Re: bad esn#

Brad.

Anyone calling Sprint Customer Service number should know that they can only tell you whether the phone is on an account or not. A phone listed as Fraud or Lost-Stolen does not show that status until an esn swap is started.

So wait.. I thought they used the esn number to activate the actual phone. If i give them the number to a different phone, can they still 'mistakenly' activate the lost/stolen phone?? B/c this esn thing is the only thing keeping me from using my new paid for phone!!!

Curses to Sprint!!! I'm so tired of their reps giving me the wrong information over the phone. I wouldn't have been telling people to verify the ESN for months and months if they would have told me what you said when I called to ask them myself. Sprint was like, "Oh yeah no problem we'll let you know if it can be activated". I am inclined to take your word for it since lately it seems like some of our regular members know more about Sprint services than their own CS reps know (especially the ones outsourced to India, they don't know jack. Hang up on them and call retentions, you'll always get an American in retentions!)

I just won a Sprint Palm Treo 650 Pda on Ebay (seems like I am on the same sinking ship as anyone else, but...). I knew that it had a bad ESN, which is fine because I have a great cell phone already. I am wondering if anyone that has purchased the same useless cell phone and uses it just as a PDA and if that part, as it stated in the sale "works great" ?

Please let me know, as I have been reading so much of the thread, but have yet to read anything about its use as just a 'great PDA.'

Thanks much!!!!!!!

Michele

PS: I have yet to receive this useless Bad esn beast, but I am still wondering if I should just take a hammer to it, or even ignore UPS' attemp to deliver lol.

THanks again gang!!!!!!!

PS again: why not give Sprint a bad name seeing they are such losers anyhow? They should pay for letting people sell their phones, etc on any venue, especially a place such as Ebay! They need a wake up call and from what I have read, their customers are not so happy with them or their service. Maybe it is time to settle up with them.

Just my untoward opinion. I am mad, and haven't even tried it yet lol.

Peace!!! Michele

How do you know the esn is bad,
and why would anyone buy a bad esn, and then be mad at the carrier???

I am not 'mad' about the bad esn part. I am mad, now that have received it, that I got had. Not because of the bad ESN, I knew that part already. I bought it for the purpose of using it as a PDA for work. Now I have a bigger issue with the company: the fact that they lied about what it would come with. It was supposed to come with a battery (guess they forgot that part) and a charging base (forgot to pack that too!).

You obviously didn't read right, or you would have seen that I knew about the bad ESN. I was asking someone about its use as a PDA only.

Thanks for not responding properly to my thread!

Michele

bad esn thread Give Sprint a bad name???Sprint needs a wake up call??? bad esn thread
I did read that you bought a bad esn.
I asked why because this thread is about a bad esn, not PDA

I broke the screen on my Treo 650, and after looking at new screen prices I saw a bunch of "bad ESN" phones on ebay being sold for parts. In my haste to get a new screen for less, plus a new battery, charger and stylus I purchased one.

I have it and the parts work fine, but I am having concerns that many of these bad ESN phones were stolen and that I shouldn't have purchased it.

Any thoughts?

i had a LG PM-225 and it got dropped in water and doesn't work anymore. i had insurance on it but couldn't afford the $50 at the time so i change the number over to an old phone i had just so i could use it. two months later i called to get the insurance on it and sprint said i couldn't because i was past the time period on deactivated phones. so now im looking on ebay for a used one because i have everything i need for it. i get the ESN # but when i call sprint they just say that the ESN has been cancel but still active on someone elses account. how can that be. is there anything you guys can suggest i do? are there good phones out there or is sprint running a scam so no one buys used phones and have to buy the way overpriced new ones.

Hello, Is there away to protect myself from buying a sprint treo off ebay. I trying to avoid buying a ph with a bad ESN. Also, if I get a bad esn is it possible to activate the ph requardless? Thanks

sadsack: ask for the ESN from the seller, if its clear and u receiver a phone with a different ESN u can dispute

Thanks this helps.

I tell this to anyone buying a used Sprint phone: Unless you know the person very well, I wouldn't do it. While there are some sellers on Ebay who disclose that the phone they are selling has a bad ESN#, there may be others who don't.