Is this guy legit or a scammer?

[bella92108]

That's actually a pretty good way of putting it, and if one conceptualises a cheque as such, you would almost always be asking "why a personal cheque?"

Reasons for writing a check:

1) You don't have money - XX
2) You don't have money now, but hopefully will when the check is cashed - XX
3) You were born before 1930 - XX
4) You are a scam artist - XX
5) You are honest

If the airplane has a 20% chance of being on time, you should probably make alternative plans to get somewhere... and if the excuse has a 20% chance of being legit, it likely won't be ;-)

I just love my analogies, even if nobody else does, ehhe

 

[localboy28]

Gumtree = scumtree

Scammers love this site because it's free and you do t have to sign up.

 

[bella92108]

Gumtree = scumtree

Scammers love this site because it's free and you do t have to sign up.

There are plenty of scams everywhere, even the more well-known CraigsList, you just have to protect yourself. Meet in-person in public areas, exchange in cash and verify merchandise works even if it means sitting with the person at starbucks to tests all the features.... for ME I would have put my sim in, brought another carrier's sim, and activated it in front of him. If he's shady he'll get antsy, but who cares? But I'm a bit over the top when it comes to being suspicious of someone, so who knows...


We tend to overlook common sense when we have the adrenaline high that comes with buying a new toy or big-ticket item.

 

[Jare]

Two mistakes were made here.

#1) You should have had him activate the iPhone using his SIM and then TRY YOUR *set* of sims inside the phone to see if they show in the status bar or not.

#2) Never take a cheque, EVER. If he doesn't have the money now it's certainly better to WAIT until he does or let him run off. You got an iPhone for $400 and you could have just as easily went to your local Apple Store, told them the unlocked problem and GOTTEN A REPLACEMENT.

I don't know why no one mentioned he could have easily gotten a replacement through Apple.. it's not like Apple checks anything other then the serial number for warranty..

 

[bella92108]

You got an iPhone for $400 and you could have just as easily went to your local Apple Store, told them the unlocked problem and GOTTEN A REPLACEMENT.

I don't know why no one mentioned he could have easily gotten a replacement through Apple.. it's not like Apple checks anything other then the serial number for warranty..

They check serial # and MODEL NUMBER. A LOCKED vs UNLOCKED iPhone have different serial numbers. Carrier-locked models are cheaper because they're subsidized by the carrier. Why would they swap a phone that can only be used for one carrier that was subsidized for one that wasn't? Simple answer, they won't. Otherwise everyone and their mother in the US who buys a phone JB and unlocked on ebay to use on T-Mobile who accidentally updates the software and re-locks it would be running into the Apple store getting their phones replaced with new unlocked ones.

Think before speaking. Apple is very careful about what they replace. If he had a O2 Phone, he would have gotten an O2 Phone replacement. If he had a factory unlocked, they'd replace with a factory unlocked.

 

[Jare]

They check serial # and MODEL NUMBER. A LOCKED vs UNLOCKED iPhone have different serial numbers. Carrier-locked models are cheaper because they're subsidized by the carrier. Why would they swap a phone that can only be used for one carrier that was subsidized for one that wasn't? Simple answer, they won't. Otherwise everyone and their mother in the US who buys a phone JB and unlocked on ebay to use on T-Mobile who accidentally updates the software and re-locks it would be running into the Apple store getting their phones replaced with new unlocked ones.

Think before speaking. Apple is very careful about what they replace. If he had a O2 Phone, he would have gotten an O2 Phone replacement. If he had a factory unlocked, they'd replace with a factory unlocked.

Well I know that but there was no mention of it being jailbroken and unlocked, or what version of iPhone. I assumed he purchased an iPhone 4 which was supposed to be factory unlocked but was not.

 

[bella92108]

Well I know that but there was no mention of it being jailbroken and unlocked, or what version of iPhone. I assumed he purchased an iPhone 4 which was supposed to be factory unlocked but was not.

You're missing the point entirely. Let me break it down for you:

- He was told he was buying a "factory unlocked phone"

- The phone was not a "factory unlocked phone"

Apple doesn't care if someone got scammed, it's not their problem... APPLE didn't sell the guy who got scammed the phone, so why would Apple replace a phone with a different model than the guy walks in with? If they did that, then I'd buy an iPhone 2G and walk in and say I was told I was buying an iPhone 4 32GB...

Comon... think prior to pressing POST.

 

[Jare]

You're missing the point entirely. Let me break it down for you:

- He was told he was buying a "factory unlocked phone"

- The phone was not a "factory unlocked phone"

Apple doesn't care if someone got scammed, it's not their problem... APPLE didn't sell the guy who got scammed the phone, so why would Apple replace a phone with a different model than the guy walks in with? If they did that, then I'd buy an iPhone 2G and walk in and say I was told I was buying an iPhone 4 32GB...

Comon... think prior to pressing POST.

I think you need to follow your own advice.

I assumed the seller actually sold him a legit unlocked phone but the PROBLEM was it did not actually act as if it was fully unlocked. This has happened to my with my iPhone 4 where I bought it from the Apple Store and it locked itself to a sim for no reason. A simple replacement fixed the issue.

 

[bella92108]

I think you need to follow your own advice.

I assumed the seller actually sold him a legit unlocked phone but the PROBLEM was it did not actually act as if it was fully unlocked. This has happened to my with my iPhone 4 where I bought it from the Apple Store and it locked itself to a sim for no reason. A simple replacement fixed the issue.

Had you read the entire post, you would have not commented the way you did. It was evident to anyone reading it there was obviously foul play involved, if not by the TOPIC, but by the OPs follow-up regarding the bounced check, but hey, if you just read the first message and reply then you likely run into this issue often.