Purchased a Used Android Phone

[Xtreme2damax]

I've had a couple Android smartphones but I had to return them as I couldn't afford to pay the bill. Last summer I had a Motorola Droid X that I liked a lot but had to return due to canceling service with Verizon prior to thirty days. Same with a Samsung Galaxy S that I had with AT&T that I didn't like so much. So yesterday I was browsing Amazon and see the Droid X for sale with no contact, the only downside which is minor is that the handset is used so I went ahead and purchased. The description said the phone is in Used - Very Good condition with a couple minor scuffs, the phone is fully functional, comes with the charger and Lithium battery. Something that has me concerned is that when I last had this particular phone the price for a new phone without a contract was $599. On Amazon last night I see the price of a new Droid X is selling for $249 and the used phones are sold for around $120 - $150, I paid $144 for mine last night. I am concerned but probably shouldn't be as the seller has a 95% rating and positive feedback from buyers. Is that price what the phones are going for now? It's a pretty well built, solid and decent phone so it going for that price seems a little strange.

Since I won't be able to activate it right away I plan on using my home internet connection to download some apps, throw some mp3's on it. I know it's a Verizon phone but can the ESM be flashed so the phone can be activated on Straight Talk, Boost Mobile, Cricket etc..?

[techbeck]

I've had a couple Android smartphones but I had to return them as I couldn't afford to pay the bill. Last summer I had a Motorola Droid X that I liked a lot but had to return due to canceling service with Verizon prior to thirty days. Same with a Samsung Galaxy S that I had with AT&T that I didn't like so much. So yesterday I was browsing Amazon and see the Droid X for sale with no contact, the only downside which is minor is that the handset is used so I went ahead and purchased. The description said the phone is in Used - Very Good condition with a couple minor scuffs, the phone is fully functional, comes with the charger and Lithium battery. Something that has me concerned is that when I last had this particular phone the price for a new phone without a contract was $599. On Amazon last night I see the price of a new Droid X is selling for $249 and the used phones are sold for around $120 - $150, I paid $144 for mine last night. I am concerned but probably shouldn't be as the seller has a 95% rating and positive feedback from buyers. Is that price what the phones are going for now? It's a pretty well built, solid and decent phone so it going for that price seems a little strange.

Since I won't be able to activate it right away I plan on using my home internet connection to download some apps, throw some mp3's on it. I know it's a Verizon phone but can the ESM be flashed so the phone can be activated on Straight Talk, Boost Mobile, Cricket etc..?

Since the Droid X was originally released 2 years ago, the price sounds about right.

[Xtreme2damax]

Cool. It's such a nice phone, despite it being two years old, it's nice to finally get something more advanced to own than my crummy Tracfone.

[techbeck]

Cool. It's such a nice phone, despite it being two years old, it's nice to finally get something more advanced to own than my crummy Tracfone.

Here is the link to the XDA forums for the Droid X incase you want to mod/change it.

http://forum.xda-developers.com/forumdisplay.php?f=687

[Xtreme2damax]

Here is the link to the XDA forums for the Droid X incase you want to mod/change it.

http://forum.xda-dev...splay.php?f=687

Thank you. Does that forum cover activating the phone on another network? I want to activate it on Cricket so I am wondering if that is possible?

[techbeck]

Thank you. Does that forum cover activating the phone on another network? I want to activate it on Cricket so I am wondering if that is possible?

Not sure. But I would post that question in the Q&A section of the link I sent you.

[ZeroFearX]

1. Don't buy a new Android phone.

2. Don't buy a used one :)

Personally, I had 3 Android phones and I won't buy another one regardless whoever makes them.

My HTC dies after 15 months and my Garmin's after 2 weeks of use.

I hope for you there are good Android phones on the market.

[techbeck]

1. Don't buy a new Android phone.

2. Don't buy a used one :)

Personally, I had 3 Android phones and I won't buy another one regardless whoever makes them.

My HTC dies after 15 months and my Garmin's after 2 weeks of use.

I hope for you there are good Android phones on the market.

1) Ignore his comment

2) Ignore his comment

There are a TON of good Android phones on the market. I have had the HTC MyTouch for a couple years and the Samsung Vibrant. Guess what? They both still work. Sucks you had problems with your HTC and Garmin, but like EVERY device/product out there...here will be buggy ones. Not everything is perfect whether you be Apple, Microsoft, Samsung, HTC....

[Raa]

Personally, I had 3 Android phones ...

My HTC dies after 15 months and my Garmin's after 2 weeks of use.

I hope for you there are good Android phones on the market.

There are plenty of great Android phones on the market. You've just been unlucky (or heavy handed).

Just because you've had a bad experience, doesn't mean others do, or will. Don't generalise - like techbeck says everything has it's share of problems. But there's a reason Android is now the most popular platform for mobile phones.*

OP, you've made an excellent choice. I've got a Droid 3 and love it!

Definately no regrets going with Android, same with all the customers i've recommended them to. (Y)

[remixedcat]

Page Plus wireless will activate used droids that were on verizon's network. Must have a clean ESN/MEID though.

Prepaid and very good. data prices are a bit steep though.

Straight talk and boost will not activate 3rd party handsets.

[Xtreme2damax]

Page Plus wireless will activate used droids that were on verizon's network. Must have a clean ESN/MEID though.

Prepaid and very good. data prices are a bit steep though.

Straight talk and boost will not activate 3rd party handsets.

Well that sucks, what about Cricket? Never heard of Page Plus Wireless, I don't think they are in New York State or offer service here. I sure hope the ESN/MEID is clean, if it's not I will be returning the phone for a refund or another phone with a clean ESN/MEID.

[Amarok]

1. Don't buy a new Android phone.

2. Don't buy a used one :)

Personally, I had 3 Android phones and I won't buy another one regardless whoever makes them.

My HTC dies after 15 months and my Garmin's after 2 weeks of use.

I hope for you there are good Android phones on the market.

Heh. My Android phone (Droid Incredible 2) has stood up to quite a bit of abuse and still works fine. It's been dropped, trampled by a pitbull, fallen down stairs, etc. Conversely my flatmate's iphone fell three feet and stopped working 3 days after he bought it, but I'd assume that's bad luck / defective phone / etc before I'd say that it means all iPhones are crap.

[Davo]

The carrier itself, won't but you can illegally flash one carrier's phone onto another network. The process is really long in the tooth and sometimes involves only getting 1x data, but it's doable.

[ZeroFearX]

Heh. My Android phone (Droid Incredible 2) has stood up to quite a bit of abuse and still works fine. It's been dropped, trampled by a pitbull, fallen down stairs, etc. Conversely my flatmate's iphone fell three feet and stopped working 3 days after he bought it, but I'd assume that's bad luck / defective phone / etc before I'd say that it means all iPhones are crap.

Well, everyone I know who have my carrier Android phone have issues with their phone regardless of the maker. I am not saying an iPhone is better but from what I heard and saw, many "android" phones have issues.

I also must admit that my current Nokia phone is a piece of crap.

[Xtreme2damax]

The carrier itself, won't but you can illegally flash one carrier's phone onto another network. The process is really long in the tooth and sometimes involves only getting 1x data, but it's doable.

Well the place I am probably going to take it to is a Wireless store which deals with different phones and providers, hopefully they can do everything to get the phone activated on the Cricket network. I don't want to do it unless I have to, I just hope by it being a long process that you don't mean too complicated.

[remixedcat]

Verizon phones wont work on cricket or others because the esn is,linked as well as they might be using different networks lile att instead (gsm) or some of the others use iden or stuff ike that. Boost uses cdma and iden. I think,cricket uses gsm. So cricket may be a no go. Straight talk uses both gsm and cdma however reflashing to them rarely ever works.

[remixedcat]

Also page plus has coverage anywhere verizon does so in ny youre good to go

Reason being they are a verizon mvno or mobile virtual network operator. So they basically resell verizon. Most small cellcos resell a larger network. St resells both verizon and att but bans 3 rd party handsets pp is the only verizon cdma one that lets u activate 3rd party devices

[Davo]

The process is complicated because it's not "out-of-the-box" so to speak. It pretty much involves tricking the carrier into thinking you have another device. It also requires some work on the existing device. I've seen people charge $100 for it.

[Xtreme2damax]

Oh well, if I can't get it activated on any other carrier but Verizon at least I own the phone so all I'll need to do is pay Verizon and activate the phone through them.

[remixedcat]

Oh well, if I can't get it activated on any other carrier but Verizon at least I own the phone so all I'll need to do is pay Verizon and activate the phone through them.

Like I said above page plus will activate it and you have access to the verizon network with the same coverage.

Verizon will require a pricey data plan thats 30-60 a month addition to the 30/mo for voice/txt. For prepaid..

page plus you just pick up airtime cards which are cheaper or get a cheap plan thats 20-30/mo.no pricey data plan needed

[Xtreme2damax]

I have another question, I am wondering if there is a way to tell if the ESN/MEID is clean when I receive the phone? What will happen if the ESN/MEID is bad/dirty and what are my options if it turns out that the phone doesn't have a clean ESN/MEID?

[Xtreme2damax]

I received the phone early yesterday. The phone itself is in great condition and fully functional, no complaints there. However they sent some generic charger with it that is unable to charge the phone, doesn't make a proper snug connection. The phone didn't come with the stuff it normally does when bought new such as the combination chager/usb data cable, 8 GB sd card. I will be able to activate the phone with Cricket and everything should work fine according to the guy down at the wireless store in my area.

[Xtreme2damax]

Went out and bought a new charger today. I can get the phone to charge but the connection is really loose, I have to play around with the connector a bit to get the phone to start charging. Is there any way to fix this, quite annoying especially since it will need to frequently be charged as the battery doesn't last long.

[remixedcat]

Did,u get an official charger or a knock off?

[Xtreme2damax]

An official charger from the local wireless store, has the Motorola logo on it. I think it's the exact charger/data cable I had when I had my last Droid X around a year ago.