I see a lot of phones on ebay with bad esn's. Does a bad ESN take away all functionality of the phone or does it just render the phone part useless? I would love to get an S3, HTC One X, HTC Evo 4g LTE to use for its features. I won't ever need to activate the phone, but I would use for music, gps, wifi, Google Play apps and games, etc. Good idea? I'm considering a tablet, but maximum portability is what I'm after and the 4 inch+ seems to fit the bill.
Can I buy a phone with bad ESN and use it as a mini-tablet?
GuilT1
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I see a lot of phones on ebay with bad esn's. Does a bad ESN take away all functionality of the phone or does it just render the phone part useless? I would love to get an S3, HTC One X, HTC Evo 4g LTE to use for its features. I won't ever need to activate the phone, but I would use for music, gps, wifi, Google Play apps and games, etc. Good idea? I'm considering a tablet, but maximum portability is what I'm after and the 4 inch+ seems to fit the bill.
Yes, the bad ESN typically means it's either stolen or the previous owner left the cell company without paying their bill. It doesn't change any of the other functions or features such as the ability to use wifi, play music, gps etc. It only affects your ability to use the phone for phone calls, sms, cellular data etc.
Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think carriers share ESN data of their customers so if you get the phone unlocked you should be able to take it to another carrier using the same cellular technology and get it activated there provided they allow for that.
Someone can correct me if I'm wrong but I don't think carriers share ESN data of their customers so if you get the phone unlocked you should be able to take it to another carrier using the same cellular technology and get it activated there provided they allow for that.
Chances are that phone was stolen, if its on ebay anyways. Find yourself something really easy to flash. I had a Galaxy S before my current HTC Amaze 4g and I gota say the galaxy was much easier to mod. There were free apps to unlock the phone with a single click of a button, no rooting required. The Amaze is another story.
Check xda and find something nice, with a unlocked bootloader so you can really nuts. I love smartphones but nothing will replace my transformer tf300. Got a 1tb external HDD and filled it up with media, never will I be bored again!
Check xda and find something nice, with a unlocked bootloader so you can really nuts. I love smartphones but nothing will replace my transformer tf300. Got a 1tb external HDD and filled it up with media, never will I be bored again!
Yes you can use it as a "mini tablet" just make sure that the IMEI number is not reported as stolen.
You can buy it from people whom are selling their old phones or buy a phone outright (off contract).
Galaxy Nexus (GSM) @ $349.99 on Google Play Store.. Brand new as well. Probably the best deal if you want a new phone.
You can buy it from people whom are selling their old phones or buy a phone outright (off contract).
Galaxy Nexus (GSM) @ $349.99 on Google Play Store.. Brand new as well. Probably the best deal if you want a new phone.
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Quote:
If you are not in a rush you can probably pick up a Galaxy S for <$100 USD on Craigslist.Originally Posted by Sylon
Chances are that phone was stolen, if its on ebay anyways. Find yourself something really easy to flash. I had a Galaxy S before my current HTC Amaze 4g and I gota say the galaxy was much easier to mod. There were free apps to unlock the phone with a single click of a button, no rooting required. The Amaze is another story.
Check xda and find something nice, with a unlocked bootloader so you can really nuts. I love smartphones but nothing will replace my transformer tf300. Got a 1tb external HDD and filled it up with media, never will I be bored again!
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1,118 Posts
Quote:
Galaxy S cannot really run today's games and its 512MB RAM is barely sufficient for multi-tasking with the newer versions of Android. It also had problems with GPS tracking and several other issues, which none of the purported fixes on XDA were able to do anything with since the problem was in hardware. I was so happy to replace my Captivate 6 months ago.Originally Posted by bfe_vern
If you are not in a rush you can probably pick up a Galaxy S for <$100 USD on Craigslist.
Quote:
Cyanogenmod 9 is not stable on it yet. (Looks like developers are just focusing on 10 now)Originally Posted by chrischoi
If you want a tablet and not have to worry about things not running... Get a HP Touchpad. Convert to Android.
Best value.
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The way I see it is if you knowingly get a phone clearly sold with a bad esn, you can get a very powerful, pocketable device on the cheap. I actually hate cell phones, moreso because I hate talking to people, but to have device that is as powerful as a tablet in my pocket is very enticing. I am selling both of my laptops in the hopes of procuring an S3 or something similar as a "do-it-all" device. Android has come a long way and I feel confident enough that it can fulfill all my needs as far as productivity and entertainment goes. I am basically quiting computers and moving everything to an ultra-portable solution. The only thing I wasn't sure of was whether or not the phone retains all of its functions after a bad ESN.
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I got mine when CM9 just came out and I had it for a month. Ran fine. Wasn't too bad. Still worth it IMO.Originally Posted by DuckieHo
Quote:
Cyanogenmod 9 is not stable on it yet. (Looks like developers are just focusing on 10 now)Originally Posted by chrischoi
If you want a tablet and not have to worry about things not running... Get a HP Touchpad. Convert to Android.
Best value.
Quote:
The other part of that is getting a HP touchpad for a reasonable price. I see them either sold for $300, or if they're sold for $150 or less they're gone. You can typically get a used phone with a bad ESN for under $100.Originally Posted by chrischoi
I got mine when CM9 just came out and I had it for a month. Ran fine. Wasn't too bad. Still worth it IMO.
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Scour XDA for one. When HP did the firesale it was $99 and $150. I'm sure you can score one for an ok price. I sold mine dirt cheap. People will drop their prices.Originally Posted by Pavix
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The other part of that is getting a HP touchpad for a reasonable price. I see them either sold for $300, or if they're sold for $150 or less they're gone. You can typically get a used phone with a bad ESN for under $100.Originally Posted by chrischoi
I got mine when CM9 just came out and I had it for a month. Ran fine. Wasn't too bad. Still worth it IMO.
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Be a good citizen and take your bad ESN phone (if you buy one) to the carrier in which it originated and see if someone's phone was actually stolen before you buy it (I'm talking about craigslist not e-bay). You don't want to be responsible for holding stolen property.
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You can also ask for the ESN before you agree to buy the phone. If someone skipped out on their phone bill then you're good to go. I don't think carriers will tell you why the ESN is bad unless it's stolen. So if you call their customer service and give them the ESN they will tell you if it is or is not stolen.Originally Posted by t3lancer2006
Be a good citizen and take your bad ESN phone (if you buy one) to the carrier in which it originated and see if someone's phone was actually stolen before you buy it (I'm talking about craigslist not e-bay). You don't want to be responsible for holding stolen property.
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