void from rooting, unless they can prove that rooting your phone caused the damage! US carriers really don't check anyway.
Sent from my HTC One using xda app-developers app
Okay well I'm restoring my new phone back to how my previous phone was I backed it up using twrp onto my sd card,
so I custom recovered my new phone with twrp, and tried restoring it and it failed, then I remembered that I screwed up my phones lcd density so I installed another stock firmware using odin, then worked from there and installed a custom kernel then just before I damaged the phone I backed it up using twrp onto my sd card previously stated here.
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