[Q] Bought an S5 on eBay? How to tell if it is a refurb? Does this sound fishy?

Search This thread

alex_tytn

Member
Jul 31, 2008
34
1
I have 2 questions about an S5 that I bought on eBay.
  1. How can I tell if it is a refurbished/reconditioned/used model?
  2. Does what the seller told me sound fishy?
#1. Refurb?

There used to be an RTN menu on other Samsung devices -- you could get to it by dialing ##786# or *#*#786#*#* but that doesn't work on my G900H S5. You also used to be able to get to it by adding com.android.hiddenmenu to some custom launcher but that doesn't work on my S5.

There are many working hidden configuration/diagnostic dialer options that work for me like the service menu - *#0*# But that's not telling me what I want to know.

Any advice to definitely confirm that my device is a reconditioned, refurbished or used phone? Can I tell if it was ever registered on Google Play?

#2. Fishy eBay seller?

Cutting to the chase...

I bought an SM-G900H (Galaxy S5 Octacore) from an eBay seller with 20 to 1 positive reviews and thousands of sales so I was feeling good that everything would be OK. Unfortunately, the phone was clearly used and the seller told me that it was not but that this is normal for the box to be opened so that the phone can be checked for counterfit and/or carrier lock.

Have you ever heard of this? Does this make sense?

I'm not posting the sellers name because I don't want to disparage their reputation in case it is just me being paranoid.

The phone arrived and I noticed that the one sticker looked a little funny and it was already cut so I proceeded with extreme caution.

The first thing that I noticed was that the protective cover on the front had an air pocket. (This is my 4th S5 so I'm an expert at unboxing by this point.)
14228618803_b888883b7c_b.jpg


Next, I turned it over and notice that the protective cover on the back had been off for sure -- in fact it was even torn!
14021798079_ff1f06a8e4_b.jpg


But I went ahead and put in the battery without touching the protective covers. The phone powered up 63% battery and went straight to the home screen -- no prompts to set language, nothing. IT WAS ALREADY SET UP!

Finally, I looked closer and noticed that the "do not accept if this seal is broken" seal had actually been cut and someone carefully put another larger sticker on top to cover that up.
14208461905_b74a04f5f0_b.jpg


So, I requested a return from eBay and Jenny called to explain that my phone was 100% new and that it is normal for foreign phones to be opened by customs (later changed to "Samsung distribution center") in order to "make sure they are not counterfeit." I asked her about all the items and she answered the questions by talking and talking. She told me that phones need to be checked to make sure they are not carrier locked. I countered each with more questions and she told me more stuff.

I asked about the sticker and how customs would have similar Samsung stickers to use when they opened the boxes. She changed to the "Samsung distribution center" and said it was normal. I said that it was a foreign phone so Samsung USA doesn't have anything to do with it, right? She changed the subject to ask if I knew about Beats headphones and told me that there is a huge counterfeit market for these and that all of them are opened.

I asked why it was already set up -- she said they needed to start it completely in order to check the carrier lock.

I asked why the protective cover would need to be removed to turn on the phone and check it as I didn't need to do this to turn it on.

Our conversation went on like this for 17 minutes.

In the end, I said nothing but did actually feel a little better about keeping the phone then I went to bed and now it's a new day.


DOES THIS SOUND FISHY TO YOU?

HAVE YOU EVER HEARD SUCH A THING?

WHAT WOULD YOU ADVISE ME TO DO?
 
  • Like
Reactions: Heraku

drakester09

Senior Member
Jan 10, 2012
1,292
876
How much did you pay?

Have you checked that everything works properly? Knox flag status in download mode?

Download the app Phone INFO and check the counters there (headset connect and charger connect), also check the manufacturing date or anything else that could be fishy.
 
  • Like
Reactions: D33KK and alex_tytn

alex_tytn

Member
Jul 31, 2008
34
1
Paid $630 -- they are now selling them for $549!!!

How much did you pay?

Have you checked that everything works properly? Knox flag status in download mode?

Download the app Phone INFO and check the counters there (headset connect and charger connect), also check the manufacturing date or anything else that could be fishy.

EDIT: I paid $629.99 (the rest was for fast shipping). No, the KNOX was not tripped.

THANKS for the tip on Phone INFO...

14022408998_24e91c9bda_b.jpg


Based on this I am outing the seller -- it was <<<name removed>>> who has 16788 reviews.

Just looked -- they are now selling them for $549 (only a week later)!!!!

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Samsung-Gal...57555?pt=Cell_Phones&var=&hash=item338d717eb3
 
Last edited:

drakester09

Senior Member
Jan 10, 2012
1,292
876
Ouch, yes, the bad thing is that they told you that no one had used it before.

I'd been more at ease if they told me that they test the devices before shipping to avoid bad feedback and duds...

Can you show them this evidence? Maybe there's a misunderstanding and you can get some compensation or can file a claim with PayPal as item not received as advertised (since you bought it as brand new condition and paid such price).
 

alex_tytn

Member
Jul 31, 2008
34
1
Ouch, yes, the bad thing is that they told you that no one had used it before.

I'd been more at ease if they told me that they test the devices before shipping to avoid bad feedback and duds...

Can you show them this evidence? Maybe there's a misunderstanding and you can get some compensation or can file a claim with PayPal as item not received as advertised (since you bought it as brand new condition and paid such price).

Yes, I did send pictures of my evidence when opening my return case with eBay. Then I got the call. I too would have felt better if the answers were more like, 'we open to make sure there are no duds' and not the 15 minutes of empty talk. Also, there is no reason to rip the protector if you're just opening to check for duds. Someone that does this all day could open so nicely that no one could ever tell.

For the future it is best to do it with PayPal instead of eBay because the money gets locked and the sellers deal with you MUCH quicker.


I assume that I should have ZERO problems getting my money back because eBay will make it right. I also have a good feeling because Jenny from <<<name removed>>> also sounds like a nice and honest person.

Maybe this was just a fluke?

The thing I didn't mention is that this is my second phone from them -- the first one had a bad card reader so it's quite a string of bad luck.


Regarding the "compensation" idea -- the phone is basically without warranty because it is a foreign model so Samsung USA won't even answer calls on it and there is no way to get it fixed if I find another problem.

I think that I'm just done.
 
Last edited:

drakester09

Senior Member
Jan 10, 2012
1,292
876
I meant compensation from the seller, it might be a misunderstanding or bad shipment. Could happen.

Maybe they can send you something to make up for it? That's customer service 101.
 

alex_tytn

Member
Jul 31, 2008
34
1
I meant compensation from the seller, it might be a misunderstanding or bad shipment. Could happen.

Maybe they can send you something to make up for it? That's customer service 101.

Yes, I understood exactly what you meant by "compensation" -- I just jumped to a different train of thought. :eek:

That train of thought is that I don't want a used phone which might have been returned for any reason, especially if it's not serviceable in the country that I live in. For example, maybe I might not test/use bluetooth for 6 months and the reason the phone was returned was because of a bad bluetooth radio. Do I need to Q/A every feature?


Thanks again for all the help and advice!


Anyone else have different advice?
 
Last edited:

stalli0nUK

Senior Member
Jun 24, 2013
282
359
Oxford
I remember a while back looking at the official thread for that app PHONE INFO on xda, that users who had brand new Samsung phones also had 2/3 uses of the headphones and charger.

So I guess the phone ports are tested before being boxed from factory, but don't hold me to that.

The ripped protective plastic is a bit worrying though. As the woman said it went through customs, who knows how they treated your phone.
About them setting up the phone and checking if it's counterfeit, sounds understandable too, I've read lot about fake samsung s5's and I'd rather that company never-msrp, check before sending it you, rather then for you to find out its a fake.

Also to ensure peace of mind, the PHONE INFO app, has a refurbishment check in the menu.
 
Last edited:

o0xx0o

Member
May 31, 2011
41
18
I just got a new Samsung S5 and after reading this thread, decided to download the Phone INFO app from the play store. My headset connect count shows 4 (I have not yet connected a headset), and my charger connect count shows 6. I know my phone is definitely brand new. It was purchased from a larger electronics retail store in my country and the phone was definitely sealed. My screen protector was similar to the OP's, where the top left hand corner has a slightly bubble.

Having said all of this, if you feel the phone is not 'new', and that is what you have paid for, I would be returning the device.
 

alex_tytn

Member
Jul 31, 2008
34
1
OOOPS!

I remember a while back looking at the official thread for that app PHONE INFO on xda, that users who had brand new Samsung phones also had 2/3 uses of the headphones and charger.

I just got a new Samsung S5 and after reading this thread, decided to download the Phone INFO app from the play store. My headset connect count shows 4 (I have not yet connected a headset), and my charger connect count shows 6. I know my phone is definitely brand new.

Thanks for the updates.

OOOPS! :eek:

Now I feel bad about naming the seller -- she was super nice on the phone and the phone was shipped very quickly. That being said it wasn't in new condidition, someone tried to cover that up (on the outside) and I find it odd that customs would have Samsung "DO NOT ACCEPT IF SEAL IS BROKEN" stamps. I wonder who really put the new seal on top of the old seal. :confused:

But I still feel bad if I in any way slandered them (which I obviously clearly have). Especially if was incorrect in my reason for doing so.


Still interested to hear more comments about your counts and/or methods for checking a phone and/or what you would do in my case.
 

drakester09

Senior Member
Jan 10, 2012
1,292
876
Thanks for the updates.

OOOPS! :eek:

Now I feel bad about naming the seller -- she was super nice on the phone and the phone was shipped very quickly. That being said it wasn't in new condidition, someone tried to cover that up (on the outside) and I find it odd that customs would have Samsung "DO NOT ACCEPT IF SEAL IS BROKEN" stamps. I wonder who really put the new seal on top of the old seal. :confused:

But I still feel bad if I in any way slandered them (which I obviously clearly have). Especially if was incorrect in my reason for doing so.


Still interested to hear more comments about your counts and/or methods for checking a phone and/or what you would do in my case.

What you can do is edit your previous posts - add a note or remove the names...
 

stalli0nUK

Senior Member
Jun 24, 2013
282
359
Oxford
Thanks for the updates.

OOOPS! :eek:

Now I feel bad about naming the seller -- she was super nice on the phone and the phone was shipped very quickly. That being said it wasn't in new condidition, someone tried to cover that up (on the outside) and I find it odd that customs would have Samsung "DO NOT ACCEPT IF SEAL IS BROKEN" stamps. I wonder who really put the new seal on top of the old seal. :confused:

But I still feel bad if I in any way slandered them (which I obviously clearly have). Especially if was incorrect in my reason for doing so.


Still interested to hear more comments about your counts and/or methods for checking a phone and/or what you would do in my case.

looking at my s5 box, which i purchased from my mobile carrier EE (one of the biggest service providers in the UK)
you can see in the picture I've taken I have a second broken seal sticker. nothing to worry about bro, test all the phones features to make sure they work and check for scratches etc.. if all is ok, you have yourself a good 8 core s5, now stop being so paranoid lol enjoy your phone!:victory:
IMAGE OF MY BOX
 
  • Like
Reactions: alex_tytn

alex_tytn

Member
Jul 31, 2008
34
1
What you can do is edit your previous posts - add a note or remove the names...

:good: DONE in the post and picture.

looking at my s5 box, which i purchased from my mobile carrier EE (one of the biggest service providers in the UK)
you can see in the picture I've taken I have a second broken seal sticker. nothing to worry about bro, test all the phones features to make sure they work and check for scratches etc.. if all is ok, you have yourself a good 8 core s5, now stop being so paranoid lol enjoy your phone!:victory:
IMAGE OF MY BOX

Wow. THANK YOU!

I guess that I need to stop reading so much conspiracy stuff. Actually I just Google'd "conspiracy theories" and have a lot of studying to do -- there are millions of them!!!

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_conspiracy_theories

:eek:
 
Last edited:

polish_pat

Senior Member
Nov 30, 2011
1,823
488
Montreal
Guys, there are no refurb S5's on the market unless it has been repaired by some seller himself and resold. Refurbed units have not yet had time to go through the refurbishing cycle which takes close to 2 months. If any of you had their phone broken by something covered under warranty, you'd all get a new unit provided by your carrier and not a refurbed unit.

All of you that bought on ebay simply bough a used unit sold as new.
 

alex_tytn

Member
Jul 31, 2008
34
1
Guys, there are no refurb S5's on the market unless it has been repaired by some seller himself and resold. Refurbed units have not yet had time to go through the refurbishing cycle which takes close to 2 months. If any of you had their phone broken by something covered under warranty, you'd all get a new unit provided by your carrier and not a refurbed unit.

All of you that bought on ebay simply bough a used unit sold as new.

Good points.

One bad thing about having an octacore in the US is that Samsung won't support it. As soon as you tell them the IMEI (required to open a case) they tell you to call someone else.
 

polish_pat

Senior Member
Nov 30, 2011
1,823
488
Montreal
Good points.

One bad thing about having an octacore in the US is that Samsung won't support it. As soon as you tell them the IMEI (required to open a case) they tell you to call someone else.

Yeah, it makes sense. But thats not Samsung's fault. The carriers push samsung to act that way. In canada, you never have to deal with Samsung, you simply call your carrier, tell them your phone is not working, and if after their basic troubleshooting steps the phone still doesn't work, they send you a new or refurbished unit with a return box to send back your defective unit. It's much better that way as you have no down time. Also, it means no matter if your phone is rooted and you fried your cpu because you dont know how to overclock, samsung never has to approve of the return. I know that because i fried my s3 by overvolting and overclocking my phone and i still got a unit provided by my carrier.

Sent from my Galaxy S5
 

TheArtiszan

Senior Member
Jun 12, 2009
1,122
133
Thanks for the advice about this program.
I got a replacement just today from T-Mobile and wanted to see if it was refurbished or not and my counts are 80 on headset and 260 on charger.
So that answers my question.
So much for the expectation of a new one they told me.
If it don't fix the wifi calling issue that line had it will be going back.
 

fabdancr1

New member
May 4, 2011
1
0
Phone Info app was helpful

I'm thankful to see this thread today. I just got a Galaxy Tab 12.2. When i turned it on it didn't go through the normal setup. Then I found the device name was "Ballsac Bob Cannon."

Before thinking too much about that I changed the device name. I was connected to my work network and felt the device name might be considered inappropriate.

When i got home, i fianlly started trying to use the device. It was so slow! I found ,myself waiting on everything . For a high end device like this, thats a problem.

So this morning I took to xda to find out if there is a way to tell if it was used. I used the Phone Info app. The charger has been connected over 40 times!!! And the refurb check shows its refurb or not genuine....

FWIW, the headset counter also said two. A previous poster commented this might be normal.

Also, i got to looking at the list of wifi networks. Its been connected to "amzn-guest."

Looks like I'm calling Amazon today!
 

Top Liked Posts

  • There are no posts matching your filters.
  • 2
    How much did you pay?

    Have you checked that everything works properly? Knox flag status in download mode?

    Download the app Phone INFO and check the counters there (headset connect and charger connect), also check the manufacturing date or anything else that could be fishy.
    1
    I have 2 questions about an S5 that I bought on eBay.
    1. How can I tell if it is a refurbished/reconditioned/used model?
    2. Does what the seller told me sound fishy?
    #1. Refurb?

    There used to be an RTN menu on other Samsung devices -- you could get to it by dialing ##786# or *#*#786#*#* but that doesn't work on my G900H S5. You also used to be able to get to it by adding com.android.hiddenmenu to some custom launcher but that doesn't work on my S5.

    There are many working hidden configuration/diagnostic dialer options that work for me like the service menu - *#0*# But that's not telling me what I want to know.

    Any advice to definitely confirm that my device is a reconditioned, refurbished or used phone? Can I tell if it was ever registered on Google Play?

    #2. Fishy eBay seller?

    Cutting to the chase...

    I bought an SM-G900H (Galaxy S5 Octacore) from an eBay seller with 20 to 1 positive reviews and thousands of sales so I was feeling good that everything would be OK. Unfortunately, the phone was clearly used and the seller told me that it was not but that this is normal for the box to be opened so that the phone can be checked for counterfit and/or carrier lock.

    Have you ever heard of this? Does this make sense?

    I'm not posting the sellers name because I don't want to disparage their reputation in case it is just me being paranoid.

    The phone arrived and I noticed that the one sticker looked a little funny and it was already cut so I proceeded with extreme caution.

    The first thing that I noticed was that the protective cover on the front had an air pocket. (This is my 4th S5 so I'm an expert at unboxing by this point.)
    14228618803_b888883b7c_b.jpg


    Next, I turned it over and notice that the protective cover on the back had been off for sure -- in fact it was even torn!
    14021798079_ff1f06a8e4_b.jpg


    But I went ahead and put in the battery without touching the protective covers. The phone powered up 63% battery and went straight to the home screen -- no prompts to set language, nothing. IT WAS ALREADY SET UP!

    Finally, I looked closer and noticed that the "do not accept if this seal is broken" seal had actually been cut and someone carefully put another larger sticker on top to cover that up.
    14208461905_b74a04f5f0_b.jpg


    So, I requested a return from eBay and Jenny called to explain that my phone was 100% new and that it is normal for foreign phones to be opened by customs (later changed to "Samsung distribution center") in order to "make sure they are not counterfeit." I asked her about all the items and she answered the questions by talking and talking. She told me that phones need to be checked to make sure they are not carrier locked. I countered each with more questions and she told me more stuff.

    I asked about the sticker and how customs would have similar Samsung stickers to use when they opened the boxes. She changed to the "Samsung distribution center" and said it was normal. I said that it was a foreign phone so Samsung USA doesn't have anything to do with it, right? She changed the subject to ask if I knew about Beats headphones and told me that there is a huge counterfeit market for these and that all of them are opened.

    I asked why it was already set up -- she said they needed to start it completely in order to check the carrier lock.

    I asked why the protective cover would need to be removed to turn on the phone and check it as I didn't need to do this to turn it on.

    Our conversation went on like this for 17 minutes.

    In the end, I said nothing but did actually feel a little better about keeping the phone then I went to bed and now it's a new day.


    DOES THIS SOUND FISHY TO YOU?

    HAVE YOU EVER HEARD SUCH A THING?

    WHAT WOULD YOU ADVISE ME TO DO?
    1
    Thanks for the updates.

    OOOPS! :eek:

    Now I feel bad about naming the seller -- she was super nice on the phone and the phone was shipped very quickly. That being said it wasn't in new condidition, someone tried to cover that up (on the outside) and I find it odd that customs would have Samsung "DO NOT ACCEPT IF SEAL IS BROKEN" stamps. I wonder who really put the new seal on top of the old seal. :confused:

    But I still feel bad if I in any way slandered them (which I obviously clearly have). Especially if was incorrect in my reason for doing so.


    Still interested to hear more comments about your counts and/or methods for checking a phone and/or what you would do in my case.

    looking at my s5 box, which i purchased from my mobile carrier EE (one of the biggest service providers in the UK)
    you can see in the picture I've taken I have a second broken seal sticker. nothing to worry about bro, test all the phones features to make sure they work and check for scratches etc.. if all is ok, you have yourself a good 8 core s5, now stop being so paranoid lol enjoy your phone!:victory:
    IMAGE OF MY BOX