Buying a secondhand iphone4?

[ghostrider501]

im looking to buy an iphone4,so i found this guy selling one,he says it is unlocked to any network,still in the box with wrapper still on it,asked why was he selling,he said he won it at work and could not justify havein a €600 phone,
he said we would meet if i wanted to buy it,1hr drive,so ill get to see it before i buy,but what i am worried about is,is it ok to buy an unlocked iphone4?i mean will i have any trouble with it as in with itunes or with anything else when i wont have any proof of purchase or anything like that,i just wondering your thoughts on this thanks to all,he's selling it for €475

 

[chestvrg]

Seriously $475 for an unlocked iPhone 4 is cheap by the least standards, is it a 16GB (I assume right) or a 32GB?

Also is it factory unlocked or just like JB unlocked? This is a mysterious, and tentative iPhone sale, I wish I could also take a loom at it.

You don't loose anything by driving your self there, even if it's an hour drive (maybe $12 of gas, provided you have a four cylinder vehicle) and see what you think.

As far as I know there is nothing wring with using a factory unlocked iPhone on a N. American network such as At&t, but I heard issues with a JB unlocked about visual v. Mail not working properly and so on.

I hope it pay off, keep us posted ok.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ghostrider501]

Seriously $475 for an unlocked iPhone 4 is cheap by the least standards, is it a 16GB (I assume right) or a 32GB?

Also is it factory unlocked or just like JB unlocked? This is a mysterious, and tentative iPhone sale, I wish I could also take a loom at it.

You don't loose anything by driving your self there, even if it's an hour drive (maybe $12 of gas, provided you have a four cylinder vehicle) and see what you think.

As far as I know there is nothing wring with using a factory unlocked iPhone on a N. American network such as At&t, but I heard issues with a JB unlocked about visual v. Mail not working properly and so on.

I hope it pay off, keep us posted ok.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

ya its the 16gb model, im not sure who unlocked it,all he told me was the company he works for got it unlocked,maybe they bought it straight from apple,he said the box is unopened with the plastic wrapping still on it,just like in a shop he said,he seems genuine,he is actually only 45mins away but when i rang him back to ask more about it he said he works with a guy that is from around my area that might be around here during the week so maybe i might not even have to drive that far at all,,he's gonna get back to me as to what day we can meet up,so do you think it all sounds ok?thanks again....

 

[Knowimagination]

ya its the 16gb model, im not sure who unlocked it,all he told me was the company he works for got it unlocked,maybe they bought it straight from apple,he said the box is unopened with the plastic wrapping still on it,just like in a shop he said,he seems genuine,he is actually only 45mins away but when i rang him back to ask more about it he said he works with a guy that is from around my area that might be around here during the week so maybe i might not even have to drive that far at all,,he's gonna get back to me as to what day we can meet up,so do you think it all sounds ok?thanks again....

How can it be a second hand iPhone if it i still wrapped? it is starting to sound a little shady.

 

[ghostrider501]

How can it be a second hand iPhone if it i still wrapped? it is starting to sound a little shady.

well it was me that said it was second hard,just as a topic,it is still in the wrapper,

 

[cootersgarage6]

The phone is fine.

The phone sounds fine. No, unlocking it doesn't do a thing bad to it. It actually brings the value up. Since it's unlocked you can use it with AT&T or T-mobile or any company that uses SIM cards, instead of it only being able to work with one company. But call the phone company when you get there. Activate it right in front of the person, so you can see if it's stolen or anything.

 

[ghostrider501]

The phone sounds fine. No, unlocking it doesn't do a thing bad to it. It actually brings the value up. Since it's unlocked you can use it with AT&T or T-mobile or any company that uses SIM cards, instead of it only being able to work with one company. But call the phone company when you get there. Activate it right in front of the person, so you can see if it's stolen or anything.

thanks for your reply,if its stolen or anything how would i find out? is it when i put in my simcard?

 

[ghostrider501]

So today i went to meet up with this guy,brand new and still in wrapper as he said but only then he tells me that its not unlocked or he does not think its unlocked,But ofcourse i bought it anyway,said if i gave him the serial number and imei number that he would get it unlocked,i dont think that was true for him,was it?just gonna try sort it out myself,So anyway when i went to apple.ie/help&support and entered the serial number,said phone is not yet activated please contact your provider and gave the list of the 3providers of the iphone in ireland,so my question is,which ever simcard i enter and activate it,is it then locked to that network?or is it already locked to a network?and if so is there anyway of finding out which network its locked to?thanks to you all....

 

[jenzjen]

So today i went to meet up with this guy,brand new and still in wrapper as he said but only then he tells me that its not unlocked or he does not think its unlocked,But ofcourse i bought it anyway,said if i gave him the serial number and imei number that he would get it unlocked,i dont think that was true for him,was it?just gonna try sort it out myself,So anyway when i went to apple.ie/help&support and entered the serial number,said phone is not yet activated please contact your provider and gave the list of the 3providers of the iphone in ireland,so my question is,which ever simcard i enter and activate it,is it then locked to that network?or is it already locked to a network?and if so is there anyway of finding out which network its locked to?thanks to you all....

learn

to use

spaces

I'd like to help but trying to read this gives me a headache. Maybe ease up on the stream of consciousness, too.

 

[ghostrider501]

learn

to use

spaces

I'd like to help but trying to read this gives me a headache. Maybe ease up on the stream of consciousness, too.

thanks

 

[perezmarco]

That iPhone 4 is probably locked to a carrier in Ireland. All carriers in Ireland support official unlocking of the phone, but you would have to contact them. Look at this link and look up Ireland.

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1937

 

[ghostrider501]

That iPhone 4 is probably locked to a carrier in Ireland. All carriers in Ireland support official unlocking of the phone, but you would have to contact them. Look at this link and look up Ireland.

http://support.apple.com/kb/ht1937

Thanks for your reply,

is there anyway i can find out which carrier it is locked to?

Thanks again,

 

[jenzjen]

Thanks for your reply,

is there anyway i can find out which carrier it is locked to?

Thanks again,

I don't think you can, as I had a similar issue. I could be wrong, but I ended up contacting the person who sold me the phone to figure that out. That's probably your best bet.

 

[ghostrider501]

I don't think you can, as I had a similar issue. I could be wrong, but I ended up contacting the person who sold me the phone to figure that out. That's probably your best bet.

ok, ill try that, and thank you again..

 

[Cod3rror]

So today i went to meet up with this guy,brand new and still in wrapper as he said but only then he tells me that its not unlocked or he does not think its unlocked,But ofcourse i bought it anyway,said if i gave him the serial number and imei number that he would get it unlocked,i dont think that was true for him,was it?just gonna try sort it out myself,So anyway when i went to apple.ie/help&support and entered the serial number,said phone is not yet activated please contact your provider and gave the list of the 3providers of the iphone in ireland,so my question is,which ever simcard i enter and activate it,is it then locked to that network?or is it already locked to a network?and if so is there anyway of finding out which network its locked to?thanks to you all....

If it's locked, it's most likely locked to 3, they are very popular, lots of iPhones on 3.

Anyways, you just took a HUGE gamble. I don't want to upset you but there are lots of ads in Ireland with people "winning phones at work", "unwanted upgrade" etc...

It might be true, hopefully it is. BUT! where does he work? If he works for a carrier it's locked to it.

If it was an "unwanted upgrade" then you're in trouble.

An "unwanted upgrade" is a BS term for buying a phone on contract, and then selling the phone.

No carrier will unlock the phone because it's just been taken out on contract, 12 or 24 month, if you want it unlocked by the carrier, you must pay those 12 or 24 month fully AND! you must supply them with the correct name, address and verification, in other words, the phone is not yours, it he took it out on a new contract, it's his phone, registered to him.

Your only chance to unlock it will be to jailbreak-Ultrasnow it, but all new iPhones in Ireland come with the new baseband, that is currently not unlockable.

 

[ghostrider501]

If it's locked, it's most likely locked to 3, they are very popular, lots of iPhones on 3.

Anyways, you just took a HUGE gamble. I don't want to upset you but there are lots of ads in Ireland with people "winning phones at work", "unwanted upgrade" etc...

It might be true, hopefully it is. BUT! where does he work? If he works for a carrier it's locked to it.

If it was an "unwanted upgrade" then you're in trouble.

An "unwanted upgrade" is a BS term for buying a phone on contract, and then selling the phone.

No carrier will unlock the phone because it's just been taken out on contract, 12 or 24 month, if you want it unlocked by the carrier, you must pay those 12 or 24 month fully AND! you must supply them with the correct name, address and verification, in other words, the phone is not yours, it he took it out on a new contract, it's his phone, registered to him.

Your only chance to unlock it will be to jailbreak-Ultrasnow it, but all new iPhones in Ireland come with the new baseband, that is currently not unlockable.

Oh i hope your wrong, i hope so..

So you think its possible for a person to take out a 12 or 24 month contract and then just not pay for it?
I mean, wont the carrier have his name,address,bank details and photo id..

But i guess people do it and get away with it,

I hope to find out more tomorrow when i ring the phone carrier,hopefully they tell me that its out on contract or not..

Thank you,

 

[JohnBossu]

Im here in the Netherlands and the iphone is locked to whatever sim card put on it at the first time. And yes, if you give the serial and imei to the customer service they will give you the unlock code and you can perform the carrier unlock by yourself using itunes.

Not sure whether its the same case after all.

 

[ghostrider501]

Im here in the Netherlands and the iphone is locked to whatever sim card put on it at the first time. And yes, if you give the serial and imei to the customer service they will give you the unlock code and you can perform the carrier unlock by yourself using itunes.

Not sure whether its the same case after all.

Hi john,yes i heard that before about the first simcard inserted,will then lock to that carrier, but was not sure if it was true or not.

give the serial and imei to customer service? Do you mean apple customer service or the carrier customer service?

And one last thing, if i do get the unlock code, and if i need help, would you be able to tell me how to do it, using itunes?

Thank you John for your reply..

 

[Cod3rror]

Oh i hope your wrong, i hope so..

So you think its possible for a person to take out a 12 or 24 month contract and then just not pay for it?
I mean, wont the carrier have his name,address,bank details and photo id..

But i guess people do it and get away with it,

I hope to find out more tomorrow when i ring the phone carrier,hopefully they tell me that its out on contract or not..

Thank you,

They might use the simcard for themselves, just sell the phone, or not even use the simcard, which is way worse, since if the bills aren't paid the carrier might bar the phone from the network.

I don't want to scare you but those are some of the possibilities.

The best option for you(well, besides it being completely unlocked) would be if the phone was not on contract but just locked and registered to the person. That way, you can get in touch with the guy, ask him to call the carrier and unlock it, you might have to pay an administrative(Read: BS charge!) charge of 25 euro to unlock it and that's it.

As for the carrier, you could buy pay as you go sim cards from O2, Vodafone and Three, they're like 5 euro each I think and try them out, one of those will activate the phone when you connect to iTunes.

BTW, which website did you find the ad in, can you please tell?

 

[JohnBossu]

Hi john,yes i heard that before about the first simcard inserted,will then lock to that carrier, but was not sure if it was true or not.

give the serial and imei to customer service? Do you mean apple customer service or the carrier customer service?

And one last thing, if i do get the unlock code, and if i need help, would you be able to tell me how to do it, using itunes?

Thank you John for your reply..

I mean the carrier customer service, which in my case is Tmobile. The unlocking steps are available in Tmobile's website but its in Dutch. Im sure if you have contact the carrier in your area and they hopefully can give the code, they will tell you the proper steps on how to do it

 

[ghostrider501]

They might use the simcard for themselves, just sell the phone, or not even use the simcard, which is way worse, since if the bills aren't paid the carrier might bar the phone from the network.

I don't want to scare you but those are some of the possibilities.

The best option for you(well, besides it being completely unlocked) would be if the phone was not on contract but just locked and registered to the person. That way, you can get in touch with the guy, ask him to call the carrier and unlock it, you might have to pay an administrative(Read: BS charge!) charge of 25 euro to unlock it and that's it.

As for the carrier, you could buy pay as you go sim cards from O2, Vodafone and Three, they're like 5 euro each I think and try them out, one of those will activate the phone when you connect to iTunes.

BTW, which website did you find the ad in, can you please tell?

I see and understand everything your saying to me, so what i did was,

I rang apple customer care, got through to apple uk i think, gave her the serial number, she told me that it was coming up as being locked,but wasn't showing to what carrier, she then said, she would go and check, to try and find out to which carrier, she then came back, and said, it wasn't locked to any carrier in ireland and that i could use any carrier with it, but to be careful, because, the first simcard i enter, it will then be locked to that network,

She could not tell me if the phone was bought on a contract or anything like that,

I must say she was very nice and helpful,

So anyway, now i just hope when i get my Vodafone micro sim, that it just works and that will be the end of it,

What do you think of the latest update?

thanks again,

 

[ghostrider501]

They might use the simcard for themselves, just sell the phone, or not even use the simcard, which is way worse, since if the bills aren't paid the carrier might bar the phone from the network.

I don't want to scare you but those are some of the possibilities.

The best option for you(well, besides it being completely unlocked) would be if the phone was not on contract but just locked and registered to the person. That way, you can get in touch with the guy, ask him to call the carrier and unlock it, you might have to pay an administrative(Read: BS charge!) charge of 25 euro to unlock it and that's it.

As for the carrier, you could buy pay as you go sim cards from O2, Vodafone and Three, they're like 5 euro each I think and try them out, one of those will activate the phone when you connect to iTunes.

BTW, which website did you find the ad in, can you please tell?

Sorry just two things that i forgot,

I didn't ask apple care, but i dont think it was registered, because if it was, would she have gave me the information?

And also the website i found the add was, http://www.donedeal.ie

Not sure if you are from ireland but, its a website where you can buy anything from phones to cars or anything at all really...

 

[Cod3rror]

I see and understand everything your saying to me, so what i did was,

I rang apple customer care, got through to apple uk i think, gave her the serial number, she told me that it was coming up as being locked,but wasn't showing to what carrier, she then said, she would go and check, to try and find out to which carrier, she then came back, and said, it wasn't locked to any carrier in ireland and that i could use any carrier with it, but to be careful, because, the first simcard i enter, it will then be locked to that network,

She could not tell me if the phone was bought on a contract or anything like that,

I must say she was very nice and helpful,

So anyway, now i just hope when i get my Vodafone micro sim, that it just works and that will be the end of it,

What do you think of the latest update?

thanks again,

Sorry to be a downer but what she told you is incorrect.

All iPhones are shipped "unlocked" however their serial numbers are recorded on the Apple server, they determine the lock status, which carrier is the phone supposed to be locked to or whether the phone should be unlocked.

Basically when you connect the phone, Apple's server communicates with the phone and sets the lock appropriately.

It won't lock to the network of your choice. It can either be unlocked or locked to the carrier the phone was acquired from.

The best way to find out more about the phone is to write down the serial number or IMEI number, ring 3, Vodafone and O2 and ask them about it.

EDIT: And yes, I live in Ireland, donedeal is OK, but I'd recommend Adverts.ie

 

[ghostrider501]

Sorry to be a downer but what she told you is incorrect.

All iPhones are shipped "unlocked" however their serial numbers are recorded on the Apple server, they determine the lock status, which carrier is the phone supposed to be locked to or whether the phone should be unlocked.

Basically when you connect the phone, Apple's server communicates with the phone and sets the lock appropriately.

It won't lock to the network of your choice. It can either be unlocked or locked to the carrier the phone was acquired from.

The best way to find out more about the phone is to write down the serial number or IMEI number, ring 3, Vodafone and O2 and ask them about it.

EDIT: And yes, I live in Ireland, donedeal is OK, but I'd recommend Adverts.ie

Ok so i got my new Vodafone simcard, inserted it, and up on the screen came, "iphone activated" and then "sync to itunes" which i did,and then registered it,

So from what i can see, it all seems to be ok, thank god

Are all my worries now over? what do you think?

 

[Cod3rror]

Ok so i got my new Vodafone simcard, inserted it, and up on the screen came, "iphone activated" and then "sync to itunes" which i did,and then registered it,

So from what i can see, it all seems to be ok, thank god

Are all my worries now over? what do you think?

Hey congrats, you're fine!

Just out of the curiosity, I'd try another sim card from three or O2 to see whether it's really unlocked or locked to Vodafone.