Refurbished phones and a few words of caution

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usblaidas

Senior Member
Oct 5, 2010
69
18
How they get d802 baseband works on ls980? If I flash d802 baseband on my ls980 I always get bootloop. How you discover that it is an ls980? If you flash ls980 stock rom the phone become sim locked to sprint.
The white line problem is related to version of the lcd (jdi or not) and can be solved flashing the correct fix.
The only way to discover your really version is open the backcover and read on the board ( before brick it by blind flash....)
_____________________________________Read more write less and be smart

Oh, no idea how they managed to do that... I can confirm, that it says on motherboard LS980 - that's how i figured out what phone it is :p
Yes, I tried to flash stock rom, but interesting thing is - it did not do any sim lock.
And about flashing d802 baseband... if I dont flash it - I get a bootloop! Weird, is it not?

When on lS980, What's not working? Get an EFS Backup.. And tell please how you Confirmed phone model? I don't think that the replaced Baseband chip. It may due to Fake D802 IMEI injecting

Well, right now im in CM12, so non-working things are mostly because of bugs in cyanogenmod itself. As I said above, I confirmed it by looking at the motherboard :) Also, when I flash cm and if I flash ls980, result is bootloop.
Another issue im having is i tried to flash cloudy g2 and it just wont work - tried multiple basebands. With ls980 baseband - bootloop. With D802 baseband - stuck on loading screen :(

Yeah, I was also thinking that it might be because of fake IMEI , but when i flash D802 baseband, I manage to get HSPD+ , which means that baseband itself is working pretty much perfectly... (did not try 4g yet as i dont have it in my area)
 

siggey

Senior Member
Aug 10, 2009
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Xiaomi Mi Mix 3
Google Pixel 7a
Yeah, I was also thinking that it might be because of fake IMEI , but when i flash D802 baseband, I manage to get HSPD+ , which means that baseband itself is working pretty much perfectly... (did not try 4g yet as i dont have it in my area)

The 3g band are the same for all G2's, 4G are different.
What bands can you see in hidden menu (3845#*980# or 3845#*802#) lte-only modem settings lte band selection?
_____________________________________Read more write less and be smart
 

usblaidas

Senior Member
Oct 5, 2010
69
18
The 3g band are the same for all G2's, 4G are different.
What bands can you see in hidden menu (3845#*980# or 3845#*802#) lte-only modem settings lte band selection?
_____________________________________Read more write less and be smart

Oh, i thought that 3g should not work...
Anyway, none of the mentioned codes worked for me... Is there any other codes i could try to open that hidden menu?
 

Art Vanderlay

Retired Forum Moderator
Jan 2, 2014
3,461
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Melbourne
Oh, i thought that 3g should not work...
Anyway, none of the mentioned codes worked for me... Is there any other codes i could try to open that hidden menu?

The Verizon model doesn't have the hidden menu apk. Xdadeb made one out the att model so you can install this as a system app and launch it from the terminal emulater. Then you'll have hidden menu access.

This is a Verizon code for the test menu. I'm not sure how useful that menu is though.

EDIT: :silly: Nevermind. Got the models mixed up.
 
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TorqueEffect

Member
Nov 8, 2012
9
0
I am also expressing a bit of concern.

Just bought a New D800 off ebay to use on cricket to replace my broken touchscreen VS980.

When it got here the at&t box looked like it had been moved around allot, damaged corners, and the box was not sealed.
Also a sticker with "bad sim reader" had been placed on the box (which scared the hell out of me), and a plain white sticker on the top reading SC-PN-D800 White.

But I opened the box, phone still has all the protective stickers on it, nothing looking out of place, a/c adapter and power cord still sealed. Put my cricket sim in and booted it up, and greeted with a "Android is Upgrading" screen, and I find that 5.0.2 Lollipop was already installed, yet the box sticker with all the number information said 4.2.2. The sim reader works just fine, and even get LTE whereas before on my VS980 I could only get it in certain towns, and even in those towns it was spotty at best.

So either this phone is new and they just took it out of the box for whatever reason to upgrade it to lollipop. Or it has been refurbished.

IMEI Number on the at&t box, sticker on the back of the phone, and in the phone's software all match, and IMEI check says it is a D800

Why is there no damned screen telling us whether it has been refurbished or not?
 

cuervo3000

Member
Apr 5, 2015
41
3
After reading this thread, I came to the conclusion that my phone is also a Frankenphone. I bought in China and became rooted. I bought it as a D801 and brings d80120d rom does not exist in T-Mobile but if videotron. The back cover says T-Mobile and brings stuck a label with IMEI number. Not a scratch, brand new to the naked eye, but with false box. I'll have to disarm to upgrade?



Enviado desde mi LG-D801 mediante Tapatalk
 

pat99

Senior Member
Dec 4, 2013
657
413
Dortmund
I am also expressing a bit of concern.

Just bought a New D800 off ebay to use on cricket to replace my broken touchscreen VS980.

When it got here the at&t box looked like it had been moved around allot, damaged corners, and the box was not sealed.
Also a sticker with "bad sim reader" had been placed on the box (which scared the hell out of me), and a plain white sticker on the top reading SC-PN-D800 White.

But I opened the box, phone still has all the protective stickers on it, nothing looking out of place, a/c adapter and power cord still sealed. Put my cricket sim in and booted it up, and greeted with a "Android is Upgrading" screen, and I find that 5.0.2 Lollipop was already installed, yet the box sticker with all the number information said 4.2.2. The sim reader works just fine, and even get LTE whereas before on my VS980 I could only get it in certain towns, and even in those towns it was spotty at best.

So either this phone is new and they just took it out of the box for whatever reason to upgrade it to lollipop. Or it has been refurbished.

IMEI Number on the at&t box, sticker on the back of the phone, and in the phone's software all match, and IMEI check says it is a D800

Why is there no damned screen telling us whether it has been refurbished or not?

If your device arrived with AT&T Retail box than its New otherwise it should in box with LG logo upfront(Blue color box). Also to note you might receive ATT instruction guide comes with it. If you receive Android User Guide instead than its refurbished!

How i know? I got mine, Refurbished LG G2.
 

ibtehajpervez

Member
Feb 28, 2013
19
0
I dont want to open the phone just yet.

I just want to confirm whether the build number in the recovery and motherboard are always same or different in some cases?

I bought it as a d802 and the imei confirms it as a d802 but when i went into the stock recovery it written "kot49i.d801v20d"
 

Art Vanderlay

Retired Forum Moderator
Jan 2, 2014
3,461
2,649
Melbourne
I dont want to open the phone just yet.

I just want to confirm whether the build number in the recovery and motherboard are always same or different in some cases?

I bought it as a d802 and the imei confirms it as a d802 but when i went into the stock recovery it written "kot49i.d801v20d"

They're always the same. If the recovery says differently then you'll have to open it. I think the recovery is telling you what it actually is but you'll have to find out for sure.
 

Art Vanderlay

Retired Forum Moderator
Jan 2, 2014
3,461
2,649
Melbourne
If they are always the same then why bother.
So any experience with flashing the correct rom? (Rom according to motherboard/recovery)

Well how certain can you be when you're getting two conflicting reports? I think the number on the recovery screen is very reliable but not 100% reliable. Either way, make an efs backup before you do anything. You can flash a kdz but you might have to hex edit the file first. There's a couple of threads here where you'll find a lot of information about that.
 

cuervo3000

Member
Apr 5, 2015
41
3
How then updated?

I opened the móvily your motherboard is the same model that sold me (D801). That if, in some parts of ls980y the d800. Always struck me that the cell came rooted, but the motherboard is the D801. I recommend doing to upgrade? Thank You.
 

Art Vanderlay

Retired Forum Moderator
Jan 2, 2014
3,461
2,649
Melbourne
I opened the móvily your motherboard is the same model that sold me (D801). That if, in some parts of ls980y the d800. Always struck me that the cell came rooted, but the motherboard is the D801. I recommend doing to upgrade? Thank You.

Sorry, the google translate didn't do a good job. Are you saying that you checked your motherboard and it's the same model as it was sold?
 
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cuervo3000

Member
Apr 5, 2015
41
3
Sorry, the google translate didn't do a good job. Are you saying that you checked your motherboard and it's the same model as it was sold?

Thank Art Vanderlay. I bought in a Chinese shop one D801, and D801 motherboard is well.Inside it has parts of several models of LG G2 (ls980, d800) but the motherboard is D801. How do I upgrade?. The cell came rooted, with 4.4.2. Thank You.
 
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  • 27
    Over the past couple of months Ive noticed a lot of posts made by people who have bought their phones from ebay or aliExpress among others, then bricked it by using autorec or flashing a kdz. This is a general rundown of what happens next:


    • The user bought a d802 or d800
    • They used Autorec or flashed their models kdz firmware
    • The phone inexplicibly rebooted to a black screen. No recovery, download or fastboot OR
    • The touch screen becomes unresponsive or erratic

    Some of them removed the rear cover and included photos in their posts which shows a different models motherboard.
    Here are a couple of examples to let you know what I'm talking about.

    http://xdaforums.com/lg-g2/help/issues-refurb-d802-32gb-lg-flashed-t3034823

    http://xdaforums.com/lg-g2/help/lgd802-stuck-fastboot-help-stock-t2965101

    http://xdaforums.com/lg-g2/general/lg-g2-unbrickable-fix-real-hard-brick-t2904404/page34


    When this happens without any user error, it's likely the result of a phone that was poorly refurbished.

    Over a year into this phone's lifecycle, refurbished G2's are quite common among retailers, both official and independant, as they are with all brands.

    A refurbished phone is a phone that has been returned or refunded and is then resold. Before it gets resold it undergoes a process of testing and cleaning and any damaged parts replaced like a cracked LCD screen or bad battery, or sometimes replacing all the internal hardware.

    A reputable company will replace it with all the correct parts and test it thoroughly before releasing it.
    A dodgy company will not. This is explained in greater detail in this ebay article.

    Some dodgy companies (with sellers on aliexpress being among the common offenders) will go to extremes to disguise any variant as a d802.
    This is because the international variant is the most marketable worldwide. Some of the tactics they use are:

    • D802 body with mainboard of other G2 variant
    • Build prop edited to report software information as d802
    • Modified D802 IMEI

    Although it might work well for a while, these parts are not made to be cross compatible and these "Frankenphones" are extremely volatile and any flashing activity will almost certainlty result in a brick. System updates will also brick them.

    The software including the ROM/kernel/partitions must match the model of the mainboard. It isn't always easy to identify a reburbished phone without removing the mainboard but I'll write up a list of common signs / things to look for.





    Here are some precautions that you can take when buying a phone from an unfamiliar vendor or to find out your real model number:






    • Before you buy, always look at the description in the bottom. Some of them have refurbished in the title but you need to check the description for others


    • 2elb0uf.png









    • Remove the rear cover. This is a bit tough but It'll show you if the model number is different or if there are signs of tampering. These are signs of a poorly refurbished phone. There's a good video that explains how to do it here

      23tjg9y.jpg









      [*]The only way to be 100% sure of your model is to remove the motherboard and check the number on the unit itself. While the IMEI, stamps and battery cover can all be modified or changed, the marking on the back of the motherboard cannot be so this method is the most reliable method of checking your model.

      For a tutorial watch this video from 0.00 - 4.33
      https://youtu.be/O12UJMOCx1w




      jj8fuf.png







      Other tips:

      [*]Use common sense when buying a cheap phone online. The vast majority of sellers state that the phone is refurbished. Read the sellers negative feedback, read all the product details and the return policy. Only buy from a reputable vendor.
      [*]If your on android 4.4.2, use IOroot25 to root it. This also makes an EFS backup to your IOroot folder. You can also take this opportunity to check the model number on your recovery screen.
      [*]As an added safeguard you can dump your important partitions and move them to your PC. This way if you flash the wrong recovery you can easily restore your phone using these images. Dump your boot, aboot, recovery and laf this way using the android terminal. You will need root for this.

    Code:
    su
    
    dd if=/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/boot of=/sdcard/boot.img
    
    dd if=/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/aboot of=/sdcard/aboot.img
    
    dd if=/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/recovery of=/sdcard/recovery.img
    
    dd if=/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/laf of=/sdcard/laf.img

    Unfortunately if you have already bricked your device I'll include some links to guides and fixes below. Download your files for flashing after confirming your model number.


    Again, this isn't bashing the whole industry, just a warning that frankenphones are out there and if you unwittingly bought one you should try to get your money back wherever you can. People have had varying degrees of success in flashing roms or unbricking them even after identifying the motherboard.
    3
    @Sunandroid
    I've managed to connect my ls980 in diag mode and successfuly added all of the GSM/WCDMA bands and the LTE bands in the guidance of a tutorial for OnePlus One. I am testing it.

    for GSM/WCDMA bands i followed this guide: http://xdaforums.com/oneplus-one/general/guide-unlock-aditional-bands-qualcomm-t2877031
    for LTE bands i followed this: http://xdaforums.com/showpost.php?p=56577252&postcount=455

    without problems i followed and finished the steps. basically i should be able to use the bands below:
    GSM: DCS-1800/P-GSM/E-GSM/GSM-850/Railways-900/PCS-1900
    WCDMA: Band I to XI
    LTE: Band 1, 3, 4, 7, 8, 12, 13, 17, 19, 21


    If LTE works i will do a guide.

    UPDATE EDIT

    Using stock based rom and custom kernel, going into DIAG mode is possible and changes stacks (you should disable USB debugging and plug device in only charge mode so that qpst and qxdm works)
    I've tested it for a day all the bands GSM,WCDMA and LTE


    I could change GSM and WCDMA bands successfuly I've tried many variations on LTE nv values, I am pretty sure it stacked and unlocked some of the bands but could not get it worked.

    But I assume problem is below, this is why i cant get LTE work, I entered a value that only the bands 3,7,20 supposed to work but ##DATA# > LTE settings shows me this:
    Screenshot_2016-04-09-19-20-56.png
    3
    Hey guys. There are 2 videos that I have linked in the OP, one that shows how to open the rear cover and one that shows how to access the motherboard. Unfortunately the latter one has been made private by the owner. :(

    I'll try to replace it with another one if one exists otherwise I'll have to make my own video. I'll post again when I have something.
    2
    Any of you guys are experiencing a massive battery drain problem on your LG G2 phone? I bought a LG G2 D801 off eBay. The seller is "cell-world2016"

    Post your battery stats. But i dont think its a massive drain, its just your battery is old. When you buy a refurbished or used mobile you must also buy a new battery. I suggest you to buy this extended german battery called powercell akku on ebay which is 3200mah.
    2
    yeah my phone works normally just the recovery not work that's why i try reinstall the recovery stock or custom.

    I have done the backup of the EFS folder only had to change the target directories because my phone does not have the sdcard directory the changes were as follows:
    Code:
    dd if=/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/modemst1 of=/storage/emulated/0/EFS_Backup/efs1.img
    dd if=/dev/block/platform/msm_sdcc.1/by-name/modemst2 of=/storage/emulated/0/EFS_Backup/efs2.img

    That's perfectly fine. The only thing that matters is that you keep them in a safe place.

    in the by-name folder on my phone there are several files:
    Code:
    aboot
    blus
    boot
    cache
    carrier
    dbi
    dbibak
    DDR
    drm
    encrypt
    eri
    fota
    fsc
    fsg
    grow
    laf
    misc
    modem
    modemst1
    modemst2
    mpt
    pad
    pad1
    pad2
    persist
    rct
    recovery
    rpm
    rpmbak
    sbl1
    sns
    spare
    ssd
    system
    tombstones
    tz
    tzbak
    userdata
    ve
    anyone knows for they are and if they are important to make a backup?

    I also found in my phone storage 3 .img files with the following names aboot, boot, recovery laf and apparently these files are a backup that made the app AutoRec because before using AutoRec were not there
    question can use these files to try to recover the stock recovery?:confused:

    Absolutely :good: Those 4 partitions are the most important ones you need. Aboot is

    your bootloader and laf is your download mode. The other ones in by-name aren't really worth

    backing up, but it wouldn't hurt if you did.

    Flashing those files should bring your recovery back. Make sure you flash all of them if you do.