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Iphone 4 (can this be done?)


jonathanm1978

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Let me start by saying this: I'm not trying to do anything that would violate or otherwise break any providers ToS...

 

I repair computers - tablets - laptops -- and sometimes android phones and iPhones for a local pawn shop, and the owner of the pawn shop is always giving me gadgets to play with...

 

I got first "dibs" on an IP4 he got from a person on pawn. They pawned it and never came back, so he handed it off to me, mainly so I can figure out if he can do anything with it -- there's not a big instruction book for pawnbrokers on these phones these days...sometimes a provider WILL let someone bring a phone to a line...sometimes they won't. Depends. I had this issue with a phone I purchased from Ebay...it was NOT a bad ESN phone, there was NO balance owed...but Sprint still gave me a bit of hassle on hooking it up to my line. I actually had to have the guy that I purchased it from call Sprint, verify that I DID NOT steal the phone...and they finally allowed him to transfer "ownership" of the phone to my account, then proceeded to hook it up on my line.

 

Ok...went off in that tangent to say this:

This iPhone 4 that I got from the pawnshop owner...I kinda would like to give to my daughter and get her a prepaid Virgin Mobile sim for it...Since all I have to do is tell the owner that I want the device for myself, and pay him whatever price (he only has $50 in the phone...I was going to offer him $100 if I can use the thing)

 

I chatted with Sprint yesterday about it, and they referred me to Sprint Int'l chat...

Sprint Int'l told me that they couldn't unlock it. But then I google and find sites that say they can be unlocked....or I find things that say I can jailbreak it and use it that way...

 

Now, I'm more of an android person, so does jailbreaking an iPhone go against anything...looked down on, or otherwise not encouraged?

My daughter has an old gen3 ipod...and she's getting to where she can't hardly do anything with the thing because it won't take the iOS update...says it's too far outta date (crock)....

Though I don't agree with being forced to by more hardware just to use apps such as Fbook and all, I'd rather her have something like an iPod versus having an Android...but I may just give her my acer tablet since I don't use it...but if I can, I'd like to use this iPhone, or at LEAST find out what I can tell the pawnshop owner that can be done with it....

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To add to this:

 

I did an ESN search on Swappa and it says that the phone is clear (or, the ESN is clear rather) and it hasn't been replaced...

 

So apparently there's not a balance owed or anything...there shouldn't be any problem with using it on another line...but the ownership thing might hinder it a bit since it was a pawned item that got pulled (pulled meaning, the person pawned it and never picked it up).

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Once you sign a contract with sprint, they will more than likely unlock it. If not then wait 6 months and they will definitly unlock it. Sprint recently unlocked 3 iphones for me.

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If you have an iPhone 4 (not a 4S), you won't be able to unlock it, as it is not a world phone. If I remember correctly, only the iPhone 4S and 5 are enabled for international use, and have removable SIMs.

 

You could use the iPhone 4 here in the States, though I'm not sure what the BYOD policy is for Virgin Mobile USA.

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In my searching, I just found what you said about it not being a world/international phone, and therefore, not having a SIM slot to put a SIM into to begin with....

This particular iPhone doesn't even have the slot...so a SIM would be pointless. The SIM is built-in on the logic board.

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Sprint will not activate a Sprint iPhone on Virgin Mobile under any circumstances. It sucks because I have a few iPhone 4s sitting in a drawer that I would love to do that with. Really, a Sprint iPhone 4 can only be used on Sprint. No exceptions.

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I called Sprint ...and talked to them about adding a line to my account without a phone, so they convinced me to get a new iPhone 4s instead and added a ported prepaid number that my daughter had...wound up being free. So instead of a used iPhone 4, I got her a new iPhone 4s. She is quite thrilled, but as a daddy, I'm afraid I'm stepping into something...with a pretty 12 year old daughter that has her own cell phone, I'm sure there will be boys. This young lady stuff is a new world for us. ...babies we know, working on the fourth infant ---- nearly toddler --- now. But we are almost at our first teenager. /scared/

 

Sent from my Wicked SGS3 dongled with a Commodore 64.

 

 

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I called Sprint ...and talked to them about adding a line to my account without a phone, so they convinced me to get a new iPhone 4s instead and added a ported prepaid number that my daughter had...wound up being free. So instead of a used iPhone 4, I got her a new iPhone 4s. She is quite thrilled, but as a daddy, I'm afraid I'm stepping into something...with a pretty 12 year old daughter that has her own cell phone, I'm sure there will be boys. This young lady stuff is a new world for us. ...babies we know, working on the fourth infant ---- nearly toddler --- now. But we are almost at our first teenager. /scared/

 

Sent from my Wicked SGS3 dongled with a Commodore 64.

If I may suggest five items:

 

1) A cigar

2) A straw hat

3) A bottle of Jack Daniels

4) A rocking chair

5) A really nice 12 gauge shot gun.

 

That should solve the boy problem. Your daughter may hate you but she will get over it in 10 or 15 years :D

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If I may suggest five items:

 

1) A cigar

2) A straw hat

3) A bottle of Jack Daniels

4) A rocking chair

5) A really nice 12 gauge shot gun.

 

That should solve the boy problem. Your daughter may hate you but she will get over it in 10 or 15 years :D

 

 

What gets me is...she is developing early....you know...like a girl "develops" ...and she's trying to wear things that uhm....daddy doesn't ...ok...daddy f&king despises it. I've already thrown away clothes, and used that "I don't know..did you put it in the dirty clothes?" excuse..

Why do little girls want to do that? I realize they want some little boy to talk to them...but do they not know that little boys only care about one thing? (ok, that's a dumb question)

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In the end, I've ended up with a new line of service, even though it's a "BYON" ...they told me if I gave them my daughter's old prepaid number, they could see about porting that to a new line, which would give me more 'discount'....

 

So I gave them her old number...ported it to Sprint...got a new line of service with an iPhone 4S on the way....also, I told the pawnbroker / owner about the problem with the iPhone 4...and that he would have to see if someone wanted to buy the phone, but the person would already need to have an active Sprint phone number, and need another phone, or, someone who just wanted this iPhone as a back-up device in case something happens...

 

He asked if I wanted to make an offer on it...so I said "well, my wife told me to offer you $100, but that was before we talked to Sprint and they gave me all that new stuff...".....but I told him I'd still give him that much for it....

He said deal...

 

SO I have an extra iPhone now. If it comes down to it, I can sell it back to Sprint for $80...but I don't think I'll do that either.

I may activate this used iPhone 4 on my daughters line, and put the brand new iPhone 4S up in my bedroom until I see how she's going to do with the phone.

I'm not keen on her being able to send/receive pics ....facetime, snapchat, etc.

Not sure yet....this is new ground for us as parents...she's had a cell phone before, but never a smartphone and never a phone on my contract with us.

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In the end, I've ended up with a new line of service, even though it's a "BYON" ...they told me if I gave them my daughter's old prepaid number, they could see about porting that to a new line, which would give me more 'discount'....

 

So I gave them her old number...ported it to Sprint...got a new line of service with an iPhone 4S on the way....also, I told the pawnbroker / owner about the problem with the iPhone 4...and that he would have to see if someone wanted to buy the phone, but the person would already need to have an active Sprint phone number, and need another phone, or, someone who just wanted this iPhone as a back-up device in case something happens...

 

He asked if I wanted to make an offer on it...so I said "well, my wife told me to offer you $100, but that was before we talked to Sprint and they gave me all that new stuff...".....but I told him I'd still give him that much for it....

He said deal...

 

SO I have an extra iPhone now. If it comes down to it, I can sell it back to Sprint for $80...but I don't think I'll do that either.

I may activate this used iPhone 4 on my daughters line, and put the brand new iPhone 4S up in my bedroom until I see how she's going to do with the phone.

I'm not keen on her being able to send/receive pics ....facetime, snapchat, etc.

Not sure yet....this is new ground for us as parents...she's had a cell phone before, but never a smartphone and never a phone on my contract with us.

 

You know, you can disable Facetime and other settings in the Parental controls area to limit what she can and can't do on the phone.

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Now I'm encountering a problem with Sprint about the device. I explained, via chat, that I got this iPhone 4 from a pawnbroker, and just needed to make sure that the MEID was clear, just in case I needed to add it to my account (pretty much, if my daughter breaks her new iPhone 4S she just got yesterday)...but I want to keep it as a back-up device....

The chat representative took the MEID and checked it, then told me that the device is attached to another account. In order for me to use it at all, ever, the account owner, whom I don't know, would have to release this device from their account. And under no condition will I be able to use it until this happens.

I told the chat rep that "you do realize how pawn shops work, right? There's a good chance that the person who pawned it (account holder) will never be heard from again...and they could even report this phone stolen, and here I am, holding the bag (or phone)"...

Said there was nothing he could do, and ended the chat session.

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Your pawn broker shouldn't take phones if they are attached to an account. If a person does not pay their bill their phones stay attached to that delinquent account forever and the phone is worthless. I see it a few times a week from phones people buy off craiglist. Their is nothing you can do and sprint will not release the phone til they get their money.

 

This is why i and every phone rep i know all ways tell people to meet at a store before buying a phone.

 

Sent from my LG-LS970 using Tapatalk 2

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Actually it's not the pawn broker's fault that dishonest people come in to pawn their things. Pawn shops aren't in business to background check customers, and Sprint will never get the phone back, regardless if they get their money or not. And chances are Sprint collections will sell the delinquent account after a period of time anyway...so them holding the phone hostage when they should allow a pawn shop to recourse somehow...it's just wrong. What would the problem be with a pawn broker phoning Sprint, giving his operating license number, and being able to have phones he gives the ME IF for released for him to sell? Most folks think pawn brokers are sharks, or a lower class of people, and they don't deserve to make any money because they do like on tv and try to low jack on giving people money for their stuff...No one realises what the llaw requires of them(to hold merchandise for 6 months after the item's due date---which is 30 days after the customer brings it in to begin with. what's the value of an iPhone 4, 7 months from today. ..and customers expect top dollar from their items.

 

Sent from my Wicked SGS3 dongled with a Commodore 64.

 

 

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Can't edit...but I forgot...Pawn brokers can't tell if a phone is attached to an account. And they don't exactly lend money in hopes people will leave their stuff to be pulled 7 months later...the ideal transaction is customers picking up their shit, not leaving it for the pawn shop to hold then sell. My friend has a 70% pickup rate on his customers.

 

Sent from my Wicked SGS3 dongled with a Commodore 64.

 

 

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Your pawn broker shouldn't take phones if they are attached to an account. If a person does not pay their bill their phones stay attached to that delinquent account forever and the phone is worthless. I see it a few times a week from phones people buy off craiglist. Their is nothing you can do and sprint will not release the phone til they get their money.

 

This is why i and every phone rep i know all ways tell people to meet at a store before buying a phone.

 

Sent from my LG-LS970 using Tapatalk 2

 

I always thought Verizon was that way too, but they recently released my Samsung Alias 2 and I can now activate it on a normal account or prepaid again. Mind you, it's a basic phone, but still, they eventually release them.

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Same here. I bought a blackberry curve.....(remember those) off of a friend often and it was ESN locked and I got jipped. So I threw it in a box like 3 years ago. Last month my brother needed a loaner phone so I gave him 3 or 4 of my phones and he tried activating them on big red....and the blackberry was released. Shocked me...

 

 

Sent from my iPhone 5 using Tapatalk

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  • 1 month later...

Once you sign a contract with sprint, they will more than likely unlock it. If not then wait 6 months and they will definitly unlock it. Sprint recently unlocked 3 iphones for me.

 

Do you have to be out of contract or just in contract/past 6 months?

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